The Topeka state journal., 1903-06-18
MR.. BURTON'S SCHEME.
Talks About Prevention of Floods to
Kansas City Audience.

Kansas city Audience.
Senator J. r. Burton went down to
Kansas City from Topeka last night to
speak before the Kansas City Advertis-
ing Mems club at its banquet at the
4 Baltimore. He talked about Floods and
/ Irrigation, ana ne presented some
strong al Iguments in favor of the plan
/ OF system of canals leading into srOr-
age reservoirs around the headquarters
OF all the streams on the plains for the
purpose of conserving the flood waters
instead of allowing them to sweep down
I the valleys and destroy property of eV-
cry description. Among other things he
said:
The floods of the United states de-
stroy more property every year than do
/ the fires, and While the energy of the
nation states and cities is centered in
guarding against loss BY fire. no pro-
lection is given the people from the
/ floods of the mighty rivers.
Millions upon millions of dollars have
been expended by the government in the
/ construction and maintenance Of leVees
along the lower reaches Of the Mississip-
pi and, in fact to points above the city
of St. Louis. Those vast sums of mon
ey have been worse than wasted, for the
effect upon the great stream has been
to raise it upon a ridge SO that there
are many places IN Louisiana Where
from the lower deck of d steamer one
! can see farmers plowing in fields that
actually lie below the surface Of the
From the city Of Cairo to the mouth
the Mississippi has a fall Of three inches
to the mile. and the process that has
I been started by the systems of dikes
continues today and Will continue until
some more reasonable means are adopt
ed to prevent the flooding of the low
lands.
Thirty years ago there were falls and
rapids all along the Kaw, but today,
thanks to the fact that large quantities
| of sediment have been washed into the
stream, the rapids are thing of the
past.
THE question at once suggests itself:
If the leVee system cannot prevent
floods, is there any means that can be
taken to do so?
/ trolled The constant washing of water
cut through a wall of granite l saw
few days ago that was 1.500 feet high
and so hard that a chisel could not
make an impression upon it in the hand
of man. 1t is the most powerful force
in nature. Fire has to yield to It ana
the works of man are as nothing to \
mighty rush of angry water
Mankind, and especially American
mankind dislikes to admit defeat even
by irresistible elements. and the ques-
ton at once arises. What is the rem
edy2
Near my home town of Abilene there
is a little creek emptying into the kaW.
Ten inches of rain fell in the catchn1ent
area Of this creek and as result ir
doomed and Abilene was nearly de,
stroyed. The rush Of the waters Of
Mud creek helped to swell the kaw
and helped to devastate Kansas City
and further along the river St Louis
and the low towns. The plan | would
suggest is to construct a system of
canals to lead the surplus water into
reservoirs, where they may be shut II
until it is the pleasure of the pecple
that they shall be released. There are
many depressions and basins that woula
make perfect natural reservoirs and the
canals need not BE of the depth of the
irriga ton canals Of the arid regions.
and by that much the less costly. I
would like to see them built along the
whole course of the Missouri river anu
its tributaries.
but on the other hand take the property
loss alone in this last flood which is
estimated now to be in the neighbOr-
hood of $25 600 600 in the KaW valley
canals could be built for only a few
millions more than that figure. I want
to ask that an organization be formed
to get exact data of the losses in the
Kaw valley so that they may be placed
before the government. I want the
government to build these storage res
ervOirs, but in order to get the matter
properly before congress it viii be nee
essary to have the figures to present
and the exact facts to back them up. l
think the government may then author
lZe an FeSllSatl00 OF the whole mat
ter and survey of the region with 4
view Of determining the cost of the i'm
Drovennent.
We know that man can control still
water and we know that he cannot con-
troll rushing water. The only question
that remains is whether it is cheaper to
lose the amount of the flood damages
each year OF protect against them If
the congressional investigation shows
that the people will save by the expen-
diture, there viii be no opposition to
the passa ge of the bill. The plan is not
new and does not originate with me.
but it is twin plan with the movement
that has been started to preserve for
ests and construct great irrigation re-
servoirs in the arid districts for the con-
serving of flood waters.
Tt would only cost about S2a0. 600 to
equip the catchment area about Mud
creek with system of flood water ca
nails and reservoirs and judging from
that estimate the total costEofs the whole
work would not be as heavy as the