The San Francisco call., 1904-08-06
MEN anahMAaTERS IN
THE ECRa lie WORLD
MON ME-

mark this summer is ten feet lower
than that of last season, nor is the
property loss comparable to that of d
year ago, when the damage wrought
exceeded 500, 0,0OO, 600 and when over 100
lives were sacrificed. But in permanent
Injury to the productive capacity of the
region it may well be that the river has
delivered a second blow as serious as
was the first The flood OF 1903 was
the greatest since 1874. Until a year
ago the valley of the Kaw was as fer
tile as any on this continent. For CEN
turies the strips of woodland along
the banks of the rived bed impeded the
rush of overfiows, and the silt that
built up the>rich land had been precipi-
tated. But under agriculture the trees
were gradually cut down, in many
cases right to the waters edge. The
result was inevitable. In its natural
course the river runs rather slowly
and with many windings through its
fat meadows. But when it overflowed
the water swept straight down the val
ley. Unimpeded by trees, it increased
its velocity, in some places cutting for
itself new channels, and for almost the
"
deeply eroded the river banks, but
played havoc with the valuable farm
lands. In some places the rich soil was
cut away to the barren sands or grav-
els: in others coarse sand was laid six
ard eight feet deep over the fields; in
still other places great holes were
gouged out and lakes formed acres in
extent. OF the $50, 900 acres Of remark
ably fertile lands, worth from 500 to
$3.50 an acre, which the valley con-
tanned, 5000 acres were completely de-
stroyed for agricultural purposes, 10000
acres more were damaged so per cent
OF their value, and the whole area was
greatly deprecated in value owing to
the general sense of Uncertainty as to
the future. That these fears for the
future were well founded the repetition
Of the disaster makes sufficiently plain.
But the condition of the citizens of
the valley is far from hopeless IL they
win put into active and general opera
ton plans for the protection and re-
clamation of their lands. The Bureau
of Forestry has devised systems of tree
planting for the river banks, the sand
covered lands and the deeply eroded
vent washing of the banks, to protect
the whole area from the full force of
floods and in time of overflow to check
the tendency to gully and cut new
channels. The last two systems of
planting are for ultimately reclaiming
the now destroyed lands and making
them produce in the meantime a valu-
able wood product while the work of
reclamation is going on.
The sanded lands are now useless for
crops, but will grow cottonwood, which
twenty years hence will make valuable
saWlogs In the meantime the trees
viii be reclaiming the land for field
crops This they will do partly by the
fertilizing effect of the decaying timber
litter But should the food waters re-
turn again the timber would very likely
be in a position to render much greater
service. Examination of the area af-
fected a year ago shows strikingly that
where protective grpwths of cottonwood
checked the rush of the current the
land beyond was generally covered not
with sand, but with silt, and is often
if anything more fertile than before.
With extensive planting of forest trees
another flood would undoubtedly bring
back at once to fertility much Of the
land which now has been made barren.
The Bureau of Forestry is now send
ing to the citizens of the Kaw Valley
a mimeographe circular of recommen-
dations for guidance in forest planting
on their damaged lands, in which it is
said:
Wherever the river has changed its
course and Strengthened it's channel
every possible effort should be put forth
to keep it straight. Much of the dam
age that was caused in the great flood
of 1903 is directly traceable to crooks
in the stream. The soft, bare banks
should be covered with willows at the
earliest possible moment to prevent the
stream from again becoming crooked.
In addition to the protection of the
caving river banks and the reclamation
of the sanded and eroded lands, the
landowners of the Kansas River Val
ley should Immediately cooperate to
secure continuous belts of timber 250
feet wide on both banks of the stream.
Such protective belts will be far more
serviceable than dikes of earth or ma
sonry in mitigating the destruction
that may occur from overfiows. The
future wealth and productiveness OF
the valley as a whole will be largely
dependent upon the practice of for
estry for protection against devasta-
ton by foods"