The Jimplecute. (Jefferson, Tex.) 18??-1907, 1904-12-31
SHREVEPORT WATER WORKS
DAM


Morris sheppard's bill repeating
the act of February 9th, 1901, the
JIMPLEcUTE, however, seems to be
very silent on the subject, but one
editorial has appeared SO far on
the subject. The Editor of the
Times, of course, is dealing with
subject he does not know anything
about when be writes about when
he writes about Cypress Bayou and
the Lakes, judging from the arti-
Giles which have appeared from
time to time, either this, or he is
stranger to truth. In the Times
of December 7th., they say that
Twelve Mile Bayou has long been
closed to navigation and that the
Jefferson people hope that in some
mysterious way it would again be-
come navigable" that very next
day read in the Times where
team of mules in crossing Twelve
Mile Bayou on ferry boat become
frightened and drowned in ID feet
of water. Which is the truth?
1t reads to me like H. Rider Hag.
gard novels, and the Jefferson PEG.
pie better be on their guard if
imaginative statements in place of
facts count for anything with Con.
gress, like some of the Shreveport
people seem to think. They have
already got a statement from R. A.
Munson, Superintendent of the
Texarkana Waterworks where he
is quoted as saying, 81 am conf
dent that the bill will be defeated
as it is foolish to say that Jeffer-
son is on a navigable stream"
Now where did he "get on' 80 full
of information, it seems like we
are furnishing both Shreveport and
Texarkana with water and now
some of the citizens of Jefferson
actually wants to bore an artesian
well for their waterworks, we
ought to be satisfied with what our
neighbors are satisfied with, only
we want to dump our garbage be-
low our pumping station.
Now on what grounds are the
Shreveport people going to be able
to defeat the Sheppard bill when it
comes to facts, will they try to
prove that we have had no naviga-
ton since cutting out the Red
River raft? This argument will
soon disappear because records
here will show that hundreds of
steamboats, loaded both ways piled
the river some carrying 1900 bales
of cotton from Jefferson to New
Orleans. The "Times" of Deem.
Der 7th., says that 1.-The building
of extensive levees have ruined
our navigation" If this is the
truth the Louisiana Levee Board
have violated the laws our country
for no one can place any obstruc.
ton in any navigable stream that
would in any way interfere with
navigation.
To show you in what ridiculous
light that the Shreveport Times
has placed itself in the recent ut.
terances on this subject, I wish to
quote you from an issue of the
same paper under date of Septem-
Der 2Sth., 1902, In which Mr..
Frank M. Kerr, of the Louisiana
State Boards of Engineers has this
to say about upper Red River
The Red River of to-day and it is
with it that we are most concerned
may, IN my mind, be reckoned as
a shining example of the survival
of the fittest. The present plans
of the Government contemplate
continuing the improvement of Red
River between Fulton, Ark =,
thence to the mouth of the Kiami.
chi River. Indian Territory, while
the returns in commerce might
not be great, yet if boats were to
run on upper Red River it would
immediately result in the reduc.
ton of railroad rates to competitive
points, and this alone would prove
of incalculable benefit to Shreve-
port. From Fulton to Shreveport
the distance is 1873 miles. For a
large proportion OF this distance
the lands along the banks are pro-
tected from overhows by levees
and the greater part of them are
under cultivation and are very pro-
ductive. The River is navigable at
nearly all stages of even low water.
The citizens of Paris, Texas, have
secured the right of way for rail-
road to run from that point to
Hook Ferry and when the road is
completed, they will put on line
of boats to run between Hook