New Iberia enterprise and independent observer. (New Iberia, La.) 1902-1944, 1904-07-30
SPANISH LAKE OR LAKE TASSE

What | learned from observation
and experience by twenty five wears
residence within mile of the lake
while residing on the keystone plan
tation.
Twenty five years ago the water on
the lake had depth of from three
| feet in spots to twelve feet in general
| i'll the winter or spring season, with a
surface of some four square miles on
the west side with the bank rising
gradually from the shore to an eleva-
| ton of probably ten feet at distance
of say one quarter of a mile from the
lake, while on the east and south sides
there was marsh extending from
half a mile to more than mile from
the lake to the solid cultivable land.
The marsh was owned and is still
owned by the adjoining land owners
The Lady of the Lake plantations
Keystone plantation, Ozene Segura
plantation, Wyche plantation and
others, amounting i'll the aggregate to
some thousands of acres The marsh
was covered with an immense growth
of grass of two to four feet high in
summer and had a large number of
open spots or ponds of water that re-
manned open the whole year and some
DOGGY places ON which man could
not walk. But great change has
taken place since then. An immense
growth of the large water lilies have
grown up in the lake and have been
spreading until now there are some
hundreds of acres covered with them
and SO closely together in places that
a skiff cannot be rowed through them
and the water hyacinths are there
also in great abundance the large
leaves and stems of he big water lilies
and the hyacinths in the lake and the
immense growth of grass on the marsh
are all killed by the frosts of winter
and die down there to be renewed
again by the following summer growth
while the cultivated lands adjoining
are being drained by bitches into the
AXE and marsh leaving their deposits
% remain there, thus by the immut-
lble process of change the bed of the
axe is rising and the marsh is filing
Up until now the pond holes are no !,
onger there and there is only about
lalf the depth of water in the lake of ;;
wenty years ago. The DOGGY |
'laces formerly i'm the marsh have :
early all become solid so that cattle
an Craze everywhere and many acres
t the DOGGY marsh is now under cul- >
walton.
Where cattle and horses became
ogged and died fifteen years ago
lille seeking for water on the Lady !,
the Lake plantation, John de La |,
lire now has crop Of rice growing c.
nd he grew crop of rice there last :
EAR also. l am informed that the
lit Edge Dairy farm of Michael De-
lane ON the south side was formerly
| marsh and the present cut off road
so.
There is no inlet flow of water TO
e lake. | have never seen any
rings OF water to supply it nor
und any one to show them, although
have looked and inquired of others to
shown, hence, conclude that the
ly water supply is from rains from
water SIZED of some ten or twelve
uare miles, therefore in times of
avy rains the water surface Of the
Ike rises while in a drouth it re-
les. Now how any act of the Leg ri
ature can establish water level
the lake as asked for, is for the pro-
tiers of the act to explain. col
Some twenty years ago the subject p.'
pc
slack water navigation for the upper ma
che was agitated with this lake as "
res
eeder aud survey was made BY ine
J u. $. Engineers, but Major Huer 'e'
the e. S. Engineers informed me =.
er tina. he had made an exhaustive
-estigation Of the subject aud had
de an adverse report to the author
IS in Washington have not heard
any renewal of the subject since
on close investigation the people AL
New Iberia will never adopt the
e water for their supply, for while
lake water itself is pure rain
ter it is constantly filed with par