The Elbert County tribune., 1907-05-16
IN SWAMPs
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY POINTS
WAY TO RICHES.
Urges Reclamation Of Bottom Lands
Along Illinois River-Protection
OF Vast Area Would Greatly
Improve Values.

| Urbana. Iil-A hundred mill IN
dollars is a considerable sum even in
these days of big figures. That is.
however the approximate amonnt
| which the officers of the state gcoiog-
ical survey think might be added to
land values OF Illinois II the remain
ing swamp lands and lands subject to
overflow were properly reclaimed.
Even this large sum does not repre-
sent the maximum. since no account
has been taken OF the bottom lands
of the Illinois river. the reclamation
of which is necessarily incidental to
the development of the lakes-to. the
gulf deep water way.
Illinois already stand foremost
among the states in the area and
value of the lands which have been
drained. II Is partly because OF the
large amount of work which has al
ready been done that the big problems
remaining have become so prominent.
In Wayne county alone $1,000 acres
of land were flooded ten times In 1905.
IL times in 1906 and twice in the first
two months OF the present year.
In many portions of the state crops
on the bottom lands are lost once in
three and half years. and many
square miles have never been cleared
of the original brush and timber
During the last 30 years hundreds
of drainage districts have been
formed, depending ON the act OF 1879
and on amendments to It. These have
reclaimed hundreds of thousands OF
acres and enormously Increased the
value of the lands. The formation of
these districts depends on the CON
certed action of the majority of Land
owners in the area affected. and
grows difficult as the size Of the dis
trict increases. The problem now
before the people results from the
urgent necessity for river improve
ment in order that proper outlets may
be furnished to the existing drainage
works.
Conditions have been changed Tor
the worse along the bottom lands OF
the larger streams since the fields
have been drained and put under cul-
tivation. Heavy rains not only carry
much more loose soil to the main
streams and so overload them with
silt. but by reason of better drainage
the storm water reaches the main
channel more quickly and causes
greater and more frequent floods. The
increased silt and sediment raises
still higher the bed of the stream till
often it Is above the bottoms on either
side.
| When once flooded the water can
not drain back to the stream. but
stands in ponds on these low fields.
As result these lowlands. which II
protected and drained are the richest
| in the state, are salable only at a very
| low figure and home seekers go to the
| far south and west. buying really less
| desirable farms rather than undertake
| the reclamation of the wet bottoms
1t may be estimated that the lands
may be reclaimed at an average cost
| of not more than nine dollars per
acre, while the values would be raise
from an average OF $50 to $50. { :
the entire 1900 square miles, 1924 900
acres, this would give an increased
valuation of SIPS. 100000. Ten per
cent of the funds have already been
reclaimed and protected and have
proven to be among the most fertile
in the state.