Omaha daily bee., 1907-02-04
WORK FOR MISSOURI RIVER
Henry t. Clarke. Tells of Efforts to
Secure Money for Improvement
of waterway.


OMAHA, Feb. 2-'To the Editor Of The
Bee: l notice in The Bee your remarks as
to the action of the national rivers and
harbors committed in authorizing an ex-
penditure Of $4,000 TOR the Improvement of
the Missouri river. 4 am much pleased that
they have appropriated that amount OF
money. We got 80 little results from the
large appropriation made IN the SOS, under
the Missouri River commission, trying to
make a permanent Improvement from the
mouth of the river north. The engineers
canped at Lexington. Mo-, some eight years
and expended about S6,0e0c00 with very 1T
tie results practically tangible today and
secured very little e6irmerce largely from
the fact that the fhsrcKAnts in the large
cities on the Missouri river were receiving
large rebates. from Is to 10 per cent. to in
duce them to ship over the different roads
and drive out steamboat navigation, so that
l do not criticize Mp Burton or his COM
mittee- foV the Indifference they have had
towards the Missouri rive of late years
talked to him and the gentlemen of his
committee. and General Mckenzie, chief
engineer OF the army and they feel as II
the work on this river had been great
failure I am fully of the impression that
ii is impossible to, make permanent i'm
provements on this river, but do think IL
is practical to make this the greatest of
all rivers for navigation by very little work
on the part Of the government by the use
or steamers and barges, and dredges. and
machinery. I do not think that we will
meet with much difficulty today from snags
above Kansas City. unless II may be a few
around Jacksons Point, Mo. The timber
has been eliminated by the owners for com
merce, and in their absence by the scav-
engers for sale for lumber and wood. This
river should be treated as you would
country road. directing fits channel to pro-
tect the banks from erosions. and cutting
through the sandbars to allow the current
to follow same instead OF around the circle
and thereby deepening the channel We
have better river today than we had fifty
years ago. l speak from observation.
You win remember that we organised
! here a River Improvement association, in
November. 1903, the people OF South Dakota,
Iowa and Missouri Joining US in the under
taking, and was fairly well represented
] from the several states, at which time
Major Chittehden. the engineer in charge,
plead hard for preserving this river for
navigation Senator Willard, Mr.. Hitch
cock and others spoke earnestly for the
success Of the undertaking. They favored
! the writer with the presidency OF the as
ISOLATION, and they endeavored to have as
| full an attendance as we could TO meet
with the committee on rivers and harbors
at Washington during the session OF con-
gress. Sioux City, St. Joseph and other
points on the Missouri gathered there
Senator Willard. Mr.. Hitchcock and the
members of congress from South Dakota
and western Iowa, with the writer, met
with Mr. Burton and his committee. We
/ did not get much encouragement. Senator
| Willard and Mr. Hitchcock had told US
! that there was very little chance for an
appropriation that winter. As president OF
the Missouri River association. com
municated with Governor Van SAINT, chair
man OF the Upper Mississippi River I'm
provement association, and the gentlemen
in charge of the Lower Mississippi Inn
provement association asking that they
meet in Washington on the 18th OF the
January following which they did. Gov
ernor Van SAINT and others found that there
| would be very small appropriations to take
charge OF the work. well under way. to
keep the same from being damaged by
neglect.
The writer spent much time listening
to the pleadinss In behalf OF the repre-
sentatives from the different sections OF
country from the Atlantic to the Pacific,
the upper lakes to the gulf. pleading in
dividuany for the several undertakings
which they were interested In. We were
pleading largely for the Strengthening OF
the river. and to protect the banks from
erosions IN the line OF a resolution which
I had offered TO the Transmississippl Com
mercial congress at Seattle In 1908. I was
much interested in the pieadings of the
people from the lower Mississippi river,
asking for some t5.0oo,oOO to make their
levees strong that they could with safety
go forward ana reclaim some 100000
acres OF the nne cotton land in lower
Mississippi aud Louisiana. Senator Burton
and his committee had not encouraged us
in protection. 90 that We felt a. II we
had a friend in the lower Mississippi river
people. l realised while In Washington. be-
fore that committee that instead OF the
different sections OF country being IN
Washington like we OF the Missouri river
with our ten senators and corresponding