Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-04-23
TO SAVE THE RIVERS
Purpose of Proposed Appala-
chan Forest Reserve.
PREVENTION OF FRESHETS
Reservoirs Proposed for Storing Sur
plus Waters.
REGULATION OF THE STREAMS
Manufacturers Much Interested in
the Observation-Disclosures De-
pendent on River Power.
PREVENTION OF FREsHETs
REGULATION OF THE STREAMS
BY WILLIAM f.. CURTIS.

BY WILLIAM f.. CURTIS.
SPECIAL Correspondenre Of The Star and the
Chicago Record Herald.
| ATLANTA. April II. 1905.
Gov. Hoke Smith tells me that the people
of Georgia and other parts of the south
are taking a deep interest in the bill now
pending before Congress TO create a ma
tional forest reserve in the Appalachian
range and are watching with anxiety for
its enactment 1t is matter Of great
| economic Importance for the industries of
the south. as we'll as a factor in their
transportation problem. Nearly all of the
cotton factories in this section are run by
water power furnished by streams that
have their sources in the forests which it
| Is proposed to preserve. and the future
water supply depends very largely on
their preservation. At the same time the
government has expended 100000. 600 to
| improve navigation upon the rivers that
rise in those forests. and the work al
ready undertaken will cost at least So
100000 to complete. This does not include
| the Ohio and the Tennessee and other
| northern rivers which receive their sup
ply from the same forests. and upon
which more than $6.0Ooooo has already
| been spent to secure a channel for the
fatboats upon which the coal is fioated
| from the Pennsylvania mines to the cities
in the Mississippi valley
Every spring. when the snow melts and
the heavy showers fall in the mountains
| these rivers are transformed into roaring
| torrents and food of water rushes to
the sea. carrying away every obstacle and
often causing serious losses. The damage
and suffering from this source is not so
great as 1t is along tine northern rivers,
but II Is sufficient every year almost to
| pay for the purchase Of the land which
is included within the proposed reserva-
| ton.
presented to the committees Of Congress
| not long ago by Gov. Hoke Smith and
4 other southern men In connection with
similar committees from the northern
states. They submitted plans and es-
| Inmates prepared by hydraulic engineers
which they believe will preserve for
ever the water power that is such an
imperative necessity to the manufactur-
| ing industries Of this section. which will
| also secure and maintain navigable chan
fnels upon several of the southern rivers
| from the agricultural districts and indus
| trial centers to the sea. and effectually
| protect the towns and cities along the
river banks from the annual inunda-
| tons.
To Preserve Navigation.
They propose first the preservation of the
forests. which will keep the ground on
| the MOUNTAIN SiOeS pOTOuS SO tndt IL Will
no longer shed the rainfall like roof,
but will soak it up and release it grad
ually through the innumerable springs
| and. second. they propose to establish
| storage reservoirs at convenient points
| which will retain the surplus that only
| does damage when the water is not need
| ed either for navigation or for power
and release It little by little in the dry
| season when the streams are always low
| During several months of the summer the
| steamboat lines upon these southern
| rivers are compelled to suspend opera
| tons and. indeed. most of the companies
| have been compelled to abandon business
| because the season of navigation is SO
| limited. The government cannot main
| tain even four-foot channel throughout
the dry months OF the year. The ex-
penditures to secure such channels. which
| have been already more than $3O.OOo.UU,
| have practically been wasted because
there is no means of controlling the flow
of the water. There is either too much of
it or too little.
vessels can find open navigation up and
down. the rivers. But they are always
| followed by periods of low wafer, In
which navigation is always difficult and
often impossible. Were the flow uniform
| the channel already dredged would be
sufficient. and the engineers believe that
| the construction of few reservoirs IN
which the floods of melted snow and the
heavy rainfall in the spring could be
| stored would solve this problem at a cost
even less than the expenditures which
now fail to accomplish their purpose:
Another very important factor in the
problem is to prevent the channels from
| being filled up with silt that is brought
down from the mountain sides by the rush
| of waters. The amount of surface sill
washed from the bare slopes in the south
| ern Appalachans is enormous, and 1t not
| only denudes the mountains of fertile soil.
| but 11o "a oh rivers and
compels the government to keep Its
dredges continually at work.
This can be prevented by preserving the
forests which furnish protection to the
| soil and prevent the floods from washing
| ii into the rivers. The canopy of leaves
| and limbs not only breaks the force OF
| the heavy rainfall and allows the water
| to reach the ground gently. but keeps
| the soil in a loose condition, covered with
a litter of leaves. and protects 1t from
| the direct rays of the sun, which bake the
surface into a crust through which the
moisture cannot penetrate.
| A Good Illustration.
The Savannah river i'm the spring of the
| year is navigable far Petersburg. n
| distance of fOrty-eight miles above the
city of Augusta. in high water. and has
| all the possibilities of great commercial
| highway in competition with the railway
| lines. 1t never freezes over. and but for
| the irregularity of the water ii might be
made navigable for three hundred and
| sixty-five days in the year.
| The Savannah river therefore. presents
one of the best Illustrations to demon
strate what might be done by restraining
the spring floods in reservoirs. The gov
eminent has already expended nearly
| three-quarters of a million dollars in try
| ing to maintain siX-foot channel. but
during low water the boatmen cannot
rely upon more than three feet. There
| fore the stream Is practically useless for
navigation purposes. and all that, money
has been virtually wasted. Furthermore.
the longer present conditions continue the
worse II will be. The surveys Of the
engineers show tnat by constructing four
| teen reservoirs at sites that have already
been selected they can control the drain
age Of 1870 square miles and retain suf-
ticient water to maintain a depth OF nine
| feet for q period of lis days and not less
| than five feet for the rest of the year
| II that can be done it would make the
Savannah river very important thor
| ouEhfare and reduce the cost Of carrying
| to market the cotton of very large
area in that section of the country.
Manufacturers Interested.
The manufacturers are equally inter
ested Mater power is absolutely neces-
sary for the present and the future in
dustrial development of the south. where
more water Is used to turn wheels than
in any other part of the United States
Its future value and usefulness are beyond
calculation. According to the estimates