Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1909-04-01
FLOODS AND the KANSAS RIVERS.
CHAPTER III.
Application.


ready enumerated and TO bring abou
| By 4 variety of coercion a set Of con
ditions which will In a measure de
| crease the extent Of floods, and there
| By lessen the destruction Of life ant
property in river valleys durini
| hood periods, is the end sought b,
all Investigations and All improv
tnents undertaken, as outlined earlier
| Id this PAPER. The END sought b.
dineEent parties Is the same, and
there should be a unanimity and CO
| operation In our efforts.
Floods are caused primarily by ex'
cesssiye and Irregular rainfall, a state.
| inent SO simple that few people rea-
lie It's Importance. Were our an
hual precipitation uniform week BY
week and month by month the river
channels now on the face. OF the earth
probably are abundantly large to
Carry ali the precipitation back to
ocean Without overhowins the banks
of d single stream. But rainfall ia
most Irregular and combinations OF
this irregulatity are almost infinitely
variable. Could our heavy rains
come all at once over the entire
DRAINAGE area of a stream 80 that
they would produce the maximum
eject our floods would be many
times more disastrous than they are.
For example, throughout the Missis-
sippi valley, 1t is by no means unus-
ual for as much as four inches Of
rain to fall within period of forty
eight hours and in many places rain
Of two or three inches sometimes
falls within period of one hour.
who can calculate the results should
we have a precipitation Of four
inches throughout the entire Mis-
sissippi river drainage area within
the same period OF forty-eight hours?
The foods would so far exceed any
thing that has ever been known by
man that we can hardly conceive of
the disaster which would follow. But
fortunately for mankind the rain
falls are irregular, and during the
short period of the white mans in
habitance of the Mississippi valley no
instance has been known when all of
the great tributaries Of the Missis-
sippi river we're at their highest flood
at the same time.
Instead of four inches of rain,
sometimes we have six, or eight, or
ten, or even more, over small areas
within a very short time. One ex-
IRENE case came under my observa-
ton during the past summer. A rel
atively small area in northeastern
Kansas lying north Of the Kansas
river and principally east of the Blue
river received total precipitation Of
forty-five inches within period OF
Ave months, nearly all of which
came within two months, and in
some instances from four to six
inches came within as many hours.
The little town of Frankfort in Mar
shall county is situated on small
stream less than two miles from its
source, and the thought of danger
from foods apparently never oc-
CURED to its citizens when the town
was first located. But during the
early summer Of 1908 one Of those
terrific transforms came which COW
sred the whole surface with from
four to six inches of water and the
little stream was utterly incapable
If carrying water away as fast as 1t
should have done. AS a result, the
streets Of Frankfort were flooded,
parts of the village which presum-
IDLY we're on high ground were in
and even a passing freight
rain carrying live stock was strand
ID and the live stock drowned while \
he cars were standing on the track.
1t is a combination of such ex-
RENE cases of rainfall that produces
,ur foods. If they have occurred In
he past, they may occur in the fu-
.ure and no matter what the i'm
may be, or how many
powers may be called into existence,
low and then as time progresses
hese unfavorable combinations will
,ccur and food conditions will exist
ar beyond the control Of man. So
ong as we are unable to control the
'ainfall and compel It to come some
What at our pleasure Just that long
ioods will come, river valleys will
,e covered with water, property will
,e destroyed and human lives lost.
Unfortunately, science has not yet
the fundamental princi-
lies of meteoralogy. No basic
are known upon which
nay rest long range predictions Of
'alnfall. We do not know whether
text year win be wet or dry, and II