The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1910-01-07
DRAINAGE COMMISSION
MET IN GREENWOOD.
Greemweod end Lef,ore County Re-
affirm Their Former Position.

men OF the city, which was convene,
Monday at 2:3O In the afternoon at tn
league room. The object Of the meet
ing was to consider the plans of tn,
Tallahatchie Drainage Commission
which the members of the commission
were present to explain represented b,
DR.. 81. W. Crenshaw, the President o
the commission.
The Board of Supervisors adjourned
their meeting to attend. The board o
directors of the Business League were
present, and most Of the members O
the board Of mayor and aldermen
Prominent citizens from all parts of the
county came, as we'll as representative
men from the adjoining counties. Pres
ident Herrin and Secretary Hartshorr
of the Clarksdale Business League were
on hand with other members frou
Clarksdale.
President Henderson of our league al
2:50 p. m. and adjourned at 6 o'clock
when Greenwood and Leflore county
for the second time went on record as
finally and unalterably opposed to the
Tallahatchie Drainage Act of 1908 and
the work of it's commission. The mo-
tion of Hon. w. s. Barry, seconded by
Mr.. A. E. jennings, that we respect
fully decline to rescind our former ac-
tion taken at the November meeting
and further instruct that the chairman
request Governor Noel to submit drain
age question to the legislature at the
present special session." was unan.
imously carried.
A number of those present were
obliged to leave before adjournment,
but on leaving, sent to the chair their
opinion, which was in every case a
complete disapproval of the plans of
the commission and the legislative act
which created this body with such un-
limited power.
Last November when the Tallahatch-
ie Drainage Commission adopted a plan
of drainage for the lands of their dis
trict amounting to 100000 acres
which contemplated cutting off the
bends Of the rivers and would have re-
suited in raising the flood level here to
point that would have caused ire
parable damage to our lands, meeting
was held here at which resolutions
were unanimously adopted in opposi-
tion to their plan. Shortly after this,
DR.. Crenshaw visited our city and sub
mitted reports of consulting engineers,
stating that the commission had dis
carded their former plan, and would
adopt another, after which he asked
that special meeting be held here. 1t
was decided that all those who have
been SO active in their opposition to
the work Of the commission, including
the members of the Tallahatchie Pro-
tective Association, as well as those
citizens of Lefore and adjoining coun-
ties who are interested in and affected
by this gigantic scheme, should be in
vited.
The commission then officially adopt
ed the plan submitted to them by En-
gineer Morgan Of building a dam 40 to
45 feet high, and over a mile long in the
Coldwater River. The theory of this is
that this vast volume of water could
then be turned back into the Mississip-
pi at Horn Lake, assisted by the
bitches, which, in some places would
have to be cut as much as ITO feet deep.
When the meeting was called to Or
der Monday, President Henderson in
troduced DR.. Crenshaw, the president
of the commission, who with diagrams
and maps proceeded to explain the pur-
pose Of the commission and the feas-
ibiliJy of it's plans. He outlined the
proposed work at length, and insisted
that this county and section would not
be injured, but on the contrary that it
would be benefited and further that
the expense of all this work would not
be borne by Lefiore and the lower
counties, but by Tallahatchie county
and the four other counties comprised
in the Tallahatchie Drainage District.
non. Audley Stands, of Sardis, fol-
lowed DR.. Crenshaw and made an ell
oquent address in support of the plan.
Mr.. Stands gave as an illustration OF
the value Of the reclamation of lands
those owned by the Carrier Lumber Co.,
Of Sardis, which are at present Of prac-
tically no value to that corporation FOL
agricultural purposes, but drained
would be worth 500 an acre. He held
that the feasibility Of the plan has beer
approved by competent engineers. Mr.
Shands is brilliant speaker, and made
telling argument, being inspired b,
the honest enthusiasm that he has fol
this great project. He pointed on
that this water behind the dam in tn,
Coldwater river could be let dowl
through the food gate Of the dam il
such volume and 1T such time as t.
give our river at this point transporta
tion facilities all the year round, an,
that it would double the gauge for IL
days without : drop Of rain falling
Maj. T. g. Dabney and his son, Mr.. A
p Dahney arrived bate. but were Im