Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1912-10-04
SYSTEM OF LEVEES
GIVEN ENDORSEMENT
INTERSTATE ASSOCIATION URGES
THEIR COMPLETION.
ASK FOR THIRTY-FIvE MILLION
Convention Adopts Constitution and By
Laws and Leaves Further Work of
Organization to Executive
Committee.

Association, after having spent three
days in discussions of various plans of
flood prevention, decided to stick to
levees and the accompanying revetment
work as the only proven protection for
the Lower valley.
The association adopted resolutions
embodying that idea and strongly urg-
ing the appropriation by the next ses-
sion of congress of not less than $685.
100000, to be expended within the next
five years in. the completion of the
levees.
The convention thus went on record
as believing that the federal government
should assume the burden of completing
the levees between Cairo and the Gulf,
while at the same time making no in
sistence upon the government to take
over complete control of the levees.
That action was taken in spite of the
fact that Colonel Theodore Roosevelt,
in an address before the convention, in
sisted strongly upon the plan which he
has enthusiastically espoused, of a gen
eral plan of river improvement, flood
prevention, reforestation, reclamation
and flood water storage in a system of
reservoirs, with the levees as merely a
local and secondary part of the plan
of protection from floods.
Roosevelt and Townsend Opposed.
Col. Roosevelt's ideas were directly OPP
posed by Col. C. Med. Townsend, presi-
dent of the Mississippi river commits
sion and an engineer of international
reputation.
Col. Townsend took up seriatim the
various propositions for flood control
Mich have been presented from time
to time and gave it as his professional
opinion that none of them would prove
effective, and that the history of lyee
building in many foreign countries and
the results obtained along the Missis-
sippi river are sufficient proof that the
present system of levees, when COM
pleted to the required government stan
dard, will hold the flood of the river.
Storage reservoirs, he said, would to
a certain extent control the flood waters
near them, but he considered it inn
practicable to expect that they could be
constructed of sufficient size to pre-
vent the floods in the lower river He
also argued that statistics of great
floods as far back as 1882 prove that
the denuding of the forests have COM
paratively little to do with the height
of recent floods.
He said that estimates show that it
would cost $73, 100000 to construct a.
reservoir to hold the water that passed
down the river during one single days
flow during one last springs flood, and
that sum would build all the levees
necessary to absolutely protect the en-
tire lower valley from any possibility
of overflow.
o. N. Killough of Wynne, Ark, presi-
dent of the st. Francis levee board,
was reelected president of the associa-
ton at the closing session. A paid
secretary will be employed and general
campaign of publicity and education is
planned. An executive committee of
one member from each state of the sew
en- represented in the association, and
two members at large, was elected. Sew
en- state vice presidents and there vice
presidents at large were also elected.
Both lists of officers were elected by
unanimous vote, on recommendation of
the report of the committee on per-
manent organization, which was pre-
scented by Lee Richardson, the chair
man.
The resolutions were also adopted
without a dissenting vote, as present
ed by Lem Banks, chairman Of that
committee.
just before the convention was closed
resolutions expressing the appreciation
of the convention of the efforts of the
Hon. Charles Scott of Mississippi in
behalf of the levee legislation and of
regret that illness prevented him from
attending the present meeting were
adopted.
A constitution and bylaws were
adopted, on recommendation of the COM
mittee on permanent organization. The
executive committee is empowered to
select permanent headquarters for the
association which will probably be
maintained in Memphis, to employ a
secretary and to set the time and place
for the next annual convention.
The committee will also discuss the
plans to be pursued in raising funds
for carrying on the work of the asso-
citation, fix the cost of membership for
leyee boards, commercial organizations
and others interested, and generally map
out campaign to be carried out dur
ing the next session of congress.
The convention was decided success
in every way, except in point Of at
tendance. There were slightly over ZOO
delegates registered at the association
headquarters during the meeting, but
Horse Disease Abates.
Tonaka Kan.-The horses disease