Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1912-04-19

n.y.
from the Ohio, on account Of the heavier
rainfall and the SHOWS melted by the
earlier rains; they are greatest in Febru-
airy and March.
The more southerly latitude of the Ar
kansas, together with its heavy rain-fall
in the eastern portion, sends forth its
freshets in March and April. The upper
Mississippi has its greatest discharge in
April and May while we often hear of
"the June rise' in the Missouri, but
which often occurs and with much regu-
larity in the latter part of May. The
Missouri in fact has two seasons of high
water, one in April and one in M-June.
Could we but control the atmospheric
conditions of these regions, we see how
easy matter it would be to get rid OF
the surplus OF freshet water as II comes
to us from the different regions and pass
es through our narrow channel, and ma
ture has 50 distributed our tributaries
that our canal is able through some sea
sons to handle or take care Of the floods
without serious inconvenience; the mo-
ment, however, there is any irregularity
in the working of the great apparatus as
nature intended it, then our troubles be-
gin.
These freshets and great tributaries
must work on schedule time to cause us
no trouble, but if late food out of the
Ohio meets an early rise out OF the Ar
kansas or the upper Mississippi, We have
a ''bank fnlr stage OF water or an over
flow, which can be aggravated by sec
ond Arkansas or. an early Missouri, and
we go under.
Thus it can be seen how uncertain are
these floods, with what ease they can oc-
cur and how at the mercy of the elements
we are situated during the first six months
of the year. Our greatest season of dan
ger is, of course, n March and April, as
we are liable to freshets during these
months from three different sources, ac-
cording as the season is advanced or re-
tarded, and although our largest basin
and greatest tributary is found in the
Missouri, yet we have very little to fear
from that source, owing to its remoteness,
its lateness of season in getting started
and its peculiar conditions Of soil, alti-
tude and climate.
1t takes, therefore, generally, comb
nation of floods to produce an overflow,
or some particular disturbance in the reg
ular discharge Of the tributaries, whereby
the working OF the whole machinery O.
nature is thrown out of gear; then, in
such cases, these great basins and multi
tude of tributaries know no law andoul
weak levees become as "chaf blown from
the wheat in offering resistance to thii
onward rush of mighty waters--one o
the greatest forces nature can produce
Floods do not occur ever year or il
. periodical succession. The last great fiooc
or overflow occurred in 1903; the fioot
preceding was in 1897, ETC., out eacf
succeeding flood seems to surpass in heigh
" the preceding one.
A month ago foresaw that this would
be food year and that it would be the
I greatest on recond, because there was al
unprecedented fall OF snow; there wa
: winter and cold weather until the middl'
" Of March, which held back the snow il
the mountains, and it was not melted no
: passed out in its regular order becausl
:" when the sun did come forth it was lat
in the season and strong enough to mel
all the SHOWS at once and precipitate then
> into the valleys with the continued rains
There was thus not only combination
!, of high waters or floods from the differ
tributaries, all discharging at once, bu
8 a breaking up OF ice gorges, continues
rains and total OF all food discharge
: precipitated upon an already well-fille
channel Of the lower Mississippi, whicl
is inadequate to carry off the drainage Q
: the vast territory contained IN the TWEEN
: ty-eight States. Such an occurrence o
combination has-not taken place in sey
! decades and look this season for on
7 Of the greateft disasters TO happen in til
= history Of the Mississippi valley.