The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1912-08-20
SOURCE CONTROL
/ WILL END FLOODS
| SPEAKERD[CLARES
G. H. Maxwell Talks on River
| Regulation Bill Before Local
Organization
HOLDS COOPERATION NEEDED
Stronger Levces in Mississippi
Valley Menaees
Cairo
HOLDS COOPERATION NEEDED


The formation of local organiza-
tion to cooperate with New Or
leans and Pittsburgh in the support
of the Newlands-Ba -Bartholdt river
regulation bill, was urged by George
H. Maxwell, executive director of
the National Reclamation Associa-
tion in an address last night before
Joint meeting of the Commercial
Club, Retail Merchants Association
and the Board of Trade. Declaring
that the contemplated building of
an impregnable levee system between
the mouth Of the Ohio river and
New Orleans would eventually rem
der Cairo powerless to cope with
high waters rising simultaneously
in the two rivers, Mr. Maxwell de-
clared that the city's salvation viz
tually depends upon the success Of
the Newlands- Barthold bill, which
provides for an annual appropriation
Of $50,000,000 for period of ten
consecutive years, the entire sum to
be expended in controlling at The
sources by the building of a system
of reservoirs to control and regulate
the flow of all the rivers whose
waters flow through the 0hip aud
Mississippi Valleys
Mr. Maxwell declared that the
building of n system of lcgces Will
never solve the food problem and
that the stronger the levees below
Cairo are made, the greater Cairo's
danger would be- He declared that
the only solution for the food prob
lem Is the building of system of
control, which will not only make II
possible to prevent disastrous floods
by holding back the waters In the
spring season, but will also make
possible the irrigation Of thousands
of miles of farming land, not only
in the west Missouri country but
also In the east and the north, rs
we'll as the maintenance of a navi-
gable stage of water in the Missis-
slppi Ohio and Missouri rivers In
all seasons of the year
"The City Of Pittsburgh did not
awake TO the necessity Of finding a
solution for tho flood problem until
after II had been visited by three
successive foods, which cost the
city $t0,oo0,000 in loss to property
and business" said Mr. Maxwell.
"The project OF building substan-
tial wall around the entire city was
then considered but tho the plan was
eventually rejected an unfeasible
Pittsburgh, thoroughly aroused by
this time, then considered d plan Of
preventing the repetition OF such
disasters by controlling the sources
of the rivers, with the result that a
comprehensive invcstigat on. which
was obtained at an expenditure of
$125, ,000, was made.
"The services Of experts was OBJ
tained and surveys OF forty-three
reservoirs were made Out o. this
number seventeen were selected and
II was determined that the ocqusi-
tion of reservoirs to this number
would reduce the food stage at
Pittsburgh to the extent OF 10 feet
| and forever relieve the city of any
danger from future inundation."
Mr.. Maxwell told of his efforts
to obtain system OF reservoirs for
| the west through the means of or
ganization He said II took twelve
years to build the Shoshone National
Dam In Wyoming. In which the
food water OF the Missouri valley Ia
stored This was not what the orr
sanizatlon started out for, but was
a compromise. he declared The or
gauization will not halt In Its efforts
to obtain an adequate reservoir sys-
TEN in the west, he said.
The Newlands- Bartholdt river
regulation bill proposed the build
ing Of immense reservoirs not only
on tho Mississippi, Missouri and
Ohio rivers. but also on the tribu.
,taries Of the three rivers and II IL
estimated by its advocates that with
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