The Cairo bulletin., 1912-05-24
Government Engineer Declares
Farmers and Manufacturers Can
Begin Their Work
JUNE RISE IS A MYTH
War Department Employee Says
Water Seldom Raises to A Feet,
According to Records

You can tell the people of the
| Drainage District that they can be-
gin to plant their crops, rebuild
their plants and homes and prepare
for season of safety" said Major
| C.. S. Smith of the Government Engi-
| neering force at Memphis, yester-
| day afternoon. Major Smith had
just finished tour Of the Drainage
District, on special train, during
which he and the other engineers
ascertained the amount of work
necessary to repair the breaks and
for other levee construction work.
Major Smith came to Cairo yester-
day morning to look over the work
to be done by the government in re-
pairing the levees in the Drainage
District, He first toured the city In
an automobile, and at O'CLOCK
boarded a special train of the Big
Four and went around the Drainage
District looking over the breaks and
finding dirt with which to fill the
crevasses
June Rise a Myth.
One OF the engineers, in speaking
OF the much talked of June rise,
smiled when 1t was mentioned. say
ing this June rise" Is something Of
myth or bugbear as far as Cairo is
concerned The waters OF the Mis-
sissippi rarely reach on the Cairo
gauge more than A feet at any
time and should it do so this time.
we Will find way to prevent Its get
ting into the district
Major Smith says he expects to
get an order, very soon, from the
War Department, to advertise for
bids. The money to do the work
will be forthcoming at once. 1t has
to- go through the usual routine be-
fore it is available.
Large Delegation on Board.
The special train carried the fol-
lowing: Major Clarke s. Smith and
Luther S. Kerr of the Government
Engineers Corps; Engineer Miller,
Superintendent Maloney of the Big
Four Charles Millard, assistant
chief engineer of the Big Four:
-four representatives of Sears-Roe-
buck and Company. and F. Z.
Van Alstine, manager of the local
plant; G.. J. Penfield, assistant man.
ager Of the Mill department: r. II.
Cline, agent at Hattiesburg, Miss
and ]. II Hubbard, traffic manager
Of Chicago, Of the Chicago Mill and
Lumber Company; David Lansden,
John b. Greaney, Charles Feuchter,
Alex s. Fraser, Senator Walter
Warder James r. Galligan, Miles
Fred'k Gilbert, H. R. Aisthorpe. An
gus Leek, Z. J. Stubbins and a
representative of The Bulletin.
View Is Sickening.
As the train passed along the lum-
ber and manufacturing district the
view presented from the car win
dow was an unsightly one. Debris
scattered all over the lower end of
the district and wrecks of houses
and sheds were numerous. Most Of
the lumber has been removed from
the yard. Much of 1t has been
stacked In Cairo and Mound City
yards, and a large quantity has been
shipped to northern points.
Only small amount of water re-
mains in the district and that is
out quite rapidly.
Breaks Are Visited.
The train stopped at each of the
two breaks In the embankment and
an examination was made 1t was
found that the depth OF the water,
under the big 200 feet break near
the Pioneer Pole and Shaft plant
averages 20 feet. This Is the hole
made by the fall of the waters into
the district.
There are numerous other places
in the embankment that require re-
pairing.
Train Goes to Levings.
The train was run as far as Lev
ings, where the Big Four has dirt
and gravel pit. This was done to
show the kind of earth the Big -Four