Rocky Ford enterprise., 1913-12-19
ON FLOODS
RANSDE AND NEWLANDS IN
RAE CAL DISAGREEMENT AS
CONTROL METHODS.
CONGRESS is ASKED TO ACT
Louisiana Man Favors Levees and is
Supported by Head of Mississippi
River ommission-Nevada Sena-
tor Urges Reservoirs.
BY GEORGE CLINTON.

Washington.-United States Sena-
tors Joseph E. Ransdell of Louisiana
and Francis G. Newlands of Nevada.
both Democrats, disagree radically as
to the governmental methods to be
employed to control the floods and to
regulate and control the flow of nav
igable streams in the aid of interstate
commerce. There were sharp discus
sions of the question involved at the
tenth annual convention of the Ma
tional Rivers and Harbors congress.
which has Just met in Washington.
The whole subject of Mississippi
river improvement and the prevention
of the floods which have devasted the
Mississippi valley in recent years is
involved in this matter of difference
between two senators of the United
States, both of whom apparently are
trying to reach the same end by en-
tirely different means. Congress has
been asked to act and the debate on
the subject, especially as it affects the
Mississippi valley, will perhaps be
sharper in the senate than it was at
the meeting of the delegates of the
waterways congress.
Col. c. Med. Townsend of the Unit
ed States engineer corps is the chair
man of the Mississippi river commits
sion. Apparently he is opposed ut
terly to Mr.. Newlands plan, which
would provide for flood prevention and
protection by means of huge reser-
voirs for water storage purposes and
the protection of water sheds from de-
NM dot iDtr Tpl1 al
send seemingly, therefore, is opposed
to plans which have received the en-
dorsement of the conservationists who
would have reforestation and forest
fire protection go hand in hand with
the work of flood prevention.
Colonel Townsend's Views.
In writing on the subject, partic-
ularly as it relates to the Mississippi
river, Colonel Townsend says:
While of the opinion that levees af-
ford the only practicable method of
controlling the floods of the Missis-
sippi river, desire to state that am
strongly in favor of both reforesta-
tion and reservoir construction, but
limited to the purposes for which they
are adapted. just as | am in favor of
REINFORCED concrete for small bridges,
though not considering it applicable to
one spanning the lower Mississippi
river"
In the opinion of this engineer Off
GER, the control of the lower Missis-
sippi by reservoirs is impracticable, if
not impossible. although he says there
are numerous smaller streams where
reservoirs can be used with excellent
results. He adds:
The systematic conservation and
regulation by the Federal government
of the river from its source to its
mouth sounds most attractive, sug-
gesting the scientific solution of every
problem of river hydraulics, but in
stead ! greatly fear that it is the voice
of the siren Turing the people to an
open pork barrel for every stream in
the United States"
RansdelI is for Levees.
1t is probable that Senator Ransdell
represents the view of the people of
the lower Mississippi section and in
part the views of people of other sec
tions. His belief is that the matter
must be kept in the main stream dur
ing the flood times and that it can be
kept there If the proper levees are
built.
The Newlands scheme is set forth in
bill in congress upon which the
voluminous report has been pre-.
pared and published. The Newlands
measure is called a bill ITO create a
board of river regulation and to pro
vide a fund for the regulation and
control of the flow of navigable river
in the aid of interstate commerce. and
as means to that end to provide fol-
| flood prevention and protection and
for the beneficial use of flood waters
and for water storage and for the pro
lection of water sheds from denuda
tion and erosion and from forest fires
and for the cooperation of govern
ment services and bureaus with each
other and with states, municipalities
and other local agencies"
This is a broad bill. Its opponents
think that the plan involved would re
| quire too much time and too many
hands at work. and that results car
be reached more quickly and more
cheaply by what they call more di
rect methods. The Newlands bill
| provides for a government appropria
tion of $4,000 each year for ten years
making total of s5OO.00O,OOO.
1t is said that the printed price
lists of what holiday dinners were
to cost this dinner were respon
sible directly for the proposal tc
have another government inquiry into
the high cost of living. The attorney
general already is looking into the
high cost matters along various lines
of supposed least resistance. and be
fore the winter is ended it is proba
BILE that a committee OF congress Oh
| an authnrized commission will nt