Bisbee daily review., 1915-08-01

a litter of debris of the.nood. At thisI point. the force seemed to have dimin-. ished, that is. the stronger trees rel mained standing but losing their. bark, while the weaker ones were up-I rooted and strewn about. The mead ow, a once beautiful field, is covered with sand, mud and logs. Five miles below Lost Camp. Lost Creek enters Hat Creek and the two floods united. At the junction the valley becomes wider and the water spread over al considerable area. Of course. it's force was still further diminished
 This area was a desolate waste be- fore the flood and was used as a drive way for sheep. Just below it, however are the Stevenson Meadows, and join ing that at the lower end is the Big Spring ranger station. Just below the ranger station the valley narrows to gorge with rocky walls, its floor checked with trees, rock ledges, logs, etc. At the beginning of the gorge the Big Springs pour 1i0O0 miners inches of water into Hat Creek which after leaving the gorge, enters lower Hat Creek valley It seems highly probable that a dam formed in the narrow gorge and checked the rush of water At any rate, Stevenson's Meadows and the meadow of the rang CT station are covered with fine sand varying in depth from four inches to ten feet.
 The buildings at the ranger station are uninjured, but the springs them se,yes are much C1u ed. rh.s is n.t ,ne l-eat spring iat rathe d seGcs ,i i.uDgs. It mi 5hi be comp -CG to oo uno erground. rI.cr breakiL4 oa, a5 many points instead of only one.
 Some portions are filled, others are washed out but no doubt the springs furnish as much water as before It is possible, however, that, because of Instructions in the gorge, some of the water of Big Springs may pass through underground channels.
 Now what about the damage? The region described above is a sparsely settled country in summer and unin- habited in winter. No human life was lost No stock were killed because the stock had not entered the region for summer grazing. One band of cat tie had passed over the flood track the day before and would have perish ed if caught But they were not caught and did not perish.
 The best buildings in the upper val ley were at Lost Camp, Stevenson and the Big Spring ranger station. The Lost Camp buildings were totally wrecked, the Big Spring buildings un- harmed while stevensons are in doubt
 Will the Meadows ever produce grass again? Time alone can answer this question. But it seems probable that they will. Much soil must be mixed with the sand The grass ereW in volcanic soil before and why not again? In the last analysis it seems that the heaviest damage falls upon the timber owners and stockmen Much of the timber must be worthless because SO badly broken. This damage falls principally upon T. B. Walker and the government of the United States.
 The next is the cattleman who loses his meadow feed but not his hin range And last the State of California that loses the fish with which Hat Creek abOunded.
 In conclusion, remember that this article applies only to that portion Of Hat Creek valley lying above Big Spring ranger station. It does not ap- ply to the region of farms, schools and homes found in the lower valley