Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1916-05-05
Mr.. MILLS RESIGNATION.

Last weeks issue Of your paper con-
tanned comments on my resignation IRON
the FIFTH Louisiana Levee Board, which
seem to demand a reply. am sorry this
is 30, for had hoped my resignation
would terminate, for the present at least,
my association with and concern for the
Board and its affairs.
The language used by Inc in my letter
to the Governor may have been not well
chosen, it may "produce loss oil conf
dence in the Board or in Mr.. Ilill'' my
self), but / have no fear that a perfectly
honest and truthful statement will d.
minish the confidence any one has in me.
As to the Board being a political ma
chine, will say this: There was fac
tional alignment at the very first meet
ing when the Board was organized. One
faction had evidently caucused and ar
ranged in advance of the meeting COM
plete program to put through. / felt thai
whatever the Board did then, as well 81
all times, should result from an open
and free discussion by its members;
that each should have an opportunity to
present his views in advance of decisions
on every question. In fact this was the
only course if the welfare of the levee in
terest had been paramount to political
interests. protested as strenuously and
~ vehemently as / could, not against any
persons involved but against the methods
employed in conducting the affairs of the
Board. felt that the body in which ]
thought / would have voice, and on
which had hoped to be of some little
service to the tax. payers of the District,
was machine, in the running of which
my photograph would doubtless be as ef
fective as my person. l should have re-
signed right then but for the fact that
there were few things l had set my
heart on doing and hated to quit without
accomplishing something. also reasoned
that machines some times blow up; that
new alignments are made to meet new
political situations; that the strongest po-
litical enemies to-day are political bed
fellows tomorrow. You will agree with
me that the recent new alignments in this
District of influential members OF the
Board amply justify the view. l will say
by way of parenthesis that do not be-
lieve in either faction running things for
political purposes. am against both fac
tons, and all factions, when it comes to
the officers, employees, and management
of the Boards affairs should be on bust
ness basis with efficiency of service the
sole qualification considered.
Now word as to the things wanted
to help bring about. When / went on the
Board l found there were certain lands
suits pending in the lower part of the
District where title to lands, reputed to
have been taken from the Levee Board
illegally, was in dispute. WANTED these
suits pushed. believed if private parties
held lands of the Board illegally, they
should be dispossessed and lands recov-
cred Tor levee building purposes. The
mere facts of the claimants having paid
taxes of five cents per acre and small
advalorem for number Of years did not
make valid title. have done what !
could to get this matter passed upon.
/ have met with opposition, but the
cases are now before the Supreme Court.
Another matter had my heart set on,
was the enlargement of Bunches Bend,
Wilson Point and Cottonwood levees, in
the upper part of East Carroll parish,
which, with the exception of Reid-Biggs,
in Madison, regarded this long stretch
of levee North OF Providence, as the
worst in the whole District when went
on the Board. While the Levee Board
and State have done little, have been
able to get the Mississippi River Commits
sion to take hold of this much needed
project and enlargement is now in pro-
cess OF construction.
Still another matter was very near to
my heart; the matter particularly
wanted to see improved. This was the
cost of high water fighting. In the high
water of this year, the first, since have
been on the Board, when the Board
made the fight and bore the expense (the
fight and all expense was borne by the
u. S. in 1918 by agreement to divide
territory in East Carroll l had charge
for the Board in the upper half OF the
parish. / learned that under the system
OF the Board or rather the lack of system
here lie presented opportunity for the full
display of the fine art called political
fence building. Do any take advantage
Of the opportunity? Do ducks swim?
And the most discouraging thing in my
effort to get little value for what was
spending was the evident lack of support
by the people. To illustrate how they
felt, or rather, how many felt, will re-
late what / heard passed between two
young men in Providence a few days
after the high water fight ended. One of
Two jealous friends of mine suggested to
10 the other, that some token of apprecia-
ton of my effort and success in holding
The levee line in the upper half of the
parish should be given to me and he
would suggest gold watch. The other,
he knew had spent between
Ave and six thousand dollars, grunted
n