The St. Charles herald. [volume] (Hahnville, La.) 1873-1993, 1917-05-05

for a month and half yet. That
would give him ample time to coins
plete the dam and the spillway. This
year, however, there had been some
very. unusual rains during the fall and
the water back of the dam was now ~
feet deep, which made 1t % feet below
the level to which the dam had risen
and 20 feet below the spillway. This
was much more water than anyone
had dreamed would be in the reser.
voir at that time, and was perhaps
more than should have been allowed.
Still there was q safety margin OF
% feet, which Vandeventer was sure
would be ample. The financial prOrEo-
tiers of the project were very anxious
to have the reservoir full when the
irrigating season opened, and the en-
gineer's judgment had been Influenced
by their eagerness to get it working.
The broad sheet of water ran back
into the valley for many miles. In
fact, the dam had transformed the
country into a beautiful lake. Some
times it rained in the mountains when
it did not rain down in the valley,
and there was constant, if very
small, rise in the level. Vandeventer
personally carefully gagged the water
every day. Naturally he had noted
that it rose gradually, but as the dam
rose proportionately more rapidly, he
was not uneasy. Yet, as good en-
gineer, he was watchful and largely
because of the unfinished spillway he
urged the men to the very limit.
The weatherwise from the town,
who sometimes rode up to inspect the
work, assured Vandeventer that it
could not possibly rain before March,
and the mere fact that so much water
had fallen rendered 1t more improb-
able that any more would come down.
But at three on the afternoon of JAM
uary sixth 1t suddenly began to rain
hard without warning and with no
premonition on the part of anybody.
1t was not one of those terrible down.
pours known as cloudbursts, but 1t
was an excessively hard, steady rain.
The heavens over the range were
black with clouds and so far as any,
one at the dam could see, 1t was rain
ing from the crest of the mountains
down. There were some anxious dis
cussions in the dining room of the res
ident engineer and his American as
sistants.
At four o'clock it was decided to
open the undersluice gate about half
way, but when this was done the vol
ume Of water it was capable of dis.
charging was too small to help very
much, and on opening it to its fullest
extent the velocity of the water rush.
ing through was so great that the
river bed was rapidly secured out. For
fear Of undermining the toe of the
dam it was necessary partially to
close the sluice once more.
The water was rising, first at the
rate Of three or four inches an hour.
then half foot, and finally nearly q
foot. BY six o'clock that night it
had risen two feet. 1t was still rain.
ing hard at that hour, although not
quite SO furiOusly as it had been. II
it did rain until morning at the pres
ent rate, there would still be q mar
gin of safety of perhaps fourteen or
fifteen feet at dawn. Although the
situation required watchfulness and
was somewhat alarming, it was not
desperate. The men were advised to
put in all the time in their hunks so
as to be good and ready for the hard
battle which might come in the morn
ing, and as they were all tired out
with their days work the little group
soon broke up and each man went to
his quarters.
Vandeventer, however, could NOT
sleep. The rain kept up steadily ALI
night. The resident engineer finally
got up and dressed himself, and pro-
tected by high rubber boots and q
cowboy slicker and sou'wester, left
his quarters and went out to inspect
the dam. He carried. q lantern, Of
course, for it was pitch dark and, if
possible. the rain dropping from the
black sky made it more difficult to seq.
He was surprised when he got to the
dam to see on the other side another
lantern. Closing the slide of his own
lantern to prevent observation, and be-
ing on familiar ground, he went
straight toward the other side. The
noise Of the rain subdued any sound
that he made, and he was able to come
quite close to the other light without
being noticed