The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1917-05-06
Talk Of the TO,l,,1

Iplan for raising backyard gardens
without irrigation. 1t will save water
Ichargcs and enable people living on
unirrigated land to grow great guam
titles OF vegetables. II will make
desert reclamation needless. It will
Eyes! Yes! But what is IT."
We'll. first Of all you plant onions
and potatoes in alternate rows"
Yes. and them"
Then the onions will make tho po-
tatoes' eyes water. and the irrigation
problem is solved"
Whatever the merits Of the onion
potato scheme. Police Sergeant SEVERN
Therriault is not interested In 1t. The
sergeants big spring problem is not
to get irrigation. but to prevent a sur
plus OF II. The Therriault ranch is To-
Gated on the point Of the original
townsite which Juts out into the river
just above the Higgins avenue bridge.
In 1908 the place was six feet under
water, and every spring, floods threat
en- 1t. This year the sergeant has
planted an unusually large garden and
IS keeping cautious eye on the riHer.
Il don't think the river will be Very
high this spring" he said yesterday.
but you can't tell. There's lots Of
snow i, the hills and hot weather will
bring 1t down in n hurry. I'm never
quite sure that there Is no danger
until all the snow has left the Mar
IS no more white on that hill. all flood
danger has passed. I've noticed that
every year. And believe me. keep a
sharp eye on that little peak
Now, with the snow all gone and
the river not yet high grim reminders
| Of ancient floods can be seen from the
Higgins avenue bridge. In the south
channel OF the river, right in front OF
the Milwaukee station, can be seen
Of Missoula's first bridge. 1.-THE
crooked bridge" it used to be called.
Its north end was at Higgins avenue.
but it hit tho south shore. after a
curve. near where the Mix store now
stands on South Third street. A little
of mortar which once filled one Of the
piers In the second bridge which was
built in 1892. This bridge was partly
washed out in 1908. Remnants Of it
were used in the construction Of the
Monroe street bridge on the east side.
II remember the first bridge WELL"
said s. ]. Coffee the other day. ut
was much lower than the present
bridge. so that the approaches had to
be graded. For most Of its length it
was wide enough for only one wagon.
but at two places it was made wide
enough to allow teams to pass"
"On the south bank OF the north
channel there Is another reminder OF
old times" said Mr.. Coffee, continu-
ing. you will sec Just west of the
bridge n corner Of the old electric
power plant that used to serve Mis-
sonla. 1t wasn't very reliable plant
and those OF us who We're queer
enough to use the new tangled electric
lights had TO keep oil lamps at hand
for emergency use. When the river
was high the plant would often be
flooded. so that for weeks at time
we'd have no electric lights at ALL"
The Talk of the Town" yesterday
was largely yesterday. This was be-
cause yesterday was one of the few
days western Montana has seen thi.
spring which was constructed along
the lines of the model set mp for spring
days in this district This won derfu
yesterday happened along just at tn,
right time. Our adjectives land il
must be admitted our expletives) were
about exhausted. Roundly and thor.
oughly had We cursed the eXecrablt
weather which had been our portion
and then came yesterday. II gave us
an opportunity to employ an entirel,
new set Of descriptive phrases. From
"thc worst you ever saw" and surmises
as to when it would let up pedes
TRANS hailed each other with "grea,
day" looks as II springs here a,
last" 'you can't beat this" and every.
one agreed that it was so and wen
the limit In praise OF what the da,
before they had condemned.
A(d yesterday arrived here just II
time to save many Missoula reputa
tons for veracity. Those resident.
! who have lived in the city for tw,
years or so-lons enough here to quail
, ify as pioneers-were in sad pre-
diCament. Last year they had de
Tended the cold spring with the oil,
statement that lit isn't usual for III
, to have this kind of weather." "Ou
spring months are usually delightful
AS the days rolled on without a siel
OF real spring the newcomers bega,
to be bothersome. They recalled al
these statements about the wonderful
weather Missoula usually enjoys an
wanted to know where all these fin