Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1925-08-05
IN OUR
VALLEY
August Is Is Voting Day
Save Cameron Coun-
ty From Flood Dangers


= issue of Monday, calls attention to
some pertinent points in connection with
the flood control project. Says The
Light:
The present flood in the Rio Grande
rs long way upstream, but maybe news
of it's will renew interest in Cameron
county's flood control project Also.
there are reports of heavy rains in the
Laredo district which may remind voters
down here that the Rio Grande will hold
a sem-annual threat until the engineers
ale supplied with funds to control high
water.
Recently there vas an article sent
out from Austin about forty mile levee
to be built along the banks Of the Rio
Grande from Mission to Brownsville
W. E. Anderson, consulting engineer,
points out that the proposed solution
of the flood problem is not one big levee
to keep all the water from the American
side, thereby piling it over to the
Mexican side. The plan is to take the
surplus water from the river before it
gets to the danger point and direct it
away from improved lands.
There will be many miles of levees
in the Valley flood control project. A
considerable mileage will be along the
floo1way from Mission down to Mer-
cedes where the waters will be divided.
The surplus water will come down paral-
lei with the course of the Rio Grande,
part of it turning off at Mercedes
through the north floodway and the re-
mainder coming down the Arroyo Colo
rado
"A gate in the high ground between
the Arroyo Colorado and the Rio Grande
somewhere between Mercedes and Santa
Maria will permit water to enter the ar
royo there.
"Some levees will be necessary along
the arroyo, to protect cultivated lands
opposite low places in the arroyo banks.
Down the river from the San Benito
pumps to below Brownsville the eng- !
neers propose to levee all low places
with possibly gates to permit water to
enter some of the old resacas.
"As soon as the surveys are com
pleted, Cameron county's plan will be
worked out by the engineers-W. E. An
derson and W. o. Washington. Then the
plan will go to the state reclamation
department for approval. The Cameron
county plan will link up with similar
ore to be built by Hidalgo county, so
that the entire Valley will be protected.
There are some lands and some
tracts in Cameron county that would
never be menaced by high water if the
Rio Grande rose twenty feet above the
record mark-btst the Valley is one
community, one region and the only way
to make the Valley safe as whole is
for the two counties to assess taxes
issue bonds and build community pro-
lection project.
Our big job is to get out the vote
August 49,"
The man who goes fishing on August
Is without first registering his vote in
favor of the bond issue of S1,5OO,OO0
for flood control in Cameron county may
be robbing his own pockets.
Should this issue fail, these dollars
will disappear annually so long as he
is resident of the Lower Rio Grande
Valley
1t should be recalled, in connection
with the passage of the tax remission
act of the last legislature for the bene-
fit of Cameron county, that a large
part of Texas bitterly resented that re-
mission, and many legislators we're
scored in their home counties
Some will not 60 to the legislature
again because they voted for tax re-
mission for Cameron county.
Cameron county was clever enough to
secure the passage of the act Then
her voters should be clever enough to
avail themselves of this extraordinary
opportunity to protect their individual
interests, with the state at large shar
ing in the costs.
Brownsville has turned down the plan
for the establishment of cotton mill
in this city
Brownsville has long wanted such a
plant, wants it now, will keep on want
ing it until she has, that--and more
But sometimes promotional PROPOSE
tions, are not the best thing for a COM
muritv to take up. Brownsville has
gone down deep in her pockets for va
Iious things in recent years.
1t is perhaps well that the Chamber
of Commerce rejected the proposal.
Now we can look forward to the
Continued on Page Two)