Evening star., 1927-06-03
PLANS TO COMBAT
GREATER FLOODS
URGED BY JADW|N
Chief of Army Engineers Says
Projected Levees Would
Be Inadequate.
HOLDS DIXIE SYSTEM
is BEST PROTECTION
Davis Tells Control Conference
President Is Greatly Inter
ested in Problem.
nv the Associated Press.

Ry the Associated Press.
CHICAGO. June 3.-CharacteriZing
the Mississippi Valley floods as "a
challenge to the Nation, and Il threat
less serious only than war itself" Maj.
Gen. Edgar Jadwin, chief of the
United States Army Engineers, i'm
pressed upon the flood control confer
ence today the necessity and impor-
tance of adequate methods of food
control
with ia lives known to have been
lost, millions of acres of agricultural
lands flooded and damage totaling
hundreds of millions of dollars. done.
in this, the greatest of a long series of
Mississippi Valley floods, il is apparent
that the floods are a threat and
challenge to the entire Nation, less
serious only than war Itself, ard must
be met sQuarely, and without delay.
by the Nation as a whole" he asserted.
100000. 600 Has Been Spent.
"Since 1879, when the Government
officially took cogniZance of the situ-
alton in the Mississippi Valley, and
when. as a result, the Mississippi
River Commission was formed, more
than $40. .000. 600 have been spent in
the construction of levees.
I'm 1922, plans were formulated to
combat floods, slightly greater than
those of 1912 and 1918, the worst
known at that time. These plans call
ed for the expenditures of S60,0O0,0 900
by the Government, a large part of
which was intended for the construc-
g ho6
been expended for this construction
when the present floods started. There
are now. in the main river. 1915 miles
of levees averaging about is feet in
height he added.
''The need for a revision of the
Governments project rests primarily
on the following propositions: That
this flood has shown that protection
must be furnished for greater floods
than existing works were expected to
meet. even had they been completed;
that levees necessary for the protection
of the endangered area not now under
Government supervision must be
brought hereunder: that the problem
is manifestly a national one: that the
percentage of participation of the
heavy taxed districts must be reduced;
that the laws should be SO modified
thority to locate the works where
sound engineering dictates they be
built, whether this involves the con-
struction of larger levees, or spillways
and reservoirs, or a combination of
all these.
'In the re.analysis, there are many
things which must be taken up. We
must determine what the maximum
flood may be: what the heights of such
a flood would be at various points
throughout the valley, and what
methods are necessary and best to
control such a flood"
Various methods of flood control
were discussed by Gen. Jadwin. who
asserted, however. that experience
had proven levees to be the most prac-
tical protection.
Assurance of the deep interest of
President Coolidge and his administra-
ton in the prompt solution of the
flood control problem was brought to
the conference today by Dwight Davis.
Secretary of War. as personal repre-
sentative of the Chief Executive. His
800 hearers wildly applauded Mr..
Davis when he deviated from his
prepared address to assert:
President Is Interested.
"I can assure you that the entire
problem of flood control is receiving,
and will continue to receive, the
cordial and sympathetic consideration
of the administration and particularly
of the President, Calvin Coolidge"
The Secretary stated the realiza.
ton of the administration that flood
control promises to be one of the
major problems before the next Con
gress.
Secretary Davis declined to put
forth any specific plan for Hood con
troll. He left that, he said, for Mai
Gen. Edgar Jadwin, chief of the Army
Engineer Corps, who was speaker
on the afternoon program.
He warned against the conference
becoming involved in consideration OF
local problems of the Valley States.
Committee to Hear Plans.
The resolutions committee, of which
Senator Watson OF indlana is CHAIR
man. PLANNED an all-day session
Every one with a plan for flood con.
troll will be given a full hearing.
A subcommittee will seek to com.
bile into one resolution as many of
the suggestions as possible.
The Mississippi River flood, Clifford
pinchot, former governor of Pennsyl
yania, told the conference today, sup
piled the super-proOf "of the complete
futility of depending on levees only.
1.-The present calamity might never
have happened but for the insistence
of the Army engineers. who have had
fun control Of the river. that no meas
IRE of flood protection except levees-
1avaeS only-Should even be consid
aTed The judgment of military en-
gineers in laying down a policy fol
the prevention of flood damage by thu
Mississippi River is responsible fol
what. so far as my reading goes. i!
the most colossal engineering blundel
!n civilized history