Milford chronicle., 1934-12-21
STORM TIDES
FLOOD LANDS
Filling In OF Breaks In
Dunes Will Improve
Muskrat Industry.

A recent survey of the beach line
between Broadkill Beach and the
mouth of the Mispillion River, show
ed that there were twenty-three ma
1or breaks in, the dunes through
which the storm waters Of the Del
aware Bay enter the marshes and
food the adjoining farm lands
These breaks vary in width from
twenty-five feet to several hundred
feet. According to the marsh owners
in the Broadkill, Prime Hook and
Slaughter Neck districts, where the
breaks are located. the gaps in the
dunes are increasing with each
large storm.
w. S. Corkran, Executive Officer
and Engineer of the Mosquito Con-
troll Commission, had the survey
made by his engineering force with
the view of enlisting the cooperation
of the Delaware State Highway De-
partment in repairing these breaks.
In a letter to w. w. Mack, Chief
Engineer of the Highway Depart
ment, Mr.. Corkran pointed out the
necessity of filling in the breaks, not
only because they increased mosqui-
to breeding hazards, but also be-
cause they endangered crops. He
called attention to the fact that the
total width of the twenty-three
breaks was only four thousand feet,
and that 1t would take a compara-
lively short time to make the fill
with an excavating machine. Esti-
mates indicate that approximately
6625 cubic yards of fill would be re-
quired for the entire job.
A canvass of the Broadkill, Prime
Hook and Slaughter Neck districts,
indicated that the farmers and
marsh owners in these areas are
heartily in favor of a project to re-
pair the gaps in the dunes. Accord
ing to Joseph Roach, owner OF a
muskrat marsh in Prime Hook Neck,
the food tides of the bay sweeping
over the marshes have caused the
muskrat industry in the area to be-
come non-paying business. Be
fore the salt waters of the bay could
food the marshes" Mr.. Roach stat
ed, "the trappers in the Prime Hook
area realized about twenty thousand
hides a season. Now that the water
from the bay floods the marshes at
every storm tide, the muskrats have
nearly disappeared. Joseph Short
and Dali Parsons of the same dis
trict, verified Mr.. Roach's statement.
They attributed the scarcity of
muskrats to the fact, that the salt
water on the marshes had destroyed
the fresh water growths upon which
the animals depend for their food.
The concensus of opinion was that
If the salt waters of the Delaware
Bay we're kept off the marshes in the
Prime Hook area, the muskrats
would soon return in sufficient guam
titles to make the trapping industry
pay once more.
Elmer Bennett. OF Slaughter Neck, /,
stated that he would welcome a pro-
ject to dyke the breaks in the beach |
line. In past years storms have driv-
en- the bay waters over his agricul-
tural lands bordering the marsh, +,
causing the loss of crops. The heavy |
storm tide in the August, 1888 storm,
flooded twenty-five acres of Mr.. Ben
nett's land causing a total loss of
crops of tomatoes and beans. The
same storm destroyed crops of to-
matoes, corn, buckwkheat and clO-
yer on the farm of George F. Killen
i'm the Broadkill area. AS in Mr..
Benefits case the bay waters pour
ed through break in the dunes, to
flood the marsh and in addition,
covered seventy-five acres of Mr..
land on which crops we're
planted.
II is hoped that the State High
way Department will undertake the
project of repairing the damage
caused by past storms and thereby
prevent other losses in the future.
Il has been suggested that should
he Highway Department be unable
o fit this work into their program,
he project would be an ideal one
or this winters relief work. I'm
il would serve the double /
purpose of furnishing hundred or /
more men with work for the great
II part of the winter, and of bene-
itting the farmers and marsh own q
RS of the affected districts immeas- 4
Irably. a