1904.] HAUPT— THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER PROBLEM. 75 



is Still conditioned upon the results of experiments and further 

 legislative action by Congress. 



Prior to the organization of the Commission a Special Board of 

 five United States Engineer officers was appointed July 8, 1878, to 

 report a plan for the Improvement of Low-Water Navigation, and 

 on the 25th of January following, the report was submitted, recom- 

 mending the general plan of *' contracting the channel to an 

 approximate low-water width of 3500 feet by means of dikes of 

 brush, etc., and where the bed of the river is found to be too hard 

 to be worn away by the river currents, dredging, in addition to 

 the reduction of width, to be resorted to." 



In this report attention is directed to the fact that ''there is 

 an ample depth wherever the thread of the current follows a well- 

 marked concave bank. Also wherever the low-water width does 

 not exceed about 3500 feet," and, conversely, navigation is bad 

 wherever there are straight reaches and the width exceeds this 

 limit. Another element of serious importance is the great insta- 

 bility of the channel, which shifts through a breadth of several 

 miles, due to the caving of the banks, which proceeds '* at the 

 rate of 200 to 300 feet a year in certain places, and these amounts 

 are sometimes much exceeded." 



As to the available depths at that date, the report states that 

 *' there are forty-three places between Cairo and the mouth of the 

 Red river where low-water depths of less than ten feet and thirteen 



where depths of less than five feet may be found There 



were fifty-two days on which the least depth of water between St. 

 Louis and Cairo was less than six feet, and sixty-nine days when it 

 was less than ten feet." 



These considerations led the Board to conclude that '' protection 



of caving banks will therefore be needed To thoroughly 



regulate the river caving, even in those bends which have deep 



water below them, should be stopped The protection of 



these caving banks can be effected by mattresses. Where the water 

 is deep it will be very expensive." . . . . " That such a trial may 

 thoroughly test the practicability and the cost of regulating the river 

 and increasing its low-water depth, one of the worst places on the 

 river should be selected." 



Accordingly the Board recommended the appropriation of 

 ^600,000 for revetments on the Plum Point reach, one hundred 

 and sixty miles below Cairo, which was granted and the test made. 



