1904.] HAUPT — THE MISSISSIPPI EIVER PROBLEM. 81 



which was a little under five feet above the flood-plane of that year, 

 should now be raised to five and a half feet. He also foresees the 

 still greater dangers from increased floods, and suggests in places 

 the construction of reserved and subsidiary lines of levees to cover 

 the emergencies arising from the increased caving of the banks. 



The report states: *' With a considerable addition to the high- 

 water elevation that may be expected in the near future, it may be 

 assumed that the current force and the general difficulties of the 

 situation will be further magnified." 



With reference to the dangers from caving banks he reports : 



'' The situation here (near Rescue) has become still further com- 

 plicated to a grave degree by the accelerated rate of caving of the 

 river bank opposite the new levee, which threatens its destruction 

 from that source in a comparatively few years. The greatest devel- 

 opment is about the middle point of the new levee, where the bank 

 has receded nearly five hundred feet since November, 1898, with 

 less than seven hundred feet remaining to the levee. In order to 

 retire this line to a more secure location it will be necessary to fall 

 back into very low ground, which would still further magnify the 

 difficulties to be encountered. In view of the foregoing facts 

 the conclusion seems inevitable that the maintenance of the front 

 line extension as a permanent feature of our levee system must be 

 abandoned." .... ''Any further eff'ort to hold this levee end 

 will be well-nigh hopeless of good results." 



Again he says : 



"The instability of the foundations of the Ward Lake line has 

 been very much in evidence already. With an increase of five or 

 six feet of water pressure this evil will be increased to an unknown 

 but undoubtedly great extent, and will probably require a secondary 

 line, in the nature of a sub-levee, throughout most of its length. 



"From renewed activity in caving of the bank along the Burk 

 front, it seems now probable that about one and one-half miles, and 

 possibly more, of that levee will have to be renewed within the next 

 few years." The instability of the bed is further shown at the head 

 of Island 6;^, where the river is returning to the old channel on 

 the Mississippi side. "This development threatens the stability of 

 some three miles of levee above Burk's Landing that was heretofore 

 considered reasonably secure." 



" It has been forcibly demonstrated by this high water tliat one 

 of the greatest problems of the future shall be to combat the dan- 



PROC. AMER. PHILOS. SOC. XLIII. 175. F. PRINTED APRIL 5, 1904. 



