206 



and destructive floods in this state and elsewliere is tlie wholesale destruc- 

 tion of the forests. 



Another proof of the etficiency in controlling tlie "run-oft"' lias been 

 furnished by Touniey/ He made a study of a number of small areas with 

 reference to precipitation and run-off in the San Kernardino ^Mountains, 

 California. He found in every case that the forest liad a very decided 

 effect in regulating the run-off of the water and in the regulation of stream 

 flow. In this way the forests of southei-n Indiana es]uvially have been of 

 great value. Within the last quarter of a century liy fnr the gi'eater pari 

 of the Indiana forests have been renioveil. so thiit now but few areas of the 

 primeval forests remain. That rain therefore, which falls, has in most 

 cases, nothing on the steep soil to check it and disastrous floods are the 

 result. 



In the forest the heavy rain is first checlced by the large trees and 

 their foliage. Fi-om these the water next falls to the smaller trees and 

 linshcs. then to the tliii-k i-ai'iict of Icmvcs. 'I'lic biwcr i>;irt of this bed of 

 leaves is in partial decay and liere again nnicli of tlic water percolating 

 through is temporarily arrested. From here Ihe w.iter is further arrested 

 by the generally deep Ininnis soil. In this way even most long-continued 

 and heavy rains are effectually checked and a disastrous Hood cannot well 

 occur in a region possessing such ;i covering of the land. In addition most 

 of the water which is checked in this w:iy instead of rushing off as on 

 barren land, gradually runs or seei)s aw;iy. thus i-egnlating the flows of 

 streams and maintaining the nearly even and continued flow of springs. 



There liave been i:itei- floods in llie Ohio Uiver thiin the one of 1907, 

 and the same applies to the sticams of Indiana, due to deforestfition wluch 

 hiis taken plai-e wlierexcr timbei- was available. 



A lecent and severe jieiialtv due mostly to reckless deforestation was 

 given the state of Indiana and the whole obio valley in the disastrous 

 flood of tlie Ohio River and its tributaries in the sjtring of the X'resent 

 year. This equaled or surpassed in some places the record of any previous 

 flood and was especially remarkable foi' the suddenness of its appearance. 

 The precipitation over much of huliana and tlie Ohio valley in general 

 was enormous and much above the averiige. Foi- exami)le Re.Miolds' states 



< Tourney, Janie« VV. 'I'hc Uelalion of Forests to Stream Flow. ^■(•arl)Ook of the Department 

 of .Vgriculture, 1903. 



'Reynolds, Hobert I'. I{. Tlie Ohio Floods: Their Cause and The Hemeily. Ameriean For- 

 estry, May. I'Jl.3, p. 28S. 



