BYBEE-MALOTT : THE FLOOD OF 1913 



173 



sure of the water, or were not high enough. Would it be practical 

 to construct levees both strong and high enough to protect the 

 land from floods of the proportions of the recent one? 



The writers believe that it would be practical to construct 

 levees of such a nature. Several of the levees considered were 

 high enough, but were weak in places. In most cases it would be 

 well to have them higher. A levee is like a chain; it is no stronger 

 than its weakest link. The weak places should be strengthened. 

 The most dangerous enemies to the levees seemed to be the ground- 

 hogs. In very few cases do the levees need to be protected with 

 a rock covering, but it would be well to have trees and shrubs grow- 

 ing on them. The levees considered in this paper were effective 

 for years before the 1913 flood, and would have been effective then 

 if they had been a little higher and a little stronger in a few places 

 where they were subject to unusual strain. The extra expense 

 in making them flood proof would be nominal, and if they are to 

 be used at all they should be made strong, for a weak levee causes 

 much damage when it breaks. 



There are many places along White River which could be pro- 

 tected by levees. Even in many of the narrower confines of the 

 valley, levees could be made with much benefit to the land. For 

 instance, along the East Fork of White River the valley itself is 

 continually turning to the right and to the left and the river crosses 

 from side to side in its tendency to be always on the outside of the 

 turn. Where it leaves a bluff on one side to cross to a bluff on the 

 other side, the river bank is usually low; sometimes there is no bank 

 at all, and a low strip of land continues to 'B,' on to ^C,' but usually 

 it is much lower at 'A' and 'B' than it is at T,' where the current 

 enters the river channel. The current flows in this low strip when- 

 ever there is even a minor flood. A levee placed at 'A' would be 

 hard to hold, but one placed at 'B' would not be so likely to be 

 washed away since the current from the river channel would not 

 strike it. A levee placed at 'B' would need to be very little higher 

 than the valley land near the river where it is usually highest. Such 

 a levee would in time cause the low strip to fill with silt and would 

 be a great improvement to the land. The low area to the leeward 

 of the levee would probably become a pond or be very wet, but this 

 condition could be overcome by tiling. 



