FEBRUARY, 1911. RIONTIILY WEATHER REVIEW. 25 1
Sabine, 3.5s ; aiicl coastal plains, 1.09. In January the
averages varied from a mnimuni of 0.33 inch for tlie lower Guaclnlupe to a iiiasiinum of 0.71 inch for tlie
Neches.
RIVER CONDITIONS.
The streams of tlie district generally averaged liglier
than during the preceding nioiitli, but there was very little change until after the niitldle of tlie month. On the ISth
sharp rises occurred in the upper Colorado, and on the 21st in tlie upper Brazos and upper Trinity. The C‘olo-
rndo rise TWS felt throughout its length, and the stages
renclied, tiltliough below flood stage, are the llighest
on record for February. Tlie Trinity :tiid Brazos rises
dit1 not show 1111 niucli in the lower portioiis of these streams. The Brazos, however, rose liiglier in its upper
and iiiicldle portioiis tlinii in any previous Fehruwy since
1903.
SNOWFALL IN THE MOUNTAINS.
There was niucli siiowfall during the niontli, ant1 the prospects for irrigation water nre tlecicledly iiiore fuvor-
able tlinii a t any previous time this season. The nccu-
iiiuhtec1 de Ith of mow over the heatlwaters of the Rio
Graiitle and Rico Pecos at the close of the nioiitli was
greater in many locttlities tlinii cluriiig tlie correAponc1- iiig period of tlie previous year. The following estrncts
froiii reports of n’enther Iiurenu officials furiiisli special informtition on tlir snowfnll conditions in these dramage
h s i n s :
( ‘olom/fJ.-Thr latter half vf Frbruar$ was stnrmp, and \alualile
additiams t o the stork of snow in the iiiountniiia wtw niade (in all
watersheds, 110tablp on the Rio (;randr. A ~-iinsidcmlile esress a:ia
general in the Rio Grantle clr:iimne Iimin and over the ndjarent xmall
anterahecls. AR n whole, the snow is polidly packed on the weetern slope and loosrly pa(.kwl on the cistern slope.
~’cinil)aring the d q i t h s un tlir griiiind at tht. eiitl of tlie inwith, the
aventge for the A I ~O W scales on the Rio Cir:cndr, 30 inrhes. is 5 inches
inore than n year aqri. For the early liart of the irri,cation S ~~~R O I ~,
about tlie nummnl fliiw is indicntrd-F. H. Bru/ir/c/tbitty, dtstrict fore-
rristcr. A‘ew Jhkv-Verp general ant1 lieivy snnwfnll nccurred over the
Rio C+rande watershed during the h t half of PPhru:iry, dnd n lnr,ce
amount of nrcumulated mow iA rc.portrd crvei thr hcnrlwttc~rs (if this
&wuii, and t h ~n r e boutliw-artl to rentrAl New Mesico, while the siiutli-
ern districtR synrrnlly had hearp rain. An exi’ess in Iirevilitation
nlso orrrirrerl in January, with smnll rmi-i)ff, SI that the soil is well
filled with moisture and the water outlook ir qmi
a:itrr will be allundant :ind the Iirosliert is Iiriini
(:e~iewI and fnirlp h ~a v y now ~~ri-urretl over the niorintain di+
tri(.ts in the Ritr Perns aatershrd. and 01 cr thc 1)htexn n11d some of
tlie plains country, while qmd rains were qener~l (iver the lower levels
aiid the siiutlirrn latitudrs. Thr mil is 1 1 0 ~ arll filled uith moisturc
and the outlook crratlp inqiroved. The insin &wiiii ani1 R I I I I I ~ of thr
tributaries m i l l hale a good enrly flow, but seasonal mins will be nee(led
to continue it far into the irrigation sra~on.--(‘. E. L i n n p y , ser*/b/i
director.
MISCELLANEOUS.
A7~in.-Every new shoot was lrilletl by the frost of
tlie E d and 23~1. Bill 81’”inl/s.-Fnriiiers sny they linve tlie finest sea-
son, for this time of the Yeitr, they ever lime l i d .
Bou?ie.-Tlie cold uxve of tlie 19tli t o 24th killetl
nearly all fruit which was in blohsoni.
(hcrrrroro,c .-The cold spell of tlie 231 and 24th killed
iart of the vegetzible crop nncl ahout 20 per cent, of the
L i t . (ht~r~.-Tlie coli1 w:ilre of tlie 2311 and 24th killed soiiie
vegetables izlicl some of tlie J-oulig corn tliilt is 1111.
G o r 7 ~m .-The top soil is in fiiie condition for the plnnt-
iiig of crops, h i t , tlie nioisture is very shallow aiitl n great
deal more rain is needed.
Grand SnZinc.--hIost of tlie fruit wis killed by the se-
vere freeze of tlie 19th and 20th. Hon(7o.-Tlie severe weather of the 23d aiid 34th did
grent, clamage to fruit, figs, etc. La!/rccn!/c.-Tlie killing frost of tlie 21st to 24th did
considerrt1)le tlniiinge to liluomiiig fruit trees. Ricrcrdo.-The coli1 snap, commencing as it did after
uiiusunlly inild nnd growing \fy\.eixtlier, w:is very dnniag-
iiig t o cucunil)ers, olirn, squash, iiieloiis, and other enrly
tender veget nhles.
BRAZOS RIVER OVERFLOWS AND LEVEE PROTEC-
TION.
By W. W. DIBRELL, Levee Engineer, U. S. G. S.
Tlie recent nwnkeiiiiig of tlie laiidowiers of the Brazos bottoms to tlie fact, that ltirge arezis of tliis land can be
)rotect,ecl at n siiiall expense hy tlie construction of levees
Lis attractecl public :Ittention to :t certniii extent,, Init
its yet the general Iublic lias iio accurate iden of the iiiiniense vnlue of t 1 le ngriculturiil lantls of the Brnzos
es entailed by tlie overflow of tlie river.
Tlie Brilzos River prcoper lieails in tlie Stiiketl Plains
of western Terns, in Hale :tntl L i t i i i l ~ C‘ounties, flows in 1%
soutliensterly direction, nnd enipties into the Gulf of
RIesico, clrnining itii ttrc:i of over 50,000 square niiles.
Tlie strenni in its entire leiigtli flows tlirougli n soft nin-
terial, ranging froiii a black cnlcnreous allurizil soil a t the 11 )per end to a sniitly itiicl clay Ioani representing
reworLec~ mnterial in tlie lower pnrts. t ~i e lewt sign
of liigli water tlie river bec~oiiies a murky red and curies
t t lnrge amount, of silt. Altliougli tlraiiiing a very ItLrge
territory, the river sonietinie.s IIeiwnes very low, and tlie writer has wxtled it ninny n time chiring tlie dry season.
Its main tril)ut:tries, tlie Little River iind Little Brnzos,
linve the sitiiie cliarncteristics ns tlie mnin stream and,
tliougli draining n smaller area tlinn the iiiain river, tlo
great c1:iiiinge in t h e s of owrflow.
Tlie overflows of the Brazos m i 1 results therefrom form
:til interesting study, but, imfortunntely, until lake years
no nccurnte record lins h e n kept of tlieni. Tlie first iiiu nt lation (I f wliich even t rncli t i t J i i spe ti lis ()cc 11 rred in
1S33, the nest in lS43, aiitl then one, of wliich there is
iiiore known, in 1552. This last nppeztrs to lime coT--
eretl immense nreas of laiicl ant1 t o have cloiie great
clniiinge to stock, hit facts :ire meager niid unrelinble,
as niiglit be expected, coiiiiiig iiioqtly in verbal form froni old settlers. Eetweeii tliis flootl niirl tlie nest, over :3()
yenrs elapsecl, in ~vliich there wis wtctically no high
water, aiitl tlie iintives becnnie cnre I ess :tiid overconfi-
dent, so tlint tlie overflow of 1SS.5 took tlieiii entirely by
surprise. It seems 11s if the most &tiiinge in tliis case
was doiie in the II i )er section, hut no relinble re mrts
can ]>e o1)taiiiecl. +lie lnntl in tlie 10wr section hac \ not
been cleared to any great, extent up to tliis time, and therefore tlie dnniitge was not :IS qreat as it iiiiglit 1iaiT.e
been under other ccoiiditions. What appears to linve been the grentest nnd most
general overflow of tlie Brazos, Iiowever, occurred in June
nnd July, 1199. The year “99” is spoken of with awe by tlie nntives and will long be remembered by tlieni.
Several years directly preceding 1899 were clinrncterizecl
by dry weather, nnd until June of tlint yenr tlie rainfall
was barely normnl. About May 20 excessive rninfall
begnn to be reported nll over the Brazos bnsbi. At hison, Jones County, tlie precipitation for June was 6.3
inches, against n 12-year average of about 2.4 iuclies.
At Abilene, Taylor County, it was 5.45, avernge 3;
352 MONTHLY WEATHER REVIEW. FEBRUARY, 1911
Paiiter, Hood C'oiiiity. 11, arernge, 3.7 : Duldin, Erntli Cuunty, '7.3, arernge, 2 .S : Temple, Bell C'omity, 1 1,
average, 4.3 ; itncl like reports were received froni stations
all over the section. There were two distinct floods, but
a t such close interval that they :ire usually classed as
one. The fist reached its maximum on June 29, and the
second on July 1 . The average duration of tliis flood was
about eight days, hit in that time it covered it11 area of
over 2,000 square niiles and did clamage to tlie extent of
nenrly $7,500,000. The greater ditiiinge wns clone in hlclennnii, Falls, Robertson, Britzos, Burlesmi, Grimes, Witsliingtoii, Waller, Austin, Fort Bend, niicl Brnzorin
C'nunties. a11 tlie tributitries were out of tlieir banks as
well as the iiinin stream, and the d:miage wtts appdliiig. The flood cmiiie t i t the period of the year when the greatest
claninge wns possible, as none of the crops h i d been gntherecl, and it w t s ton lnte to plitnt the second time, so
tlint tlie crops of the seuson were nearly a conip1et)e loss.
The dnninge to cotton wts the greatest, amounting to about ?6,9.50 bdes. C'orn followed, it being estimated
tliitt -I,3A6,0OO husliels were de4royed. Besides these
two important crops, great losses were sustained in otlier
crops, live stock, building iiiiprcJrerneiits, etc. Tlie tlamage h i e to the litnd by w:ishing was considerable,
but this W'BY offset 1))- iiii increased richness of the soil from the deposit of silt. About 40 lives were lost by tlrowning, itnd according to a Government report hun-
tlrecls of people were in n destitute condition, :tiid large
nuiii hers were relieved 1)y tlie venerosity of landowners
aiicl public-spirited citizens. f g r e a t amount of sickness occiirrecl clirectly Lifter, ni:tlnrial 'fever becnnie prevalent,
xncl the inhabitants underwent ninny linrdsliips, but as a
whole they r;tlliecl cliiiclrly ttnd were soon back a t work.
The towns in the valley that depended upon tlie crops of
tlie fnrriiers suffered grently and for 1% mliile business WLS
:tliiiost pnralyzecl antl great, lusses were the result, From
these tlat:t the ningnitucle of tlie loss from this one flood C R ~
e d j - be seen. Witliin two weeks the w-ltter was out of it.:
bnnks antl back :tgaiii, in tlie meantime having flooded
I ,:3S3,350 acres, caiisetl it total loss of $7,412,563, entled 40
lives :tiit1 p:tr:dyzetl in i i business way tlie entire section.
The nest rise occurred in 1902, but did not amount to
much. Six years then elitpsecl, ztnd in BIay, IOOS, tlie river again seriously tlireatenrd tlie fttrnis. Tliis time
rtlso tliere were two se ,:irate floods, but they occurred at
:L greitter interval. Atout. the 25tJi of April tlie crest of
tlie first rise wits reported at Kopperl, above W:tco, itlid
nl,out May 1 it rewlied its greatest lieiglit a t Booth,
below Kii~l~nioiitl. Tlic second f l o o c l rencliecl its mnsi- ~iiuni of 32 ftlet at Kopperl, on hlny 2 5 : at Valley Junc-
tion, 51 feet, on hlny 27: nt Henipstead, 4:3 feet, on June
1, and a t Booth, 44 feet, on June 5 . Ample wtrning was
given tlie farmers in the 1( iwer section, and consecluently
little claniage was clone to stock, but the crops suflered he:tvily, es iecinlly in the second rise. There lins been no
estiinate o 1 the total loss as in IS99, for tlie overflow was not as general m d widespreacl, but in some sections the
crops were a complete loss. Lute corn WAS )laiited after the waters receded, but did not do very we \ 1. In some
parts cotton wts replanted, but, :tccordUig to indiriclual
re mrts nothing w~ts gained.
b i t h i n tlie last 10 years tliere lias been a greitt amount of new land cleared and put under cultivation in this
watershed, and the vdiiiLtion lins itdiwicecl considemI>ly.
All that is needed to make this one of the most profitable
of fnrniing districts is eihcient protection rtgnmst such
overflows as tliose just mentioned. To acconiplisli this, a new interest is being taken in leveeing the river, and some progress lias been ninde in the construction of levees.
Until the last year or two no systematic attempt 1i;Ls
been made by plmters to protect Inrge itreas, nntl tlie only
work done wzts by indiviclurtl parties liere itncl tliere by
constructing levees miuncl tlieir own property. A few levees were put L I ~ prior to the flood of ISW, but tlie-
proved ineflective, its they were mere earthen eniliank- ments thrown up in spare time for protection against
slight rises, and were easily toppetl by the water. Later, others were erected wliicli were but little better for pro-
tection against floods. Tlie Saiiger plantation, in Fnlls County, lins l i d levees up for :L niiiiiber of years. The
Wilson farm, in Robertson C!ounty, built levees about
1895, but both the rise of IS09 niid tliut of 190s went over them. In Brnzos C'ouiity tlie Rogers plantation
built levees about 1<)~)5, but tlie second fli)od of 190s
topped them. Nenr Dc iwnsville, below Waco, embank-
nieiitv are being constructed by iiitlividuitl parties, under the supervision of engineers, which will likely prove
eflective, exce it in case of very Iiigli water. Tlie Hender- son farm, in &mi C'ounty,is also erecting it good embank-
ment, but until 1910 no systematic attempt wits made by the combined lanclowners in constructing levees.
I n the npproprintions of a former legislature $50,000
was set aside for levee and drainage >iirposes, and h h Arthur Stiles, of the tJnited States Geo I! ogical Survey, was
appointed State levee am1 drltiiinge commissioner. Tlie Federnl Government added %50,000, and in cooper it t' 1011
with tlie State, in October, 1909, Mr. Stiles began pre- liiiiinary surveys of tlie Brazos River from Sealy to Waco.
Parties were kept in tlie field until May, 1910, and B coii-
siclerstble iirea was mnpped preparatory to the location of
the levees. Since then little liits been done by the State, but Mr. Stiles hopes to begin operittions again at an early
cl A te.
Tlie most effective itttem It :it prntection a t present, however, is being clone by t I ie litnclowners. By forming
into independent levee tlistricts, tnsing the land to be
xotected niicl issuing bonds, considerable territory is Ling jut under protection. Bur 1 eson C'ounty was tlie first to organize, wid in the
early part uf 191C) let the contrnct for about '15 miles of
levee. This was finislied early in March, 191 1. Brnzos Chunty followed, and in Noveinber, 1910, issued bonds
t o the value of $49,000, and nwarclecl the contract for 1 2 j
miles of levee, protecting S,OOO acres. This levee is to be finislied by May, 191 I. Wrtsliington C'ounty lias lately
formed a district ancl awarded the contrnct for 1 G miles, prntecting about 10,000 acres, at an estiniatecl cost of
557,000. Efforts are being made to organize otlier dis-
tricts which will undoubtedly be successful.
With tlie organization of these independent districts and with tlie cooperation of the Goveriimeiit tlie Brnzos
bottom will soon be a safe ancl productive section for tlie raising of crops. The changing of such an immense
territory from a sickly, unsafe country to one of the most
fertile sections of tlie State should attract the attention of
the people at large, wliich it undoubtedly will do.