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Water R.esources p{'Ople ;wd Issues Q: When you C-1me to these Corps offices you came as a representative of the Mississippi'Jalley Committee presumably? A: Yes. Q: What kind cf reception did the Corps give you? Do you recall? A: Yes. There was a cordial reception for two reasons. One was that the Chlef of Engineer:., General Markham, was a member of the Mississippi Valley Committee. Markham attended some of the meetings, but Colonel Glen Edgerton represented him at most of them. Edgerton was a very intelligent, thoughtful representative of the Corps who had the respect of everybody on the committee and who must have had the respect of the people in the Corps because when the word went out that we wanted something, it was always provided. The response was friendly. The other re.lson was that here was a group trying to put together much of the work on which people in the Corps had been laboring for a long time. If' a number of cases, people for the Corps served short times as assigned staff to the Mississippi Valley work. I remember one person was Cone from the Southwest area, who had been mainly responsible for the 308 reports on the Arkansas, R:X;, and White rivers. He came in and was useful. At that stage, the Corps personnel regarded this as an opportunity to get their experience and judgment presented in a larger context. All was not promising. i recall one interview with a team working on the New Madrid floodway. After the members ha.:i presented their report, one asked Woodward what he Ihought they needed He replied dryly, "An historian." Q: Did you get to meet Harley Ferguson, who was the president of the Mississippi~ive' Commission at that time and the Division Enginee" down there? A: Yes. I met 111m He was a fine person. I didn't have very direct dealings with him ! spent much more time with Gerard Mathes, for example Q: The Senior Ergineer? 8