Daily Iowa State Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1856-1859, 1858-06-22
The Condition of Cairo.



To tie Editor If tie Missouri Repujl;can'
sIR:-1he re ports in Your paper of the
18th, relative to the condition of our town
are greatly exaggerated. 1t is to be sure
entirely inundated and covered with water
inside of our Lcvees to the same height as
in the surrounding rivers, but no house of
any considerable size has been washed
away or disturbed on its foundation, and at
present there is no reasonable expectation
that such will be the cese. Many of the citi-
zens are still living in the upper stories Of
TIA -ir houses and do not expect to remove
therefrom. The damage to our levees is
but inconsiderabe, and can be repaired,
when the waters subside, at an expense but
trifing when compared with the original
cost, but about three hundred feet having
been washed away, while the entire levees
are about nine miles in extent. The injury
to our own consists principally in the dis
placement of fences, out houses, side walks,
and immersion in water furniture, goods
and merchandise, hut as yet we are not
aware OF any serious damage To any building
Of any considerable size Our damages can
ali be repaired in n very short time, and
our town soon made as good as new. In
the mean time our Ohio levcc nearly three
quarters Of a mile in length and eighty feet
in width, upon which most of onr large
business houses are situated, is entirely
above the water, alfording ample space for
the transaction of business and refuge to
such as are driven by the water from the
interior of the town.
The fall OF the portion of the new hotel
building, to which reference is made IN your
report was not attributable in any degree
to the pressure of the water, as the walls
have been out Of line for some months, and
its fall before this was confidently expected
Other large buildings upon which there is
the same pressure of water still stand with
out any indication of weakness, and 1t is not
expected that they will be at all affected by
the pressure of any water upon them, how
ever high.
You will thus perceive that We are far
from having gone under and although We
are Il little damp about here, we do not con-
slider that we are very much more damaged
than the labor of a few weeks will set all
right again.
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
s. STAArs TAYLOR.
Iowa GoLD.-Below we append n commu
nication signed by eight of our prominent
city and county, and whose statements can
not be doubted. They are careful. prudent
men, and are the last ones who would get
up false statement or mislead the people.
Our readers far and near may place implicit
confidence in their statements in regard to
Iowa gold. We have seen the specimens
brought IN, and can say that the gold is
genuine, and that they are the best we have
seen.
Communication.
GoLD IN DUBUQUE and DELAWARE County.
The undersigned, citizens of Dubuque,
wishing to test the actually of the exist
ence of gold in Iowa by personal observa-
ton. formed party and proceeded to
Whitewater Creek on Monday morning, and
prospected that afternoon, and till Tuesday
noon. On Whitewater creek we washed
out by pan, and in almost every pan we
found small particles of gold, mingled with
black sand. The stream was very high, and
we coul not get to the bottom of the river,
where the best deposits would naturally ex-
list. Where we prospected, at present, I'M
less deeper diggi ogs were made and sluice
boxes constructed, it would not pay; but
Che indications are good for river Iiggings,
if the water was low enough. Mr. Andrew |
having some business with man about two |
miles from Burns farm, and on the prairie,
prospected ia a small stream, and found |
small fine gold there. The first pan he got |
two small pieces, the next one, and in almost |
every pan got some gold.
We then went to Bowens Prairie, on the |
edge north Of the military road, and pros
pected from three to four hours. We found |
some specimens here larger than on White
water, but it did not seem to be so W ell dis |
tributed over the ground On the White
water, the strata is reddish clay, and gra-
velly rotten granite and quartz pebbles
On Bowen's Prairie the clay was more Of a |
mixture of green and yellow, such as is seen |
often in California.
We make this statement not to excite men |
to go out and hunt, for we cannot yet say
that it will pay, but think it will in some |
places with the proper labor and facilities,
but to convince the skeptical that there is |
gold In Iowa, and that the reports are not |
all false in relation to its existence.
Having procured enough specimens to |
convince and satisfy ourselves that gold |
does exist, We returned to Dubuque. The |
specimens can be seen at the iewelry store
Of w. II. Robbins, corner Of Main and Fifth
streeta WIN. ANDREW,
J. WooLNouGH,
H. MCDONALD,