Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1874-04-24
THE MISSISSIPPI FLOODS.
A Widespread Waste of Water,
The Tide Three Feet Higher
than Ever Known.
CreYasses 1000 Feet wide.
Hundreds of Poor Familie.
Drowned out.
Women Wading with Their Chi
dren above Their Heads.
Many yChiIdren ReportedDrowned

0IEu dDONO I1CdtASs
Many Children ReportedDrOwned
AveriIIs Parish.
NEW ORLEANS, April 23.-The State
authorities receive letters daily from
persons from the oyerflowed sec
tons asking for provisions, etc. The
following extracts from them are
fair specimens. A letter dated Simmport,
Averills parish, addressed to the Governor,
says: sSPlease send me some supplies, as
| have large family of nine children to
keep up and feed. The water is three feet
deep in my yard and all over my place. 1t
is utterly impossible for me 10 get anything
for my family to eat without calling on you
for assistance. Please for PHYS sake do not
fail to send me some supplies by return
steamer
The following is an extract taken from
letter to the Governor dated Big Bend, Av-
erills parish: sThe whole of the Bayou des
Glaizes and Red River front Is entirely
overfiowed. All Of us are bankrupt. No
money, no credit. Commission merchants
all shut down on us. We have no provis-
ions. Many are in a manner starving. The
water is all over the country, and still
rising. The COWS not drowned are dying
for want Of food. Sheep and hogs are
drowned by hundreds. Take this matter
into consideration and see if something
cannot be done for u.s."
Bayou Teche, Etc.
The Governor to-day received a letter
from Clarendon, st. Mary's parish, which
says: "Among the many sufferers by the
recent overflow are those who have lived
on the east side of the Bayou Teche, on
Bayou Chenez, Bayou Pigeon, on the shore
of Grand lake and Lake Chicot, all of which
districts are now submerged, leaving some
three hundred families in state of utter
destitution."
The Upper Coast.
Gen. NJ. JEFF Thompson, Chief State En-
gineer, returned to-day from the upper
coast. lie states that storm which COM
menced Thursday of last week and eontin-
ued until Sunday, caused the crevasSes on
the West side of the river to increase rapid
ly in width. The crevaSse near
Port Hudson,
at Lonwood and Virgins plantations is
now three quarters of a mile wide, though
only about three feet deep, the levee being
a very small one, from three 10 four feet in
height. The cTevasse heretofore reported
as having occurred in
MOrgnusea Bend,
below the new Texas landing is in what is
known as the Van Pelt MorganSea Levee,
between the original MorganSea Levee and
Grand LeVee. The break is low about
900 feet wide in the new levee, which was
about 13 feet high. The flow of water
through this IS checked by an old levee in
front, and a dense growth Of cottonwood
between the two levees. In the old levee
there are four breaks aggregating about 800
feet. The Hickey crevasse,
Below Baton Rouge,
is now 1,5O0 feet wide and seven deep, the
water passing through at velocity of eight
miles an hour. Gen. Thompson reports
another crevasse at Lakeside plantation,
Point Coupee parish. He states that about
Twenty Sugar Plantations
have been covered with water from Hick-
ey's, and that hundreds of poor families,
living on the bayOus, have been drowned
out. The Bonnet Care crevasse is now
700 feet wide and 10 feet deep in the center,
where the leyee is entirely gone and water
is cutting the channel. The MeCullen ere
vases, below Baton Rouge, will prOpably
be closed in a few days. Though these
breaks are comparatively small, water from
them has already covered many large plan
tatiOns, and driven out the poor people liv-
| ing behind them. No mail trains by either
the Jackson or Mobile roads yesterday.
The Bridges Carried Away
by the flood detains them. Two days
| Northwestern mails now due by the Jack
son road are coming by boat from Vicks-
burg. A gentleman who reached this city
to-day from the Florida parishes states that
the Tauxepation, Tickfaw and Amite
rivers were swollen by rains from Thurs
day to Sunday, completely OyerfOwing
their banks and spreading over the country
on either side for miles, the people fleeing
to the high lands. II is estimated the water
is three feet higher than ever before known.
The Amite river rose very rapidly.
several Children
are reported drowned in the streets of Port
Vincent which was oyerfiOwed. The fiat
country of st. Helena, Tauxepation, Wash
ingtOn, st. Tammany and East Feliciana
parishes are flooded for miles.
The Times says a gentleman from the
upper coast gives the most appalling des-
4 VI lliC VI EAC pGOplc WIN
happened to live in the district overflOwed
by the Hickey erevasse. He SAYS that not
| less than twenty splendid sugar plantations
have been submerged from that source al
ready. That, however, was nothing COM
pared with the sufferings of the people. On
| Sunday last the gentleman witnessed a
large lumber of persons wading their way
out of the torrents of water which passed
| Il fl,as hr,oly
women in the water
Up TO their Arm Pits,
holding their infants above their heads, AID
| it was reported that some had been flooded
away on the rushing tide with their little
ones in their arms. Bayou Crosse Tite
adyices state that there is now three to
| four feet Of water on the east side Of the
Bayou, and it is expected the water will
overflow the west side. The water is back
ing up
Bayou PIaguemine
/ as far as the Dardemeis plantation and will
probably reach the town of Bayou Grula
on the Mississippi river. Mayor Wilt has
been applied to for immediate relief TO be
sent to The Crosse Sete country. The re-
cent rains continue the floods in the Ouehita
and red river valleys.
The Memphis and Little Rock Road
Disappears.
MEMPHIs, April 23.-Parties who come
over the Memphis and Little Rock railroad
to-day, state the water covers the track for
several hundred yards, in some places near
ly foot, with strong current sweeping
! over it, and as the river is still rising, it is
hardly probable trains will go over it to-
morrow.
Metropolitan Charity.
NEW YORK, April 23.-Oyer 5000 have
been subscribed at the Cotton Exchange
for the sufferers at New Orleans.
LATER--SubScriptiO amount to sew
eral thousand dollars and large additions
are expected. Mayor Havemeyer has issued
an appeal to the citizens for aid.
CINCINNATI.
Tearing mp tine Track.