New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1875-08-19
The mississippi Floods-The Record of
OVerNOws.

| OI0Ay OFcA lAC "AoAC Wltulu III
past fortnight have up to the present INC
ment done more damage in the valley 0
the Ohio and Its tributaries than elsewhere
But II we should imagine for an instan
that there will be no other losses we ehoult
be binding ourselves to q very alarming
state OF things. 1t is true that go far tht
flooding has been confined to the Ohio belt
but there is sufficient evidence that othel
| streams ars gOrged to their utmost ca
| pacityio make US trenbls for the bottom
lands OF the great Mississippi valley. The
mississippi, north Of Cairo, where the Ohlt
| joins it. has risen already to a point close
upon the danger line, and far south OF the
Ohio the Ouachita and the Arkansas are
both in flood. Whenever the treshet of the
Ohio pours its accumulated forces into the
already swollen Mississippi, there will be
great danger of general flood along the
whole line. from the iazoO to the Balize.
1t must be understood that by far the
greater portion Of these riparian lands are
below the level of flood water. In the re-.
port Of Humphreys and Abbott, written
] before the WI, it is computed that from
Cape Girardeau, at the southern extremity
| of Missouri, to the Red River landing there
/ subject to overflow. This area comprises
the bottoms of the St. Francis and the
| YazoO. From tue Red River landing to the
! Ba!rzs there are upward of 1000, 900 acres
| in the same condition. These lands COM
| prise one third OF the cotton region Of the
South. and the greater portion OF the sugar
lands.
There have been every year partial floods,
but since the food OF 1858 there has not
been any inundatior which could with
strict Justice be called general. Last year
the owe, flow in the Yazoo and ST. Francis
bottoms was slight. Lower down, how.
ever, in the Texas region lying northwest of
the Red River landing, between what is
called the Old river, which runs into the
Mississippi, and the Atchalalaya, there was
considerable suffering owing to the floods.
There was not any freshet Of great conse.
suence to produce this result, which
was undoubtedly caused in q great meas.
ure by the defective condition of the
levees. They were SO riddled, SO leaky,
so worthless, in short, that the waters Of
the Mississippi when high poured through
numerous small crevasses, and, covering the
whole country. found their way owly TO
the Atchafalaya, which drained them off in
time. So with the Tensas. 1t received the
waters Of the Mississippi and. being some,
what swollen with the discharge Of the
bayou which feeds it, then high with local
rains, was incompetent to do its duty, and
the ad jacent lands we're flooded. All these
matters were local and partial. In the
great flood of 1858, which took place in tho
summer, there was coincidence of fresh
cts in the Ohio. the upper Mississippi, the
Missouri, the Cumberland and the Tennes-
see. The volume of water which poured |
through creyasse into the st. Francis bot
ton on that occasion exceeded 100000
cubic feet per second, and the lands re-
manned flooded until late in the fall. |
1t is true that generally grand inunda. |
ton is tie result of spring treshets, but this
is not an invariable rule. As tfar, also. as
the planters Of the riparian lands on the |
lower Mississippi are concerned. concur.
sas is as much calculated to do them dam.
age as a general concurrence Of treshets |
In the Sery full dispatches to the New York |
Times from the regions in danger. we find i
that the Ohio is dangerously high, and that |
the Arkansas is rising enc foot per hour.
Fortunately. there has been no rise in !
the Missouri, and the exact. point is |
whether the Mississippi. which has risen I
north of Cairo, will be /
SO swollen south Of its junction with
the Ohio as to render the levees useless |
when it meets the flood waters of the Arkan.
sas. The st. Francis and tho fazOo bot !
toms, one on the west, the other on the east |
bank of the big river, are both north Of the I
Arkansas mouth. but below it is the Tensas |
bottom and all the rich riparian lands from
the Red river TO the Balize. That this l
of the Southern planters-difficultie against |
which they were SO bravely struggling
will be source OF eOrrOw to our entire ma.
ton. Nor can we quite close our eyes to
the fact that it will also be source OF con-
national loss. For the cotton In
serests are most deeply affected by it. as
one may Judge by the fact that the staple
rose one half cent pound upon the intima.
ton Of the probability OF disaster, though
it has since fallen to its nominal price.
1t may be interesting to our readers 20
glance over brief epitOme Of all that has |
been recorded of floods in the Mississippi. !
The early records are not very full, and
were taken from old French chronicles for l
the most part. by Humphreys and Abbott.
1t will be seen by a comparison Of the diff
ferent events that the inundations came
another, and that they have occurred with
irregular regularity. In this connection it
may be interesting to 81 i've brief summary |
Of the floods of the Mississippi:
Flood Of 171S.-An extraordinary rise of |
the Mississippi this year. Bienville has Sc
ected site for the city. but the colony not
having the means to build dykes or levees,
the idea WAS for the moment abandOned.-
Francois Xaricr Martin.
Flood Of l735-In this year the waters
we're go high that many levees were broken
md much damage was done. New Orleans |
tself was inundated. The food continued
rom the latter part OF December to the
after part OF June. When the river fell it
'eached lower point than ever before |
noted, the range Mt New Orleans being fif- !
cen feet.-Gdyarre.
Flood OF 17:O.-A great flood, according
% the tradition recorded by Governor Sar-
gent, but the published statements con-
,erning it are SO ambiguous as to render it |
whether the food was equal to
hat of 1871. or foot higher.
Flood of I7S2-This year the Mississippi !
cached greater height than was remem-
,ered by the oldest inhabitants. In the
vas extreme, the few spots which the | :
waters did not reach being covered with
lead deer.-Erancois .Narier Martin. This |
ear, 1782, was considered Eannee acs eaus.
-Brackenridge.
Flood of l7s5.-A great food at St. Louis
n April. said to have been equal 10 1874.
Professor Riddell. of New Orleans, states |
'ourna,, OF that city. published November |
}, 1906, is narration that the city Of New
orleans was flooded by crevasse in 1875
{ the same time.
Flood Of l79l-Both st. Louis and New
orleans were flooded in the same way as in
7S5.
Flood of i196-The Teehe river overfiowed !
e banks for sixty miles above New Iberia,
nd poured into Grand Lake in a smooth
heet of water. The lake at this date at
aimed its highest level, being two feet five |
aches higher than in 1923, six feet eight
,ches higher than in 1850 and four feet |
igher than the ordinary level of the gulf
God in 1898. In this year the cities of st.
.ouis and New Orleans were again flooded
4 the month of April as in 1855 and 1871.
Flood of 1904 most disastrous food,
ccording to the notes of Governor Sargent. 9
I ;nunA afod oil ho s,lanfaf;ona naar |