Daily press and Dakotaian. [volume] (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1875-1880, 1878-06-21
the DANGER At SIOUX CITY.

THE DANGER At SIOUX CITY.
One Building Washed into h River, ana
. Large umbc loved to Save them
from q Sinilar Fate.
The following dispatch gives the situation
at Sioux City at noon to-day:
Capt. Young's ice house containing 800
tons Of ice caved into the river last night.
The river il within fifteen feet Of the /. g.
r. r. freight depot and the bank is caving
off still. About twenty houses have been
moved to save them. Spauldings saw mill
and Rices saw mill have been meved to
save them.
A brief explanation of the location Of the
endangered buildings will be of some assis-
lance to the general reader in gaining an
understanding Of the situation. The Illi-
nois Central freight depot is situated be-
tween the Depot hotel and the river and is
distant about 800 feet from the hotel. Capt.
Youne's ice house was a block or two east
of the depot and nearer the river, and the
saw mills of Messrs. s~paulding and Rice,
and the removed dwelling houses were still
farther east and near the river bank.
The following is from the Sioux City
Journal of the Goth.
There is no change for the better along
our levee, which continues to melt away be-
meath the laping wave of the Missouri at a
rate which is causing great diamay. The
cutting yesterday was not confined to any
particular spot, but extended from the foot of
Douglas street a. far east as Y0ung's ice
house. In some places the river last night
was from 40 to SO feet further inland than
the day previous, and it is feared that the
inroad to-day will be greater still, for as
the bend increases, the stronger and more
destructive grows the eddy.
Messrs. D. T.Hedges, L. E. Skinner, and
F. II. Peavey went to work yesterday to see
what could be done towards checking the
at the foot of Douglas. The river
is full of drift, and they had men out in
skiM who caught logs as they came down,
which were towed in to the bank and dashed
there with ropes. Among those who took
a boat and worked OH the river was Judge
of the circuit court, and he did
most excellent work. Several carloads of
brush were expected last night which will
be crowded in between the logs and shore,
and it is hoped this may check the current
sufficient to stop further serious washing.
Many think this work during the present
high stag. of water useless, but it is we'll to
i've it a fair trial, for this is all that can
be done, aid should it prove effective at this
point, the l.vee might be lined with similar
protection.
What the railroad companies will do is
not known. The engineers of the Sioux
City, Pacific and Illinois Central are here,
md we hear them reported as saying that
{ it shall appear that the expense Of saving
heir grounds will not exceed their value,
hey will make an effort to save them; if
otherwise. they will move their buildings
nd tracks and let the grounds 60. 1t would
eem that the urgency Of the case demands
hat they make up their minds very speedily
$ to what they will do. In the meantim
he railroad buildings most exposed will be
emoved at once to safer positions than they
occupy. They will commence moving
he old freight house Of the Sioux City and
Pacific this morning, and the wrecking car
md crew of the Central will be here to-day,
prepared to move the %latter's freight house
when the word is given. The Dakota South
I'm folks also hold themselves in readiness
o backward move. Hedges elevator will
oe moved if the river continues to cut in
ts near vicinity.
Nearly all the small houses east of the
Central depot are on rollers, and are scatter
ID about without any regard to corner
takes or points of compass. Rice & Spal-
saw mill, which was Is or 20 feet
rom the rivers edge, was yesterday morning
;ound projecting over the water fully eight
'eet. It was again got on rollers and drawn
of its dangerous position. Right at this
point the river has cut in 200 feet since last
October, and standing here and looking up
stream n gets the best view and ~clearest
idea of the destructive work that has been
done within . few months. Capt. Young had
an ice house eighty feet long, but what is left
Of it is about forty feet, the rest having top
pied into the river. Something like twenty
feet fell ON Wednesday night, carrying with
it from seventy-fve to one hundred tons Of
ice. The work Of removing what ice is left
is being prosecuted Is rapidly as possible,
but no hopes are entertained of saving it
Ill.
The question is, what shall We do to be
saved? That something must be done is evil
dent, but what to do 10 the poser. The gen.
eral opinion seems to be that il q continuous
raft of logs could be dashed along our river
front, and \ sufficient quantity of brush
could be obtained, a breakwater might be
constructed that would afford q temporary
protection. 1t is claimed that the work Of
this sort done by the city last year proved
very effective, and that but for it the..cutting
of the bank last season would have been
greater than it was. The logs can
be easily obtained from above, and the rail
roads could certainly bring in all the brush
that is needed.
There is no Disgusting the fact that there
is a feeling of ill-will on the part of many
toward the railroad companies, and
some say wait until the depot grounds are
washed out and then We will turn in and dc
This is all wrong. The com.
panies may not have shown the liberality
and fairnes, expected Of them, but Sioux
City has even a more vital interest than the
railroads in keeping the river within its pre-
sent bounds, and in an hour like this there
should be spirit Of Cancellation shown rath'
er than one Of antagonism. We cannot but
believe that il a committee of our leading
citizens would ask the cooperation Of tht
railroad companies in measures looking t