Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1881-05-04
Unprecedented Floods on the Missouri,
Iinnesota md NJ issi ss1nnl Rivera

ports of the great floods aloEg the linz
Of the three great rivers OF the west, frou
the Pioneer.Press of Thursday last. TIN
heavy fall of snow Of the past winter ii
Minnesota and Dakota is the cause of i
all. Can the reader imagine the addi
tlonal disaster which would have com,
to the people living along these streams
had there been the usual spring rains t
have fastened :he melting snow?
| MINNESOTA RIVER.
The sudden and enormous rise Of thu
Minnesota river in the brief period of ter
days, since the warm weather set in, bear.
striking witness to the Unprecedented
depth of the SHOWS which have covered
the prairie regions drained by its trib
utaries, and whose rapid melting has
supplied the vast volumes of wafer which
have flooded the Minnesota valley and
the Mississippi, into which it pours
The hydrographical basin of the Mime
sofa river embraces an area of about
$4,000 square miles, consisting mainly
of prairie country, whose general Level
lies some $50 feet above the Minnesota
river. THIS elevated prairie region is
drained by number of tributary streams
Of which the chief one is the Blue Earth
emplying into the main stream at Manka
10. With its aff1uents spreading out like
a fan, it drains an area Of $500 miles
two-sevenths Of the whole valley, and
usually contributes nearly one.half the
volume of the Minnesota.
| When 1t is remembered that all over
that region the SHOWS this year were some
four feet on level; that the cold weather
continued till the middle Of April, when
the warm weather suddenly set in, and
this enormous volume of snow was melted
IN few days, it is easy 10 understand
the unprecedented rapid rise of the Min.
nesota river, and the extraordinary vol
umc of the waters precipltated through
the tributaries which drain the slopes OF
the valley into the main stream.
| There is no record Of such flood as
has swept through the valley, the water
having risen nearly three feet, 1t is said,
higher than the greatest height ever be-
fore attained during the nearly thirty
years since the valley Was settled. This
proves that the depth Of snow was vastly
! greater Than was ever known IN any pre-
vious experience since the settlement Of
the country. So far as we know, there is
no record of such a flood as we are now
experiencing in the early spring from
melted snow. The great floods previous
~ experienced have come much later,
generally in June, after a long period of
heavy rains succeeding winter of ,!eep
snow. So far, we have had no rain to
speak of, and it is fortunate that we have
not. 1t is still more fortunate that the
h1-I NH on1 o1sr,,ntio of
the upper Mississippi valley are such as
to retard the rise Of water ID that stream.
If the rise OF the upper Mississippi and
Minnesota had been simultaneous, there
is no telling to what disastrous height
the river might have risen at st. Paul.
But outside the forest region the streams
on the upper Mississippi are few and
small. The main water supply Of the
upper Mississippi covers the immense
lacustrine wooded region above Crow
Wing, where, partly by reason of this
forest screen, and partly on account OF
its high and colder latitude, the SHOWS
melt slowly and pour their tribute into
that wonderful system of lakes which
form the sources rs hendwaters Of the
Mississippi. These lakes form great
system Of natural reservoirs, which hold
the waters, and their overflow spreads
over immense areas Of swamps and bot
tom lands, from which they emerge slowly
and gradually into the main river.
MISSISSIPPI AT ST. PAUL.
From l a. m. yesterday till ~ p. M, or
in twenty-three hours, the river at St. Paul
rose nineteen inches, or at the rate of one
inch an hour tor the first nine hours, and
a little more than half an inch an hour
for the last fourteen hours. AT 2 O'Clock
this Thursday morning the water had
reached the height of eighteen feet six and
a half inches, being three feet three inches
and half above the gh water mark of
last spring. At New Ulm and Granite
Falls last evening the water was falling
so that it is pretty safe 10 predict that by
noon TO- morrow the food of St. Paul will
have reached its height, at about 10 feet
10 inches, and will then rapidly subside
unless the upper Mississippi should devel.
ep much greater rise than there is ny
present reason to apprehend. The river
Is rising slowly at Brainerd and St. Cloud
but so slowly as to afford a comforting
promise that the deluge at St. Paul will
have time to recede before receiving any
considerable accession from the upper
Mississippi. The West St. Paul fat is
completely flooded, aud a great part Of it
being several feet under water. Nearly
all the houses there are abandoned, and
their inhabitants have found shelter else
where The churches and school house
of the Sixth ward have been utilized for
this purpose. A number of families have
made shift with tents, and others have
found quarters in private houses. Most of
the families thus driven from their homes,
often with considerable loss Of property,
are poor people, and energetic measures
are being taken at the instance of the
chamber Of commerce for their relief.
THE MISSOURI.
Although the loss of life was not large,
the suffering among the people Of the dev-
astatcd section has been intense, and they
ale now dependent on the generosity Of the
government and people for food and
clothing. There are over 1900 persons
now receiving ra:ions, and clothing will
be issued as soon as received. The only
cheering portion Of this sad narrative is
the recital of the brave deeds Of the self.
sacrificing men who risked their lives to
rescue the imperiled people and convey
them to places of safety. The loss IN the
SCCtlOu 1A'AA bJi"uA wy " LuhtOu Is eS
timated at from $2,000,000 to $2,5O0O0O,
which will fall heavily upon the people
sustaining it. Besides their daily neces-
stiles, seed grain is needed to enable them
to begin again to become self:sustaining,
and it is pleasant to add that the generous
people in all parts of the country are con-
tributing 10 their relief.
LATER.
The Mississippi at St. Paul rea ched its
highest point yesterday FRIDAY, April 29)
about 10 a. m. at 10 feet 81 inches, and
remained stationary at that point till near
ly 6 p. m, when 1t began TO slowly decline
1t was falling yesterday evening at all
PORTS on the Minnesota river and very
rapidly on all its tributaries and upper
reaches. At New Ulm the river had fall
len four feet up to yesterday evening, and
was then going down at the rate of one
inch an hour. AT ST. Peter last night it
was declining at the rapid rate Of three
inches per hour. AT Shakopee it was fall
ing slightly At the rate Of the recession
OF the Minnesota river, the Mississippi at
ST. Paul may be expected to fall to-day
some four or five Understand thencef0r-
ward more rapidly. There seems to be
no danger of any perccptible addition TO
its volume from fhe MINER Misstssinn,