The Portland daily press., 1882-03-06
THE FLOODS.
Continued Accounts of Suffering
in the Southwest.
THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WITHoU
FOOD OR SHELTER.

New ORLENs, March Capt. Richard Sin
mott of the Red River packet Jesse IL. Bell,
just returned from trip, on being interview
ed, said: ST found great distress prevailing
on the Red River. All the lowlands below
Alexandria are overfowed. Above Alexan-
Winn, Grant and Natchtroches parishes are all
covered with water. ClappAPlace, above the
Bayou Rapids, and all lowlands from Colfax
up to Montgomery, are inundated, Alexan-
dria is not yet over1owed, and little damage
has been done between Alexandria and Colfax
SO far. Bayou Boeuf plantation showed suffi-
cient enterprise to put their men to work on
the levees, and have built quite strong bank
around Alexandria, rendering it safe from the
inroads of water. The water is now coming from
the Mississippi very rapidly, and it is this,
more than the Red river that the people are
afraid of. The water is pouring through
crevasses in the Tennessee and Black rivers
and is backing up into Red river rapidly, and
there is no telling what damage may be the
result. The people are undergoing terrible
hardships. Many of them are emigrants, who
settled in productive lowlands along the river
and improved the country considerably and
were building it up. Some of them had only
made one or two crops and were just beginning
to get their plants in full running order when
the water came and swept their crop and
ran their stock up to the hills, but most OF
them are ruined and are on the verge of star
walton. helped them all | could and think
it is the duty of the government and all clti-
zens to assist those whose means have been
taken from them by the merciless flood. !"
WASHINGTON, D. c., March 5-The War
Department continues to receive dispatches
fsom points in the southwest in regard TO
damages from the floods Secretary Lincoln
said this afternoon that the losses and conSe-
quent suffering exceed any estimate yet made
There are urgent calls Tor greater measures OF
of @I,a ha. lad xvit
of the appropriation and these demands of
course cannot be fully met without consent.
Senators and members of the House from
the afflicted States are also in receipt OF urgent
kilograms calling for an appropriation scom-
mensurate with the disaster. From Little
Rock alone there are reports of 1900 persons
made absolutely destitute and to feed these
even until the flood recedes will require double
the sum that has been set aside for that State
from the appropriation by Congress. Senator
Garland says municipalities ana corporations
of the State are responding literally, but
that they are burdened by large num-
bers of refugees from the flooded districts.
He also says that the present distress is only
the beginning The levees are broken in SO
many places that the impoverished communi-
ties will be entirely unable to repair them in
time to prevent an overflow when the June
rise come comes. 1t is also feared that under
the best circumstances the ground will be in
such condition as to delay planting until too
late for good crop.
At an informal meeting of members of Con-
gress from the afflicted statos held this morn
ing for consultation it was resolved to ask for
an addition appropriation of 100000 and a
resolution will probably be introduced in the
House to that effect tomorrow. Proposition
was also made to ask for an appropriation to
repair the levees at once.
To do this promptly and effectively so as to
be of service to the people this year would re-
quire not less than million; The consideration
of this proposition was deferred until a formal
meeting of members from the river states can
be called which will be done probably tomor-
row.