Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-03-03
WORSE AND WORSE.
THE TERRORS AND LOSSES OF
THE FLOODS.
Steady Breaks In the Levees-meD.
Women and Children Driven From
Their HOmes-Numbers Drowned
The Negroes Longing for the
RatIOns-The Horrors and Losses
Increas sing.

women an GnAIOFen Driven From
Their HOmes-Numbers Drowned
The Negroes Longing for the
RatIons-The Horrors and Losses
Increasing.
NEW ORLEANS, March "A Greenyille
(Miss.) special says: "There was a perfect
wreck of the Bolivar levee yesterday morn
ing. The Rjverton, Wade, Clay and Bagot
levees also broke through, and it is reported
that the Concordia broke the day before.
These breaks will cause the overflow oil
every plantation in Bolivar county. The
river fell here four inches last night, and is
still falling rapidly. The breaks in the Boil
var county levees will probably save those OF
Washington and Issaquena counties, but the
loss to the district in levees alone is not less
than $3.50 900. The Clay and Bagot levees
are the largest in the district, except the
Hushpuckans. Several lives are reported
lost. RosedAle, the county seat oi
Bolivar county, is six feet under water.
The Ledger Office and other houses are
washed away. Clarke's front levee on Lake
Bulah is gone. This will cause an overflow
of what was left of the Bolivar county
levee. Williams Bayou levee In this county
is broken, and all the northern portion of
Washington county and the back lands
throughout Issaquena and SharkeY coun-
ties will go under.
A number of people were drowned at
Riverton. There has been q fall of eight
inches In the river to-day. Later reports
say that in addition to the breaks above
stated there was one at Hughes front be-
tween Wade and Clark. Accounts of SUI
fering and loss of life continue to come in
and exceed ANYTHING that has ever attended
previous inundations of the Mississippi
river. The crevasses above named are all
above Greenville."
A dispatch from Lake Providence reports
that the crevasse in the Longwood levee,
six miles above Lake Providence, has been
closed effectually and all danger is over.
Greenville, Miss. special says: "The
levee system on the Bolivar county front is
general wreck. The waves are now inun-
dating the whole of Bolivar and Washington
counties except the ribbon of land on the
west bank OF Deer Creek from Fish Lake to
the Sharkey county line. The plant&-
tions Immediately on the river front from
this southwark are under water. Every
body is busy saving the most valuable por-
tton OF his live stock, while cattle and hogs
are generally abandoned to their fate.
Should the water recede In the next few
weeks, and the season prove propitious. the
planters may yet make good crops. While
hoping for all these fortuitous circum-
stances, we refuse to look at the reverse of
the picture"
News reached here of the terrible de-
structiOn of property caused by the break
ing of the levee at Carson's Landing, Miss.
After the heavy rain and wind storm Of
Tuesday, a gap of seventy-five feet was
first made by the rushing water, and a hun
dred yards of the levee was soon swept
away. The noise of the roaring flood aWoke
the sleeping citizens. and the utmost con-
sternation ensued. The sleepers, on looking
out OF their houses, saw the river rapidly
spreading over the surrounding country,
and without taking time to clothe them
selves, hurried for their lives. Ben Haines,
the keeper of the landing, and two negro
children were unable to escape, and all
three were drowned. Their pitiful cries for
help were heartrendiDg, but no succor
could be extended at such a time. A num-
Der of others had narrow escapes from
watery graves. In addition to this break
several others are reported. In the vicinity
of Bolivar twenty five yards of the levee
gave Wav, and between Catfish Point and
Mound Landing, q distance of six miles,
the levee is broken In four places.
In Arkansas City, Ark, the water covers
the floor of every store and dwelling to a
depth varying from six inches to four feet.
The water has covered the floor of the hotel
to depth of twenty inches, while the new
oil mills are also suffering from the deuge.
Quite number of planters are feeding
their hands, who fear that the movement to
furnish rations will demoralize the negroes.
Many Of the latter are anxiously awaiting
the arrival of the boat with government ra-
tions, and boats are moving persons and
property free where the people are too poor
TO paw for such services.
MEMPHIS, March 2.-Private letters from
Rivert0n, Miss, 1877 miles from Memphis
and IT'S miles above Vicksburg, say that the
dam broke Monday night and that the loss
of property is fearful. Several persons were
drowned, among the Bumber Benjamin
Heyne, shipping clerk for F, ank & Reinach,
who tried to go to the assistance of a Mrs.
Bradshaw and was drawn into the channel of
the break and drowned. The live stock is all
drowned, and there are no provisions for
people to subsist upon. The break occur
red about one hundred yards above Dun
cans. A message has been sent to Terrier
for the steamer Plowboy to take the women
and children to Memphis. They are suffer
ing greatly, having lost everything they
possessed except the clothes on their backs
1t is INT ossible to describe the fearful
havoc and destitution the waters have
wrought.
Besides the break at Riverion there are
two more, one at Wright's, one mile below,
and another at Judge Miles place, two
miles below RIverton. Mules, horses, cows,
goats ard houses pass by continually. Add
to these falling and crashing timber and
you then have the fairest idea OF the condi-
tion CT things. In Duncan's there must be
noless than twenty five women and children,
and a good many more are huddled
together on the levee. It Is pitiful to see
them, half naked, frozen and hungry.
Every house at Riverton except Dun
cans, Franks and Reinach's has either
foated off or is SO damaged by the washing
away of the blocks that they will be unfit
for habitation when the waters decline.
The levee In front of Duncan's house is
weak, and there is danger of It breaking.
The storehouse of Max Miller, together with
his stock of goods, doated off and was lost. ~
A letter from Sol. Cohen, at Concordia.
Miss, twenty miles below r verton, saws the
levee at Blackburn broke on Tuesday morn
ing, and the water is over Concordia. The
break is through Blanchard's place. A scat
fold is being erected to take care of stock.
The river rose three inches In twenty-four
hours.
New YORK, March Q 2-Speeials to the
Herald from Memphis, Helena. aud other
points on the Mississippi river, give particu-
lars of disasters now being caused by the
floods. A Memphis dispatch says ''From
Memphis to Madison, Ark, forty miles to
the west, there is nothing but one wide ex-
panse of water. Trains on the Memphis
and Little Rock Railroad between Memphis
and Madison have been discontinued for
nearly four weeks.
Communication between Memphis and
Little Rock is kept up by steamboat down
the Mississippi to the mouth of the st.
Francis river. which empties into the Mis-
sissippi ten miles above Helena, thence up
the st. Francis to Madison. where daily
trains connect with steamers from this
city.
at is estimated that In Crittenden, Lee and
Phillips counties, Arkansas, there are not
less than fifteen thousand negroes, who are
In destitute condition, awaiting the bouu-
ty of the government to furnish them with
the necessaries of life to keep them from
dying OF starvotion. Food for stock will be
as necessary as provisions for the human
beings, for mules, cattle and hogs are daily
dying for want of provender.n
A BLOODY DEED IN PENNSYLVANIA A
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