The Indianapolis leader. (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1879-1890, 1882-02-25
THE FLOODS.
DELUGED DISTRICTS.
News of Widespread Devastation Every
where-The Rivers Rising and Sweeping
Everything Before Them - The wind

News of Widespread Devastation Every
where-The Rivers Rising and Sweeping
Everything Before Them The wind
storm.
CINCINNATI, Feb. 21-The Ohio River is
now higher than it has been since the great
flood of 1S47. AT 11:30 it was fifty-eight
feet and six inches and rising half an inch
an hour. High winds prevailed this morn-
ing. and colder weather, with light snow.
This will check the rise though not imme-
diste,' s.s the river is rising rapidly above
Tie Mind has most I'M njuriouS effect oD the
railroad embankment in Mill Creek Valley
as the waves tend to crumble in the bank
There are serious fears that the track of the
Cincinnati and Baltimore Road Will be Sc
riUusIy injured. II is already abandoned,
owing to injury 10 the Gest street bridge
ALI freight business is practically sus
pended. The Cincinnati Southern and
the Cincinnati Northern are the only roads
whose trat ks are free from water. The oh
struction of other tracks and the flooding OF
side tracks of the Cincinnati southern re-
stricts business to the running of passenger
trains. The wind this morning blew down
much telegraph line. and the business of the
telegraph office was consequently in great
confusion. Business Is much retarded. The
most serious loss this morning is the break
ing away of eighteen barges of coal from
Collier, Budd 4 Co. There being no steam
ers ready to tursue them, the chances are
that they will be los. All coal yards are
submerged and obliged to suspend business.
Great inconvenience is caused by the flood
ing of the first floors of streets along the
river front where yesterday only cellars were
inun lated.
At o'clock tonight the river commenced
falling slowly after having stood four hours
at 5S feet, 81 inches. At 10 o'clock it had
fal en- an inch and was supposed To be re-
ceding half an inch hour. Men
with all forces of labor can
command are busy moving property from
cellars and first floors to dry places. The
individual losses from direct damage will be
small but tue aggregate will be great At
midnight tonight the river was fifty-eight
feet three and One-balf inches, and was fall
ing half an inch per honr.
THE EXTENT OF THE sLEET AND wIND-sToRN.
CHICAGO Feb. 2l.-From the meager re-
ports and official kilograms to the telegraph
officials, it is learned that the sleet and
wind storm, which has finally subsidized, ex-
tended all over Iowa, Missouri, Western
and Southern Illinois, Southern Indiana,
Ohio and Canada Further East than this
the condition of affairs is not known. Tie
Western Union have large gangs of men
working in all directions, and gradually the
wires are being repaired. Communication
with all parts of the country will be doubt
less restored before morning.
THE STORM AT ROCK ISLAND.
Rock ISLAND, Feb. 2l.-The storm of sleet
Little damage Is yet reported. All railroads,
except the c., B. andQ., are reported in good
order.
IN ILLINOIS
CHICAGO, Feb. 2L-The great storm has
reached Chicago and after raining steady
yesterday and last night, the weather has
grown much colder and snow has been fall
ing since early this morning Telegraphic
communication ia most all directions is Sc
riously interferred with or entirely cut off,
A private dispatch from Rock Island ILL.,,
says the storm ragged so violently there last
night, that part of the great Government
bridge there, solid stone and iron structure,
was blown down. Advices from Vandalia
Ill, says O'kaw River is out of its banks and
the bottom land, comprising an area of
some three or four miles square, is one
vast sheet of water. An immense amount
Of live stock and lumber has been swept
away. The water is higher than at any time
since 1875, and as it is still rising it is
greatly feared that some of the bridges on
the National Road will be swept away.
At Carlinville, ILL.,, il has rained
for forty-eight hours. All trains have been
abandoned, bridges and houses have been
swept away, and great damage has been
done to farms situated in the low lands.
SEVERE STORM.
DULUTH, Mimi, Feb. 2l.-A very severe
and unusual storm for the season of the
year prevailed here last night, ceasing at
daylight. Wind accompanied by a driving
snow blew gale from the north, northeast
The sea on Lake Superior ran high.
All ice in the harbor was broken up. and
shipping lying here for winter is now riding
freely at anchor or along side the
docks. The temporary suspension bridge
over the canal was badly damaged
and left almost impossible. The wind and
waves have formed a huge breakwater of
ice of barges along the exposed shore Con-
siderable snow has fallen during the day,
and sleighing is now good. Prospects for
numbering are Frightening.
ST. LOUIS AND ELSEWHERE,
ST. LOUIS, Feb. 21.-The weather turned
very cold about o'clock this morning, and
the mercury sank several degrees below
freezing point between that hour and day
light. The ground is frozen very hard this
morning and all still water had a coating of
pretty thick ice. The river has risen over
five feet since last evening, aud now marks
twenty-seven and one-half feet by the gauge,
a total rise since Sunday of about seventeen
feet. The rise now is much slower than yes
terday, and the water will probably begin to
fall again by tomorrow. Railroad travel is
still very much interrupted. The only roads
which sent out trains this morning were the
Louis nd San Francisco and the Vandalia.
The latter used the o. and NJ. track to Odin,
thence by the Illinois Central
to its own road The. only
train from Chicago this morning
arrived over the Vandalia Road and the
only Eastern train came in by the same line.
Incoming trains on all other roads are either
abandoned or indefinitely delayed The
Chicago and Alton, Chicago, Burlington and
Quincy and the indianapolis and St. Louis
are stopped at Wood River. about twenty
miles from here, and la .e washouts, bad
bridges or overiowed tracks al various other
places. The Vandalia and Louisville and
Nashville are flooded at Silver Creek and
other places. The Wabash, Eastern Divis-
ion, has trouble beyond Alton and the
Western Division had bad land slides be-
tween here and the Missouri River at ST.
Charles. On the Missouri Pacific there are
several bad slides within fifty miles of the
city and considerable track overfiowed.
The Keokuk and st. Louis is also under
water at several places. The Iron
Mountain, beside the landslide reported
last night, has an extensive washout about
sixteen miles below the city. The ST. Louis
| and an Francisco has no serious damage
Trains have not been stopped All roads
| are very busily employed repairing damages
and the prospects are that all trains will be
running regularly in day or two The
rise In the river here is said by the bes
steamboat men to be unprecedented. Ne
such amount of water was ever known t.
come down so suddenly or in such shor
space of time before. The rainfall was alst
very unusual in quantity, amount t,
| within 700 Of AN inch of as much as tn,