The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1882-04-08
The Overflow.

difiOn OF Affairs in the New River Reyio,
The Back Water West of the Missis
sippi and Bayou Lafourche.
II Engineer barton called at ours Office
this morning and gave us the latest new.
from the Landry crevasse. The steam
pile drivers finished their work Wednes,
day noon, and have been sent back tt
New Orleans. With these appliances 4
double row of large piles was driven
across the gap between the upper and
lower ends of the cribwork, the posts
being eight feet apart 1ongitudinally and
ten feet transversely and going into the
earth from twenty to twenty-five feet.
Four small pile drivers, operated by hand,
have been constructed, with which
smaller piles are being driven across the
spaces between the larger ones, and as
fast as cribs are thus constructed til ey
are filled in with sacks Of earth. The
work is all firmly braced and is holding
splendidly.
| Last evening the gap yet to lie crossed
with the small pile drivers was about
eighty feet wide-certainly not over
ninety-and Mr. barton thinks it may
possibly lie entirely traversed to-day.
Yesterday afternoon crib forty-five
feet III length, built in water twenty-five
feet deep, was successfully filled in.
This was probably the greatest depth of
water in the break and crossed a point
where there had been roadway on the
batture and through the old levee.
Livery body connected with the work at
the crevasse is confident Of speedy and
successful termination of their labors.
| The water in MIR. Ben Gibson's fields fell
more than three inches last night, which
indicates aconsiderable decrease in the
volume Of water going through the
break. The width of the break in the
main levee, as determined by actual
measurement, is 192 feet.
The Arizona crevasse is about 1000 feet
III width and constantly widening, and
Its waters have covered very large area
OF country, extending from the Baton
Rouge highlands to Lake Mau1epas, Join
ing with the water pouring through the
Julien Landry and Bonnet Care breaks.
The rear portions of Ascension, st. James,
st. John the Baptist, st. Charles and
Jefferson parishes Oh the east bank of
the river are more or less submerged by
these three crevasses.
A letter received yesterday from a very
reliable gentleman residing in the eighth
ward informs us that tho water began
overlooking the banks of the BAYOU at
the Dutch Stores OH the 31st of March.
rising an inch per hour during the first
twelve hours, but the rate gradually de-
creasing thereafter. Thursday morning
there was 424 inches of water against
Blonin's store, and the rise of the proceed
ing forty-eight hours had been only 81
inches, showing that the flood is near
ing it's maximum height. According to
the best information attainable the water |
is yet Ia inches below the highest point
it reached in that section in 1862. Our |
correspondent says there is 10 actual |
destitution in the eighth ward and no
immediate need Of any assistance. In
the seventh ward the citizens can take |
care Of their families some time vet |
There may be few instances of short |
rations, but they are rare. All with
whom our informant conversed derre-
Gated the idea of free rations being sup
piled, at least for the present. There has
been scarcely any loss Of stock. The in
habitants are in good spirits, padding
about in boats saving their fences and |
making their calculations for planting |
when the water recedes. The colored |
people of the seventh ward, living on
low lands, have nearly all come out to !
the river. Those of the eighth ward |
mostly occupy lands not subject to ordi-
nary overflow and are ''holding the fort"
Several white families from the seventh /
ward contemplate moving out to the
river, and one or two have already done
so. In another column we print a letter
from gentleman who has just returned
from q cruise down New River, wherein
the situation is represented to be some
what worse than our other correspondent
describes. We hope steps will be taken
to forestall and relieve any actual dis
trass and want that may occnr OF be i'm
minent in the overfloWed section Of our
parish.
On the west bank of the river and
Do r oco ~,
still rising and have encroacled upon
lands hitherto deemed safe from over
flow by floods approaching from the
rear. The rise during the past twenty
four hours was about p inches, and it is
hoped the highest point viii be reached
within the next few days. There
is water on the rear of the Burnside
Ascension place and the adjoining plan
tation Of Messrs. Richard Mccall and
Mccall Bros. The back levees on the
st. Emma and Palo Alto plantations on
Bayou Lafourche have broken; on the
former place 200 acres Of cane and on the
latter 50 acres are under water. New
levees have been built on these places
nearer the front, and efforts are being
made to save the rest of the crops from
Back water can he seen
from Bayou Lafourche all the way be-
tween the Palo Alto place and Napoleon
vile and many large plantations are
almost entirely under water. The dam
age to the cane crop on the west side of
The bayou will be very great, and many
planters will be fortunate if they save
enough cane for seed.
The river and bayou are falling steadi-
|y and no further apprehensions of cre-
vases are felt. The total fall has been
over foot.