The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1884-05-31
The Legislature, Installing the Governor
Raging Waters BIO. Etc.

Leaving Colfax on the Scully Tues
day morning, May 18th. this editor
found himself landed at the Baton
Rouge wharf the next evening about
dark. The trip down was without
incident worth mentioning. except
the distressing sight of houses and
farms submerged in the overflow
along the lower portion of Red and
ON the Mississippi. In most instan-
oes along Red river, where the struct-
ures are generally of u rude charao-
ter, the inhabitants have abandoned
their frail dwellings, and left them to
the mercy of the food, but in some
cases you can see family huddled
together on tue gallery with their
pigs. chickens and dogs, while at q
short distance, ON o small knoll of
land that barely shows above the
waters, may be seen the COW and calf
and a pony or two gazing longingly
across the overflow in the vain expec-
tation cf escaping from their dreary
prison, from the surface of which
they have cropped every blade of
grass and the leaves aud twigs of
every shrub. Truly theirs is hard
fate, but when we take into the &C
count the devastation of happy
homes and the ruined prospects Of
these people. the Importance of an
efficient levee system and The claim
We have against the national govern
ment for protection is seen and ap-
preciated.
The citizens of Grant parish, with
their Fifty square miles OF alluvial
lands, nine-tehths of which is above
the highest ovei flow that has occurred
in twenty years, can hardly realize
the suffering in our sister parishes.
At this writing. May 9th, the town
of Alexaudria, with its five foot levee,
has but ten inches to spare before
the angry waters will cover every foot
of ground within its limits. Begin
ming at point about five miles below
Alexandria aud extending to the
mouth of Red river. distance of
over one hundred miles, fully four
fifths OF all the cultivated lands ON
both sides of The river are from one
10 eight feet under water. All pros
poets for crop are ruined, and in
many cases starvation stares the I'M
fort6lates III the face. Along the
Mississippi, with it's Boosted levee,
system, but little better state Of af-
fairs exists. One can stand on the
dome of the Capitol IN Baton Rouge
and look out over vast sugar planta-
tions and fields Of rice and corn COM,
pletely submerged in the muddy wa
ters. The Davis crevasse. on the
right bank Of the Mississippi about
thirty miles above New Orleans, is
described as the most destructive
single crevasse that has ever been
known iu Louisiana, the loss being
estimated ut millions Of dollars. 1t
devasiates all the country adjacent to
Grstna and Algiers, and the water
has backed up until both of these
towns are partially overfiowed. The
Mississippi is now about on a stand,
while Red continues to rise at the
rate of about three inches in "a hours.
Ouachiia, Black and Little rivers are
also high and rising slowly. and a
/ great deal of suffering is reported
from these quarters.
The great blessing enjoyed by the
majority of the jewellers upon aliuvial
lands in Grant parish is marked by
the contrast now to be seen. Along
our river front the lands stand from
FIVE to ten feet above the food, aud
the river is confined TO it's regular
channel without the aid OF single
foot Of levee. With the exception
of six or eight Of our planters who
are located upon unusually depressed
spots, or contiguous to bayous which
back the waters upon them. but little
damage has or will be done in Grant
parish unless the river should rise
several feet higher than Mt present