Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-03-07

being on the food, which at times marked
fifty seven feet and obscured all objects Oh
the river. OF other craft there were none
stirring, and nothing but the crushing mass
of ice, that went tearing by in midwaters,
broke upon the stiffness. With a big head
the thuMp of her paddles or the ice and
drift returning shiver for shiver to the foes
that struck upon and divided.at her bow.
Late in the evening the Ohio town of
California was reached. 1t was about under
water and from the second stories and house
tops the people greeted the teamer with
prolonged cries of welcome. a man came
from amid the darkness in a skif and re-
ceived the mail and papers, wtile the
steamer Stacked her speed, that the 'wash"
of her waves might not further engulf the
flooded settlement. 1t was a dark night out
side, and the flood rolled along in solemn
hospitable cabin the passengers, having
partaken of a substantial repast, danced and
sang to the music of the piano and forgot
the raging river.
At New Richmond a landing was made at
the wharfboat about midnight. The
w WAS UNDER WATER
and presented a scene of desolation desola-
ted. At Moscow, some twenty miles this
side of Cincinnati, a heavy current aud a
vast quantity of drift and rubbish coming
down Oh the new flood was encountered.
The town was partially submerged, but
numbers of passengers who resided in the
vicinity got Off to search their way home
ward, or where their houses once stood, in
skitfs.
Daylight found the Stockdale in the
vicinity of Maysville, on the Kentucky
shore, sixty-five miles this side of Cincin-
natl. This thriving town was under water,
and the sun lit up for the voyagers a pict-
ure pathetic, yet grand in it's desolation.
The Ohio Valley. as far as the eye could
reach on either side, was
asst FIELD OF WATER
clean to the broken hills that hem IT in.
The forests that line it's lowlands were SUBJ
merged to the branches of their trees, that
bent and nodded in the current. Off in the
unknown distance the roof of a submerged
farmhouse or the spire of a church stuck
up like monuments to a past life out Of the
great, broad tide. Houses, barns, and M
times whole cOnical hay and grain stacks
none, save when the boat approached some
hamlet or homestead on higher grounds,
and from the second-story windows or roofs,
men, women and children waved their arms
and called for news. The great desire was
for Understanding about the waters.
Were they going down? How was it below?
What were the expectations? Every now and
then skiffs shot forth, stemming the cur
rent just ahead of the steamers course,
their occupants clamoring for papers,
Manchester, o., was found but partially
submerged, and it's inhabitants were happy
with the Elusive hope that it would be
spared. Portsmouth was flooded and the
river some three miles wide. Greenup, 145
miles this side of Cincinnati, was discovered
but partly under water, as was. also IRON
ton, which was made in the gray of the
evening. At midnight Cattlettsburg, the
last town on the Kentucky shore, and To-
Gated at the mouth of the Big Sandy, was
passed, but
THERE WAS NO CATTLETTSBURG-
nothing but one big, sweeping river.
Huntington, in. West Virginia, was
reached about eight O'Clock on Friday MORN
ing. 1t was not as yet greatly damaged by
the flood and contained a number of peo-
pie, whose intention was to take the train
to Charlestown, w. Va, and there find
means OF transportation. All hopes of
a boat from below had been given up, and
when the Stockdale appeared they crowded
upon her.
At nine o'clock in the morning Gallipolis
was reached. There the utmost excitement
prevailed. The city was half submerged
and the citizens were wild with fright over
the rumors that a big flood was on top of
the present one and coming down to sweep
the town. Camden was reached that night
and fOund to be under water three and a
half feet deeper than the great flood of last
year. The salt and coal works were soaked
out and women and children were huddled
into such second stories as still stood out of
the water. Saturday was a day of Incl
dents. Over 100
FLOATING HOUsE
were passed. On some of them the brick
chimneys were still standing. The houses,
many of them large and substantial farm
buildings, would sink to their caves, and so
ride down upon the flood with their. roofs
out of the water. On the flooded farms,
where the waters had not yet reached the
farmhouse roofs, wOmen and children WHO
flung their hands in the air and shrieked
family at the boat were frequently met.
1t would not have answered to have taken
the boat to them, for the swash would have
carried them off, or foated their last refuge
away. Their only hope was in skitfs, and a
number of them, organized into
RIVER ELIEF BOATS,
were plying about, attempting to rescue
those who could not help themselves.
Bridges from tributary streams were seen
caught III tlc liCdNS lllllUeI. allu one lldSS
of hair, straw, weeds, wood, lumber and
household goods seemed to be gathered up
in the net of the flooded forest. On one
tree a baby's cradle was met with, some of
its bedding still in it, and not far distant
was the body Of a COW wedged in between
two branches.
When the historic Blennerhassett Island
was reached it was found to have entirely
disappeared, and the steamer passed di.
rectly over it on its way to Belpre without a
vestige of the old home of Aaron Burr's
supplemented victim being discovered.
There We're some six or eight houses on the
Island previous to the flood, but where
they are now is hard to state. The town OF
BEI.PRE WAS ENTIRELY GONE,
as were quite a number of other small set
Elements along the river. Harry Cloin, a
pilot on the Stockdale, resides at Belpre,
but all he could discover of his house was
a black line that marked the comb of its
roof sticking out of the water. Spence
Sandford. another river pilot residing in
that Vicinity, had been telegraphed for by
the boat at Cincinnati last Tuesday, but
neither Sanford, his house, nor sight or
Jews Of him or his, could be discovered.
At the foot OF Vienna Island a relief
committee from Marietta was picked up in
a skitf. The gentlemen had started out to
look IN those who needed holm Int pat+;no