Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1886-04-08
THE DIsAsrHoUs ELooDs.
Thirty-five Feet Above Low Water
Mark at KnOxviIle-Hailron

The GAZETTE made an announcement
last week In Its telegraphic columns of the
great southern floods. Later particulars are
as follows: At Richmond the wharves In the
lower part OF the city are submerged, and
the merchants have moved their goods ia
places OF safety Cellars on Main street. as
high up Hs Sixteenth street. are fllled with
watsr. Yesterday afternoon no report
could be hld at Richmond from west OF
Columbia, as the telegraph wires were
down. The water at that point had risen
~ feet and was still rising. The track OF
the Baltimore x Allegheny railroad Is under
water at several points, and a bridge is re-
ported to have been washed away. No
trains are running. The flood at Harrison
burg is the most disastrous known for
years. II is feared the Shenandoah river
| Will sweep the lowlands along Its banks.
The rain ceased last night. The Richmond
| and Allegheny bridge, over the Jackson
river, at Clifton Forge, is reported WASHED
away. At 9 o'clock last night the James
river at Columbia had risen 3OI feet above
low water mark, and was till rising. The
Roanoke river In Southeast Virginia Is yery
high, and considerable damage is reported,
The Appomattox and Dan rivers are also
greatly swollen.
Dispatches from all important points in
North Alabama show that the rain of Mon
day was one Of the heaviest for many years.
Regular railway traffic on the Louisville Il
Nashville, Queen d Crescent and Georgia
roads has been suspended since Monday
night on account of numerous washouts. 10
is said that 100000 will not cover the
loss In Talladega from the destruction of
bridges, mills and stock. The Coosa river Is
still rising, and great destruction is re
ported all along its banks. In Montgomery
the water is over all the tracks at the Union
depot. The principal loss is from silspen-
sion of work ThR krnrtYo nd oil
light works are submerged, and the city Is
In darkness.
A dispatch from Nashville, Tennessee,
says reports from the up-rlver country and
along the valleys Of the Cumberland and
Tennessee rivers indicate serious floods In
the next few days. The Cumberland river
Is rising very rapidly, and merchants are
removing the goods from their cellars. The
Tennessee river is rising rapidly
at Headwaters, and has overfiowed
Its banks and washed out the railroads SO
as to stop all trains from the southern
route to Nashville. At Knoxville last night
the river was So feet above low water mark
and rising slowly, though but little damage
has occurred. 1t will require two weeks
to repair the damage on the
Knoxville and Western North Carolina rail-
roads. Through trains will not run on the
Knoxville d Ohio road for week. No
trains have arrived or departed from
Chattanooga since Monday, owing to wash
outs. The river at Chattanooga last night
registered 4S feet 8 inches, and was still
rising. A large number OF families were
moving last night. A passenger train on the
East Tennessee, Virginia 4 Georgia rail-
road, with 1875 passengers aboard, has been
waterbound near Charleston, Tenn, for 4S
nours, and cannot be moved before to-day.
The rainfall at Chattanooga since Saturday
vas II Inches. This down pour was general
throughout the watershed Of upper Ten
iessne.
A dispatch from Rome. Ga, says there is |
our feet of wilter in the Western Union
office, and that the town is submerged.
CHARLESTON, WEST Va, April 1.-Heavy |
rains the past three days raised the Ka-
nawha and Elk rivers to 3S feet. and thew |
are still rising. A few railroad trains are
running, and at o n. m. matters look |
gloomy, as at least one-half of this city Is |
under water, and many dwellings occupied |
by poor people are submerged. The West |
ern Union wines are under water from here |
to Point Pleasant, 60 miles. New river Is |
reported falling at Hinton at the rate of |
four inches an hour, but the KanaWha Is /
rising here at the rate of five inches per
hour.
Reports from Montgomery, Ala, SAYS the |
Warrior, ,Coosa and Tallapoosa rivers are fall |
ing. thousands of horses, mules, cattle and |
hogs have been swept away. Corn, cotton. |
seed and provisions In reach OF the flood |
were destroyed, and planters In the over |
lowed region have difficulty In starting. |
me relief boat brought in large number |
OF people who had been in peril and with
out food for three days. On II farm employ
Ing state convicts the water flooded the
quarters. The president of the board of /
inspectors made way with boats to the i'm
perilled place and got them off in safety.
So far the reports Of drowning In various
portions Of the states foot up nine persons,
woman and three children In a cabin on |
the Cahaba river, 1t floating Off with them.
kailroad communication Is intact to New |
Orleans via Mobile and with New York and
the east via Macon. There Is no communi.
cation south by the Louisville Il Nashville
or TO Atlanta or Selma by the Western rail-
road. The water is two feet deep at the Union
depot and from there to the Alabama river
bridge OF the south and north road an
almost continuous sheet of water. Trains
from Mobile and Macon arrive and depart
ut points half q mile or more from the
depot A special from 0pelika says that
Johnson Bridges, engineer of the construc-
don train which went down on the Talla-
poosa river died after his leg was ampu-
lated Six hands ON the same train had
already died or been drowned.
Selma has no connection with the outside
world by rail. The flood throughout the
state is unprecedented, reaching here six
5eet above the highest mark ever known.
The Ice factory, water works, soap works
and gas works, electric light works, fertili-
zer works, iron foundrles, oil mills, railroad
shops and freight depot Of the Western &
Central railroad stock yards and brick
Yards all have several feet OF water in
hem. In most of them the damage will be
confined to machinery. The only fllumina-
ion in the city is by candles and oil.
Viewed off the dome Of the capitol, the
highest point in the city, 1t Is a lake Of
water to the north and west, fully 10 miles
square.
CoNcoRD, N. H., April 3.-The dam OF the
Stoddard pond, seven miles long, gave way
afternoon flooding the Com
.oocook. 1t is feared that the factories at
Hillsboro Bridge and other places on the
river will be carried Off. At o'clock the
water had reached Antrim, carrying mass
of ice so feet In hight. Incalculable damage
Is threatened. The Merrimac at Hookset
has risen six feet in "a hours and the mills
are In great danger.
The Contoocook and the Warner rivers
have overtlowed, flooding mill cellars, &c.
CAMBRIDGE WINS,
EQnLaa EaNfarneiso a..1 |