Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1889-08-02
THE RUIN0US RAINS.
ANOTHER DAMAGING FRsSHeT THF
JAMES RIVER.
The II. and \. Railroad Unable TO Eui
Trains Water in Main street Near
the Old Market
The rains continue.

The rains continue.
Our record of excessive wetness is not
broken. nor does 10 seem likely that il soon
viii hc.
July summed mp the greatest rainfall
ever known hcrc. and August has started
out ~ % fair way 90 rival its predecessor.
Thcrc were heavy showers during the
latter part of Wednesday night, followed
lva lighter ono about 4. N. yesterday,
and iu The afternoon there was down
pour tha' almost reached the magnitude
~ a waf,r-suort
Soon after noon dark and portentous
cloud. BEGAN o. Obscure the heavens and
d..quiot those who were out on important
missions. for 20 did not require the eyes of
the wcathcr-wiso to see what was IN store
aLi not much longer 90 be held IN reserve.
TTAEuIc SHOWER.
just before 2 O'Clock large drops COM
mcnced 500 iAll and mako their saucer-likc
lmiUuts Ou thc pavement. and hve
minutes later the water was descending as
n shot down from bottomless reservoir.
Many remarked that they had never
known u 90 rain harder, but these EXPIRES
s.oDe have been SD exceedingly common
place OF late that they ere now passed by
WITH very ltilo attention indeed.
There were very few ladies ON the street,
which was O. fortunate thing. for they
would tayc been dreuchcd and their nice
clothes ruined in no tlme.
This shower continued in ITS fury for
about eighteen minutes, and there were
numerous lighter ones during the alter
uaon. While % was pouring some of the
streets were converted INTO considerable
streams. nul an Of them were nicely
secured. saving tie sanitary force Of the
ctt bis trouble.
FoENrnrY ASp now.
Almost amy other time this shower
would have attracted q great deal Of at
trufiuu. hui coming now while they are
go frequent as we'll %, terrific. very few
p,.plo prl much attention 20 II further
Than to Lio themselves 20 high, dry, and
saIc Quar.Drs.
Iho recent rains, whle general through
on, fhe country. seem 90 have been
l,4Y So along tho Jamcs-ldvcr Valley and
iu Sou.l.3r Virginia. The Dan and
ftnuufou rivers aIe reported higher than
they have been known for years.
Inr fmsnEr n TtE JAMES.
James river has been rising steadily for
several deve and the frcshet Is going 20 be
"A much more formidable one than any one
anticipated. 10 wiIl hardly be as extensive
ne was the one of June lst nor will 10 DO rs
much damage as the recent overflow of
Shochoc creek did. vet IT is going 10 be
fre~hct ot no u-ignlhcent proportions, and
,iil bee worthy 10 bee linked ln history with
the floods of 1870 and 1877 and the one of
two months ago.
Wednesday evening the water was only
up 10 the hvc-foot mark on the nOtched
uier of the Petersburg railroad bridge, but
40 O'Clock last night II was between eight
and nine feet and the stream bore rough,
angry. and picturesque appearance as II
Wtudod its way over tho rapids. Back OF
llaXalls Mil, where the river - literally
fun of large rocks or bOulders, the water
leaps up To great height and forms very
pretty sight. The same IS the case where
The angry waters roll over the Manchester
dam and where they lungo against the
stone piers of the bridges.
~ THE sTRrFTs.
The wator made it's appearance in Cary
street. near where Shockoe creek passes
under ~, early yesterday morning, ana Rt
If. VI. II had attained depth Of perhaps
four feet at the lowest point.
At the same hour the sewers at the inter
section OF Franklin street and the FIRST mar
Aet Oycrilowed, and portion OF this terri
tory was sooninuud9ted and the merchants
BEGAN 10 Yucatc and to give possession 10
the watcry element, which already occu-
pied the Easements about 10 the brlm.
The water at this hour lacked about two
and hall feet of entering Man street,
and was rising at the rate OF between
three ana four inches an nour.
MOVING OUT.
Early in the dav. in fact as soon ns il be
came apparent that the water was going TO
Doc high, the prudent merchants began the
process of removal, with which they are
now becoming quite intimately ac
ouainted In instances where such
course was considered judicious the
goods subject TO damage were only
elevated from basement TO upper floors,
where they might be kept in safety. Many
not having ne spare room on their Office
floors secured storage with their more for
tunate neighbOrs and brought large wagons
INTO re0uisition. All of the easements
from Fifteenth to Seventeenth south of
Main. and those in other localities tablet To
inuudation were emptied. Altogether
very few goods were caught bY the Watery
element The damage sustained Will be
from the loss Of time from business and
the cost Of cleaning out the cellars, puu-
flnc them. &c, and tins VIII be quite
considerable.
Dr. William IT. Scott, the Franklin-street
druggist, was the first 90 have 10 retreat.
He put All of his drugs, &c., upon the
shelves and counters or moved them up
stairs in some instances and closed up the
shop. Mr.. John N. Higgins and his next
door ncighbor, John B. CloptOn, Esq, Va
cat, q entirely. Davenport X Morris only
moved 10 their upper floors. and all OF
these gentlemen had numerous persons 10
follow their example.
ABOUT TIRE wHARvEs.
An of the steamboat wharveS were del
uccd and deserted
The water was a foot deep over The floor
C tho Old Dominion Company's brick
office al e. o'clock and still rising at the rate
of several inches an hour.
No steamers either arrived or sailed.
The ARIEL brought the mail aud her pas
sengcrs and cargo up as far as Clty Point,
where she was met 10y superintendent
Irving Melsigcr, who personally superin-
tended the transfer To a tram. 10y which
they were brought ria Petersburg to Rich
mond. Passengers. IT they wish To make
the trip. and mail viii be taken 10y the same
route to-day.
Up TIE JAMEs.
The latest intelligence received yester-
dav from Columbia was that the water
h risen twenty-tour feet up 10 l O'Clock
AID wa~ ,tlll rising.
Al p. NJ. the following figures were
tcleIAphed Mr. NJ. g. Leonard, superin-
tendeut ot telegraph az both the Chc ,l-
peakc and OHIO and Richmond and Ale
Pcmbcrton. water two feet below what
il waAi. June trcshVt.
Dover VI lls. nearer Richmond wth'n
ipohss of June freshet and rising otu,
INuchburg. 6 feet above common Lowell
and iliue ''.'
lhci. iemper-
ton auG Giadstone's. where ,.-- --IOnd
division terminates.
TnE RAILROADS.
rly an of the railroads ran their trains
Yesterday according to schedule.
The trouble al -F'ff 80 creek. on the
Richmond. fredolica. ... Potomac
road. was rc. cMiN IN tuc morning,
and the train due h,Ie at o o'clock arrived
three hours and fifty minutes late. The
It.O7 uorth-bOuud train left Byrd-S Street
station ON time. The fast mail came IN
from Washington about two hours late, and
the 6.25 train left as per schedule This
line IL open and no further trouble IS anti
cipated o..
Ihe Chesapeake and Ohio has expe-
rienced no inconvenience on IT'S nam line,
and trains are Going through and on time.