, 1890-02-13
THE BIG FLOOD.
The Portland Streets
Are Rushing Rivers.
THE WORST Is OVER.
Four Feet of Water on the
Wholesale Street.
TWO FEET ON FIRST STREET.
Great Damage to Property and
Probable Loss of Life Up
the Valley.
TWO FEET ON FIRST STREET

lNO Will pass into history as the greatest
Oregon has ever known. and yet not
nearly so much damage has been done
as in the great ircshet of pcccmbCr, 1861,
when Linn city was swept away and
many persons lost their yes. In those
early days there was no high water
mark TO warn settlers, and the farmers
built close to the low banks Of the VIII
lamctte, and ill.lated Linn City grew up
in the marrow gorge where now tho river
rushes Al mighty torrent forty feet deep.
This year very fcw houses have been car
ricd away, and only q few factories,
which the owners had believed were
built strongly enough to withstand any
ircshct that could possibly come.
Oregon City has suffered the greatest
damage Here Is the narrowed part
olthe whole valley, los, than u quarter
of q mile in width, and although the
residence portion of the town is located
on the Hill, much of the business portion
is now under water to a depth OF eight
or ten feet. The flood did not come
quickly, however, and the Eetchants
had time to move out their stocks.
Portland has suffered but little dam
-
Front street, whore the entire Wholesale
business is done, is ABOUT four feet under
water, First street, the principal retail
street, has two feet of water all over II.
Every malI in town ana many of the
women are wearing high-hipPed boots.
Street cars are splashing Through water
where II is not deep
Express wagons have been doing q
lively business removing goods nom
tile Hooded stores, ana boats are the
principal means of cOmmln icnt on with
offices ON Front street.
Last night the water was so high in
the OregOnian prcssrOOm as TO prevent
the press running and a iour'page
edition was printed ON "A small jOO press
in the second story.
THE WORST OVER
Tonight the water has fallen four
inches and the worst Is over. The ex-
treme height of the water at Portland
was - feet inches above low water
mark, the highest ever before known.
Two bridges span the Willamette at
this city, both OF which have been sub
jeCted TO great strain from tine force of
She current and floating driftwoOd, but
both still stand, aud the danger Is now
believed TO be over
For the past four days a steamer has
been kept ON the lookout about four
mites bOve the upper bridge, and when
ever a building q boom OF logs or large
quantities OF driitwOOd wa seen coming
down the boat would steam out, nihx a
heavy charge ot giant powder, liRIt the
fuse, back rapidly away, ana in few
minutes the logs or lumber would be
torn asundcr, and 20 floating harmlessly
down by piecomcal under the bridge.
AT THE CAPITAL
Salem, Oregon's capital, will feel the
effects OF the Hood as much as any city,
because of the loss of the bridge, valued
u; $4,000.
The following special dispatches were
received late, from points UP the valley;
Salem, although losing heavily, has
been fortunate In escaping with no loss
oflifc. Far more fortuna te l. she than
her neighbors on the nOrih, Un Kaiser
bottom, where much stock has psrished
and whore not n icw people have sur
fcfed. In kaiscrs bottom the situation
is sad. The current In the river was so
swift that small boats could not live,
and the rescucrs had to look on distress
flags and listen 10 the cries for aid
powerless to act. At Cars house flags
are waving, and Carr, his wife, two
daughters and son were known TO be i'm.
priSOned in the upper story Of "A small
barn. Nothing could be done for them,
but as the flood is passed It's height,
there is hope that ihcy may still be safe.
At Bybces the valuable stOck is all
safe bui closely imprisoned in = barn,
with the water roaring past The door.
ON the south prairies the situation is
about the same. Many head Of cattle
are drowned, and X. ;. SCOTS house is
gone,
In salem both docks are gone and a
few houses, perhaps iifiy, are Heated,
but most can be rebuilt at little cost.
About half Of the town OF Whcatiand,
n small village of POlk county, H. washed
away. including Hendricks warehouse
w!tn 1900 bushels of wheat
The loss of people living along the
Willamette Is gr at. stoutenuerg, u
well.to.do farmer living on an island be-
low WhentlGnd lost houses. barns and
stock. The report of eleven persons
having been drowned in NJ ission bottom
is withou. foundation. An the persons
were rescued. The wife OF Ntlltam
Miller, on the island opposite Fairfield.
gave birth TO child in the rafttrs OF
building Monday. Her husband was
alone in the house, and by means OF
ropes swung the bed with his wife in II
to the rafters, where she gave birth
to her child. They werc,resrued.
FROM ALBANY
Last night tue Willamette reached
thirty.thrte feet above low water.
People living on the low,ands along the
river had already moved out, and the
offices of the various transformation
companies at the wharves were moved
to higher ground. The In ion Pacific
wharf had already gone out, and the
wharf of the Oregon Pacific Com pany,
at Montelth mills. and IA wing of the
mills yielded to tae mighty pressure
upon II, and with loud. cracking noise
parted from the building and moved
down the river toward the Oregon Pacific
draw bridge. Many anVlous eyes wcru
turned toward the bridge. for irar that
when the buildings struck II they would
cause IL to Collnpse, but the Il fucture
stood the shock with scarcely q Quiver,
and the floating roofs shot un der the
bridge without damage. The bridge
timbers, fencing. wrecks of small build
ings and other debris were floating down
the river.
A number Of families from across the
river were brought over TO this side, and
four families have lott their homes and
taken up temporary abode Ia the
schooIhoiIse, which l. ON high gfound.
The Southern Pacitic's Lebanon branch
Is open and trains are running. On the
Oregon Pacific trains are stopped. No
large bridges have gone out but several
hundred feet of track between this city
and Corvallis Is washed away. The
breakwatcr ut the drawbridge here was
washed away, but the bridge and piers
arc all right.
A report reached this city that the Mar
row Gauge bridge across North Sant.ain