Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1890-04-25
THE FLOODS.
THE REAL CONDITION OF THINGS
JUST COMING TO LIGHT.
The Damage Done Incaiculabie-The Dis
tress In the Overlooked Districts
Beyond Telling.
fBy telegram TO the DIspatch.l

NEW oRLgASA April H-A special from
bayou sara says: The relief steamer Dacotah
reached Bayou sara landing yesterday evening.
she has made trip TO Pointe Coupee and has
come back 10 Bayou sara- Her arrival was
0od-send 70 the people whose lives are
in jeopardy. for she has not only
saved an incalcuiable amount OF properly
nut goooly number OF lives. The real condt-
ton oil things In the overfiowed district Is Just
coming 10 light Sopen 10 equal 10 the task OF
picturing tho devastation Of the country or the
desolatlon OF the people. Tho entire 'front.' OF
Point COupee IL under water. More OF the lefee
has gone. The water back of tho levee Is
30 deep that hundreds Of lives are In jeopardy.
small stretches OF the iovee still standing are
crowded with men. women, and children, side
by side with horses mules. and cows. In an OLD
raised n-houso 500 negroes we're found huddled
together. Their condition was piuable. lhey
were AFRAID Of their lives and were piteously
beRging 10 be taken TO some place OF safety.
me crevAsse at Allendale wilt oyerhoW thirty
OF tho nnest plantations on the river. IL win
reach the Teche country several days IN al
vance OF the AO-Ranza waters, aud colonel
Rivers says when this water Joins the horganza
IL VIII Mood the entire htchafalays, LaionTche
and reche counties The damage Il incalcula-
be. The distress In the overlooked district
cannot be told. The Texas and Pacific boat +.
j. Wneeiock succeeded yesterday In saving ~
people from the bact country around NCrRanZa.
LntT.-Run and des0lation meets the eye on
every spe In POinte Coupee parish. The de.
sfucuoh Is complete. Not plantation is leit
above the Wator, not n l6vee unbrOken, While
hundreds II families are homeless. Thousands
OF heads Of stock have been drowned, and from
the meagre reports received from the Interior
Il IL quite probable that human lie has been
sacrificed 70 The food.
Standing on the deck Of the relietsteamer Da-
cotah as she passed down within hfy yards OF the
Hooded district last evening the full extent OF
the disaster could be seen. Grouping together
10 the little knobs between the broken leveo,
through which the water rushed with ungOverna-
49, az pnprln
black. some with babies in arms, while others
had dogs secured by cord. Many u them had
nothing else in the world except tie clothes they
wore on their backs. Whenever the Dacotrh dts
cOgere O scene ike this the stage was swung
out and the stricken ones taken aboard. Equally
as sad . enc was the poor cattle standing IA
the water actually starving. Many 81 them nal
not tasted food ia days. Their gRunt forms con-
trasted strangely with their s9rrouniings. The
DAcotsh was unable 70 handle tbs cattle yester-
day, but to-day her boiler deck Is flrst-cless
si0ck-pen.
A family named Luke. who was living several
milos above Bayou Sara. wore rescued this
morning There were fifteen people ia tho
family. Monday morning thoy we're pros
Ferrous, being owners OF n large plantation,
Well-eQuipuet store, nni over 100 head
Of stock. To-day nothing remslns above the
water but tho caves ot their residence. The
creyasse sixty feet wide broke directly in front
of the house at noon Monday. and the family
had n lively time 10 roach Tho le'oe before SIX
feet OF water covered tho place. 1ho creyasse Is
BOW 400 feet vide. There are hundreds Of snch
tales 90 be told. Tho Dacotah IL busy boat
to-day. Coming down STOCK and people
were picked up everywhere, and when
she reached Bayou sara she had 1000
head OF cattle and nearly 800 people
on board. They wcro landed and the boat I'm
mediately left on the return voyage. The ere
vases now number thirteen. At Grand Bay
LAT night men were bus'ly engaged in en- Effort
70 hold tho patent dyke. an immense earth fork
that protects ten large plantation IN the Lower
ferday aud last night, ont Tho river is failing.
The worst mas come IN Pointe i0upec.