The tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1890-1890, 1890-03-22
THE RALEIGH CREVASSE
A Gap 1000 Feet Wide Through tn
Levee Near Vicksburg Doing
Big Damage.
Torrents of Water Rapidly Inundss
ing the Surrounding COuntry-Ef.
forts to Stop the Flood,

NEW ORLEANS, March 19.-The Times
Democrats Vicksbug special says: A
personal visit made to Raleigh or Pecan
Grove satisfied your correspondent that
the reports had not been exaggerated as
to the extent of the damage. At 8
o'clock p. m. the crevasse was 1000 feet
or more wide and the ends were caving
80 rapidly that it was foolhardiness tO
approach them. The levee is nearly If
teen high and the immense volume of
water was rushing through it in a stream
ten or more feet deep. The extent of
the crevasse and the immense amount of
water delivered by it may be estimated
by the fact that in the twenty-four
just ended the river has fallen three
inches at Vicksburg and four inches a.
Lake Providence, though rising steadps
prior to the crevasse. Assistant En-
gineer Thompson is quoted as saying
that no crevasse at any point on the line
Of the Fifth Levee district could occa-
sion such serious results as the one
at Raleigh. The steamer Osceola,
took Capt. Willard Young, of the United
States engineers, to Greenville with a
large quantity of material to be used III
holding the ends Of the levee and pre-
venting further caving and enlargement
This work will be directed by Engineers
Thompson and Hyde, who will be al
lowed the use Of a pile driver.
The tug Parker arrived at D.
m. from the crevasse and will
return at midnight with material and
provisions. The water from the crew
asse has backed up several inches and
flooded several plantations 1t will over
flow fully one-fonrth of East Carol par
isb and the greater part of Tensas and
Madison parishes. The eastern part of
the latter will escape. The water has
not yet reached the Vioksburg, Shrere-
port and Pacific railroad, and probably
will not for several days. The crevssse
HAS EXCITED MUCH CONSERVATION
in these parishes, and stock is being re-
moved as fast as possible. A fall of five
inches occurred at Alsatia levee, five
miles above the crevasse, greatly i'm
proving the situation there. This levee
was considered in the greatest danger Of
all heretofore. Advices from Louisiana
points and from Mississippi show that
the crevasse has relieved the pressure on
them. A levee inspector, the solitary
witness of the break at Raleigh, says
seventy-five feet of the levee caved off at
once into the river. A telephone mes
sage from Fitiars says the water fell one
inch at Skipwith's and six inches at
Brunswick in the past twenty-four hours
Henry Berges, Of Duval, Miss, seeint
some negro houses on the Louisiana
shore floating away, crossed over in .
skiff, avoiding the crevasss by pulling
his boat over the levees, and reached the
houses just in time to save negro who
was in one of them. A moment later
the building was swept away.
INSIST ON DONATING.
NEW ORLEANS, March 19.-Governos
Nichols having declined to receive the
S100, 600 donation rendered by the Louis
lana Lottery company for levee purposes,
the board of directors have decided to
offer the relief fund direct to the various
levee districts. Az money is needed all
along the line the probabilities are that
the parishes will accept the offer made.