The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1896-12-04
CHIPPEWA FALLS SAFE.
The City Will Mt be Devastated
- by Flood.
THE OPINION OF AN EXPERT.

Colonel W. A. Jones, U. s. A.. Critically
Examines tho Great Gorge and Declares
That There Ii No Need for Further
Anxiety-BusIness Men Panic Stricken.
CHIPPEWA FALLS Wis, Dec. 4.-"Tho
river is falling slowly, and there is no rem
son whatever for apprehension" snid
Colonel W. A. Jones, U. S. A, to an AS
e0riated Press representative after he had
put in busy day visiting the situation
along the Chippewa river. Colonel
Jones, who is In charge of the government
works in the northwest, had boen called
here by the local authorities, who sought
expert advice In what seemed lilso an ex-
tremity and a critical situation. He con-
Gnued:
"The situation OF the river at Eau Claire
and at Chippewa Falls is practically the
.ame, and the stage Of water ut Eau Claire
Is really the stage of the river, as the flood
here is simply causo. y the backwater.
Most Of the water Is able to get away
under the ice and thu piIckwater represents
tho amount OF water that is unable TO get
away. As the stage of the river goes down
more of this water will flow away under
the Ice and the food here will be soon
over. The gorge extends about eighteen
miles, and is made up largely Of anchor
ice, which is sort Of slush packed closely,
but not so hard as ordinary ice Under
this the river Ii running in somewhat
cramped quarters aud as the water falls
more the ice will drop down into the river
bed, where it is likoly 10 stay until spring,
the water still running along under the
mass of ice. We seem to be starting u
regular old fashioned winter so that there
IL every reason to expect the continuance
Of the Ice until spring, but there seems no
renson to spprehend any danger The
course of the river will be changed slightly,
but as far as that goes it is constantly
changing"
Colonel Jones will visit Eau Claire and
look into the situation further. but this
expresses his idea of the situation here and
along the river. The people of the Chip.
pewa valley will undoub btedly feel much
relieved over such an opinion from such
authority, and they certainly neod to be
relieved, for sort of decentralization has
seized on many business men in Chippewa
Falls which does not seem warranted by
the actual facts OF the case Travelling
men have tried to talk business with many
merchants who are nowhere near and in
no way affected by the flooded district,
but have been unable TO do any business,
being told that the food had or would
rnin everything and all kinds of business
for the present.
But aside from the loss of business OF
those in the flooded district and property
loss in the same locality, the loss in the
city will not be great. The big mill of the
Chippewa Logging and Boom company is
in serious position, and any sudden
break of the ice would endanger 1t, even
though there were u break in the gorge
formed several miles above,
Looking up or down the river from tho
wagon bridge an unbroken mnss of the
broken white ice can be seen, with here
and there dark clump of logs frozen in
the gorge. At the lower end of the gorge,
near Eau Claire, is banked mass Of logs
containing SO000,000 feet of lumber and
this large amount 1t Is desired to save by
holding it right where it now is. The ice
and food have not encrouched on the
banks of the river so much as was feared,
and the damage Is much less in the coun.
try than was at first thought.