The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-03-24
which May Not BE Able tn Withstand
the Flood That Is Expected from
Northern Tributaries.
SCENES At CARUTHERSVILLE
WHERE ONE CREvAssE Is NOW
MORE THAN LOO FEET WIDE.
Man shot for Cutting n Levee-Mem-
phis still Crowded with Refugees
Scenes and Incidents.

ST. LOUIS. March 23.-Advices received
here from the overfowed districts of the
MISSISSIPPI valley show that the situation
in some places is grave. A dispatch from
Charlottesville, Mo-. says: THE river rose
here one inch and a quarter during the
last twenty-four hours and continues TO
weaken the levees. The great encourage
ment of three days ago is departing. as day
after day the government reports bulletin
the rise from Cairo up. The situation here
Is serious. A terrible windstorm and
three-sixteenths of an inch rainfall oc-
CURED between 40 and 10 o'clock last
night. and the wind blew a gale to-day.
The situation just across the river grows
more alarming every day. The loss of life.
of property and of live stock is frightful.
Even with the three relief tugs, many have
lost all their earthly possessions and barely
escaped with their lives and families. on
one little sawdust heap half an acre square,
near Tiger Tail mill. on the Tennessee side,
were crowded twenty people and 100 head of
live stock. all of which were picked up by
one OF the tugs. y. r. Ham, and carried 10
Dyersburg. The crevasse just below town
is to-day more than loo feet wide and the
water is pouring into the country. Contrary
TO expectations. this water is now driving
families out in the upper end of the county.
The Verona is now near Tyler and is
expected here with another barge of people
and stock. These people have suffered
more than those from the break above
them. but no lives are reported lost.
"A guard shot u man below or the Ar
kansas levee the other night while in the
act of cutting the levee. and threw his car
cass in the river. No one knew his name
and no one cared.
If the river rises six inches more it will
sweep over the top of three miles of Ievee
north of here like a cataract, unless the
people are able TO keep ahead of the rise
which they hope to do. The water is now
eighteen inches above the crown Of the old
levee. Every square inch OF available room
IL occupied by refugees from the flooded
districts. Three families are occupying two
deserted schooIhouses and one family is i'm
the new Jail. The Methodist Church is full,
and refugees now are occupying the two
Sin and grist mills.
There is six inches of water in the
Gayoso courthouse. Only two houses are
above the water there and all the rest of
that town has frcm four inches TO six feet
OF water.
The relief boat Vioelia, just arrived with
Z barge, towed people and live stock from
the bends between here and New Madrid.
The captain says that many would not
leave. Ii is clear. but the wind is blowing
capt. w. r. Mccoy, of the Anchor line
steamship Bun city. returned 10 81. LOUIS
To-Day from Il Trip through the entire over
ho"tu valley south oi LdIro. Mnen asked
concerning the damage and loss OF lire
captain mccoy Salu: So far the damage
III the Hood district arOunu MempnIs mas
nol Deeh as great as the general puDlc sup
pose. L ~as particular 10 inquire as we
came up the river whether there had been
any loss Il lie, but 50 Idr as 1 was able
10 learn there mad been none, ana in all
PROBABILITY there win De none, unless the
ievees further TO the south give way under
the strain In the district arouna Mem
PMS tnefe mas been neaVy loss from the
browning or hogs ana cattle, but as a
general rule there nave been very few
horses lost. In front OF Memphis the river
is forty miles Woe. having broken through
the leVees and spread out INTO a vast lake.
reaching clear across TO Madison in an UNI
broken stretch. Inc town or Marion. Ark.
Is under water, ana the only railroad that
Is running Is the Iron Mountain.
Inc oVer1owed district as IL stands at
present extends from eighty miles below
Memphis to Point Pleasant. $50 miles above
the BUN City. The average width Is prob
ably eighty miles. ana The average depth.
except IN the bed of the river, is from three
TO seven feet. There will be no early crop
from that region this year. This will con-
stitute the heaviest part or the hood losses,
! think
"As we came up 1 noticed breaks in the
levee at San Souci, Nodena, Buffers and
NAAA1 III Fat1A a. OktI
at Modoc. These caused a slight decrease
in the rise at Memphis in spite of the fact
that the river is rising at Cairo. There
are no breaks below Memphis. The levees
are higher and better than they have ever
been before. which accounts for the river
being higher than usual, and still not do
ing the amount of damage that has been
done in the past with a lower stage of
water. This rise has demonstrated that
the levees between Cairo and Memphis
must be raised. as the water went over
the top of them. In the river north of
loss is comparatively nothing
According to the reports or Weather Blu
reau officials here the Missouri and upper
Mississippi rivers will continue to rise
slowly. Here and at Keokuk the rise for
the past twenty-four hours has been six
tenths of a foot. The Des Moines river is
reported booming. but IL is believed by river
men that IL will rise but little at keokuk.
and II the cold snap of yesterday continues
Tor the next thirty-six hours. the present
comparatively high water will have run
down before any material increase may be
expected from the snow further north.