Evening star., 1897-03-29
BREAK IN A LEVEE
Water Pouring Through Foot
Opening.
ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO STOP IT
Fertile Country That Will Be
Overlooked.
LATE MISUNDERSTANDING
JACKSON. Miss, March GA specia

from Greenville, Miss, says:
A crevasse occurred last night at Lake
| Lee, seven miles south of Greenville, on
| the Mississippi side, through which ali i'm
mense volume of water is pouring into
| the Black and the Steele Bayou country.
The opening is five hundred feet wide, and
unless it can be stopped, which is highly
| improbable. all of the country west of
Deer creek and the most fertile and pros
porous in the delta will be overfowel
| from Arvola south to the mouth Of the
Yazoo river.
This break has relieved the pressure
somewhat on the Greenville 'front.' and the
gauge at this hour shows the river to have
been on stand s,nse pm. yesterday.
MEMPHIS, Tenn, March 29.-The Com
mercfai Appeal has received from what is
considered reliable authority a report that
the leyee has broken in the Mississippi
side OF the river at Wayside nine miles
south of Greenville. messenger came
from Wayside to Greenville arriving at
midnight, and a relief train was at once
dispatched to the scene Of the reported
break If this report is true, it is the first
break in the main levee system on the
Mississippi side.
The overflow reports are not encoura sins
eoNaS W 'hoSS the waters. IN a
local standpoint all is serene, but reports
are flying thick and fast to breaks below
Helena. The levee at Wayside, Miss, gave
way shortly after midnight last night This
was confirmed this morning by subse-
quent telegram
QUINCY. ILL.,. March 29.-The Mississippi
keeps up its record Of the past week at this
point, and another rise is registered max
ing the stage fifteen feet above low water
mark. thousands of sightseers line the
river banks and bluffs to see the muddy
water which has submer yed all of the is
lands and stretched back over the Missouri
bottoms for distance of several miles,
with only the tops of trees and partly sub
merged houses visible here and there to
mark the former places of abode OF the
thrifty farmer. The situation in the Icvee
district Is the same as yesterday. A large
force Of men are working heroically to
strengthen the weak places in the Ievees
and thereby save their homes and crops
but 1t is now believed their task is a hope
less one, as old river men say that the river
Will go beyond the mark of 1883.
Reports from north of here are very dis
couraging, and the rain storm which pre-
vailed Sunday, only increased the force Of
anxious watchers.
There has been 70 danger to Quincy it.
self from the floods, but the families on
the islands and in the Missouri bottoms
have been driven out. The water is now
stationary, and the levees north of the
city will be saved If no further rise occurs
Quincy itself could stand ten feet more
without injury.
ALTON ILL.,. March 20.-Flood conditions
become graver every hour. Men were put
to work this morning overhauling all the
leVees protecting higher bottom lands The
railroad companies are putting their tracks
in American and ST. Charles bottoms In
the best possible condition to withstand
Hoods, for less than twelve feet more water
will bring the stage of 1892, when the tracks
of al railroads were submerged between
Alton and ST. Louis
The gauge shows an advance of four
tenths of a foot in the last twenty-four
hours. The river is within less than three
feet of the stage reached in the middle OF
May last year. and with nearly two months
of wet weather ahead the outlook is
g'comy. Thousand of dollars have already
Keen swept away in crop products and 1t is
raining again. so that the prairies even
back from the river look like lakes and the
preparation of lands for spring crops is
again deferred.
ST. PAUL, Mimi. March 27-The rivers
of Minnesota are rising very rapidly fol-
lowing day of heavy thawing. The Mis-
sissippi at this point has passed the ten
foot mark and is still rising steadily. Water
Is flowing in from Minnesota in a torrent
A telephone message from South Park, five
miles south. says gorge of ice twenty feet
high has formed there. AS the prediction
Is for warmer weather. it is believed the
gorge will break without doing any serious
damage.
The water row is running through the
Bohemian flats and the residents of that
locality are moving out. The Easements of
many concerns on the west side are full of
water. Much higher water in the Mississip-
pi Is reported at Little Falls ST. Cloud and
Grand Rapids. There is still about a foot
of snow on the ground.
Gen. Wilson. chief of engineers, has re-
oeived telegram from Col. Gillespie, presi-
dent of the Mississippi river commission.
dated Vicksburg, Miss, yesterday, as fol-
lows:
Gauges along river from Memphis to
V1cksburg give flood readings varying from
l1s ieet to 8 feet above any previously re-
corded readings. Feeling everywhere one
OF great uneasiness, and all state levee
boards are battling against rising floods
regardless of cost. AS yet no widely spreaI
damages have been reported, though sew
erai breaks in levees above Greenville on
both banks have occurred Leyees SER
iously strained at all points. Commission
VIII give al possible aid by applying money
balances to protection of works. water
rising slowly below Helena"