The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1897-04-03
ST. LOUIS THREATENED.
Rig Floods Empending-Cella AL
ready Syyampefs

'
ST. LOUIS. Mo-, April g. 1Ss7-St. Louis
IS threatened with big food. and the
overflow is likely to destructive.
Old river men declare the water will
be over the levee by tonight. and they
are making extensive and expensive prep
arations for that event. AS it is the big
wharf boats are virtually roosting on the
levee.
The cellars of many houses along the
river front are already flooded, and there
is every evidence that an immense
amount of damage will be done. a very
few more inches will bring the water on
to the street which tops the levee, and
there is every prospect of it coming half
way to Main street.
Merchants along the levee are taking
no chances, and the river front presents
busy scene. hundreds of laborers being
engaged in trasferring merchandise and
other movable material from the levee
stores to places of safety and arranging
to keep as much of the water as possi-
BILE from entering the houses.
threatening. The water has already made
its way about twenty feet in on the
banks, and the predicted rise will move
it up to the railroad tracks, from which
point it will easily find its way over the
island, as the country slopes downward
from that point. The bottomlands on
both sides of the river north and south
Of st. Louis are already under water, and
the overflow is being slowly backed up
into the country behind it. 1t is this
back water, intensified by the predicted
rise, that the people in East ST. Louis
and in and about Baden fear. Venice
and the western portion of Madison, Ill,
is submerged in water for some distance
east of the river
The forecast for nearly every district
which can contribute to a ris is
Heavy rain and thunder storms
a high wind prevails this morning and
causes heavy waves to wash against the
railway embankments, but it is believed
they will be able to withstand the attack
of water and drift wood. These embank-
mentS form the protection from flood of
several little villages adjoining st. Louis.
Reports received this morning from points
above this city as far north as Dubuque
state that the flood situation is hourly
growing worse.
At Quincy. ILL.,. the river is seventeen
feet above low water mark Trains
going south on the east side of the river
have been abandoned and the water is
wrapping around the ties on the railroads
on the west side. overlooking the track
in some places. All travel by wagon from
Quincy throughout the Missouri bottoms
have been abandoned. At Louisiana, Mo-,
the river is sixteen feet above low water
mark, but no serious damage is appre-
hended unless the foods should go four
feet higher.
AT Hannibal, Mo-. the river is seven
teen and four-tenths feet above low water
mark and is rising at the rate of a foot
every twenty-four hours. Pearl Island
is entirely covered with water, the only
objects visible being three houses and
the trees. People began moving out of
the low lands in the lower part of the
city yesterday and the cellars and low
places between Front and Main streets
are filling with water. The danger line
will probably be reached tonight.
From points along the Missouri River
Alton to jefferson City. Mo-. the low
lands are flooded, and as the tributaries
to the river are pouring in an immense
volume of water the worst is yet to
come