The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1897-03-24
WASTE BY WATER.
Further Reports of Damage by
the Great Flocd
Levees Continue To Burst-Damage Ia
Property Estimated mt Hundreds
Of Thousands of DolIars-Res-
cuing the Imperilcd.

continue TO roll on in their work of
ruin. Death rides on the flood, and the
end is not in sight. Dams and levees
are crushed aside, lives are taken, crops
are swept away, stock is drowned, homes
and shelters are crumbled, trees are
torn out by the roots, railroad tracks
are submerged, bridges go out in the
torrent and despair settles down with
the uncomfortable waters. All this is
in the farm lands and other country
districts.
In towns the situation is more alarm
ing day by day. Illinois is suffering
now. At Carmi Jacob Zeigler was
drowned in the backwaters of the Little
WEbash.
Wisconsin towns are under water.
In some cases factory fires are out and
city lighting plants are submerged.
Tales of peril and hardship and dis
astrous outlooks come from Fond du
Lac, Ripon, Sheboygan, Beloit, Racine,
Plainfield and other cities. AT Fond
du Lac all the business section is Hooded
and Easements are full of water.
Iowa is suffering intensely. At Sioux
City all the low land is submerged and
the Floyd river is on bad rampage.
Every bridge on the Big Sioux between
Sioux City and Hawarden has been
swept out, and thousands of acres OF
farm lands all along the river are under
the torrent. Towns that are suffering
worst are Rock Valley, Charles City, Du-
buque and Keokuk, reports from these
places indicating that the worst is yet to
come.
The harvest of the waters in the south
is bad, but how appalling can only be
guessed, as in most instances the lives
have been lost in out of the way dis
tricts, where ignorance and terror eX-
aggerate the disasters and from whence
information is unreliable and very hard
to obtain. Memphis people have made
their city a haven of refuge for Hood
stricken men, women and children.
committee is looking after the needs of
the unfortunates who have lost their
homes and lands and everything is be-
ing done to relieve their suffering and
ease their minds.
st. Louis, March 22.-Latest advices
from the flooded country south of here
state that the situation is hourly grow
ing worse. Walls of water have beaten
down the levees at many points and
riparian jewellers are al the mercy of
the flood. Out of 38 kilograms received
here from the lower river but one re-
cords a cessation of the rise. This was
from Cairo, H.. but the halt of the flood
there is due to the breaks in the levees
adjacent in Kentucky and Missouri.
into
comes from the Iowa and Dakota val
legs of the Missouri river. Warm
weather has turned the snow to water,
which is added 10 the already over
flowed streams. Work on levee barriers
is practically abandoned in Arkansas
and Mississippi as useless.
The five steamers employed by the
Memphis relief were reinforced Sunday
by twog government boats towing barges.
These steamers pick their way through
tree tops. The c. b. Bryan steamed due
west from Memphis SO miles and re-
turned with 100 people and barge load
of live stock. At Austin, Miss, 40 miles
below Memphis, but two houses remain
on dry land. From these "a people were
rescued. Relief work is now occupying
HlOEe dlltllllOH lllhll. 10 Ignl
the flood with levees.
Unconfirmed rumors of great loss of
life are met at every hand, but the death
roll cannot even be approXmated till
the flood subsidies. The situation is in
deed gloomy with small prospects of
Immediate betterment.
Memphis, Tenn, March 22.-The
levee for stretch of Is miles from and
south of Osceola, Ark, went all TO
pieces Sunday. There were some IL or
Is breaks, in extent from eco TO 1000
yards, and the water from the over
burdened river is sweeping over the st.
Francis basin, TO return to the river
Just above Helena. They are also con-
fident of one or more breaks al Luxora,
saIue side, but above Osceoa. Most of
the women and children had already
left Osceola, only the men remaining to
strengthen and guard the levees. These
: were taken across the river TO the Ten
Anessee side, which is secure by reason
of a tall bluff. Below. also on the Ar
kansas side, there is break at Modoc
Along the Mississippi front every levee
is reported intact and in no immediate
danger. Engineers here are rather
dubious, however, about their holding
out. though every material break on
the opposite side is relief to just that
extent. The areas of farming lands
submerged through the breaks already
occurred aggregate well up in the thou
sands. No drownings reported Sun
day.
Sioux City, Ia, March 22.-The flood
improved. The Floyd at this point is
again within its banks. The Elkhorn.
mt Norfolk, is falling, and the Jim and
Vermillion rivers are no higher. The
Big Sioux is still coming up and work
ing great damage between here and
Sioux Falls. The Missouri is high, but
not over its banks near here. 1t is still
rising.
on for Cuba.