The herald., 1897-03-31
WHOLE COUNTIES FLOODED
AND THE MERCILESS RIVER
RISES STEADILY
Ten Thousand Mon Are Working in
a Despairimg Effort to Save
Homes and Property
Associated Press Special Wire.

below Greenvilie, MISS, at Waysfde
which IS 1900 feet wide; one forty miles
north of Greenville, at the head of the
delta, which is 1000 feet wide and be-
coming deeper and longer as the water
rushes through 1t. The third occurred
at an early hour this morning seven
miles north of a point opposite Arkansas
City, and at last reports a stream as
wide as the Hudson was tearing through
1t and covering the country for miles
in the interior. The river from thenorth
to the south break is like a mighty
crescent, with Grsenville. Gunnison and
many other small towns between the
arc end its chord. which is the.Riverside
division Of the Yazoo and Mississippi
Valley railroad. The water from the up
Der, or Perthshire, crevasse has already
out through the railroad and is tearing
through the plantations to this south.
At the middle crevasse the floods from
the north have already Joined forces
with these waters. and'together they are
inundating the country southwark. The
upper waters will reach the lower Gre
vasse tonight, and the united water
from the three food gates will, with
hourly increasing force and volume,
rush over the country and finally be
thrown into the. main river at the mouth
of the Yazoo, few miles north of Vicks-
burg.
Probably ten thousand people are
working with a desperation born of de-
spair to save their homes and property.
The whole machinery of the state and
the Illinois Central railroad is being
brought into play. 1t is reported'tonisht
that the levee in front of Laconia Circle,
Ark, has been broken. If this should
prove to be true, and most likely 1t is
correct, 10000 acres of fertile cotton
land will be flooded by morning. AT
Helena a rise of but two-tenths of foot
in the "a hours ending today is recorded.
At Arkansas City, instead of consider
able rise, fall of two-tenths of foot is
indicated
The river is stationary at Memphis to-
night, the gauge indicating S6.2 feet
The river at Arkansas City is 81 feet
above danger line. At Greenville, Miss.
similar fall of two-tenthss of a foot is
indicated.
News received here at 10 O'Clock of un.
questioned authenticity, confirms the re-
port that break of immense proper
tions occurred at O'Clock tonight at the
Stokes plantation in Bolivar county,
seven miles south of the Perthshire
break, four miles below Gunnison and
a few miles above Rosedale. The
crevasse is in an immense leVee, and the
water will join with that Of the Perth
shire break and add to the distress of
the people of the Bogua Phali and Deer
creek sections of Bolivar and Washing
ton counties.
Almost superhuman efforts have been
made to save the levee in the section OF
the break at Stokes plantation. The
levee board and residents have spared
neither time no. money nor material, but
in vain. The work of the river proved
greater than that of the men, and the
flood continued The last break is situ-
ated so that the water flowing through
1t added to that of the Perthshire
crevasee, Will inundate an immense ter
rltory and stop the trains on both the
Yazoo ana Mississippi Valley line and
dlSO Oll tllE t0OutHSl L 3lt hCiOAC ciiOl -
of the people of the delta have not been
able to prevent one of the most disas-
trous overfiows in the history OF this
great delta. That much is now a set
tied fact.
FOUR NEGROES DROWNED
ST. CHARLES, Ark, March 30.-Four
negroes were drowned this morning
while attempting to cross the back
water in a leaking catboat. The dead
are Ned and Frarak Stillums and Chas
and Ed Doumas.
A SPECIAL BULLETIN.
WASHINGTON, March 3O-The
weather bureau today issued the fol-
lowing special river bulletin: During
the past "A hours the Ohio, Cumberland,
Tennessee and Arkansas rivers have
fallen slowly. and the Red has risen.
The central St. Francis river has risen
two feet since Saturday and is still ris-
ing rapidly. The upper Mississippi, from
st. Paul to Dubuque. has risen slightly
and is above the danger line at La
crosse. The Mississippi has fallen slight
ly from Keokuk to Cairo and risen from
Helena to New Orleans, except a slight
fall at Arkansas City. due TO a crevasse
near that place. II is above the danger
line from Cairo to New Orleans, and
from Memphis to Arkansas City 1t is
above the extreme high water of any
previous years.
During the past as hours the following
average rainfall in inches and tenths
has occurred in the respective river ba-
sins: Red, 2; Arkansas, 05 Cumber-
land and Tennessee, 0.G; Central and
Lower Mississippi, o.2.
From Davenport to St Louis no flood
ing has occurred except on islands and
iowlands, where ample warning was
given by the bureau last week In no
case has the water reached the tops OF
levees in this district, nor is it likely to
from the water now in sight.
Serious breaks in the levees have oc-
Cured within the past forty-eight
hours at Australia, Stop Landing and
Wayside, Mississippi. The water from
these crevasses will flow into the Yazoo
basin, and it is probable that the coun-
ties of Bolivar. Washington. Issaoua
and Starkey, Miss, will be flooded. The
situation at Greenville, Miss, is consid-
cred extremely critical. Until the pc
riod CT extreme danger from floods in the