The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1897-04-03
THE FLOOD SUFFERERS.
The Situation in the South Becomes
More Acute.
A FURTHER RISE PROBABLE.

Many Villages Have Been Cut ORFro
Communication with the Outside
World for Several Days-Floods In the
Northwest VIII Cause Great Damage.
Memphis, April 3.-The flood situation
has once more become acute from a
point above Austin, Miss. as far down
as the first break at Perthshire. Miss,
and a crevasse in this line OF levees
would not be surprising. The pressure
on the levee is brought about by the
waters of the st. Francis basin, which
are here congested between the leYees
in front of Helena.
The waters are now so high in the st,
Francis basin that the current rushes
from the west and cuts along the east
shore for miles. apd near Austin the
situation Is most grave. Boats have
been requested to run on slow bells,
and laborers are constantly strength
ening the embankments. crevasse
at Austin would inundate strip of
fertile country In Tunica and COahoma
counties 20 miles wide and 60 miles
long. Reports from Helena, Ark, show
that the river there is still slowly ris-
ing.
Thousands of people have been work.
ing day and night. The Missouri Pa
cfc and Cotton Belt railroads have
rushed trainload after trainload of
sacked sand into the city, and still
stand ready to help. The Illinois Cen
tral, Missouri Pacific and Cotton Belt
railroads have devoted all their great
force to the work without charge.
Greenvlle Is on an island, and Rose
dale, Miss, Is in water from five to ten
feet deep. The funds of bank in
Rosedale have been moved to the sec
ond story. Thousands of head of cattle
are standing on the levee, and many
refugees sleep there, with no covering
to protect them.
Back of Rosedale and throughout the
lower and middle delta country every
thing is under water. In many villages
no communication with the outside
| world has been had for several days.
| The threatened rise at Cairo is now a
| certainty. The Mississippi above Cairo
| and the Cumberland and Tennessee
| rivers will send great flood into the
| already filled st. Francis basin and
| from Cairo to Memphis it is feared
that the deluge will mark a high water
, figure that will be without precedent.
At Memphis the river is steadily fall
ing, the gauge reading 1868 feet, fall
| of e-tenth of foot since Thursday.
| The calls for assistance from numerous
| points along the river are becoming
more and more frequent.
| A dispatch just received from Green
vile says: While the town is still on
| an island and the water threatens to
| flood the greater part of it, there is
enough dry land left to accommodate
1 everybody. Late Thursday night, al
| though work was pushed along the
| protection levee with great vigor, the
| prospect that this bulwark against the
/ flood would be completed in time to be
effective were very slim. By morning
the embankment had been thrown up
| sufficiently high to protect more than
half the city, and work is still pro-
| crossing.
The situation at East ST. Louis is
more threatening. The water has al
ready made its way about 20 feet in on
the banks, and the predicted rise will
move it up to the railroad tracks, from
which point 1t will easily find its way
over the island, as the country slopes
downward from that point