The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-04-05
FLOODS AWFUL FURRY.
(continued dom Flrst Page.)


enjoying the bright sunshine. This
proved blessing TO them. large crowd
had jtst passed Market street, where the
break occurred. luckily no one was pass
ing there just at the moment
Mrs. Harriet Dumont was one of the
arrivals tonight from the flooded district.
Mrs. Dumont, in company with a friend,
was walking along the levee at the time
The break occurred. She said: 1T was
about AS in the afternoon when We were
suddenly startled by hearing the bells of
the different churches throughout the city
changing. People began running in all
directions and somebody shouted that the
levee had broken.
I'VE ran three blocks to my friends
home and went upstairs. Within ten min~
utes the water came pouring down the
street and within twenty minutes more it
had risen almost to the second floor of our
house. My friends husband soon came
to us with a skiff and took us to the River
side Hotel. The first alarm was given by
Father Buchanan, who began ringing the
bell of the Church of the Immaculate Con-
ception."
The lower portion of Carmi. Ill., on
the Wabash river is entirely flooded. The
water reaches half way to the second
stories of the houses. The water is lever
with the floor of the iron road bridge, but
the railroad bridge is still two feet above
/, at Oto point on IHe Big tOur, mile
north of Carmi, the track is but one foot
above water for a quarter of a mile.
Gov. Tanner this afternoon started from
Springfield 100 tents, blankets enough for
800 people and a sufficient amount of pre-
pared food for the immediate relief of L 200
people. He also wired Attorney w. S.
Phillips president of the Galatin County
Bank here, to draw upon him for $1,000
as an immediate relief fund Gov Tan
q anna IN }.
lie to send in relief in care of W. C. Phil
| lips, at this place. The Odd Fellows and
| Masonic lodges are supervising the dis
| tribution OF supplies.
All the carpenters i'm Ridgeway fell to
making fiatboats this morning for the
transportation of supplies across the mum
! dated territory and an impromptu ferry
! has been established. The water is a mile
wide az the crossing point and is back
water, the river being seven miles wide
| The Baltimore and Ohio Southwestern
| tracks are under five feet of water for five
miles north of Cypress Junction.
| ED. Flake, whose wife was drowned,
came TO Cypress Junction to-day and said
| that there were 10 people in his house
when the food struck the building Only
himself and one other succeeded in escap-
| ing before the building toppled over. Mr.
| Flake was hysterical from grief and could
not give the names of the thirteen who
were lost.
Marsh Calicott, the son of Wash Calf
colt and wife. who persisted, made he
! roic effort 10 save his parents He secured
rowboat and got within 30 feet OF the
home, but his mother and father were inn
/ prisoned. The swift current prevented him
| from coming nearer. The parents stood an
the yard In water to their arm pits await
| ing the arrival of the boat Suddenly a
wave swept them into the current and they
were drowned before their sons eyes.
David Rookendoffer and wife were in
their home directly in the path of the
huge wave that swept through the broken
| dixie. Their little son, Dyard saw the
| wave coming and hurriedy climbed a tree.
| The father and mother had time to rush
up stairs when the house was swept from
its foundation. They climbed on the roof
as the house fioated off and heard their
| little son in the tree crying Goodbye. pa
| pa and mamma" The agonized parents
were powerless to go to his assistance,
1 and in few moments the house had been
carried beyond the reach of the boys
voice. They floated from the north levee
to the south levee, distance of a mile,
and were taken off In safety. The little
| son was subsequently rescued In the trea
top by boat, and the family reunited.
Mr.. Rookendorfer said that as he floated
down the current on the housetop he saw
people drowning on all sides.
The colored quarter of the city, known
| as Negro Flats was completely mum
| dated by the rush of water. 1t is believed
| that large number of colored people
pefished as the ground was flooded in a
| twinkling and tonight the water stands
IS feet deep in that locality. Every means
| of assistance is used to provide food and
shelter to the hundreds of homeless re-
| fugees.
Hundreds are tonight sleeping on the
river banks under such rude shelter as
they can construct from the floating de-
bris.
Absolutely nothing has been saved in
the city. The stores and other business
houses are flooded to the second floors.
All the streets are under water from 10
to 80 feet.
Provisions are constantly arriving from
all the neighboring towns. A relief train
arrived here tonight, but owing to the
high wind and roughness of the water at
the ferry crossing all attempts to trans
fer the provisions across have been aband-
oned.
They have been taken to the wa ter's
edge and at the break of day will be fer
ried across. The inhabitants of Ridsaway
have organized into relief committee,
with Dent Reid j. o. Brooks and @. M.
Kimbo at its head.
Cypress Junction, ILL.,, April 4.-Reports
at $50 o'clock tonight say 1t is feared
the entire Ievee in front of Shawnee own
Will be destroyed by morning, and every
frame house in Shawneetown win be
dashed to pieces
The wind is blowing thirty-hve miles per
hour. with rain that cuts like glass.
Fear is felt for the rescue force now in
Shawneetown, as nothing can stand the
waves, which are rolling ten feet high.
The reports come from a temporary tel
ephone station on the hill just this Tide
of Shawneetown.
If the gale keeps blowing the entire town
is doomed.
FIREBRAND ON THE FLOOD.
| o,,o &c tho UIoattu,r uou.os aaH.