The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1899-07-14

10 creep over the cotton plantations
four or five miles from the river This
created no very great alarm. but at
three o'clock on the next morning,
while the rain was falling through ut
ter darkness in torrents, a great wall
OF water az least rs feet in height and
ten miles wide came roaring and crash
ing through the timber and over the
I fields, making noise liNcan approach
ing hurricane. Frightened men and
screaming women and children quick
4 II assembled 10 the roofsnf their houses
and hogan to fire guns. blow horns,
Y ring bells and shout for help. No one
knows how many 81 these houses. with
, whole families clinging 10 them, were
swept away To destruction and death.
I All day Saturday the river continued
10 rise. and thousands of people who
were assembled on dry land were busy
4 building RATS and boats tor the ven
turcsomc roscucrs who were bravely
rowing over the submcrger planta-
tions. engaged in saving the helpless
people who were ON the roofs of their
dwellings. The negroes were often
cabins PRAYING and shouting. and new
er in any instance making the least ef-
fort 10 construct RATS or boats. On
Sunday the waters were still rising
and the current AT Stone City was
literally choked with floating houses,
bridge timbers and live and dead ami
mails. Stone City was believed 10 be
above high-watcr mark. but on Sunday
the river was above the second-story
windows OF the dwelling houses. vt
this point the river WINS ten miles wide.
About five hundred people from the
surrounding country had assembled
on the bluffs 10 witness the appalling
scene. \ merchant who arrived from
the opposite shore in small boat said
that he believed that "A whole settle
ment of Italians and all the negroes
on several plantations had been drown
ed.
Stone City. on the east bank of the
Brazos. is the terminus of short feed
er of the international Great Northern
railroad. This is one Of the richest cot
ton belts in Texas. At least 200 square
miles. or - 900 acres. of these fertile
bottom lanes are under the highest
state of cultivation. and before the
flood the plantations were covered
with magnificent crop Of cotton,
every acre Of which would have pro-
duced a big bale. Not bale of all this
vast crop will be saved. and the loss,
even at 5-cent figures reaches the encr-
nous sum OF S3.5O0.0O0. This is mere
bagatelle compared with the total loss
tnat will be sustained by the planters
on the shores of this terrible river
from its source to Nelasco.
At Old Washington, 20 miles below
here. the flood is over twenty miles
wide. The Alligator Branch railroad,
from Summervile to Navasota. is en-
tirely submerged. and not a hoof of
live stock in the big pastures OF that
region has escaped death. The magnih-
cent cotton plantations Of the Allen
farm district are all under 20 feet OF
water. and not a bale OF cotton or IN
ear Of corn will survive the disaster
The cotton buyers AT Brenham. Fry.
an and Caldwell estimate the Brazus
alone has destroyed a crop that was
worth not less than Sj.0OO.O00 There Is
no way Of making an estimate a. 10
the loss in buildings. gins and ike
stcsl. but il is safe 10 say that $4,000.
on $40 al not repair the damage.
some idea Of the force Of the current
rat be gathered from the manner IN
which il twisted the powerhouse and
lifted the great boilers from their
foundation AT Caldwell. When one
comes TO realize that the Rio Crande.
the Colorado. the san Saba and 80
smaller streams. have done thcir
worst TO spread destruction along
their shores. we are forced 10 the con-
clusion that Texas has received a yer,
serious blow.
The damage done at Brackett hv
the recent overflow is put az 5000. GOC
to merchandise alone. Every horse and
COW in the town was drowned. and
about 80 houses were washed away
The damage TO the Southern Pacih,
railway will exceed 5000. 600 and the
total damage in the Rio Grande VAL
ley will he considerably over $1,000
900.
\ young girl was rescued from g
large tree which she had been clinginy
TO for several hours. She said that The
house occupied by her people had
floated for some distance in the dark
ness, and that il had turned over, and
she supposed that her father and
mother and two children persisted.
Menardylle. on the San Saba. was
a rich little town in the center Of an
irrigated farming region regarded as
one Of the most prosperous sections
of the country in the whole state. IL
is reported that a wall of water 40
feet high swept the whole town away
and almost entirely ruined every farm
along the river. II is very evident thar
II the damage that the people Of The
state have sustained from this unprc-
cedented flood could he estimated that
the figures would tax the creduliiv
OF all who We're not eye-witnesses of
the disaster
Two important lessons are TO he
learned from this remarkable rain