The age-herald., 1902-04-01
DEATH IN WAKE
 IF THE FLOODS Several Persons Drowned in
 North Alabama R. R. TRAFFIC STILL TIED UP Government Locks and Dams In the Tennessee River Are Badly Dam- aged and It Is Impossible for
 Steamers to Proceed.
R. R. TRAFFIC STILL TIED UP

Decatur, March 31.-(Special )-Since the storm of Friday this has been the north ern terminal of the Louisville and Nash vile. Trains are now running as far north as Elkmont but it is said it will be several days before the road is open ed to Nashville. No Nashville mail has been received here since Friday. Today the first mail reached here from Chicago, Cincinnati and other points north by Chattanooga. New Decatur is without telegraphic communication still, and the Decatur office is crowded with messages from passengers here.
 Among the prominent passengers were Noel w. Carter, president of the First National bank Chicago. A man and wife with twelve children from southern Miss issippi and bound for Arizona are among the side tracked passengers. The Louis- will and Nashville did all in their power for the accommodation of the passengers.
 Twelve banana trains from New Or leans and billed for Chicago were side tracked here for two days but left last night via Corinth, Miss. Trains started running last night to Nashville by Cor inth
 Tennessee on Rampage.
 The Tennessee river Is on a rampage and much damage is reported.
 Ben Jones' white fisherman, with a wife and seven children, living in a houseboat near Riverton are reported all drowned. Wreckage of the boat has been found but the occupants are undiscovered. A white man named Baber was drowned in Flint creek and his house swept away. Jacob Coach, a negro, was found drowned in a sink hole. Six houses on the Lloyd plantation, on the north side of the river, were swept away. Two houses on the Hurd place were destroyed by light ming. Many other houses were struck by lightning, bui slightly damaged. Much live stock has been drowned.
 All day stories of loss of life and de- struction of property have been com ing in.
 An effort will be made to run passen- ger trains to Nashville tonight, but. Su- perintendent Starks says it is hardly pos sible.
 Government River Locks Damaged.
 The steamer Decatur No. 1 brought news this evening that the government canals, locks and dams and Mussel Shoals in the Tennessee river and rendered prac- tically useless by the flood since last Fridays storm Steamboat transporta- ton Is severely handicapped, if not en- tirely suspended. Locks 6, '. 8 and 9 are so damaged that it will be several months before they will be serviceable. Lock Is the worst damaged; parts of the heavy stone work are removed and the gates wrenched off The 50O-foot steel aqueduct, the only way boats can pass the shoals, is moved a considerable distance off its abutments and is leaking badly. The governm ent railroad at the shoals is de- stroyed Several heavily-laden river steamers are tied up below the locks. ALABAMA RIVER
 HIGH AT SELMA.
 Selma, March 31-(SpeciaL)-Th Ala bama river is higher at Selma today than it has been since the memorable flood of 1886 when thousands of dollars Of prop erty and many lives were lost The gov ernment guage this morning registered 4s9 feet a rise of twenty-four feet hav- ing occurred in the last four days. The river in 1886 went possibly to 60 feet, but even now the water is over the fields on the opposite side of the river from the city and three feet additional rise would make the river nearly mile wide at this point. The government report re- 'ceived today predicted that the waters will not go beyond fifty feet this rise and it seems likely that the prediction will be fulfilled.
 Passengers from Demopolis, Meridian, Akron and Mobile were able to reach Selma today by transferring at the Ca haba river that stream having gone down sufficiently to allow trains to get within | three-quarters of a mile of each other, | and the passengers to walk the ties along | the track. The track between Demopolis | and Cotatopa has not been repaired yet | and Meridian traffic is routed via Akron. |
 Today word reached the city of the | loss from the floods on the Cahaba river by MT. John A. Carson of fifty head of cattle. The Cahaba is said to have risen so fast as to keep farmers from getting much of their stock on high lands and many others besides MT. Carson suffered heavy losses.