River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1902-07-24
RUIN BY HIGH WATER
Floods in Mississippi Valley Are
Very Costly.

The Damage, 1t Is Said, VIII Ex-
coed $4,000, 0OO.-Farmers of Hi
nois, Iowa and Missouri
Suffer severely.
Keokuk, Ia, July 21.-Exploration OF
the flooded districts of the Mississippi
river from Keokuk south, show con
ditions beyond the appreciation OF
realization of any but people OF long
experience with the father of waters
in its most destructive mood. The SIT
uation is growing worse hourly and
a great confagration in great city
could not be more rapidly destructive
| of values than the antithesis hun
dred miles below keokuk. There is
absolutely not the slightest chance
| OF stopping this dozen times most
| costly flood in the history of the great
river above st. Louis. The correspond
ent went all over the worst damaged
area Sunday in the steamer Silver Cres-
| cent and found everywhere the great
| est crop ever known under water deep
| enough to float a steamboat. People
| at the river cities give an immense
mass of details, all to be generated
IN losses aggregating many millions OF
| dollars; hundreds of farmers, rich ten
| days ago, penniIess and homeless
| hundreds watching and praying that
the great levees may hold, which are
! now their bulwark against additional
millions of loss and many cases OF
penury.
Loss Will Exceed $6,OOO,OOO
Careful estimates of the territory
covered and generalization OF the
| statements of best Informed peo-
| time is about $6,O00,000, with ev-
cry prospect of $2,000,000 or 3d.
100000 additional by the rise above
not yet reaching the lower stretches
of the river. Most of this loss is on
| the Missouri side of the river, be-
tween Keokuk and Hannibal.
Saved by the Levee.
Alexandria was protected to the last
by the Egyptian levee, the breaking
| Of which would send four feet of wa
ter all over the town. Gregory is sub
merged, except the white church in
which service was held Sunday, the
praying congregation from the coun-
| try reaching the house of God by the
railroad track, which is still above the
| flood in waste of water miles wide.
| Other towns and cities on the islands
are beyond the danger line. Immense
fields are seen in great lake with
| the shore visible only with a glass,
where the high bluffs bound the bot
toms. Islands dotting the river at it's
normal stage have disappeared eX-
cept for the tops of trees or fringe of
high shore willows slightly protruding
like circular green coral reef. Occa-
sionally a house on piles or stills is
seen, but generally only roofs pro-
trude to mark the center of farms of
corn.
River still Rising.
The river is rising all the time, six
inches during the day in the immense
area of 200 square miles, and the
worst to come by the extension of
the flooded area by the water passing
flood thus far is on the Missouri side
from Keokuk to Louisiana, with Can
ton and West Quincy as centers of the
country hurt worse. On the Illinois
side are three continuous levees for 40
miles from Warsaw to Quincy above
| the water, and are thus far safe, but
farmers are afraid of crevasse from
muskrat holes and every rod of the
redoubt is watched day and night. The
breaking of these levees would food
175 square miles in Illinois and destroy
100000 to $4,000, 900 worth of corn.
The levees below Quincy are in the
same situation, except that they are
lower and less firm.
On the Missouri Side.
Opposite Quincy, in Missouri, is still
another center of special devastation
which is appalling, North 10 miles
to La Grange and south to Holton
large prairies are well under water,
reaching from the Illinois bluffs to the
Missouri bluffs, at least ten miles.
Levees hastily thrown around farms
disappeared in a fierce current rushing
from above through the draw of the
Burlington bridge, carrying every
thing before it, Lone Tree prairie, ten
miles square, is deserted, the popula-
ton having flown to Quincy and the
bluffs on the Missouri side, from which
they watch the complete destruction.
Fabius river, Is miles above Hannibal,
is high and furnishing route for the
lTs
levee, as the Fox river does 40 miles
up the Mississippi. This flanking move
ment makes even the highest Miss ouri
levees ineffective Around La Motto,
Silverton, Busch Station, Clemens,
Ashburn, north of Hannibal, there is
more wheat than at other places, and
all in the shock is mostly washed
away. The chief crop there is corn,
however, and there is the same ruin as
at other places.
Rough Weather on the Lake.
Milwaukee, July 21-F. q p. NJ.
steamer No. 1, with 100 passengers
aboard, was compelled to return to
Milwaukee by a storm which caused a
panic on the vessel.
Badly Injured.
Denver Col, July PIP. j. Enright,
delegate to the Hibernian convention
from Syracuse, n. Y, attempted to
lower himself from d second+story
window in the Toltec building with a
cord, which broke. and he fell to the
alley below, breaking his right leg.
He was taken to ST. Joseph's hospital.
1t was feared that Mr. Enright had
sustained internal injuries, but the