Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-06-08
MISSISSIPPI RISING
People Imperiled by En-
croaching Waters.
RESCUERS AT WORK
ALL RECORDS BROKEN BY RAPID
RISE OF RIVER.
Communication With Towns Near St.
Louis Broken and Great Anxiety
Felt for Safety of People.

ST. LOUIS, June s.-The entire group Of
east side cities. lying just north OF East
St Louis and including Venice, Madison.
West Madison. Newport. Brooklyn and
Granite City, are under from ten to eigh-
teen feet of water which is still rising,
and deaths from drowning are variously
estimated at from fifteen to twenty.
Very little confrmatory of the reports of
drownings can be had. as these places are
all cut off from railroad service and tele-
phone communication is uncertain at best.
The weather bureau promises relief after
the river shall have risen to about thirty
eight feet. 1t is now within five inches of
that mark, but rising slowly.
Eight thousand persons have been driven
from their homes.
Dummy trains of the Terminal Associa-
ton connecting with skiffs commenced
this morning the work of bringing across
the river more than 700 persons who spent
Sunday afternoon and night on the tops OF
houses and at other points of elevation
above the flood in Madison. Venice and
Newport. Four drownings we're reported
by the refugees, nut none knew the names
of the victims. One said that father,
mother and child had been drowned while
trying to reach point of safety, and an
other told of the death of man under like
circumstances.
Business Suspended.
In East ST Louis on proclamation OF
Mayor Cook, business is suspended the
looms are closed, and everybody is at work
on the levees. in desperate effort to save
the city. which is from to four feet be-
low the level of the water that presses up
against the embankments. A hastily con-
structed levee of sand bags and mud is all
that stands between the city and almost
complete submersiOn. If the levee gives
way all the main part of the city will be
quickly flooded, and not street in the
business section will be left out of water.
The Relay station is now surroupded by
water. Train service in every direction is
laid out by the high water and freight
business is being done at all in the east
side Two roads. the Missouri Pacific and
Frisco are the only ones running trains
between here and Kansas City. Passenger
traffic and the most urgent freight busi-
ness is all that the railroads will handle
west. 1t is too early accurately to estimate
the damage, which, however. will run into
the millions, and the loss due to the inter
ference with business
ST. LOUIS. June S.-An the whistles in
Madison were blown early today to arouse
citizens for rescue work soon as the
fact became known that colony of per-
sons were at the mercy of the flood. ].
r. Elder. superintendent of the American
car and foundry works, said at o'clock
that he personally saw nine men plunged
into the water.
Just where these men are situated cannot
be definitely learned, as reports received
in St Louis vary. Some reports say they
are imprisoned a crumbling levee and
others are that they imprisoned in a
tottering building at the car works, whence
they had fled from the breaking levee.
Every effort is being put forth to rescue
them.
Madison is about four miles north Of st.
Louis. The steam yacht Annie Russell can
not breast the current. and after trying
for an hour she put back into port and
the harbor boat Mark Twain will attempt
10 go to the rescue. At a. m. the river
had reached stage of 37.4 feet. and was
still rising.
All Records Broken.
According to the local weather bureau
relief seems in sight for the flooded dis
tricts in the vicinity of st. Louis. This
morning the stage recorded by the gov
ernment gauge is 37.5 feet. a rise during
the past twenty-four hours of 1.3 feet This
breaks all records since 1874
1t is expected that the river will rise
very slowly from now on until tonight or
tomorrow morning, and that the predicted
state of IS feet, IL at all. will be barely
attained. Then, after remaining station
airy for a short time. the government Off
cials say, the river will begin falling Tues
day evening or Wednesday. Unofficial re-
ports from St Charles. on the Missouri
river, to the north of St. Louis, are to the
effect that the river is rising very little
II any.
Inability to secure communication with
Madison and Granite City H., lying a few
miles north of St. Louis. where a num-
her OF people We're late last night renorted
In danger Of losing their lives irom the
encrtaching food, caused great anxiety
here: From Ferdinand Cole, president of
the board of levee commissioners of Madi-
son county, living at Venice, comes a re-
port of lives lost through the collapse of
brick hotel at North Venice or New
port.
Men Swan the Flood.
The men are said to have braved the
Hood by swimming from Venice 10 Madi-
son, being forced by water from the roof
OF the house they were living in Six
feet of water is reported sweeping through
the offices Of Hedges Hotel Madison. with
guests imprisoned in the upper stories
Residents of Granite City are I'm great
peril from several breaks in the levees pro-
tecung that manufacturing town Per
sons living about the manufacturing plants
In which they are employed are renortaJ
fleeing from the food that comes iron, The
north and fresh break In the abutment
To the west. Adjacent farmlands are he
ing Hooded and the residents of the low
lands are seeking safety with those of the
city e
Railroads Tied Up.
The Vandalia was the only line which
started train to the east today, but this
was two hours late leaving Union station
and there il no assurance that It will make
anything like schedule time even If 1t sue
ceeded in getting through East st. Louis
The Wabash, the Chicago Burlington and
Quincy, the Big Four. the Louisville and
Nashville. the Chicago and Alton and the
Toledo, st. Louis and Kansas City roads
are suffering heavily All trains on the
Glover Leaf have been annulled
The Big Four and Chicago and Alton are
carrying passengers to Alton by boat
where connection is made for northern ana
eastern points
The Burlington will not accept passenger
business south of Alton. and the Wabash
Is completely checked on the outskirts or
East St. Louis
Information is not available as to the St
Louis Valley road. as all wires along that
line are down. None of the trains can be
operated between St Louis and Cairo The
Illinois Central ran the only Chicago train