The Savannah morning news., 1904-08-10
RISING RIVER
THREATENS RICE
25-FooT STAGE AT AUGUSTA
CAUSES APPREHENSION AMONG
SAVANNAH RICE PLANTERS.

River Mt Augusta Reported Mt Stand
still at O'clock Last Night.
Weather Observer Says II VIII
Not Go Over ~ Feet at That Point.
Banks Along the River Can Easily
Withstand 20 Feet and Even 25
with Favorable weather COndi-
transformations Between Here
and AuRusta-FOrces of Men at
Work strengthening Banks.
The rising of the river at Augusta
has created some alarm among the
rice planters along the river, and prep
arations are being made to prevent
any overlooking of the rice fields,
The river at Augusta rose rapidly all
of yesterday, and at o'clock last
night stood at 25 feet inches and was
stationary. The observer in the
Weather Bureau at Augusta says that
the river there will not &C over 81
feet, if it reaches that figure.
The dispatch in the Morning News
yesterday announcing the rising of the
river and the later special message
sent out by the Weather Bureau has
put the rice planters on their guard,
and precautions have already been
made for Strengthening the banks to
resist high waters.
The rice is now in just that condi
ton which renders it most likely to
be injured and should the water over
flow the plantations the effect would
be disastrous. Several rice planters re-
ported that much of the rice was al
ready shot out and that some of it
was turning down.
Ten Days to Reach Here,
Under ordinary conditions the crest
of the high water at Augusta should
reach Savannah in nine or ten days,
making the present high stage due
here one week from Friday. The banks
now can resist twenty feet easily.
Twenty-Five feet is dangerous, and
should this stage be reached, accom-
panied by northeast wind the plan
tations are almost certain to be flood
ed. A northwest wind, blowing even
as high as SO miles an hour, can be
withstood.
The hight of the freshet here will
depend greatly upon the conditions
which exist between the plantations
here and the high water at Augusta.
If the swamps are dry and the creeks
not filled, the stage at Augusta will
be considerably reduced when the wa
ter reaches Savannah. II the SWampS
are full and the creeks running high,
a higher stage would be reached here.
The season of the year favors the
Savannah planters. Places that were
bare during the winter and early
spring are now filed with high grasses
and brush. These distractions will
have a petarding effect on the water,
thus benefting the planters.
IN
The perigee tide, which greatly in
creases the hight of the water, will
have passed before the freshet reaches
Savannah. This is another circum-
stance favoring the planters. The
feeling last night among the planters
seemed to be that the waters here
would not go above the banks, espe-
cially if the wind is not from the
northeast when the waters reach here.
Orders have been given for a force
of men to begin work early this morn
ing packing the banks. This will
greatly strengthen them and will work
against the destroying effects of high
water. Taking everything into consid-
Grafton the feeling seems to be that
with no further rising of the river at
Augusta, and with favorable weather
conditions when the high water
reaches here, no damage will be done.