The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1910-11-16
an INSATIATE RIVER.
HOW THE MISSISSIPPI SOMETIMES
EATS UP REAL ESTATE.

- VI fN~TS
Captain King of Greenville Tells How
the Father OF Waters Swallowed Several
Thousand Dollars Worth of His Property
In One Night.
"No use talking, the Mississippi river 10
tho most contrary thing on earth, re.
marked Captain S. II. kingof Greenville,
Miss. "During the civil war, it will be
remembered, there was n double bend,
much in the shape of tho letter S, OF the
river at Vicksburg. General Grant, yot
know, wanted to change the course Of the
river by cutting a channel through De
Soto peninsula, thus cutting off the upper
bend and causing tho river to flow straight
across below Vicksburg and leaving the
town high and dry. Grant could then
have sent bis gunboats by Vicksburg and
escaped the shelling from the upper bat.
teries of the Confederatcs north OF the
town. He put General McClernand and
several thousand men to work at cutting
this channel across the peninsula in front
of the town, and they worked for some
time, Notwithstanding tho harassment
from tho lower batteries of the enemy.
But the contrary river wouldn't show the
least desire of accepting such an artificial
channel anyway. The plan was finally
abandoned and Grants gunboats had to
mako the run before both the upper n
lower batteries. But in 1876 the Missis
sippi river, Of its own accord, cut its way
across Do Soto peninsula below Vicks
burg, but farther up hal Grants artificial
channel was started. Dc Soto peninsula
Is now Do Soto island, and tho body Of
water in front Of Vicksburg is now known
as Centennial lake, taking the name from
the year that the Centennial was held at
Philadelphia. This Is only one OF munJ
instances showing how the Mississippi re
fuses to submit to the dictation OF oivL
engineers and how it follows its own stub
born course, winding and washing it,
way here and there at its W will.
"By the way, the Mississippi washed
several thousand dollars out Of my pocket
In ono night about Is years ago. At that
time I owned O row of houses which began
almost three blocks away from the river
In Greenville, Miss. One day q govern.
ment engineer said to me, The river will
SOME time wash away its bank here, and
your buildings will tumble in
"Well, I laughed at him. The bank
was rs feet high, and, besides, the river
was quito low. One morning I awoke to
learn that there had been q big cave IN OF
the river bank the night before, and that
a couple of my buildings had been carried
away. 1 joined the crowd of people that
rushed to the river bank to see this de-
struotion, and, I tell you, 1 never ap'
preciated the terrible power OF the Father
of Waters until I witnessed this scene.
While I was standing there talking with
friends another big slice Of land, a block
In width, orumbled away and fell into the
river, carrying with it several more OF my
buildings. You can imagine how I felt,
because I had been drawing an income OF
o., 900 O month in rentals from my build
ings. Now over half Of them were q mass
of debris floating down the river, and my
real estate was only so much dirt in tbs
bottom of the channel.
"As I stood there watching my build
ings and ground slip away into the river
a citizen approached ME and said, Cap
tain, I'll give you $1,000 for the remain
der of your property
"'No, I'll not take less thai $1,000
said I.
1.-THE words had no more than loft m3
tongue when there was another cave IN,
and two moro of my lots and buildings
tumbled into tho greedy river. The citizen
then remarked to mo, Captain, I'll give
you 81, 900 for your property now.
a -f,o@ - ~ tprtntyN fhiC n1,nnnCit1On
which, of course, was q pure speculation,
as no human agency could stop the cave
in. Pretty soon another n of my lots
and Its building went into the river, and
my speculative friend then offered me $500
for the remainder Of my property. By this
time I had concluded to trust to luck and
stand all losses, and I refused to sell at
any price. I now had u lot and one
building left. During the excitement an
old colored woman camo up and sold to
me:
$3.50 heah, cap'n, will ye give me dem
brick what's in dat cellar under yer
house?'
81 told her she could have the brick. ]
had q pilo of new brick In tho cellar unds9
my only remaining house. The old ea+
ored woman gave her husband 20 cents
to hire O team and wagon to haul away
the brick. Now, upon my word Of honor,
what l am now going to say is true.
While the old colored man was gone for q
wagon another cave in occurred, and my
last house and lot, brick and cellar and
all, tumbled into the river. The cave IN
oame so suddenly that the crowd OF people
standing on tho bank had to fee for their
lives. After the excitement had somewhat
subsidized the old colorcd woman exclaimed;
CLAWS O. massyl Dere's my brick IN
de bottom O. dc ribber, an I done los my
quatah.'
"Of course, while the old woman was
out % cents, 1 was out another $1,000.
During this series Of cave ms that day
efforts were being mado to place q long
frame store building IN rollers and move
1t to q place Of safety. But before the
building could be raised 1t began to tut,
and the mcu were compelled to desert 1t.
Soon tho store building slid into the river
and went kerchug to tho bottom OF the
channel, as completely out of sight as II IL
had been the only pebble on the beach,
"In my opinion the Mississippi river Is
all right-when it doesn come my way. !
built q nice residence in Grcenrille several
years ago and had o beautiful flower be-
decked lawn between the house and the
river, which was q block away. That lawn
has long since been swallowed by the Vo'