Arizona republican. [volume] (Phoenix, Ariz.) 1890-1930, 1911-07-03

illouilAilllSs 4illp Allt AilZbId
the capacity of which was taxed un-
til its south bank gave away in var
tiOus places. The Cave creek flow at
the other end Of the same mountain
range brought the flood to the Glen
dale country and toward Phoenix
AS in 1891 lower Phoenix was Inun-
dated by a break in the Salt River
Valley canal, but the present break
was at the crossing of the Park road
the northern extension of the east
corporation line, instead of several
miles east of town, and the water
instead of coming down the canal
from the river, ran into it across the
country from the north. where it broke
out of the Arizona canal near the
present seat of operations of the big
eXcavatOr a mile or two west of the
head Of the CrOsscut canal In its
journey toward the Salt River Valley
canal it flowed into and in places
over the Grand canal which, though a
f., large ditch, could not accommodate such
a flood. This water breaking at the
I Park road, ran south, east of the
park until il reached the railroad
tracks which served as a dam, whence
] il turned west and ran into the city
/ submerglng the lower portions of II.
But the surface inflow into the Salt
I river valley canal was so much larger
| than the outflow through the Park
road break. that a large volume OF
water continued down the canal
| through the city until il reached
weak place in the bank on the high
school grounds and there made a
second break. This flood rolled to the
/ southeast crossing Washington street
! between Sixth street and the East End
school and united with the other near
the railroad tracks.
A regular river of water must have
poured from the Arizona near the eX-
/ cavator. 1t went south across the
ranch Of ]. II. Fleming two or three
miles northeast of the Indian school,,
destroying his cantaloupe crop and
giving his orange orchard a plunge
/ bath il did not need. Thereafter the
major part of the water continued
south in a general way across the
1 Grand and down toward the insane
asylum where it turned into the Salt
| River Valley canal 1t was the minor
part of the flood that turned south
west about three miles north of the
city and circled across the Indian
school suburban street car tracks to
| the Osborn school and Central avenue,
meantime overflowing the Little Mar
icopa which heads in the Grand can
al, and bringing another branch of the
| flood down into East Evergreen addi-
tion in Phoenix, north OF the branch
of the Salt River Valley canal known
as the town ditch.
Bright and early yesterday morning
the mayor and city councilmen and
street commissioner as well as Chief
Sullivan of the fire department, set
themselves to the task of controlling
the water as much as possible, giving
their first attention to the break near
the high school building. Street Com
missioner o. III. Christy was out at 6
o'clock and organized a force as
quickly as possible. Men were hard
to get The MeXicans generally de-
pended upon for manual labor mostly
live in the lower part of the city and
had troubles of their own. in protect
ing their families and household goods
and moving out of crumbling shacks.
Nevertheless an active gang was
eventually secured. The planking
of the horse shed at the high school
was appropriated and driven into the
ditch bank as the skeleton of dam
and some three hundred sacks of dirt
and sand were piled against it until
the flood was finally turned back
into the ditch and kept there. In
short time the released water drained
off the nearby streets to the lower
part of town Attention was next
given to other needed matters. but all
dav long the administration had a
strenuous day OF it. Councilman Nc
Elroy and Cisney. whose wards were
partly. under water, devoted them
selves energetically all day to the
work of prevention and repair.
The Sufferers.
A business man said yesterday that
he knew that more than fifty poor
people had been rendered temporarily
homeless by the falling down of their
houses and that measures for their
relief would be undertaken today.
Most of them are Mexicans and some
are known to have made temporary
camps under trees on vacant lots.
The Submerged Section.
The flood that came west along the
railroad tracks from Eastlake park
put several residence properties under
water before it reached the railroad