The weekly tribune and the Cape County herald. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1914-1918, 1915-06-04
RIVER IS OUT
OF BANKS ABOVE
AND BELOW CITY
Dredge Boat Men Desert
Work and Flee to
the Hills.
"a FEET OF WATER
is EXPECTED HERE
Farm Land at Scheniman Bend
Is Inundated and Rise
Is Rapid.

For the past "a hours the MISSISSIPPI
pi River has risen at the rateNof more
than one inch per hour, and at dark
last night the gauge stood at 80 feet.
The river, while not yet in a dan
gerous stage at this particular point,
has already broken over the banks,
both above and below the city. At
Scheniman bend about, IA miles north
of the Cape, many acres are reported
submerged. Below town a few miles
the water is running over the banks,
and yesterday afternoon the area lying
between the river and the Gulf tracks
in the bottoms, was inundated. Work
on the dredge boats was suspended,
and the men were compelled to move
their camps to Hoeller's Hill, a high
promontory some distance below where
the dredging operations are being car
ried on. All the supplies were removed
from the store houses and placed in
box cars in readiness to be transport
ed to places of safety if the waters
continue to rise. Work on the big
steam dredge which is now being
erected was discontinued yesterday,
and the various parts were hoisted to
platforms where they would not be
damaged by the overflow. None of the
machines between the Government
levee and the river are operating, and
work cannot be resumed until. the wa
ter subsidies. Even the work of repair
ing the damage done by the electric
storm about a week ago will be sus-
pended during the present high stage
of water.
The various water passages under
the Gulf tracks have been closed up in
order to prevent the overflow from go
ing back to the levee, but it is now be-
lieved that unless the impediments are
removed the tracks and dumps will be
washed away and the whole region
submerged.
Reports have been received anounc-
ing that there will be rise to stage
of "a feet, in which case the overflow
will be destructive. South of this city
on both sides of the river. At stage
of So feet the water on this side reach
es the Frisco tracks along the river
front
st. Louis, May 31-An official river
forecast, given out today by the
Weather Bureau, adds another foot to
the mark to which the Mississippi
River is expected to rise by Thursday,
when the crest of the high water at
st. Louis will be reached. The bureau
last Saturday announced that the river
would not rise much higher than 80
feet, but today it was stated the crest
would be at about 81 feet, which will
be a foot higher than flood stage.
A 31-foot stage of the river will
cover the railroad tracks on the levee
and will cause the river to seep into
Easements of some buildings on the
levee Most of the damage, the Wealth
er Bureau stated, would be done to
farms along the river which are not
protected by levees.
North and west Of st. Louis the up
per rivers are gradually falling.
Joplin, Mo-, May 31-Four persons
were drowned in the swollen waters of
Shoal Creek yesterday afternoon when
James J. Scheurich, his wife and four
children attempted to cross the stream
in a rowboat at Grand Falls, three
miles south of Joplin, after having
spent the day visiting with Mr.. Scheu-
rich's father, who lives on the far side
of the creek.
The boat caught on snag and cap
sized. Mrs. Scheurich and three chill
dren, Mabel, 10; Helen, 6, and James,
s, were drowned. The father rescued
his oldest daughter, Marguerite. Res
cuers recovered the body of Mrs.
Spheurich