The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1916-07-19

About twenty persons reported miss
ing Sunday night were found yester-
day clinging to trees on the Wander
bilt grounds.
Rescued From Trees.
When the Swannanoa River left its
banks. In the country, John Lipe;
Mabel Foister and Charlotte and
Louise Walker attempted to escape,
but were caught and carried half
mile before catching a tree. Lpe,
the Walker sisters. Miss Foister and
Kathleen Lipe chung for hours. Char
lotte Walker became exhausted first
and releasing her hold. was carried
downstream. Louise was the next
to go. AS soon as the dawn came, a
number of volunteers attempted to
swim to the tree. William Cooper.
Y. M. c. A. student after wrapping
rope about himself, swan to within
a few feet of the tree, Miss Foister
let go the tree in an effort to reach
him, but sank almost instantly. Cooper
was carried downstream but was
rescued several hours later from
tree-top. Finally Robert Bell sue
ceeded, Tearing his bathing suit
into strips, he made a rope and af-
ter an hours work, securely tied
Kathleen Lipe to the tree, with her
head but few inches above the
water large boat reached the tree
late In the afternoon and she was
taken ashore. She will recover. Three
hundred families in Biltmore were
left WITHOUT shelter. They are being
w. Vanderbilt. Hospitals are suf-
fering greatly from lack of milk and
light.
Damage Along the Catawba.
Charlotte. N. c., July 1S.-The wa
ters of the Catawba are falling fast
today Railroad, telegraph, telephone
and power companies are gathering
all available forces for making tenn
porary repairs at the earliest moment.
The electric power that was cut off
from this city last night is working
today. 1t will be weeks before rail-
road trains will be making schedules
in Piedmont and western North Caro-
lima, and hundreds of thousands of
cotton spindles Will be idle for
months.
Weeks from now reports will be
coming In as to property damage along
the Catawba. Hickory and Lenoir,
near the headwaters. have not yet
been communicated with. Reports
available from the Yadkin River
country bring untold damage and
losses. Railroads reaching into the
mountains Of Ashe. Watauga. Allie
ghany and Wilkes Counties will re-
quire almost complete rebuilding.
Some reports state that in some places
rivers have completely changed their
courses
Thirty-two feet was the highest
mark ever reached on the Yadkin
! River. This was In Septcnlber 1898.
| Reports state that this river was nine
| feet higher than the highest ever
reached This Will give an Idea OF
| the volume of water that came down
the mountains. sweeping property be-
fore it.
| Limitations at Knoxville.
| Knoxville, Tenn. July 18.-Stand-
| ing at fraction over thirty feet this
morning. the highest tide since 1902.
the Tennessee River, swollen by food
waters from the Appalachian noun
tain sections, was reported Mt its max
/ imum stage, and a recession was ex-
/ peCted to commence later in the day.
! Railroad sidings fringing the river
have been inundated and box cars are
standing hair submerged in water.
while the tide has risen 10 the second
| stories of many warehouses on the
waters edge. Many families occupy
ling lower stories of river-front houses
! have moved their effects TO higher
ground in South Knoxville. across the
river, from the city; many mills and
plants along the river are partially
under water and two street car lines
in low-lying adjacent sections have
been forced to discontinue, due to high
water
Reports from Dandridge, which was
the scene Of heavy damage Monday.
are that the French Broad River there