Evening star., 1927-04-19
M|LE-WIDE BREAK
IN LEVEE MENACES
ENTIRE RIVER BASIN
Floods Expected to Sweep
st. Francis Valley in Mis-
souri, and Arkansas.
MA!l MISSISSIPPI Dixie
MAY GIVE WAY NEXT
21 Towns in Path Of 0nrushing
Waters-Southwest Fighting
to Hold Expected Rise.
pr the Associated Press.

by the Associated Press.
MEMPHIS, April 19.--The entire
st. Francis River basin of southeast
Missouri and northeast Arkansas ap'
peared doomed to inundation when the
st. Johns Bayou wee, eight miles
north of New Madrid, Mo, broke
under the pressure of floods early
today.
The breach in the St. Johns Bayou
levee was reported a mile wide.
This would permit the overflow
from the Mississippi River at the
Dorena Crevasse farther north to
sweep toward Big Lake. The rush
ing waters would sweep down into
the Little River Valley and through
that basin into the st. Francis below.
Main Levee May Go.
The main Mississippi River levee
Just below New Madrid still held to-
day. but river men were dubious of its
standing through the day.
The st. Johns Bayou defense had
prevented the overflow from entering
the st. Francis basis as well as pro-
tecting New Madrid itself. The basin
had been for weeks swollen By floods
which have inundated lowlands over a
wide expanse and threatened local de-
fenses of many towns.
Disaster was expected today to over
take many towns which have been
fighting to hold their dikes against the
prevailing high waters. Towns in the
path Of the down-rushing overflow in
clude
Lake City. Truman, Herman, Tulot,
Marked Tree. Tyronza. Lepanto, Deck
erviIle, Crilmore{ Frenchmans Bayou.
Joiner, Wilson, Osceola. Marion, Har-
ward, Parl1in, Earl, Brickley. Nettle-
ton. Forest City and Mariana.
Marion. susceptible TO the new st.
Francis food, is but Is miles east Of
Memphis.
10000 Already Homeless.
Approximately ten thousand per.
sons were already reported homeless
and refuging before today's new
menace became actualitys One high
point in the valley is at Forest City,
where hill rises sharply from the
plains. Two thousand refugees had
gathered there yesterday.
The Arkansas River at Little Rock
today stood at 312 feet. or IL feet
above Saturdays crest prediction. and
two tenths foot above last night s
predictions. The Weather Bureau Of
fee said the crest apparently had been
reached temporarily, but made no pre-
diction as to later in the week.
Reports from Fort Smith early to-
day said the Arkansas River there
was stationary at 35.3 feet.
South of New Madrid and in the
path of the flood lies one of the rich
est black landp areas in the world
and one which is lacking any major
n
Such small streams as there are flow
away from the Mississippi River, TO
which there is no access until the
st. Francis joins the Big River l.
miles north of Helena.
Thousands of Acres in Path.
The fertile bottoms Of Mississippi
County are threatened by the Dorena
and New Madrid overflow, and Blythe
Vile to the east may suffer. The first
natural drainage would be into Big
Lake and Little River. Waters of
Big Lake are carried by the Little
River over wandering route to the
St Francis at Marked Tree A huge
drainage ditch delivers Big Lake
water more directly to the st. Fran
els at the lock and dam just north
OF Marked Tree.
Truman, Tulot and communities
northward from Marked Tree toward
Lake City on the St. Francis will feel
the new flood by backwater from the
st. Francis, whose normal movement
southwark will be retarded by the full
ness Of the lower basin.
Mayor III. j. Fitzius of Lake CITY
told the Associated Press at Memphis
by telephone today that the break
above New Madrid would flood thou
sands of acres in the 75-mile stretch
between the point where the leves
broke and where the water will flow
into the st. Francis River. Two towns
Caraway and Black Oak, Ark, eacl
with populations Of 700, are endan
gered, he said.
Towns to Prepare.
Backwater covering the 30-nile aret
between Lake City and Little Rivei
already flooded would advance or
Lake City, where two or three inchei
OF water already are standing, he said
Mayor @. II. Williams OF Marked
Tree, Ark, said today that a gian
floodway carrying waters from Bil
Lake, Ark, to the Government loci
and dam above Marked Tree, Ark
and natural ridge extending from
New Madrid west to Sikeston, Mo
viii enable towns in the lower distric
TO prepare for the flood waters.
he said the lock and dam could holt
IL inches more of water, and tina
breaks in drainage leyees near Tru
man and Marked Tree had spread ou
the water, lowering the stage.
Fear Is Widespread.
The cruising power Of the Missis
eippi River, riding higher against tn
great dikes which partially confin
it to its course today, caused appre
lonsion from Illinois TO the Gulf o
Mexico.
Millions of acres of land have bee
inundated. according to estimates, du
TO the backwaters, breaks and over
flowed tributaries, while thousand
have been driven from their homes.
A score or more have already die
in the flood waters. The damage I
property has not been estimated
New breaks in tributary levees wer
reported last night while waters cor
tinued to mount to unrecorded heights
A break in the wall of the Arkansa
River near Keats Crossing was ii
undating a vast area for so mile
around today. The break occurred lat
yesterday. English. Altheimer an
Keo. Ark. are in the path of this
break.
Arkansas Hardest Hit.
Arkansas is believed TO be sufferin
more extensively from the flood tha
ony other one State, due to overflow
tributaries of the Mississippi Wes
ern Arkansas was gradually fightin