Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 34, Number 87, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 1 July 1902 — A Disastrous Deluge [ARTICLE]

A Disastrous Deluge

And A Dreary, Doleful, Distressing Drizzle. Rainfall Friday and Friday night 1.90 inches. Rainfall Saturday and Saturday .night 1.85 inches. Rainfall Sunday and Sunda'y night, 1.07 inches. Total for whole period 5.45 inches. Practically 5| inches. The above figures tell the story of the biggest and mos‘, disastrous single storm that has visited Jasper county for years. And perhaps in the magnitude of damage done, the worst we ever had. The amount of its damage there is no way of estimating. It is not in the way of bridges swept away, bouses flooded or any such similar incidents. Of them there are none or practically none in this region. It is in the widespread destruction of crop prospects that it has worked incalculable injury. Thousands of acres of corn which otherwise promised a fair crop are now totally ruined. It is probable also that the rye and wheat crop, now almost ready to harvest, will be lost, through the impossibility of cutting it, and it certainly will if the wet weather continues. And much of the rye, especially is now flat on the ground.

Oats, which before these last rains promised the largest crop in the history of the county, are in many fields already ruined by being submerged. All others are in great danger, from excessive growth of straw, and this, combined with the softened condition of the ground at their roots, will cause them to fall to the ground and rot. Hay, by thousands of acres, in the lower lands in already overflowed and ruined. On higher land it will still be a good crop, if the rains stop and give an opportunity to save it. Alf Donnelly’s 30 acre onion field is a foot under water. If the water runs off soon, and hot weather does not follow, he will still have some onions. Hot weather now would finish them, and corn and oats too, for that matter In the meantime, Alf will get a boat or rubber boots and harvest his onion field for carp fish. He has already captured a two pounder there, which he found standing on its head and rooting up onions.

The river here is said to be higher than for 10 years, except when temporarily backed up by ice gorges. Large portions of the east and northeast parts of town are under water. Many families have to wade to get out, and in some cases through water 18 inches or more in depth. Garden and potatoes patches are deep under water. Around the cattle pens east of the depot, water is more than two feet deep. Some houses out in that direction are wholly surrounded, that of Mr. Phebus, northeast of the cattle pens has no communication with land except by rafts. At the corner of Elm and Franklin streets the overflow of Makemself ditch has flooded the ground around •Wm, Stevenson’s and Wm, Fry’s houses. In the west part of town also there is some dampness apparent. Thus Dr. Washburn’s cornfield, west of his house, is now a fine place for yatch racing. The creek just west of the cemetery has also turned large pasture fields into lakes. The sidewalk to the cemetery west of Dr. Washburn’s is being used for pleasure rafts, by the boys. Carpenter's creek and the Big Slough are of course very high.

The latter, especially, is now a great inland sea. Whole farms are submerged by it. Thus Joe Adams alone is said to have fully 150 acres deep under Water. Farmers everywhere say they never saw so much water on top of the land, at this time of year, since they can remember. And tiled and ditched land is not much better off than that which is undrained, as the amount of water is in most places far in excess of the capacity of the ditches and tiles to carry it away. ;

Town people who tried to drive to the McCoy ranch in Jordan Tp., Sunday, were unable to reach there. In many places water is three or four feet deep on the pikes, and at Walter Porter’s place bridge is out, making the road entirely impassible. Everett Halstead, of Newton Tp., knows all about this bridge being gone, for he got in there with his team Sunday, and the horses came mighty near drowning, and Everett had no very great margin to go on, himself. His buggy was in so deep that only the top showed above the water. A young man from Goodland driving to Rensselaer to see his best, Saturday night, got his buggy turned over, and reached Rensselaer in the similitude of a drownded rat. He had to wake up a storekeeper and buy a new suit of clothes before he could pay his respects to his girl. The rain was general, in its scope, extending from the Hockeys to the Alleghanies, and in many places was lots worse than here. The weather bureau does not hold out any prospects for a let-up in the rain either. From Newland comes the news that onions in the Gifford district are a foot under water, and oats it is feared are also about ruined.