The Butler Weekly Times Newspaper, June 5, 1889, Page 1

8} Two Hundred Dead i Che Buller vOL. X1. ——— ENGULTED. BETWEEN 8,000 AND LIVES LOST. 1,000 f] The Most Verrible Catastrophe in ; the Pennsylvania America’s Kecords. by Johnstown, Pa., Swept Away Anfual Flood in an Instant. an Only Two Houses ina Place of Ten | Thousand Above the Flood. Bodies Found Floatimg Many Miles Away. Fire Adds Additional Horror to the Awiul Catastrophe. Pittsburg, Pa., May 31.—A sud_) den freshet in the Northfork river, east of Johnstown, Pa., in the Alle- | gheny mountains resulted in an awful catastrophe. This evening, according to a relia- ble courier who arrived at Blair- ville to-night, between 8.000 and 15,000 lives were lost. The reservoir above the town broke about 5 o'clock and the immense yolume of water rushed down to the city, carrying with it death and de- struction. Houses with their occu- pants were swept away and thous- ands of people were drowned. Johnstown at a late hour, but a tele- graph operator on the Pennsylvania road at Sugar Hollow, about twelve miles this side of Johnstown, re- ported that by seven o'clock at least 75 dead bodies had floated past. Up to9 p.m. the latest reliable information received about the Johnstown catastrophe came through Pennsylvania railway officials, who avered that over 200 dead bodies had been counted floating down stream from Johnstown aloue, while along the line many additional lives have been lost. It is asserted that there are but two houses in Johnstown proper en- tirely above the water line. in order to understand the nature of this calamity it is necessary to de- scribe the location of the reservoir at Johnstown. It lies about two and one-half miles northeast of Johns- town and is the site of the old res- ervoir which was one of the feeders of the Pennsylvania canal. It is the property of a number of wealthy gentlemen in Pittsburg, who formed themselves into the corporation the name of which is the South Fork hunting and fishing club. This sheet of water was formerly known as Conemaugh lake. It was from 200 to 300 feet above the level of Johns- town, being in the mountains. It was about three and one-half miles | long and from a mile to a mile and a quarter in width and in some places it was 100 feet in depth. It held more water than any other reservoir, natural or artificial, in the United States. It had been quadrupled in size by artificial means and was held in check by a dam from 700 to 1,000 feet wide, ninety feet in thickness at the base and of the height of 110 feet. The top had a breadth of over twenty feet. Recognizing the menace which the lake was to the region below the - South Fork club had the dam inspec- : There was no communication from | BUTLER, time that sumething in the | tainable at this it is evident nature of a ; cloud burst must have been the cul- ‘mination of the struggle of water against the embankiment. JOHNSTOWN LITERALLY WIPED OUT. Pittsburg, Pa. May 31 Hays, supervisor of the railr. uphed at 10 H. n of by the flood, tele o'clock to-night to Superinteutent | Piteair has heer manfully | Pitcairn as follows: ‘The uc | pullin oat dead bodies at Nineveh. }tion 1s terrible. The dump at | Ina 10-0 ld 75 bodies were tak- | Johnstown is gone betw. the jen out within a half imile of each , bridge and tower. West of Jouns-|other. Of this number only five | {town at some points the tracks are | were men, the rest being women aud ieee carried away ad bed | children. Many beautiful young \6 gone. The river for thrce uarters | girls, refined in feature and hand- jof a mile above the bi is illed |somely dressed were found, and » jwith buildings and dr \ feet high, and is on fire, |furiously, and is entirely | our control. burning beyond I cannot estimate the |amount of damage. I walked | to- night from Johustown | Hollow, four hi over to Sang miles. Jolinstown is terally wiped out.” Superintendent Pitcairn, who is jat New Florence, sixty five miles east of Pittsburg, telegraphs that over one hundred men, women and children passed Sang Hollow cling- ing to debris. Seven were rescued at Sang Hollow, two at Conemaugh Furnace and iwo at New Flor- ence. Only forty-seven of the hun- dred and over passed N ; Florence. The loss of life and property will be terrible. A Times special from Blairsville | station on the Pennsylvania railroad says: ‘John Barton, a freight en- gineer, says that at 2 p. he three men and a woman struggling for their lives in the Conemaugh river just below Johnstown. The Western Union office in Johnstown was swept away at 4 o'clock this afternoon. The water City, where are located the Cambria iron works, is 35 feet deep and rising. AN ADDED HORROR. Pittsburg, Pa., June 1.—It is esti- mated by reliable railroad men and others engaged in the work of taking jout dead bodies that not less than 6,000 people perished in the series of disasters along the Conemaugh river. Of all the fearful occurrences the most terrible-was a fire in which Supervisor Hayes of the Pennsyva- nia railroad estimated that from 1,000 to 2,000 unfortunate beings were burned to death. The sight was so heartrending that the bravest men turned pale and sickened. Over 300 frame houses were jammed to- gether in a heap 40 feet high against the massive viaduct of the Pennsyl- vania railroad at Johnstown. All the houses were wrecked and the majority of females crushed to death before the terrible fire began. Men, women and children,with their limbs pinioned between the timbers, their life-blood slowly ebbing away, beg- ged piteously for relief. tunate woman asked a man on the bank for God's sake to cut her legs off. A man was caught by the arm and pleaded piteously for a knife to sever the member. Others were smashed and squeezed to death be neath the grinding timbers, and some were pressed deep into the water and the flood soon ended their miseries. THE HORRIBLE FIRE. To add to the horror ofthis scene, mm. saw | ed buildings at the bridge and no- bo dy escaped. Flames soon devour- overed | oed forty | in Cambria ! One unfor- | a fire broke out in the mass of wreck- MISSOURI, “The city of Johnstown is annihi- lated,” said Supervisor Hayes. “I have just come from there and there is scarcely one frame honse standing in Cambrie City. said to have Every house is been washed away in and Morrellville. All along the river between the Alleghe- by iv Conemaugh er aud Johustown dead bodies are being picked up. ‘Traimmaster women and young their hair matted mothers with with roots and | leaves are constantly being removed. | The wrecking crew who took out | these bodies are confident that 150! bodies are lying buried in the sand under the debris on these low-lying | bottom lands. Some of the bodies | | were horribly mangled and the fea- | tures twisted and contorted as if they had died in the most excrutia- | ting agony. Others are found lying in stretched out positions with calm | faces. Many x tear was dropped by | the men as they worked away remov- An old lady, with | gray hair, was picked up alive, ‘al- | ing the bodies. |though nearly every bone in her | | : | | body was broken. Judging froin | : | the number of women and children | found in the swamps of Nizeveh, the | female portion of the population suf- | fered most. | | AN EYE WITNESS AT SANG HOLLOW. Mr. O'Connor was at Sang Hollow, a few miles west of Johustown, when the tlood began. He remained there ‘through the xtternoon and night, and states that there was a fatal tree on an island, against which a num- ber of floaters were dashed and in- stantly killed. Their were | jalmost tied ina knot and doubled over the tree by the force of the cur- rent. Mr. O'Connor states that the first man who came down had his brains knocked out against this ob- In fact all those who hit the tree met the same fate and were instantly killed, sinking under the pile of driftwood collected there. | He could give no estimate of the} number lost at this point, but he! makes the figures large. Mr. O’Counor says that he never saw fuch an awful spectacle. The} poor people in the raging flood cried out in terror for aid that.never came. Gladly would the brave men stand- ing there upon the banks have help- ed them out, but this was impossible. More than one brave man risked his life in trying to save those in the flood. Some details of their heroic acts are brought to light. In many instances the floaters displayed re- markable courage and gave their chances of rescue to friends with them. Sons stood back for mothers and were lost, while the parents | were taken out. Many a dear boy went down to a watery grave that a sister or father might be saved. It is believed that the lower part of Johnstown the only buildings standing are the Cambric Iron Co.’s store, the large brick school house and Mr. McDowell’s residence. frame houses have disappeared, and j | bodies struction. WEDNESDAY JUNE At Sang Hollow, |say that seven houses are still stand- | lost, are reported. | | hodaas at the bridge was still burn- jlady and a young girl about 15 Gann Welon years old. Healso helped to res- See” | at 40 feet. The |! ). 1889. a RET Nee a aa a RNR ers can be seen at all points stealthily pic alone their way toward the scenes of the the banks of the Conea oward disaster. Relief uissions are Sang Hollow. Suspicious of their ‘being formed and are moving to-| purpose, several farmers armed | ward the stricken city; but unable to get auy further Hollow themselves S they are than Sang still mid started in pursuit. most horrible realized. The Hung: Lyi 2 up on glee a pedy of om their fears were The wires are down rinns were out plunder. pen the shore r lon The flats bel ow man, upon whose Conemaugh are full of cars with person there were a number of trink- many dead bodies lying under them. nnamed Dun- to get them up. aw ets of jewelry and rings diamond Iu their efforts to secure the two an ean sat on the roof saw his father plunder, the Hungarians and mother di nthe squabble, buring which one of their attic below him. He was powerle number severed the fiinger upon to help them, aud the jx f which were the rings and started on stood there the picture of a run with fearful BUZE: The tion. In another instant 2: revolti of ithe deed so cover sth Vy vy seen covered with blood cling wrough pursuing Lers | a tree, but was soon swept away. who by this e were close at hand, & GROWING HORROR. that they mmediate chase. of Hun; ans showed New Florence Pa., June 1.—Some of the latest reports from Johustown Some pelled to ine of the t were literally aay into river and to their death. gaat incident of even greater moment has just been brought to light. A }an old railroader, flee utes € for their lives. ing, but the chances are that hardly one is there. Upto this writing it | is estimated that 6.000 people were and that Johnstown, Cone- | jmaugh, Movrrelville and the other ; suburban have been | washed from the face of the earth. | had | The region above Johnstown is yet | from Sang Hollow, stepped up toa to be heard from, but in the moun- | | | tains the same scenes of desolation | © d on the platform of the | Curranville, and said: ihe surg 30 o'clock towns Who “Gentlemen, got into a, cht, but being outnumbered were | caped, but four | this evening | walked ; number of men who were congregate. | station at | He had no sooner finished the last word than five burly men with looks of terrible determination written on their faces, way to the scene of the plunder, one with a coil of rope over his shoulder and an- other with a revolver in his hand. In twenty minutes they had overtaken two of their victims, who were then “in the aet of eutting pieces from the ears and fingers from the hands of the bodies of two women. With re- volver leveled at the scoundrels the lender of the posse shouted: Throw up your hands or PY blow your head off.” With blanched faces and trem- bling sthey obeyed the order and ae sae for merey. They were s their pockets were plunder the indig- jnation of the crowd intensified and when the bloody finger of an infant, ‘encircled with two tiny were on their for: searched, and emptied of th gold rings, was found in the leader's pocket a ery went up to inch them. Without a moment's delay ropes were thrown around their necks and they were dangling to the limbs of a tree in the branches of which an hour be- fore were entangled the bodies of a dead father and son. Iwo great enemies—Hood's Sar- saparilla and impure blood. The latter is utterly defeated by the pe- ‘culiar medicine. Children Cry for Pitcher’s Castoria. : : 2 jhed Lashot gun with me half an / J. T. Delosiex, an engineer worked } I = ld 1 i z ae hour ago, I would now be a mur at Sang Hollow allday Friday and | 1 2 $ : a gq | derer, yet with no fear of ever havy- during the night. He left at 9]. eee ers = : : | ».9, {ing to suffer for my cline. Two }o'elock this morning. About 3:30] —§ _ : i miles below here I watched three ‘this morning, he says, the mass of \ men going along the banks stealing the jewels irom the dead wives and ing- The brave men rescued from | the burning buildings about 300 daughters of men who have been gst é people, ali that could be located by their cries. This morning Mr. De- losier pulled the bodies cf four wom en avd one man out of the sand at Sang Hollow. He also found near the same place the body of an old cue Friday afternoon 12 people be- tween the two towns. At Sang Hollow Mr. Delosier counted 85! persons floating by. The last he | saw last night was a father, mother } and three children drowned. They were on a roof, when a mass of driftwood struck them and carried them under. Two forms appeared ‘fora moment clinging to the roof, | when they sank to the bottom. Mr. Delosier thinks that 5,000 ; people were drowned and Killed. He estimates the depth of the water POWDER Absolutely Pure. 38st 09 utaMOd DNINVE, av04% Aue 5 Pros *srepmod a3eydeoyd 10 uinye yy3am 41048 *4803 MOT JO opngys[nUI 043 YIM TORReduOs Uy plos oq 3ouue pue ‘spury CreaTpso O43 yeUs VICTIMS OF INCREDULITY. errs | wr 129 | The calamity of yesterday was as singular as it was fatal. It is now very evident that more lives have been lost because of foclish incredu- lity than from ignorance of the dan- | ~ = = _ ger. For more than a year there have been fears of an accident of just such acharacter. The founda- tions of the dam were considered to | be shaky early last spring and many inereasing leakages were reported from time to time, according to people who lived in Johnstown and other towns on the line of the river. Ample time was giyen to the Johns: | ‘town folks by the railroad officials | and other gentlemen of standing and reputation. In d6zens, yes, hun- dreds of cases, this warning was ut- terly disregarded, and those who BoyuTOUCDe BIO “ssousmI0s[OUM pus ysuel38 Aqund jo yaarvul Y “Sata 19A0u Tapa smuL nothing remains but the stone foun- | dations or a piece of wall. People can estimate the force of | ithe water by remembering that it} ted oncea month by the Pennsylvania | (ed the people, and soon nothing was ! | carried heavy y locomotives a consid- | railroad engineers and their investi- gation showed that nothing less | remains floating somewhere on the than some convulsion of nature could tear the barrier away and loosen the | weapon of death The steady rains of the past forty- eight hours increased the volume of water in all the small mountain streams, which were already swelled fire shot high above the burning | scene along the by the lesser rains ea but from the best he week, stion ok- ‘left but the charred and seattcred water. Supervisor Hayes stood on the bank watching the fire, powerless ‘to render the victims any assistance. | The cries of suffering and pain only | doubled the horror of the great ¢ aster.- Tong after dark the bes ae mass of lumber, lighting up the vast | Hood of rushing waters on all sides. | i erable distance and turned them up- side down, where they are now lyi | on their backs. were derailed aud carried great dis- | tances from the railroad. Every person one meeis along the lroad has horrible tale of | drow ned recovered. The railroad between | Derry and Johnstown a able. r Long trains of cars some bodies indeserib- Everbody is excited and farm- | heeded it early in the day were look- ‘ed upon as cowards and many jeers | | were uttered by lips that are now} | eald among the rank grass beside | the river. i¢ i Wm. DE DEEDS OF VILEST NATURE. MINNEAPOLIS Johustown, Pa., June 2.—As the, 4 When Baby was sick, we gave her Castoria. | When she was a Child, she cried for Castoria, | When she became Miss, she clung to Castoria, | ‘When she had Children, she gave them Castoria ‘ Notice of Final Settlement. Notice is hereby given, that the undersigned | C.F. Pharis, administrator of the estate of ; John Irvin deceased, will make final settle- ment of his accounts with said estate as such | administrator, at the next term of the probate | court of Bates county, Missouri, to be holden | at Butler, in said county, on the 12th day of | soem, 1S89. . F. PHARIS, Xminietrator. NEW BARBER SHOP. , FRED W. DORN has opened up a jnew Barber Shop opposite the post office, North Main Strect. He has new | furniture and everything clean and mod | ern. Special artist in Ladies hair work, | Children kindly treated. All our old | custon.ers and many new ones invited | to call: will be courteously treated. My | house is large fand plenty of room fer jall.! Money to Loan. On good security. We have mon ey to loan at 6 per cent interest and | 5 per cent commission for five years. ie other charges. Borrower can pay all or part at any interest pay- li This your loan \ing time. cost about 7 per cent. 48-tf Jas. K. Baucien --iv. R. DEACON-:- ——DEALER IN—— HARDWARE AND IMPLEMENTS. CUTLERY AND GUNS. AGEN T FOR ERING STEEL BINDERS AND MOWERS. STEEL BINDERS, roads to the lands round about are Eagle Stee! Whee! riay Rakes, Buckeye ‘ opened tales of almost indiser‘bable | horror come to light, aud deeds of the vilest nature Picea in the Force ‘Pumps, ‘BUGGIES WAGONS, AN SARRIAGES, BINDER TWINE, darkness of the uight are reported. BUGGIES, WAGONS, AND ¥ = cx 5 Just as the shadows began to fall | BARB-WIRE Ete. upon the earth last evening a party | of thirteen Hungarians were noticed -- R&R. R. DEACON, Butler, Mo ==