The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1858-05-21

bloomington, on the main line of the Illinois Cen
trail Railroad, several freight cars were upset by the
wind, and thrown from the side switch across the
main track. Two or three houses were also blown
down.
At Peoria junction one car was blown across the
track Three cars on the Peoria and Ouuawka Rail-
road were upset, enc end of the Central Hotel at
the junction. torn out, and six or seven houses lev
! eled At Pamela, four miles above, eight or ten
ears were sent abroad in all directions and the force
OF the wind was such that three cars were carried
distance of mile and half north, with the brakes
down tight. AT this station there were no houses
blown down, but all were more or less moved from
| their foundation.
Friday afternoon at Okaw, fifteen miles above
Mattoon, on the Chicago Branch Road six buildings
| were tumblet down, including a large new store
containing $1,000 worth of goods. The freight de-
pot OF the Illinois Central Company was unroofed
At ProspectCity, Thursday night, sixteen build
lngs were blown down, including a store and
small hotel. A good deal of damage was also done
at Gilman, or the Peoria and 0quawka Road At
AshkIm, ASK sev@ty-three miles below Chicago, six or
eight bpiidinss were completely riddled, and IL is
reported that three or four persons were killed.
M6RE GfI% bREs ff Pserie rg,y Tni1r srd%Y %GRs4 M
One OF the most terrible and terrific storms that,
in all probability ever visited any one locality in the
western country, commenced its ragings in this
city yesterday evening, shortly before six O'clock
At about that hour heavily charged eastern clouds
darkened the horizon densely that it became ne
| cessary to put in use, long before the customary
hours, the gas and other facilities for light. 1t was
not long before the pentup storm burst, in all its
iury, upon the apparently doomed city and its af
| trighted and panic-stricken citizens.
! The rain came down in literal torrents, accom-
| panied with heavy wind, washing away before it
every movable article, such as men, women and
children dry goods boxes, signs, and other MATERIAL
| who and which happened to be upon the streets,
and 1T was with great difficulty that several of our
citizens, OF both sexes, were rescued from nvol
untary precipitation into the lake, in which event
the loss of life would have been calamitous indeed;
human cOud Of tha eli iphf hfnst
| avail toward saving such might have been so
disastrousy and unfortunately imperied.
The only loss of life we have to record known up
to this writing, is that of an infant child of two of
the passengers, husband and wife, drowned from on
board the steamer Obion, to the complete wreck of
which we shall alude to in another portion of this
article. The rain and wind were accompanied by
the severest hail-storm that witnessed, the
hai-stones, without the least exaggeration, being
as large as English walnuts, and the effect of which
was to break ont the panes of glass in nearly every
house, both public and private, in the city. During
the height OF the storm, the falling of signs the
lncessant rafting of fragments of glass, the tumbng
of chimneys, the flying of shingles and the general
| devastation everywhere visible trny awe
striking and terror-inspirng to the very last de-
| gree.
| All over the city women and children were so
| stricken with fear to faint entirely away, and
their screams and groans proceeding from almost
every tenement, grated mournfully on the ear, and
altogether presented wide spread scene of desoa-
tion that atterly beggars an adequate description.
Men, too, were aroused from their post prandial 81
estas only to be met with fallen and falling ruins,
and to- in great measure, lose their physical and
mental manliness in the all prevailing sense of
| fear.
People rushed madly about, aggregated in small
knots In the various houses, abandoned from their
persons all such material would be likely in their
! estimation to invite stroke of lightning, and in
| every way giving themselves up to wild amazement
and an unearthy dread of the surrounding state of
tottering things. The amount of property de-
StrnVp6 bv will NOT in rapti otin
when posted up, sum up less than 100000.
1t is barely possible that may over-estmate in
this respect, but, if So we do it upon tolerabe
liable data for there cannot be less than five hun
dred tenements in various parts of the city most
riousy damaged, and numbers of them entirely de-
molished. Those, added to the steeples blown down
from the churches, not one being left standing in
| the whole city, the very extreme damage done to
the steamers and various other river crafts soiourn-
ing in port, induce to believe that have under
rather than over-estimated the aggregate loss. At
this point we proceed to give the items of the i'm
mense amount of property destroyed. We shall
commence, first, with an account of
| THE TOTAL WRECK STEAMER oBION.
The steamer Obion had just been fired up, prepar-
atOry to her usual passage to Pekin between which
port and this she has piled regularly for years.
She had made almost ready to start when the storm
| came up with such tremendous fury to rend her
| from her moorings, and to send her dashing over
the infurated waves with all her human and physi-
cal freight on to the Tazewell shore. The general
CONSERVATION throughout the city prevented the
centerlng OF attention upon the perilOus position of
the Obon until after the storm had spent its force,
and people began to ascertain whether they were
dead or alive.
At this time, however. the news spread like
blown sand over the city, and hundreds of citi-
rushed to the levee full of Inquiries and bent
on the dissemination of rumors cum grano ueri. 1t
was soon ascertaned that the steamer total
and irrecoverable wreck and that there fifteen
to twenty souls upon her, and the probability was
entertained that most of them were lost, which
happily turned out to be untrue, only the infant
alluded to above was known to be dead.
A large bonfire was built on the lake, because OF
the approaching darkness, and teams sent by
way OF the bridge to the other side of the river to
redeem such of the passengers of the ill-fated
steamer might be vending their weary way
through the morasses and bogs of that unsettled re-
gion to the Peoria side. Captain C. w. thinner
man took charge of the rescue boats, and bravely
went to the scene of danger. His large yawl was
manned by ten good, firm, resolute men, who, to
their credit be it said, did their duty courageously
and noby
They succeeded in rcscuing thirteen persons in the
two trips and thep landed upon the levee
amid the congratuatory shouts of the assembled
people, The steamer was blown entirely to pieces
the hurricane decks and upper cabin being entirely
carried away. Among the persons rescued was an
elderly lady, who seriously injured internally
and it is not expected that she will survive Upon
her reaching this side of the lake she was immed
ately carried on board the Samuel Gaty, which had
just arrived, where she was well cared for. The
lady whose child was lost was also brought over
in a terrible mental agony. The loss on the ObiOI
will not fall short of $1,000.
THE CATASTROPHE TO ALDERMAN BEESEMAN's FAMILY
In the middle of the afternoon before there were
unusual indications of such mighty typhoon, AL
derman Beeseman determined to avail himself o
the fine breeze prevailing at that time to take sal
upon the lake in company with his wife and foul
; children. When the storm came up they had reach
ed the vicinity of Plum Point, situate, believe
! on the opposite shore. They were driven into tn,
bushes, capszed and his wife and children drowned
before assistance could reach them. We are uns
BILE to present further details of this heart-rending
calamity this morning, owing to the lateness of thu
hour Zone o'clock this A. NJ when the sad new
reached this office. We shall print all that relate
to it in our next ISSUE We are most happy to say
5 however, that Mr.. Beeseman saved, having
swan to log and secured himself until help coult
reach him.
D THE DAMAGE TO THE PEORIA HOUSE.
) We are indebted to the kind cvility of Olive
Hail. ESQ.,, the clerk of the Peoria House, for the de
tails of the damage done internally and externall
to that building. On the bluff side of the house al
of the shutters torn off, and every single win
dow broken out, and in addition to this the hallpar
ttion fronting several rooms situated on the west
ern side of the house was blown entirely down, ant
a not a chimney was left standing on the building
s One of our citizens, whose name did not learn
was considerably hurt by the falling bricks fror
one of the chimneys in the gableend Of the house,
n The inmates of the house, particularly the fl
males were most alarmingly terrified; fainting an
sinking into the arms of such as remained unshocB
d ed and comparatively unmoved by the rushin
y desoateness that was taking place all around then
.. They knew not at what moment the violence of tn
). storm might raze the building to the ground, an
e for a time the suspense was agonizing indeed. !
lecturing lady named Miss Belle Hnkley, it
e thought was first seized with terror, and sprea
the alarm others of her sex, who readily caugh
r the Reetng epidemic The house Immediately ac
:, joining the Peoria House was unroofed, togethe
l. with portion of Parmely's livery stable.
5, THE RUIN OF THE CHURCHES-NoT CHURCH sPIRE
STANDING.
y The spire of every church in this city was blow
l. down. that of the Congregational Church blown q
h to Dr. Corolans residence making considerab
p breach in the walls and frightening his family a
n most out of their senses The Methodist and Epi
/ copal Churches were unrOofed the former ben
re totally ruined inside. The steeple of the Cathol
al church, which was one of the most graceful orn
.e ments Of the city, blown off, the general disa