Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1860-06-15

Somo IOuS, anu SsiiPPau6 oveiy soou60 "
clothing from his body. Another man was
surprised in similar manner, and threw his
arms around young beech tree, holding on
with all his strength, which was considerable
as he was an unusually powerful man. The
whirlwind, however, as quick as thought
unwrenchsd his grasp, as one would snap 9
| pipe stem, hurled him into the air and dashed
him to the ground, and twice and thrice
repeated it, of coune leaving him corpse.
Another man, as established by afidayits oi
respectable citizens of ,Bertram, the first
station east of Cedar Rapids, was caught up
from the town plat, hurled in the air, and
carried high above the timber until he was
out of sight. Cattle, horses and sheep were
also drawn up in the airy mslstrom, whirled
| terriically about, and dashed to the earth
again, with force which reduced them to a
mere i'pulpy mass. The prairies between
Cedar Rapids and De Witt are literally strown
with the carcasses of cattle, and the loss in
stock alone must be immense. There is
scarcely farmer between the two stations, q
distance of forty miles, but has suffered the
loss of either part or the whole of his stock.
Many of the incidents connected with the
tornado at Camanche almost surpass human
belief, and will hardly be credited by those
who have not seen the ruins. A chimney
upon Mr.. Anthony's house, weighing about
two tons, was broken off at its junction with
the roof, lifted into the air, and hurled down
into the front yard, burying itself in the
ground depth of three feet, without breaking
or cracking single brick. An oak tree, on
the river bank, by measurement twenty eight
inches in diameter at the base, was torn out
of the ground and stripped of all its branches,
leaving only the bare trunk, from which the
bark was nearly all peeled off. A light pine
shinsle was driven from the outside through
the clapboards, lath and plaster, and projects
two inches from the inside wall Of dwelling
house. No other known force could have
accomplished this. A common trowel, such
as is used by masons, was driven through a
a pine knot in the side of barn, projecting
full two inches. In one spot was found
large pile of book covers, every leaf from
which was gone, and the covers wrinkled and
twisted into thousand shapes. Leaves were
stripped of their tissue, leaving the fibres
clean and bare as if botanist had neatly
picked it Off Tree trunks were twisted sew
eral times round until they were broken off.
The Millard House, three-story brick
structure, fronting north, was lifted up from
its foundation, and turned completely round,
so that the front door faced the south. 1t
then collapsed, and seemed to fall outwardly,
as if in vacuum, and, strange to relate, out
Of seventeen persons in the house, only two
were killed. One house upon the bank was
lifted from its foundation, and whirled in the
river, crushing, as it fell, and drowning three
persons, the inmates. 'h Fs- 81. o..
Mr. Butcher, of Camanche, says that he
saw the storm coming, and closed his doors
and windows. He then braced himself against
the back door, but the tornado wrenchea it
from it's hinges like plaything, and carried
him upon the door through the house and out
into the garden. He escaped with only slight
injuries. A piano was taken out of house
in the center of the town, and carried some
distance to the river bank, without breakingit.
The effects upon some Of the houses near
Calnanche, which were in the outer edge Of
the tornado, were very curious. Upon some
roofs, the shingles were stripped off in fanci-
ful shapes, bare spot upon one roof exactly
resembling the figure 8. Some roofs were
entirely unshingled, and in some cases every
clapboard was torn off. The sides of some
houses were literally perforated with boards,
splintered timbers and sharp stakes. In some
parts of Carancte, where houses stood
thickly clustered together, there is not
yestise of one left. Another tract of about
forty acres is covered with splinters Of about
two feet in length The lower stories of some
houses were blown out entirely, leaving the
upper story upon the ground. Other buildings
slid from their foundations, and were carried
along for several feet. Chickens, hens and
turkios were stripped of their feathers, and
LETT as bare as if ready for market, and on the
prairies prairie chickens and small birds were
found in the same condition, and in some
cases nothing but the bones left, the flesh
being stripped, from them. 45s s7ss
| sThe ferry.boat which piled between
Camanche and Albany was completely
wrecked. Her engines looked as If some
giant had seized them at top and bottom and
folded them into hard knot, so twisted and
tangled were they. Two Germans who were
riding in buggy just out Of Camanche were
blown completely into the city, ana their team
carried in. another direction. They were
picked up dead. Another man, an entire
stranger in Camanche, was picked up in the
street, with food in his mouth, showing that
he was eating supper at the time of the
Occurrence. His pockets were TILED with
sand and leaves. His whereabouts could not
be ascertained. A child, four years old was
carried through the air some distance, and
! deposited in slough uninjured. -.
The appearance of the storm at Camanche
Lis thus described in the Journal: sEl
+ The day had been very hot and sultry, but
/ about seven o'clock the sky was clear, and
4 gave evidence of . beautiful sunset At seven
o'clock, the tornadoes were seen coming with
the rapidity Of lightning. The sky assumed
! yellowish; brassy aspect, and the air seemed
! dead. The tornadoes themselves resembled
huge balloons at first, about the size Of q
barrel, but gradually increasing and swelling
At one time they rose, and again fell to the
] earth. their black folds undulating and whirl.
4 ing, with swapping. crsckling reports, like q
| yolley, of. musketry, distinctly audible 1t q
4 great distance. The interior Of the airy
4 tunnels was filled with heterogeneous mass
of leaves, branches of trees, tmhers and
stones. which seemed to impart 3 yellowist
4 tinge inside the black outer folds. There va.
j but little time for gazing, however, for, IN ar
tinstant, and with q force inconceivable, thu
4 4 doomed, town was struck full IN the centre
and the AR choked with fragments OF tlmbers
bricks, stones. furniture, and, in many places
\ with human beings, who were hurled about
!, like straws. The afrighted horses and csttl'
I filed the air with their terrible and shril
{ screams; but above all was heard the snappinl
and cracking Of these fearful besoms 0
,..,.t;or.of - $50 b4ilgSe .sak -ssT>i
II ~Ss Ss's = ) Z 1-----s->s>-.A-4- 100
+ EIt is asserted that delegates yfron
Philadelphia to the National Convention
} which hih Il nominated Ben and Everett had thei
/ erpsnses paid BY the Democrat! This j
! easily believed since the, Developments mad
by the Covode Investigation gsaii ID
.eAHr' g 20 s9uefia