Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1860-06-15
The Great Tornado.


fishes the following interesting letter de-
scribing the melancholy effects of the late
tornado on the town of Camanche, which
was completely destroyed;
STERLING, H., June 6, 1860.
We returned yesterday from the late
city of Camanche. While there the
sight that met the eye was perfectly hor-
rible to look upon, and no pen is ade-
quate to the task of conveying the most
faint idea of the disastrous effects of the
tornado, as it passed over that place.
Horses and cattle are lying in every
direction, killed from the effects of the
storm. The buildings look as though
they had all been torn in small frag-
meuts, scattered over the whole country,
and feathers from the bed-clothes line the
ground, and then all had been over
swept with rushing waters. We went
into one building where were fifteen
bodies, some mangled in the most fright
full manner, and only wrapped up in a
sheet, and put intoa rough box, ready
for burial. DIR. Howell Of Fulton in
formed us that from Sunday evening to
Monday noon he had visited, nsnety-one
wounded, and set tsOenty-tsres broken
limbs.
We saw taoenty-eight dead bodies, and
there was eighty-two that require strict
medical attendance, and as many more
that are more or less hurt, yet are able
to be around. In addition to this num-
Der twenty-eight were swept from raft
in the river that was passing at the time
and ten are yet missing from the town
that are supposed to be buried in the
ruins, or are blown into The river ant
drowned.
With the exception of half a dozer
houses on the north side of the town
every single building is.either torn down
unroofed, or otherwise damaged. A
worse sight no human eye ever beheld
and the heart grows sick in seeing sucl
destruction of life and property. TIL
town is entirely ruined, and we do nc
see how it can ever be rebuilt. Their
: are whole blocks of lots that are vacan
entirely, with nothing but the cellar t
indicate that house ever stood there
We saw part of a wagon consisting {
: the forward axletree and one hub, an
no more of it could be found. Out {
/. the contents of three dry goods store
t not one cents worth of the goods hav
/ ever been found.
n The tornado struck the town lit
e past seven o'clock, and in less than te
q minutes the whole was in ruins. Aftt
y it had passed, the town was all afoi
e with water. All that could began to ru
: from place to place, screaming at the to
+ of their voices, calling for friends and fl
6 children. In every pile of rubbish, ar
- from every demolished house, the groaI
e of the dying and wounded were hear
: and as the sound came from every pa
of the town, no one knew where to {
first. The darkness occasioned by Il
. black clouds, the air being filed wi
- rubbish of every conceivable characte
:" and the near approach of night, renders
: the scene still more appalling, and such
u wall of lamentation, sorrow and W,
. never went up from any place in Il
history of tornadoes, as did from tt
70 ruined and destroyed city. Nothil
ID could be found to bind up the wounds
u the suffering, no medicines were to
Of got, and the walls of the mother over b
~ dead children, the anguish OF wife ov
sc the lifeless remains of a husband, 1
father over his slaughtered childre
hunting in vain for his wife-all the
:" are scenes that cannot be possibly d.
e,
cribed.
In one family all that was left we
three little girls, the father and moth
and two children having been instant
killed. We saw where fence boa
had been forced clear through the side
a house, end ways, and hundreds
M shingles had forced themselves Gle
10 through the clapboards of house.
a. We visited the grave yard, and s.
:. t,0enty-eight graves side and side, all d.
waiting to receive the rough boxes ct
tanning the remains of the slaughter
people. The whole atmosphere arou
the town is sickening, and stencil
pervading the whole path of the sto
- that is almost impossible to endure.
:. The loss of property is immense, a
:. can never be known TO its full extent.
RS. We have just learned that three
the men on the raft have made their
al pearance. They state that they vi