St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1867-11-22
The st, Thomas Calamity.
OVER SIX HUNDRED LIVES LOST.

st. Thomas correspondence gives adj
ditional particulars OF the effects oil the
terrible hurricane there On the 18th
ut. at II o'clock NJ the barometer fell
and shortly tempest accompanied with
rain Sc: in, with The wind from the north
vast. At two o'clock z. NJ. there was 4
lull of about twenty minutes, when a
storm came on with greater force from
the northeast. Not dwelling house on
the island that has not suffered AMI niany
houses have no roofs The small houses
Of the poor classes were levellei 10 the
ground and there have been buried al
ready over one hundred persons who
were killed on shore A like number
are wounded and MANNED. livery few
minutes the harbor throws up the dea,!
and it Is one continued string OF coffin.
through the streets. Over five hundred
persons were drowned In some cases
not a soul Is living TO relate word as
regards their vessel. The steamer Nye
lost tifty-three souls The steamer
Rhone ut Peters Island, about thirty
miles 10 the windwar'l, where she was
waiting 10 be dispatched for Souilamp-
ton, out of one hundred AMI fifty souls
twentv-one were saved. The Spanish
steamer Camagncy whose heroic Captain
Aguilar saved many lives, lost seven out
of thirty. The American ship Charles
Sprague had but the captain and oae
man saved. In fact hardly q vessel but
can report some of the crew missing.
Men were lifted bodily from Shore and
carried TO waterv grave. Not wharf
nor lighter is left Houses were car
ried one thousand feet in the air The
streets are SIX inches deep with bricks,
, tiles, shutters AMI doors Every tree !:
as ii were uprooted. The English steam
! er Columbian had just arrived with SOO0
packages dry goods and WAS sunk in les.
than three hours after anchorage. Eight
million dollars will not pay the loss.
Merchants suffered heavily from the rain,
As the tops of the stores went Oft. The
lrv dock has not been raised and there i,
now no hope of it as the vessels have
smashed it and have sunk alongside. II
to date $50 persons have been buried Of
those who lost their lives i'll the late hur,
icane. Al the wharves are smashed up.
This awful visitation has inflicted sever,
suiferings upon all the inhabitants OF thi,
island, but the poor especially are in
great misery and want. Nearly every
dwelling has been destroyed and thou,
sands are left without shelter or food.
\ letter from Capt. Joseph NJ VAUGHN
of Portland, giving general account
OF the late fearful calamity at s. Thorn
As, is published in tho Press. The fol-
lowing Is an extract:
~ fortnight ago, right in the very
m;ds; Of the heaviest and most anxious Ot
my work. had an attack of fever that
laid me on my back, ana | was for some
day very sick. | was Obliged 10 leave
mv quarters on board the vessel. AMI took
q residence in very pleasant and billy
spot on the island. Sse how Gods in ,r-
cy was shown TO us in a strikin. manner
One week from the date of my coming
or shore q fearful hurricann d.>nlatol the
island utterly destroyed T. >hips-sunk
ashore or cap>Iz"l. and drowned uycl
800 persons, Our house WIS unro1tc,l.
we We're wet, AMI Mi tn furniture .ic.
stcoveI no one in oar house WAS iniur.
81, though the ciilmnevS. walls. fence.
ami trees Were actually living through
the AZ. Tl.i, hIcaIdlul hurricane CAV,
no warning whatever. but commenced
blowing from the northwest with the ut
most fury and continued Tor twp hours.
Daring tins time the ,Ii>trcs>in. sl,ectar,
OF seven vessels capsiz.l in tn Instant by
whlrlwlnd-. WIS within NV own si.ht.
Nrarl ' every soul of the cr"ws remaining
were c!inging To the bottoms or II til,
>Pars of the sunken ships. \ ,leathIike
calm followed, and prevailed for half a,
hour. during which time several vessel.
put ont boats TO save lives. The pilot
department put ont two beautiful cutters
through Il trightiul ga. AMI hal ALREADY
saved many lives. AMI the Spanish man
of-war had all her boats ont with forty
men ami officers. when the wind shifted
III an instant TO the southeast. in such a
rush and biinhin. storm. that all tllr>,
unfortunate people Were swept away At
once into eternity. All tie ships were
sunk. anl every wharf AMI building on
the waters clgc DESTROYED. til. trees tora
up by the roots. and the suburban resi-
'lenres on the hills blown into = million
tiny fragments and scattered for miles
over the hill--ilcS Such Il dreadful
scene OF ruin no man livln-. | think. has
ever beh'id. This happened on the 10Th,
and all day Yesterday hundreds of corpses
were being taken from the lower harbor =