The Weekly Kansas chief. [volume] (Troy, Kan.) 1872-1918, 1873-05-29
FEARFUL TORNADoEs.
-, >, -,,sp AND RAIN STORM IN IOWA.

w.su,xaroN. Nav ga terrific whirlwind,
recommended with hail and rain. passed over tins
.nur,r .icut six miles n.rth Of Washington yes
t.rilav aftrruecn. u came from tie southwest,
and passed ont Of the county little snntn OF IA
ton The Tornad0 was about one-haif mile III
width. and tore in fragments everything that lay
in i,s course; heuses. barns, fences, cattle ana
human beings wero caught up ana whi,'e1
through the air like mere toys, and then dasheo
to the gronnd with snch. violence As 70 p,"u"co
we're torn 10 fragments and scattered for miles
sr,,p,d. the fields are dotted with large timbers
driven into the ground mt an angle OF ninety do-
gr.es and cattle were actually driven head fore
most into the ground. Ion can ssares.s rn.,o
Already we have heard of thirteen farm houses
and manv barns that were literally torn Z" pieces,
and many Others badly damaged. school was
in session at q schrolhOuse six miles north; the
t,rnado tore the building to pieces and carried
fnnrtreu-year old daughter of Henry Rotheli
about quarter Of mile from the schoolhonse,
and when found she was mashed to q jelley. MISS
Smith, the teacher, and six or eight scholar. were
hurt, some badly. The wife Of Henry Walters
was killed: a Miss Gardener and = son of Mr.
Gleason lie at the point of death. Jacob Soil was
seriously hurt, and a Mr.. Baker was badly hurt
II; the hack Several of the family of j. G. Camp
bell of West Keola were wounded; Mrs McCarey
was severely hurt. gentleman who was near
the tornado says it was balloon shaped, with the
small end to the ground, and moved ut the rate
of 2S miles an hour. 1t commenced its fearful work
near Keols, where 10 demolished several honses
We next heard If il about six miles northwest of
here, where it destroyed two or three houses, and
as it passed OH northeast it scattered to the four
winds the fine residences and the barns of Alex
Gibson l. A. Babcnck and J. C. Calling. and also
lev-led to ihe ground the dwellings of ID. Cane.
J. II. Wallins. Mr.. Carrington. Mr.; Kerr; and
MANY persons lives were saved by hastily get
ting i'm their cellars Sad havoc was made with
all kiuds of stock. A description by an eye wit
ness says it was almost miracle that anything in
its track could escape alive; he sa,s he could see
large pieces of timber hurled seemingly from the
clonds as though shot from cannon. Hail fell
that measured nine inches in diameter; some
were brought to this city, and fur honrs after
wards they were as large n hens egg. The
roaring of the tornado fearful, and conld have
been heard easily ten miles, AT this place, seven
miles away. it was perfectly appalling. snrpass-
ing in terror anything ever heard. except the
roar and din of terrific hattie. A Telegram from
Metala, last light, slys that five persons were
killed about three miles from that place; one
child was torn {" pieces. Reports are from only
few points on the line of.the terrible destroyer.
81 that WE cannot estimate the aniDuut ut dam
age but it must be many thousands of dollars,
Many more lives probably were lost than those
reported and M estimate can be made of the
stock killed. Nothing terrible and violent
has ever before b-fallen this county, and we can
only contemplate its desOlation with agreat Won
der that so many escaped alive.