The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1874-07-30

Gred rect, aud dwelling mousse on WHhlnS
avenue, near by, turned topsey:turveyii
though its inmates, the family Of, John Gra-i
ham. were given. time. to ma he their escape,
though saving pothing beyond their lives.
|, !, james Flanagan, q brother of Mrs. FOr+
den, when be saw fhe coming torrent, made
an attempt to save his sisfer, but he received
| 4. blow on the head which sent him heads
long into the flood, and 10 this mad coursing
dred feet, finally grasping friendly treeand
climbing out. ri i 80 ..,frfg ...s
Among the houses struck by the water was
l,aanlall frame, occupied by the billions and
ltheir little family and some neighboTs' chill;
dren, 10 the number of nine souls Away
sped this little ark, bufated severely by the
massesof timber and mbliDg stones. One
entire side is battered out, and the water
stands deep in the ruins. Most wonderful to
relate none of.the inmates Of the diminutive
house were drowned! A Epr0videntially
placed stump anchored the, floating domiciE
and alL escaped. g,,s,,l,tl.s : ;,t.',.,,-
"A Presbyterian church was saved by in
tervening buildings, though 1t was moved,
tsix feet from its foundation, The clock on
its spre stopped at $50, thus indicating the
hour, of the food. ~! .gl =. ',@.: 100
t.. A. plumber Of. bodies were found washed
up on the streets. - i,..s...' ~ a..t..,i.-
l. 'Ah elderly woman lying sick in bed O.
short distance out the avenue was swept
faway, and nothing since has been seen Of
her body - 81 ;i-s-, - ,,gi..,,-
The ef1uYia that arose from the debris
Yesterday afternoon was; fearful. The dead
animal matter fast going to decay, which, it
is feared, will cause in addition to the terri
ble calamity, sickness OF serious character
in the vicinity.
THE SCENE AT THE sCHooL-HoUsE
in the Thirty.ffth ward was, perhaps, the
saddest of all. Four victims Of the cataStro-
phe Fey, here tn their last, long sleep. Near
the door, covered with sheet, as were all
the rest, lay the body Of a, stfongly-built
man, who evidently struggled hard before he
yielded to the grim destroyer. His, name
was Thomas Britton. At the other end Of
the room, with his face sadly disfgured by
the timbers and stones which had struck him.
Law his son, a youth about u or IA years Of
age, named Willie Britton. BY his (Willie's)
side was the body Of o little girl with
| long, golden hair, looking. as calmly
beautiful as if. she bad but just fallen asleep.
Her name was Maggie Hunter, and her father
and mother and three brothers are Still miss
Ing. and are doubtless also drowned. Nearer
the door lay the body of Mrs: Thrap. Her
husband and four children are still missing.
Mayer as long as life lasts shall we forget the
little school. house of the Thirty-ifth ward.
The crowds Of sad. anxious faces that passed
in and out of the building, casting look Of
sorrow, on the unconscious faces, Of those
silent dead, while just within bearing the
stream: now but small, went quickly past.
About one hundred yards, from the school,
house stands the Welch House, and here
TWO MORE BODIES ~
were recovered. They were those of a man
| named Joseph Conner and his housekeeper,
Mrs. Betsy Dill. Said a gentleman to our
reporter: !. Poor Connor; I saw him satuT-
day evening; be told me he had been work
ing al, week in, his house fixing It up, and
he didn't think he should bother with any
thing any more-and now there isn't stone
of il to be seen, aud there chejs. We found
them last night: she had fast hold OF. bis
arm. and bis shirt wasatorn where she had
clutcbed it; she held to bin tightly, for they
were both lying side by side, dead. :
The first parties who appeared on Centre
street with skiff discovered man hanging
on to The roof of a house, on the right. hand
side owards and near Spring Garden ave-
nue.. At that time the water on the street
was some fifteen feet high. They took the
Skiff under the place where he was hanging
and told him to drop, the height being but
small. as the skiR was nearly on level WITH
the second.story windows. Theiman jumped
and was saved. He then told the man III
the skiff that bis family were back IN the
house, consisting of wife and three or four
children. He bad got on the roof and
jumped from that on to another roof, and
when be reached Centre street the house
was destroyed, and with it were lost
mother with three or four children, and the
children of another family, making in all one
woman and nine children. Strange as it may
appear, no one knew who they were.
= -.t TOUCHING SCENE. ..' ~ Z
Going I'D Chestnut street during the after.
noon one of our reporters witnessed sad
and sorroWing scene. 1t was merely little
how. but he was all that was left Of family
of six. persons. Around him were gathered
9 large number of sympathizing German
women. The lad, upon inquiry, stated that
his name was George Hoover; was seven,
wears old, He and bis parents and two bro.
theirs and sister lived in ahouse at the head
of the street, The food came Ia It's mad Ca
reer. and without moments warning took
their home. His family perished., He was
in he'd. and 1oated into the house OF q MI.
|, Walther. where he was rescued. IL The. 10y
was apparentlya bright chap, and he real
ICED bis homeless and friendless position lin
the world with an agony that was painful 20
behold .~ 80 - "i'"i ''''.T -
n, The dwelling of Mr. Thorn, on Whiskey
RIM. was swept away, and he and his wife
borne down the stream. Mr. Thorn held
tenaciously to his better.half, and was ppt-
ting forth heroic efforts to.sape her, when
his head struck violently against some drift:
wood which had fastened upon the BANK toi
the stream, almost Knocking him insenslhle,
and com pelIng him to relinquish his grasp
and turning him around intoan eddy, while
it carried Mrs. Thorn out into the current.
The unfortunate woman could not be reached
by persons who were standing upon tne'
bank, and shey was carried rapidly 10 her;
A boy named BARLEY ,Lahey, who, it! Is
supposed, had been thrown out oGthe house
upon a feather bed. was thought to have
been lost until yesterday morning. when ne
was found sleeping upon the couch, winch,
after saving bis Gfe, had settled lnfothe mud:
when the water had stibslded. ''S ~,
Toillustrate the velocity Of the current
Charters creek it may. be noted that ac9W-
which was being cirried down the stream
came 10 8 small cuTyeft, through which sue
conld not pass, white upon the surface. She
tWRas suddenly drawn down by The suction
at its mouth at least ten feet, and was an'.
stantly thereafter sent bounding high above
the surface, by che force n the ss, waters, on r.
the other siGe.i 4 : ~ !a. S-5i3I,
AZ ft,e undertaking. estab hshurents some