The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1878-06-21
THE TERRIBLE CYCLONE.
Additional Particulars Of the Richmond
Disaster.
fFron the Kansas city Journal

owners Of private residences were, ii
many instances, engaged in searchin,
in the vicinity Of their once happl
household, relics only too rarely found
In few instances the house had beer
swept from the stills, leaving the board
Of the ground-floor in their place, til.
carpets being removed In one hous.
there remained piano, In another ;
bureau, and each only slightly injured
the latter being Of special interest il
having preserved the life Of a mother
and child who were Frustrated in front
OF it when the house was swept away,
and mass of falling timbcrs that were
dashed downward found support in It's
unyielding strength, and the mother
and child protected at lis base, while a
few feet away another woman, an in
mate of the same room, was crushed 10
death.
The Post-oflice was entirely swept
away, not a plank Of il being left in It's
place. The mails were scattered 70 the
winds, and some have since been re-
turned from distance Of II miles. The
stamps, money, books and accounts
were all lost, and the records of that
Office must be balanced by the entry Of
''LOsT IN A CrcLoNE.n
The remarkable features Of the visit
OF this disaster are many. Among the
first to observe it was Mr.. Jacob Childs.
editor Of the C0nserrator, from the bal
cony Of his Office. Eight or nine years
had elapsed since he last saw one of
these engines Of destruction whirling on
its course, and had felt. as well as seen,
its effects through the utter destruction
Of the upper story OF his Office. He at
once, with a fathers instinct, ordered
the office closed and started for home.
and had gone but few rods when the
roof of the establishment be had lust
left was drawn up into the air, forcing
from him the exclamation Of, "The I'm
serrator is gone this timel- Here il
moved in mid-air for few seconds.
keeping up violent rotary motion, and
emitting a sound which he describes to
have been like the roar of Niagara
until, as If drawn by some attractive
force, it retraced its path to the south
ern limits Of the city, and over the rail-
road track formed junction with
similar atmospheric or electric machine.
and swept on Its broad and
COURSE OF DESTRUCTION.
A large tree growing on the west, and
only few feet distant, ut least eighteen
inches in diameter, was parted from the
roots about eight inches below the
ground and lifted up and carried over
the porch and deposited to the east, and
not TO exceed 0feetfromthe place where
il was growing. The sod at its roots
was undisturbed il was pulled up as
q tooth would be pulled by turnkey, and
broken off at the jaw. This house with
the shrubbery surrounding it was left
save the loss Of its chin
neys and few shingles. Not even the
glass in its windows were broken. A
few rods further down the street a large
frame cottage was lifted from its founda-
ion, carried over the fences and dashed
80 feet away into the street, heap Of
scattered ruins. The fences were IN.
disturbed, the roses are blooming in the !
yard as before, but the soil under the
house is as hard and barren as parade
ground. Another instance that this de-
'tructive power was not a blow not
mere wind-but direct lift from earth I
upward, and il may be an open question
1 the motive power which propelled il
inward was not derived by resistance Of K
he air to its rotary motion-in other
words, If the atmosphere, close and sui \
.ry as 1t was, did not act as the rail be-
heath the driver Of the engine. Nothing
n the track Of this monster was simply \
oppled over. Every thing was lifted
Up by the neck of the funnel and carried /
nto the body Of this cyclone, to he after
ward dropped, except at those times
when it appeared to discharge itself
With an outward explosive force, and
hen sweep onward with renewed
trength.
ITS LOOPED AND JAGGED EDGE
N the west Is instanced all along its
curse, as above, in cutting all around
he house over the porch Of which the
rec was carried; by many trees along
hat side; by the frame house adjoining
he Presbyterian church, which was
moved from its foundation few feet
'ut left standing, while the massive
rick structure adjoining il, and within
! few feet, was leveled TO its foundation;
y the urt-house, from which por-
ion Of the roof was taken and all the
himneys cleaned, the towering belfry
'eing left intact. Again, by the entire
scape OF the fine two story residence
orth of the post-office, which escaped
lmost without injury, either to itself or
he beautiful ground in which II is To-
ated, and lastly, beyond the " old GEN.
terry" where il crossed the road and
rent around Roterside's place, and
gain returned to the road few yards
eyond. It followed the line Of shops
nd the slope Of the hill that runs
owards the valley east Of Thornton Av-
nue., only crossing that street with It's
aged edges; and In no instance going