The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1884-11-22
A FRlGHTFUL PICTURE,
FURTHER PARTICULARS OF THE
HORRORS IN VIRGINIA.
oHe thonsand People Odt of 10000 Swept
away by the Epidemic Whole Fam
hies Starvation
On Hand, Relp Wanted.

fARkERsBURG, W. Va, Nov - The
ifSO news OF the awful scourge that aiTlicts
tiie western border counties of virginia was
teieeraphed ten days ago. but no additional
4etGlis were received until Wednesday. when
Mr.. Preston Abbott whose headon,r.tars are
Eefe, but who represents New Yorl; house
returned TO this city from "trip through
the counties of Mercer ana
Mcdowell, in West Virginia; Lee. Russell.
wise ana buchanan in Virginia; aud Scott
harlan and Floyd in Kentucky. He say,
tho scenes witnessed We're beyond de,crip
uoh For nearly three months no rain had
fallen The Gra,. was burned up, leav,.s had
fallen from whole forest.. am crnte
We're total failure Near!y every
creek, spring and we'll was dry,
There was scarcely any water in tlm
north and middle forks of The Holstnn.
Maiden Spring creek is simply a dry gulch.
and the Louisa fork of the Big SANDY i,
merely succession of braclllsh puddies in
the hollow of its rocky bed In the town OF
Mount Pleasant but one well contains water
The citizens Of Saltville carry water nearly
two miles
For the past two weeks deadly plague
has swept this whole section, and at least
1000 persons, in population Of not to ex
coed 1900, have died Cattle ana live
stock by hundreds have died, and their rot
ting carcasses fill tho air with horrible
stencil.
The disease is similar in man and beasts
1t begins with gripping pains in the stomach
followed by excessive fever, bloody fiux
accompanied with vomiting: then come,
death. The sickness rarely lasts over a day
but depends ON tho strength of the in.
dlvidual attacked The country i,
extremely rough, and most of the peopl.
live in cabins up the hollows in the
mountains. Many are remote from
neighbors, and whole families have dice
alone, and are left unburied. The devasta
tion on Moccasin creek is particularly awful
About thirty families reside in a distance o
eight miles on its banks. OF the lS0 per
sons in them over 100 have died. Physi
clans are not to be had, and the simple RENE
dies Of the natives prove powerless
Mr.. Abbott relates one very sad case The
family of Abraham Smalley, consisting ot
five persons, the Youngest a child of 9 years
was found dead. The little child had evi
IDENTIFY died last, and in its awful hunger haC
nearly torn off its mothers breast
Food is about exhausted, and the peopl,
arc living ON barks and nuts. Water is st
scarce that i'll many Instances the blood ot
dying animals is used to cook their food
Blood is also freely drank Flour is IN
known, and corn meal sells for IS and $1t
per bushel. The mills can not grind, and il
they coul there is 10 corn.
Gladesyille, Ky, is almost depopulated
and a graveyard Is about all that remain.
of Lebanon
The immediate cause of the disease is sup
posed to be the presence of great quantity
of mineral matter in the water, caused by
the long drought and evaporation Aic
must speedily come from the outside or tht
1909 deaths viii reach 5, 200. In five countie
there are not 1000 bushels of corn no.
100 head of live stock and the tobacco
crop is absolutely nothing, and po
tatOes do not average ten bushels to the acre
There is no game in the mountains, anC
communication with the outside world is by
the most tedious methods over mountain
and rocky passes. In the language of Mr.
Abbot, Tho scourge of Marseilles pre-
sented no more CHASTITY scenes than these
1t is simply rain, and that speedily, or ami
hiIation.'