St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-08-27
SAD SCENES OF WOE.
Ten Thousand Pigtails Lost in a Flood
and a Greater Number Starving
to Death.
The Mclean Men Beating Gongs and
HOwling Before Idols in Their
Great Misery.
Great Destruction in Charleston,
South Carolina, by the Recent
Cyclone.
immense Damage Done in all Parts
OF the City and to Ocean
Vessels.
Horrors of FInnd.

Horrors Of n Flood.
WASHINGTON, Aug. 26.-Details of the
destruction in Canton, China, and vicinity
by the recent great rain storm, have been
received by private parties in this city.
The flood was the most serious which has
visited Canton in thirty years. More than
TO, coo persons lost ther lives and 4 greater
number are left in a starving condition.
Entire villages were engulfed and the rice
and silk crops in the vicinity were almost
ruined. The price of rice has been
raised Is per cent. in cOnse-
quence of the loss of the crop.
The rain fell the latter part of June. filling
and OvertlOwing all the rivers. Many of
the streets of Canton were flooded for over
a week. At Semi City the water broke
through the city wall. 1t is reported that
several thousand people were drowned III,
that place. The embellishments of the
rivers were broken in numerous places and
the water swept across the surrounding
country carrying everything before it. 4
foreigner who was an eye witness of the
scene of
THE DEVASTATION
reports that one night the boat he occupied
anchored near bamboo grove. By morn
ING the water had risen to the tops of the
bambOos. At other points it rose as high
as forty feet during the night. The in
h1bitance fled from the villages and camped
on the hill sides. At Kun in a market
place situated near an embankment
of the streams connected with the
river, which brings water from the
North and West river. the majority of
the inhabitants were drowned by the water
breaking through the embankment. Some
escaped to piece of rising ground in the
neighbOrhOod. but the water continued to
rise and gradually OveTtOpped the elevation
drowning these who stood upon it, Seven
teen Chinese graduates in Canton hearing
of the distress and suffering prevalent in
their native villages, took passage on boat
with view of proceeding home to render
what assistance they could. On the way
the boat was capsized and all who were in
It were drowned. In some places parents
TIED THEIR CHILDREN
on the high branches of trees whilst they
Instituted measures for their safety. The
trees were washed up by the roots and the
heartrending cries of the children were 81
fenced in the Surging waters. The
body of bride dressed in her bridal robes
was found floating in the river at Canton.
The Charleston Storm.
AUGUSTA, Ga, Aug. 26.-Ye esterday's
SIOIil Ill NlldtltStUu WAS u cyclone III the
proper sense of the term. The wind was
twenty-five miles an hour at 1:30 in the
morning. increasing to So, 40 and so, which
was reached about s in the morning, finally
up to Seventy-tive or eighty miles an hour.
The northern edge of the cyclone touched
| Charleston and completed its passage in
forty minutes. The streets of Charleston
were not more deSOlate at the end of two
hours than after bCmbardment during the
war. The storm commenced properly at
daylight, from the southwest, with fire.
quent gusts. As early as o'clock the roof
of st. MichaePs church was stripped.
At Z a. III. the apparatus on the signal
office, the flag staff and weather man were
demolished. The last observation before
the climax of destruction recorded the wind
at siXty-eight miles an hour. The climax
of the cyclone was at about s o'clock. But
a single shed is standing on the wharf.
Everything is i'll ruins at the wharves. At
| 9 O'Clock there was a sudden lUll, but soon
the gale increased and continued till 10
o'clock, when the great storm of 1885 was
over Hundreds of thousands of dollars
were expended on the wharveS this season.
putting them in order. The water front on
Cooper river suffered most. The Southern
wharf suffered least. Commercial wharves
were
COMPLETELY WRECKED.
Half dozen yachts, two pilot boats and
dredging machine were sunk. Boyce's
wharf was wrecked and the pilot boat
Schreper and a number of fishing smacks
and yachts sunk. Four piers and sheds of
the Atlantic wharf were blown away. The
cotton exchange building wassalso damaged
and Kerr'S wharf was demolished. The
steamer Planter was stove in at AccOmnO-
datiOn wharf The damage to the Central
wharf was very serious. Four piers and
three sheds of Union wharf were swept
away. The wharf at Castle Peckney was
carried away. The steamer Delaware from
New I Ork Saturday came in all right last
night. She reports fearful damage at sea.
The damages to houses in the
city cannot be estimated. The
pleasure boats on Rutledge Street lake
were piled up on the northern shore in q
confused mass OF broken hulks. On Ash
ley river there were many casualties to
shipping, vessels being grounded all along
the river. Two siOCps have not yet been
found. The convent of the Sisters of Mercy
was seriously injured and unToGfed, and
the plastering is down. the library badly
damaged and the building temporarily unfit
for use. The cOiOred church in CrOmwelfS
alley was completely demolished. In Frank
lin street a large tree was riven in three
parts nom top 70 bottom, OUT renamed
standing. The whole street is barricaded
with fallen trees. The South battery was
the scene of great
CONFUSION AND DAMAGE
to shipping. The streets were flooded with
water, and crafts of all descriptions were
washed ashore and were floating in the
streets at high tide. The fishermen's boats
We're DESTROYED and the wharves piled high
with incODgruOuS wrecks. The northwest
ern and central portions of the city suffer
slight damage. compared with that along
the water front. though the entire portion
of the city west of Rutledge avenue was
submerged with salt water from one to
three feet deep. The spire of the Citadel
Square Baptist church, one of the tailest in
the city, was blown across the four-Story
dwelling OF Thomas c.. Detterer, cutting
away the piazza and front walls
and leaving the interior OF the
dwelling exposed to the storm. Several
miraculous escapes occurred here, but no
one is injured. 1t will take $50, 600 to re-
place the Steeple. The Plymouth church
was completely unroOfed. The St. Phillips
Street church was also mroOfed. The
Church home, in Lawrence street, was
badly damaged. and the Avery institute un-
rooted. Trinity Methodist Episcopal church,
IN HaZen street, and chapel of the Citadel
were unroOfed. The Mount Zion Presby-
teran church, cOlOred, in Calhoun street,
was unrOOfed and badly wrecked. About
a mile of railroqd track xvaS hloyvn mn and