Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1886-10-20

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principally those run by J. Paveto, who
also operated gin and turned out annually
800 bales of cotton produced in that section:
Other stores were operated by few general
merchandise dealers, who constituted the
commercial community. Cotton and sugar
are the chief products of the ridges, which
are composed of the richest and most fertile
grazing country. The parish had S,0OO head
of cattle and horses owned by the thriving
community. Communication with the out
ter world was through two steam vessels,
both owned in JohnsOn's Bayou ana Rad-
ford, while fleet trading vessels piled the
waters of the bayou. At 4 O'Clock FRIDAY
afternoon storm descended upon the bayou,
the waters rising with the wind, swept
through the lower stories of buildings, driv-
ing the affrighted people into attics and
upon roofs. BY 10 o'clock the first ridge,
twelve feet above the sea level, was ten feet
under water. House after house fell in or
was swept away, either burying the DOOM
ed people in the debris or hurling them into
the waters The cotton gins and stores
next succumbed, and Radford and john
sons Bayou were destroyed as completely y
as if an invading army had done the work.
1t was night of terror, described by sur
vivors as appalling. People could only
cling to each other and pray for mercy and
shrieks rang in their ears. For twelve
hours the storm ragged over the devastated
settlements and then came lull.
Hope revived as the waters receded and
the storm passed away, and the survivors
gathered on elev&ted points, viewing the
scene of desolatiOn ground them. Houses
that stood the action of the storm were COM
pletely Quilted. There was no food or drink,
the salt water having invaded everything.
Then there began search for the dead, and
those whose bodies lay pinioned by the
ruins of houses, were speedily recovered.
From out of the marshes more corpses were
taken and likewise buried.
During the morning the regular packet
stern-Wheel steamer Emily p. arrived at
Johnson's Bayou, and brought to Orange as
many persons as she could carry, in all
about sixty. Not one of them had anything
but what they stood in; many were minus
hats, shoes, coats and dresses. Their wants,
however, were promptly supplied by the
good people of this place, and the refugees
made comfortable for the night.
Tomorrow the steamers Emily p. and
Lark will return to the bayou and make
regular trips until all are brought to place
of safety.
The people, save the few who have large
stock interests, say they have abandoned
the place forever. They are descendants OF
a race of people who, in the past, made
came and ruined them, and then they turn
ed to cotton, sugar and stock, only. to meet
the fate of their forefathers. OF the eight
thousand head of stock which once the
bayou boasted, six thousand are drowned,
while the remainder will die of thirst, as all
the water is SALT
There is no estimating the loss, as there is
no way of ascertaining valuations hence
it is sufficient to say that the towns are des-
troyed and abandoned.
A Galveston dispatch of Monday says that
a relief committee just returned to that city
are unanimous in their statement regarding
the absolute destitution of the survivors.
They say they never saw such suffering for
the necessaries of life as exists atSabine and
Johnson's Bayou. The committee ascer-
tanned that the total number of persons who
lost their lives was 112. Of these 81 were
colored and 3S whites. Only y6l bodies have
thus far been recovered and buried. Scores
of searching parties continue to hunt for the
bodies of missing friends.
From Beaumont comes the intelligence
that new danger seems to have sprung up
in the vicinity of Sabine that has scared the
searchers for the unfortunates. The cattle
have become dangerous, wild animals. The
watering pools have been filled with sea
water, and the cattle are wild with thirst.
Saturday evening steer chased three men
who were walking along the edge of the
bayou, and would probably have killed them
if they had not succeeded in reaching their
boat. When the steer saw he had failed,
he seemed to become more furious, plowing
up the sand with his horns, and believing
loudly,
Intelligence has also reached Beaumont
that great gale swept over the country,
forty miles north of Beaumont and Orange,
reaching the seat of Jasper county, and dam
aging cotton badly. Several houses in that
region were demolished, but no loss Of life
occurred north of the Southern Pacific Rail-
road.