Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1886-09-01

brick and clay and pieces of timber per-
formed indescribable gyrations, hun
dreds of feet i'll the air, some falling close
to the points from which they started,
while others shot off through space with
trightful velocity, only conforming to
the laws of gravity after long flight.
Stones weighing from one to one
hundred and fifty pounds were thrown
into fields two miles from the scene.
| Trees were stripped of their foilage
| fences by the mile were laid low,
telegraph poles were snapped like reeds,
and the prairie looks as if thousand
steam nlows had been at work upon it.
The little cottage of John Guhls, with
| its surrounding outhouses, was laid low
| without warning, and in moment parts
of the exploded warehouse began falling
on the debris of the cottage. Gnhls
| family consisted of himself, his wife and
Carrie Ahreanworth, fourteen years of
| age. The latter was instantly killed,
| while Guhl and his wife were dragged
from the ruins frightfully mutllated
Their horses, COWS and swine were all
killed by the concussion, and the bodies
full of DIRT, sand and powder. The ruins
of Guhls house Immediately took FIRE
| aba pho oLuoibphihS ai"SLhShpp cuahSa
out during the day. The body of Carrie
| Ahreanworth presents sickening
spectacle. Half the face was torn away,
the eyes were almost blown from their
sockets, and there was gaping hole in
her forehead large enough TO receive n
mans fist. The girls left arm was torn
from the shoulder. The body was re-.
| moved to the home of
her uncle, August Ahreanworth, on
| California avenue. The dead and fatally
injured are: Miss Carrie Ahreanworth,
killed instantly; Peter Keun, farmer,
ribs broken and fearfully burned; and
John Guhl, teamster fer the Oriental
powder company, ribs fractured, right
leg broken in two places, and internal
wounds; Mrs. Guhl, skull crushed to
| jelly, breast trensfixed by piece of
glass. The shock caved in the two mag
| szines of the Oriental powder company,
the Hazard. the Dupont companies, and
the Forclte dynamite storehouRe. The
Latin Rand companys was the only one
which ey ploded. Where it stood is now
| an immense excavation nearly fifty feet
in depth.
John Guhl was alive when taken out
but in terrible condition. His right
leg was broken in two places and his
hip and back severely injured. The
| flesh on his face was cut into ribbons,
and powder, and sand and pebbles were
| blown into the ugly gashes. His suffer
ings were agonizing to behold. Mrs.
Guhl was extricated alive, but almost
| beyond hope. Her entire, body was
mangIed end bruised. The right side
of her body was paralyzed, but the
worst of her wounds wae gaping one
iR the back of her head, through which
| her brains oozed. Directly south of the
Latin Rand powder house, facing the
| Archer avenue road to the northwest
stood the frame house of Mrs. Eliza
Devine. 1t had only ona ROOM but it WAS
enough for its only occupant. What she
experienced when the explosion took
place, about seventy-fve feet from her,
will never be written. When the
astonished and frightened neighbors
| were satisfied that the rain of stones had
ceased. they found that Mrs. Devines
house was total wreck. 1t hadn't the
appearance which characterized the ruins
OF Guhl's house-that of having been
blown away by q strong gust of wind
but it had simply collapsed, melted as it
were. The debris was not scattered, but
it occupied the same amount of space as
did the house before the explosions. The
presence af stone weighing about three
hundred pounds on the top of the ruins
indicated that the house was squeezed
together like shell, and its inmate was
caught without chance to escape.
Willing hands were soon at work end
after much labor she was extricated. Her
appearance made the hearts of the
staunchest among them sicken. Her
right leg. from the knee down,
was crushed into a shapeless mass
of flesh and bone. A large
piece of glass had entered
Just under her left collar bone and had
oeen forced out through her armpit
, Peter Kena, farmer, was driving past
in his wagon on the Archer road and
was Immediately in front of the great
magazine when the Dol. struck. KenI
was blown 200 feet ID the corn field, anC
when picked up was found to be fright
|, fully injured. Ore of his horses wat
I killed outright and hurled into ditcl
at the side OF the road. The other anima
, was badly hurt, and the wagon was re
| duoed to bits. Kenn's ribs were
fractured and his face and body terribi,
\ slashe1. Dirt and sand blown into tn
t cuts rendered his agony terrible. Th
o mems tongue was swollen until he coul'
: hardly breath. Every gasp told 0
e frightful internal injuries. At the coun
!. ty hospital tonight, however, he wa
/ stiii alive. The exploded magazine con
8 tanned, it is estimated, 100000 pounds q
q powder and half as much dynamite
O In the neighboring ten storehouse
n was 100000 pounds Of dynamite an,
n twice as much powder. Not one OF th
i eleven buildings had lightning rod o
q conductor. Justice Tiernay's house wa
e wonderful looking assortment of ruin
" The east wall and the roof were blow
is down, and the greater part OF the mate
II rial composing them had dissppeare
l. into an unknown somewhere. The Sc,
4. ond floor of the main part OF the con
n modions house was let down on one sid
v and furniture, bed clothes, toilet article
/. and wearing apparel were heaped up
IL an indescribable mass of confusion. I'll
10 most marvellous feature of the explosio
" is the miraculous escape OF Mr.. and MI
er Tjernay and their six children, who can
,e through the disaster almost witho,
of injury. They were all in the house a1
ne their faces were blown full Of glass. aI
ID they resembled convalescent smallp'
ne patients, but not one of them was SCI
20 ously hurt