Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1888-01-26
MANY VICTIMS
Of the Great StOrm-250 Reported
Dead-TerFible Suffering.


Dead-Terrible Suffering.
The terrible storm which swept over the
Northwest blockading railroads in five
states, is now over and the victims of its
fury are being counted Tho pitifu list is
growing almost every nour. 1t is not i'm
probable when the record is complete il
will show two hundred and fifty lives sacri.
feed TO the awful fury OF the blizzard
Next TO this the worst blizzard that the
Northwest ever experienced occurred
January Z, s and 9, 1873. In that storm 20
persons were frozen TO death and thous-
ands of dollars worth OF property de-
stroyed.
The present storm promises to be even
more terrible in its results IL came with
out warning. The area of unusual cold
has been general, extending from the eX-
treme northern line of telegraph commu-
nicatlon as far south as Texas and the
Gulf or Mexico. Extreme suffering Is re-
ported from all directions, especially in
Minnesota, Dakota, Montana and Ne
braska, where the greater number of lives
have been lost. In Kansas thousands are
suffering for want of fuel and food, and in
some counties aid is needed to save many
from actual starvation. The storm, while
OF course less severe in Arkansas, Texas
and other southern states, still found the
people there unprepared tor 1t, and much
have everywhere suffered more or less.
The death list includes strong men and
helpless women and children. Farmers
have gone from the house to attend to
their stock and both men and beast have
persisted. Teachers and helpless little ones
nave tried III vain to reach place of safe
ty, while mothers have gone IN search of
their little ones only to perish in the fright
full blizzard. In Chester, Mimi, six school
children are among the dead. In many
have hppn nv
the storm and cold when within a few rods
OF shelter, but owing TO the binding force
OF the storm were unable to make their
way.
Inc reports that come from western
Kansas are appalling. Inc bllZZards that
ragged through that section few weeks
ago left the people in such bad condition
that they were unable to stand the severe
storm and intense cold, and a large mum
Der of deaths from cold and starvation
are known to have occurred. a carload
OF provisions was started from Wichita to
Ashland, Clark county, but the storm
stopped the train. IL Is estimated that
d,UOO people III Clark county are III "A desti-
tute condition, and unless immediate re-
Lief Is Afforded them the number of deaths
Will lie fearful TO contemplate.
The pastor o. the Presby terian church
in Hartland kearney county, writes to
tho aid society impioring assistance for
the people OF that section, saying that II
RELIEF does not soon come hundreds must
Gle. The casualties among stock have
been greater than ever known III the state
of Kansas. Horses and cattle have per-
ished In their stalls and the owners have
been badly frozen while trying to care for
them,
Some of the stories of suffering are
pathetic in the extreme. Mary Connell n
little school teacher near Cavour, started
home with two OF her pupils, a boy and
girl. The boy left her and persisted. Miss
Connell put her dress folds about the little
girl and made her walk all night shelter
ing her charge with her body. They were
found the next morning alive, but hor-
ribly frozen. Another teacher, Miss
jacobson, near st. Olof, started home
with little girl, but both persisted. When
found Miss jacobson was crouched in a
little hollow in the ground with her arms
about the little girl, and her dress skirt
was wrapped about her. Her own bonnet
was of her head and her hand clutched
her dress at her throat, but there was a
smile on her face. Two children, boy
! ana a girl, of Joseph Hutchison, near
Gary, were lost going home from school.
Twenty-Five men at once started on the
search for them, and the mother could
| not be kept from going along. The poor
woman was with the party who found
them. They were lying close together
and the boy had his sisters hands between
| his own. Bessie Stanstield, pretty ~
| year old teacher, three miles distant from
| Aberdeen left school during the storm to
go to farmers house thirty yards dis
tant. Her dead body was found nearly q
| mile from the school house. Four children
froZe to death in a school house at Mel
lette The teacher left them to get assist
ance and her body has not been found.
Miss Steubierner, another teacher L. miles
northeast of Aberdeen, was out all night
in the blizzard. When found she was
barely alive and died shortly after ward.