, 1889-06-04
Thousands of Bodies Still Be-
meath the Burning Ruins.
The Number of Lives Lost Can
Never be Estimated.
Heartrending Stories of the
Storm Aid Pouring In.
DAYS GRAY DAWN.
Scenes of Desolation and Despair that
Touch Every Heart.


YOUNGSTOWN, Pa, June 3.-The dark
disaster of the day with its attendant
terrors thrilled the universe and drew two
continents closer together in the bonds of
sympathy that bind humanity. The mid
night terrors of Ashtabula and Chats
worth brought tears of pity from every
Preside in Christendom. but the trre
story of J~ohnstown, when all is known
will stand solitary and alone as the acme
Of man humiliation by the potent forces
to which humanity Is ever subject. Men
acting clouds still lower darby over the
valley of death and the muttering thund.
or that ever and anon invertebrates in the
distance seems a sardonic chuckle of the
demon Of destruction. But the modern
deluge has lone it worst for Johnstown.
The waters are rapidly ~subsiding, though
the angry torrent still eddies around the
scene Of destruction and time has not
yet arrived 10 tell the pathetic tale of de-
~vastation of black Friday.
1t is no hackneyed utterance to say no
pen can adequately depict the horrors of
these twin disasters, the holocaust and del
uge. Deep emotions well from the
heart of every spectator and find most ell
oquent expression in silence: the silence
that bespedks mans recognition of his
subservience to thee elements and his i'm
potence to avert catastrophes.
The morning opens dark and dreary.
Great drups OF ram fall occasionally, and
another storm secmE imminent. Every
one feels thankful though that the leather
still remains cool and the gradual putrii
cation of the hundreds of bodies that still
line 1.-The streams and lie hidden under
miles OF driftwood and debris is not un-
duly FASTENED. This morning the pecu-
liar stencil of decaying human flesh is
plainly perceptible 10 the senses as one
descends to the bank OF Stony creek and
for half n mile along the smouldering
ruins of the wreck, and the most skeptical
now conceive the worst aud realize per-
haps that thousands of bodies lie charred
and blackened beneath this great funeral
Eyre.
S~earchers wander YEARLY over the
smoking mass, and as occasionally a sud-
den shout comes over the water the pa
tient watchers ON the hill realize that an
other CHASTITY discovery. has been added to
the long list OF revelations hat chill every
heart an | draw Tears to the eyes of
pessimists. From the banks many charred
remains of the victims Of flame and food
arc plainly visible as the rcceding waters
reluctantly give up their dead. Beneath
almost every log or blackcncd beam a
glistening skull or blanched remnants Of
ribs or limbs mark all that remains of
LIES hopes and dreams. Since 10 o clock
last night fire engines have been busy
Water has been constantly playing on the
burning ruins. At times the fire seems
almost extinguished, but the fitiul flames
suddenly break out afresh in n new quar-
ter and again waite. and flames wage fierce
combat.
The chief sensation of the morning has
been the united remonstrance of the
physicians against the extinguishment of
the burning wreck. They maintain with
a philosophy that to the anxious search
ers seems hcartless, that hundreds if not
thousands oil hieless decayiDg bodies lie
beneath the mass of burning ruins. 1t
would be better. they say, to permit ma
tur.' 3 greatest asenger, the flames, to pur-
sue their course unmDlestcd han to ex-
pose to further decay. huge masses of put
relying flesh that lie beneath this debris.
There can be but one result. Days will
,lapse.beiore the rubbish can be sufficiently
removed to permit recovery of these bod
les and long before that every corpse will
be a purified mass. yielding forth those
frightful emanations of decaying human
flesh that in a crowded community like
this can give but one result-dreadful
typhus. Every battle field has demon
strated the necessity OF hasty interment
of decaying bodies, and the stencil that
already arises is a %forerunner of impend-
ing danger. Burn the wreck" Burn
the wreck" A loud cry Of indignation
arose from the multitude and the warn
ings of science we're lost in the eager de
mands of those that sought the remains
of those near and dear. The hose was
again turned npoh the kissing mass and
rapidly the flames yielded to the supre-
macy Of water.