The Portland daily press., 1889-06-04

tne waters. AT present tnere are Salu 10 De
1900 recovered bodies. The great difficulty
in getting a correct list is the large number OF
morgues. No central bureau of information
exists and to communicate with the different
dead houses is the work of hours. The
journey from the Pennsylvania railroad
morgue to the one in the fourth ward school
house at Johnstown occupies at least one
hour. This renders it impossible to reach
all in one day, particularly as some are sit.
uated at points inaccessible to Johnstown.
At 6 this evening the 6S0th body had been re-
covered at the Cambria depository for
corpses.
Three hundred bodies were lying ON the
sand at Kernville at this afternoon An
enormous crowd Of people had gathered
around endeavoring to find the bodies of
friends or relatives. No coffins were there
at the time and the bodies had to be laid on
the ground. Five hundred ceffins are on the
way here and the undertakers have sent for
800 additional ones. Kernville from now on
will be the place where the most bodies will
be found. The water has fallen so it is posi-
BILE
TO REACH THE BODIES,
but all have to be dug out of the sand which
causes no end of work. 1t is thought that
most Of the bodies will be found at Kern
vile under the large pile Of debris about an
acre in length. THIS is where most of the
buildings drifted. and it is natural to sup
pose the bodies fioated with them.
Kernyille is in depiorable condition, the
living being unable to take care of the dead
A majority of the inhabitants of the town
were drowned. A lean-to of boards has
the town. This is the headquarters for the
committee that control the dead. As quickly
as the dead are brought to this point they
are placed in boxes and taken to the cemetery
and buried. A supply store has been open
ed in the town. A milkman overcharging
for milk this morning narrowly escaped
lynching. Infuriated men appropriated all
of his milk, distributed it among the poor
and drove him out of town.
The body of Hungarian, lynched last
night. was removed by his friends during the
night. The monster had cut off four fingers
Of the right hand of a woman and dropped
the fingers into his pocket, where they were
found when he was captured.
:, About 155 houses are standing where stood
thousands. Large buildings escaped. One
lost in Kernville. But five bodies have been
recovered. Only about % able bodied men
survived, and they are unable to render any
assistance. Men and women are seen with
black eyes, bruised faces and cut heads.
The appearance of some of the ladies is
flood and have not slept since. Their faces
have turned to sickly yellow and dark
rings surround their eyes. Many have sue
cumbed to nervous prostratiOn. For two
days little assistance could be rendered them
and no medical attendance reached them.
The wounded remained uncared for in some
OF the houses cut off by water,
AND DIED FROM THEIR INJURIES ALONE.
Some were alive on Sunday, and their shouts
could be heard by the people on shore. A
man is now in the temporary Jail who was
caught stealing gold watch. A shot was
fired at him, but he was not wounded. The
one thing that saved him from lynching was
the smallness of the crowd. His sentence
will be the heaviest than can be given.
The services in the chapel from which the
bodies were buried consisted merely of pray
er by one of the survivors. No ministers
were present. Each coffin had descriptive
card on 1t. On the graves a smaller card
was placed SO that bodies may be removed
lster by friends. The Cambria hospital has
800 patients. DIR. Buck, with an efficient
corp corps OF aids, is In charge; Two patients
well. Several injured people had operations
performed upon them. The hospital in the
upper part Of Johnstown is full to overflow
Ing and many have been carried to surround
ing houses. One patient died and severa,
are very low. Hospitals have been estab-
lished at Conemaugh aud Mineral Point.
At the Church OF the Immaculate Concep-
tion dev0ti0ns were In progress Friday night
when the water descended on Cambria CITY,
The church was filed with people at the
Hmm ole - n.
the congregation succeeded in escaping from
the interior: In few minutes the church
was partially submerged, the water reaching
Is feet up the sides. The building was bad
ly wrecked, benches were torn out and the
entire structure, inside and outside, was dis
manted Yesterday morning an entrace
was forced through the blockaded doorway
and the ruin appeared complete. One OBJ
lect alone escaped the waters wrath.
A statue of the Blessed Vir-
gin, decorated and adorned because of
the. May devotions Twas as unsullied as
on the day it was made. Every one that has
seen the statute and its surroundings is firm
~ convinced that the incident was miracu-
l0us.
AINIsTERING PRIEST AND NUNS.
About 80 Catholic priests and nuns are
here,.the sisters devoting themselves to the
care of the sick and injured in the hospitals
and the priests doing everything to make
themselves generally useful
This gives some idea Of the destructive
power with which the volume of water from
the lake struck East Conemaugh. 1t took
round house with 27 engines, 200 freight cars
ana about 20 passenger cars, including four
Pullman cars and passenger cars full of pas
sengers. The conductor and engineer ran
along the train warning passengers to flee.
some started but portion remained and
went down. How many perished is not
known. The track, depot, freight house and
coal sheds were entirely washed away. Mail
matter on the east bound train held there
was saved In miraculous way by two or
three engines against the train making a
breaker which divided the water so that it
did not close until the car was passed. The
mail was not even wet. The destruction of
life at East Conemaugh is less than reported,
not more than 20 persons having perished.
Property for three squares up from the river
Is totally destroyed.
At about AIS Friday afternoon, word was
telegraphed from South Fork that the dam
was breaking. Almost Immediately the
whistles of several locomotives were blown
SO long and loud that the people, realizing
that something was wrong, rushed from
their homes and, seeing the water coming,
fled to the mountains.
Two hundred and fifteen bodies were re-
ceiyed at the Pennsylvania railroad depot to-
day. After being washed they were placed
in caskets and arranged in long row on the
depot platform for identification. Only a
few were recognized; some were so terribly
disfgured as to be wholly unrecognizable.
The waiting rooms, in which the embalming
was done,
PRESENTED A sICKENING SIGHT.
Human forms, frightfully burned, cut or
bruised, were laid upon rough board table,
washed and coffined. II not recognized in
very short time, they were placed on wagons
and taken to the Adams street school house
where they will be kept as long as possible
eud unknown" The burgess Of Johns
town and acting chief of police deny that
any one was shot by ex-Burgess G. l.. Deck
yesterday: The only man shot was pune
tured In the leg by Constable Callahan for
refusing to stop when ordered, when detect
ed in theft. There are now on duty in and
about the ruins 400 police and deputies,
which the burgess thinks ample without the
military. Few arrests have been made. By
work today were given "a hours time to get
Rain fell all day today, and
added to the miseries of the wretched
people. The great plain where the
best part Of Johnstown used to stand. is
half-covered with water. Few side
walks in this part escaped the flood,
and they are inches thick with
tramped steady procession of poor women
left utterly destitute. The tents where the
people are housed are cold and cheerless.
The town is like great tomb. People go
about In sort Of daze only half conscious of
their griefs. One hears neighbors greet each
other and then enquire, without show of