Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-06-06


away the people are becoming ILL., Thore are
at least goo cases of pneumonia in town and
on the hills. l have been busy all day pre-
scribing pneumonia medicine. On our inspec-
ton trip l found much measles in prospect,
while at Minersyllle there is typhoid, though
many cases occurred before the food. Still.
many more have developed since. At Cambria
there Is much sickness, and, also. a great deal
of pneumonia. There was great loss of life
there. Where Woodvale formerly stood we
now have hospital camp"
do L fear an epidemic? No. The weather
to-day Is cold, aud we are taking great sani-
tary precautions III regard to the dead and de-
composing bodies. Everything uncovered is
lined and purified. The order to bury bodies
VIII not keep them ont long. The greatest
number of bodies is in the water at the bridge.
They are kept cool by the water. Sheriff Alex.
NcCandless, of Pittsburg, who is here assisting
Mr.. Patton, agent of the Baltimore and Ohio.
started a corps OF men along the Baltimore and
Ohio railroad trenches up toward SmithtOwn
to clear out all the bodies OF animals. Much
danger was thus removed"
Miss Speck's Terrible Experience.
A Chambersburg special to the Philadelphia
Press says: Miss Nina Speck, daughter of Rev.
David Speck. pastor of the First United Breth-
rem church of CEambersburg, was in Johnstown
visiting her brother last week and narrowly
escaped death in the food.
She arrived here to-day clad in nondescript
clothing, which had been furnished by an old
colored washerwoman, and told the following
story of the food:
.'Our house was in Kernsville, a part of
Johnstown, through which Stony creek ran.
Although we were a square from the creek the
backwater from the stream had flooded the
streets an the morning and was up to our front
porch. At o'clock on Friday afternoon we
were sitting on the front porch watching the
flood, when We heard roar as Of a tornado or
mighty cOnfagration.
I'VE rushed upstairs and got out upon the
bay window. There awful sight met our
eyes. Down the COnemaugh valley was adj
vancing a mighty wall of flame and mist with a
terrible roar. Before 1t were rolling houses
and buildings of all kinds. rolling over and
over. We thought it was a cyclone, the roar
sounding like a tempest among forest trees.
AT first we could see no water at all, but back
of the mist and flames came mighty wall of
water. We started down stairs and out through
the rear of the house to escape to the hillside
near by, but before We could get there the
water was up to our neckS and we could make
no progress. We turned back and were liter
ally dashed by the current into the house.
which began to move oil as soon as we were III
1t again. From the second-story window saw
young man drifting toward us. l broke the
glass from the frames with my hands and
helped him in, and in few moments more I
pulled IN an old man, a nei5hbor. who had been
sick
Out uOuse IIiONCu uOWn inc stream
and fortunately lodged against a strong build
ing. The water forced Us out of the second
story up into the attic. Then we heard lot of
people on our roof. begging us for Gods sake
- let them in. broke through the roof with
bed Stat and pulled them in. Soon we had
thirteen in all crouched in the attic.
Our house was rocking. and every now
and then building would crash against u.s.
livery moment we thought We would 20 down
The roofs of all the houses drifting bv us were
some singing hymns and now ana then house
would break apart and all would go down. On
Saturday at noon We were rescued making our
way from one building to the next by craving
on narrow planks. 1 counted hundreds of
bodies lying in the debris. most Of them COW
cred over with earth and showing only the out
lines of the FORM"
An Awful Total Made.
staff correspondent OF the Philadelphia
Press sends the following from Johnstown:
The loss of life by the food in the towns of
Mineral Point, Franklin Borough. East Cone
maugh, WoOdNale, hernville. Cambria. Miners
vile. MOrreliyille, Sheridan and Coopersdale
which with JOhnstown constitute the string OF
communities III the direct path of the flood,
Is about 600. and the loss Of property, ex-
elusive OF Pennsylvania railroad property,
about S6.O0O,0O0. Johnstown proper and Mill
VILE will probably add 1900 to the death-list
and about SlS,0000O0 to the financial loss The
Pennsylvania railroads loss will be about
l5.000,000 more. making the total loss. as
nearly as it can now be figured over 5000 lives
and more than :34, 900 COZ OF property
The loss of life in JohnstOwn proper is but
little more than guess. 1t is too large place
for anybody to know everybody, and the sur
vivors are so scattered that the registration of
the living, which has reached 1900 il. the dis
trict indicates nothing. The loss in the smaller
towns named is obtained from leading men in
each, who have i'll 4 measure got their heads
again and are able to think with some GOODNESS
In detail the loss falls az follows:
Mineral Polnt-Lives lost, 16; property,
100000.
East Conemaugh and Franklin (the town
borough)-Lives, SO; property, 81 .2O0.O GEO.
WoOdyale-Liyes, 800; property, "a, 500, 0OO
Johnstown and Millyille-Lives, 1000; prop
ertv. $4,000. 600
Cambria-Lives. !, 100; property, $50. 600.
!. Minersyille-Lives, s: property, $4,000.
Morrellyilie-Lives l; property, $4,000
Sheridan ana Coopersdale-No lives; prop
erty. SIS 600.
Pennsylvania railroad, S15.000OOO.
Total lives, 1908; property S34 ,O75,0 900.
Mr.. CHAPISs ESTIMATE.
p. E. Chaplin, of Washington who built the
Gautier steel works, and until January, 1888.
was general superintendent the Cambria iron
works at JohnstOwn, said this evening: THE
loss sustained, IL round figures, l should think
would reach $3j, 600, 900. In that amount
would divide the items about as follows: Johns
town proper, SI5. 600, coo; PENNSYLVANIA railroad
$50: Gautier steel company. 81, 500 900:
Cambria iron company, $500, 900, and the gene
raj losses at Mineral Point. East Conemaugh,
WOodvale. Conemaugh Borough, kernville.
GrubtOWn. Buckstowu. Melville. Sheridan and
MOrrellyillc about -. coo. 600. doubt if twenty
years will enable the valley to recover from
this shock, which is almost too horrible to real
iZe.
W. s. Steele, secretary of the Westmoreland
and Cambria natural gas company, said:
S20OGOOOO viii not put Johnstown on her feet
again; the people have not begun to realize the
extent Of this loss and doubt if they ever will
until the contracts for rebuilding are let and
the expense of clearing away the debris has
been betrayed. Our company alone cannot
replace its plant which has been washed out
tOr less than Sl75.0GJ
Postmaster Bauman of Johnstown, who knew
every building III II, and is Il stakeholder in
! large number ofmanufacturing and mercantile
concerns III the valley, said The loss to Johns
town alone is estimated by the business men
with whom have talked at from SI2 DOC, 600
to @25,OO0OOO. / think myself that 800, GOO, 900
vii! be found to be a very low estimate of
JohEstOwn's financial loss. | am trustee for
the largest estate in Johnstown and know
what am talking about when make this es-
innate"
GENEROUS CONTRIBUTIONS.
The total money contributions from all
sources in aid OF the sufferers as far as can be
l learpal ia IL