The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1889-06-21
cL1HNNG FoB LIFE.

victims hcmnied ~ without chance OF -
cape People WHO witness 4 such scenes
"A those enacted ut Johnstown and
Chatsworth ant Ashtabua alone
fully realize the insignificance OF
human life In t8As latest and by far the
most frightful catastrophe ever experienced
IN America, hundreds of deeds of heroisiu
passed unrecorded sssto oblivion hundreds
ct vain efforts were made to rescue the
waits who went fletrsing swiftly onward to
Sieir doom Number.css cases of manly
hercism and womaRE. devotion might be
accorded. and countless others will never
h. known on earth Methers went to death
rather than accept salvation without the
children who ciung to them Brave men
relinquished their chances of escape into the
hands of th.> = of the weaker sex whose pitt
fulcries TO. assistance fell upon their ears
Staries of miraculous ESCAPES are told by
men. women and children who reached
places of refuge after TERRIBLE experiences
in the awful flood To these who find no
friends in the death-list these narrations
prove NEST readable
Curtis Williams and his wife were carried
on top, of their roof from Woodvale Their
house struck the Catholic church in Johns
town anb they climbed to the roof of that
edifice They remained there until the
building took fire, when they made their
way froH ,Ioof to roof to the hill back OF
Johnstown
Michaei Ronesen, an IrishmAk, tells a
most wonderful story of his escape. He
.f1oated with the tide for some tIne. when
he was struck with some floating timber
and borne underneath the water. When he
came up he was struck again, and at last he
was caught ay lightning rod and held
there for over two hours. when he was
finally rescued
Tommy Brown, a little 14-year-old
,youngstcr. his mother brother and the g.
wccks-old baby were i'm the upper floor of
their house when the crash came. After
many efforts the lad succeeded in getting
the family on the roof and they tore down
the stream with the current The roof was
parted in few minutes and Tommy saw
his sick mother and brother go down in
the water He made an effort to save
them, but they were too far out, and he
was compelled to turn his attention to the
babe. The pair fioated to the mills in Mill
sille. where they landed on q heap of
debris.
mo one will ever know the real horrors
Of this accident unless he saw the burning
people and debris beside the stone bridge"
remarked Rev. Father Trautmcin; the
horrible nature of the affair can not be
realized by Gny person who did not witness
the scene AS soon as possible after the
first great crash occurred fastened to the
building A thousand persons were
struggling in the ruins and i'm
ploring for Gods sake to release
them Frantic husbands and fathers
stood at the edge of the furnace that was
slowly heating to cherry heat and incin-
Grating human victims Every one was
anxious to save his own relatives, and
raved, cursed and blasphemed until the air
appeared to tremble. One man. who was
trying to steer 4 float upon which his wife
sat on n mattress, lost his hold, and in mo-
mcnt the craft swept into a sea OF flame and
never again appeared. The agony Of
that man Was simply hearuending.