Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-06-04
FICTION A HUNDREDFOLD OUT
DONE,
Charles Reade's Description Of an Eng
lish Village Swept Away by Flood.

From the New York World.
Charles Reade, in one Of the chapters of his
| novel, Put Yourself in His Place." gives a
graphic description of the bursting of a dam
situated above an English village. The dismay
and terror OF the villagers as they saw the i'm
mense sheet of water coming down toward
them found a parallel in little Pennsylvania
| village Friday afternoon. The great novels,
writes:
Farmer Emden was standing at the door OF
his house, and, in reply to Ransome, told him
he had just come down from the reservoir. He
had seen the crack and believed it to be mere
frost. He apprehended no danger, and had
sent his people to bed. By and by
Ransome looked up and observed a thin sheet
OF water beginning to stream over the center
OF the embankment and trickle down; the guam
nty was nothing. but II alarmed him. He
thought it was better to give a false warning
than withhold a true one; be ran to his horse,
jumped on him and galloped on, shouting as
he went: Its coming! Its coming He gall
loped through Hatfield. shouting Save your
selves! Save yourselves" and the people
poured out and ran for high ground, shrieking
wildly; looking back, he saw the hill dotted
with what he took for sheep at first, but it was
the folk in their night clothes He galloped on
to Damfask, still shouting as he went. At the
edge of the hamlet he found cottage with no
light in it; he dismounted and Numbered at
the door: Escape for your lives! For your
lives"
At the top of the hill he turned a moment
and looked up the valley; soon he saw a lofty
white wall running down on the Hatfield mill.
1t struck the mill and left nothing visible but
the roof surrounded BY white foam Another
moment and he distinctly saw the mill swim a
yard or two, then disappear and leave no trace ;
and on came the white wall, Kissing and thun-
dering. Ransome uttered cry of horror, and
gaLOped madly forward to save what lives he
might. Whenever he passed a house he
shrleked his warning, but he never drew rein.
At Poma bridge the devastation was horrible.
The flood had bOmbarded row of fifty houses
and demolished them so utterly that only one
arch of one cellar remained; the very founda-
tons were torn up, and huge holes Of incred-
Idle breadth and depth bored by the furious
eddies. And now the day began to dawn.
There was nothing to be done and Ransome
went back to HiilsbOrough. Daybreak realized
bis worst fears; between Poma bridge and the
nrst suburb OF Hillsborough the place was like
a battlefield. not that many had been drowned
on the spot but that, drowned all up the valley
by the flood at its highest they had been
brought down and deposited in the thick layer
of mud left by the abating waters Some were
cruelty gashed and mangled by the hard objects
with which they had come in contact. Others
wore peaceful expression and had color in
their cheeks. One drew tears from both these
valiant men. 1t was a lovely little girl, with
her little hands before her face to keep out the
sight of death. Here and there hand or a
CHASTITY face appearing above the mud showed
how many must be hidden altogether, and
Ransome hurried home to get more assistance
to disinter the dead