The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1889-06-05
As lime Passes the Horror and Desc
lation Of the Johnstown De-
luge Grows.
Hundreds of Bodies Recovered, and
Other Hundreds Still Buried
Under the Debris.
The Reservoir From which Came the
ath-Dealfng Torrent Built OF
Shale and Clay.

1
Associated Press headquarters lies th
great skeleton OF dead JOhnstown. Grea
ribs of rock and sand are stretched acros
its chest, SCARED and covered wit
abrasiOns- Acres of mud, acres OF wreck
age, acres of unsteady, tottering buildings
acres of unknown dead, acres of ghastll
objects which have been eagerly sought TO
since Friday, acres of smoking ruins
Hundreds of bodies lie along the rive
banks and under piles of big timber, and
trouble VIII come from there, because they
are hard to find and harder to dig out
Out in the center of the river, on the ex
treme edge of the mass which rests sgainsi
the bridge. the PIttsburg fremen have 4
stream playing on the wreckage. They
are literelly in the middle of the river put
ting out the FIRE. Bonfires are burning
everywhere. Fire is the agent employed tC
help the committee get rid of the refuse
and broken wood By means of Gre the
Cambria iron company cleared away most
of the litter of lumber and will soon be
able TO work on the heavier piles. The
completion Of the temporary track and
bridge which permits the passage Of trains
allows the men TO work much faster than
before, and get the tools and material
closer at hand
This was the day set aside by the citi-
zens' committee for burying the unidenti-
ied dead that had been lying ia the
morgues since Sunday. The men in charge
of the burial have been busy all day. There
are no pathetic scenes at these burials.
The men hired to do this work seem to do
it Just as a matter of business. The bodies
are being inferred in the cemetery nearest
the place where the bodies were found
About noon a procession of fifty
cOffined bodies were seen going up
the hill above the railroad. Not
a mourner WAS present and the sight was q
ghastly one 10 behold. Ii will take several
days TO bury the bodies now in the different
grAveyards, as there were few graves dug
until this morning and no implements 20
dig them with. A large detachment of
men arrived from Pittsburg this morning
and were put to work digging graves. AL
together three hundred bodies were taken
TO the different cemeteries this morning.
The secretary of the South Fork Fishing
club said yesterday that the club had not
filed an indemnity bond, as claimed by a
citizen OF Eoensburg; that complaints had
never been made about the safety of the
dam by any of the JohnstOwn citizens He
is undoubtedly correct as to the bond, but
is misleading as to the second part of his
statements. There is no shadow of doubt
but that the citizens of Cambria county
complaiued, and at the time the
dam was constructed a very vigorous effort
was made to put stop 70 the work. liz is
true the leader OF this movement was not a
citizen Of JOhnstown, but he was and Is q
large mine owner in Cambria county. His
mine adjoins the reservoir property. He
related Saturday the story of his lAbors in
the effort to protect the lives and prOp-
erty of the people in that valley.
he was frequently on the spot and his own
engineer inspected the work. He says the
was principally shale and
clay, and that straw was used 10 stop the
leaking Of water. While the work was
going on he called on the sheriff of Cambria
county and told him il was his duty TO ap-
ply TO the court for an injunction. The
sheriff promised to give the matter his at
teDtiOn, but instead Of going before the
court he went to the Cambria Iron COM
pany for consultation. An emplOye was
sent up to make an inspection, and as his
report " not unfavorable TO the reservoir
work, the sheriff went no farther. But the
gentleman referred TO said he had not failed
to make public his protest at the time, and
% renew 1t frequently. This recommends
lion for an Injunction and protest were
spoken Of by the citizens of Altoona as q
leckneyed subject
At South Fork, Conemaugh, Millyale and
JOnDstowD on that fatal Friday, a rumOr
Of an expected break was prevalent early
IN the day, but citizens remarked that the
rumor was familiar incident of the an
1ual freshets. IL was the old story: Wolf
wolf" They gave up the first floors To the
water and retired upstairs TO wait until
he river should recede, as they had gone
often before, scouting the Oft-told story of
he breaking of the reservoir. The reader
will note the remarkable conflict between
hat shale-and-clay story of the mine owner
TO above and the published state
nent of Gen. MOrehead, who had charge of
he construction, that the masonry was
'olid granite and Limestone, and was be-
ieved 70 be as enduring as the pyramids
'f Egypt The awful disaster would seem
20 confirm the allegation of { he use of unfit
u naterial in its construction.
Up the ragged sides of Prospect hill
he same 70 which several hundred terror
stricken people fed 10 escape the flood. an
Associated Press correspondent scrambled
MS afternoon He came upon a pneu-
nonla Scourge which bids fair 10 do for a
number of the escaped victims what the
1ood could not. Death has pursued them
20 their highest places and terror will not
lie. Every little house on the hill, and
here are a hundred OF two of them, had
bruised and halfclad fugitiyes on the dark |
lay of the deluge, and every one now was
! crude hospital. Half the women who
lad scaled the height were so over
bed ridden ever since There has been |
on the hill, but only a few is- |
Diated cases. To-day, however, several /
resh cases developed among the food fu- |
yitiyes and local physician said the pros
poets for scourge are all too promising. |
The enfeebled condition of the patients,
he unhealthy atmosphere prevailing the /
Talley and the necessarily close quarters in |
which the people are crowded render the /
pread of the disease almost certain.
To-day ray Of light came in the nature /
II carload of provisions and another /
rom Columbus, o., containing clean mat
resses and bedding. all specified for the /
Prospect Hill sufferers. On this eminence |
tands the Cambria City hospital In this /
rambling cottage, it resembles one on the /
'xteriOr, great work is being done /
through the combined agencies of medical /
Ire full of bruised and suffering ones. |
ragged from the teeth of the flood.
This evening the chRrred body of a i
Toung woman was uncovered q short dis /
ance above the stone bridge. On her fin /
yer was found a slender gold ring on |
which were engraved the initials K J. 81 /
She wore q striped wooden dress and black /
lnderskirt- Several yellow flags were /
noticed sticking mp from the black wreck i
Ige above the stone bridge. This was the /
lew plan adopted hp the sanitary corps II |
Indicate at what point bodies had beer, 10, /
ated. As it grows dark the flags are still 4
~ ana another day will dawn upon the i
Imprisoned remains People who had lost i
riends and supposed they had drffted Info
bis fatal place peered down into me
haired mass In vain endeayer 70 recOQ- Il
,ize beloved features