Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1889-11-21


When he was on the roof, one Of the
men held him by the arm, expostulating.
soothing, and reasoning with him.
Il am not mad, Somers said, soberly.
I am az sane as you are, my friend !
have lost my wife. Why should ] stay
here now2 / want 10 die. do not care
to live"
81 can sympathiEe with you," said the
man, but it is nobler to live to try to
help these poor people. You, a young
man, may save many lives. For the sake
of all that is good and pure, help us. I
see you are not orazed, as some Of these
poor wretches are. Let us at least die
bravely, like men,"
You are right" Somers said. See
how will profit by your counsel"
He ran to the edge of the roof, seized a
board lying on ii, and called to the man
to hold one end of it. Then, taking the
other in his hand, he sprang into the
water, sustained himself by holding the
board with one hand while stretching out
the other he caught three women in sue
cession as they were borne toward him
and pushed them to the roof, where they
were instantly seized and pulled out Of
the water.
Next he grssped an old man, then two
children. After that he lost reckoning,
The roof, fortunately, lodged against an
other, over which many of those on the
roof most exposed ran quickly until they
reached a house that still stood firm.
The windows of this they broke open,
and soon all clambered in or were pulled
into this house, until a score or more
found safety for the present at least.
The man who had reasoned with Som
ers implored him 10 enter the house also,
telling him he would certainly be lost,
but Somers only shook his head, and
strove again and again to snatch from
death little children, women and men
that were borne past him.
Then the condition of affairs suddenly
changed. Instead of human beings, ami
mals-horses, COWS, pigs and all manner
of fragments of houses and fences came
toward him, with here and there hand
thrust out of the water, or head. All
manner of litter and rubbish whirled
past him.
The surface of the water was covered
with q mass Of wreck. Great trees sud
denly thrust their branches up, immense
logs struck with force against the frag-
ments of houses. The cracking of wood
against wood was the last sound that fell
on the ears of hundreds who we're rolled,
crushed remorsely beneath the accumu-
lating mass that moved steadily onward
with velocity that was frightful.
No sane man dare venture to remain q
moment in the water now. Somers got
upon the roof, then walked to the roof
next the first and stood grasping win
dow, but it was impossible for him to
turn his face away from that horrible
procession. He gazed upon the scene
spread before him spellbound, fascins-
ted.
As far as the eye could reach, the valley
that had sheltered thirty thousand inhab-
itants was suddenly converted into Q
river of turbulent waters, on the breast
of which houses entire and portions of
houses were borne on-on to the bridge
below the city proper. With the excep-
tion of few houses here and there, all
the portion of the city on the fiat had
been swept away by the avalanche of wa
ters that leaped down upon the doomed
city from the South Fork dam, miles
away.
Entire families grouped upon house
tops, or clutching convulsively to frag-
ments Of their homes, swept past. Here
a man, there woman, battled frantically
for life in the flood, and the children,
merciful powers! the innocents, they
seemed to be without number.
A sturdy, gray-haired negro shouted
rather than sung hymn as he sank be-
fore Somers' eyes; then came girl upon
pile of loose boards singing, Jesus,
Lover Of My Soul, fervently, and follow
ing her was group huddled on roof,
with one figure standing out vividly.
1t was little girl looking straight up
to heaven, with her hands held up and
apart in prayer.
@Merciful God!" exclaimed Somers, as
the tears coursed down his cheeks, spare
the poor children"
Then he turned his face aside and
shook as one seized with the ague as
youth and age, men and women, people
in every station in life, rich and poor,
were borne past him in the endless pro-
cession of death.
The people of the house that with
stood the food looked out on those car
ried past them, powerless to lend assist
ance. Somers heard the survivors exclaim
in horrifed tones at intervals as they
beheld their intimate friends swept on
ward. The occupants of the attic Of the
only house left standing in that part of
the city wrung their hands helplessly or
looked out dazed by the presence Of
death, as their friends, living and dead,
MANNED, bleeding, and stunned, fosted
past.
Human eyes could bear no more, when
ordinations from score reused Somers
from the torpor that was rapidly benumb-
ing his faculties.
Once again he felt himself grasped,
and then he found himself standing in
the attic with at least two score, many of
whom were gazing wildly toward the
bridge.
Turning his face in that direction
slowly, Somers beheld sight which
made him start. He tried to speak, but
the effort was vain. His tongue Glove to
the roof of his mouth.
The sight that rendered Somers
speechless burned itself into the brains
Of all who witnessed it. The vast guam
tity Of floating matter lodged against the
bridge. Tremendous as the pressure of
the water was, it was not strong enough
to sweep the bridge away. The houses
borne. against the bridge were simply
ground against each other until the entire
mass was reduced to vast network of
fragments. Beams, logs, trees, fragments
of houses, freight cars, and passenger
cars were ground up in that tremendous
pressure. The pile of debris grew until
it reached thirty feet above the water.
And now fame leaped up; tongues Of
fire reached out here and there; they
stretched themselves serpent-like up to
the top of the indescribable mass Of ma
terial, and licked up human lives. Men
and women and children held fast there,