Wichita eagle., 1889-06-04
THE FIRST REPORTS,

PITTSBURG, June 3.-The following dis
patch was sent out by courier from Ebons-
burg on June l by William Henry Smith,
general manager of the Associated Press,
who was a passenger on the express and
was an eve witness of the scene at Cone
naugh on the night of the calamity. 1t
reached here tonight at midnight.
"EBONSBURG, Pa. une 1.-The fast line
trains that leave Chicago at $40,
ana Cincinnati at 7:l5 constitute the
day express eastward from Pittsburg
which runs in two sections. This train
left Pittsburg on time Friday morning
but was stopped for an hour at YOUNGSTOWN
by reports of a washout ahead. 1t had
been raining hard for over sixteen hours
and the sides of the mountains We're Gov
cred with water descending into the val
leys The Conemaugh river, whose banks
are followed by the Pennsylvania railroad
for many miles, looked an angry flood
nearly bank full. Passengers were inter-
ested in seeing hundreds of saw
logs and enormous amount OF DRIFT
wood shoot rapidly by and the train per-
sued its way eastward. The lower stories
of many houses were submerged by slack
water and the inha bltants were looking
out of the second story windows Horses
were standing up TO their knees IN water
in the streets. loaded cars were on the
bridges to keep them steady, and the huge
graph company, carrying fifteen
wires, swayed badly and sew
eral soon went down. The two sections
rap on TO Conemaugh, about two miles
this side of Johnstown and lay there about
three hours, when they were moved on 10
the highest ground and placed there side
by side. The mail train was placed IN the
lead of the first section, and freight train
was run on to side track ON the bank of
the Conemaugh. The report was
that the bridge had been washed out,
carrying away one track ana That the
other track was unsafe. There was Il
rumor also that the reservoirs at South
Fork, sometime ago a feeder OF the Penn
Svlvania canal, but latterly the property of
club at Pittshurg and used for hunting
and fishing, was unsafe and might break.
This made most of the passengers uneasy
and they kept pretty good lookout tor IN
formation. The porters OF the pullman cars
remained at their posts ana comforted
the passengers with the assurance that
the penns vlvania railroad always took
care of its patrons. One gentleman who
was i'll had his berth made up and retired.
although advised not TO do so. soon the
CRY came that the water in the reservoir
had broken down the barrier and was
sweeping down the valley. Instantly
there was panic and rush tot the noun
tain side. Children were carried and
women assisted by few men who
kept cool heads 1t was a race for life.
There was seen the black head OF the food,
now the monster of destruction whose
crest was high raised in the air, and with
this ir view even the weak found wings
for their feet No words can describe the
terror that filled every breast or che awful
power manifested by the flood. The round
house had stalls for thlrty-three
locomotives There were seventeen
or twenty of these standing
there at this time. There was an omlni-
Gus crash. and TIE round house and loco
motives disappeared Everything in the
main track of the flood was swallowed up
by the angry waters. There was nun
dred houses also swept away. Inc loco
motives Of one of the trains was struck oy
a house and demolished. The side OF an
other house stopped in front oil another
locomotive and served as shield
There was car of the mail turned INTO
the rear OF the second section OF the tram,
the coupling broke and the car moved out
on the bosom of the water. AS II would
roll the men on it would shift their posi-
ton. The situation was desperate, ana
they were given up for lost. Two men
seized ropes and ran along the
mountain side TO give them
cheer Later report showed
that the men escaped over some drift wood
as their car was carried near a bank. Ii
j. believed there were several women and
and children inside the car OF course
they were drowned.
AS the fugitiyes on the mountain