The Saline County journal. [volume] (Salina, Kan.) 1871-1893, 1889-06-13
Az fsrEREsrrsa LErrEn.
Al. Andersss to his lister. Mrs. n. y.
Carroll.


ALTOONA, Pa, June 4, 1859.
DEAR LIDA.-It 10 with sorrow
that I sit down to give you . Sigh.
decription Of some Of the devasta-
ton. destruction and suffering that I
witnessed in visiting the on ce beau
tiful city Of Johnstown, now an
indiseribable mass Of debris-dead
horses, human beings, furniture,
and every conceivable thing you
could imagine and which no pen
can descrIbe-piled ell over { he bus
iness portion Of Johnstown, IN some
places 100 feet high.
The first and m ost important
thing you will come 10 know will
be some little particulars In regard
to your dear relatives, who were
swept away and who are no doubt
Ia heaven. was too late TO see the
remains Of poor old Mrs. Carroll but
AscertaIned that she and Thomas
were nicely buried, but up to this
time they have not been able 10 fiud
the remains OF poor Rosa. I saw
when struck by the food went 10
pieces. was told by Q gentleman
who saw IL that Just before the food
struck the house he saw Tom go In
the door summing as fast ~ he could,
no doubt to save his dear mother
and sisters. Mrs. Carroll Was found
A hs.r InaUaa Ia H..
cellar Of q Mr.. Hudson, whose house
will be made 10 recover the body Of
the young lady and when found will
be decently buried. Altoona upon
the news Of the great calamity called
q meeting. elected q relief commit
tee, OF which I am chairman; raised
about q. 10000 Ia money and drew
about 800 men 10 work on the ruins.
Although entirely cut of from
JOhnstOvn by railroad aud telegraph
cOmmun icatiOn having TO ship 60
EbensbuFg aud then wagon over
eighteen miles Of the toughest roads
ever saw. mud up To axles Of
wagons, We were the first to get
In five ear loads Of supplies and go
men and really up TO this time our
men are almost the only ones who
have been organized aud doing sf- |
fective service. The Cambria Iron |
company are using all their force |
to get their own works cleared aud |
citizens who wish TO rebuild are do |
ing the same for their own property,
while our men are working 10 |
remove the mountain of debris and |
human beings piled sgsinst the |
stone bridge, under which there IL |
ten or fifteen feet OF water and |
which covers acres of ground. You |
will no doubt wonder why did not |
write or Telegraph you sooner. The /
reason was that we have not had /
RAILROAD or telegraph communication
farther west than South Fork or
east farther than TryOne and will /
not have for weeks To come. The /
loss to railroad companies will be
millions. They have no road at all /
from South Fork TO JOhnsIOwn.
The river now occupies the place
where the road was. ] went To tel
egraph office In JOhnstOwn yesterday
TO telegraph you (the line was only |
repaired to there at that timel hut
foHud your brOther-in-lav had
already Photographed you.
/ could oil pages, Ida, telling you
OF hair breadth escapes. deeds of
heroisnI, etc, but have no time
to do 81. The sisters and priests
made q miraculous escape. When
the flood came they went to the
upper story OF the convent
which was brick. The one
half was swept away the other
stood until the water got low
enough 20 wade out when Il tum-
bled to pieces. Mr.. Jas. Murphy
and wife were drowned. Col. Hig-
gins and wife safe but had all awful
experience. You see the most
heart rending scenes ever witnessed.
meet scores Of little children
who would look up In my face and
ask II | had seen their papa or
mamma, they having gone down ia
the ruins. ] passed = beautiful live
year-old bihe-eyed little girl who
asked me for n pin. The request
was 80 simple that watched her to
see what sne wanted IL for. She
had nothing on but an old calico
dress split up the back. She :
TO pin Il rs there was no but
tons on II. l asked her where -he
lived. She pointed To the ruins aud
said her home was there but papa
and mamma and all her brothers :
md sisters were drowned aud home
zone. IL seems wonderful but ID IL
true: q good majority Of parsona
'aved were children. Higgins told
ne he saw n little boy six years old I
md his little sister three wears old .
IN n door floating down towards the q
tone bridge. lie kne W as soon ~ Q
he door would strike the debris they
would 90 down To rise no more. He G
vas preparing to shut his eyes when G
struck the back pud Of !
he door which dumped the two l
little dodgers" up Ia nirhe in the q
lie Of debris, from which they were v
escued the next morning. liz with
lie arm around her waist had held her J
here all night. have been toI that y
here has been 3, 80 buried up To this i
ime. II will probably reach go. In K
hubert House there were sixty =
line guests, eight were saved. The u
'irst National bank building IL
part of the e. +. store also j
art Of the club house Col Hig- 7,
ins hOtsl). The English Catholic u
hurch stood the food but after u
ards took fire from natural gas o
nd burned. All there Is left stand y
~ Is the tower and the large gilt q
ross. Enclose you small rough u
lap, which will show you the situ- u
lion. The red lines show you the u
estroyed portion. "
Mrs. Wilkiusou's folks all saved u
1t property gone. We have
good khOspital establ ished I'M %
er Altoona physicians. I went st
trough the dead house several M
mes. IL IL q sight never to be for OF
'tten In q hurry-with regards. 81
Truly Yours, oil
A. A. ~
ri
saIIae River BubbIInga. ID