The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1889-06-07

Ever known In America.
The most terrible disaster ever kno WI
ito happen any locality 10 the United
States, occurred on Friday last. In the
valley OF the ConemAuxh river. In Penn
'sylvanis. sweeping out OF existence the
city Of Johnstown. with 1900 inhabi.
ltants, and half = dozen other fl%ourIshins
towns IN the vallcyo Of from 1000 70 ? ON
population each. Many persons were
able 70 escape 10 the hills. but Il IL esii.
mated that At least 10 600 human being.
we're drowned, and o25 100000 worth .
properly DESTROYED.
II appears there was a large ARTIFICIAL
lake. three miles long, two miles wide,
aud ii places 100 eel deep, formerly used
a. . reservoir tor the Pennsylvania canal
but for years past belonging "a . Pitts
burg Fishing and Boating Club. situated
up an ofi-hoot from the valley, about 30t
feet higher thsn Johnstown. The art.
icisl liam which held the water 10 place,
had been raised much higher since the
Boating Club ow ned II, aud although i
was 80 feet In dIameter 81 the base aud
Is feet on top, has for years been con-
eide cred unsafe whenever rains filled the
lake near full, aud the people in the val
ley have experienced numbers OF fright,
from being warned that II was about q
burst, until when told Of the danger on
Friday but few paid heed TO II until toe
late 10 escape.
The dam burat and the water rushed
madly down the valley. IN q wall thirty
feet high, carrying desolstion and des.
Ifruction with il. Entire families were
swe to destruction and death with Their
houses. which were jsmned together In
the bed OF the river. with millions Of fee'
OF lumber. thousands OF saw logo. nun
hers OF bridges. "a locomotives swept oil
OF railroad tracks. and hundreds OF cars
in one appalling drih, 50 feet deep and
over I mile long, while the three aud
four story brick houses in the business
street Of Johnstown for iis entire length
and the cellsrs filed up with debria
covering dead bodi~s by the hundreds
No such scene has ever been ~itnesaed
in America before. Many heart.rend.
ing Incidents are published in the daily
papers. which eacn morning for q week
have hal columns adding 10 the ever re
vealing and increasing horrors, and 81
the bodice are dug out Of the mud by the
hundreds, publishing the names Of such
AZ are identified.
"A spring wagon came slowly from
the ruins in what was once Cambria,
In IL on . board and covered by = muddy
cloth we're the remains OF Editor e. 4,
Schubert OF The y ohnstown Free Press, a
German. Editor Schubert was one OF
the most popular ant weIi-known Ger.
mans In the city. Thursday he had sen
his three sons 10 Conemaughborough
aud Friday afternoon he aud his wife
and six other children called 1t Mr.. Crib
ble's residence. They noticed the rise
of the water, but not until the food from
the burst dam washed the city did the
anticipate danger. All fed from the
first to the second floor. Then. as the
water rose, they went into the attic and
Mr.. Schubert hastily prepared . raft mp
on which ell embarked. just ss the raii
reached tho bridge = heavy piece Of tim.
Der raised from the water and swept lhp
editor beneath the surface. Tie ran
then glided through aud ell the rest were
rescued. Mr.. Schubert's remains were
found beneath . pile Of broken timbera
His coffin was carried to his widow and
lchildren At the house Of . friend In Nor
reilville.
The corpse or . beautiful Young woman
lay In the extemporized morgue. Sew.
eral people say II is the body Of Miss Ida
Fischer. . prominent young lady o.
Johnstown.
St. Marie's German catholic church
~ nd q nnarfon nj q nntla Aaln~ eIr
bridge. LIS walls are standing hut 10.
side Il u filed with mixed, broken
benches and ruined images. IL II were
found the msngIed body Of r. Eldridge
and several others. The distance to st.
columbus catholic church il halfa mile
The streets to il are filled with broken
houses, and people Ia those thst were
left standing were busy shoveling mud
from the first floors. The scene Ct st,
Columbia church was awful. Forty OF
fifty bodies had been carried into 1t and
laid on the muddy seats.
Lying In q row Ia this church were
I'VE children from two to six years old.
No one bad identified them this after.
noon. Their little curls we're matted
with mud. Their nostriIs were filled
with sand. and their eyes often com
pleteIy covered. No one had come ID
wash away the dirt from their tiny faces
nor the blood stains from the awful cute
and bruises. Where are their parents
Five hundred tents arrived from Ohio
Monday night. in charge Of Adjutant
Genl. Axline, and have been put up OF
the hillside, and ere now occupied b,
families.
AllaIong the banks IL . mass OF driftef
clay that has settled do n with the fall
lug waters. and beneath II are man,
bodies. That this IL the Gaze was show
by an incident thatoccurred TO our party
Ono Of the party saw what looked like
piece Of tur sticking above the surface
Il was thought 10 DO dog, but when J
was kicked q hand and arm was knocked
out. The party then threw back the cla'
aud uncovered the body Of fine lookinI
woman about 30 years old. She VA
we'll dressed. The body wss washed Of
- we'll - possible and left on = board.
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