Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-05-31

of brick.
The works Of the Johnstown spinnin
company were situated at the higher en-
| OF the town, and consequently it was on
OF the first works IN the place, whicl
was struck by the flood.
Owing TO the warning which had com
| from South Fork the mills had beer
stopped and Mark and Charlie Hesketl
were leaving the works when the water
overwhelmed them.
The two friends were making thei
way homeward at a quiet pace, neve
suspeoting that the dam would give way
although warning of its weakness had
been spread abroad, when loud grind
ing roar far up the valley caught theil
ears.
Instinctively they came to a sudden
pause and glanced towards South Fork,
whence the sound came. All they could
see at first was dark line which spread
| right across the valley, and which was
moving rapidly towards them.
Nearer and nearer that dark line came
rushing, louder and louder grew the
thunderous roar. Standing there on the
river bank, the young men wondered for
moment. Then their hearts sprang to
their Threats as the truth flashed npon
them.
They could see the great wall of water
and wrecked houses rolling down upon
them; could see solid buildings vanish
like mist before 1t; they saw great logs
tossed high in the air, to fall back into
the flood with a splash; they realized
their imminent peril. but for the moment
the horror of the thing held them SPELL
bound.
fMY God!' burst from Mark 8 lips,
in low, awed way, "the dam IS burst!'
The next instant they had burst away
and were fleeing like madmen for their
lives. But swift as were their fear
winged feet, the rushing, roaring, de-
stroying flood was far more swift. Ere
they could reach the high ground on the
valley ridge, the waters had caught them
up, swirled them along, quilted them in
Its surgIng depths.
When Mark Eliot rose to the surface he
was half senseless, owing to the fierce
impact of the flood. Fortunately he had
not been struck by any portion of the
floating wreckage, and when he emerged
from the sudden darkness into which he
had been plunged he found himself drift
ing alongside what appeared TO be the
roof of a submerged house.
With struggle he contrived to crawl
upon the raft of states, and then, as he
was borne along, he glanced about in
quest of his friend. But Charles Hesk-
eth was nowhere visible.
Around and about him were all manner
of floating ruins-upturned houses, great
logs of timber, uprooted trees-sach and
all inhabited by some poor despairing
mariner like himself. From many of the
drifting dwellings came the shouts and
shrieks of women and children, but over
all the clangor of fear and pain rang
out the crash of the swiftly rolling tor
rent.
Looking ahead of him down the valley,
Mark perceived the great bridge of the
Pennsylvania railroad, through the wide,
tall arches of which the flood was already
pouring. Just then he felt a sharp shock
which nearly flung him from the raft,
and then he noticed that his strange craft
had come TO standstill.
For some minutes he remained there
anchored, and the flood tore past, carry
ing on its breast all sorts of things. Now
a house would drift past with two or
three half-distracred people on its roof,
now live and dead bodies would surge up
to the surface, to disappear the next
and animals innumerable-
horses, cows, pigs, sheep, dogs, cats
battled with or tioated llfeless upon the
swiftly flowing current.
Presently most piteous and moving
tragedy was enacted within Marks
sight. High up the stream he saw |
portion of q roof drifting, and as it ap- |
he preceived that three living |
persons were seated upon it-a man about |
No. %
appeared to be his wife, for she had |
babe clasDed fast to her breast, and an |
I'D woman who appeared to be the |
mother of Que or the other.
On the raft and its occupants came, |
drifting down the further side of the
tream-far away from Mark, yet near
enough to be seen plainly by him. |
IN the other side of the valley a great
prick house of four or five stories, evil
iently an hotel, stood well out of the
lood, and on its roof stood some half-a-
lozen people.
Mark could see that the people on the
DOT of the brick building had seen the
Irifting raft and its tenants, aud were
bout to make an endeavor to save them,
or one of them stood on the edge of the
oof ready to cast rope to the man
Then he came near enough.
The man on tine raft noted the prepa-
atoms that were being made to rescue
i'm and his dear ones, for Mark could
ee him talking to his companion, and
apparently instructing them how TO act,
Then the moment of action came.
On the drift came with a rush right
longside the great brick house. The
rave man stood with his arms around
he women, and as they swept past the
ouse he reached up and seized the rope,
cling jerked violently away from the
omen, who tried to seize it but failed to
rasp the life line.
Seeing that his wife and babe and
lother would not be rescued, the noble
earted fellow relaxed his hold on the
ope, and fell back on the raft, which
Dated down.
The current then washed the raft to-
ards the bank, and the young man was
labled to seize upon the branch of a
zee, which lowered above the surging
aters. While he held tine raft by sheer
rength of arm the two women managed
Chamber among the branches, and
len he sprang into the tree after and |
sside them and the raft drifted away.
Then up the river there was sudden
ash and great pile of wreckage came
Keeping along, striking the tree, wash
e it away, and engulfing mother and I
N, wife and babe. Not one of the
lree rose to the surface again