The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1893-03-25


Storm for Years.
CmcAao, March 24.-A special to tho
Herald from Memphis, Tenn, Gays: The
most destructive cyclone in the history
Of this section swept over northern
Mississippi and western Tennessee late
Yesterday afternoon, leaving death and
destruction in its wake. Kelly, Missis-
sippi, a town OF about three hundred
inhabitants, was wiped off the face OF
tho earth, every building in the place
being totally demolished. So far as
known twenty-throo people were killed
outright and about sixty injured.
The cyclone reached Kelly about 3;45
o'clock yesterday afternoon, spreading
havoc in every direction. Long before
the wind struck tho town a strange at
mospheric condition was detected. The
air grew very dark and then moaning
sound was heard, and finally greenish
colored cloud was seen rapidly APP
preaching from the southwest. The
storm was about hall q mile wide, and
everything within its course was picked
up like straw and dashed TO pieces.
Large houses were crushed like shells,
while giant forest trees were uprooted
and the trunks picked up by the whirl-
inr wind and carried for miles. The
public school building was the first to
go down before the fury OF the storm.
The pupils had been dismissed but u
few minutes before, and most OF them
had left the building, which fact pre-
vented an appalling loss OF life. Several
OF the children were caught in the ruins,
however, and crushed to death,
A row OF frame buildings was the
next to fall prey to the cyclones fury,
and with n loud and deaiening roar
they were literally torn to kindling
wood and the fragments scattered over
wide area Owing to the darkness it
was impossible to learn the full extent
Of the loss OF life and property.
WORSE AND WORSE.
A later dispatch from Kelly. Misslsa-
ippi, Gays; This morning moro
thorough investigation was made re-
garding the damages by the cyclone
yesterday, which showed that matters
were worse than expected. Reports
were numerous. Every countryman
who came in added horrors to the situa-
tion.
Kelly, itself, is only a small place oI
about thi,.y houses, OF which, twelve
or fifteen were entirely swept away and
OF those remaining nothing is to show
there was ever residence except by
tho mass OF debris, which is scattered
in all directions.
AS far as can be learned there was
not house left standing within the
scope Of tho cyclone, which ranged
from n quarter to half mile in width
southwest Of Kelly, Tho injured are:
Payne -, negro, wife and five
children; Payne badly bruised, being
crushed under his cabin. His wife
crippled and internally injured. A
small baby, foot mashed. An eight
year.old girl, head crushed in, will die,
the other two escaped.
llorret Smith, colored, killed, four
miles southwest Of Kelly.
Chris Burford, colored, head mashed
and both shoulders broken, will proba'
bly, die.
Eph Mclaughlin, colorod, shoulder
dislocated.
Jim Payne, skull crushed and arm
dislocatcd.
The child Of Mr., Cox, probably ia.
tally injured.
Several others were reported injured.
Some OF tho losses are: Harrison
Smith, barn blown down and several
head OF mules killed.
On the Lemon and Gale farms, five
miles from here, not house OF any
description was loft standing.
Tho store OF II. W. Mann was badly
wrecked.
The house Of Harry Dean was blown
down. K, G. Goodrich and Robert
Cleyens' dwellings badly damaged.
Mr.. Shannon Is tho village school
teacher, and is also the proprietor Of q
small store. Ilo was teaching when he
noticed signs Of IN approaching cyclone.
He dismissed tho pupils aud told them
togo homo us quickly as possible. In
hall dozen moments tho school house
was torn to pieces by tho wind.
Mr. Shannon's grocery Jared no bet
tor The end was blown away. Mrs
Shannon was in tho storc at tho time
and sho was raised from the floor aud
hurled through tho door panel. Boyont
atow b'hises aho was not badly injured
Fifty MILES AN HoUR.
= Fifty miles an hour was tho record oil
tho wind in Chicago to-day, A moro
serious matter to tho railroads was the
disturbance in traffic resulting from
snow and excessive rains. Mails on
nearly every road were from two to tlve
hours late.
Dispatches from Alexandria, Ind.
Vickaburg, Miss, and other points ii
the south aud west report much damage
and loss Of lilo.