Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1893-07-13
THE IOWA TERROR.
Awful Work Of e Tornado Near
POmeroy, IL.
Seventy-four Persons Killed and Many
More Fatally Iniured-A Scene OF
Desolation and Sorrow-A Night
OF Horror-The Victims.

ACCOMPLISHED in the matter of casualty
in northern Iowa. The town of POme-
row is one of wreck. There is scarcely
q house left standing.
About fifteen acres of debris consti-
tutes now what was thriving village.
Splinters are all that remain. Pome-
roy is part and parcel of the prairie,
the -death-dealing wind having left
barren and desolated everything as
far as the eye can reach. Scarce
ly a tree remains Piles of broken
timbers and an occasional piece
of furniture are all that can be found
of what was once the largest building
in the place. Two hundred and fifty
houses were in all destroyed, and the
money loss of these and their contents
is placed at 100000.
Thursday night in Pomeroy was one
that will never be forgotten by those
who were there. Darkness followed
quickly in the wake of the tornado,
and those who escaped death and in
jury were compelled to grope their way
among the ruined homes, guided along
by the cry of some poor unfortunate
who was pinned under the falling tim
bers. Almost every light of any de-
scription whatever was destroyed, and
surrounding places failed to bring Ian
terms with them The search for the
victims therefore was necessarily slow
till morning came.
The tornado-for such it was-came
from the northwest. All of those who
saw it agree that it was not of the fun
el-shaped sort, but came bounding by
there like huge ball. 1t was of 4
dark green color and was accompanied
by terrific noise. There are those
who saw it approaching when far out
of town. Most of the people became
panic stricken. They ran out
OF their houses and filed up the streets,
crying and shouting till struck
by the timbers or whirling trees.
The cyclone was but of a few min
utes' duration and was followed by a
terrific rainstorm, which continued at
intervals throughout the night. The
path of the storm seems to be an eighth
of a mile in width and twenty miles
long.
Fairfield, in Cherokee county, was
visited, swelling the total number
of dead fifteen. Eight more are re-
ported killed at Storm Lake, and many
other places give notice of one or more
deaths.
Gov. Boies arrived yesterday after
noon and took charge of the whole af
fair.
The governor said the situation was
far worse than he had expected. He
ordered more tents from Des NIoines
and said he would have a company OF
more of soldiers on the grounds. The in
tense heat made it impossible to keeE
the bodies of the dead, and those who
were not claimed by relatives or friends
and by them buried or taken away by
noon were placed in the graveyard by
the officials. Forty graves We're dug
nd filed with dead up to o'clock last
vening. At that hour the fitting Ian
erns in the cemetery showed plainly
that the work of burial was still going
on. Hundreds of willing hands dragged
the dead and dying animals, with
which the ground seemed literally
strewn, to points on the outskirts OF
the town, piled them in big heaps and
covered them with the remains o1
houses and applied. the torch. Fully 6
dozen of these strange bonfres were
kept going all the afternoon.
Whole families were in many in
stances wiped out by the tornado ant
houses that contained all the way from
four to eight persons. not more thar
one escaped alive. Husbands have
been left without wife or children
Children are left orphans and there
are fifteen or more women II PomeroJ
who have neither husbands nor chill
dren left.
LIST OF THE KILLED.
1t is impossible to obtain a list of in
iured, but an almost complete list Of
the dead follows:
AT Pomeroy-Mrs. Bessie Banks, Mrs Dahl
gren, Mrs. Near, Thomas Harmand, Andrew
J. Wilkinson. John Anderson Mrs. John An
aerson, Mr.. Hughitt Mr.. and Mrs Silas Bus
ton Mr.. and Mrs Melting and son, Mrs. FranL
Johnson. enjamin Davis, Miss Lille kiefer
Roy Banks, Miss FrCSt, Mr.. and Mrs Arnold
Mrs Marie Adams, Mrs Harland, Mrs. c. H
Jorge Banker F. o. Davis. Miss Ollie I4und
green, Miss Katie Davy. Mrs. o Brien and
child, Mrs. B. G. Hawlowe, Mrs TaSerL two
children of John Beckley.
Three miles east OF Pomeroy the f0llowin ;:
Mrs. Duwith. ]. P. Lundgreen, Silas Weston
Mrs. Dahlgren, Mr.. Hewlett and wife A Fol
key, Henry Geike, Mrs Quinlan and baby
Miss Allie Maxwell.
a short distance from Pomeroy the following
dead were found: Miss Tillie Johnson, Baby
Dahlgren, Grocer Black. Is years old; George
Black. years DID, Della Black. IL years old;
Samuel Maxwell, Richard George, unknown
boy.
Five miles southeast of Fonda Eve were
killed: Mrs. Morton and three children, Iohr
Molvneux. Mrs. Lester.
About five miles south of Aurelia we're the
following fatalities; Samuel Burch and wife
and three children, John johnson, Lille and
Leila Slattery, Swede girl, name unknown;
John Peters
Southwest OF Storm Lake FIVE were killed
Jacob Gretter and child named BotIaa AZ
and two unknown. Five miles south of Newell
family OF three were killed names unknowG.
Fight With a Lion.
CHICAGO, July S.-During the per
formanee in Hagenbeck's arena at the
worlds fair Darling, the lion tanner,
was attacked by Pasha, one of the big
gest lions. The beast sprang on him
and with one blow ripped the tanners
clothing into shreds- a big blood.
hound seized the lion by the throat
and the man beat the animal into sub
lection with heavy bar. More thar
1000 persons witnessed the accident
Several women tainted. The cowboys
rushed up to the arena with revolyers
and only with difficulty we've prevented
from shooting the lion The man was
badly scratched.
Prehistoric City Discovered.
OAXACA. Mexico. July Snail adj