The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1894-09-12
THE DEATH ROLL SWELLS.
fhe Work of Burying the Dead ana Car
Ing for the Lying,


PINE CITY, Mimi, Sept. 5.-The
general executive committee in charge
| Of the relief work in this section. has
made report of the dead bodies re.
covered thus far as follows:
Hirckley 27l, Sandstone II, Miller
Gotten called Sandstone Junction. Is
between Skunk Lake and Miller y
Pokegama 25, on the timber camps 50
Total 4sO.
Ghouls are at work in the vicinity of
Sandstone. Today party from Du.
luth under James Bailey came down to
help bury the dead and while searching
around at noon, came upon gang
who had broken open and rifed some
safes and when Bailey and party met
them they had just found a cistern
from which they had hauled fifteen
dead bodies and had robbed them of
jewelry, rings trinkets, etc., and were
throwing the bodies back into the well
Bailey and party were unarmed, and
the ghouls took to their heels and
escaped.
A frame powder magazine at Sand,
stone, portion of which was left
standing and which was empty was
torn down for material for coflins.
The fire was seen by the Sandstone
people four hours before it struck the
town and everything was packed up
in readiness to move to Kettle River
east of the village. Before anyone was
aware of the real danger the fire came
upon the town from the north, east
and west and firing the whole town in.
side of five minutes. Many were un-
able to reach the river and died in the
streets. A blacksmith burned to a
crisp in his shop, where he was shoe
ing a horse. So sudden was the fire
not thing was saved and in thirty
minutes the whole town was swept Off
the earth.
Those who reached the river remain
ed most of the night. The survivors
are entirely destitute and have not
even clothing to their backs, except
such as is provided by the relief com
mittees. Whole families are wiped
out.
President Sam Hill of the eastern
Minnesota branch of the Northern Pa
cific came up from Hinckley this
morning and took northern train
over the st. Paul and Duluth road.
Mr.. Hill took the Duluth Road to
within nine miles of Sandstone and
walked over. The big eastern Mime.
sofa bridge over the Kettle river has a
steel arch IN the middle 1870 feet long
and is still intact, though wooden sp.
proacheS are burned.
THE scene of death and ruin along
the road Is terrible one," says Mr..
Hill, mot sign of life is anywhere
to be seen, all is blackened, charred
mass of ruins. Dead animals and hu.
man beings are everywhere and they
are buried where ever found. In one
old we'll was found twenty-five snakes
and forty or fifty field mice all together
alive. There were many peculiar fea-
lures Of the fire. In one place, where
all else was burned and blackoned all
around. We found wagon with the
hay in the box intact, while the horses
were dead. There Is yet to be closed
up on Minnesota, gap of twelve miles
between Hinckley and Duluth, eight
miles, Of which are between Hinckley
and Sandstone. There are four miles
In st. Cloud direction, which will be
closed up by tomorrow. 1 noticed ia
one place some freight car wheels were
melted, while not three hundaed feet
away was another car untouched.
Judge NethaWay, Of Still Water, has
been one of the most active in relief
WORK, and has been all over the sur
rounding coantry. He found the fam.
lily of Jack Robinson, man, wife and
seven children all dead and hardly re-
cognizable and also found j. o. Row
10y, agent of the Minnesota and
Winnipeg. Several miles northwest of
Hinckley today he came to a spot
where farm house had stood. In
front was we'll and over to the left
could be seen five human bodies and
bodies of several animals. Judge
NethaWay went at once to the well to
see if anyone was there, and found
down in the bottom, little 12.year- old
boy In eight inches of water. who had
lived there since Saturday with moth
ing to eat. The little fellow was pull
ed up and said he had been put down
there when the fire was seen, and an
awful bad smoke had passed over him
and 1t was awful hot" He asked the
Judge if he knew where his father
J and mother were, and his dog. Judge
NethsWay tuG..' him on his back to
where he could be led. while other par
ties went back after the five bodies.