Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1894-11-21

hour is supposed to be the best q
tornado can do Ny belief is that
this one WAS going at sabout sixty
miles. Anyway. 1t wasn't any more
than six or seven miles distant by this
time. and gaining on as rapidly. III
my reckoning was correct 1t would
catch us in little more than twenty
minutcl The way l calculated IL
was that the great peg-tOp was NOV
Ing at the rate of three miles to OuI
Two.
"It w.s the most frightfull specta.
Gle to look at that can possibly be
imagined. To me it seemed to be a
monstrous giant, pursuing US with
an evil intention to DESTROY. Now
and then the b!ackness would be
transformed into dark green
and it was constantly lighted up by
flashes. as if it were an immense
b loon illuminated from within 1t
ap cared to whirl around with in.
conceivable rapidity, and from 1t
came a sound across the prairie as OF
believing, with voice 80 awful that
the rumbling of the locomotive was
lost in it. OF the destruction it was
accomplishing l could get no notion
From my point OF view. Fortunately
there were few settlements in that
part OF the country. but as we passed
Two or three small hamlets at full
speed l ,uId see the people running
about trying TO find some place OF
safety.
The boy staggered to my side
the rocking OF the engine made 1t
d fiicult to Keep ones feet-and
clutched my arm. l stopped my head,
and he yelled into my ears, Make
the bend
II knew what he meant on the in
slant. Less than ten miles ahead OF
US was bridge over river, after
crossing VIII ch the road turned
abruptly southwark. 1t was a freak
railway anyhow, and its zig-ZaSs
were intended to pass through as
| many supposed centers of future pop
ulation as possible. The only long
stretch of it in a straight line was
| lust where we got caught by the
tornado. l. we could get to the bend
| ahead of the monster We might run
out of its track.
"As you may well imagine, l had
no opportunity t. consider the plan
calmly and in detail, but it struck me
| like a flash. 1t was race for life sure
| enough. If that engine never did
her forty miles an hour before think
she must have done that and more
too, then. With the great funnel
Cloud rushing on behind us and
steadily approaching, We tore over
| the rails at frantic rate of speed l
was fairly crazed by the excitement,
SO that it almost overcome my sense
of fear. / remember distinctly that
/ pulled the whistle cord and let the
| locomotive scream with all her might
though it could hardly be heard in
| the roaring of the pursuing tornado.
''Six miles passed, as well as could
| estimate, and the monster was only
about four miles behind. Three
miles more AID it had lessened the
distance by mile at least. But we
were nedI the river. A minute later
and We we're running across the
| bridge. No time then to heed the
warming that trains must run slowly
over this stream, in obedience to the
sign post.
over the bridge, we flew around
the curve and dashed away south
| ward. just in time to see the mighty
| balloon pas; by with a whirl and d
roar. as if all the demons in the in
fernal regions were let loose. Wo
could not make out anything We y
distinctly, the sky being darkened
and the air filed with dust, but we
knew that we were safe. A few min
utes later the clouds rolled away ald
everything was Us quiet and pea eful
as before the storm. We ran back
to the bridge, but it wasn't there. II
Tas clean gon,, ard sucn remains OF
llt rs were let were scattered all over
he country. The road was SO badly
torn up, the track for considerable
distances being twisted and broken
10 pieces, that the expense Of repair
~ it bankrupted the company.
eleven people lost their lives by that
tornado, which afforded me an ex-
perence which / would not repeat for
Ill the money in the world. "-Wash-
ington Star.