The record-union., 1895-05-02
epeeia, to the REcoRD-UNIoN

| Special to the REcoRD-UNIoN.
WICHITA (Kas.), May Ia special
from Halstead, Kas., says: A 4:30 o'clock
! this afternoon fearful cyclone devastated
a strip of country several hundred yards
wide and at least sixteen miles in length.
killing six persons outright and seriously
injuring several others. while many have
received slight injuries.
| The cyclone first struck the house of
Mrs. Fry, widow, who lives about nine
miles southwest of Halstead, completely
destroying it, but only slightly injuring
Mrs. Fry. 1t next picked up the houss
of John SultZ, and scattered it in every
direction.
| The fine two-story house of Joseph
| Wier, which had only recently been
built at a cost of over $1,000, was entirely
swept away. killing Mrs. Weir, Grace
Weir, aged IL; Hermann Weir, aged 5,
and a fve-weeks' -old baby. Mr.. Weir
left the house. and when the cyclone
struck it was about fifty yards away
and clung to tree. He received in
juries which may prove fatal. Joseph
| Weir, Jr., and sister Maud were the only
ones in the family who took to the cellar,
and escaped with only slight bruises.
The next house in the path of the storm
was that OF James Armstrong. which was
completely wiped from the face of the
! earth, and Mr.. Armstrong was killed,
Mrs. Armstrong probably fatally injured
and Grandma Chaplng, who was there
sick i'll bed, was killed.
| About loo yards from this house the
| large two-srory residence OF 3. Z. FrizZel
was picked up, as was also large two
| story house of j. K. Frlzzel across the
thnr y, ,rl1 tlrfaO MT
! buildings, were completely swept away.
| The families OF both the FriZZelS eS-
capped injury except Mrs. j. X. FrizZel,
| who is considerably bruised about the
head,
The next place visited was the home of
Captain William White, which was only
| partially destroyed. Across the road
from Whites the house OF Cyrus Hill
ston was carried away and Mrs. Hillston
received injuries, but she Is not conSld-
cred seriously hurt.
| Spencer Ross house was in the line of
the tornado and was carried away, as was
| the home of A. S. Powell, at which place
| Miss Daisy Neh and Mrs. J. A. Com
mons were considerably injured.
| In the Hege district school had just
been dismissed, and through Mr.. Hege's
! foresight the children were hurried out
of the path of the storm along with his
family. Had they not SO been taken care
1
life.
The fury of the storm seems to have
done it's worst about five miles west of
| Halstead, where all six OF the persons
We're killed near the Frizzel home. Dead
| horses, cattle and hogs and chickens are
| scattered all over the wheat fields.
| Those who first saw the fearful disaster
coming say it made very slow progress,
! travelling no faster than person could
run. but it seemed to waver first in one
| direction, then another. Had it not done
so the Weir family could have gone to
| the orchard east OF the house, where they
would have escaped.
The cyclone could be plainly seen from
town, and Santa Fe passenger train No. 5
waited at the Halstead yards until it
crossed the track. 1t blew down several
| telegraph poles in its wild career across
the country.
AS far as heard from, covering a dis
| tance OF eighteen miles across the country
| from southwest to northeast. twenty resi-
dences, nearly all of them large ones,
| were completely destroyed.
The loss will fall not less than 500, 900,
beside the six deaths and the injured. two
or three of whom will probably die.
Physicians from Halstead went to the
| relief of the injured, and local assistance
is being given to the suffering families.
| Every body in the track of the storm
| lost everything, and relief will probably
| have to be called for, although only as
! last resort.
| LATER-Miss Daisy Neff, aged about 16,
has since died from her injuries.
| The storm crossed the Santa Fe Rail-
| road about three miles west of Halstead.
| The engineer Of West bound through
| Pacific express saw the twisting tornado
| coming from the south, and stopped his
ltrain and backed out. This prompt ac-
1ption prevented a wreck, for the train
would have certainly struck the storm
had it preceded. The pathway is strewn
with the wreckage OF houses barns and
outbuildings, among which are the dead
| carcasses of hundreds of horses, cattle
| and swine. Orchards were ruined, trees
torn up by their roots or stripped of their
! foliage In the line of the cyclone, tele-
| graph poles and wires were broken and
] twisted in every shape imaginable, rem
dering telegiaphic communication al
! most impossible. The storm lifted about
three miles northeast of Burton. and no
| further damage was done, though pieces
Of timber, clothing and other signs of the
wreck can be traced as far as thirty miles
| away. The path of the cyclone lies
through rich farming district. and most
| OF the buildings destroyed were OF SUBJ
| stantial character. There is little or no
cyclone insurance on any of them, and
the loss will practically be total.
4 FEMALE DENTIST.