The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1895-01-22

| Orr, one of the volunteers. Chic
! Cameron directed the attack on the
| building and while some of the firemer
hauled u like of,hose along, the Others
started In to tear off the iron coverings
of the building SO that they could get
| at the flames.
Just as they had succeeded in tear.
| ing of portion OF the covering and
/ secured an entssasnce, the first explo
sion came. A binding sheet OF flame
forced the door from it's fastenings ant
shot q hundred feet into the air, fol
lowed by a second Of deadly silence
and then came the awful roar, carry
ing with it snnihilation to those who
closely surrounded the death trap, and
destruction on every hand.
The loss OF life is yariously cstimat
ed at from fifty to seventy-6ve and the
wounded will probably exceed one
hundred and fifty.
The sights in tho undertaking estab
lishments this morning are something
awful. All are crowded with heaps OF
human flesh. Here was IA half head
and mutilated trunk below it, in an
other place an armless and legless
trunk with the face disGgured beyond
all possibility ofrecognition. Scarcely
any of the horses were recognizable
and the complete roll of dead will
probably never be known. FOrty-thrce
wounded are in the hospitals and
twenty-eight of them in q critical con-
dition. No attempt will be made TO
complete the Identification of the dead
until the injured are all cared for.
AS far as can be learned, no one sus-
pected the presence of powder in the
warehouses and, as is customary, when
u fire is raging people were crowded
lf, h,,r ,,t, nj
as they could get. The fircmen had
arrived only minute or two before
and were almost in the act of turning
on the first stream of water when q
small explosion took place.
This seemed to be u sort of warning
OF what was to follow, for no sooner
had the first puff occurred than the
people began to suspect the presence of
II greater quantity Of the explosive in
some other part Of the structure, and
somo Of them fell back. Before they
had reached u place OF safety, how
ever, the first great explosion took
place and hundred of people were hurl-
ed right and left and many of them
mangled beyond recognition.
Bodies wore thrown for hundreds of
yards IT,, all directions. Some were
thrown against houses and smashed to
q pulp, while flying debris literally
knocked the heads from others where
they stood. One body, it is reported,
was seen flying through the air at n
height OF 200 or 800 yards. Blood,
brains, arms, legs and other pieces Of
bodies were flying around everywh here.
Many of the wounded wero q pitable
sight. After tho first explosion oc-
Cured, they were compelled, by their
hciplesouess, to lie near the fire and
the heat only intensi fed the pain they
were suffering. They begged to be
conveying them from the sccnce at
that timo. a hackman, seeing the
terrible state Of affairs, drove up and
attempted to assist in the removal, but
while in the act, tho second explosion
took place aud killed him and his
horses and many of the wounded.
Hours after the explosion, the fire
was still burning and the strench of
bodies was terrible. Forty
four bave beon recovered and as
many more, it is feared by some, are
still in the ruins. Never before have
such exciting scenes been witnessed in
Montana
The explosion occurred before many
people had gone to bed and when the
horror of the situation fastened itself
upOu uhcy pilSii "HoiS
strength and the means about them in
aid ,st the wounded and in caring for
the bodies of the dead. no good esti-
mate can be made OF the number Of
wounded. They were cared for by
every conceivable method. Vehicles
of evcry description were pressed into
service and mangled men, women and
children were taken to hospitals, the
city hall. drug stores, public buildings,
doctors offices and residences.
1t may be several days before the
full list can be published. Only about
one half Of the dead bodies 80 far re-
covered have been identified. The
undertaken shops are full Of identified
bodies and ut the police station are a
large number OF unidentified ones.
These bodies are fearfully mangled
and burned, and as the faces OF most of
them are unrecognizable, the only
means OF Identification will be by the
clothing or other property found on
the person of the dead.
This morning it is estimated that Is
to 100 persons are already dead, but it
is impossible to get tho names on ac-
count of tho mangled condition of the
remains. 1t is likely many will never
be identified.