The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-10-04
( DAILY, so A YEAR.
I 8 CENTS A COPY.
I WEEKLY 2-TlAiE5-A-WEIcKS 81 A YEAR
FEARFUL RUIN IN FLORIDA.
TALES OF DEATH AND DEVASTA-
TIoN STILL FILING UP.

Reported AnnihfIated-Hundr
of People Alleged to BE wIthoua
Food or shelter.
Jacksonville, Fla, Oct. S.-Reports from
the remoter section visited by the storm
increases the number OF dead.
At Double Sink, in Levy county, a large
settlement, nearly every house was swept
away, and Miss Jennie IIayfield, a young
lady, was killed. Mr.. Hayheld and sew
eral children are all seriously hurt J.
d. stocl1man's house was blown down,
and he was caught in the falling timbers
and painfully hurt
Nearly every house in Lafayette county
has been destroyed Nothing is left of
Mayo the county seat. One man and a
woman were killed near there by fall
Ing tree. Another person from Mayo re-
ports that almost nothing is left of the
county. All of the timber and 95 per
cent. Of the residences are down.
The details were meager at first and
gave but faint idea of the devastation
that had been wrought by the storm ara
of the destitution of hundreds of people
along the path of the tempest. From
Cedar Keys, on the Gulf, almost to tho
doors of Jacksonville, come heartrendins
stories of ruin
The storm not only laid the forests low,
but swept away residences and outbuild-
ings, and left hundreds, If not thousands.
of people without food or shelter. This
condition is one of actual suffering thar
has never before been experienced in this
state. From all parts of the stricken dts
trict come appeals for aid that cannos
but touch the hearts of all who read them.
In private letter. that was received In
the city yesterday from a resident of Ce-
dar Keys was this appeal: For Gods
sake, do something for us. Come and sea
for yourself the ruin and devastation thar
has been wrought here"
From Baker county comes a similar
appeal, although couched in different
language
Other sections of the stricken district
Will be obliged to ask for outside aid for
the destitute In fact the reports show
that In some counties that lay in the path
or the storm, scarcely a house was left
standing, and the crops were ruined az
II forest fire had swept over them The
damage Is of such nature that 1t cam
not be pictured In words, and must be
seen to be realized.
Later advices from Cedar Key state that
the first reports Of the damage done by
the elemental monster were not exagger-
ated. The town has been practically
wiped out the property loss being esti-
mated at thousands Of dollars. The DEATH
Thursday night 1t was reported at twenty:
Fridays reports swell it to twenty-eight.
or the twenty-eight dead only the follow
ing names cdn be learned:
Bradshaw Campbell colored.
Sam Cause, white.
Mrs. Charles Doar and two children.
white.
Sam Robinson, white.
George Havens, white.
Frank Havens, white.
Henry Havens, white.
Mrs. Beechman, white.
These twenty-elght victims met their
death In Cedar Key proper, and to them
must be added the corpses Of fourteen
unknown spongers washed ashore on the
coast below the town.
The fate of the hundred sponging and
fishing craft anchored off the bar below
Cedar Key Is not yet certainly known, but
there can be no doubt that the larger por-
ton Of the schooner went down with ALI
hands. No such frail craft could have
lived in such a wind as came snorting over
the Gulf on that fateful morning Then,
too, the night was still and the spongers
were unsuspicious Of danger The hurri-
cane came with such awful suddenness
that there was no time to prepare the
vessels to meet the shock.
Many of the schooner were undoubtedly
blown ashore, and their wrecks will be-
found later on. The wrecks Of the Ger
trude and the Rosalie were reported
Thursday, and the wrecks Of four more
schooners were found Friday down the
coast
Mr.. w. H. Anderson, one of Cedar
Keys most prominent citizens, describes
the tidal waves as the most awful sight
he ever witnessed. Mr.. Anderson was In
the upper story Of his house, looking sea-
ward. about o'clock. He says that the
,Uaters Of the Gulf at that time did not
seem to be alarmlngly higher. but In an
instant this was changed and a wall OF
foamy water came plunging over the
town The buildings, already shattered
by the gales fury, went down ike sticks.
IT was soon over, but in the few minutes
mat the wave lasted, It had done irrepar-
able damage.
Al Cedar Keys the rescuers are pick
ine, M dead bodies along the coast. AZ
Shell Mound, a great pleasure resort,
party of eleven. FIVE men, three chill
dren. and three women were camped on
the suwannee river party Of surveyors
who were making their way home after
the storm found the dead bodies strewn
on the shore under logs and bushes They
were close together, which would indi-
cate that they were simultaneously killed
nv the tidal wave. Some OF those who
went down to Cedar Keys say that In ad-
dition 10 the eleven bodies named above,
eight others have been found on tho
beach. Twenty more fishermen are stu
to be heard from, all OF whom, II Is fearei.
are killed. Telegraphc communication
from Cedar Keys has been established
~ far as Bronson, thirty-three miles ON
this side. Great difficulty is experienced
getting people and freight into Cedar
Keys on account Of the scarcity of boats,
the storm having swept most Of them
away. The statement Is made that three
weeks will probably elapse before the
company will be able to resume its SER
vice. The people of Cedar Keys are great
ly IN need of help from outside sources,
and an appeal has been sent oct for aid.
The reports from other points In The
track OF the storm are just as bad ais
those from Cedar Keys, differing only in
a.. .l.,t.r rF tto