The daily morning journal and courier., 1897-04-29
4 HARVEST OF DEATH Wall of Water Six to Eight Feet High and a Mile Wide OeIuges West Gu-
 thrie, Oklahoma.
AN APPALLING LIST OF DEAD
ESTIMATES HUN FROM FIFTY TO
 TFO HUNDRED AND FIFTY.


 EsTIMATES HUN FROM FIFTY TO
 TWo HUNDRED AND FIFTY. At Least Twenty-nine Persons Known to Have Been Drowned in the Raging Sea of Water-IGvery Movable Thing Swept Before the KesIstless wave-Hundreds of Houses Were Wrecked and Many posed to Have Been Caused by Cloud burst Supplemented by Heavy Rains The Inundated District Presents a Pa thetic Sight-Most of the Sufferers Are Negroes-The Main Part of the City Is Uninjured-The Loss of Property, as We'll as the Loss of Life, Cannot be Accurately Stated Owing to the Confusion and Ab- sence of Lines of Communication.
 Guthrie, Okla, April 2S.-At sunrise this morning a mighty wall of water from six to eight feet high and mile wide broke upon West Guthrie without warning, crushing houses, sweeping away property and drowning many people.
 Every movable thing was swept be- fore the wave which passed on into the Canadian valley with resistless force, wreaking terrible damage to property Dozens of lives are known to have been lost, how many may not be known for weeks, hundreds of houses were wrecked; many farmers were completely ruined, bridges and tracks were washed out and railway traffic in every direction is at standstill. The efforts of rescuing parties have in many cases proved in vain.
 Many persons floated down stream before they could be reached and their fate is unknown. Others will pass the night in trees in mid-stream or perched upon housetops. The property loss Is placed at something near a million dol lars.
 Fully two-thirds of the victims were colored. Business has been suspended all day in Guthrie, the store and banks being closed. As thorough an organi- zation for relief as is possible has been made, but all aid has been necessarily retarded by the confused condition of things.
 It will be impossible to explore the houses until the water subsidies as many of them are submerged. As darkness gathered over the scene many over- T fo, t11a food but it could not be learned whether their occupants escaped. The river is thirty feet above Its ordinary level. A heavy rain began falling this afternoon.
 The flood is supposed to have been caused by cloudburst supplemented by heavy rains.
 Guthrie. o. T.. April 2S.-When dark ness settled over the city tonight the widest stories of loss of life were afloat The estimates ran all the way from fifty to two hundred and fifty persons drowned While the larger figure is undoubtedly an exaggeration, it is known that the loss of life will reach, if not exceed, the lesser number.
 The bodies recovered are:
 Anna Kaiser, school teacher. Frank Mayors.
 Others known to have been drowned arc:
 George Owens.
 J. H. Calhoun, wife and child.
 Charlie Ruffner and wife.
 Erastus McGill.
 Lena Burk.
 Not
 Mrs. Wesley McGill and five children John Metz
 Mrs. H. James Montgomery.
 Mrs. Frances Moore.
 John Beard.
 Mrs. Sue Wilson.
 Jennie Taylor.
 Sarmie Jackson.
 George Smithers.
 Mrs Dummills.
 Jim Lilly.
 Mrs. Dumas.
 H. H. Beckffnger.
 It is believed that loss of life has also occurred south of Guthrie, along the cottonwood river. Many farms in that district are reported to have beer swept away. Seven miles south ot here, at Seward, Hunts store and the ~postoffice were swept away.
 Four thousand dollars was raised here to-day for the relief of the suffer. CTS.
 Fl Reno, O. T., April 2S.-For the frs time since the white men settled in the Canadian valley twenty-nine years ago, this morning sun sent it's rays over an Oklahoma sea. The dry spell was broken Saturday when a fierce storm that turned the streets into torrent: washed away crossings, tore out sewer! and moved small buildings, broke upor the town. Saturday at midnight tht situation was intensified by a hurricane blowing forty-siX miles an hour, whicI drove bIinding seets of water through the roofs of already damaged houses. Persons were driven in terror tt storm cellars and caves and spent tht night in momentary expectation of be ing borne away by the flood.
 Sunday morning shone bright ana clear and the guage showed a fall O 5.1 inches since Saturday noon. Int streets had been plowed with gulches