Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1899-05-03

Struck.
Two cyclones left trails of death behind
them Thursday in Missouri and Iowa. One
swept through Newtown and KirksviIle,
Mo-, just at nightfall, causing immense de-
struStion Of proper:y aud appalling loss of
life. Tic lesser storm struck the Soldier
river valler in western Iowa about mid
night on Wednesday night, wrecking the
country and shifting with wounds and
death the people in the vicinity of the
town Of Ute
The Known Dead.
At Kirksyille, M,....................
Al Newtown, Mo................... 20
At Ute, Iowa, an0 vicinity. ......s........
Some reports from the stricken districts
made the total number of injured exceed
300, and figures of The killed varied also,
but it is impossible at the time this is
written to give accurate details.
The sky emnt:si its fury in gigantic
cyclone upon Kirksyile, the town made
famous by osteopathy, at 6:20 o'clock at
night, while most Of the Inhabitants were
at table. The entire eest side OF the city
was wiped clean. More than 100 dwell
ings and business houses were totally de-
stroyed. Several Of the wrecked build
ings took fire, adding difficulty and danger
to the work Of rescue. Mayor Noonan
Friday morning said the death list would
reach 75. Tn tornado approached Kinks
vile from the southwest, and passed only
two blocks from the heart Of the city. Sew
eral public institutions were just outside
the storm zone, otherwise the loss of life
would have been more appalling.
A broad, clean path, nearly quarter
of mile in width, lies through the town,
as smooth as virgin prairie. Probably
400 houses are scattered as fragments
somewhere beyond the town in woodland
and prairie. In the heavy rain following
the people who escaped turned out to res
cue the injured and hunt the bodies of the
slain.
Surgeons, professors, operating staff and
students, men and women Of the American
School of Osteopathy, together with all
the druggists in the town, formed rescue
and hospital corps. Rescuing corps lifted
roofs and searched the ruins of houses all
along the edge of the death track not en-
tirely demolished for the wounded, the
dying and the dead. Half dozen wreck
ed dwellings took fire Immediately after
the cyclone had passed.
The storms coming was announced with
roar and deep muffied rumble of dis
tant thunder There was a suction from
both sides, and before the advancing col
umh, while steady crunching, cracking,
grinding noise was heard distinctly above
the roar Of the elements a mile from the
path of the cyclone.
The cyclone approached Kirksville from
the southwest. At dist ance 1t seemed to
be making for the fair grounds and people
at the American School os Osteopathy, on
the west side of the town. watched it's
coming for two minutes in fear that it was
| bearing down upon them. Before reach
ing the town limits it veered further east
however, and cleared the State Normal
School without touching it
Patterson's extensive nursery, just west,
was swept down to bare soil. The course
from that on was through well-built-up
| section of the town, made up mainly of
low houses, and largely populated by stu
dents Of the normal school and American
School of Osteopathy. Marcus Wards
| seminary for young women was a couple
of hundred yards east of the storms path.
A hotel building close to it was demol-
ished.
A score of guests stood upon the porti-
Goes and at the dining room windows of
the Still Hotel, half a mile west of the
storms path, and saw it sweep through
the town. Roofs blew ahead Of the blast
like leaves, seemingly far in front Of the
revolving sncut full hundred yards in
/ The sky.
One horse was blown out of the shafts
of road wagon, which lodged against the
front or house in the edge of tie winds
track. No one knows what became Of the
animal. Members Of households disap-
peared with partial demolition Of homes,
while others remained unhprt among the
debris. Along the edge of the storms
path holes are seen through frame houses
as II punctured by cannon balls.
A second edition OF the cyclone followed
| the first in about twenty minutes. 1t
came as an ink-b black cloud widely distrib-
uted and covered the whole town. MANY
| sought refuge in cellars. The tai; end OF
| the cyclone did not break upon Kirksvile.
however, seeming to go by overhead 1t
| is believed generally that the second cy-
clonic wave dropped to the ground before
| travelling much further on its Journey The
| heavens became black for fifteen minutes,
after which heavy rain fell for an hour
and half. BY o'clock the sky was
clear and starry.
| Mayor Noonan telegraphed to every sta
| ton between Bloomfield, Iowa, and Mo-
berly, Mo-, for surgical assistance. I'm
| dertakers wired ST. Louis and Chicago
rush orders for coffins Scores OF fami-
lies will be rendered absolutely destitute
In addition to losses by injury and death.
The reports from country districts indi-
Gated that many lives were lost in the
surrounding farming districts. Henry
Lowe and three children, living three
miles north of Kirksville, were crushed
beneath the timbers of their wrecked
home. Several other members OF The fs m
| lily escaped injury. Other fatalities are
reported from the country. but 1t is not
likely that an accurate death list win be
available for several days. The tornado
destroyed telephone and telegraph wires
out of Kirksviile and not until $50 o'clock
Friday morning was communication with
| the outside resumed, and then only in an
unsatisfactory sort of way.