The true Democrat. [volume] (Bayou Sara [La.]) 1892-1928, 1899-09-23
CANNON FOR CYCLONE
HOW A KANSAS TOWN ESCAPED
DESTRUCTION.
The Deadly Tornado swsrved from us
Course by an Artillery Attaok--An
Old Sea Captains Novel ldoa-baineo
claimants,

L
Elements.
HeunesIey, Ok, correspondence OF
The Philadelphia Times: The cyclone,
which earlier in the week swept
through Wisconsin and Nebraska,
wreckiAg towns and killing hundreds,
reached Hennessey Thursday morning
just before 10 o'clock, and that the
town is still standing and compare
lively uninjured is due solely to the
inventive genius Of one of the citizens
Of this place, Capt. John R. Hoades,
4 retired sea captain, who, though hith-
srto generally regarded as visionary
crank, is now hailed as the savior or
The hundreds of lives that but for his
unique scheme would unquesttonably
have been lost.
Mr.. Hoades' scheme consisted in
posting a large 15-inch smooth-bors
Parrot cannon. purchased by popular
subscription from the condemned stock
ut the New Orleans arsenal, on the
tour sides of the town, each gun I'M
der the care OF a watchtul attendant
during the cyclone season. The can
non were designed to be fred into the
lace of an approaching hurricane IN
The hope Of breaking Its force.
When the news reached here that
tornado was sweeping southwark over
The prairies east of the Rockies, 1t was
feared that when 1t reached the emma
mon river It would swerye from Its
track and follow the course OF the
stream, as was done by the hurricane
that killed seven people here in the
autumn OF 1897, a sharp bend in the
stream then throwing the storm over
The peninsula upon which Hennessey
Is situated.
The cannon to the west, where the
Town is partly protected by the Wichl-
IA mountains, was accordingly with
drawn and placed on the northern
border as an additional protection. I'm
fortunately, however, on the approach
Of the funnel shaped cloud the western
gun was fred a couple Of seconds toe
soon, swinging the storm toward the
east, SO that the shot from the other
< gun did not take full effect. The com
I bined effort SO changed the tornado'f
course, however, that only the ex
IRENE eastern edge Of the town wal
u touched, but here the one house fully
l. in its path was completely demolished
!. and the cannon which guarded tina
md Of the peninsula was blown from
. its carriage, carried fully 500 feet an
u hurled in a sand bank. The attend
: ant at the gun, the inhabitants OF tn
l. solitary dwelling demolished wer
o warned in time to escape with thei
~ lives.
! In speaking of the marvellous success
Of his plan for fighting tornadoesI Cap
ID Hoades, the originator of the schem
ri said
RI II can hardly claim to have invente
The plan, for l have twice seen wate1
. Vpouts broken by the same metho
70 while following my former aTocatle
re On the sea. Indeed. 1t was this tn;
c. hrst suggested the scheme to me-"
Ds after the cyclone OF 1897 sugges
;, I'd that HenneBsey, which is directly
the path Of the south bound torn
10 does, adopt this apparently stran|
plan Of protection. 1t is only fair
is. state that at first I was the laughil
n. stock of the town. and it was only
persistent argument that 1 finally !
ZIG crested Mr.. Thomas, Of the Chicas;
no coal company, in my plan. Back
ap by SO influential a citizen, we final
gathered together enough money
a popular subscription to purchase TO
out Of date guns that saw servl
around New Orleans during the CT
war, and mounted them In the plas
selected. The most singular feature
The whole matter Is that the one dive
no Ing destroyed by today's storm "
occupied by the most persistent douI
er in the town.
~ can effort will now be shortly mad
led Capt. Hoades concluded, ito slmila
to equip all cities in the tornado belt,
the late experience Of Wisconsin and
~, braska towns having clearing prov
~, that the hurricane cellars hitherto
r'n lied on are nothing but death traps
'ot- which their occupants are crushed
meath fallen walls or burned in
,ts ares which SO frequently follow
- storms"
A town meeting will be held toni
Ter to do honor to the aged preserver
der the town, and the mayor Of Hennes
ng, has declared his intention Of resign
nj his post in favor of Capt. Hoades
- suggestion that finds much ia
among those who owe their lives
un' the captains foresight .
mer ------