Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1899-08-16
Two Thousand Persons Were
Drowned by Recent Flood
Porto Rico.
THOUSANDS ARE STARVING.
Distress Has Overwhelmed the
Beautiful Island-General
Davis Reports.

NEW ORk, August l0.-A ulSpdtcH
to the Herald, from San Juan, says:
Communication with the distressed dis
tricts is still partly open. Arecibo was
devastated by the hurricane and later
was flooded by the Arecibo and Manati
rivers. Two hundred bodies have al
ready been recovered and hundreds
more are missing. 1t is thought they
were swept into the sea. The town is
inundated to depth of six feet. After
the water subsidized the dead were found
lying everywhere. The bodies were
buried on the spots where they were
found. The town is now rapidly filling
up with starving person from the coun-
try. Only four soldiers were drowned,
but all are without shelter. Captain
McComb and his men did valiant SER
vice in saving life. Forty persons were
rescued from floating wreckage A
thousand head of cattle were lost there.
At NaranZito, twenty persons are
huOWh w uoNO UCCL hlllCOs uOubauQO
are homeless and starving. Moravis is
totally dest, we'd.
At Ciele Menty persons were killed.
At Cay,y the death roll is at least
ninety. 1t is impossible to estimate the
loss of life lid property in the country
districts. Ersry river is still swollen
and passage is we'll nigh impossible.
Crops are totally destroyed. Children
are dying by the hundreds from starva-
ion and exposure. All the people are
flocking to Bayamon for food and shell
ter.
A courier has just arrived from va
bucoa. He says the town was demol-
ished by the storm. Already eight
bodies have been recovered. 1t is esti-
mated that ECO person have perished,
and many wounded. Medical assist
ance is scarce in all parts of the island.
What makes the present distress
greater i5 the fact that a month ago all
public improvements were stopped ow.
ing to the lack of appropriations. ThOus-
andS of persons were then thrown out
of employment. The renewal of public
works will be great relief to many
planters and merchants who are ruined
and cannot give employment
General Davis says the latest reports.
show the disaster to have been greater
than he anticipated and extends over
the whole island. He is doing every
thing in his power to alleviate suffering
and has every confidence in the gener-
Gus results from his appeals to the
American people.
Where possible the troops that lost
their shelter in the hurricane have been
ordered to San Juan. Mayaguez is suf
fering but slightly. All vessels in the
harbor are ashore.
CONDITIONS ARE APPALLING.
WASHINGTON, August 16.-The ap-
palling conditions existing in Porto
Rico were made more fully known to
the war department today by General
Davis in dispatch which says that the
deaths outright in the island will reach
20C0, while many are dying daily from
| injuries and privation. The general
aids:
"Dry split peas are very acceptable.
Canned peas involve too much trans
portation in proportion to the nutri-
| ment but can be used near the sea
coast, although there is much destltu
| ton in the interior and deaths are oc-
CuEElDk lIUm lhCh VI lOOus Ii VIII HOt
Le possible to reach those points with
packs before next week, for in many
cases the roads and rails are SO destroyed
that only men ON foot can get to and
from those districts.
| "Stores coming Oh the Mcpherson
will be in time, for am supplying the
most pressing needs at all accessible
points with stores now on hand. So
great is the destruction of roads that
there is no communication as yet with
one-third of the island. The command
ing officer of each Of the twelve posts is
ting as inspector of relief fer his dis
trict and he has detailed a man In every
municipality In collecting data and re
lieving the most pressing needs. have
furnished each inspector with similar
funds and given authority to issue food
from the army supplies.
zone soldier died from injuries; the
others injured will recover. A great
many wagons were overturned and
broken but all are being repaired. Many
thous n Is of private cattle and horses
were drowned. A large part of the
deaths of natives are from drowning