The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1899-09-14
The Cyclone in Puerto Rico.

| Mr. and Mrs. r. w. Rogers, has received
letter from his firm in Puerto Rico, writ
ten since the hurricane, from which we
are permitted to make the following ex-
tracts:
PONCE, P. RI, Aug. %. 1899. . 1t be
| came necessary for me to go down to Sal
mas to see about thai contract for rail
road ties; so | went down on Monday, the
day before the cyclone. Rob met met me
there and that same night he, Shoemaker
and Masser started back for Ponce on a
mule team; they went by the way of
Coamo Springs Hotel Tuesday morning
the cyclone struck us, and since that time
| until yesterday | have hardly slept or
eaten.
1t started to blow pretty hard early in
the morning and, as the place we were
living in was a big, old-fashiOned planta-
ton hacienda, the shutters and doors
banged furiously, 50 got up, swore a lit
tie, tried to fix them, and then went back
to bed again.
At six o'clock the wind was so high,
and it was raining SO hard, l decided not to
go to work that day; and we'll it was did
not, for the wind increased SO that by
eight a. N. the sheet iron roof was sailing
| around in pretty lively style. At last it
94ndo,, tbe bonse for oafa+11 In lass tL'an
half an hour trees were blown down and
houses were lifted up like chatf and scat
tered by the wind, and no person could
! live before it, About nine there came
short lull, and the wind, which had been
| from the north, changed to the south, and it
seemed as though hell had one to earth.
Sheet iron would be picked up from the
Pc birbes+ traas ,nd ort ~ s;I7hT
! Ar abnnt tynIva the haaviesf wind was
over. than tha rain oama down III shaa+s
| and The natives began 70 come in from tba
snrronndinr cnnntrv We Nod mo no1Iar
/ fnll of than7. iii hnnnrx, AZ nai5. q j.,
/ other American and I won't to SaIn,as
vodiao +o ottr waists in sauna ,,9rts of ia
road There we houoht herring CRACKERS
and rum and fad tho noor dnvils W.
! hotb snan+ Oh u ia and +bcn etLn,o,,
| ia storeLeanar ~, ~ r,ora
/ When lrot hack we found an American
from DeFor,l's nlace which i five miIas
! helow salinas Who said he had haen sant
bv Mr.. Gnjler to town for nrovjsions
advised him NOT II %. bur As he said he
1 would or hreal, sometbing in trvino de-
cided 10 On wifi Nm e. saddiad m
| tbp hest 6orsa n b,va since hom~ht hi,nl
artn a n al ,iyr
and fn1nd Il . rani,9 to,rant and s+ilI
~isina. So tnrned and want hack to tba as
/ tate When wa rot +hore If a,as Anodad
/ md tba honsa had "a roof. 90 IVA AVA ~,
shelter ont If zinc for The women and
! children and at NIGHT startad ant am.in
Ar salinas we found the TOWN tioodad
ont nv tbe river and in the lower mart of
the town tbara was ovaI Ava faat If watar
Women were shriekino and nravino and
children were bowling So we Started in
70 do The ]ifa savinn III and carr;ad hean.
t;fnI sonor;+as and souo1I1inr 1,;ds 49,, 10
lower nart Of no town m to hiabar
nro,,nd Wa uant h.cl ~ IL astata
abont midniob+"tbe darLast nioht ave,
saw-and the horses were mn to tbair
oirtbs in watar. sometimes rnnn;no into
falIor +roos ~ ono;r ;rto di+obas A.
ias+ No n,a,a na - ~ b,ol- snrna,a q.
and loft orr horsas in t7a collar and tben
nant ~ nod ON donr +b,t uas hlnun ~ ~
and had . GOOD SLAM cnnsidarino erar,-'
.h;na The ,,o,t ,d,,,iel WY a7+oa a;,+
aaain and fa1nd M Nv, riTer rn,ch Iowar
~ 1, st;ll dan0aro,,sIn birh ''''
Manas NJ oo rny AN old oava,r,,
manmswora ' ha wonld nv # and staIted
;n h,t liz hnrsa 1..a,,+ i,+o daor ho1a
and yaS +atan DOW stresm h1 the ,n,1r9
rent ma haa ,,arrow asc,na fron,
d 1n, hn+ u ~ cot OFF ,hort
to hrn5rod nards 5 streay, on ~
same side he went n FinaIlv We took off
onr clotbino and raded in d,ago;no tho
borsos sftaE ne S and ~" arossaJ all Ti%hf wy
We1l 70 ma,a lonr storv sLort. ,e
1,oro +,ro da~s na a. 7 70 town on+he
Wv va n.ssad Eaan,a snr;ncs uotoI INA
fo1;nd that nIaco had},. wracled That
MONT we Law nnder a loo on the banks Of
rlsno we 10y unue lug liz ~ un ~ "a. p'nns ~
po nlfo 1,,a e'no NJ ava hoaa 70 fsa ao
~ t;,-7 n' W ..''n" 4t1 aeaa rho w soe