New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1900-09-11
STORY OF THE TRAGEDY.
GALVESTON WRECKED BY TERRIFIC
TEMPEST AND FLOOD.

Houston. Tex, Sept. 1O.-Richard spiIIane. a
we'll known Galveston newspaper man. and day
correspondent Of The Associated Press in that
,rey. ~nO .~-ohed Houston to-day after terri
BILE experience. gives the following account OF
the disaster at Galveston:
"One of the most awful tragedies of modern
times has visited Galveston. The city is in
ruins. and the dead will number probably one
thousand. l am just from the city. having
been commissioned by the Mayor and Citizens
Committee get in touch with the outside
world and appeal for help Houston was the
nearest point at which working telegraph in
struments could be found the wires as we'll as
nearly all the buildings between here and the
Gulf of Mexico being wrecked.
When I left Galveston. shortly before noon
yesterday. the people We're organizing for the
prompt burial of the dead. distribution OF food
and all necessary work after period Of dis
aster.
The wreck Of Galveston was brought about
by a tempest so terrible that no words can ade-
quateIy describe its intensity. and by a Hood
which turned the city into raging SEQ Inc
Weather Bureau records SHOW mat the WIND
attained a velocity of eigLey-four miles an hour
when the measuring instrument blew away. so
it is impossible to tell what was the maximum
The storm began at , o'clock Saturday morning.
Previous to that great storm had been raging
in the Gulf and the tide was very high. The
wind at first came from the north. and was IN
direct opposition to the force from the Gulf
While the storm in the Gulf piled the water up
on the beach side of the city. the north wind
piled the water from the bay on 10 the bay part
of the city
FLEEING FROM COMING STORM
About noon IT became evident that the city
was going to be visited with disaster. Hundreds
of residences along the beach front were hur-
riedIy abandoned, the families fleeing to dwell
iugs in higher portions of the city. Every home
was opened TO the refugees. black or white. The
winds were rising constantly and it raIned in
torrents The wind was fierce that the rain
cut like a knife.
by 3 O'Clock the waters of the bay and Gulf
met. and by dark the entire city was sub
merged The flooding of the electric light plant
and the gas plants left the city in darkness. To
the streets was 10 court OcdlL- me
wind was then at cycIonic velocity. roofs.
cisterns portions OF buildings. telegraph poles
and walls were falling. and the noise Of the
wind and the crashing of the buildings were
terrifying in the extreme. The wind and waters
rose steadily from dark until 1:4O o'clock Sun
day morning.
CAUGHT LIKE RATS IN A TRAP.
During all this time the people OF Galveston
were like rats in traps. The highest portion Of
the city was four to FIVE feet under water, while
in the great majority Of cases the streets were
submerged TO a depth of ten feet To leave
house was to down. To remain was to court
death in the wreckage. Such night Of agony
has seldom been equaHed-
without apparent reason the waters suddenly
began to subside at 1:45 a. Within twenty
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Iva