The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1900-09-14

way of finding out just what has hap
---- -. enough is known to make IL
certain that there has cen great loss
OF life and destruction OF property all
along the Goa n for a hundre
miles inland. Every town that Is
reached reports one or more dead and
the property damage is so great that
there is no way Of computing it accu-
rately.
Galveston remains isolated. The
Houston Post and the Associated Press
made efforts TO get special trains and
tugs today with which to each the
island city. The railroad companies
declined to risk their locomotives
All sorts of rumors prevai but with
no substantial basis. 1t is known that
h railroad bridges across h bay at
Galveston are either wrecked or are
lkly to be destroyed with the weight
of a train on them: the approaches TO
the wagon bridge are gone and II Is
rendered useless. The bridge OF the
Galveston. Houston and Northern rail-
road is standing. but the drawbridges
owe Clear creek and at Edgewater are
gone and the road cannot get trains
through TO utilize the bridg across the
bay. A train went down the
Tap road this morning as far as Chen
ango Junction. The town was greatly
damaged and the bodies OF nine ne
gTOtS were ldhcll lEOll III IuIAS VI Oh
house. The train could proceed no fur
thr and came back TO Houston, leaving
the fate of the peol at Angleton, Co
lumbia, Brazora, Nelasco and Quin-
tana uncertain
The small town OF Brookshire On the
Missouri, Kansas and Texas was al
most wiped out by the storm. The
crew of a work train brought this in
formation. When the train left three
bodies OF foul persons had been recov-
cred and the search for others was pro-
ceding.
Hampstead. across the rive from
Brookshire. was ais greatly damaged,
but so far as known no lives were lost.
Three persons We're drowned at Nor
gan's point and others are missing.
With the exception of those OF MeSsrs.
Nicholson and Mrs. Jane Woodlock,
the bodies of the dead have not Yet
been identified.
In Houston one person was killed
Henry Black, a hackdriver. The prop
erty damage is great, a conservative
estimate placing il at $250,0OO,
TOWN OFF ALVIN GONE.
Houston, Texas, September 9.-Mea-
gre reports are arriving here from the
country between Houston and Calves
, ton along the line of the Santa Fe
railroad. The tornado was the most
III the nISlOTy Oh lne SldlS-
The town of Alvin is reported TO be
, practically demolished. Hitchcock has
| suffered severely from the storm.
while the little town of Alma Iona is
reported without a house standing.
The town of Pearl has lost one half
of it's buildings.
l.. B. Carlton, president of the bus
mess league of Alvin and a prominent
merchant there reports that not a
building is left standing in the town.
Alvin is a town of about 1000
inhabitant. Seven persons We're killed
in and near the town.
SITUATION AT GALVESTON.
| Dallas, Texas, September 8, 3 p. M
T~elegraphic communication with south
Texas is cut off about 100 miles north
of Houston. Up TO this hour it has
been impossible TO obtain reliable news
from Galveston as to the extent OF the
/ hurricane in tina section. Rumors of
! dire disaster are flying thick and fast
| without being in any way aurhenticat-
ed. All that is known is that the dis
aSter has occurred, but its extent is
not known. The last wire the WeS-
tern Union had to Houston went down
at 1870 this morning. This wire was
used by the Associated Press, and was
working so badly at that hour that
whatever information Houston had to
impart could not be made out. The
storm centre is rapidly approaching
| northern Texas and its fury wrecks
all telegraph lines in its path, doing
vast damage and killing people in cat
tered territories.
The conditions at Galveston and
! Houston are undoubtedly grave. The
four immense bridges, from four to six
miles ZACH in length, connecting Gal
weston with the mainland, are either
wholly or PARTLY destroyed.
A private message from San Anto-
Mo states that a serious disaster oc-
J CURED at Corpus Christi, ROckport and
| other coast towns, the nature of which
| cannot be described.
All the railroads southwark from
| Dallas at noon issued a bulletin in.
structing their agents to discontinue
the sale of tickets or accepting freight
for the south until further orders. Al
the efforts to Sabine a anC
] Port Arthur nave failed.
LIFTED FROM THE TRACK.
Houston, September 9.-The Santa
Fe train, which left here at 1855 Sat
urday night was wrecked at a poin'
about W. miles norh of Alvin. Mrs
Prather of Rosenberg, Texas, was kill
ed and several were injured. The trair
was running slowly when it encoun'
tered the heavy storm. 1t is reported
that the train was literally lifted r
/ CQe TRACK. MTS. fTdU1eT WIS lulONI
across the car and half way through
a window. When the cars was reached
it was found that her head had beer
under water and she was drowned.
RELIEF TRAIN BLOCKED.
Dallas, Texas, September 9.-The fol
lowing telegram was received from
Houston by The News:
Relief train just returned. II coulC
get no closer than six miles of Virgin
ia Point, where the prairie was cover
ed with lumber, debris, pianos, trunk
and lea bodies. Two hundred corpse.
were counted from the train. A larg'
steamer is stranded two miles thi
side of Virginia Point, as though
thrown up by a tidal wave.
Nothing can be seen of Galveston
Two men were picked up who fioate'
across to the mainland. They say the,
estimate the loss of life up to the tim
they left at 1000"
The above message is addressed L
superintendent Vaughan, manager o
the Western Union telegraph office a
, Houston
OTHER TOWNS DESTROYED.