North Park union., 1900-09-21
TERRIBLE LOSS OF LIFE BY
FLOODS AT GALVESIpN

Galveston, the metropolis and leadlng
xeanort of Texas, has been visited ny
the most destructive gale and HOOD IN
the history of America. Estlmates oi
the loss OF life vary from l,ooo 10 o'VpN
while no computation of the properly
loss has been made.
Port Arthur is under four feet OF wa.
tor and many other towns on the gun
coast have suffered disaster, the extent
Of which cannot be known for days.
The storm has extended Inland anu Is
still raging. leaving in its wake scores
of corpses and dozens OF demonsheu
towns and villages.
Houston, Tex. Sept 0.-1Op. m.-Ihe
West Indian storm which reacheu .ne
Gulf coast yesterday morning mas
wrought awful havoc In Texas.
Reports are conflicting. but IL Is
known that an appalling disaster mas
befallen the city of Galveston, where,
1t is reported. Il thousand or more ilNes
have been blotted out. and tremehd-
ous property damage Inflicted.
Meager reports from Sabine fass
md Port Arthur also indicate n heavy
loss of life, but these reports cannot De
confirmed at this hour.
The first news to reach this city from
the stricken city of Galveston was re-
ceiyed tonight. James G. Timmins Oh
Houston arrived here at O'Clock 10
night from Galveston. After remain
ing through the hurricane on saturday,
he departed from Galveston on IL
schooner and came across the bay TO
Morgan's Point. where he caught
train for Houston. The hurricane, Mr..
Timmins said, was the worst ever
known.
The estimates made by citizens of
Galveston was that 4.UU houses. most
OF them residences. have been destroy
ed, and that ut least 1000 people have
been drowned, killed or are missing.
Some business houses We're also de-
stroyed, but most OF them stood,
though badly damaged
The city, Mr.. Timmins AYERS. is n
complete wreck. so far as he could see
from the water front. and from the
fremont hotel. Water was blown over
the island by the hurricane, the wind
blowing ut the rate of eighty miles an
hour straight from the gulf, and fore
ing the sea water before it in big
waves. The gale was steady one. the
o'clock yesterday evening and contin-
uIng without intermission until mid
night last night. when 1t abated some
what. although 1t continued to blow all
night.
The scenes during the storm. Mr..
Timmins said. could not be described.
Women and children were crowded in
to the fremont hotel where he was
seeking shelter, and all night these un-
fortunatcs We're bemoaning their loss
of kindred and fortune. They were
grouped about the stairways and in
the galleries and rooms OF the hotel.
What was occurring In other parts of
the city he could only conjecture.
The city OF Galveston. he says, Is
now entirely submerged and cut Off
from communication. The boats are
gone the railways cannot he operated,
and the water is so high that the people
cannot walk out by way of the bridge
across the bay, even should that bridge
be standing.
Provisions will be badly needed, ms n
great majority of the people lost NIL
they had. The water works power
house was wrecked and water fam
inc Is threatened, rs cisterns were ruin
ed by the overflow OF salt water. This
Mr.. Timmins regards as the most seri-
GUS problem to be faced now. The city
is in darkness its electric plant having
been ruined.
There Is no way of estimating the
property damage mt present. So far as
lie could see or hear Mr.. Timmins says
the east end portion Of the city, which
Is the residence district. has been prac.
tically wiped out of existence.
In the west end. which faces the gulf
on another portion Of the island. very
much havoc was done.
The beach was swept clean. the bath
houses are destroyed. and many of the
residences are total wrecks.
The town of Alvin is reported to be
practically demolished.
Hitchcock has suffered severely from
the storm. while the town of Alta Lo-
ma is reported without a house stand
ing The town of Peurland has lost
onc-half of its buildings.
One-half of the state of Texas was
swept by the hurricane.
1t ragged furiously from half past .
o'clock until noon to-day. The storm
prevailed for thirty hours. but was most
destructive during the night Hardly
II place, from the Red River on the
north. to the gulf on the south. escaped.
Galveston and the gulf coast were
stricken yesterday afternoon, and the