Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-06-30
MANY FARMS RUINED
MARYLAND STORM DID GREAT
DAMAGE TO PROPERTY.
Creek at Boyd's Rose Foot Minute
Much Live Stock and
Poultry Lost.

Special Correspondence OF The Evening star
BoYD'S, Nd, June 80. 1908.
Reports coming in from Monrovia, Reels
Mills and other places to the north indicate
that the devastation to property is large
There was never more damage done tc
crops before in the history of the county
the damage being greater than at first re.
ported.
Many farmers will do well to save ten
out of fifty acres of corn, their fields being
nearly covered with six inches Of water and
three feet of mud, and cutters are washed
in the fields to the depth of four and five
feet, In the garden of D. w. Shorb every
bit of soil was taken off for three feet, and
huge rocks weighing several tons were left
to view.
Three Feet in Three Minutes.
While 1t was raining hardest Mr.. Shorb
and others were standing on hill watch
ing the stream, and saw the creek rise
three feet in little less than three minutes,
completely overwhelming trees before it
and carrying away some of his hogs. Fur
Their down the stream a horse was caught
by this phenomenal rise and swept away.
For miles in this county along the creek
bottoms there Is not left single panel or
fencing, at least 10000 panels having been
washed away. and the loss there alone is
great. At Hoyle Touring min the engine
was found this morning washed down
stream a considerable distance and broken
to pieces The mill was badly damaged
and quantity Of meal and -four lost. Hay
that had been cut is lodged in tree tops by
the ton all along the streams.
There are at least 1900 acres Of wheat
gone at one place. Richard Allnutt, near
Seneca, who had field of forty acres Of
wheat all cut and shocked and new
binder standing near, lost all. Bridges that
did not go out are hanging on one end.
Damage to Railroad.
The 5OO-foot railroad embankment gave
way in front Of the station here yesterday,
and a train went over 1t. Being on side
track, 1t does not interfere with the main
line. The trestle at Seneca, east of here,
can now be used until permanent repairs
can be made. The Baltimore and Ohio has
suffered SO greatly east of Washington
Junction on the main line, and also on the
valley division, that all the trackmen, car
penters, masons and others are on those
divisions.
All the freight trans over the main line
have been stopped and are now running
over this branch via Washington for Bal
timore, Philadelphia and New York. Traf-
fic here Is very much congested on this
account. At Reels Mills and Gathers sew
eral hundred yards of tracks and culverts
went out and on the Adamstown cutofr
some damage was done. Huge trees wash
ed into the middle of fields and by drag
ging had formed cutters several feet deep,
and wheat heads could just be seen stick
ing up through several feet of mud. In
four hours the waters rose here twenty
feet or more. the rise being SO overwhelm-
ing that nothing could be done to save
property.
Enormous Damage Done.
The estimate of 100000 damage may be
too SMALL though no further idea can be
had until all districts are heard FROM
Fowls were drowned by the score, some
farmers losing as high as three to four
hundred in an instant. There are at least
2 600 acres Of corn utterly ruined, and
wheat, rye and potatoes were washed out
by the acre.
The storm. as far as can be learned, was
about ten miles in width Farms five miles
from here were not even touched by rain,
while others have been so badly washed
that getting crops of any account on them
for years will be problematical, the soil
being literally stripped from the top.