The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-05-30
Situation Along the Rock Island De-
scribed by the Superintendent
as DepIorable.
MANY BRIDGES WASHED OUT
DAMAGE IN ONE COUNTY ALONE Es-
TIMATED At s1,oOo,OOO.
Fifteen Inches OF Rain at Abilene
I'm a Night-FataIities Reported
from Several Points.

IOREhA, hdns may -'.-A Aoa % ~
ton of Kansas in under water and railway
traffic in some sections has been suspended
Hundreds of houses in North Topeka are
deserted. People are moving out from that
part of town as fast as possible. and great
distress prevails. At this time nearly nve
thousand persons are homeless. The Union
Station is flooded. The people south of the
Kansas river are trying to take care OF the
flood refugees. The courthouse, statehouse
and other buildings have been opened for
their reception and fund started for their
relief
The Western Union Telegraph ONCE in
Sabina has collapsed. and no news can be
sent out from there.
The Kansas river is FIVE miles wide at
st. Marys, and the town Is half sub
merged The Kansas river bridge there Is
partly washed out. and the river is rapidly
rising.
Fifteen inches of water fell In Abilene last
night, and more this afternoon Business
houses are collapsing, and the entire town
is panic-stricken. Rain is still falling.
The loss by flood in Morris county Is es-
timated at sl,0OO.0O0. Four persons were
drowned last night All the business houses
were flooded. Miles of Missouri Pacific and
Katy tracks were washed out More
than hundred houses are under water and
twenty have fioated away.
At Lawrence the Kansas river has con-
tinued to rise rapidly all day and In the
last three hours has come UP nearly three
feet The water stands thirteen feet deep
on the dam there and has caused the water
works. the electric light plant and the
brick factory TO close down. At wamego
100 persons are homeless. AT Newton the
streets were flooded tonight by cloud
burst A tornado passed through thar
county tonight, doing small damage A
tornado struck Strorg City tonight, de-
molishing the high school building and
the Baptist Church.
Thirteen inches OF water has fallen In
Clark's creek valley In the past twelve
hours. The whole valley is desolated.
Many houses in Skiddy were washed away
and crops have been ruined. Two thousand
feet of railway tracks In this vicinity were
washed out. AS far known no lives
were lost.
Six bridges across the Kansas river coll
lapsed this afternoon on account OF high
water. General Superintendent Fruber, OF
the Rock Islan1, said to-day: Our system
is in deplorable condition. The Colorado
flyer is tied UP at this point, four trains at
Mcfarland and one at Wichita. Another
train is tied up somewhere on the Harring-
ton branch. The wires are nearly all down.
Only the st. Joseph line to Topeka is work.
ing At Keats a cloudburst at midnight
put the town under three feet Of water
The Union Pacific system is in little bet
ter condition. At Calhoun Bluffs, east OF
Topeka the tracks arc covered. The water
is over the floors of the business houses at
st. Marys. The floor Of the Kaw river
bridge at Roosville is covered. The tracks
of the Union Pacific west OF Topeka are
under two feet of water In many places be-
tween here and Wamego.
The Santa Fe is unable TO pass Lakeview
on the main line. A train reached Topeka
at $3.50 from Kansas City over the Ottawa
cutoff to Emporia. then east over the main
line to this city. The Santa Fe will get a
train west to Emporia to connect through
trains, which will be run over the Ottawa
cutoff.
Word at noon from Americas. northwest
of Emporia, says that town is three feet
under water and the Neosho river is four
feet higher than ever known before. Run
ners have been sent out from Emporia TO
notify the farmers along the bottoms OF
that city that high-water wave is coming
down the Neosho.
AT Eureka the fire department was called
to the assistance OF persons living In the
eastern part of the town Homes were
abandoned and household effects were
moved to higher ground. Heavy damage To
property has already been done.
Added TO the general dam2Se in bridges
washed out, railway tracks submerged and
thousands of acres OF bottom land COW
cred in Kansas hundreds of telegraph poles
are down and telegraphic communication
with many points is shut or Trains are
delayed in every direction and on several
lines traffic is almost entirely at a stand
still.