The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1903-06-05
Distress
Prevails in Kansas City,
Public Utilities Ont and
Food Prizes High

SaS City, MO, throws some addtuCnai |
light on the flood situation in Kansas
City. The letter is dated June O. an
abstract of which is as follows:
1t is impossible ror anybody outside
to realize the extreme gravity of the
situation here. Tt psssent we have no
water, no electricity. no gas, no street
car service, food supplies are out Of
sight. potatoes at 50 so per bushel, |
eggs 40 cents per dozen, butter SO
cents per pound, water in the business
districts 25 cents per pail, candles sell
ling at 10 cents and hard to get, the
town under martial law, the eniire
Third regiment being in active service
and all of the Metropolitan street rail
way men being sworn in as police
men, in edition to a large number of
other men over and above the ordi-
nary police force The town was dark
as pocket last night, and people pas
sing on the stree after IL o'clock
were challenged by the soldiers and
policemen. and if unable TO give a sat
isfactory account of themselves. were
put to sleep in the police station Con
vention hall 5 full of homeless peo-
pie, also the churches Of the town. The
city is an island on all but one side,
only one railroad being IN operation
out Of town, the Missouri Pacific run
ming east. Every bridge over the Kaw
river is gone aud only enc is left over
the Missouri, the Hannibal and st.
Joseph Water is on the floor of the
Union depot as high as the head of
tall man.
Sunday afternoon l stood on the blum
overlooking the west bottoms and with
probably 25,OOO o.her paople standing
in the mud and rain. watched the flood
pick up trains Of box cars and rol.
them over and over right down the
street behind the Union depot. wached
houses go down the river with men
and women elingjng to them and no
oIIo able to get at them on account of
thc curront watched a fire raging in a
big ware house and the iremen drag
ging a hose out in the flood with water
up to their necEs in an effort to put it
out, the FIRE engines toking their water
from the middle of the street.
Tho Bcis line bridge, crossing the
Kew at the Swarschild and Sulzberger
Packing house was weighed down
with fiat cars full of sand 1t went out
before noon, before the flood had risen
more than three feet. The street rail
way bridge leading to Argentine was
mex. at about II O'CLOCK. The Union
Pacific bridge followed soon after
There were II men working on it a.
the time They we're seen &c &C down,
but none Of them were rescued. The
viaGuct OF the Metropolitan street rail
way company, stood well until the
wreckage of these other bridges piled
up against the piers. Just before sup
per a big tank of the Standard Oil Co.,
came charging down the stream, and
away went the bridge. tnis wreckage
striking the bridge of the Chicago
Great Western crushed II ike a paeer
box. One bridge stands out in the
center of the water held down by sew
en- big locomotives, That of the Mis-
souri, Pacific. If this holds and it is
probable that It will as the water is at
last subslding, 1t will be the only
means Of communication with the west
for some time. Numerous fires broke
out caused mainly by lime stored in
cars, etc, but nothing could be done to
put them out Locomotives stood on
the track just where they stopped
when the fire entered their fire boxes.
Boats and RATS padded about trying
to save people and properly In sew
eral instances horses were drowned.
the current being 50 strong they were
unable to swim to safety. The stock
men worked all night in an effort to
save the live stock in the stock yards
but large number OF sheep and some
cattle were drowned. The water is
now running over the tops Of the pens
in which they were confined.
The water is at least stationary
now. and t is hoped that the danger
from any further rise is past. The ex-
treme high water mark is that left by
the food OF 1874. The water yester-
day afternoon was within two feet OF
this. doubted people who told me
on Sunday morning that the nood OF
1881 backed the water up until It
stood fve inches deep in ne Union de-
pot At 10 o'clock Sunday morning
ate breakfast there with a fricaa.
-Four hours later the water was four
foaf doen where We caf