The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1903-06-12
FEARFUL DISASTER.
With y Mighty Au.l Ahssy Wat.ts
casfy Death and
WRECK SEVERAL COTTON MILLS
Tho Loss or Property win Iseaoh In.
To the NllIilana ana Many Per.
sons Perlshea in Their
Homes.

sons Perlshe., in Their
lseforc the waters Of Il mighty food
Pacolet, S. c., has been swept from
the map and the great cotton mills Of
that place and Clifton, S. c., are
beneath tile surface 0f cloudburst's
onward rush, completely wiped out
by the storm. AS the Topeka disaster
was eclpsed by the Gainesville horror
SO it now seems in turn that th. loss
Of property II not of life In the Georgia
city will be eclipscd by the great wa We
of devastation which has swept
through and over the great milling
districts Of Clifton and pacolet with
such destructive violence.
The dark shadow OF the storm set
tied over Spartanburg Friday night,
hanging above the city like some grim
spectre Of death. With increasing
vclemencc the elements prepared for
| their invasion OF tile doomed district
until the storm reached the proper
tiOnS of Il giant clOudurSt when the
dOwnpour from the black depths OF
| heaven swept away the dams Which
in turn settled into one vast, Swirling
Stream which roared throughout the
| valley where the mills are situated
aud the rushing waters roared in
triumph above houses and homes
where only the day before the spindle
and the loom were at work and Il
| Thousand labOrerS were happy.
IL is estimated that the property
loss will reach S2,O00,OO0. At Pac-
let the following damage has been re-
ported
Mill No. has been washed com
plctely away.
Mill No. . totally destroyed.
Mill No. 3 is partially destroyed.
The dams OF the three mills are
swept away and the waters rush un-
checked through the wide gap thus
opened. The warehouse Of Mill No.
| with it total stock of goods and cot
ton was swept away, while the hotel,
the leading churches and almost every
building in the doomed little ci ~ has
been swept away or totally destroyed.
Mill No. | at Clifton has gone down
before the rush or wa terS and Mill
No. . is moving before the flood with
only question Of time before it will
follow the fate Of the others.
Pacolct and Clifton arc situated in
the dciilcS Of two .alleyS, between
lofty ranges OF hills towering on either
side. Most of tile homes or the work
men are located in the valley with the
mills in which they are labJrcrs. but
Il few struggling dwellings skirt the
the homes on tile hillside were saved /,
as the valley was 60 feet banrath a
mighty flood. IL was just ut dusk
that the first approach of the storm
was noted Friday night. All through
the day the drip and drizZlc oi a dreary
rain had fallen but as the afternoon
wore on the sky grew darker and
nfghtfall fell fast.
Just at the hour when the sun
should have been setting behind the
western hills tile storm broke over the
doomed valley In all it's fury. For
ovcr4 houis The terrific downpour con
tinucd il. all the fury Of a giant cloud
burst and the angay waters soon
loosencd the fastening Of the dam
above the mills and homes Of the ter
ror stricken families who, pecrine
with white faces and Lcrrur-stricken
looks out into the bllcky pitchness of
the night, knew little uf the doo m
that lung over them.
Just abuvc the valley three dams
drc located, equal distance apart, one
above the other. Slowly but surely
The first dam gave way before the
surge Of waters which took on renewed
force Il, the Storm continued The
works Of man soon gave way before
the dread onslaught OF heaven and
with The total destruction of the first
dam the two remaining fell in swift
succession. With the last dam down
there was nothing between the be-
lcagurcd little valley with its people,
homes and factories but the rubbish
in the pathway and the slight barrier
OF trees and fences
The flood of angry waters hit the
villages Of pacolet and Clifton with
terrific force. Homes we're swept
away by the onward cbb Of the rush
ing current like straws upon the
bosom Of stream There was no
drift to the water but mighty rush
that carried all before it, Factories
and churches, houses, homes, public
buildings, all suffered the same fate.
a greater number OF the homes were
located ON the hillside and these
located as They were above the path
OF the storm, were saved from destruc-
tion. Following the storm u heavy
gale arose which swept along in the
path Of the cloudburst adding terror
to the fearful havoc already wrought.
The scene OF devastation is almost
complete.
The latest news indicates that the
loss Of life and the damage to proper
ty will be appalling. The detailed
loss is not obtainable as yet, but the
most conservative estimates put loss
OF life in the neighborhood Of one hun
drcd and damage to property at
something over two million dollars.
At Clifton the drowned are said to be
in the ncighborllood Of fifty.
IL seems tho river rose with Il
startling suddcnncSS and DESTROYED
the mills along its banks before the
people Of the county had hardly re-
allied what was happening. Not
only the mills but all Tile railroad and
county bridges have been washed