Los Angeles herald., 1905-05-13
NEARLY ONE HUNDRED BODIES
ARE INFERRED
THREE CARLOADS OF coFFlNS
Heavy Ralnstorm Comes Up, Render-
ing Operations Difficult and
Covering Floor Of Moreue
With Water
By Associated Press.

By ASsoclaleu tTees'
SNYDER, Okla, May 12.-Nearly one
hundred corpses were buried here last
night and today, removing the most
gruesome evidence of the tornado which
nearly destroyed the town Wednes-
day night. None of the injured died
during the night. Some of them have
been kept alive only by the skillful
efforts of physicians and nurses work.
ing in the emergency hospital. AS soon
as daylight came people were at work
getting ready to perform the last rites
for the dead.
Three carloads Of collins arrived dur
ing the night from Oklahoma City, to-
gether with dozens of undertakers from
the convention of undertakers in ses-
sion there. Workmen also came in on
a special train furnished by the Frisco,
and the work of burial was carried OF
with the utmost dispatch.
During the morning a heavy rain
came up and rendered operations diff
ficult. The floor of the morgue was
covered with water. Most of the build
ings that remain standing admitted
streams of water through the roofs, and
the temporary hospital where the in
jured remained leaked like sieve, wet
ting a number of the patients. The
rain, which was accompanied by some
wind and hail, served to frighten the
residents, but those who were able
kept bravely at work throughout the
water and mud, caring for their suf-
fering injured and burying their dead.
Several of the newly made graves were
filled with water.
More Injured Discovered
Two more injured were discovered
under some debris early in the morn
ing, but neither was identified. They
were pinioned under house beam.
One, a man, was delirious, and the
other, boy, was unconscious.
Owing to the failure to keep any
records at the outset, there has been
great difficulty in securing an accurate
list of the number of dead. The Asso-
Gated Press representative secured the
first list approaching completeness on
Thursday afternoon and but few al
terations have been made. The two or
three bodies that have been found since
have not been identified.
Pitiable scenes of want and suffering
were seen here today on all sides. Much
confusion still existed, despite the eff
forts of hundreds of outsiders to aid
the victims of Wednesdays tornado.
Last night many who had lost every
thing they possessed went hungry and
practically unprotected from the cold.
With the break of day two score par
ties of rescuers continued their search
in the wreckage for victims. Governor
Fergusons request to the people of
Oklahoma to render immediate aid to
the destitute people began to show
early results. Early today carloads of
provisions, clothing, tents, bedding and
medicines began to arrive, and with it
some added numbers of persons from
all directions to aid in attending to the
immediate wants of the citizens.
The most serious phase of the situa-
tion presented today was the necessity
for the immediate housing of the home
less and the providing of sufficient med
ical care for the injured. While phys
icians and surgeons had arrived every
hour since Thursday morning, they
worked at a distinct disadvantage be-
cause of lack of house room and in
sufficient facilities. Among the first
things accomplished today was the
sorting of medicines, clothing and pro-
visions, which were hurried to separate
depots as fast as received. From each
of these places separate committees be-
gan a systematic distribution of this
material.
Poorly clad men, women and children,
most of whom had lost some member of
their family and had suffered from
wounds exposure and hunger, wan
dered here and there. trying to find
some missing loved one or went from
morgue to morgue in an endeavor to
identify them among the dead.