Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1907-07-24

Of Sunday s storm and it difficult to form
any conclusion of the extent of the
damage The st. Paul system has had
nu train here since Saturday night.
They yentured as far out of Sparta as
Leon, Sunday morning, but returned.
From Leon to Cashton a good portion
of the rails and roadbed are transferred
from their original location. On the
long hill from Fine Hollow to Melvina,
the wreck is sight to behold Almost
the entire way there bears little sem
blance to railroad except the warped
rails and suspended ties. The effort
and expense to re-establish that por-
ton of the line will he little less than
rebuilding of the original road. A
construction train and as many men as
can be secured, are repairing the dam
age. Ii is doubtful if train arrives
over this line before Sunday. The main
line of the st. Paul sustained much
damage and loss at Sparta and other
points, and usual traTel has been sus-
pended between La Crosse and Sparta.
Like conditions prevail on the North
western road between the two points
The La Crosse & Southeastern losses
are pitlable. Officers of the road do
not believe it possible to repair the
damage and run regular trains for two
weeks, and perhaps longer. A good
percentage of track between the heavy
grade three miles out of Westby to
Stoddard, is wrecked and most of the
bridges gone The construction crew
from La Crosse has not vet reached
Stoddard, so badly damaged is the
roadbed between those points One
place in the valley of the Coon a long
stretch of track is removed five hundred
feet into the adjacent field The train
and crew that was to have left Viroqua
on Sunday evening failed to start out.
They are doing repair work between
Westby and Coon Valley, making Viro-
qua headquarters at night. 1t is be-
lieved that $25, 900 will not re-establish
the Southeastern system as it was be-
fore Sundays storm.
Nothing is heard from the Kickapoo
line. No attempt has yet been nude
TO move trains because of the continued
high stage of water in the river. There
is no doubt that much of the roadbed
is washed away. Bridges generally
have been taken out 1t will likely be
weeks before train service can be
renewed.
On the Burlington, near Victory,
where the Bad AK river flows into the
Mississippi, there was complete sweep
of track and bridge. The company runs
it's trains to Victory, transferring pas
sengers to a steamboat, taking them to
La Crosse - that manner. Train ser
vice on tn iowa and Minnesota side,
into La Crosse, has been impeded, con-
firming the belief that the storm was
widespread.
Nothing has been heard from the
Hillsboro & Southwestern line, nor is
there anything to tell of the conditions
in eastern Vernon concerning the great
storm.
The Richland Center branch of the
st. Paul system was abandoned for two
days and the Prairie du Chen division
has been out of commission.
We have had no mail since Saturday,
little use of the telegraph or telephone
wires, hence there is no way of judging
of the extent of Sundays storm, but
this locality appears to have been the
storm center.
In this hastily prepared review of the
great storm the CENSOR has given the
facts as they have come to it from diff
ferent sources, and of course it nowhere
represents the individual or general
damage ~ the county. As stated in
anothf ,-ortion of the paper, we think
half million is low estimate Of the
loss.