The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-06-10

Inc water was still in his back yard,
put ne was selling goods in his store.
he mad caught the mud on the fly and
mad clean floors.
| All Are Cheerful.
fratt Bros. hardware store was
pusy place at o'clock. They were sell
ing ing snoveis, mops and brooms. Four
M eeeh lncnes OF water flowed across the
noors or this store yesterday They
mao moved their goods to the counters
ana nlgher shelves and left the heavy
SUM on the floor They worked all
| able shape this morning. No other
damage at all. In not a single store
| along Kansas avenue could the reporter
find a merchant in the dumps. Every
man of them, the big fellows in the
modern brick store buildings and the
| little fellows in the wooden structures.
were brave and hopeful 1t might be
/ said that they We're positively cheer
| ful. They appeared that way and
! talked so, in any case.
| Driving east on Laurent street into
the residence section where the water
had flowed three feet deep, an inspec-
ton of a half dozen frame houses
showed practically no damage to the
premises of any consequence. The pep
pie were taking possession of these
| houses at 9 o'clock, although the water
| stood foot deep in the streets in front
| of them.
/ Little loss at lie RANT.
A boatman who had been as far
northwest as Shorey stated that While
| thousands of acres of land had been
flooded yet there was no big damage
| to property or danger to persons. He
passed the Union Pacific tie plant and
stated that so far as was noticeable no
| ties at all had been carried out of the
yards. AT the most, not over 500 ties
had been carried away by the flood. He
saw one little shack in the northwest
| part of the town with so ties jammed
| up against it and yet the damage to
| the house was slight. The Rock Is
land tracks have been washed Out
| badly to the north and east.
| At the corners of Gordon and Jack
son and Garfield and Kansas avenue
| the water stood the deepest during the
flood, being five feet deep, but the cur
rent was not so swift in these places.
/ Over in Little Russia the water was
very deep but there was little current
| in that section SO the damage was
| slight. The Russians were lined up on
/ Crane street on the south side early
| this morning anxious to get back 20
| their homes. They accepted the f1o,d
with stolid Indifference. just as they
| accepted the Cossacks over in Russia
| and the tax collectors and the mines
of Siberia Just little flood had no
| terror at all for these people
North Topeka is the busiest place in
| the state today. About 40 boats are
in commission carrying people to and
from their homes. Fifty men and wo-
! men are always at the landing places
! clamorous to enter every boat that ar
| rives. They want to go back home and
| sluice the water out before the mud
| settles. They want to eat supper un-
| der their own fig trees.
| Scores of vehicles of every deScriP-
| tion are driving up and down the
| streets carrying refugees and workmen
! to the different houses as fast as the
! water goes down.
| Asboat. left the Kansas avenue land
1 ing place at s o'clock this morning with
policeman and rover aboard bound
| for Monroe street The officer had or
ders from a frantic wife to bring her
| husband, Todd Fitch, back to her at
| once. He had been out at their home
| all night and the woman was worried
almost to death. They had been mar
ried only a short time. I'll not mon
key with him at ALL said the officer
| to the wife, 'I'll just put him in the
boat and bring him right back to YOU"
An old darkey who owned a shack
| and a garden patch on Quincy stree
was positively happy when he return
O'Clock. My garden patch amt hurt
mite he said, "and l sholy feel
good over it. I'll be selling truck by
| tomorrow
Juanita Not Out of Commission.
Walter Gilmore who had charge of
the gasoline launch Juanita which is
being used as fire boat, was dead
sore over the report that his craft was
| out of commission II had the rudder
| broken early Monday and was out of
commission just Is minutes" he said.
The Juanita was certainly in commits
sion this morning and looked the part.
| She was moored in front of the fire
station and loaded with two chemical
| extinguishers and other apparatus.
Capt. Gilman said that the boat had
| been on duty all the time and he had
every confidence in the craft.
An enterprising photographer and
his assistant were wading around over
/ the town all morning taking pictures.
They stood in three feet of water On
Gordon street near jackson at
O'Clock and took view of the fire sta,
ton and the Juanita which latter stood
| for hose cart hook and ladder, engine
and all.
Judging from the amount of WORK
done today and the spirit ana conn
dence of North Topeka people of both
sexes and all conditions. 1t is safe &c
saw that the town will be in splendid
shape by Thursday evening and viii
have even removed most of the traces
of the flood The idea that business
men and residents are not going back
to live and work at their stores and
homes is a fallacy. This was shown
early today before the water had LEFT
the avenue. They are not going back
as though to a funeral, put DraVeiS
and cheerfully. They are working with
vim to wipe out all damage AMI
traces of damage 1t is all a fine ex-
| ample of how pluck can overcome the
. effects of the mightiest agent of nature
It is a recurrence of the spirit of the
| pioneers who came west and fought
, the wilderness and the savages. The
, record of the North Topeka resumption
of 1903 will stand for long time
| against the best the country can offer
in the way of energy and courage and
, | spirit of community in the face Of a
battle with nature Hats off to North
, Topeka and all it's citizens. No quit