The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-08-30

1 be of the proportions of eagle or con- dor, are regarded by him as lawful 1 prey. He will eat the family canary with as little remorse as he will pick up an English sparrow on the lawn. He has
  center of the city to be prepared for l the worst, and to take preventive measures. This warning would not nec- l essarily mean that there would be any l loss of life, but that the first floors of 1 the various buildings might be flooded l and entail large financial loss through damage to stocks of merchandise. The modern portion of the city is l considered to be high enough to escape l the ravages of the flood, but Tn view of the fact that the rise of the Wa ters has been unprecedented 1t has 1 been considered the better part of dis | erection to at least warn any threat l ened territory.
 Loss Is Very Great. It is thought the damage will be far l in excess of first estimates, as sent 1 out in last nights reports. The Mon l terey shelter one of the largest in | Mexico, suffered loss by water from l the deluge of rain and not as a result l of the rise in the river, that Is vari- ously estimated at from $1,000,c00 to | $2,000, 900.
 The Monterey steel plant, the only | plant of its kind in the republic, and | which cost originally $10,000, ,0G0 to con | struct, Is reported to have been dam aged to the extent of from s2,000. 900 | to sS,000C00. The electric light and 1 street railway system of Monterey, | modern In every respect, which was | constructed about three years ago by a ltax. '. tol. T, kenzies of Toronto are heavily inter | ested. was damaged to the extent of | approximately $1,000,000.
 The Monterey water and sewerage l system suffered a loss estimated at 1 $1,000,000 or more.
 May Reach $7,ooo, ,ooo.
 This damage, together with the loss | resulting from the complete annihi- 1 lation of approximately 5000 jacals, or ] huts, adobe houses and some struc- lures of more pretentious appearance, together with their contents, all ruined | by the inflow of water, will bring the | financial loss up to approximately | $7.000,o00
 While details are necessarily meagre | as to the financial loss and loss of l life, rumors are current variously plac- l ing the monetary losses at from $7.c0or- 1 900 to $12,00O,000, while the loss of life is placed at anywhere from 400 to | 1000 persons.
 l Both the electric light and street rail- | way systems and the water works and 1 drainage systems were dominated by | Canadian capitalists.
 A very hard stiff fight was made by l Canadian companies to secure conces- sions for the installation of these mod | ern improvements few years ago, and their loss will be keenly felt and may | ta1 t. in dividuals.
 | Among one of the finer residences threatened by the flood, 1t is reported, was that of Gen. Bernardo Reyes; but so l far as can be learned the flood waters did not reach the section of the city where the governor resides.
 Chaotic Conditions. Chaotic conditions still exist today. | There has been little effort made at recovery of cadavers; those who lost their lives were suddenly swept away into the maelstrom and nothing could be done for them. However, every effort has been made to succor the needy by providing shelter and food for the men, women ] and children. l There has been stream of moving all l day today on the part of the many res idents of the city who are seeking homes on ground high enough to avoid any pos sibility of an overflolz. This Is especial- ly true of the American families, many of whom reside at the downtown noteis ! situated along the plazas Zaragoza ana | Hidalgo Many of these families have removed to remote sections of the city, although the locality is thought to be beyond the pale of possible 1nundation.
 The police, rurales and soldiers played a prominent part last night and tooay Tn l guarding and caring for the city All IT, | vice. the rurales were busy and de- | tachments of troops from the headquar- ters of General Trevino were utilized to secure shelter for the sufferers While es vet there Is no scarcity of food and
 the city is amply able to care for it's
 destitute. there Is fear of shortage in inc near future. There have been severe
 washouts all along tn line of the Nation
 al railway between Laredo and Saltillo, Mexico, and not a train has entered the
 city of Monterey either from the north
 or south, for the past 72 hours.
 Trains Tied Up.
 The through southbound train from La-
 redo has been tied up at Monterey for
 that period of time, having succeeded
 in getting through before the disastrous
 washout struck the village of Golondrina
 and carried away a large portion of tho
 railway tracks, while the northbound I
 l All wires over the National railway
 were prostrated all last night and until late today, when line was restored and
 1t was learned that there Is a possibili-
 ty that the washed out tracks may be
 repaired and traffic resumed on cur
 tailed schedule late Monday and Tues
 day. Hundreds of telegrams have been passing through en route to Monterey
 today requesting information as to the fate of friends and relatives. Communi-
 cation has been re-established via a
 crcuitous route and these telegrams are
 being answered as rapidly as possible
 Their general import is Don't worry"
 lam safe; lam we'll but many lives lost
 yesterday"
 None seem to be explicit and do not state the exact loss of life. There are
 some of pathetic nature, however. They report the drowning of entire families.
 missing fathers, mothers, children and | relatives.
 While semi-offlcial reports state that up to noon today 400 bodies had been recov-
 cred. there has thus far been no attempt l to inter the dead. They are being placed ho oS 1,o II m, bfnrhop