The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1911-10-04
Not More Than a Hundred
Victims.
TRYING TO PREVENT DISEASE,
From a Free Commissary More Than
1000 Persons Are Being Fed-Water
Supply Worries Health officers.
Identifying Dead and lssu-
ing Burial Permits.
-.s%lIYEa

Austin, Pa, Oct 3.-The last esti
mate indicates that the persons who
went down under the flood on Satur
day was not more than 100. Two censu.
enumerators went through the towr
from one end to the other and they
could find just eighty-fve persons who
were not accounted for. State Health
Commissioner Dixon based his esti
mate upon the visits of these officials
through the houses of eighty-four fam.
lilies
In addition to the missing ones it is
certain that there were strangers in
town. The hotels - and there were
three of them-always had drummers
in their lobbies, for the town of Austin
was good buying center. Saturday
was market day, too, and the sides of
Main street were lined with wagons.
How many Of these outsiders are un.
der the tangled heap that marks the
site of Main street cannot be told.
Something like organization came
out of the energetic but confused eff
forts of Sunday and yesterday. A
steam log roller grappled at the high
pile of splintered boards heaped in
front of the Bank Of Austin. The
nurses who have established a free
commfssary for the destitute and
workmen and constabulary had the
Odd Fellows hall jammed full of
variety of supplies. More than 1000
persons are being fed across the count.
ers, and the nurses are acting as wait
resses.
Fear Outbreak of Disease.
In the lodge rooms upstairs Dr.
Dixon, with his many assistants are
planning and revising the campaign of
caring for the homeless and prevent
Ing an outbreak of disease. 1t is the
subject of water supply with which
the authorities have concerned them,
selves most The town received its
drinking water from a number of
springs and wells upon the hillsides
above. Mr.. Dixon has posted notices
through Austin warning the survivors
not to use this water. The engineers
under F. III. Snow, state sanitary en-
gineer, have been tracing the supply
of every house left standing. 1t is
reared that the contamination of the
flood waters may bring fresh dis
aster to the wrecked town.
house across from the authorities
headquarters has been made into
morgue, and DR.. r. Ii. Simmons has
been there receiving the bodies and
checking off their Identification as they
came in., NJ III. johnson, Justice of
the peace, has sat there to take the
sworn statements of relatives and to
sign the burial certificates.
- Arrestins All vandals.
The constabulary finds that it has to
deal with vandais who poke among the
ruins where a strict guard is not in
force. Eight arrests have been made
and the prisoners arraigned before JUS
tice johnson. They had to be locked
up in the schoolhouse. for the place
where the jail stood is swept clean. The
result of these cases of larceny is that
the cavalry police have mounted their
ponies and have established patrols
over the whole area where the wreck
age lies.
There seems to be no disposition on
the part of any of the authorities to in
stitute an inquiry into the causes that
led up to the smash in the dam. Pot
Ter county is without a coroner The
county commissioners sent representa-
tives to look over the waste, and they
have notified the state authorities that
they see no occasion for any activity
other than the perfunctory duty of
signing the death certificates which is
being done by Justice Johnson
Those who are familiar with the
county politics have been wondering
whether there is any significant con-
nection between this action and the
fact that many of the employees of the
BaylesS company, which owned the
dam, occupy positions upon the school
board, the police board and one or two
other bodies of municipal understand,
ing, Many of the more well to do men
Of kustin are stockholders in the com
pany.
Owners of Dam III FrCm Shock.
Frank and George Bayless, the head:
of the company. have been expected il
town. but word came that they wert
confined to their beds in Binghamton
\. T.. where the company had its chic
Offices, as Il result of the shock of th
disaster. The office of the mills her
was tossed downstream in the impac
of the pulp wood that headed the wave
Two sides of it are open, and a type
writer and adding machine were foun
a few hundred yards away, half bun
led in mud The company's safe, whic
was rolled over in the sweep of tn
waters, has not been injured. 1t wi
be opened tomorrow, and it is believe
that a considerable sum of money wi
be found inside. The end of the mont
was to have been pay day, and the &c
employees would have drawn the
money late Saturday afternoon. Georl
Bayless sent word to f, N. Hamlin. Il
mill superintendent, to gather togetht