The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1913-03-28
LATEST EST|MAT
FROM DAYTON IS
ENCOURAGING
Death List Will Not Be So Large
as Reported
SUFFERING FROM HUNGER
Greatest Problem Is to Send Food
to Marooned Victims Before
Starvation.

DAYTON. O., March 2S.-All but a
| few of those hundreds OF persons VINO
have been marooned in the downtown
section of flooded Dayton, o., since
Tuesday morning are safe. This was
the news brought out late yesterday
by an Associated Press staff man, the
first to succeed in the perilous task
of penetrating as far north as the Big
Miami river, which runs through the
center of the town. Chief of Police
]. N. Allaback, himself marooned, who
has been directing the rescue work,
gave the first information as to the
situation in what has heretofore been
the water-bound district. Except for
possible loss of life on the north side
of the river, there will not be more
than 200 dead in Dayton, according
to Allaback's estimate, after he hac
been given information as to the sit
uation on the south side.
The worst condition near the GEN.
ter of the flood was in the workhouse,
where 90 prisoners have not had
drop of water nor bit OF food since
Tuesday. The men revolted Tuesday
night and demanded their liberty and
a chance to fight for their lives. Since
then the workhouse has been mad
house according to superintendent
Johnson. The prisoners repeatedly
fought johnson and threatened to kill
both him and his family. Johnson
asked that a detachment of the ma
tional guard be assigned to help him
handle the men. He declared that the
30 hA CHI
| they escaped from their cells.
No word has been heard from Ma
yor Phillips. The chief of police had
been unable to get near the Phillips
house and did not know whether the
mayor would be found dead or alive.
| North of Burns avenue as far as
| Fourth street, the water was found to
| be from three to six feet deep. Be-
| yond Fourth street, the water has re-
! coded TO make it possible in many
places to proceed on foot. From
| fourth street to the Big Miami river,
| relief work was taken up by COM
| mttee headed by Chief Allaback. All
| of the grocery stores were command
eered and, although in most cases the
| goods were covered with water, yet
| sufficient supplies were found to pre-
| vent great suffering among those in
| the interior dry strip.
While there may be many deaths in
| individual homes which have been
without food or drink, there was no
place but the workhouse where any
considerable number of people were
| held without food. None had had
enough, but no case approaching &C
tual starvation was found. Know
| ledge that the death list is likely to
| prove so low in the downtown section
last night gave rise to a hope that
even in North Dayton, about which
nearly all hope had been abandoned,
there might be comparatively few
| deaths.
The arrival of the first canoe in the
| water-bound district was greeted by
appeals for bread and water. In near
ly every house left standing wistful
| faces were to be seen pressed against
window panes All of these were ask
ed If there had been any deaths and
with very few exceptions replied there
had not. Although heartened by news
from the food zones interior Gov.
| Cox's secretary, Mr.. Burba, was
scarcely able to credit the assertion.
From his own investigations of the
southern districts he was unable to
believe that the death list would be
under 1900. There are 10000 unac-
counted for on this side of the river. u
he said, land If all but 200 of these
are found, ii will be the greatest mir
acle of the time"
1t was impossible TO approach with
in several blocks of the fire zone,
even in the canoe, but there appeared
every indication that the Beckel
house had not been burned and that
the fire had been confined to the
blocks beyond Jefferson and Third
streets. The 300 guests of the Algon-
| quin hotel have been kept comfort
able, except for the continuous dread
that the fire would spread to them.
The water reached to the second floor
but all supplies had been moved to
places of safety and those in the ho-
tel experienced little discomfort
Two hundred women and babies
found refuge in a paint factory in
North Dayton, where it is believed
they have found sufficient food to
keep them from acute suffering. All
effort is to be made at once to rescue
them.
The suburb of Riverdale up to Hell