The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1916-06-17

Cottonwood trees foot in diameter
were broken down and huge masses
of reinforced cement weighing more
than hundred tons were carried
half way to College street. Many
residences along Sixth, Seventh and
Eighth avenues were damaged and
lawns and gardens destroyed. Warn
ing given few moments before the
break enabled everybody to get out of
the path of the flood. The damage is
estimated at $4,000.
x X
Saved BY a Prayer.
At a meeting of Presbyterians in
Comanche County, south of Cold
water, a hailstorm approached. The
Rev. A. G. Alexander of the Cold
water Church, who was delivering a
sermon, stopped it and announced a
hymn. The darkness grew appalling,
but the congregation sang the louder.
Then came rumbling sound and a
lookout at the window informed them
that a twister of no mean size was
coming. Whether it would strike the
church or not was not the question.
Safety first was announced and the
minister and the hearers knelt in
prayer, after he had quieted some of
the women, who had become panic
stricken. When the prayer had been
finished the storm was gone. 1t
missed the church, but it took the
tops from the motor cars of a num-
Der of the congregation and leveled
trees nearby. The church folks say
the player saved their lives.
Voter Erred; New EIection-A small
mistake on the part of one voter in
marking his ballot at a special cleo
ton in the Wonsevu school district,
voting bonds for new school build
ing, will now make it necessary to
hold the entire election over again.
The election returns showed that six
ty-eight ballots had been cast, of
which thirty-four were in favor of the
bonds and like number against, with
the sixty-ninth ballot, which would
nave decided the tie, counted out by
the judges because the voter, instead
of marking his ballot in either of the
little squares opposite the affirmative
the election rules called for had
marked just to one side of the square
opposite the affirmative of the bond
question.
Finds Mail Bag In creek-A party
of campers on McLain's creek, two
miles east of Olathe, found a rifled
mil pouch in the creek bed the other
morning. The few post cards left in
the sack were addressed to Ocheltree,
on the Frisco, eight miles south of
Olathe, and are postmarked May TO-
x x X
Year Threshina Crop-John Schrag
has been trying for a year to thresh
his last years wheat crop. With
another harvest at hand he has not
finished. Schrag sowed almost 1000
acres of land to wheat last year in
the big basin which had been a swamp
until he drained it. He raised a good
crop. Before he could get the grain
threshed heavy rain flooded the
basin Continued wet weather has
prevented him taking machinery into
his big field. Last week he made one
more effort, but a three-inch rain
made it impossible
X x x
Hodges's Mother Dead-Mrs. Lydia
A Hodges, 80 years old, is dead in
Olathe. She was the mother of ex-
Gov. George H. Hodges and Frank
Hodges and came to Kansas on the
Santa Fe Trail AZ years ago from
Wisconsin. with her husband and
family.
Open New Chanute Postoffice.-
Business began recently in the SIS, OO0
postoffice building erected by the fed.
eral government in Chanute. It sits
a block east of the Santa Fe station
x x X
New Postoffice for junction City
A bill for 100000 for a postoffice and
site at Junction City has been ap
proved and placed with the general
appropriation bill that comes up in
the house at Washington June 10, &C
cording to word received recently.
Shelters Raise Waqes-The United
States Smelling Company, the Prime
Western Spelter Company and the La
Harpe Zinc Company have announced
voluntary advance in wages OF from
I 20 to 80 cents a day, according tt
the class of servicesgiven.
X X
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