The public ledger. [volume] (Maysville, Ky.) 1913-1968, 1916-08-12

| Charleston, w. Va, August 10
Cabin Creek, the waters of which tore
through this little mountain valley
yesterday and carried with them more
than two score lives and millions Of
dollars worth of property, today re-
turned to its narrow bed.
But for sixteen miles from Ronda,
where the creek empties into the
Kanawha river, there stretches,
scene of absolute desolation which
was duplicated along every little
branch coming down out of the hills.
Fully fifty persons are known to have
been lost, and men in charge of the
many relief parties already at work
feel that this number will be consid-
erably increased when the frightened
miners and their families have re-
turned to their homes and the count
is completed.
Flood Came Early in Morning
Five persons were drowned at Esk-
dale, five at United. sixteen at Fern
dale, eight at Miami, two at Dawn
four at Dry Branch, four at Holly and
five at Giles, while lineman return
ing from thirteen-mle tramp
through the devastated district report
ed forty dead along his route. All Of
these losses were not sustained in the
Cabin Creek valley some of them be-
ing on the Coal River side of the
mountain, although the principal
losses were sustained there.
The food came upon the people
early Wednesday morning. w. A.
Smith, of Cincinnati, who was in the
district, declared that water rolled
down the narrow valley, foam-crested.
and from his point of vantage on an
engine at Eskdale, where he and 9TH
ers had taken refuge, he saw the
roundhouse filled with ten feet of wat
er in less than half an hour, while the
food stretched from hill to hill across
the valley.
Explosion In Theater
Houses were swept from their foun-
dations and women and children,
hurriedly leaving their homes, were
in some instances drowned before they
could reach the hills. The flood came
in contact with the carbine supply of
a moving picture theater at Eskdale
and 1t exploded, blowing the place to
pieces, while loaded coal cars were
jammed one against the other in in
describable confusion. The Tavern
Greek Coal Company lost 125 cars of
coal at Crane Fork, the cars and coal
being washed away, while fifteen feet
of mud and sand was deposited in
their place. A street carnival COM
pany showing at Desota lost all of its
equipment and animals. although per-
formers escaped.
These and similar incidents by the
dozen were reported late today when
couriers from rescue parties, penetrat-
ing the valley returned with pressing
appeals for help. Fully 5000 persons
were said to be homeless, the major
ity of them without food and clothing,
or the means of securing them, as
every store in the Cabin Creek valley
seems to have been washed away, and
its contents DESTROYED.
Pack Mules TO Rescue
Early in the day the first battalion
of the Second West Virginia infantry
set out from its camp near here for
the valley and by noon Major Ride
nour had established headquarters at
Ronda, four miles from Cabin Creek
Junction. from which to direct relief
measures. The men took with them
tents. $500 travel .rations and large
quantities of other supplies and more
were forwarded to them later in the
day. All the mules from the machine
gun company were taken as the rail-
roads in the valley will be out of COM
mission for days TO come.
Other relief forces were set in mo-
ton by oil, mining and railroad COM
panies whose properties had suffered
great damages and whose employees
made up the sufferers. DR.. s.. L. Jep-
son, commissioner of Health of West
Virginia, sent a force of sanitary en-
gineers into the district with instruc-
tons to take such means as they
saw nj to prevent disease.
WOrkmen Hurry Repairing
Hundreds Of workmen are being
sent into the valley by the Chesape
x Ohio railroad and the coal roads
to repair the lines with all possible
haste. for until this work is done there
will be much suffering because OF the
inability OF relief parties to reach the
destitute.
Scores Of men came out of the val
ley late today. some OF them walking
10 the nearest point ON the railroad
and trolley lines where they could get
transportation to Charleston. Many
OF them were In search OF missing