The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1917-03-12

When newsboys, crying Palladium
extras, burst upon the city's slumbers
shortly after o'clock this morning,
telling of the tragedies at New Cas-
tie and Hagerstown Sunday, one story
remained untold.
That was the account of the ner-
vous tension, the sleepless hours and
cred that news and made it possible
for Richmond to become acquainted
with all details of the tornado before
breakfast.
Travlers on a Pennsylvania train
from Chicago, arriving here shortly
after o'clock Sunday evening brought
the first report Of the cyclones
ravages.
Forces MobiIized Very Quickly
Newspaper forces were Immediately
modified and reporters awaited per-
New Castle, until every method of
wire communication had been tried in
an effort to learn whether the extent
of damage would warrant the expen-
diture of time, energy and money.
At first the task of getting connec-
ton by wire seemed hopeless. Only
one line, a telephone wire, from Rich
mond through Winchester and Muncie
was operating. This was unsatisfac-
tory, however, as connections would
not hold long enough to permit in
qliries to be answered.
The telegraph offices Of the Pennsyl-
uon nj <o nj IN 60
which appeared to be at all authentic
The company upon learning of the
storm had dispatched a special train
with linemen to establish connec.
tons.
About s o'clock came the first word
from the Pennsy operator at New
Castle who through the restore lines
was able to tell local dispatchers that
approximately thirty-five lives had
been lost
Learn Of Children's Death.
Shortly before this telephone line
was opened to Hagerstown and the in
formation obtained of the death of
the two Gray children.
Reports that roads were blocked
presented the next obstacle. One news
gatherer left for New Castle by way
of Dunreith. Rumors early in the eve
ming were that this reporter was IN
able to get all the way to New Castle
via traction because Of fallen trees
and wires and that he obtained a farm
horse and rode into the stricken city
in state.
Other reporters were dispatched for
New Castle via Greensboro and Hag-
erstown in automobiles. They made
wild dash over muddy roads. Only
where the storm had crossed the road
near New Castle were distractions en-
COuntered. Once it seemed that pro-
gress had been halted when the heavy
machine plowed into deep hole that
the wind had made in the roadway.
Reporters Beat Militia There.
Palladium reporters were on the
ground before companies Of militia
took charge of the situation. They
found relief work had progressed far
and that New Castle newspaper men
had the data pretty we'll in hand, but
unable to publish extras because the
gas supply had been cut off to pre-
vent possible disastrous fires in the
wrecked section Of the city.
From this stage on the work was
comparatively simple as telephone
communication had been restored. Re-
porters in New Castle telephoned in the
material while re-write men in the
Palladium office prepared the facts in
readable and organized form, wrote
the headlines and directed the me-
chanical operations
Early this morning one Of the re-
porters returned in a machine bring
ing with him revised list of the dead,
missing and seriously injured, partial
lists of property loss and many stories
of touching and pathetic incidents
which this morning wrung sympathy
from the hearts of local people.
Presses Pour Out Story.
After this it was not long until the
presses poured out their thousands of
issues of extras, and then machines
stopped.
But the men who had labored at
high nervou tension all during the
night continued at their posts until
late this afternoon, never closing an
eye in sleep.
With the spread of the news over