Gunnison news-champion., 1921-05-13


70 - the building I watched the
, ~ of all mans glorious works
6 ,er-ible we're the local oonfaEra-
tl1-s that all the sky was lighted upl
Or could read the finest print In the
r. glare. Al the world seemed
yrlrp-d IN fane~ San Francisco
sral,sd smoke and nre from a score
OF vast couhagrarions that were like
50 many active volcanoes. Oakland,
San Leandro. Hayvards-all were
burning. and 10 the northzard. clear
TO Point Richmond. other fres were at
work II vas an aEeinspiring spec
tac'e Civilization. my Erancsons, civ
iliEzI0u was Passing In a shec, Of
fame and 4 breath OF death At ten
O'Clock that night. the great powder
maElzlnes at Point Pinole exploded in
rlgld succession So terrific we're the
Concessions that the strong building
rocked as In an earthquake. while ev-
err pane OF glass was broken II was
then that left the roof and went
dDSn the long corridors. from room to
room, quieting the alarmed women and
telling them what had happened
An hour later. at a window on the
ground floor. heard pandemonium
break out In the camps OF the prowI-
ers, There were cries and screams,
and shots from many pistols. As Ne
a'iervard ooniectured. this fight had
been precipitated by an attempt on
the part OF those that were well TO
drive out those that were sick At
any rate, a number OF the plague
stricken providers escaped across the
campus and drifted against our doors
We warned them back. but they
cursed us and discharged a fusillade
from their pistols Professor Merry
weather. at one OF the windows. was
Instantly killed. the bullet striking
him squarely between the eyes We
opened fire in turn. and all the prowl-
eTs fed away with the exception OF
three One was a woman The
plague was on them and they were
reckless. Like foul fends. there In the
red glare from the skies. with faces
blazing, they continued TO curse US
and FIRE at US. One OF the men shot
with my own hand After that the
other man and the woman. s,ill ours
ing US. lay down under our windows.
where We were compelled to watch
them die OF the plague.
The situation was critical. The ex.
plosIons OF the powder magazines had
broken all the windows OF the Chem
istry building. so that We were ex.
posed TO the germs from the corpses.
The sanitary committee was called up
on TO act, and It responded nobly.
Two men were required to go out and
remove the corpses, and this meant
the probable sacrifice Of their own
lives. for. having performed tho task.
they were not to be permitted to 70
enter the building. One OF the pro
fessors, who was a bachelor, and one
of the undergraduates volunteered.
forth They were heroes. They gave
up their lives that four hundred 9TH
ers might live. After they had per.
formed their work. they stood for .
moment. at a distance. looking at
US wistfully. They they waved their
hands in farewell and went away
slowly across the campus toward the
burning city.
And yet II was all useless. The
next morning the first one OF Us was
smItten with the plague--a little nurse
girl in the family OF Professor Stout
II was no time for weakened. senti-
mental policies. On the chance that
she might be the only one. We thrust
her forth from the building and com.
manded her TO be gone. She went away
slowly across the campus vringtng
her hands and crying pitifully. We
felt like brutes. but what were We
to do? There we're four hundred of
Us, and individuals had to be sacri-
feed.
in one OF the laboratories three
families had domiciled themselves.
and that afternoon We found among
them no less than four corpses and
seven cases Of the plague in an Its
different stages.
Then 1t was that the horror began.
Leaving the dead lie. We forced the
living ones TO segregate themselves
in another room. The plague began
TO break out among the rest of N.
and as fast as the symptoms appeared.
we sent the stricken ones to these seq.
regated rooms. We compelled them
to walk there by themselves, so -
to avoid laying hands on them. Il
was heartrending. But still the
plague ragged among Us, and room af-
ter room was filled with the dead and
dying. And so We who were yet clean
retreated to the next floor. and to the
naxt. before this sea Of the dead, that,
room BY room and door by noor, In
undated the building.
Tho place became q charnel house,
aDliA the middle Of The night the ssF.
vevuD I'D forth, taxing nothing With
them except arms and ammunition and
. Aeavy stors Of timed foods. We
caDped on the opposite side Of the