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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (June 1, 1903)
TIIK OMATTA DAILY BEE: MONDAY, JUNE 1,100. FLOODS WORK CREAT HAVOC Topeka Finds H Relief from the Good -tiom of Saturday. MANY ARERESCULD bY STEAM LAUNCHES Kansas City and I, a Suburb. Kansas City, Kna., Armourdale and Ar fteatlne, Hafrr Losses fata the Millions. (Continued from First Page.) treat' car Just 'north of the bridge and have been there for thirty hours, but will be rescued. Eighteen people wore rescued late thla afternoon from u house nt 138 North 'Monroe street, from thla place the current la now swltt and after great labor the place was reached. A man who haa Just returned from the scene of the flood aaya he could ace an many as ten persona hanging from trees near the Sardou avenue bridge at the foot of Worse street. Rescuer In Diaifr. E. li. Lang and Charlea Waldon, Santa Fe employes, started cut In a boat early today to reacue a Russian whom they aaw on the, roof of a house not. far from the south bank of the river. They got the Russian In '.he boat, which Immediately oapalced. The three found resting places in trcea, where they remain at this time, Another party la trying to rescue the trio. At 4:30 o'clock the water had receded exactly aeven and a half luchea an hour Before thla a rise of an Inch had been re ported. The gauge went up and down all afternoon until at S o'clock a fall aet In. At I o'clock the water had left the first floor of the Rock Island general offices, but waa yet six feet deep just outside the building. It Was then that a. gang of tele' graph linemen aucceeded In having a heavy - wire cable stretched across the top of the pontoon bridge. A large aand dipper waa attached to this and used to take largj Quantities of provisions to those who were not yet readied. The flrat flood victim to be rescued by the cable waa Rev. A. N Pearaon, paator of the North Topeka Eng lish church. Mr Pearson said: "Wa epent three days on the top of our house. We were fairly warmly dressed. but had only two loaves of bread for our family of tour during that time. All day Saturday and today we had nothing to eat. Our situation waa desperate and extremely uncomfortable, but we at no time lost faith In the ultimate ability of our friends to rescue us. Yeaterday my wife and chil dren were rescued. Today my turn cams and I canot begin to tell how thankful I am." Minds Fall I nder Strain. W. N. Keppard and wife, aged people, were rescued at 4 o'clock. They were so numb that they could not feel and had to be knocked down Into the water beforu the men could reach them. They were stand ing close together In the attic of a bouse and so severe hss been their experience that their minds gave away under the train. They cannot recover. A Mrs. An derson and her 1-year-old baby have been for threw days In a tree In plain sight ot people who were powerless to rescue them. The mother clasped her child close In her arms and managed to brace herself against a tree tn a reasonably secure position. For three days she kept up the battle for life. At 4 o'clock her rescue was very near, but she lost consciousness. Both mother and child fell Into twelve feet of water and were browned, being Immediately drawn tinder by; th eurrenj.,', , y ; ; : r,. Harvey Parsons, a local newspaper manj had a thrilling experience. He took a boat Friday night; 'made His way to a house hoping to make some rescues. A woman nnd baby, names unknown, were In the house and Parsons took them Into-his boat. They proceeded only a short distance when th boat oapslsed. parsons contrived to get himself nd the others up Into a tree and there , they remained until I o'clock this afternoon, when rescued. They were brought to a place of safety, but will prob ably not survive.. ' Steamboats Do Good ' Work. , Two small steamboats were put Into ser vice at 4:30, one from Ottawa, and the other from 8t. Joaeph. By this means the work of rescue was greatly facilitated, One of the boats brought eighteen people and landed near the dedicating plant. They floated half a mile and became lost north of the Melan bridge. ' Thla was before the flood had reached Its height. Fourteen people had entered a stranded street car, but soon had to seek ths roof. Standing In this ticertaln position for twenty-four hours, their condition was desperate until they were taken oft at 4:48 with the aid of ths big cable. B. I Wise, former city engineer, was dragged from the hay loft of a barn. Hs was unconscious and numb from cold, but soon revived. . His story of th beginning of the flood Is dramatic. By aid of small steam and gasoline launches, forty men in South Garfield park were rescued. They had perched them selves In trees. They had nothing to eat for thlrty-sl hours. These men were In a fencod grove, where they could not keep a close watch of the situation. All they could see was the angry water rushing about among the trunks of the trees. One of th men said they could not hear each other speak above the roar of the water. Uncertainty was thus added to their other misery and not ons of them hsd any hopes ot escaping. Patrick Bellae. his wife and three small children were taken from the attio of three small dwellings. The parents were obliged to .hold two younger children constantly In order to keep their heads above water. They were nearly starred and probably cannot recover. Miss Annla Noble, operator at the Union Pacino railroad headquarters In North Topeka, was forced to leave the building when the water covered the floor. With her mother and young slater the plucky young woman took up housekeeping quar ters In an abandoned horse car. This was good enough shelter until the water rose a foot above the floor of the car, hut there they had .to stsy until today, when they wars Included among the rescued. Pnaaenatera Are Imprisoned. Near the Rock laland depot Is a pas senger train of seven coaches stalled by ths flood. The train came In Friday night. Hair Vigor Probably you know how it always re Stores color to gray hair, stops falling, and makes the hair grow. Then tell your friends. . O.ayeeOe., Avers The Rock Island "T," as most of the other tracks are on mads ground, and as a consequence the tracks cannot he used for two wecka after the flood subsides. There are passengers on the train. They have not at any time been In danger, but their situation is not pleasant. They are well cared for by the road and most of them hare remained on the ears, preferring this srrangement to the uncertainty of securing suitable quarters. At S o clock this evening people were quartered In North Topeka as follows: In B atreet church. 100; in Topeka Woolen mills, lflO; In Casey's flour mill, IM; In an elevator, &; In the Are station, 84. A boat was sent to the woolen mill with 1,000 feet of half inch rope, which was to have been used In making a life line. ome of the Drowned. ji a o cine ine nrsi signt or floating rjoaies was seen, twelve bodies were seen passing by the North Topeka Are station, Soon after this It was definitely ascertained that the following were drowned: KARL Rt'PP. ORVILLE RtTPP. TWO Rl'PP GIRLS. R. If. GARNETT. This represents only a fractional part of the heavy loss of life. At a conservative estimate 200 are dead. Where these bodies are nobody can tell. When the waters re cedes the bodies will doubtless be found at different places miles down ths stream. During the height of the rescue work this afternoon a man occupied his time In going among the houses remaining In North Topeka and looting them. Police officials started after the fellow with the Intima tion that it would go hard with him If caught. Instances of this sort are rare, People give It as their opinion that never tn an event of this kind has ther been such a minimum of this order of crime. As the number of rescued ones Increase the supplies for their relief grew largely, Offers of help hsve been received from out- sido towns. I The current Is more swift and destructive tonight than at any time during the flood Under the arches of the Melan bridge test the remnants of the street railway bridge, and this makes the water like a whirlpool near the bridge. Railroad Men in Donbt. "It Is impossible to tell how long It will take to get our Kansas Clty-Topeka line open again." said General Manager Mudge of the Santa Fe today. "We cannot tell how much track Is gone until the waters recede. We have been using ths 'Frisco tracks from Olathe into Kansaa City, but high water knocked the 'Frisco out near Rosedale. We are trying to get Into Kan aas City over the Missouri Pacific tracks from Ottawa, but do not know yet how we will succeed. At the present time ws are cut off from Kansas City completely. Our main line from Topeka to Newton Is open again, but with the heavy rains that have been falling it would not be surprising It we have some more trouble near Strong City. This has been the'worst storm the railways of Kanaas have ever encountered and the damage will run up into the mil lions." The Rock Island and Union Pacific com panies have abandoned all efforts to keep their tracks in shape. The water waahed away the sandbags as fast as they sank them and it is simply a, waste of funds to continue the work. As soon as the water goes down so that the tracks can be reached hundreds of men will be placed at work repairing the damage. For the convenience Of the publto and flood sufferers, the postofflce remained open nearly all day. All grocery stores, meat shops and dry goods stores kept open also to furnish supplies. The physicians at a meeting this afternoon advised the author ities to establish a camp on'somrt high ground near the city for the flood sufflerera. North Topeka bad an epidemic of Measles when the town was stricken. Several cases of diphtheria were ' also well devel oped there. Many of the afflicted hav been rescued and great precaution must be. taken against the spread of ths disease Provisions Are Short. Wichita and other cities in the south which can be reached will be called upon for provisions tomorrow.' Already there Is a scarcity of meats and vegetables and staple groceries are getting low. The Kansas City packing houses are under water and the local butchers have run out of several kinds of meat products. The gardeners of Topeka were all located on the Kaw river "and their farms ars under water from three to fifteen feet deep. This cuts off the vegetable supply. About a rollo east of ths Union Pacific hotel Is a small strip of land above water. It is probably 100 feet long and ten feet wit'. On it more than a dosen horses and cows are located. They have been thers tor twenty-four hours without food. More attention Is being paid today to getting provisions to ths people penned up In houses than to getting them out. ' The big Melan river bridge has stood solid as a dam up to this time. The north ap proach has washed badly and the east ap proach is sagged, but the main structure still stands in Una. At the present time It not only serves as a bridge, but also as a dam. The pressure of the current Is ter. rifle, but It does not move the bridge. The water Is two foet lower below the struc ture than It Is above. The Rock ' Island and anta Fe bridges still stand. On Kan sas avenue north of the river the water In some places Is up to the awnings. Boats Do Good Work. Boats from Emporia, Ottawa, Kansas City and St. Joseph ars all doing good ser vice. They are hauled two miles above town, filled with provisions and manned with good rowers. Then they are run across to the stricken section. The supplies are distributed among the sufferers in the build ings, and people are picked out of the trees and given shelter In some house. When the boats get so far down that they cannot be pulled up stream sufferers are picked up and brought to this side of the river a mile or so below town. Then the boat ars hauled to town and again sent on a similar trip. A cow swam to the Melan bridge today and Is making Its home there. Tonight a woman with a little babe was brought to the bridge by rescuers. Both were almost starved. A rescuer got a bucket and milked the cow and gave ths milk to the woman and the baby. Buildings In the submerged district con tinue to collapse. It is reported that two' or three big storebuildlngs on North Kan aas avenue, which escaped ths fire last night, are now crumbling. Notwithstanding their precarious con dition, many of the sufferers held religious services today In the buildings where they were cooped. It was a touching sight, the rescuers say, to see people of an walks of life bowed down In prayer together. Report of Additional Rise. It Is reported late tonlarht that h. streams around Manhattan are rising rap idly. If this is true It means much more water in Topeka tomorrow morning. Re ports or this kind bavs been current all day, but tonight a telephone message from Wamego says It is thought thers that tho reported rise is not a fact. When the river falls three feet lower here the water com pany will again start its enainaa and h will relieve much of the distress In the city. Tonight fifty or mors flood sufferers are living tn paaaenger coaches on the Rock Island tracka Water surrounds the cars, but there is no danger. . At 11 D. m. the lumber rard in Knrih Topeka la again burning. Houses ars ournea out on coin sides or ths lumber yard and the Are is apt aspects to spread far. Twelve engines and cars loaded with scrap Iron are loaded onto the Santa Fs bridge and, although a great mass of wreca age is pressing against the bridge, It la holding Its own. Two women snd a baby were drowned to night by the eapsixlng of a boat. They had been rescued by Charles Kstes and Miles Salver at the foot of Monroe street These young men made twenty-nix trips out Into the river after refugees today. All the people yet remaining In North Topeka at places of refuge have a supply of rood sufficient to last for three days, with the possible exception of the people In the woolen mills. Thousands T5f dead horses, cattle and smaller animals are floating down stream tonight. A well known man of North Topeka of fered Estes and Salyer a large sum If they would conduct his family from his house to the woolen mill. This the young men declined, saying that the family were already In places of safety and that any way they were not risking their lives on such a turbulent stream for such a thing as money. The young men then went on their way and reacued a family of poor Russians from their perilous situation. One who worked with the life savers all night was R. F. Hayden, probate judge of Shawnee county. At 3 o1ock this morning he entered hhi boat to return to the north side. The strong . current mastered him and swept him down the river. He has not been seen since. Forty-two families In the north part ot Auburndale were driven out of their homes. They began moving out Friday evening. Eight families moved to higher ground on Circle street, but the wster rose so rapidly during the night that Saturday morning these same families were obliged to move still farther south. The heaviest loser Is Joseph J. Fields, ex-treasurer of Wabunsee county, who recently built a nice house on fairly high grounds. Mr. Fields had new furniture and other household goods, which were destroyed. Judge Rlghtmlre, candidate of the popu list party several years ago, was a heavy loser and fled from his house for safety. Few Caaea of Sickness. The astonishing- thine about the catas- tiophe Is the minimum ot Illness among the sufferers. There are only two people In the temporary hospital, a woman and a small bov. Another woman suffering from pleurisy declined to go to the hospital last night and slept in Lincoln post nan. At the Salvation Army barracks a 10-year-old hov Is sick with fever, but Is not In a serious condition. These four cases consti tute tha total number among the people who have applied for relief. The tern hosoltal was Improvised In small building on Christ Hospital grounds. It has been fitted up comfortably ana nurses from the hospital will attend the patients. The Kanta. Fe has tendered its Old snon huiirtinv tnr hosnital and sleeping purposes. The upper story Is heated and bunks have been nut In; About fifty people slept there last night. By Tuesday tnonlng a well equipped gasoline launcn win oe rrauj i take part In the relief work. The boat will h . .1,1 wheeler. The work will be pushed with the Utmost rapidity. Just as many blacksmiths, machinists, woodwork ers, etc, as can be handled to advantage will be used in tha boat's construction. KANSAS CITY IS HARD HIT On Both Mtsaonrt and Kansas Sides Floods Do Immense Amount of Damage. KANSAS CITV. May Slj-Wlth the waters of the Kaw and Missouri rivers nearly four feet above th disastrous level "of 1W1 and their swollen tide spread over twelve square miles of the city and its suburbs, Kansas Cltytonight Is enduring the worst flood of its history. In the valley or ths Kaw or Kansas river, between this city and Kansas City, Kan., a report has it that a number of lives have been lost. One report says fourteen and another have it fifty, but In the midst of demoralization It is impossible to verify these reports. Twelve bodies were counted as they floated past during the day. Most of the bodies were on pieces of wreckage. On the roof of a floating cabin was the body of a woman and her child. The financial loss has been Increasing all day and bids fair to continue. The heav iest loss tsat Armourdale, where the losses to the packing Industry and others Is placed conservatively at 12,600,000. Argentine, an other suburb, has suffered losses estimated at $600,000. Other losses which cannot now be estimated will Increase the total ma terially. Armourdale, with a population of 18,000 people, is deserted and Its site marked only by the tops of buildings and a number of flres. Seven fires, believed to be chiefly box cars burning, could be seen from the bluffs tonight. There Is some danger that ths flames will spread to the partially sub merged buildings, .adding greatly to the al ready heavy loss. The fire started by In trusion ot the flood Into a lime house. The refugees from Armourdale for the most part ars huddled together In the immense auditorium of the Convention hall, al though several hundred found havens with friends In more fortunate parts of the cite'. All bridges over the Kaw river are down and the only communication with Armourdale Is by boat. . Water Works Oat of Business. Kansas City tonight Is without a water supply, the flood having disabled the pump ing station and the utmost car Is being taken that no flres shall break out. Even a small fire, It Is feared, would start a conflagration. Only one street car line In the city is running tonight, owing to ths disabling of the power plant by the flood. The city is blockaded with trains unable to gat out. Not a train haa gone out of the city today, and It is said there Is little prospects of any Improvement In the situa tion for some time. The stage of ths river tonight is 30.7. The previous high record was made In 1881 when the river rose to 26.26. By tomorrow momfng, according to the prediction of Superintendent O'Connor of the weather bureau, the level will be thirty one feet. Ths Union station by the rise ot the flood today was rendered useless. At one end the water was three feet deep and at the other end a foot higher. In the baggage room baggage was fastened to tackle and suspended in the air out of the reach of the water. Numerous rescues, some of them made by the narrowest of margins, occurred during the day. Two thirds ot Argentine, a railroad and manu facturing town on the south bank of the Kansas river, six miles from Kansaa City", Is Inundated, and probably 1600,000 damage has been done. Forty-five hundred of the (.600 Inhabitants are homeless and nearly 1000 are destitute. Five bridges hav been swept away, all the railroad tracks and factories are under water and business is suspended. Various rumors of loss of life cannot be verified, but an unknown negro woman Is believed to hav been drowned. She waa clinging to a log which struck the accumulated wreckage at a bridge and was carried under. Railroad I.oaa Heavy. Ths Santa Fs railroad's loaa Is very heavy, but can scarcely be estimated until the flood abatea The railroad has 100 miles of track In the Argentine yards and several miles of freight cars atand sub merged. Some cars have broken loose from their trucks and floated down the river. The current has 'left the old channel and has moved south, wrecking all ths build ings In Its path. The Ssnta Fe track Is under water all th way U HoUiday. eight miles from Argentine, up the Kansas river valley. The Turner bridge, three miles shove Argentine, went out st J:W this morning. Its wreckage lodged agslnst the county bridge at Argentine, which suc cumbed at noon. The Belt Line steel rail road bridge. Just below the county bridge, fell Immediately afterward. Then In suc cession 'the Twenty-fourth street bridge, owned Jointly by the Metropolitan Street Railway company and th county, and the county bridge at Fifth street were carried away. The railroad bridge waa valued at $75,000 and the other four at $C5,000 each, making the bridge loss $17.K. i Five hundred frams dwelling houses are under water and with a further rise many will be swept away. The river Is full of wreckage and crowds of people lined the tanks today watching the procession of houaes, cars, trees and other debris that floated down. No bodies have been seen to pass, but chickens, dogs and cats go by on wreckage. The stream Is three miles wide. Tho large., add plant of the Southwest Chemical company Is flooded by twenty feet of water. The Santa Fe car shops, machine houses, round house, station and levator and the Argentine smelter stand In deep water. The 1,000 employes of the Santa Fe are Idle, also BOO men from the acid works, and Indeed all the wage work ers of Argentine. The loss of the bridges, the suspension of telegraph and telephone service, have almost totally Isolated Ar gentine. The roads are almost Impassable fof heavy vehicles. Fortunate Find 'of Provisions. There would have been a famine today but for the discovery of two refrlgeratot car loads of meat In ths railroad yards and the generosity of a contractor who sent a wagon load of bread from Kansas City fot free distribution. The meat was con fiscated and the bread and meat is being served at the city hall to all applicants. Many of the destitute are negroes who have not even saved their clothing. The people In the flooded district had ample warning, but clung to their houses, h'oping for the fall of the water, until they could escape only by boat or raft. The water Is quiet except where the new channnel Is wearing and there will be no loss of life. Further rise of the water will not lncreasb the flooded area, which already reaches to the bluffs, but will take away many houses now Inundated but still resting on their foundations. There Is urgent need of food and clothing. The refugees are sheltered in houses which are high and safe. Situation at Armourdale. The .situation in the suburb of Armour dale tonight Is one of utter desolation, with every prospect . that the financial loss, al ready heavy, will be greater within the next tweoty-four hours. In this section are situated all the large packing houses,, Armour's, Swift's, Cudahy's and Schwarts chlld A Sulsberger's. The Iobs to the plants alone will be $2,000,000. Swift A. Co. esti mate their loss to be close to $1,000,000. The Armour Packing company suffered a loss from the water roughly estimated at $500, 000. The exact damage cannot be calcu lated Vuntll the water lowers so that all the buildings may be Inspected and a gen eral Inventory taken, but the great plant will be Idle for some time to come. In addition to this there are great numbers of freight cars standing on the tracks, in all of which the freight Is ruined, and Mia loss In this direction cannot b compute for weeks after th waters subside. All th houses In the district are under water, most of them being only one-story high and fully 16.000 people from this suburb have been compelled to abandon their homes for higher ground. In few Instances have any, of them saved any thing of their properKrY and in most cases little of their clothing Most, ot them ha 5 ample warning, but f prererrea to remain at their houses untlrth last minute and then fled for their lives, carrying with them what their hands could lift and no more. Ail through the streets of this sec tion the waters ot th Kaw hav backed up, and there Is little current, a fact that may tend to lessen the damage. Inasmuch as the water cannot sweep property out Into th main river, as is the case In Ar gentine, snd in the wholesale district of Kansas City. Bridges In Danger. The two Armourdale bridges are still standing, but may not last through an other day. Against these bridges great masses of wreckage, was , wedged. The water poured five feet deep over their floors. In the wholesale district ther will be no active business for soma time after the abatement of the flood. There are scores of wholesale houses here and In every one of them the water has flooded the first floor and In many cases reaches to the ceilings of th first floor. Late this afternoon the walls of a building at the foot of Fifth street fell with a crash. It Is impossible to tell what building It was. At o'clock seven fires wer burning in as many places in the railroad yards, all of them having originated from slacking lime. At 4 o'clock the most serious phase of the day broke out In some lime cars standing opposite th west end of th Union station and directly behind the roundhouse, owned Jointly by all the roads entering the sta tion, Th flames ran quickly from car to car. and within three hours thirty of them had been destroyed. Among them were several oil Unks which for a time threatened great damage to everything in thlr vicinity. The wind carried the great sheets of flame toward the south snd the currents bore patches of biasing Oil in the opposite direction. Fortunately ther was an open space di rectly north of the fire which afforded egress for th burning oil and It was car ried so swiftly out to the river that the danger was somewhat lessened but there wss great peril for a time to a number of buildings close to th Union depot. Cries for Help. While this bias was at Its height fran tic cries of "help, help" cam from the vicinity of th fire, but the man who ut tered them could not be found, although numbers of men ran out on th Twelfth street viaduct to lend what old they could. Ther were no boats, darkness was rapidly closing down and unless the :tuth?r of the cries saved himselt an unknown rran went down to death with hundreds of people closo at hand and utterly unable to lend a hand to him. Ther wer rumors that th total number of death In the wholesale district durlpg the latter part of th day will tench as high ss fifty, but ther Is no direct evi dence of this and no possible way of de termining the matter until the waters rub side. Directly south of th viaduct stood th warehouse of the Missouri Lime and Ce ment company, a building 150 feet long and fifty feet wide. Close to It stood a number of cars loaded with lime and at I o'clock they were all ablase and with thenf went th warehouse and all It contained. About The World's Best Polish ' GORHAM -Silver Polish The result of year of experiment The best result with the least trouble r AS rsspooelbl Jewelers keep st a package a doten freight cars not loaded with l!me wer consumed also. Tha damage In this flr could not be less than 10o,0rin. Th other fire were scattered over a district five miles long by three miles wide and In every Instsnce are supposed to be lime t ars. It was Impossible to approach wltWn a mile of them, but none was urge. Loss of l.lle. Notwithstanding tha renorta nf irrt-nt loa I of life very few of the stories could be substantlntea lata tonight, and It will be several, days at least before there is any accurate Information In this regard. William Helsler, 76 years of age. Is known to hav been droWhed near his home in the east bottoms this afternoon. In company with his wife he started to leave his home snd both, of them were" borne down. Mrs. Helsler managed to grasp a bit of floating sidewalk and clung to It until help -jrrivoj. Her husband was unable to fight isulnst the current and was drowned. ' Kdward Blanchard, city plumbing In spector, is authority for the Statement th.t three women are caught In the freight house of the Union Pacific railway. He declares that he saw them late In the after noon waving their hands and beckoning for help. ,It was Impossible for anybody to reach them, however, ana they are still Imprisoned. It Is estimated that 250 people were res cued from buildings In the west bottoms during the day. Four dray wagons were used by the firemen and police In removing people from buildings which were partially under water. This was continued until tha water rose to such a height that the horses could scarcely struggle through It. Then a large number of boats were pressed Into service and refua-eea were mn,nl , V. - approaches of the L Road stations from wntcn point they could climb to places of safety. About the middle of. th n th stream which surged through every sireei oi ine west Dottoms was so high that people were driven to the upper floors of buildings and it was npru,.r . ... other methods to rescue them. In many cases aiong west Ninth street people were pulled up to the atrnrt, ir. .... - - v v. v t cirvai ru road by ropes which had been thrown to mem, mirty peopl were taken out of the Baltimore hotel at Ninth n fiu streets, most of them being carried away III UUHl, Hundred In Packlngr House. At 11 o'clock today E. E. Machette, gen eral manager of the Schwarsschlld & Bull berger packing plant, telephoned that 100 men were Imprisoned Jy the water in th packing house and asked the police to try and rescue them. Three boats were hauled to Twenty-fourth street, near Turkey creek pumping station, and Were launched with two men in each boat. The boats left the Missouri side at 12 o'clock. At 3 o'clock they had not reaohed the packing house, because at that hour there were 100 men upon Its roof and they raised the nacklna hous flag at halfmast and let it float. It was reported late tonight that all tha men had been taken off. Among those who are said to have seen people drowned waa Sergeant Coughlln, who Is stationed on the Twelfth street viaduct. From hi station he raw some distance away a woman and three chil dren afloat on the roof of a small cottage. Suddenly the wreckage gave a lurch and he saw the occupants of the roof no more. A boat containing five men capsized later near th same place, but whether the oc cupants perished or not the sergeant could not discern. The work of rescue and relief was taken In charge this morning by the Commercial club and at the time It waa the Intention to aid the people of Kansas City, Kan. TMans for this had been started, however, when Word came that all bridges leading to the Kansas town were down. Simul taneously; eacae.. startling reports . of hs floods at Armourdale and Argentina and the plans originally laid to aid the city across the Kaw river were quickly adopted to lit the urgent situation close at hand. A special meeting of the city council has been called for tomorrow morning. A great body of water coming from th west swelled the Kansas river nt Kansas City, Kan., this morning, causing ,i most alarming rise. Waters rushed with terrific force over the outlying trac's and the crowded wholesale districts of the west lot toms, and Anally Into the Union depot. At 10 o'clock a mile of big wholesale houses, elevators and freight depots were entirely surrounded, basements that yesterday were partly submerged were soon brimful and water began to reach the first floors. Within fifteen minutes the tracks entering th western end of the Union dermi were en tirely submerged, and at 11 o'clock th water had risen at such a rapid rate that the thousands of delayed piaiengers were making preparations to leave for the high ground up town. Union avenue, on which tne Blossom house and numerous smaller hotels, res taurants and stores are located, is a run ning stream. The watar rose so fast In th vicinity of the depot thnt many persons wer forced to remove to second floors and preparations were made hurriedly to rt inov the pSssengors up town. , Trains that have been waiting In the depot for hours for an opportunity to start vet and south stand a foot deep In water. No trains have left Kansas City for the west or south since last night and none will leave today and perhaps not for several days. Trains from the east also are late, many ap parently having met the flood no being caused by the rise In the Missouri ier east of here. losses Into the Mllllona. Th losses In the wholesale districts wl! aggregate well Into the millions, and the losses to the various packing houses nearer the river will be tremendous. The Btret directly In front of the big Armour pack ing plant Is under five feet of watr. Ar mour t Company hav a fore of 200 men working at pumps trying to keep the rising waters out of the buildings. At the super intendent's office It was stated this morn ing that the plant will continue to operate a full force unless the water ;oes much higher. All of the hundreds of smuller concerns, near the ordinary banks of the Missouri river, which depend upon the Mver for power, are under water, and hev iu b forced to suspend till the river reced-a tftrowlng thousands of men out of eml ployment. The entire stock yards, situated on th stat Una. are submerged, many of the pens being five feet deep in water. The base ment of the Live Stock exchange, con taining 100 railroad and other offices, as well as the big barns of the mule and horse markets In that district, are several feet under water. Ther Is no way of reaching the stock yarda except by boat from a point one mile eaat. Sheep valued at $7,000 as well as many head of cattle and horses have been drowned. The loss at this point will be very heavy. Rescuing; I.I Stork. All night forces of the stock yards men wer at work rescuing Irv stock, hun. dreds of head being brought up Into town. ah troney lines In both cities have been shut down, the power house st Rlverview being under water and only one or two cable lines on the Missouri side are run nlng. All of th freight houses of the various railroads entering Kanaas City, which are located In the west bottoms on a level with the Union depot, are flooded and the losses from this source alone must be great. Becaus ef th delayed traffic west of Kanaas City during the past week a great amount of freight has accumulated here and now the railway yards are under water It will be Impossible to move thla save by boat. As practically all the boats to b had are being used to, rescue people, much freight will b damaged. All tele phone communication ulth the flooded dis trict Is shut off. making It difficult to ac curately estimate th damage. At 12:30 the water In Union avenue wss three feet deep end people were being taken out of tho Blossom house and adja cent building In wagons, which will soon be forced to quit. The wster at the present rate will be In the I'nlon depot main wait ing room mlthlu n hour. Three-fourths of Armourdale was sub merged. The packing houses on the Ksn sns river here were entirely surrounded and fifteen feet of water surrounded the Si-hwarischlld & Sulxberger and Suliberger and Swift parking plant. The Kansas City police spent all night rescuing persons and at noon no deaths had been reported. The police have thirty-five boats In service. At Pchwarzsorfild's plant 250 persons, employes and peorle in the vicinity who had been driven from their homes, are Imprisoned. They have been held there since early last evening. They are safe from harm, but will not be removed until those In greater dancer In the lower ground of Armour dale and Argentine have been taken to placea of ssfely. Rains Continue. A steady rain has fallen here and west all night and still continues, and streams In the stricken territory ara rising at an alarming rate. The property loss In the wholesale districts of the west bottoms wjii be tremendous. Both Kansas Cities ore co-operating In the matter of relief and today the great auditorium or Convention hall on the Mis souri side, capable of seating 20,000 pef sons, was turned Into a relief camp and th unfortunates brought there from the Kan bhs side. At 12:30 today a force ot police began ordering out the main waiting room of the union depot the hundreds of persons await ing outgoing trains. At that time the water bad reached the traine. Ptssengers on the outbound Santa Fe limited, who had been waiting hours to move, snd others on other trains were ordered out also. Many went to th second flood, which under any condition will be saf. but the crowds wer so great that a majority of the people could not find room there and were forced to go up town. At 1 4clock a half foot of water covered tho floor, and the ticket omce, telegraph office, baggage room and ex press office were soon flooded. Although the water was rising more steadily ss it spread out it made It Impossible to move trains In any direction. The depot, with th exception of the Second story waiting rooms, restaurant and other offices, will hc.ve to be temporarily abandoned. The only outlet left now Is over the Santa Fe, Missouri Pacific, Alton, Burlington and Wabash tracks In the eastern part of th city, but as little switching can be done outside the depot, all trains will be finally stalled. Incoming trains from the east are laid out, and the wires being down It Is Impossible to state the railway conditions east of here. The express companies, whose Offices are located at the lower end of the depot, fire all under four feet of water and ex presstige Is being removed up town as fast as wagons can move through Union ave nue, which now Is a swift current, the water reaching almost to the wagon boxes. Only a limited portion of this matter can be removed, and already much damage has been done. Freight also is being re moved from the various freight houses by means of wagons, but the work Is slow and difficult. ONE 'QUIET DAY IN JACKSON Aothlng Occurs In Mountain Villaa-e to Break the Humdrum of 1,1 fe. JACKSON. K?., Mu? 31.-Sunday ' was a quiet day In Jackson. Save for the In spection In the morning, an unusually large number of curious visitors from the county and a soarch of the jail, the hours passed monotonously for the troops. Saturday night was without special incident. Fear ing that a weapon had been paused to Jett or . White by some visitor. Colonel Wil liams took the precaution to have every cell In tho Jail examined. While nothing was found the police felt easier when th search was completed. Nothing had occurred to arouse Colonel William's suspicions, but it was remem bered that when Jett was In jail here last winter under a peace bond for $6,000, a crowbar and a hatcliet were taken to him and he found no difficulty In liberating him self. He was not rearrested or reincarcer ated. While the probabilities are against his securing anything us largo as a crow bar or even as large as a saw. It Is be lieved that he would not hesitate to attempt to saw out and rush the guards If the opportunity offrred. He Is noted for daring acts and among his element is regarded as a hero. He displayed remarkable cour age a few weeks ago when he plunged Into the river during n freshet and saved the life of Jailer Spencer's son, who was drown ing. Due to a misunderstanding, Jett and White have been occupying the same cell. Colonel William's ordered the men to be kept separated. USE FOR MARTINIQUE FUND New York World Busgreats Dlrrrtlng Rurploa to Western Flood sufferers, y NEW YORK, May 31 .-(Special Telegram.) The New York World will print tomorrow the following editorial: "The tale of the western floods grows with the telling. Hundreds are dead, thousands are home less and destitute; cities are filled with refugees. Industry for the moment Is paralyzed. There is a call for help. The acting aecretary of war has ordered tents In Fort Leavenworth and Fort Riley to be placed at the service of the homeless and army rations to be turned over for tholr use; but the needs ot tha sufferers far transcend the power of the government to relieve. There remains In the hands ot Cornelius N. Bliss, treasurer of the Mar tinique and West Indian Island Relief Fund committee, a balance of $S6.2tH.12, originally subscribed for the sufferers from the erup tion of Mont Pele and La Souffriere. Con tributors to that fund have been asked whether they would care to hav a portion of their gifts returned to them. Why could not this fund be used for the flood suffer ers? Probably there Is not one of those who added to it who would not heartily approve Its us in this emergency. Trompt sid is double sld; this money would go far If made Immediately available. A Hurt Sever Hurts After Porter's Antiseptic Healing Oil la ap plied. Relieves pain Instantly and heals at the same time. For man or beast. Price. Sc. AMl'BEMEMTS. BOYD'S FIFTH BIG WEEK FERRIS STOCK CO. Tonight snd Until Wednesday, "TH H UALI.liY SLAVK." - .... Thursday and Balance of Week, . "A NIGHT OK FROLIC." Prices Mat., any seat. 10c; night. 10-15 -Kc. BASE BALL Vinton Street Grounds. Colorado Springs vs. Omaha JUD J -J-4 . Qmu called at l.9 p. m. FLOODS ARE NOT ABATING Nemaba and Bine Riven and Knmrrou Oreeka Still Out of Eanks. CONTINUED RAINS ARE DISCOURAGING Stream Subside Somewhat, Only la He Raised Aaaln by the Constantly Recurring Showers. BKATRICE. Nob.. May 3i.-t8pcclol Tele gramsThe flood situation here Is changed somewhat this evening, the river having fallen two feet since yesterday. The city la again under fire urotecllon. the nati-. works plant having resumed operations rant night. No trains have entered the mtv for three days, but the Vnlon Paclflu will c-.i-deavor to get a train through from Lincoln tonight. The electric light plant and Dine!; Brothers, millers, will not regit me business for nearly a week. It would be impossible to estimate the loss to crops, property nnd stock at this time. The flood sufferers ie being properly cored for. It has bicn rain ing most of the day and the wen ther is cold. EXETER. Neb., May Si (Special.) -Never before in the history of Exeter hss the water been so high as it now Is. For two days and nights the rain has continued to pour almost without ceasing. Many ' buildings sre entirely surrounded by wafer, cellars are falling In, sidewalks floating nnd much discomfort Is caused by high water. Decoration day passed unobserved on ac count of th atorrpy weather and bad roods. Xemaha Breaks a Record. FALLS CITY, Neb., May $l.-fSpeclal Tel egram.) The bottom lands along the Ne maha in this county are under more water than ever was known before, exceeding by several inches the high water mark of l?sj. It has rained continually slmost during the month of May. Today It Is still rain ing. As fsr as the eye can reach nothing can be seen hut water and It Is steadily raining. Both the Nemaha on the south apd west and the Muddy on the north of the city are out and as no one from these directions can reach town hn.in... 1. . . a standstill. All the growing crops ara uuivu. .ne good reature Is that but few people live on the bottom, in m. but those who do hav been compelled to ''" i"cea 01 saiety. George Hlnton and family moved today. It Is the first tlm th water has reached him kn. on ths B. a M. and Missouri Pacific are delayed In every direction and the tracks this morning ara iihn. x-- . , . " LI KIMS from the east on th B. A M. have arrived rived yesterdav but tnr,n. u .. . . - rrM ' ' ' "j ana mat will be the last for several days. The Mls- -uur. -aclno , ln tn. gam() rendition. No loss of Ufa or stock haa been reported. Part of Ashland a Lake. ASHLAND. Neh.. M i ... v long continued rains nt t ... culminated last night Tn the most disas trous noon tnis locality has experienced sine March. 1881. The Wshoo and Salt creeks that unite her have been bank full for th past ten days. Friday night ther was a rapid rise and yesterday morning the Salt creek vallev m.m 1 ... Shortly after midnight th residents of the r,w TO"n w no for their lives, leav ing their household (Tt. .t.. of th flood AH travel between the depot , -unpenuea except by boats Small buildings have floated away and larger one on the . Th electric power plant is submerged Ini .... umn wunout light for a week. The Memorial t- suspended. Bell's grove, where th progrsm , 7 , given, Being part of an Inland sea. The rr..v. ... .7,...:, 1 . it is feared that the c,.m." ha. notVeen NORTH ' LOUP. Nb nr.- . .. teaiy ra.nfa.l for thT last h, Inches for this month. This exceeds th, molstur of th same mi. . " Anting I. . lno wet weather Is doing no particular harm. " LINCOLN. Mav M 1 v i-r.ai., nignr. the water In Salt creek reached a height considerably above that of the floods of last year Todav thm , . ... going down and late this afternoon It had dropped over two feet. All the residents or that part of town hav danger and a second rise- la not antlel- pacea. Moto to HlRh Ground. NEBRASKA CITY. Ms !it i.i t-.. egram.)-The river- at this point Is still rising. No dancer Is felt nn t,i. -u. on the Iowa bottoms across from this place pcupie are moving their stock to the bluffs and If a rise of another foot comes a great amount of damage will be done. The corn crop Is now almost entirely destroyed on mu bios ot in river. Bad la Johnson County. TECL'MRnH. Neh.. M.v 11 1.1 lujjcviai e gram.) Not a day ha passed In this lo cslity for fifteen days without at least a shower of rain and for the past week it nas oeen raining almost Incessantly. The flood conditions in Johnson better than ln most of the other looalltica that ar suffering in the state. The Nemaha has been out of Its banks three times In a week, flooding the bottoms, waihlnr; fields, destroying pastures and playing havoo with the county roads. niiv,i. bridges. Ths river Is still out, having fallen but a foot today. A drizsllng rain has pre vailed throughout the day and it has been so cold overcoats wr nivir -.. wagon roads centering into Tecumseh wer BDoui impassaoia ysaterday and but few farmers ventured to town. Business Is at a standstill. The Burllnrton ia aiifrar4,, v Nebraska Clty-Holdrege line has beon tied up sine Friday, a washout Ong, and a cut filling eaat of here. The l.incoin-Ht. Joseph line got a paaaenger train through from tha north ......... ... ,nir,uiV but the local train Is still at Table Rock Th Portland-St Louis as well as nil trains ar aoanaonea today. The only trains to move wss a freight north with no-i.h.vi. goods snd a work train north, it Is said tne water is running over the track at Sterling and that the tr-lwht 1. there. A bridge Is reported out on the Nemana st Falls city stopping trains south All tha creeks ef tha pnnmv v..... swollen the post few days. Corn planting Is not finished snd th farmers will suffer with delayed works Fears for Blsj Bridge. PLATTSMOUTH. Neb.. May t-Speclal Telegram.) The rain continue to fall In this vicinity and the Piatt and Missouri rivers ar th highest they hav bean this spring. Th bottom lands on each sld or each 'stream are overflowed. The false work under th east end of th Burlington bridge which spans th Missouri river at this point has settled and fears are enter tained for the ssfety ot that portion of th bridge should th river continue to rise. Th first train from 'th east did not arrive until i:$0 this evening. The train from Kansas City over th Missouri Pacific arrived hare this morning and la still here, as ther Is a washout at LaPlatt. Ed Fitz gerald has about 100 horses on ths Island east of this city wading In th water up to their, bodies and may be drowned, a he filled to rescu them today. Families are reported to t removing rrom ineir a oa in lowmnas can wt in nvar.