The story of Johnstown : its early settlement, rise ... - JohnstownCafe

VI.
MARCH OF THE DESTROYER.
A l>w OF Funereal Gloom—Rush of Waters Down the Valley—John Baker's Heroic
RiDt— Ravages at S- .uth-Fokk— First Victim of the Flood- Shafer's Fate—An Engineer's
Escape— Railroaders Drowned — Sad Scenes Along the Route — The \'iaduct
Washed Aww— Mineral Point Ouliterated — The FIigh Bridge Gone—A Perilous
Journey— Terrible Loss of Life and Property at East Conemaugh — Franklin
Borough Plunged into Mourninc.,
The ra-'ii
Rolled a broad 5Uu«li
And nature's self did
the brink of tiijie
^-
tF TUO BR \y
FIEX THE fatal break in the dam occurred the
skies wore a leaden hue. as if in mourniii-;
for the region about to experience a diielul
visitation. Cli'iuds of inky lilackness spread
a funereal pall, \eiling the sun from mortal
view. The atmosphere was damp and murky
and the earth saturated with mciisture. Raindrops
glistened on e\ery leaf and blade of
grass, nature's subsidy of tears over the approaching
horror.
Swollen rivulets nuirmure'.l
a solemn requiem, for the supreme iiK.mu.iit
had come to hurry thousands of unsuspecting
souls into eternity. Unseen and disregarded,
the E'lestroN-er shadowed the de\oted Conemaugh
Valley. read\' to strike the blow that sli.iuld cmivert it into one great
charnel-house. Insatiate Death, hungry for his prey, awaited the signal to cat
down the human harvest which niiL;ht glut even the grim re.ijnr. Whoksale
casualties ha\e ncit been wanting; at anv period, but the niost appalling of
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