Staunton Vindicator

Great Freshet-Heavy Loss.

On last Saturday our "City of the Hills" was visited by another of those floods which on occasions heretofore have been the terror of our citizens. Between eleven and two o'clock of the day we had never felt the heat more oppressive. The atmosphere seemed ladened with heat, and the slight air that stirred parched like the breath of a furnace. Any one who has ever traversed the great ocean of land called the "plains," lying west of the Mississippi river and reaching to the Colorado of the West, can form an idea of the intensity of the heat, by comparing it to one of those still days, when not a breath of air is stirring, the sun pouring down his burning rays, and as far as the eye can reach, not a bush, or shrub, or tree to be seen, but one vast expanse of arid, sandy, parched up earth. The sensation we experienced on last Saturday, before the rain began to fall, was something similar to that felt on the plains under such circumstances. About two o'clock a heavy cloud had gathered in the North-east, and the rain commenced falling rapidly, with a slight North-western wind. About half past two, another immense black cloud formed in the Northwest, and moving in a Northerly direction, met the cloud in the Northeast, which had continued to grow in intensity and size. The windows of heaven seemed then to have opened, and the rain descended in torrents, accompanied by a sea of hail-stones. The five of six trenches which pass through the farms of Col. Opie and W. W. Donaghe, Esq., soon began to empty their muddy, turbulent waters into Lewis' Creek immediately above the residence of Mr. Donaghe. The channel of that stream was too small to carry off the immense body of water that rushed into it from its dozen feeders, and from the residence of Mr. Mayse back to the foundry of Garber & Co., the bottom lands and gardens were entirely inundated. The destruction to the gardens between these points was great and almost total. The impediments to the passage of the wateralong the legitimate channel were so great from Mr. Mayse's down to Beverly street, that it founds its way east of the creek by making a course through the gardens of W. Burke, Benj. Crawford, T. Shumate, Geo. Harlan, A. F. Kinney, R. G. Bickle and others. In fact, after the waters had passed Mr. Mayse's, there was a complete inundation extending from Lewis to August Streets. Fences, corn-cribs, hog-pens, chicken-coops, wagons, drays, barrels, boxes, wood-piles, and rubbish of every description, were borne off on the bosom of the maddened element. The damage from Mr. Mayse's back to the Foundry was considerable, embracing gardens and property, the owners of which we are unable to mention. The damage to gardens and fences from Mr. Mayse's down to Beverly street falls principally upon Messrs. Burke, Crawford, Shumate, Harlan, Kinney, Morris and Hickle. The water rushed through the garden of Mr. Crawford and into the basement of his residence with terrible fury, tearing away everything in its course. The volume here divided, one part seeking an outlet in August street, and the other rushing on down through the gardens of Harlan, Shumate, Kinney and Bickle, and coming out into Beverly street through the business and dwelling houses ranging between Union Hall and Crawford & Cochran's store, fronting about one and a half squares.

The course of the water down August street is marked by the most distressing evidences of its fury. The side walks on either side were literally plowed up. On the west side of the street, down to Beverly, Messrs. Benj. Crawford, T. Shumate, A. F. Kinney, H. G. Bickle and A. M. Bruce, grocer, are the sufferers, the damage amounting to not less than $2000 or $2500. On the east side the pavement is entirely torn up from Dr. Waddell's to the Grocery of Mr. Hultz. The damage to private residences is not much, mostly falling on Miss Waddell and H. J. Crawford. The loss of Mr. Hultz, grocer, on the corner of Augusta and Beverly, is very heavy, reaching to as much as $1500, which falls hard upon a very deserving gentleman. P.N. Powell, grocer, loses heavily. Woods & Gitkeson, hardware merchants, have sustained severe damage. Blake's shoe store and Elick's saddlery also come in for a considerable share of the loss. On North Beverly street the damage fell upon J. B. Antoni, confectioner, and Mrs. K. M. Kelley, Miss Lucy Snider, and Mrs. Stevenson, milliners, Mr. Morrik, Faust & Co., shoe store, D. A. Kaysar, dry good merchant, Dr. Eichelbarger, druggist, Crawford & Cochran, dry goods merchants, and Mosby, Taylor & Co., dry goods merchants. On the South side, Geo. E. Price, hardware merchants, loses heavily; also P. H. Trout & Co., druggists, and J. B. Evans, tobacconist, slightly. From Beverly down Augusta street to the bridge across Lewis Creek the destruction was great. The corner of the foundation of the store of O. C. Morris was completely swept away, and an immense gorge washed in front of the building on both Beverly and Augusta streets. His loss in groceries, damage to other goods and building, is heavy. The pavement down the west side of August street was torn up, and considerable damage done to the foundations of Baylore's Law Office, Mrs. Carros's residence, the new brick building of R. G. Bickle, and Bledsoe & Co.'s store. The partitions in the basement of Bledsoe's building, and the Southern wall fronting on Irish Alley were swept away, and about $2,000 worth of groceries entirely destroyed. One-half of the South end of the building gave way and fell, exposing the entire inside of the store and residence. Their loss is very heavy and will not be covered by less than $8,000 or $8,500.

Irish Alley was completely cleaned of the rubbish which had accumulated there since the last flood. The loss is not heavy, but falls on those poorly able to bear it--The floors of the row of store rooms on the wharf gave way as did a part of the foundations. Jno. O'Hare's loss is considerable in goods and damage to building. A part of the front yard and a wall around the back yard of the jail were washed away. Down New Court-house Street the damage was not very severe. It reached to Michie, Harman & Bell, and Sheffey & Bumgardner's law offices, and Rankin's building. The basement of Mrs. Brandeburg's residence was inundated. On the west side of August street from Adam Bickle's corner to the corner of the Court-house yard, on New C. H. Street, no damage was done to private property, save to W. Tate and W. Carroll. The front wall of the foundation was swept away and a deep gorge washed immediately in front of Mr. Carrol's house. The sidewalk was torn up and considerable damage done to the Corporation interests around the Court-house inclosure. On New Street the damage to individuals is comparatively small. W. Miller Boot and Shoe Store, loses slightly; C. T. Cochran, tobacconist, lightly; Dr. Young, druggist, lightly; John B. Scherer, considerably; as also J. Beck, both grocers and confectioners. The pavements on both sides of the streets are torn up. The cellars were all filled with water.

The damage to Garber & Co.'s Foundry is quite serious, and will prevent them for several weeks from operating their machinery. Much of their metal has been washed off, some of which will never be found. James Mayse, tanner, also loses heavily, and will have a great deal of repairing to do before he can again go to work. The loss to Mrs. Farrar, whose house is built immediately over the creek, is very serious. All the furniture in the lower part of her house was destroyed; also clothing, bedding, and what little money this excellent old lady had accumulated by hard labor, were washed away. Her case is one that appeals strongly to the charity of the community.

The damage along the course of Lewis' Creek, below Staunton, is considerable. The Woolen Factory sustained a slight injury, amounting to several hundred dollars. The corn-fields and bottom lands of Capt. J. A. Harman, Mosby & Taylor, Davis Bell, M. G. Harman, A. W. Harman, and others, were much damaged, and much of the corn almost entirely destroyed.

It is impossible to estimate the loss sustained by this almost unprecedented flood. To commute the actual loss, the inconvenience, and the incidental costs, into money, the sum would be no small item. It is sufficient to arouse our citizens to the absolute necessity of arming themselves against a recurrence of the disastrous results which have followed this freshet. Many plans have been suggested, but we think the wisest idea has been adopted by the Council, and that is to employ a competent Engineer to examine into the cause and suggest a remedy if possible. All the Council can possibly do, they have determined to perform.

On Wednesday another freshet occurred, but not so heavy as the one on Saturday. Our citizens, and especially those on the water course, were much alarmed and some of them left their homes, and sought higher and drier quarters with their neighbors. The waters were dammed up above Mayse's premises, and were forced to either side of the main channel to seek a temporary one for the occasion. This was easily found in the line marked by the current on Saturday.

The flood of the 4th inst., was greater and more destructive than the freshet either of 1844 or 1855.

Incidents of the Flood.

A little son of D. C. McGuffin, Esq., came near being drowned on Saturday during the freshet. The basement story of his house was filled with water. A servant woman was standing with her back to the cellar door, and hearing a splash, remarked - "There goes my cupboard," and turning around, beheld instead of her cupboard, Mr. McGuffin's oldest child strangling in the water. A few moments more and life would have been extinct. The little fellow had fallen head foremost, and strangulation had commenced before he could call attention to his perilous situation.

Mrs. Farrar was driven from the lower rooms of her house to the attic. Her little grandson happened to be away from the house when the flood rushed suddenly upon it. Knowing that his grandmother was in the building, the little fellow became almost frantic, and once or twice attempted to get to the house by rushing through the waters, but was prevented by Dr. Downey. But for this timely intervention, the little boy's affection for his grandmother would have proved his death.

"Old Uncle Sam," a servant belonging to Benj. Crawford, Esq., was barely rescued from drowning by being drawn out of a cellar by a son of Mr. Crawford. Several persons in Irish alley came very near being drowned.

The chimney of the residence of Addison Waddell, and one of the Catholic church, were blown down. A number of trees were also twisted off by the restless force of the storm. The stable of Mr. J. McCoy was taken from its foundation.

One of the lamp posts--cast iron--was torn up and washed fifteen or twenty feet. The gas pipes were slightly injured, in consequence of which the gas was cut off on Saturday night. The defect was speedily repaired on Monday, and the town lighted up as usual that night.

The barn of W. W. Donaghe, Esq. situated near his residence in the vicinity of the North-west corporate limits, was struck by lightning during the storm on Saturday last, and consumed. There were also destroyed with the barn about 200 bushels of wheat in the straw, 250 bushels of rye, 300 or 400 bushels of oats, a threshing machine, a new wagon, and a number of other farming implements. Four negro men belonging to Col. H. L. Opie were in the barn at the time it was struck, having gone there for protection from the storm. The electric fluid struck very near one of the men, who describes it as surrounding him with a blaze of fire. The negroes were very much frightened, and rapidly made their escape, not slacking their utmost speed until they had reach [sic] their home, some five or six hundred yards distant.

Capt. H. H. Peck, a Mr. Reed, and Dr. King, were severely stunned by lightning on Saturday last, during the storm while standing in the porch of the house at Brown's Spring. The electricity struck the watch and chain of Capt. Peck, partially melting them, and passed down the leg to the foot, tearing off his boot. The shock was severe, but not sufficiently so to prevent him from traveling a few miles to his residence that evening. Mr. Reed was badly shocked , but will recover.

We saw Capt. Peck on Wednesday last. He is nearly entirely recovered from the shock. There is still a slight soreness in his right arm.

Camp Meeting.

A Camp Meeting for Churchville Circuit, Baltimore Conferences, commences today, under the charge of Rev. D. W. Arnold. A number of ministers from a distance will be present.

Jas. I. A. Trotter, Esq., will run a daily stage to and from the camp ground. Persons wishing to engage passage can do so by calling at the Stage Office at the Virginia Hotel.