Daily Republican

Great Storm at Galveston.

GALVESTON, Aug. 22.—The storm ceased on Friday night and families who had been driven from their homes by the rapid inroad of the Gulf's waters the night before returned to their water-logged houses and began the work of repair, while hundreds of others, whose homes, with all their possessions, had been swept away, sought much needed rest after the terrors through which they had passed. The morning broke clear and beautiful. The waters, which had inundated one-half of the eastern and southern portions of the city to the depth of from one to seven feet, had subsided, except in low places. The beach and the adjacent portions of the city for several blocks back from the shore presented a deplorable scene of havoc and desolation. The ruins of hundreds of houses large and small, had been hurled and twisted into every shape, while brick pillars and wooden piling in every direction contiguous to the beach and exposed to the full force of the gale indicated where happy homes had stood the night before, but which were swallowed up and destroyed in the awful hurricane and flood. All pleasure resorts along the Gulf shore are either swept away or ruined, including the Beach Hotel, where the cages of a large menagerie were washed out to sea and many of the birds and beasts drowned. Among the animals that broke loose were two Mexican lions, who made things lively until shot by the night watchman, who received a dangerous wound by an accidental shot of his assistant passing through his arm.

The heaviest damage to property occurred in the neighborhood of the Beach Hotel, and is placed at $500,000. The work of righting buildings has commenced. The street railways are being repaired and travel has been resumed over some of the lines; but many months will elapse before all traces of the storm are effaced. The majority of the sufferers from the flood are of the poorer class of people. Many of them lost all they had and are destitute and discouraged, being dependent on friends for temporary shelter and relief. Private charity has been active in providing for the sufferers.

The schooner J. W. Perry, from Brashear City, with a cargo of cypress paving blocks, foundered during the gale fifteen miles off the island. Captain Whitmore and the colored cook were drowned. Two colored sailors clung to some floating timbers and were driven ashore eighteen miles down the island. They were almost dead from exhaustion when they reached the shore.

The body of Willie Brown, 11 years old, residing in the western portion of the city, who was drowned Friday at the foot of Thirty-second street, was recovered at the foot of Forty-ninth street yesterday morning and was buried. This makes the tenth victim of the storm. Railroad communication via the Missouri Pacific Road was established last night, the first train arriving at 10 o'clock.

HOUSES BLOWN FROM THEIR FOUNDATIONS.

The storm struck Corpus Christi on Friday morning, coming from the northwest, its velocity being estimated at seventy-five miles an hour. A large number of houses were moved from their foundations. The colored church and the office of the Aransas Pass Railway Company were completely destroyed. There was a terrible storm at Rockport and Harbor Island. All the improvements and grading at Harbor Island were washed away. Several boats were capsized and one large vessel was beached. At Rockport six houses were blown off their foundations. About one hundred employees of the Aransas Pass Railway Company were obliged to leave Harbor Island and seek refuge at Rockport, as the water was six feet deep on the Island. Seven men are missing and it is supposed they were drowned during the storm.

LOSS OF LIFE.

At Seguin the loss was about $15,000. The Record office was destroyed. The new tower of the Episcopal Church was blown down and a large number of public and private buildings were either destroyed or badly damaged. Robert Jefferson was killed at Sutherland Springs and Garland Smith and Richard Burgess were badly wounded. A pauper living with John England, across the river, died of fright during the storm. The cotton plant has been whipped into shreds, but many persons believe that it will take on a new growth and develop a top crop. At Luling houses were blown from their foundations, trees were uprooted, fences blown down and cotton was stripped from the stalk and blown over the fields. No casualties are reported. At Hempstead the damage to the cotton crop is fully 15 per cent.