The Great Galveston Disaster / Containing a Full and Thrilling Account of the Most Appalling Calamity of Modern Times Including Vivid Descriptions of the Hurricane and Terrible Rush of Waters; Immense Destruction of Dwellings, Business Houses, Churches, and Loss of Thousands of Human Lives; Thrilling Tales of Heroic Deeds; Panic-Stricken Multitudes and Heart-Rending Scenes of Agony; Frantic Efforts to Escape a Horrible Fate; Separation of Loved Ones, etc., etc.; Narrow Escapes from the Jaws of Death; Terrible Sufferings of the Survivors; Vandals Plundering Bodies of the Dead; Wonderful Exhibitions of Popular Sympathy; Millions of Dollars Sent for the Relief of the Stricken Sufferers

by Paul Lester

EXHAUSTION THINS OUT THE WORKERS.

“At a meeting of the Auxiliary Health Board to-day a committee was appointed to suggest to Adjutant General Scurry, in charge of city forces, and the General Relief Committee, the advisability of having the work done by contract and importing men to do it. Reports from various wards where men have been engaged in this work show a decrease in numerical strength, due to exhaustion and other causes. In some instances men who are skilled mechanics and have assisted in the disposition of the dead have obtained employment at their regular trades.

“It was announced this evening that a contract will be let for the removal of bodies and the huge mass of debris, which, in some parts of the city, reaches a height of fifteen feet. To do this, about three thousand men will be brought here from the interior. They will come with their own cooks and rations and camp on the beach, and will be paid $2 a day. It is estimated that it will require from twenty to thirty days to remove the wreckage.

“Under one pile of debris to-day thirty bodies were found and cremated. Bodies are still being washed ashore at Texas City, Bolivar Point, Pelican Island and other coast points near Galveston. There is no time to dig graves, and the bodies are hastily consigned to the flames.

“The city is still under martial law, and guards are patrolling the streets day and night. An example was made of a man arrested for selling liquor. The offender was marched to general headquarters, and, after a severe reprimand, was put to work on the street gang, removing and disposing of bodies. He will serve without pay for an indefinite period.

“All hospital relief stations and all points in the city are thoroughly disinfected. Dr. Peckham, of the United States Marine Corps, has established a camp for the injured and ill at Tremont and Beach avenues. Directly opposite is a camp for refugees. Camps will be established on the beach at the foot of Fifteenth street.

“Reports from Sealy Hospital, St. Mary’s Infirmary and other temporary hospitals are that sanitary rules are strictly followed, and the buildings are in fairly good shape. A great many patients from Sealy and St. Mary’s have been sent to Houston.