But the mighty energy of man worked wonders. Marvelous to say, under such conditions, a bridge 2⅛ miles long was built across the bay within seven days and Galveston, which had been cut off from the world, was once more in active touch with all the marts of trade and commerce. An undaunted people strove as only an indomitable people can strive, to rehabilitate the city.
The signs of the cripple are still upon the city, but every hour brings nearer the day when the crutches will be thrown away and Galveston, which by nature and by man was chosen as the entrepot for the great West, will rise to a loftier destiny and a more enduring commercial prosperity than seemed possible before she was tried in the crucible of disaster. Longfellow says:
Our lot is the common lot of all,
Into each life some rain must fall,
Some days must be dark and dreary.
The dark and dreary days were crowded into Galveston’s life with horror unspeakable. It is an inexorable law of nature that after the storm comes the radiance of a glorious sunshine.
CONTENTS.
| CHAPTER I. | |
| PAGE | |
|---|---|
| First News of the Great Calamity—Galveston Almost Totally Destroyed by Wind and Waves—Thousands Swept to Instant Death | [17] |
| CHAPTER II. | |
| The Tale of Destruction Grows—A Night of Horrors—Sufferings of the Survivors—Relief Measures by the National Government | [29] |
| CHAPTER III. | |
| Incidents of the Awful Hurricane—Unparalleled Atrocities by Lawless Hordes—Earnest Appeals for Help | [42] |
| CHAPTER IV. | |
| The Cry of Distress in the Wrecked City—Negro Vandals Shot Down—Progress of the Relief Work—Strict Military Rules | [61] |
| CHAPTER V. | |
| Vivid Pictures of Suffering in Every Street and House—The Gulf City a Ghastly Mass of Ruins—The Sea Giving Up its Dead—Supplies Pouring in from Every Quarter | [86] |
| CHAPTER VI. | |
| Two Survivors Give Harrowing Details of the Awful Disaster—Hundreds Eager to Get out of Galveston—Cleaning up the Wreckage | [107] |
| CHAPTER VII. | |
| Not a House in Galveston Escaped Damage—Young and Old, Rich and Poor, Hurried to a Watery Grave—Citizens With Guns Guarding the Living and the Dead | [129] |
| CHAPTER VIII. | |
| Fears of Pestilence—Searching Parties Clearing away the Ruins and Cremating the Dead—Distracted Crowds Waiting to Leave the City—Wonderful Escapes | [146] |
| CHAPTER IX. | |
| Story of a Brave Hero—A Vast Army of Helpless Victims—Scenes that Shock the Beholders—Our Nation Rises to the Occasion | [167] |
| CHAPTER X. | |
| Details of the Overwhelming Tragedy—The Whole City Caught in the Death Trap—Personal Experiences of Those Who Escaped—First Reports More than Confirmed | [191] |
| CHAPTER XI | |
| Galveston Calamity—One of the Greatest Known to History—Many Thousands Maimed and Wounded—Few Heeded the Threatening Hurricane—The Doomed City Turned to Chaos | [212] |
| CHAPTER XII | |
| Thrilling Narratives by Eye-witnesses—Path of the Storms Fury Through Galveston—Massive Heaps of Rubbish—Huge Buildings Swept into the Gulf | [234] |
| CHAPTER XIII | |
| Refugees Continue the Terrible Story—Rigid Military Patrol—The City in Darkness at Night—Hungry and Ragged Throngs | [257] |
| CHAPTER XIV. | |
| Dead Babes Floating in the Water—Sharp Crack of Soldiers’ Rifles—Tears Mingle With the Flood—Doctors and Nurses for the Sick and Dying | [273] |
| CHAPTER XV. | |
| Family in a Tree-top All Night—Rescue of the Perishing—Railroad Trains Hurrying Forward With Relief—Pathetic Scenes in the Desolate City | [293] |
| CHAPTER XVI. | |
| Startling Havoc Made by the Angry Storm—Vessels Far Out on the Prairie—Urgent Call for Millions of Dollars—Tangled Wires and Mountains of Wreckage | [318] |
| CHAPTER XVII. | |
| Governor Sayres Revises His Estimate of Those Lost and Makes it 12,000—A Multitude of the Destitute—Abundant Supplies and Vast Work of Distribution | [340] |
| CHAPTER XVIII. | |
| An Island of Desolation—Crumbling Walls—Faces White With Agony—Tales of Dismay and Death—Curious Sights | [360] |
| CHAPTER XIX. | |
| Thousands Died in Their Efforts to Save Others—Houses and Humans Beings Floating on the Tide—An Army of Orphans—Greatest Catastrophe in our History | [371] |
| CHAPTER XX. | |
| The Storm’s Murderous Fury—People Stunned by the Staggering Blow—Heroic Measures to Avert Pestilence—Thrilling Story of the Ursuline Convent | [391] |
| CHAPTER XXI. | |
| Unparalleled Bombardment of Waves—Wonderful Courage Shown by the Survivors—Letter from Clara Barton | [416] |
| CHAPTER XXII. | |
| Galveston Storm Stories—Fierce Battles with Surging Waves—Vivid Accounts from Fortunate Survivors—A City of Sorrow | [440] |
| CHAPTER XXIII. | |
| Heroic Incidents—Arrival of Relief Trains—Hospitals for the Injured—Loud Call for Skilled Labor | [461] |
| CHAPTER XXIV. | |
| One Hero Rescues Over Two Hundred—Traveler Caught in the Rush of Water—Report of a Government Official—How the Great Storm Started | [477] |
| CHAPTER XXV. | |
| Storms of Great Violence Around Galveston—Wrecked Cities and Vast Destruction of Property—Appalling Sacrifice of Life | [497] |
| Imprisoned by the Storm | [509] |
| Names of the Victims of the Great Galveston Horror | [517] |
HOTEL GRAND AND ITS ENVIRONS—GALVESTON