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Henry Ferguson

About midnight, in gloomy darkness, the storm broke upon us, hurricane like winds twisting the trees in its fury, and breaking off near the ground the great black oak tree under which our tents and also the tents of our friend Alford were stretched. The body of the tree fell across our ten in which were four young children, and the top of the tree fell on the Alford tent, killing the old man and his oldest son instantly, and fatally injuring the younger son and their hired man, a Mr. Cameron, who both died the next day…. The great concussion and falling tent poles left three of our children badly hurt, but none fatally so, but no one can imagine a darker scene than came upon us.

 

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