ord that Thou dost not willingly afflict or grieve the children of
men, give ear to the prayers which we humbly offer to Thee in
behalf of our brethren who are suffering from the great water
floods.

Cause them in their sorrow to experience the comfort of Thy
presence, and in their bewilderment the guidance of Thy wisdom.
Stir up, we beseech Thee, the wills of Thy people to minister with
generous aid to their present needs, and so overrule in Thy
providence this great and sore calamity that we may be brought
nearer to Thee and be knit more closely one to another in sympathy
and love.

All which we humbly ask, through Jesus Christ Our Lord. Amen.

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[Illustration: WHERE THE NATION'S SYMPATHIES ARE CENTERED]

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CONTENTS

CHAPTER I
The Greatest Cataclysm in American History . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

CHAPTER II
The Death-Bearing Flood at Dayton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

CHAPTER III
Dayton's Menace of Fire and Famine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

CHAPTER IV
Dayton in the Throes of Distress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

CHAPTER V
The Recuperation of Dayton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

CHAPTER VI
Dayton: "The City of a Thousand Factories" . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

CHAPTER VII
The Devastation of Columbus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

CHAPTER VIII
Columbus: The Beautiful Capital of Ohio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138

CHAPTER IX
Cincinnati: A New Center of Peril . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142

CHAPTER X
The Flood in Western Ohio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

CHAPTER XI
The Flood in Northern Ohio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163

CHAPTER XII
The Flood in Eastern Ohio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

CHAPTER XIII
The Flood in Eastern Indiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179

CHAPTER XIV
The Desolation of Indianapolis and the Valley of the White River. . 184

CHAPTER XV
The Roaring Torrent of the Wabash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

CHAPTER XVI
The Plight of Peru: A Stricken City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197

CHAPTER XVII
The Death-Dealing Tornado at Omaha . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204

CHAPTER XVIII
Struggles