Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1858-05-20
Tn. Lar. severe Hail storm.

fredericksburg was visited with another
severe bail storm on Saturday afternoon last,
but not so terrible in its character here, as
that of the lst of July, 1857.
A little after o'clock, on Saturday,
threatening cloud was seen to rise IN the
southwest, which was borne along with great
speed until within few miles of town, when
it burst forth vito all its fury, destroying
and damaging growing crops, and doing in
calculabie injury in both town and country.
So sudden was its approach, that many OF
our citizens were taken by surprise" aud q
large amount OF glass broken which might
otherwise have been saved. We suppose the
glass broken in town cannot be replaced for
a sum much short of 5000 or $500.
Among the largest sufferers IN this respect,
may be named the Corporation, which loses
$50 panes in the Court House, and 200 IN
the Old Town Hall. Tne Presby
Church was supplied with shutters, but they
had been lett open. and most OF the glass ON the
western side was destroyed-l5O. The glass
in the windows 10 front OF the Baptist Church
were ali broken-abuut $50. The Episcopal!
T. Scott lost ablu 500 in the Foundry; e. Q.
Wexford about $50 in his dwelling, green
house, &c. Almost every western exposure
suffered more OF less, and most OF our cit-
zens, with dwellings thus situated, have lost
from dozen to q hundred panes OF z lass
each.
The gardens were good deal injured, but
not to any comparable degree with that OF
july of last year The hail on Saturday
WAS generally of the size Of partridge eggs.
We saw one as large as guinea fowls egg.
and others assure US, they saw haIlNDnes
fully as large as hens eggs. We hear of
one man who had two pigs IN pen, at the
upper end Of town. one OF which was killed,
and the other had an eye knocked out by the
bail.
Among the sufferers along the plank road,
in Spotsylvania, next to Fredericksburg, may
be named George Guest, Wm. 5. Williams,
Moses Morrison, j. NJ. Luck, A. 2. Rowe,
DR.. VIM. NJ. Smith, L Stsnsbury, W. P.
Bowen, j. p. Hepburn, DR.. j. K. Taylor,
John l.. Marye, sr; and farther up, on the
Rsppshannock, Daniel DuerSon, John Deck.
er, &c.
The growing wheat crops on the farms of
some of the gentlemen named, are totally
DESTROYED, and in other cases vastly injured.
Above the Old Furnace, WellOrd's,) tue hail
did little or DO damage; out We hear that a
perfect tornado swept the country, running
the crops of the widow Rowe, WIN. Lewis,
aGd others in the same line.
Mr.. Guests loss Is pat at $1,000. Like
many others named, his whole wheat crop
has been totally destroyed-not enough lett
standing from which peck of grain might
be gathered. Tue fine crop Of MIR. Bowen
il said to look as though reaper bad passed
over il, followed by rakes, nothing standing
but the stubble. Mr.. Luck, who would have
made thirty bushels to the acre, has bad his
beautiful crop utterly destroyed. The lpss,
as lar as we are advised, amounts to tens
of thousands of dollars in SpOtsylVania
alone.
The storm seems to have swept over re-
giou OF country some five or six miles IN
width; but in this range, visited with more or
less fury various viclnages.
We hear Of various points, from Orange
c. III. down TO this place, where massive
forest trees were torn up by their roots, and
fences levelled by the fury Of the storm. In
other places. whole acres Of timber were
stripped Of their foliage, looking like ~ many
decaying and dead trees.
Col. Rowe, Sheriff Of Orange county, lost
nearly his entire crop OF wheat.
letter from Beaver Dam, 10 Gocchland
county, says :-"Tbe corp, wheat, tobacco,
and fruit crops are entirely destroyed-be-
yond redemption"
The damage in Stafford is small in com
parison with that done 10 other quarters.
Mr. Lacy loses about 500 pares Of glass, a,
his residence across the river, known Is
Chatham" We understand that be suffers
heavily also at his farm in this county.
The rain in King George is represented to
have been violent. Mill dams, fences, &c,
were washed away. We hear OF little or no
hail 10 that quarter.
We hear Of the bail storm as far south as
the county of Powhatau. go that for at least
70 or so miles it rained with Jury and over
au extent Of country almost unparalleled,
as it Is known that hailstosms are generally
local.
ANOTHER STORM Yesterday afternoon,
we bad another heavy fall OF raln accolnpa-
MED with a little bail. We tear that it has
been destructive down the river. The cloud
Was from the Nurth-Fred. HerQld.