Lamoille newsdealer. [volume] (Hyde Park, Vt.) 1860-1877, 1874-08-05
The Pittsbu"g Flood.


Never in the history of this city wa'
there anything so terrible as the incidents
of the food of Sunday night. More thar
100 lives were lost and $4,000 600 worth
of property destroyed by the bursting o.
water-spont over the city. Not unit
afterward did the public realize what an
awful destruction of life and property had
occurred. The morning papers mentioned
the death of Is persons only. This was
probably owing to the fact that the storm
continued all night in modified form,
and two reporters who first ventured into
Allegheny City came near being drowned
in the burs'ed sewers. But when the
dull dreary morning broke through driz-
zIing rain. great cry OF horror ran
through the sister cities. As early as six
o'clock it was said that not less than 400
people had lost their lives at Butchers
Run, Spring Garden ave., Woods Run,
and Saw Mill Run, repsenting nearly the
cardinal points of the compass of the two
cities. BY seven o'clock the streets of
both cities were filled with people rushing
toward the various scenes of disaster.
A description Of the appalling storm,
or water-spout, whichever it may be call
ed, should not b, out ofthe way, although
it would he impossible to draw even
faint picture of the awful original AT
about 81 o'clock on Sunday evening two
great black clouds came up from the or
posite points of TIE compass. one to south
west and one to the northeast. They
rose slowly, like twoawful demons Their
edges were ragged and black, fected here
and there with patches Of fiery colors. A
dozen little promotories jotted out here
and there, like the heads of hydra upon
each, changing shape and appearance ev-
cry moment, assuming the appearance of
bird, or beast, or monster; occasionally
extending far up across the intervening
space, as though TO reeonnter the enemy
and then again receding. But all this
time the two great giants, swathed in ipky
blackness. and almost without outline,
slowly approaching each other. There
was no distinct detonation like ordinary
thunder, but low, terrible and continuous
rumbliDg grow, causing the air TO vibrate
and the very foundations of the earth to
shake as though terrain ague had seized
upon the everlasting hills. A fringe of
fire like the aurora boreals began to run
along the ragged edges, faint at first but
growing in intensity every moment, until
it looked as though the two demons had
put o n an armoy of fire. On they came,
nearer and nearer when suddenly mighty
bolt of binding light leaped from the
central head of the demon of the north.
east, burning high up in the sky, and
then fairly struck the opposing demon A
and a defending crash divided the
not atmosphere and made the earth trem.
Die ralpably. But the domou of the
southwest was not even stunned, and paid
pack his assailant with forked iavelin of
ulphurous fire.
This was the opening of the grand bat.
e.-The long lines of flames that envel-
ped tie cembatants ceased to dance and y
licker. and like the borealis gathered into
ongues of silver and blue fire, and leaped :
onward simultaneously from both direc-
ions until the rapidly narrowing space be.
ween them sesmed to be an ocean of fire.
he two demon clouds met directly over
ne city, and seemed to rock the earth TO
. uttermost foundations. For few
'inutes previous a few heavy drops of RUN
ad been pa'trring down. but when the
70 giants met in this death embrace. il
'emed as though river had been I'm.
,ained in the heavens, and was falling
'dily to the earth below. For half an
our 1t did not ram. There were n, dis.
nguishable drops as the term is general.
understood. II was the descent of n
rrept' like river leapiug over a preci-
ce In three minutes after this terrible
ster-spout had burst more than 100 hu-
an beings we're swept away. Down
addison Ave-. Allegheny, came the food
Its most awful deslructiveness. sweep
away more than SO dwelling houses
causing the death Of 20 persons in
1t immediate vicinity. AT Woods Run,
the Ohio. Is we're swallowed in the r
lnkllng of an eye, and at Saw.mill Run. n.
the south bank Of the Monongahela wa wa
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