The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1874-08-01
Bursting of a Water Spent over Pi ttsburg.

Pittsburg and Allegheny City were Wis
tied on Sunday night by atremendous rain
and flood, which caused fearful destruction
Of life and property. The full weight of
the deluge fell upon Allegheny City and
the suburbs of Pittsburg. Dwelling, fac
tories and other buildings were swept
av ny. Eye witnesses give the following
description Of the awful storm:
The prevailing theory is that the disas
ter was caused 10y some kind of water
spout. A gentleman who watched the
storm from point a few miles down the
river, where there was little rain, says that
by ttful flashes of lightning he could see
huge inky black funnel shaped cloud,
which overhung the city, the narrow end
being lowest, while the dark part gave vent
to almost continuous flashes Of lightning.
At about g. o'clock on Sunday evening
two great black clouds camp up from oppo-
site points of the compass, one to the
southwest and one to the northeast. They
rose slowly, like two awful demons. Their
edges were ragged and black, Elected here
and there with patches of fiery colors. A
dozen little promontories .jutted out here
and there, like the heads of hydra upon
each, changing shape and appearance every
moment, assuming the appearance of bird,
or beast, or monster, occasionally extend
ing far up across the intervening space as
though to reconnoiter the enemy, and then
again receding. But all this time the two
great giants swashed in inky blackness,
and almost without outline, slowly APP
preached each other. Suddenly noise
between a roar and growl burst from
each. There was no distinct defamation
like ordinary thunder, but low, terrible,
and continuous rumblng growl, causing
the air to vibrate and the very foundations
of the earth to shake as though a terrain
ague had seized upon the everlasting hills.
A fringe of fire like the auroraborealis
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 on an armor OF fire. On
they came, nearer and nearer, when sud-
denly mighty bolt of binding light leap
ed from the central head of the demon of
the northeast burned high up in the sky,
and then fairly struck the opposing demon.
A moment and deafening crash divided
the hot atmosphere and made the earth
tremble palpably. But the demon of the
southwest was not even stunned, but paid
back his assailant with forked jiavelin of
sulphurouS flame.
This was the opening of the grand bat
tie. The long lines of flames that envel-
oped the combatants ceased to dance and
flicker, and like the borealis gathered into
tongues of silver and blue fire, and leaped
forward simultaneously from both direc-
tions until the rapidly narrowing space be-
tween them seemed to be an ocean of fire.
The two demon clouds met directly over
the city, and seemed to rock the earth to
its uttermost foundations. For few min
utes previous a few heavy drops of rain
had been pattering down, but when the
two giants met in their death embrace it
seemed as though river had been I'M
chained in the heavens, and was falling
bodily to the earth below. For half an
hour it did not rain. There were no dis
tinguishable drops as the term is generally
understood. 1t was the descent of a tor
rent, like river leaping over a precipice.
In three minutes after this terrible water
beings were swept away. Down Madison
Avenue. Allegheny, came the flood in its
most awful destructiveness, sweeping away
more than so dwelling houses, and causing
the death of 70 persons in that immediate
vicinity. At Woods run, on the Ohio, 10
were swallowed up in the twinkling of an
eye. and at Saw Mill run, on the south
bank of the Monongahela, % more were
suddenly engulfed The three rivers have
been full of the dead all day, while the
waterways leading thereto have yielded up
harvest that sickens coroners and under
takers. The list of dead is placed at 219,
and the loss of property is estimated at
So, 600, 000