National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1874-09-22
FEARFUL WLNDST0RM

COLLAPSE OF BARNUM'S HIPPODROME.
On Sunday morning Baltimore was visited by
terrible Eindstorm by which Barnum's Hippo
drome was lifted from its anchorage, carried some
distance, and the canvas lodged in trees. The
Baltimore Sun of yesterday thus describes it:
About ll:3O O'Clock q sudden gust of wind, not
unlike the terror to seamen known as the cyclone
Of the Chinese sea, burst upon the hippodrome, on
Boundary avenue, and almost in an instant every
inch Of canvas covering the amphitheatre proper,
the stables, the hotel, lin which the hundreds Of
employees reside, the dressing side shows
&c. with the poles sustaining the canvas, was
carried up in the air, making much more rapid
ascent than ever Prof. Donaldson dreamed Of
making with his balloon, even with q greater
quantity of gas tlan could be supplied on Friday
last. The blast Of wind apparently came from
the south, and tore up everything before It, but,
singular to say, did no damage TO anything in the
vicinity unconnected with the show. The numer-
Gus frame shanties put up temporarily as restau-
rants, dining saloons, &C., in the immediate
vicinity were not injured in the least. The force
Of the wind was so great that the canvas, with
the three hundred and fifty quarter poles, which
were jerked from the earth, were in an instant
lodged in the trees on the north Of the Enclosure.
The five centre poles, each nearly as large as q
ships mast, were leveled with the ground. The
anchor which sustained the guy Of the high wire
on which Mile Victoria makes her perilous
ascent on the yelocipede, fastened six feet below
the surface, and which it was supposed that no
ten locomotives could move was drawn ont as IL
il had been pin, and in fact the interior Of the
arena presented q scene Of utter devastation
nothing being left standing but the seats for the
audience. Such was the force Of the wind that
four Of the quarter poles that refused to leave
mother earth were snapped of as II they had been
mere sticks, and that portion attached to the
canvas went up in the trees with the canvas. The
five centre poles each measured seventy feet in
length by twelve inches in thickness.
The available force of the hippodrome was i'm
mediately set at work, and in less than an hour
upwards Of 800 men were engaged in getting the
canvas down from the high trees, the limbs Of
which, in many cases, had to be cut OF before the
men were put to work, and in less than two hours
the canvas had been replaced over the valuable
stud OF horses, Mr.. CASTILLO seeming 70 bend all
his energies to the comfort of the dumb animRls
The canvas was found to be considerably torn,
and all the available sailmakers to be found in
the city, some thirty in number, were as soon as
possible put to work. Riggers were also brought
into requisiton, and BY nightfall the repairs had
| 50 far advanced as to render work at night IN
/ Necessary.
| The canvas originally cost $4,000 and the dam
aee by yesterdays blow is estimated at not less
| thtn $500. The seats in the arena are calcu-
lStS to accommodate some 5000 people and vet
| hadthey all been filed and the cyclone occurred
| in TIN midst Of the performance no one would
| have leen injured, unless by stampede and gen
/ eral r1sh to get out, as the wind lust took the
canvas and poles up in the air, entirely clear on
| the seat and lodged among the branches Of the
/ trees.