The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1877-03-10


Progress OF tho storm.
The great disturbance which passed along
the Atlantic coast and central States
Thursday and yesterday has now reached
the British Northeastern Provinces and is
approaching the coast. The storm centre
Allegheny Mountains until it reached the
city Of Albany. when it commenced to move
moro to the eastward and approached ST.
John, N. B., in the afternoon of yester-
day. The pressure ut the centre continues
to fall, and it is probable that when tho
storm enters fairly on its ocean course it
will prove one of the most severe ex-
perienced in the Atlantic for several
years. At quarter past seven o'clock yes
terday morning the wind at New York
attained its highest velocity, sixty miles
per hour, and during the night and fore
noon the rainfall was OH Of on inch. This
was considerable precipitation for the time
it lasted. The description of the destructive
effects of the gale, published elsewhere in
to-day's HERALD, will convey some idea of its
fury along the coast and over this city. An
immense area of precipitation attended the
storm and embraced the whole territory east
ward of the Mississippi. Snow fell generally
west of the Alleghanies and as far south as
Nashville, while rain prevailed along the
coast. Remarkable differences Of tempera-
ture occurred between near points as the
storm advanced. at Baltimore it was 55
and at Pittsburg only rs degrees at Sa-
vannah GO, Augusta AZ, and Knoxville, Tenn.
only 26 degrees. In the West during the
morning the temperature fell to zero and
degrees below, but rose somewhat in the
afternoon. Very cool weather prevailed all
day in tho Southern States. The Ohio
River has risen with dangerous rapidity.
Within twenty-four hours the rise at Pitts
burg was five feet nine inches; ut Cincin-
natl eleven feet six inches, and at Louis
Vile three feet four inches. The Missis-
sippi and Cumberland have also risen.
Incoming ships will experience heavy
weather. Ships leaving Europe to-day will
meet dangerous storms off the Irish coast
between Sunday and Thursday next. The
weather in New York to-day will be cold
and partly cloudy or clear, possibly with
light furries Of snow.
Tho Church Disaster-Unsafe Buildings.
The mind receives its impressions with
inconceivable rapidity when the individual
is fully sensible of his surroundings
or the conditions that evolve ideas. The
expression ''as quick as thought repre-
sents the ultimate conception which can be
formed of what constitutes the minutest
subdivision of time with relation to mental
or physical movement. We can, therefore,
comprehend how quickly the idea Of dan
ger, be it real or imaginary, is associated
with the dangerous. When the minds Of
large and impressionable assemblage are
wrought up to the highest tension by re-
ligious excitement, and that feeling evoked
by the most sombre of subjects death and
eternal perdition, the principle of rapid
associations of the ideal with the actual
becomes developed in the highest
degree. In rejecting on the terrible disas-
ter ut st. Francis Xavier's Church two sep
arate and distinct conditions present them
selves for consideration. The first is purely
psychological one, and relates to the mental
constitution and condition of the congrega-
tion the second n purely physical one.
and relating to the building in which it was
assembled. While we recognize the fact
that in Catholic church Catholic doctrine
must and will be preached, and that it is
contrary to the spirit of the religion to clothe
the enunciation of it's truths in any Ian
guage calculated to conceal their full
value and meaning, we question very
much whether the element Of common sense
should not enter into the selection of the
audience and the occasion when these truths
are taught. In doing this we desire to cast
no reflection whatever on the worthy fathers
whose zeal for the salvation of souls leads
them into very common mistake Of their
profession. 1t is too painfully evident that
the congregation of women and young girls
ut st. Francis Xavier's Church was mentally
unprepared to exercise its calmer judgment
when the sudden alarm of fire was given. It
is unnecessary to discuss here how this came
to be. The catastrophe itself furnishes oil
the argument necessary for the purpose of
proving the fact. We will, therefore, leave it
as it rests, for the consideration Of ministers
who may be in the habit of subordinating
the probabilities of danger to dogma
Turning totho other conditions attend
ing the disaster, we find that the church
was crowded to excess; that large number
of persons were assembled in the galleries;
that the gallery stairways lead into the CON-
mon vestihu1e of the church and that thcv
were constructed with right angle bend Mt
that part where the greatest crush was likely
to take place; that the weather sheds pro-
tecting the entrances were built over steps
descending to the street, and that the foot
ino was therefore most insecure where it