Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1881-01-28
LAST WEEKS STORM.

THE WORST STORM FOR YEARs-NEw YORK 100
LATED FROM THE REST OF THE woRLD-uREAr
LOSS AND TROUBLE TO THE TELEGRAPH COM.
PAN1Es.
The storm Of last Friday and Friday night
was the severest and most extensive of the
season. Its area embraced the entire country
east of the Mississippi river. It started at
| New Orleans Wednesday evening, with heavy
rain and light wind, and travelled directly up
the Mississippi valley. Thursday night the
Eastern Signal Office received information
that the storm centre was at Louisville, Ky,
and, there being a northeast wind, it was
travelling almost in direct line for New York
city. That point it reached Friday morning,
and passed over Vermont Friday night. In
New York the storm came in the form Of rain
and sleet accompanied by a high wind, and
was the worst visitation of the kind in many
years. Telegraph poles and wires were brok.
en- and the city was, during most part Of the
day, isolated from the remainder OF the world
as far as telegraphic communication was
concerned. The last instance Of the kind
occurred on Jan. 3, 1873 but the isolation
then was not as complete as that of Friday.
The private lines and public routes of tele-
phone systems were all prostrated or other
wise interfered with the telegraphs connect
ing the courts and exchanges were rendered
useless, and the police and fire lines could not
be operated. The lack of the customary tel
egraphic facilities at the Produce and Cotton
Exchanges made il impossible to transact
business at these places after about 10 A. NJ
In sending news from the different police
precincts messengers had to be employed
and in guarding against fire, resort was had
to the method formerly in vogue of having
mounted firemon patrol the streets and ride
post haste to the engine houses with notices
of fires. The mails were detained, and troub-
le was experienced by carriers in delivering
and gathering their letters. Accidents caused
by falling telegraph poles by the broken
ends of wires swinging loosely from their
usual fastonings, and by icicles, were some
what numerous but they were generally not
of a serious nature. The annoyanccs TO way
farers were almost innumerable, the storm in.
terfering very seriously with walking.
The storm is supposed to have caused n
greater loss to the telegraph companies than
the similar one did in 1873, the damage by
loss of business, broken wires, etc, being es-
timated at from $3.50, 600 to $500, 900. The
snow gathered on the wires in some instances
to the size Of q mans arm, or formed in large
icicles, which, before the driving wind, stood
out from the wires at an angle The Brook
| Ign bridge presented remarkable appear
ance with its load of icicles and during the
day some of the ice fell on a ferry boat, smash
| ing windows and causing CONSERVATION on
board. Part of the goddess Of liberty on the
| city hall was blown down. Life and limb
were in constant peril during the morning
and early afternoon, and there was hardly a
person who ventured out of doors but had a
story TO tell Of narrow escape or the details of
accidents that came under his observation
The damage caused to the trees and shrubbery
in Central Park by the storm was very great
and it will cost the city thousands of dollars
to make good the loss. In Brooklyn the gale
was equally disastrous in its effects. Long
Island suffered severely. In New Jersey the
storm worked terrible havoc with the wires
The dispatches received from New York by
the Boston papers were sent by rail as far as
New Haven and telegraphed East from that
| point. The storm ragged furiously in Boston
all night, the snow turning to rain about IL
o'clock