The Hazlehurst signal. (Hazlehurst, Miss.) 1883-1885, 1885-11-12
DISASTROUS STORMS.
The Destroying Power OF Recent ana An
Client Cycisnes.

Client cyclones.
Recently cyclones and storms seem to
have circled the whole earth. In the
Bay Of Bengal few years ago one
formed and passed over tho continent
swelling the rivers. and flooding tho
city Of Surat. Five hundred houses
arc said to have fallen. persons were
drowned In the midst Of tho city. rail-
road bridges and embellishments wcrc
swept away Another storm In Europe
startled tho city Of Paris, toro down tho
days and decorations In the Place dc Ia
Concordc, broke lamps and windows.
and devastated tho Jardin des Plantcs
1.-THE water.spout was sd violent on
the Seine," wrote the correspondent OF
tho Daily Ne,cs, "that river steamer
was beaten down upon it.. and must
have foundercd IL larger vessels had not
gono 10 It's relief. This hurricane,
though Of short duration. was more de-
structive than any storm which has for
| YEARS TuScu ONeT iWn
All over our own country tho disturb.
snce OF the elements has prevailed.
Wind and water have united in their
fearful work. Now they sweep away
whole villages in Michigan or Mis'is-
sippi. Next they drive the summer
visitors from the rooilcss hotels of the
Jersey shore. Sometimes they threaten
ST. Louis will foundations, or pour n
tidal wave into Chicago. or cover
Charleston with dismay The recent
fate of u Hourishing town In Ohio seems
the most disastrous Of all. Yet fearful
as have been these storms OF few years
past, they have never ciualcd the vio-
lcncc and widespread ruin Of those re-
lated in history.
Ono OF tho earliest Is described by
Pctrarch. lIo was at Naples. when
suddenly, on the night OF Nove'nbcr 20,
l343, tempest rose from the sea and
broke upon the city. The houses shook
to their foundations; the harbor was
covered with wrecks. The thunder
roared, tho lightning flashed incessant-
ly, and when morning came the raging
waves were seen ovcrturning houses
and dashing ships helpless on the shore.
AT sea-" says Pctrarch. emo ship cs-
capped tho fury Of the tempest all in
tho harbor but one sank bcfore our
eyes, and every soul on board per.
ished."
Another great storm passed over
aorthsrn Italy in 1876. "On the 2ith
Of August" says Machiavelli, "about
an hour before daybrc;k. whirlwind
crossed Italy from east to west. 1t was
accompanied by thick clouds and the
most imrenetrable darkness" 1t burst;
its fierce elements were engaged in a
dreadful contest. Sonnet mes they rose
to heaven. and then descended to the
earth. The end OF all things seemed at
hand. The country lost all its habitablc
character where the tempest passed.
Churches aud dwellings were laid in
heaps OF ruins. The air was filled with
the cries OF those who had lost friends
and kindred in tho awful dcsolation.
Anguish or pity filled every breast.
Fortunately the storm struck no i'm.
portant city, or il might have RACED II
to the ground. II passed within cigh,
miles of Florence and reached the sea
near Pisa.
England has been constantly swept
by destructive storms OF wind and rain.
The early monkish chronicles are full
OF them. But the most disastrous Of
all was the storm Of 1908, sung by Adj
olson and recorded by the aged Evelyn.
Thousands Of lives were lost; the coast
was strcwn,with the wrecks Of the finest
ships of the time. London was half
dismantled of roofs and chimncys, and
immense numbers OF oaks that had
stood for centurie, were torn up by the
roots and lay PROSTATE on the ground.
"Pale Britannia" Addison tells us.
trembled; and Evelyn relates that
"many houses were demolished and
people killed" His own losses, he
says. were "tragical," and not to be
described. He lamcn,s his trees But
the most fatal to trees and plantations
in England was thc storm Of October.
1881. 1t Is estimated that in one dis.
trict thirty thousand or forty thousand
trocs were blown down. Great clumps
OF oak that had seemed as solid as the
castles around them were torn up by
the roots.
Yet 1t Is q satisfaction to know that
tho rage Of wind and storm Is not
beyond control We have as yet no per-
feet means for measuring the force aud
swiftness OF the wind. But We know ut
least that common precautions will
save our dwellings from the ravagcs of
the storm. We know the relative pow
or of the wind. In cyclone that
swept over the Atlantic Highlands n
few years ago. 1t was only the houses
slightly built that were carried into the
bay. In Michigan, at nearly the same
time, . cyclone tore down houses, or
sent them with all their contents sail.
ing through the air. But they were all
OF slight construction.
The troglodytc on the scythian plains
escaped the Violence OF the winds by
digging his house below the surface OF
the earth. Tho Parthenon' has resisted
for two thousand years the tcmpests OF
The East. The lesson of every cyclone
is that houses and cities should DO built
TO defy the storm. 1t is better to imi-