The evening world., 1889-03-22
Taken from the Equitable Buildings
Towering Roof
A Noble Cyclorama Hung with
Ever-Shifting Mists.
Sights Far Away, on Every Hand, and
Then Close Underneath.

II were.
OF the later class is United States Signal
Service Observer Elias B. Dunn. who orcu-
pics one Of the Hottest positions in New York
City.
Percbed high in his eyrie on the top of the
Equitable Building he distils weather of
every conceivable variety, and 1t is no won
der that he and the mysterious laboratory
wherein he compounds his storms and sun
shine are objects Of keenest interest.
But the top Of his lofty tower is also the
Mecca OF numbers of sightseers who are at
tracted by the view 1t commands.
Most persons choose clear days for their
pilgrimage thither. vet q storm adds to the
grandeur of the scene. The shifting haze,
shutting of n portion Of the view only to re-
veal more Mt another point. impnrts IN ele-
ment of weirdness lacking at other times.
Then. too, the great buildings round about
seem to loom up more majestically through
the storm gloom.
II is no idle figure of speech to say that the
view verges on the sublime at such n time.
On all sides rise the giant piles of masonry
and brick, constituting the finest business
are hidden by dense masses of vapor, only to
stand out more prominently when the cur
tain shifts to another quarter.
Further away the spires of innumerable
C0uECneb anu Jne CulInDeyb OI euulebS llneN
of factories seem to pierce the surgine
clouds.
Then looking straight down from the i'm
mense height the myriads of people beneath
umbrellas pouring along Broadway appear
like a vast swarm Of ants.
To the south Is the broad sweep of the bay.
with the, wooded crests of Staten Island
beyond playing hide and-seek in the fog.
which coils about them IN great wreaths.
Tower Hill to the southwest and Todt Hill to
the southeast are the most conspicuous points
on the island. Fort Wadsworth. on the north
shore. looks grim and frown,ng through the
mist. as docs also its Long Island companion,
directly o~pposite-Fort Hamilton.
III drifting haze ~conceals Sandy Hook
and the %undulating line of the Eaves nix
Highlands-plainly visible when it is clear.
the spidery Coney Island observatory and the
gigantic elephant.
The curved shores of Bath Beach and Bay
Ridge w'nd in and out, dotted with hand
some residences NESTING among the woods.
Along the water fronts of New York'sginnt
sister cities, Brooklyn and Jersey City. tower
great warehouses and ships stores. The
mists. enshroudlnR Brooklyn like a gruesome
elevation Of Brooklyn Heights. Also. con-
spicuously appear the great store of Wechs-
Ter 4 Abraham. in Fulton street; the massive
building of the United States Fire Insurance
the Hotel st. George. ON Brooklyn Heights.
and the Seth Low Building. in Court street.
The fog goes swirling to the ward,
and Astoria. the beautiful. and Hunters
Point. the unsavory, stand forth equally at
~tractive at the distance. BlackwelIs and
Wards Islands are near them. in midstream,
with their stat Nv buildings and beautifully
kept lawns. If tue sun we're shining the eve
could look away out on Long Island Sound
and note the curves of beauty that distin-
suish the shores, and, IL II were summer, the
R~reenness of their verdure.
The spires of Westchester seem dim and
mystic.
Turning again 70 the south. near to New
York is the park like Governors island, the
headquarters Of the army in this section.
The lawns are trim and well kept and green,
officers and men look neat and comfortable
Everything pertaining to the Island is spic.
and-span and kept 30 with military exact
ness.
Further to the west, southwest from Bat.
terry Park, the Statue of Liberty rears its i'm.
posing height, the uplifted arm of Miss Lib
erty appearing to warn mariners to keer
their distance until the fog clears. The mists
coquet about her serene countenance, as il
attempting to allure her into unbending q lit.
. tie from the stern dignity of her pose. She
is not Of the frivolous type Of girl, and de.
:, sends not from the lofty pedestal whereor
Well does she appreciate the response.
bilities of her high Office. Her whole figure
indicates that she Is intent only on executing
the important mission entrusted to her-that
of welcoming all incoming vessels md assur,
ing them of her country's hospitality. HeI
graceful outlines stand out more distinct,
with the sw,aying mists dancing away back q
her than when this background is wanting.
Away beyond Liberty. over on a point Of
Bayonne, is one of the Standard Oil Com
pany's retineries. Dense volumes of smoke
roll upward from its tall chimneys, the thick
black smoke minglipg with the white mis-
and producing an odd Claude Lorraine effect
Further yet away 10 Greenville, with iii
churches of the regular New England coun
try type. so different from the pAlatial Trim
ity and st. PnuVs.
At the furthest limit to which the eve car
reach is the Blue Range OF mountains, nov
: scarcely more than q blush blu in the fog
This rance oyertops the Orange Mountain
u; and the charming towns at their base.
Q Up through Jersey City the eye sweeps
noting its great buildings and counties
Q chimneys. The long lines of railroads ar,
n seen winding out through the city and owe
the marshes and meadows, while the canal
take their sinuous course into the dist
The fog lifts for n moment, and a castel
lated, mosque-like pile shows through 1t
Built high n a hill at Guttenburc. tetweel
@ Weehawken aud, Hoboken. it sweeps tn
o Hudson. II is the Monastery, and 1t occu
h pies a location in keeping with it's character
II stands at the southern extremity of tn
Palisades, on top Of a bold wall of rock.
Q But the immediate surroundings Of tn
Equitable should receive attention. Batter,
Park is cut of from view by the huge Wash
irg'on Building, with its thirteen stories
Surmounted by us curions'y shaped tower.
" Directly oppressive the Equitable. on Nassa'
\ street. is the Mutual Life Insurance Building
q of a handsomely massive style of architeC
=, ture.
& Almost in front is Trinity Church. bull
"a after the STYLE of a century ago. Alongsid
sr II is it's green churchyard, dotted with whit
tombstones and resembling q cheekerboard
from the Equitable's height.
Looking up Broadway the great building
gather thick and fast There il q host 4
them clustering about the City Hall Parl
The old-fa' hioned Astor House, looking fo
all the world like a Jail, rears lis mGssiy
granite walls, black with age. The Pos
Office. INTELLECTUALLY elegant and graceful
and Of huge proportions, 9 ands at the Angl
formed by Park Row and Broadway.
The Potter and Mills buildings, Coal an