St. Paul daily globe., 1889-01-10

READING, Pa, Jan. 9.-This was the
baddest night in the history of Reading.
A death like pail hangs upon the city as
the result of the most horrible disaster
in It's history. A hundred households
are in mourning as the result OF one OF
the greatest calamities in Pennsylvania.
A cyclone swept over the northern see
ton of the city this afternoon
and laid waste everything with
in its reach and with a terri
BILE loss. of life. The lives
that have been sacrificed and the num-
Der that have been Injured can only be
estimated. The most reliable cOmpu-
tation at 10 o'clock tonight is that not
less than sixty persons have been killed
Dutright and 100 injured. How this
terrible calamity occurred is about as
follows: 1t was raining very hard all
morning. Towards noon it ceased
almost entirely, and by 4 o'clock
there was every indication shat
there would be entire cessa-
ton OF the rainstorm. Half an hour
afterwards the bright sun made every
effort to penetrate the clouds. The
tints of a rainbow were seen in the
eastern sky. 1t portended a beautiful
sunset. There was clear sky over
head. This continued for half an hour
longer. Then the scene changed with
suddennesS that was appalling. The
fleecy clouds gave way to the ominous
SIGNS OF A COMING STORM.
Dark, heavy banks of clouds mar
shaled themselves towards the town
and soon a gloom seemed to have set
tied over the city. There was astillness
of coming danger. Then the wind
whiStled, r0ared-fand tore i'll mad con-
fusion. The storm clouds grew heavier
still and louder roared the wind. In the
western sky the storm was seen ap-
preaching with a laundering noise.
The swath it cut was mar
row, but its effect was terrible.
Persons residing along the track of the
storm say that they saw the first signs
of danger in a funnel-shaped maelstrOm
which seemed to gather up everything
in its path and cast it sight and
left. Out in the country houses and
barns were unroofed, farm out-bulld-
rooted and destruction spread in
every direction. The track of the de-
structive element was not more than
900 feet wide, and it is lucky that it
only touched the suburbs of the city. 1t
came from the west, but passed along
the northern border of Reading. First
ittouched the Mount Penn stove works.
Here the corner of the building was
struck and portion of
THE ROOF WAS CUT OFF
as nicely as if done with pair of scis-
sors. Then the storm cloud scurried
acrossa aome fields, took off a portion of
the roof of j. Ii. Sternberg'S rolling
mill, and a number of dwellings were
unrOofed as readily as if their tin roofs
were paper. The storm then hurried
across the property of the Reading
Railroad company, and crossed the rail
road. Here a passenger car was standing.
This was overturned as quickly as if
it had been a toy and its splinters
scattered in every direction. Mean
while the rain poured down in torrents.
The atmosphere became heavy and op-
presSiYe aud it was almost as dark as
night. Directly on one side the track
of the Reading railroad was situated the
paint shops of the company. 1t
was one story bnilding, about 60 by
$50 feet in size. Here about thirty men
were employed in painting passenger
cars. There were eight or nine of these
cars in the building. They had been
built at the company's shops, in this city,
at a cost of $4,000 each. The building
was struck fairly in the middle. and the
bricks scattered about as if they were
playthings. The cars were turned
topsy-turvy, while the men were
BURIED UNDER THE DEBRIS.
Some of the bricks were carried
away. The chamber of each of the pas
senger cars was already filled with gas
as they were ready to be taken out on
the road in few days. They exploded
one after another, with the fearful bang
of a cannon. Bang, bang, bang, they re-
resounded all over the city, causing
the people to run out OF their
houses, thinking that it was the
sound of an earthquake There
was a considerable quantity of gaso-
line in the building, and this added fuel
to the flames. A sheet of flames shot
upward with the roar of musketry.
Some twenty of the men had chance
to crawl out of the debris, but four of
their companions we're enveloped in the
embrace of the flames. Their cries
were heard for moment by the terri
fed workmen, and then their voices