Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-08-04
Yesterday the Hottest Day of the
Season, According to Every
Thermometer in Pittsburg.
ALL THE WAY, FROM 96 TO 116.
The Streets of the City Practically De-
serted From Dawn Till the
Shades of Evening Had
SOMEWHAT COOLED THE ATMOSPHERE
Fatalities Directly Due or Traceable to the Intense
Heat Of Two Days

Pittsburg was as hot as one of its own fiery
furnaces, yesterday. The sun blazed spite
fully all day. The downtown streets were
like ovens. The most frequent individuals
to be met with were the blue-coated police,
who practically had the city all to them
selves. The majority of people did not get
beyond the thresholds of their own homes.
Itwas by far the hottest day of the year,
SO far. Almost before the city was awake,
the mercury began crawling toward the top
of the bulb. 1t got into the nineties long
before midday, and it stayed there until
after the blazing sun went down behind the
hills. There was not a speck of anything
like clouds in the sky. The brick and stone
walls of the city baked and glistened
dazzlingly al day. They drank in the fiery
rays as thirsty man does a cooling
draught, and gave them back again with a
tenfold intensity. The city quietly swelt-
cred in silence beneath the fiery ordeal.
PRAYERS FOR COOLER WEATHER.
The churches where services were held had
smaller congregations than usual. In many
of the churches the pastors referred in their
remarks to the extreme heat Of the past few
days. At St. Msry's of Mercy Church, the
pastor Rev. Father Sheedy, requested his
congregation to pray for cooler weather. He
spoke of the convention of the Z. 7. A. U.
this week, and the hundreds of delegates
travelling hundreds of miles in heated cars
to attend it. He said he hoped the weather
would not be SO excessively warm during
the convention, and was sure the prayers of
the people would have good effect.
The Thermometers in different places in
the city were all awsytp in the nineties in
the shade, while in the sun thev raced many
degrees above the century mark. AT the
Sixth street bridge the mercury stood at
117o in the sun and at 1920 in the shade.
That was at s O'Clock, when the sun was at
its vhitest heat.
Outside the stable of the Short Line car
company on Baver avenue it was 114o in
the sun at o'clock and 1860 in the shade
at the same hour. At the Pittsburg and
Allegheny traction station, at Market and
Sixth streets, it was 99o in the shade at 4
o'clock. At No. 2 engine house, on Smith
field street, it was 99o at 4:30 o'clock. At
Grant street andsFiith avenue the highest
point reached during the day was 100 in
the shade. Saturday night the mercury did
not run below 74o at any time.
COOLER IN THE EVENING.
About 4 4o'clock yesterday afternoon the
clouds, which had not shown themselves
above the horizon all day, banked them
selves up in heavy white masses over Mt,
Washington. A slight breeze sprang up at
the same time, and the streets, which had
been deserted up to then, began to I'LL with
people. The wind continuetS to freshen
during the night, and large crowds availed
themselves of the only opportunity since
morning to catch the cooling effects of the
breeze. People remained on the streets
until a late hour. The black sky threat
ened rain, but that did not drive the heated
crowds to their homes until along near mid
night.
An unusual thing that might be wit.
messed during the day was the appearance
of the railing around the Court House.
Even in the hottest time of day it is rarely
deserted, but yesterday it was so. Every
afternoon all summer the Fifth avenue side
Of the Court House has been cooling-off
spot for Ioafers who do nothing but sit
around squirting tobacco juice on the side
walk ard talk Of the weather. They have
been wont to perch themselves on the iron
railing, with their knees almost touching
ehins, and sit there all afternoon, enjoying
the cooling breezes, like lot of crows on
the limb of a tree. For once the plsce was
deserted yesterday, and the railing did not
receive its accustomed polish.
But Notwithstanding the torrid RAYS of
the sun, with the deserted appearance of the
streets, a large number of people availed
of the cool breathing spots about
the city. A big crowd went out to Schen-
ley Park, probably thinking it was cooler
there. Panther Hollow is a delightful
place to lounge about on hot day. but the
putting and. blowing one has to do to get to
it, takes all the comfort out of the trip.
hundreds trudged there for
the sake of few hours relief from the bak-
ing streets of the city.
PICNIC FOR THEM.
The heat which brought misery and
almost despair to nearly all was boon to
the small boy. The bows crowded into the
river bathhouses in numbers that have not
been equaled any day this year. From
early in the morning the swimming baths
were filled to their utmost and many grown
persons succumbed to the weather and took
] dive in the water.
At the top of the Schmidt-Friday build
ing, where Sergeant Stewart, of the United |
States Signal Service, makes the official |
on the weather, and where |
j cool breeze is to be had if there is one, the |
thermometer reached a mEximum of $50. |
On Observatory Hill, Allegheny, where a |
imall-sized gale is generally blowing, the |
thermometer registered $50 also At Hazel |
Food il was $40 in the shade
For the month of July the Signal Service |
observations make the highest temperature |
9io, July 8, and the lowest temperature
$50, July 10. The mean temperature Ior
July during the years from 1871 to 1890. in
elusive, has been as follows: