The evening world., 1894-07-06
I.4I INCHES OF RAIN.
- -----
Big Downpour Attends Ts-Day's
Electrical Storm.
Fsrry-Beat and Schooner Struck
by Lightning.
Electricity Also Plays Franks Ia
Electricity Also Plays Franks Ia
Neighboripg Towns.

When the thunder began to peal and
the big raindrops to splash down shortly
after 10 o'clock this morning every New
Yorker who wasn't employed in r. cold
storage warehouse said Thank good
ness"
Mr.. Dunn, OF the Equitable Building,
had said earlier In the morning that he
had his eve on a nice little thunder
storm which he was trying to induce to
come this way from the Southeast. 1t
came, and for an hour or 20 there was a
| rattling of natures artillery which made
1t was. however. Just what was needed
to clear the excessive humidity from
q! 4s. air I and make life more bearsble,
extended along the entire New Jersey
coast, and reached inland as far as the
lower lakes. With the exception of this
valley and Northern Michigan it was
generally fair all over the country.
There was little change in the tenn
si.Y except in the hyper Msssspp
| At l.20 this afternoon Mr.. Dunn said
that thunder-storms would probably con-
tinue all through the day. By this even.
ing or late tonight he thought the
| weather would clear
Three hours after the shower began.
| La iIlCHcS rain nbQ Idlien. ms IL more
than the entire rainfall for last month,
when IS inches fell.
| And the chances are" added Mr.
Dunn, that another inch will be added
to the, the record eco to-day unless all the indi'
| AT 100 the temperature had fallen to
70 degrees. a drop of points since
| O'Clock In the morning.
| MIR. Dunn's humidity machine showed
this morning that the moisture in the
ait had reached 100 per cent. This,
with the thermometer at a at 3 o'clock.
was what made everybody so uncom-
At . O'Clock. the. temperature had gone
up to 70. but the thunder shower brought
thing to be- thsnkfai for a ,en sGe
breeze, too, from the southeast, helped
to make 1t pleasanter.
vine the weather ltth Bureau reports from st
ture was only eight degrees above freez
Ing point at o'clock this morning
which is very nice to think about. A
Tex. with So degrees
Mr.. Dunn promises that a cool wav,
from the Northwest will get here thi!
evening. and that we will have a coo
night and very comfortable day of +
The storm seemed to concentrate mos
OF Its force on the upper bay Just of
lightning streaked through the BLACK
clouds overheadand the laundering re-
ports followed almost instantaneously
denotins that the lightning could moi
be many yards away.
This was proven conclusively wher
the loudest peal Of all was heard anC
ao Jagged ed st, streak AK caught the nas;p9lt
Staten Island ferry-house.
The pole is about thirty feet high. bu
only a ragged stump not more than {
foot long, was left on the roof whei
splinters OF the remainder of the stat
were scattered about in the water.
The ticket takers and number o
ing in alarm. No one was reported in
jured although many said they had fel
the sensation of an electric shock per
ceptibly, The employees Of the Barg,
doorways at the rear OF the buildn,
watching the storm, hurriedly closed III
every aperture and remained housed un
til the storm had passed.
Just as the Staten Island ferry-boat
Westfeld was entering hor slip at tn.
Battery on her 1920 trip from St. Georg,
lightning struck her forward flag stan
splinterins 1t in big pieces, which fe
on the deck with a crash
There was large crowd Of passenger!
on board. ana most OF them were womei
ened. and when the boat was made fas
to the slip many OF them rushed ashor,
without waiting for the gang p.anks t.
be run out.
A schooner under bare poles was seer
about 1920 A.. NJ going up the Eas
River in tow Of a tug. When at a poin
opposite the. Thirty-ninth street (soutl
BROOKLYN ferry bolt Of lightning
sending II to the deck In shower o
spllnters. The name of the schoone
could not be learned
| During the storm a bolt OF lightning
struck the fiagstar on the roof OF tn,
building at 81 Clff street and damaged
it considera bly, without destroying, it
iron ball at the top of IT. The pole !,
twelve inches in diameter at the has,
and four inches at the top.
The lightning knocked the, bail of
about an inch deep for twenty feet
then partially circling the pole cut GU
another big piece about three inche
deep and six feet long. The pole SCENE,
this damage. The halliards were no
injured, and where the lightning es
capped to after coQuettins with IN
fiagstan no one knows.
The buildings 81, 81 and 50 Clff stree
, are occupied by John Chatillon & Sons
, manufacturers OF scales and butchers
implements, The employees in tn
. buildings were greatly alarmed for
few moments after the holt struck TIL
building.
Louis j. Gray who was painting tn
flagstaff u few minutes befor@ ne Dol
struck. said to an Evening World' re
1T Ia fortunate that no more ScrIou
damage was done. When | went on tn
roof after the bolt struck there. was
+, smell as II some one had been burning
2 sulphur, but beyond the damage don
10 the pole there was not a trace lef
a of the lightning.
A fash OF lightning Is also blamed 70
a false fire alarm. which was runs up a
1920 this morning. from Al broadway
The alarm was turned In by m auto
matte fire signal, located outside tina
e buildinE. the wires OF which are sup
. posed to have been struck during IN
h p, +. Griffith, Wire Chief of the West
: ern Union Telegraph Company, state
. this afternoon that no serious troubl
y had been caused by the storm to-day
! He said the wires were naturally
tribe heavy, but otherwise business wa
not suffering any delay.
weather Forecast.