The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-09-06


often thrown across them that they
were impossible. In all the towns, from
/ Boston to the smallest, the streets be-
/ came garbage areas. SO cOmPCehen-
sive was the wind that it gathered the
autumn products from the gardens and
spread them broadcast, giving the vii
! lage thorougElfares the air of dfssi pated
vegetable markets
Boston lost many of its magnificent
trees. Some of those which were over
turned measured from eight to twelve
feet ia circumference. Throughout the
! country giant oaks, which had borne
the brunt of centuries tempests and
had hardly wavered, were uprooted and
! theta magnificent trunks twisted and
/ shredded. The ancient and esteemed
1 pear tree, the pride of Danvers, Mas
sachuset.s which Governor Endicott
tTansplanted, was left a ruin by the
/ iconoclastic wind. The great elm Of
/ Chelsea was another victim. This
/ lordly tree was seventeen feet in cir
conference and contained among its
! branches a pavilion in which thirty
I persons could sit down together. The
apple trees which in those days were
che pride of the towns as we'll as of
the country, We're generally destroyed.
In the town Of Dorchester. there were
5000 Of them blown down.
Rhode Island was exposed to the tenn
pests full wrath In Providence the
loss of life was fearful and the destruc-
ton of property amounted to many
millions. The wind there came up the
river directly, without any obstacle to
check its course. The result was the
gathering OF a massive tide, which
smote the place with the resistless Ell
ergy of an avalanche. The vessels were
carried on 1T high over the wharVes, to
/ be wrecked and left stranded here and
there in the city streets
a careful account of the events there
states that early in the morning the
wind was northeast, but at about it
shifted to the southeast, and soon be-
gan to blow violently, continuing to in
crease until IL, when it became a. hur-
ricane. All was not confusion and dis
may in the exposed region, The tide,
lmpelled by the tempest, overlooked
the wharves; vessels, broken from their
| moorings in the stream, and their
fasteDings at the wharves, were seen
driving with dreadful impetuosity to-
ward the bridge which they swept
I away, without 6 moments check to
their progress, and passed on to the
head of the basin. where they drove
high up the bank Every exertion to
protect property was rendered futile
by the violence Of the wind, the rapid
rise of the water and the falling of
I trees: indeed, these, with the crashing
Of chimneys, tumbling upon the houses
and descending into the streets. to-
J gether with tiles and ratings from the
tops of buildings, and many other
species Of dangerous missiles flying
through the air. rendered it perilous to
appear in the streets. All considera-
ton of property was soon forgotten in
| the more important one of self-preser-
walton. The tempest ragged with in
! credsing violence; the flood was over
whelming the lower parts Of the town;
stores and dwelling houses were tot
tering on their foundations and then,
plunging into the deluge, blended their
shattered remains with the wrecks of
vessels-the whole passing with irresis-
tible impetuoSity. in full view on the
current to the head of the cove, to join
| the accumulated mass OF similar
wrecks. by this time the water on the
west side Of The river had risen nearly
to the tops Of the lower windows of the
houses, and boats and scows, strug-
Cling with The maddened elements,
were seen removing the panic-Stricken
inmates; and en- the east side an aw-
full torrent rolled through the main
street, by which boats, masts, bales of
cotton and immense quantities of pro-
perty of every description, were driven
along with resistless force. All the
space was now one wide waste of
tumultuous water. 1t was such scene
of widespread ruin and desolation as
beggars all description. Vessels of
all kinds and in every position, blend
ed promiscuously with carriages, lum-
Der, wrecks of buildings of every
variety, furniture and tens of tflous-
ands of fragments from far and near,
all told the story of universal havoc
and destruction.
At New London. Connecticut, at 10
O'clock of the 23rd the tide was run
ming four feet higher than it had ever
been known to rise. The water ran
eight feet deep in the streets before
the inhabitants realized the peril that
threatened. A curious phenomenon of
the storm occurred here. After the
gale subsidized there was a succession
of lively showers, but the rain that fell
was sal-.
In the small village of Acton, the
damage TO property amounts to $4,000
nearly the total of the value ut that
time. At Stonington, Connecticut, the
tide rose seventeen feet higher than
the high-water mark. and every vessel
at the wharves was wrecked. The
whole extent of the New England
coast was one long line of disaster,
countless vessels going down. The
tempest ragged fierceiy off Cape Hat
teras. off the capes of Delaware, at
Sandy Hook, Nantucket Shoals, Cape
Ann and on. and in the Gulf stream.
The gales deeds in the interior were
like those on the seaboard. A long
strip of country in the interior was
subject TO the winds evils. the breadth
of the strip being sixty miles.
A current OF hot air characterized tllt
wind at a distance from the ocean.
The phenomena of the storm were
most marked on the coast. The effeci
of the inrolling brine was such thai
all the grass was killed. Not one greer
shoot remained after the passing of The
floods, nor did amy appear until tbs
following spring. where the heritage
was found to be of new variety
Where the sea water stood in the hol-
lows. its pernicious influence killed the
trees. and the wood turned dark. &c.
dar. pine and oak trees were the wCrs
sufferers from the brine. A like de
struction with few exceptions was the
lot Of the shrubs and bushes which be-
came submerged.
The work Of the flood was supple
mented by that of the mist. The misG
which rose and moved with the tide
was borne far into the interior by the
winds power. 1t was waited through
the air in such volume and density
that IL was like a driven snow, through
which II was difficult to distinguish OBJ
jects close at hand. The effect of the
mist-clouds on the verduTe and foliage
was potenE. After the storm. it was
found that the veTdure and foliage had
been blighted exactly as if by keer
frost.
Not the least of the evils occasionet