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

IHeTC Is al GlCIElEDA Vi II 0l4A Al III
cynical declalktion that we take q
Er,btle and uncc-fessed delight in the
griefs of our friencss A Ike philosophy
teaches US that we have curious pride
in our national calamities. We may
then boast of the current year by
reason Of its struetdve winds. Al
feaay nearly 3,y00 persons have been
killed; a record surpassed only once
before in the last fourteen years. The
@ecopd Of mortality back to 1882 lie
as follows: 1885, 410; 1894, az; 1888.
4.4s2: 1892, AS: 1891, 23s; 1890. 800; 1883,
1c3; 1888, 547; 1851 1,SSS; 1856, 2l2; 1885,
III: 1884, SIS; 1883. 500; 1852, SdS--1SsS
leads with its total of more than 1900.
1t is often asserted, indeed conTSan!y
believed, that the west is peculiarly
prone to tempesGuous winds. Certainly
St is a fast that che extensive plains ia
ytr cyclonic disturbances. Beyond this,
however, the west is not distinctly liable
20 gales, as may be demonstrated by
an examination OF our history. Another
assertion, equality frequent and equally
inaccurate is to tho effect that the
changes in various meteorological con-
Carions have rendered our country SUB
1ect 10 an increased number 4 severe
winds in recent years. II is obvious on
a moments consideration tna.r unnum-
befed tempeSts may have ragged in the
unsettled wildernessss Of this continent
q few generations ago, though our rec
oGds have no account of them. But
leaving this apart, we find in the early
history of our country the story OF
gales as violent and as numerous as
those Of any latsr period.
The New England memorial Of MGR
ton contains an account Of q terrific
gale which came upon he Plymouth
co5oniets soon after their landing. Il
began very suddsnly and with excessive
violence early in The morning of Aug
ust Is. 1885. This wind blew down many
houses, uncovered divers others, and
divers vessels we're lost at sea. It
caused the sea 10 swell in some places
SO that it eE'ose 70 twenty feet, right AZ
and down, and made many Indians to
climb into trees for their safety ~,
blew down many hunurci thousands If
freeS. and caused dreadful loss of life
There were other storms of eXtraordi-
nary extent and severity in 1I23, 1868
1918, 1921, 1886. 1871 1851. 1859, 1859,
and 1863 The storms Of september
and October, 1863, were particularly
disastrous. The OcIobcr tempest CO..
cred adj of the territory bounded by
Nova Scotia and the AIississlpps ON the
east and west, and extending from t1e
northern extremes of Canada TO our
cotton states. The rain fell in torrents
for forty consecutive hours. Accord
ing to the marking CT numerous rain
gauges, four inches of rain fell in
twenfynine hours; then in the six
hours following more than three and
a thira inches OF rain fell. The total
rainfall Cor thu forty hours was no less
than sos inches. ana this astonishing
amoue~ over q vagn area The floods
1shsits .eccasioned are Unparalleled in
this country. The loss of property
amounted 10 many millions and the de-
struction of human life was fcarfully
large. For a long time travel WIS an
impossibilfty within the stricken tract.
But the greatest Of gales Known to
this country was that which occurred
September 49, 1916. Judged by the
amount of property and the population
at that time, II was, beyond question
the most awful in American annals
Moreover, it was distinguished by pecul-
iaritieS SO marked as TO make il unique.
No other tempest exhibited phenomena
at once so awful and so surprising
This tempest devastated all New Eng
land, although the learned men of the
time were never able exactly to deter
mine either it's limits or its center. One
contemporary account of it said that it
was very violent at places separated
from one another by considerable in
ferVals, the Intermediate places being
much less violently afflicted 1t was ev-
identity cycionfc in part, though by no
means wholly so. In many PLACES its
course through forests was clearly
marked as if the trees had been cut
down for the making of q road This
result was caused by the progress OF a
powerful vortex, the great body of the
atmosphere being comparatively undis-
turbed. The whole extent of the coast
line was subject TO it's devastation. and
It's raVages extended inland 1hroughout
the New England states. although the
western part of Vermont suffered little
But even farther to The west. along
ne st. Lawrence. the storm ragged with
the utmost fury. 1t IS singular fact
HAT the wind became violent thus far
30 the northwest, at the same hour as
alcng the coast, despiae the fact that
this would seem impossible from the
direction of the wind.
Professor FarraI's observations for
The latitude of Boston show that the
gale was preceded by a rain for twenty
tour hours, with a strong, but npt eX-
tTaoTdinaTy, wind from the northeast
On the memorable 23rd day of the
month, early in the morning, the direc-
lion of the wind changed to the east
It then became gus1y and the rain
descended in intermittent showers. Bv
south. The rain almost ceased, but the
wind continually increased In violence.
The nnSuspecting citizens Of Boston
were not aroused 10 any appreciation
n possible cadaStrophes from the storm
until about 8 O'clock in the morning.
when the chimneys began topping from
their houses and persons in the street
we're forced 70 fee 90 escape harm. Fro
ibis time the gale grew in power until
0:30, and THEN for an hour it ragged
with dreadful force. The wind veered
from southeast to south, and the rain
ceasedl The sky was flecked with
buds darling across tine heavens ar
tremendous speed, but in the spaces
between the sky showed a serene blue
even when the hurricane was worst
Those who witnessed the scene declared
that the lower air was of most remark
able appearance; il was much darken-
ed by the unusual agitation. being filled
with the leaves Of trees and the like
light substances, which were raised to
a great height and there whirled about
IN eddses, instead of being driven di-
rectly forward as in a. common storm.
Tite rivers ragged and foamed like the
sea under the tornado. and the spray
was raised 70 the height of sixty 10 a.
hundred feet, in the form of thin white
clouds, which were drifted along in q
kind of wave form. like snow in g. vio-
lent snow storm. Travellers were driven
back by the force of the wind and
sought security behind trees and
fences. 1t was impossible for the stout
est man to stand firm in a. place ex-
posed to the full force Of the wind. The
pressure Of the wind was that of a
MID current Of Voices rails