New-York tribune., 1901-07-06
RAINFALL BREAKS RECORD
AGAIN STORM PROTECTS THE CITY
FROM THE OPPRESSIVE HEAT.

Like the touch of a cooling hand on fevered
brow came the rainstorm of yesterday afternoon
deluging the streets of this city and bringing a
breeze that blew away the heat that again
depressing the people The Thermometer had
been rising steadily since o'clock in the morn
ing, when the lowest temperature of the day
T3 degrees-was recorded until it had reached
90 degrees the highest. at Ills D. m. Then came
the cool wave. the harbnger of the storm that
broke at 2:OS o'clock The mercury mad
treated , degrees to IS degrees. when the first
rain fell but under the influence of both wind
and rain it dropped TO ~ degrees by 8 o'clock
Rarely does such quantity of rain fall in the
short time that the storm lasted here as fell yes
terday. The rain ceased at 4:29 o'clock, but in
the two hours and little more that il lasted there
fell 2O2 inches of rain In the first ten minutes
OF the rain there fell O63 of an inch of water the
greatest fall for that time recorded by the local
Weather Bureau since the self-registering rain
instruments were placed there. This is at the
rate Of 3.IS inches hour. Between 2:1O
and 2:15 o'clock-fve mnutes-another record
for rainfall was broken. The instruments in the
Weather Bureau showed for that time OBS of an
inch or rainfall at the rate of 456 inches
hour
Of course. the humidity increased greatly. but
It is not the humidity that has been Causing the
ing atmospheric condition had been high all day
but had descended to 60 per cent just before the
rain began 70 fall few minutes before the
rain ceased it had risen TO as per cent. two de-
grees only below saturation, fog BY o'clock
in the evening it had fallen to 81 per cent
TWENTY TWO MILE WIND.
The wind blew at the rate of twenty-five miles
an hour from the east at time in the course
of the storm although the storm itself had
general movement from west TO east.
While the whole of yesterday could not be
called COOL the period during which the heat was
excessive was so short, and the time during
which the thermometer showed only ordinary
temperature for this time Of year was so long,
that great relief was experienced. Not until
after 10 o'clock in the morning was it hotter
than So degrees. and before o'clock in the
afternoon it had again fallen TO 40 degrees, not
again through the night to attain so degrees
As a consequence the IamentabIy large number
of deaths that the city authorities had been
Obliged to record for several days fell off TO a
great extent.
In the streets. of course. the temperature was
hotter than il was on top of the building where
the Weather Bureau observations are made.
VARYING from > degrees to 4 degrees higher than
the official indications. But the greater part of
the day was so cool. even in the streets. that
only those who had been weakened by the con-
tinued hot weather sucCumbed The rest that
was afforded by the Fourth also assisted in
keeping down the death rate. because tired and
sick people had the opportunity TO recuperate
| on account OF the removal from the morgue
| of some of the bodies on Thursday night con-
| ditions there were somewhat better yesterday
| There were. however, more bodies than the
| building could properly accommodate. The places
where the dead are kept awaiting identification
were all occupied and other bodies were placed
| IN the chapel and in the room known as the
| "foaters' room." we'll as in some other parts
of the building not originally intended Tor such
| prewsome occupants AT > o'clock in the even
| ing forty bodies were sent to Potter's Field
THE CHANGES IN TEMPERATURES.
| Following is table showing the changes IN
temperature In the last five days: