The age-herald., 1901-08-25
Building Blown Down in Jer- sey CfY and All Traffic
 Was Stopped
EXCITEMENT IN 4 THEATRE
Company Was Rehearsing, With Lions On the Stage, When Crash Came. Panic Resulted From Report
 That Lions Were Loose.

New York, August 4-A most violent and protracted rainstorm, accompanied by wind. which at times in some sections approached the proportions of hurri- cane, swept over New York Nty West Chester County, and the northeastern portion of New Jersey, this afternoon. The most damage done was at Jersey City. where buildings were wrecked, in- cluding a church and a theatre.
 Rain had been falling intermittently all morning, and about D. m. the low hang ing clouds began to discharge torrents of water, and this was kept up until after 5 o'clock.
 About o'clock the wind increased greatly in violence, and at 3:30 Jersey City began to have the worst storm ex- perienced in it's history. Two windstorms seemingly met in the neighborhood of Newark avenue and Barrow street, and a cyclonic condition resulted Horses stand ing in Newark avenue. and the wagons to which they were hitched, were blown over. Telegraph poles and wires fell A moment or two later the steeple of St. Marys Roman Catholic church, the lar gest in the city, fell backward upon the church, the piles of brick from the spire crushing through the roof and down upon the pews.
 Lions Create Panic.
 Two blocks south of St. Mary's church, and nearly on line with it on Newark avenue, is the Biiou theatre. The Maa Who Dared" company was rehearsing for an opening of the theatrical season. Two lions that are used in the play were In cages on the stage when a sudden rush of wind made the building tremble Warn ing cries caused the performers to leave the stage not second too soon. Bricks came down from the high walls ruining the stage and bending in the lions cage. The lions roared in terror. As the per- formers rushed out a shout was raised in the street that the lions were loose and the crowd which had sought shelter in the corridor fled panic stricken. The lions did not escape, but their cages were hit and the beasts were cut by the bricks, but the bars held them.
 Roof Ripped Of.
 On the southside of Newark avenue op- posite the theatre, the roofs of twelve three-story buildings were ripped off. Creat pieces or Iln Tell III Ine street. Roofs were so completely ruined that the rain soon deluged the buildings. An im- mense telegraph pole just east of the the atre fell against the brick building on the north side of the street. Show windows were crushed in and the glass filtered the street. The breaking of wires stopped the trolley cars moving up Newark avenue and in many other parts of the city the cars stopped because the wires were bro- ken.
 Between the theatre and St. Mary's church Is the St. Boniface Roman Catho- lie church. Its roof was loosened in places. The storm struck St. Matthew's s German Lutheran church demolishing the roof and part of the steeple. In Vanvorst Park trees that were the growth of many decades were uprooted or broken off.
 No one was reported killed or injured. The storm in New York City was confined to a heavy downpour of rain with vio- lent wind.