The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-07-03

The six weeks rain condensed yester-
day into four hours, flooded many local
easements and interrupted street car
traffic. The wind last night, moving near
ly a mile minute, blew down number
Of wires. impeded the transmission Of
police and fire department signals and de-
layed the business Of the telephone and
telegraph companies. The aggregate cost
Of the tempestuous weather was large,
but no important accidents occurred.
The first rain storm yesterday began
about noon and lasted an hour and a half.
It brought 1.62 inches Of water. The Sec
ond storm came in the early hours Of the
night and deposited 2.28 inches OF pre-
cipitation" between and II o'clock p.
m. Both rains were accompanied by
heavy threatening clouds, by lightning
and a gusty wind SO that tornadoes
were mentioned more than once. The
total rainfall-3.8S inches nearly
four times the 1.02 inches that fell thru
out the month OF June.
Easements Flooded.
Most Of the unwelcome wetness was re-
ported after the second storm. The first
did little damage. Among the Easements
flooded last night were those Of the West
Hotel, the Pauly House, the Twin City
Telephone company, the National Biscuit
company, the Powers Mercantile COM
pany. the Nicollet Clothing company,
Kurtzman the tailor and Thomas & Co.
Fire engines Nos 8, and II were de-
tailed before midnight to pump out cellars
and were thus engaged all night. At the
West Hotel the electric plant in the base,
ment ceased to operate, depriving the ho-
tel of light until the gas began to burn.
5 Muddy water poured into the Lyceum
theatre thru the emergency exit back of
the right hand boxes during the perform
ance of Heart and Sword The oc-
cupants OF the boxes were forced out
and several actors retreated from their
dressing7rooms in the basement. Water
also entered the Bijou theater, where
telephone girls on strike were holding a
mass meeting. The rain came thru the
ceiling and sprinkled many seats in the
parquet. But the sprinkled listeners
raised their umbrellas and continued to
applaud the speakers on the stage.
Even Mrs. Carrie Nation complained OF
too much water in the streets. The waves
beat high along the Bridge Square shore.
Az First street and Third avenue s. the
water rose to the center Of the sidewalk.
Here two .Women's hats were seen afloat
upon the pillows.
Children Almost Drowned
The most uncommon incident OF the
flood occurred at 141S Fifth avenue N
in the basement home Of C. F. johnson.
Mr. Johnson's two young children were
sleeping In a room where the water, en-
ter1ng an open window, soon covered the
floor to depth Of sixteen inches Then
the children screamed. The father UNI
able to open the door of their room,
rushed out into the street and cried for
help. A policeman sent in fire alarm
and the f1remen rescued two wet and
weeping infants. The men in rubber also
carried out upon stretcher an aged
bedridden woman, Mrs. ]. c. Wachtler.
Street Cars Stopped.
So obstructive was the water and SAND
along the street car tracks that the West.
ern avenue and the Minnehaha cars were
all that kept to schedule. At midnixh
the Eighth and Central line, the Plymouth
avenue line, the Oak and Kenwood line
and the Camden Place line were blocked
On the Como Harriet line at the Grea
Western yiaduct Fifteenth avenue Sc
and Eighth street, water had collected t,
the depth OF five feet.
This end Of the Como Harriet line saw
no moving cars during the remain der O
the night. On the Lake Harriet end o
the same line large tree fell across tn,
| tracks at Lakewood cemetery. The OBJ
struction was sawn away before midnigh
and service was resumed.
II, On the University avenue interurbar
line a car ran into sand at Erie street ant
| was derailed. The line was opened afte,
brief delay.
At Ridgewood avenue, on the Lyndal
| and Bryant avenue lines, sand across thu
track blocked traffic for two hours an,
a half
Sand caused much delay also at Logal
avenue on the Sixth avenue N line ant
at Elm street on the Bryn Mawr line.
| Kenwood Store Washed out.
| This morning at o'clock the from
building at the corner OF Twenty frs
street and Penn avenue, collapsed as tn
result Of the encroachment of a stream
of water that rushed down Twenty firs
I street. The front half OF the building
which was ready for the glass fronts
went down with 1t. The loss, which wi
probably have to he borne by the con
tractor, c. j. Weston, will approximat
about 5000. The structure is 40 by 13
feet, faces Twenty first street and will
/ when completed, be occupied as tire
stores Kenwood residents, who hav
strenuously opposed the erection Of bust
ness structure on this site, are regardin
/ the work of the storm as special dis
Ipensation Of Providence; but the damag
will be repaired and they will have thel
stores after all.
Il Railroads were ortunate.
Il The railroads had remarkable escape
4 from storm damage. frequently, whe
4 the storm appears to have little fore,
4 the railroads suffer severely from wash
outs, but last night the terrific downpou
4 had little effect.
4 The Pioneer Limited on the milwaukee
i was only eight minutes late. while tt
i new flyer on the Great Western was o
i time. The st. Louis had no trouble O
the main line, but there was trouble o
Il the Watertown division, because tt
4 wires west Of Excelsior were dow
Nothing is yet known of the damage {
+ headquarters.
4 The Mi1waukee lake train was held U
Iby the storm effects beyond Hopkins, b,
) service was resumed this morning
Fired by Lightning.
II OF the ten fire alarms sounded yestel
day, the greater part were false alarm
caused by lightning ION the wires" Bt
a house was actually set ablaze at 29t
First avenue s.. where lightning struc
the dwelling Of A J.. Grafenstad. III
, damage was trifiing. Lightning ais
struck barn near Plymouth avenue an
u Fourth street N.
Wind Was High.
! For two minutes, at 9:15 p. M, the wir
blew here at the rate Of IS miles 9