The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1904-09-24

ings in the roof are directly over the
rooms of the State Harbor Commits
sion and the secretary's as well as
the Chief Engineers apartments were
literally awash yesterday morning
when these offices were opened.
In the secretary's office the water
poured down the walls running the
plaster and flooding the floors. The
carpets were soaked and the costly fur
niture damaged. Almost every official
record book and paper of the Harbor
Commission was more or less injured
by the water that streamed down the
walls and fell from the ceiling. In the
engineers department the flood played
havoc with walls, furniture and car
pets and completely destroyed many
valuable records of the Office. Maps.
plans and specifications of construction
work are injured in many cases beyond
repair.
DESCENDS THROUGH ROOF.
The direct cause of this costly acct
dent is due to the fact that in max
ing repairs to the slate roof of the
building broken bits of slate and plas
ter got into the cutters and drain pipes,
choking these outlets and thus dam
ming the water on the roof to fall
finally into the rooms and the nave be-
were obliged to dig through the solid
concrete to get at and clear the pipes.
The work of drying and repairing the
damage will be hurried forward as
rapidly as possible.
All over the wholesale district pools
in the streets overfiowed and descend
ed into Easements, where valuable
merchandise was stored. Nothing
like a complete estimate of the dam
age done in this manner can yet be
made. At late hour last night some
of the warehouses were still deluged
despite the efforts of gangs Of men to
clear them.
Baker & Hamilton, hardware mer-
chants at Pine street, are heavy los
ers. Their warehouse containing
many thousands of dollars in stock
was flooded.
Wine kegs in Chevalier & Co.'S
wine vaults at 9 Beale street were
afioat when the employees arrived to
work yesterday morning. The place
is still half full of water. Holbrook,
Merrill & Stetson, 227 Market street,
sustained slight damage from the su-
perf1uity of water. The pressroom of
the Brunt Printing Company on Clay
street had several feet of water in it.
A gang of men at the Enterprise
Brewery were at work all day pump
ing out the flood that rushed into the
brewing department yesterday morn
ing.
DRIVEN FROM HOME.
The foundations of the house occu-
pied by Mrs. z. Ludwig at 8 Lycett
place were washed away by a sudden
rush of water. She was obliged to
leave all her belongings in the totter-
ing building and seek shelter in the
home Of a neighbor. The house may
collapse at any moment.
Yesterday was the rainiest day in
thirteen years, Forecaster Wilson
says and the rainiest September day
in the history of the weather bureau.
Forecaster Wilson gave the people a
clear morning for the Odd Fellows
parade, but in the afternoon he again
let loose his showers. The rainfall
for the twenty-four hours preceding
O'Clock last night was 800 inches.
The rainiest day San Francisco has
known since 1850 was on December
10, 1866, when 7.76 inches of rain fell
in twenty-one hours. From 11:45
o'clock Thursday night to 1:45 yes
terday morning the rainfall amouted
to LA inches. From 1926 to 12:45
yesterday morning nearly a third of
an inch of rain fell. The exact meas
urement was .32 of an inch and is the
record for the time mentioned.
During Thursday night there were
two thunder storms. The wind was
light from the south throughout the
storm. The bean and raisin crops will
suffer greatly according to the Weather
Bureau. The ground does not need
moisture at this time and the only
good that the downpour will do so far
as is known is TO extinguish the forest
fires in the north
HIGH WIND AT SEA.
Outside the heads the wind was much
stronger than ashore. The velocity at
Point Reyes was seventy miles an
hour. The storm centered yesterday
at Eureka and was not moving in any
direction at last accounts.
When the center of the disturbance
starts on its trip again it will head
for San Francisco unless there is
marked change in pressure over the
Northwest. Wilson forecasts more
heavy showers for San Francisco to-
day.
In the Mission the streets were flood
ed at several points, but no great dam
age was done. Sewers were broken
by the pressure of water at Polk and