Palisadian. [volume] (Cliffside Park, N.J.) 1906-current, 1908-02-01

Away back in 1887 they got up great
exposition which, for that day and
generation, was a wonderful success
It was heralded all over the country as
one of the worlds wonders. They built
great glass exposition building, kind
of crystal palace, and of its kind it was
both unique and interesting. This 1887
show created much interest everywhere,
and the building remained for many
years until finally riddled by hail, rain
and wind and at last fire.
| | was in Kansas City in the month OF
| May, 1893, when one evening about six
o'clock heavy storm cloud came up
| from the west 1t was one of the most
threatening looking spectacles | ever wit
messed. 1t came bowling along like a
giant wave. of the sea, combing over
with a crested top, white with frothing
clouds, dense and black and furious I'M
derneath. On it came; the dust made it
impossible to see-red dust in towering
clouds, and wind of hurricane force.
| Then the rain started, and with it great
balls of ice-hail the size of oranges.
remember to have stood in the door of
the old post office watching the storm,
and my feelings were not t1nmingled
with awe The noise was terrific, a
deafening roar, augmented by the sharp
crack crack crack of the tremendous
hail stones striking the pavement, some
of which went through the tops of cable
cars 1t is fact that thousands of
these hail stones were as large as
oranges, and measured twelve inches in
morning contained 1ife-sized pictures of
~ L. c1a 1ar
ger when illustrated in print. picked
Iup several of the largest, and carried
them to my hotel, the Victoria. One of
them was laid on the window-sill of my
room, and it did not fully melt till eleven
o'clock that night. | realize the riski-
ness of telling fish story, but there is
nothing fshy about what | have here re-
lated, and, upon a wager, | could pro-
duce the newspapers containing the pic
lures.
| But hail stones are not all of interest
about Kansas City We all of us as
sociate some incident of interest with all
cities we visit, and this one just hap
pened to come up.
Kansas City is noted for its fine
houses and public buildings In its
earlier days, beginning back as far as
1885, there was started building boom
The New York Life Insurance Company
erected magnificent office building, at
that time one of the finest in the country.
| 1t was a wonder then, but is not now,
compared to many others that have since
| been erected. In those days there was a
certain irresistible charm about the ac-
tivities of Kansas City. 1t was busy,
busting place, and everybody was boom
ing the town The New York World
and other Eastern papers sent represent
atives out to write it up, and soon the
reputation of Kansas City as an invest
ment centre was worldwide. A great
many millions of dollars were invested,
business booming for several years, fac
tories going up, and railroads building
into the Southwest in several directions.
The cable car was then getting its fullest
recognition, and Kansas Ctiy's cable car
system was recognized as one of the
most imposing in the country, because of
the many different engineering problems
they had to solve in building over so
|