The Evening World

BLOOMINGDALE Third Avenue and A CYCLONE THREATENS US.

The Biggest Yet Known In on Our Coast and Coming This Way.

Everybody between Boston and Jacksonville, Fla., had better get themselves ready to be blown away if Signal Service prophecies are any good. That infernal cyclone which started by tearing things in Cuba and has been snorting around the Gulf of Mexico for the past day or two, is liable to come this way via Florida and the Atlantic coast, and if it does something is 'gwine ter gib way.' It is a terror. It has an inexhaustible supply of water on hand and it deals it out with its whirling wind in a most generous way.

It started at Cuba on Monday, and on Tuesday at 11 A. M. it had turned Havana upside down. Sixty-one people were killed, houses were relieved of their roofs, trees were uprooted in an extremely unceremonious manner, a gunboat foundered and her crew were drowned, a giant steam locomotive and its train were upset as though they were only silk hats. vessels were stove in by the tremendous seas, and then the hurricane went whirling off into the great Gulf.

The movements of these kind of storms are uncertain. Until they make a dash in some direction the weather men can not predict their course, and it is often too late to prevent destruction and wholesale damage. for, when they want to. hurricanes and cyclones can move at an astonishing rate of speed.

The movements of this cyclone are difficult to determine, because it seems to have been satisfied to kick up a rumpus out in the Gulf, where there are no signal stations. But its presence has Been felt on the Southern coast of the United States. It has announced itself by disturbances of the air, and has so far revealed its course that weather-wise men are advised of its present movements.

This morning it was a short distance west of Florida's main southern extension and not far from the coast of her western wing. It was travelling northeastward. and ought to strike Florida to-day if it does not change its movements. Its natural course would be to follow the eastern coast of the United States and go wiggling along in a snake-like course, raising thunder on land and sea alternately until its race is run, which would not be until it had gone a good distance. It might take twelve days for it to reach New York. and it could strike us in as many hours.

Sergt. Dunn, of the Weather Bureau, said to an EVENING WORLD reporter this morning. when making known the facts about the atmosphere all over the country : . This cyclone is a very severe one indeed. We are positive of that from the evidences of its power which have been revealed to us. Unfortunately. our lowest station is located at Point Jupiter, Fla., so we cannot gain as much knowledge ot it as we would like to. It will probably strike the Atlantic coast and it will be very dangerous for vessels to go south of Cape Hatteras during the next twenty-four hours."

What would be the effect if the cyclone should strike New York?" asked the reporter.

It would be very disastrous, for this cyclone is, as I said before, a very severe one."

It is not the rapidity of the motion of a cyclone that is dangerous or that does the damage; it is the rapidity of its spiral movement, and the power of this movement is well known to all who have read about the destruction carried with it in past instances.

Cyclones are preceded by rain, and the indications for to-night and to-morrow are rain. with slightly warmer weather. The highest temperature in New York this morning was 54 degrees. In other places it was as follows: Chicago. 62 degrees; Boston, 52 degrees; St. Louis, 66 degrees; New Orleans. 76 degrees, and the fever-stricken city 82 degrees. which is the highest temperature reported. The lowest was in Portland, Me., at 42 degrees. In New York the lowest temperature was 52 degrees at 5 A. M.

It is warmer west of the Mississippi River than it is east of it. the cold streak being along the chain of great lakes and east to Portland. But away off in Manitoba there is raging a storm of wind and rain that is ominous. It is moving eastward, too. and will follow the course of the great lakes. It will come into our longitude in three days at the most. The question is, will it take a southeasterly course and strike New York or will it go off into Canada? If it comes this way and meets that cyclone—Whew What would be the case then, Mr. Dunn ?" inquired the newspaper man in a faltering voice.

It would be something terrible if both storms held their force." he answered. " Such a meeting of these storms would produce a result similar to the March blizzard."