Ambler Gazette

              The Ambl
VOL.  XVI.-NO.  38.
NORRISTOWN   LETTER.
"Old Friend" Opens Up a Mew Line of
Thought—Kvery Change Hot Always a
Step of Pi-ogres*—Capital Punishment a
Relic of Rarbariim—Democrats Active.
"Take these hides tothe tanyarl, "
my father wonld say j and I threw them
across the horse's hack and galloped
away. In due season we got our leather, had our boots and shoes made and
always had a supply of substantial
material for footwear constantly oa
hand. How are things changed, I will
not say improved, for much as I waa
criticised for my incredulity in my centennial poem in 1884, I still do not believe that every change is a step of
progess. Tanyards have gone out of
fashion in our countv, but they are not
out of use in the United States, for
leather is tbe next most important industry to agriculture in our country.
Tanning, like spinning, is almost a
lost art in this community. There are
old familiar places to me where piles of
bark lined the roadside and side yards
along the vast vats at King-of-Prussia,
Kvansburg, Lower Providence, "Upper
Providence, Trappe and Norriton, and
all over the countv. and even in Norristown, yet today I'count all the tanyards
in the whole county on the digits of
one hand. Ambler and the tannery
under A. D. Faust's Sons, still operates
with prosperity, I am informed, and the
proprietors may be able to explain why
others of the kind have passed away
with the lapse of time. It is a studv
for the local political economist, and I
refer it to your lyceum for discussion,
if the bicycle and baseball clubs have
not also superseded the good old-fashioned country debating societies. Wendell
Phillips, who was not afraid to speak
what he thought, in his great lecture on
"The Lost Arts," taught us that the
ancients were far advanced in the arts
and sciences and that manv of the most
important arts had been lost, as, for instance, the making nf malleable glass.
which our long lost fathers made and
could roll up like window curtains made
of paper. Changes are being made,
of course, and if the sermon on the
mount were to be delivered today it
would abound in figures and parables
relative to existing articles of husbandry
and arts of civilisation of the 19th century; and Moses in his commandments
would have spoken nf politics and electric lights and would have had no allusion to tbe coveting nf mv neighbor's
ox or his ass, for indeed I have not a
neighbor in the world who owns an ox
or an ass, nnd if I had he might keep,
them without any envy on  mv  part.
That men, do not fear death, but
seek it for surcease of sorrow, pain and
* trouble is proven every day; therefore
I have maintained that speedy death is
what tlie murderer seeks; hence I am
opposed to capital punishment, not only
aa a relic of barbarism, but as a release
from punishment to tbe murderer.
Ofenrlp* o. TJ.n iser. i***&*^j*pfl-lJment.p£--n*iy
prediction' in my'letters that till three of
the conspirators would commit suicide
if thev could obtain an opportunity,
carried out this purpose on Thursday
afternoon hy cutting the veins in his
wrists and neck. This ends another
chapter in the bloody tragedy of Oct. 88,
1800, the evening that thia hypocritical
man betraved his wife with an ostentations kiss in front nf his shop in Norristown when he started out to. take her
a pleasant ride, as he would have her
and tbe neighbors to believe, bnt really
to meet James A. Clemmer and Lissie
DeKalb,to kill her and obtain tbe insurance on her life. If I had seen him
kiss her before they started and had
been a police officer, I would have followed him, for I have no faith in the
love of a man for his wife who has
plenty of opportunities to kiss her in
the sacred privacy of the home, but
who makes a parade, of his prayers or
his professions of devotion to God or
woman in the public highway to be
seen of men or beard and admired by
the multitude. Christ saw so much of
this that he was led to exclaim, "Take
heed that you do not your alms before
men, to be seen of them; do not sound
a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites
do; and when thou .prayest be not as
the hypocrites are; for they love to pray
standing in the synagogues and in
the corner of the streets, that they may
be seen of men.'' Was Clemmer standing near when tbat kiss was given?
"Now he that betrayed him (Christ)
gave them a sign , saying, Whomsoever
I shall kiss, the same is he; hold him
fast;" then Judas kisssed him and betrayed him. ' From that bour honest
people mistrust the man wbo kisses his
wife to be leen of men. There will be
a few more brief chapters in this bloody
drama.
The Democratic county committee was
in session at Norristown on Friday last
and many- candidates seeking nominations were on band to meet the members
from the various districts. The committee met at the Rambo House, the
Democratic headquarters for the last
50 years, and fixed on Sept. 30 next as
tbe time, and the court house as the
place, for the Democratic countv convention. Jesse Fronefield, of Norristown, and Jos. C. Beyer, of Norriton,
candidates for sheriff, and L. B. Pen-
nell, of Norristown, candidate for assembly ; Jacob V. Gotwalts, spoken of
for judge, and others were in attendance. Neville D. Tyson has written a
letter announcing his support of Weand
to succeed himself as judge. Mr.
Tyson, however, belongs to the gold
wing of the Democracy, which has no
strength in this county; but he expresses
the sentiments of the members of the
bar. Lawyers are more conservative in
their sentiments than laymen. They
believe in competency and fidelity iii
officers. Laymen generally profess to
have no faith in lawyers. The fact is
they do not know the difference between a lawyer and a mere attorney;
tbat is,theyareno respecters of persons,
when in truth they should be. Men
should respect qualifications in everv
art, employment and profession; and
not treat the pretender and tbe proficient with equal preferment. Did it ever
occur to you tbat lawyers are made the
ultimate and final arbiters in all matters
in state and nation which are the subjects of litigation and legislation.   The
judges of the supreme court of tbe
United States can decide upon all congressional enactments, and the judges
of the supreme court of Pennsylvania
upon the enactments of the state legislature, and all these judges must be lawyers. The profession of the law is a department of tbe government, made so
by our constitution from the very
foundation of the nation; and besides,
20 of tbe 24 presidents have been lawyers, and 18 of the vice presidents. McKinley and Hobart are lawyers; Reed,
the speaker, and five members of the
cabinet also.
The expressed hope of the Democracy
at this time in this county is that the
Republicans, they believe, will have
two complete tickets in the field. Tbe
Republicans fixed the day for their convention too early. By _ the 13th
they may not yet be reconciled. I suggested some time ago that there ought to
be a rule like tbat in Philadelphia; a
convention for each office. The contest
for the legislature mav endanger the
prospects of the candidates for the
other offices. For if there be two Republican tickets they will both go down
in defeat: any school boy can calculate
that, when tbe Democrats are divided
the Republicans win, and vice versa.
But worse than all, in seditions bad
men rise to honor. If one section
should nominate a good man. that very
nomination might destroy him in the
estimation of the opposing* section and
prevent his selection by both. If the
convention of the 13th of September
could be composed of statesmen we
would have no fear of the issue; but if
tricksters and demagogues are to dominate, with no voice of wisdom to control, with no seer to portray the consequences of fanaticism and frenzy, with
no guide to control the cataracts and
bring the contending elements into one
common, compact and conquering
flood, the power nf the Republican party
will disperse and scatter in thia county
and lose itself in the continuous woods
where roll the orgies of ruin and hear
no sound save their own ravings. Let
them look at the consequences of the
fight for senator in Maryland and take
note. OLD FRIEND.
Jarrettown.
The list of vegetables available for
marketing at this season of the year is
quite large. Unfavorable weather conditions earlier in the year made the
supply very short during July, but the
prospects are that tbere will be plen y
during thejiall months. Bartlett pears
are very scarce tbis year. Some varieties, such as Seek el, Doyenne D'Ette,
Clapp's Favorite and Kietfer, are more
plentiful. A few potatoes have been
harvested for present marketing, but
the yield ia very disappointing.
The turnpike from here io Maple
G len is in good condition for wheeling.
Whooping cough has made its appearance. Several children are suffering
from this troublesome complaint.
The school building has received a
.thorough cleaiwns^iu readiness for the
opening of the new term next 'Monday.
The school board will meet the teachers
of the district in the Jarrettown school
on Saturday afternoon of this week to
arrange the course of instruction for
tbe term. The vertical system of pen
manship will probably be introduced.
Some instruct ion in , the elements of
vocal music will also.be given.
Mrs. Neal and Mrs. Samuel L. Fisher
were quite unwell daring last week.
M. J. Dillon unloaded a carload of I.
P. Thomas' fertilisers recently.
Watson T. Wood has been painting
and trimming some wagons for Jacob TT
Comly. He is also painting his bouse
for him.
Thomas H. Seal, secretary of the
school board, has the tax duplicate
ready for the collector to receive the
school tax. The triennial assessment
returned about the same value of taxable
property in the township as in previous
years.
E. C. Williams has been unfortunate
in losing two of his horses recently.
One of them it is thought was kicked
by another horse last Saturday night,
breaking his leg.
Miss Annie Megargee, who resided
here when a little girl, has heen visiting
relatives here this week. About 16
years ago sbe moved with her father,
Augustus Megargee, to Martinsburg, Pa.
Our hilly country sbe thinks very flat
compared with the mountain region
southwest of Altoona, where she resides.
Mr. Beyer is taking a vacation. He
has arranged for the various services of
the church during his absence. Mr.
John Rodemich will bave charge next
Sunday morning.
AMBLER,   PA.,
Gazette
GUST  25,   1898.
81.25  A  YAER
Some of our local fishermen had quite
an interesting experience on the Perkiomen last week during the sudden rise of
that stream, which caught a number of
brother fishermen in a bad predicament,
but they were safely rescued by one of
the Narcissa club. Two of the Cold
Point disciples of Isaak Walton and
one from Narcissa tried it again on
Friday, but found the stream high
and muddy and returned borne at midnight with one eel and one catfish,
but strange to say, this experience did
not seem to dampen their ardor.
Henry Rhoads, of Hickorytown, well
known all over Plymouth and surrounding neighborhood, died suddenly last
week. His remains were Interred at
Cold Point cemeteay.
Willie Ambler, of Plymouth, was
taken to the hospital last week for an
operation for appendicitis. At last reports he was improving slowly.
F. J. Seltzer and daughter Ida have
gone on a trip to Lewiaburg to visit relatives.       	
Whitemarsh.
Mrs. Laura R. Rickard has returned
from a visit at Conshohocken.
Rev. Samuel Snelling is abroad and
will return by the 1st of September.
Wm. Spence Harvey, Esq., has returned from the seashore.
The tollgate on the Skippack is again
occupied.
Jos. Mehaffy's store came near being robbed last week, but the thieves
were scared off.
St. Andrew's Brotherhood club and
reading room will be opened the 1st of
next month.
KAISER A SUICIDE.
OrelHiui.
f ,.;Mr. and Mrs. Wm. P. Albrecht spent
Bus Convicted Wife  Murderer Clients thetFriday last at Baltimore.
Callow.—Cat   Several  Arteries and Tied   /'-'-Miss    Mary Jones, of   Fort Waslling-
a Sheet Around HI. Neck-Onietlv Buried   [¥'   "I*** Sunday in this town Visiting
.    ._..     __ Miss Rena Poole.
r",st smui»y «■• Philadelphia. ij, Ireland M. I. mission Sunday school
Charles O. Kaiser, Jr., the convicted will hold their picnic at the Oreland
wife murderer, committed suicide baseball grounds on Wednesday, Aug. 31.
Thursday afternoon in his cell in the A fruit supper will be served in the
Norristown jail. He had cut several evening. All are cordially . Invited,
arteries in his arms and had also made Tb< Ambler quartette of tbe M. E.
a noose out of a piece of sheeting, and, wirch will be present and render val-
placing it  around his  neck, the other ruable service.
end was tied to the spigot. It is not .jjMiss Lottie Fell, who has been spend-
yet certain whether he died of strangu- in* the past week here visiting Miss
lation or of bleeding to death. IJtura Poole, returned   iiome  on Satur-
Undeikeeper Wm. Lens discovered . <Sh[ >**t
the body at 4.30 o'clock. 15 minutes' wenrge Aiman, accompanied by Miss
previously he had had a talk With Kai I «"«' Sands, spent Saturday and Sunday
ser. At that time Charles was reelining '«* at Atlantic City,
on bis cot. It is now believed that! *ilbam Edsall, of Philadelphia, left
when Lena was talking to him he wae '<"<# home on Monday last after spend-
then bleeding to death. When the j fag two weeks vacation at Fwtwater-
body was lifted up tbe bed clothing wag,! ___
saturated with blood. Kaiser had
taken a small clock apart, securing the
spring. This he used to cut the arteries
in his arms. There were three gashes
in his arms.
At the time the suicide was committed the board of prison   inspectors were
holding ti meeting  in the offlce of the
prison to  decide on the erection of the
gallows.    Kaiser was aware of the meeting, and i; is assumed  that  he  was so
wrought up over  the  matter that he
took his life.    Kaiser  had  told   a, cellmate several months ago that he would
never be hanged on a gallows.    For th&
past few months,   however,   he   haj^
occupied a  cell   by  himself.    A deal
watch had heen talked of by the prisT
officials, but it had  not yet been dec«
ed upon.
Since Governor Hastings fixed the day
for the  execution Kaiser bas been de|
pondent and  could  not eat.   Whin M
went on the stand  to testify  again
his accomplice, James A. Clemmer, lay
June, the convicted  murderer weighs
211 pounds.   On Tuesday, the 18th, h|
was put on the scales by Sheriff Johnspl
and   it was found  that he had droppra
to 177 pounds.
When James  A.   Clemmer  was   ii|
formed of the suicide of Kaiser he saidf
"That don't surprise me; I had expect'-*
ed it."
The body  of Kaiser  was  shipped t'?L
Philadelphia  Friday afternoon by Un-. |
dertaker Hallman, having been claimed"'
by the father of the murderer.
The remains of   Kaiser were interred
cemetery ' on   Sunday,
held     in   Undertaker
parlors,     1330. Poplar]
Misses
Habach
Arnholt
Dunn, of
visiting
was reported in
as  having ac-
Henry Shaffer,
1 the offer and
Mr.   Harrison's
in Mount Peace
services being
Pfeizenmeier's
street.
Kaiser was convicted of the murder of
bis wife, Mrs. Emma O. Kaiser, on
Oct 28, 1896. Kaiser and his wife len
their store on West Main street, Norristown, for the purpose of taking a
drive. They drove through Bridgeport
and went as far as the Bird-in-Hand J
hotel. Kaiser then drove in the direct^l
ion of Bridgeport by way of-the' Crtok^-4
ed Lane road. They had 'not gone far'
before Mrs. Kaiser was shot and killed;
by a supposed highwayman. The bullet
entered her brain and sbe was instantly
killed. Kaiser stuck to the stray that
he had been held up and robbed.
Early next morning the police visited
the scene and found a revolver and some
jewelry hidden under a stone. They
came to the conclusion that Kaiser waa
the guilty party and placed him under
arrest. He was tried and convicted and
the case was carried to the supreme
court. The decision of the lower court
was affirmed and Kaiser was sentenced
to be hanged. Governor Hastings on
July 6 fixed Sept. 6 as the day of tbe
execution.
During the trial of Kaiser it was
brought out that he had placed $10,000
insurance on the life of his wife. It
was contended tbat he had two accomplices, James A. Clemmer and Elisabeth
DeKalb. Tbey were not arrested until
November, 1807. Mils DeKalb was
captured in Trenton and Clemmer in
Newark. Clemmer was put on trial
here in June and was convicted of murder in the first degree. During the pro;
gress of the trial Kaiser sent word to the
district attorney that he wished to go
on the stand and testify against Clemmer. He said that he wished to relieve
his soul and did not want any clemency
shown him for the part he took in securing the conviction of Clemmer. He
tnen went on the stand and stated that
he and Clemmer bad plotted to kill Mrs.
Kaiser to secure the f 10.000 life insurance. Kaiser had agreed to the killing,
and Lissie DeKalb, the notorious '' woman in black," had also been in the
scheme. On the day of the murder the
three conspirators had met and decided
on the route to be taken. Kaiser also
told of several other plots that bad been
made to get rid of his wife, but everv
time the scheme had been blocked.
Clemmer was convicted principally on
the testimony of Kaiser, and as the
"woman in black" had already turned
state's evidence, she escaped with a
sentence of two years in jail and $200
fine.
Charles O. Kaiser is not the first murderer to commit suicide in the Montgomery jail.
In 1878 Heinriuh Walen committed
suicide in his cell here by battering his
brains out with the grating of the
heating register. He was sentenced to
death for murdering Max Hugo
Hoehne, a young German who came
to America to visit the centennial, and
whose body was found at Elm station.
Another suicide was a woman who
was acquitted of the crime for whieh
ahe bad been accused, but before the
news of her acquittal reached her she
was found dead in ber cell. Numerous others have committed suicide while
in the jail for minor crimes.
ilr. and Mrs. M. Collins am
Minnie, Emma and Pauline
were among the visitors at the
mansion during the past week
| Dr. Fell and Mr. and Mrs.
Trenton, spent Sunday here
Mf. and Mra. Poole.
Daniel F. Stout, of this place, will be
a candidate for delegate in Upper Dublin, West, favorable to the renomination of Jason Sexton.
Edward Pierce, whe
last week's   " Gazette I
[eepted a position under
Horsham, has  declined
accepted a position  at
place. Glenside.
Last Friday evening several of our
Smug folks got up a straw ride in honor
ffttv. Fell, of Trenton, who  was the
fuest of Miss Laura Poole for several
lays.   The party left the residence of
It;- Wm.   Poole,   on   Maple   avenue,
rant 7 p, m. tor North Wales, arriving
jgiro about 10 o'clock, where they spent
-jgeral hours in dancing and  singing.
Eur.   Weber,    who    accompanied    the
fearty, rendered a  fine  solo on the cor-
wf, assisted by Mrs. Fell on the piano,
"flip  party   then   entered  the  dining
h-botn  of the Colonial inn, where they
"indulged    in    ice   cream,   cakes   and
jbnado after which  they   returned
gne.    Nothing happened to  mar the
isure of the party until  they reach-
Is Springhouse on  their  wav  home,
pm a breast chain  on  one of the
irses broke, which   was  speedily  re-
fred by Mr. Harvey Blair.     The fob
fng comprised the party: Mrs. Fell,
h  Laura Poole,   Miss  Ruth  Blair,-
88 Annie Auchy,  Miss  Rena  Poole,
May Jones, Miss May Walters, Mr.
[ey Blair, Mr.   Daniel Stout, Mi
Mr.   Wn
Weber
Blair.
md  daughter spent
Blair, Mr.
and Mr. Wm.
Alex Stewart
ly"  and    Mondav    in 'Norristown
ng-friends.
t.Charles    Ravior,   Mr.   Charles
iippand Mr. Harry Dickinson touk
Be colored camp meeting at Wynd-
H§KJI*f o^.Satnrday .night.. _
■5"Mr. and  Mrs.'G: F. Ely- spent  Sun-
May with friends at Langhorne.
'  Isaac Walton and the postmaster were
out fishing last Friday  evening.   Tbey
returned   with  16  large  "muskeeter
bites.   The fish had an evening off and
had hired 'tiie mosquitoes  to do their
biting for them.
Miss Lilian Closson, who spent several
Weeks in our town, returned to the city
last Friday.
Morris Clymer, night operator at this
station, was transferred to Glenside
station, and Edward Pennell, assistant
agent at Fort Washington, was appointed night operator in Mr. Clymer's place.
SprinchouKe.
The Union Sabbath school held their
-picnic on Wednesday at Chalfont park.
The children were conveyed to the park
in large wagons furnished by members
and friends of the school, and the ride,
as well as the dinner, was greatly enjoyed by all present.
During the storm on Thursday
noon a large oak tree standing
>f 8f
untie
after-
in Ihe
I Dane-
Irvin
-Dr. J. I.
speaking
Terry, of Trimble, Tenn..
in speaking of Chamberlain's Colic,
Cholera and Diarrhoea remedy, says:
"It has almost become a necessity in
this vicinity." This is the best remedw
in tbe world for colic, cholera morbus,
dysentery and diarrhoea, and is recognized as a necessity wherever its great
worth and merit become known. No
other- remedy is so prompt or effectual,
or so pleasant to take. Sold by J. s.
Angeny. aug
woods on the property
hower was struck by lightning
Shearer, residing on the Kathleen farm,
nearly lost a couple of his cows. They
were pasturing in the field, and the
water rose so rapidly it washed them
between the trees and they were rescued
with much difficulty.
A thief recently entered the premises
of Hon. Jason Sexton and stole 20
young chickens from a coop in which
they were confined for the night.
John Besson, of Philadelphia, was a I
Sunday visitor at the}home of Mr. and
Mrs. Samuel J. Fleck. Mr. Besson is
the son of Linfield S. Besson, a prosperous merchant of Philadelphia and
formerly a resident of this neighborhood.
Mr. and Mis. Anion Geiger and sow.
Warren, and Elizabeth Hallman, all of
Norristown, were Sunday visitors at the
residence of Samuel Danehower.
Miss Amanda Fleck, of  Altoona, is
spending some time at the  residence
her brother, I. W. Fleck.
Broad Axe.
JUPITER  PLUVIUS REIGNS.
A Terrible Downpour of Rain Deluge, the
Lowland.—Wl.Hahiekon Become, a Riti;-
hitf Torrent—Highe.t Water for n Generation—Dammee to Property.
The storm which broke over Ambler
last Thursday afternoon spent the greater part of its force to the northward
about   North    Wales   and    Lansdale.
From Ambler the great black clouds
could be seen gathering nnd arraying
themselves to tbe northward like a great
army arranging its forces for a mighty
charge. Very little damage was done
about Ambler except from the washing
along the Wissahickon creek, which at
4.30 o'clock had not become muddy, but
at 6 was a raging torrent and for several
hours had encroached upon all the adjoining lowlands, sweeping', everything
before it. Vast quantities of timber,
earth and refuse  were flooded  down,
lodging at all points
the waters subsided.
At the bridge on
west of the boroug
were insufficient to
flood and tbe water
road and  meadows to
itong the banks as
Butler pike just
line the arches
accommodate the
overflowed the
about five feet,
making one of the greatest freshets in
a generation and probably the greatest
in ita history at this season of the year.
Those in Ambler having occasion to
cross the Wissahickon at this point
were delayed several hours until
waters had subsided.
John   McClean,   of
horse paoturing in the
the Wissahickon, and
was washed   down
meadows, until  Im
hours  until  thl
Ambler,   had  a
meadows  along
in the freshet he
under  bridges, over
i   tinullv landed in a
>f
Price has been enjoying the
af Atlantic City for the past
Mr. E. Ti
pleasures
two weeks.
Miss Madeline Ramee,of Brooklyn, is
spending a few weeks with her friend,
Miss Charlotte Haas.
Miss Gertrude Hellings entertained a
number of her friends at her bome on
Tuesday evening.
Mr. Albert Harvey, of Cheltenham,
is spending some time with his brother,
H. R. Harvey.
A number of friends gathered at hto
home of Wm. Horrocks on Thursday
evening, in honor of his birthday.
There were many absent, owing to the
heavy storm. Those who did brave it
spent a very pleasant evening. Vocal
and instrumental music was well rendered and enjoyed by all. Mr. Charles
Horrocks, brother of the host, presented
to bim, on the nut of his children, an
arm chair, which was received with
and surprise. Refreshments,
and laughter were indulged in,
after which the guests departed, wishing
Mr. Horrocks many such bappy birthdays.
pleasure
'■names ai
clump of bushes below Ambler, more
dead tban alive. After the water bad
subsided he paddled through and on
Fridav morning turned up at Mr. McClean's stables in Ambler.
Considerable damage was done to Mr.
Bergner's iron fence along Butler pike.
The force of the rushing water had
twisted and bent it out of shape and it
will take a large amount of labor to repair the damage.
The storm was like a cloudburst at
West Point, while beyond, at Belfrv,
scarcely any rain fell. Considerable
damage was done to property. The
Hoover family were holding their reunion at Zieber's park, and tbe exercises had to be stopped, owing to the severity of the storm. People who came over
from Norristown found the water so
deep at the village station that the road
could scarcely be crossed. The water
reached the bottom of the carriages.
The pasS^ngers were kept as prisoners
in the station for several hours. The
streams overflowed their banks, and
great volumes of water boiled and
bubbled on every side. The Wissahickon rose 15 feet and flooded II. W. Moyer
A Co. '8 hay baling establishment,
Frederick's -planing mill, Heebner's
feed mill, ana Vaughan's brick yard.
Tbe damage at Allen Thomas A Sons'
Ea\y mill, where {he Wissahickon, became a raging'forre'ttt, "fa" tAi.t~tt.im ssbme.'
Much sawed lumber lying on the banks
was washed down the stream. I Mr.
Thomas' hog pen was floated from its
foundations and went partly down the
seething stream. Tbere were three hogs
in the pen and all were washed down
stream and drowned. The flood also
swept several cows away, but they swam
out.
Septimus Davis, a farmer living near
Lansdale, -had a thrilling experience.
While be was attempting to cross the
small branch of tbe Towamencin creek,
which runs through hia place, the
rapidly rising flood carried him down
the meadow several hundred feet before
he could regain the land.
At tbe tollgate near Kneedler station
everything swam. The waters of the
Wissahickon broadened in their course,
on the east side of the turnpike bridge,
as far as Joseph Boorse's, and it was
impossible to cross tbe structure. Many
teams after reaching the bridge from
either side turned back again, fearing
to cross, owing to the swiftness of the
waters of the enlarged stream. Mrs.
Rhoads, the tollgate keeper, was compelled to flee to the upper story of the
gatehouse to escape the rushing water,
which completely surrounded the dwelling.
In Lansdale the storm continued for
two hours without abatement, during
which time the rain came down in a
perfect torrent, flooding the streets and
cellars in every part of the town. The
new sewer running east and west
through tbe two wards was unable to
carry off the water, and for a time a
deluge was feared in tbe East- ward.
The damage to the streets of Lansdale
will amount to hundreds of dollars,
while the roads leading out of town
contain deep washouts, making them
almost impassable. The street in front
of the station was entirely under water.
During the storm the lightning and
thunder were terrific, but Tittle damage
was done.
At North Wales the storm was even
more severe. The railroad track from
Gwynedd tunnel to the foundry above
the station was covered with water
from two to three feet in depth.
About 50 telegraph poles which lay
along side the roadbed were washed
along with the swift current and deposited at various places wben the flood
subsided.
Edward Reckless' express train,
bound for Scranton, which left Reading
terminal at 3 o'clock, was compelled to
stop at the north end of the Gwynedd
tunnel, owing to the numerous washouts
and the flood covering the tracks. The
crew was obliged to wade the water
waist deep to remove the telegraph
poles floating around and examine tne
tracks.
The train was delayed three-quarters
of an hour. The streets of North
Wales were badly damaged.
The opening made in the top of
Gwynedd tunnel, about 50 feet of which
is being removed, formed a sort of
funnel, through which the waters rushed in a whirlpool, completely submerging the railroad tracks. All trains moved very slowly through the passage, and
both the northbound and southbound
express trains were stopped at North
Wales. The damage done to the railroad track between Gwynedd and Lansdale is estimated at $300.
The Neshaminy also rose rapidly and
overflowed its banks, and much damage
was sustained bv property owners along
Its banks. Early Friday morning there
was a second downpour and at 8 o'clock
the stream was rising rapidly. The
water at Chalfont nearly reached the
bottom of the covered bridge.
At Newtown the electrical part of the
storm was very heavy, but tlie wind
was terrific for a short time. The
wind blew down the large oak tree in
front of the residence of Cyrus B.
White, on State street. In falling the
tree brought down three telephone
wires and the trolley wire, breaking
off the pole like a pipe stem. For
about 20 minutes tbe street was strewn
witn live wires, making travel of all
kinds dangerous if not impossible. A
large force of men were put at work and
by (i o'clock the trolleys were running.
The breaking of the Standard Telephone
wires caused a slight flre in the exchange office at Mrs. E. Mitchell, on
Centre avenue. One end of the broken
wire struck the large bulk window in
Walter R. Elliott's pharmacy, breaking a large pane of glass. The lightning also burned out a fuse in one of- the
trolley cars, rendering  it unfit for use.
In Royersford great damaee was done.
Great boles were washed in nearly
every street in town. A large stone
arch over a spring was completely demolished and the mad rushing water
carried the large stones nearly 200 feet
through a culvert and dumped them into the Schuylkill canal. In Limerick
township one of the. streams swelled
so rapidly that the water, hacked up and
soon flooded the farmhouse cellars,
barns and springhouses.
At Mingo, about a mile above Roy era-
ford, Mingo creek rose so rapidly* that
the banks soon overflowed and the
highways were covered with several feet
of water, causing the farmers to drive
about four miles out of tbeir way in
order to reach town.
The Schuylkill river rose about six
feet at Manayunk. The water came up
very rapidly in the afternoon and for
some time tbere was apprehension
among the mill owners along the river
that there would be a freshet. The rising water came to a standstill about 0
o'clock, when the most of the Perkiomen and the other creeks had passed
down.
Tlie highest water ever known in the
Wissahickon was in July, 1865, when
one Sunday afternoon a heavy downpour of rain took place, and was general
all through the lower end of the county.
Tbe creek was thu highest at night.
It rose 10 or 12 feet above normal,
which is about four feet above the
highest point ever known. The water
stood 14 inches deep en the bridge in
Whitemarsh township on the Skippack
pike. The water seemed to come down
as an immense tidal wave, sweeping
everything before it. Hogs, cows,
sheep, horses, fencing, plows, harrows,
etc., were swept right out of tbe fields
Thousands and thousands of feet of
fencing were swept down  and a Whiter
fts-ffling   ifbacfWthe -iMmc^fSfflgfl
izing a nice profit.   *
Joaeph Detwiler, of. Ambler, deceased,
aaid at that time he had never seen
the water so high before, nor had the
previous floods of tbe Wissahickon done
so much damage. Trees as thick .as
a man's bodv were swent right over
by the terrific force of the rushing
water. At the Skippack pike in Whitemarsh, near the bridge; there was lodged after the waters had subsided a tree
turned completely upside down, and
among the roots was found tbe body of
a black sheep. The carcass of a horse
was found in Cleaver's meadow, and
at the time the water rose into John
Cleaver's house.
Sandy Run, for the only time in the
last 60 years, ran around the lower end
of tbe old stone bridge on tbe Bethlehem pike. It flowed around the southern end of Conards' auger mill and was
up to the window sills of the lower
storv.
There was immense damage done in
Norristown by the waters of the Stony
creek, which cleaned out several coal-
yards. William Foulk, of Gwynedd,
had just previously sold bis farm, and
with his son had gone into the coal
business in Norristown. The flood washed away his coal and even flooded his
iron safe out of the offlce. Wentz's
lumber yard was washed away and the
proprietor nearly ruined by the loss.
In lsyn there were high floods in both
February and March, which swept
away a lot of fencing, inflicting great
loss to the farmers along the streams.
The fence of Wm. T. B. Roberts in
Whitemarsh was swept away twice.
That from Cleaver's mill to the farm
of Daniel Williams was also washed out
twice, but was replaced by a wire fence,
whicb stood last week's flood unscathed.
Mlipl.
have
> Glen.
commenced
liggins
Farmers
potatoes.
Horsham's supervisor has been at work
on the roods over here.
Evan J. Ambler, of Lambertville,
spent Sunday at T. P. Conard's.
Mrs. Belle Buckley and son, Leonard, of Yonkers, N. Y., are visiting at
her aunt's, Sarah Ann Kenderdine.
The regular monthly meeting of the
Prospectville Y. W. 0. T. U. will be
held at Thomas P. Conard's on Wednesday evening, Aug. 31. Full moon,
everybody come.
Master Jonathan Bright, of Norristown, has returned home after a 10
days' visit to his uncle, Thomas P. Conard. J. Paul Wilson, of Newtown,
■pent some time at the same place.
On Mondav afternoon of tbis week
O. Norman Beans met with what might
have been a very serious accident,
but fortunately no Bones were broken.
While driving a two-horse cart the
horses started suddenly, throwing him
from the seat, the wheel passing directly over hie bead, bruising and cutting
it severely. Drs. Yerkes and Reading
were summoned and dressed the wound,
which necessitates tbe wearing of a
"night cap" for some time. Under Dr.
Yerkes' care hopes of his speedy recovery are entertained
Thomas H. Gamble is improving tho
appearance of his place by grading and
filling up the lane.