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August 27, 1992 - The Strength of Nature on DisplayAugust 27, 1992 • The Suffolk Times • 7A The Strength of Nature on Display By Paul Stoutenburgh It was hot and humid for days and like a boiling pot it was ready to spill over into a true summer thunderstorm. The first inkling was the soft rumblings in the late afternoon far in the distance, the kind you inevitably ask, "Is that thunder I hear ?" As time went on there was another ingredient added to the mixture, a new and restless movement in the trees above, a foreign rustle that seemed out of place yet welcome. We sat outside re- laxing and the additional moving air felt good but unreal. The one cheery sound came from a boisterous robin that called with all its heart from a nearby tree. It was reminis- cent of spring courting choruses we as- sociate with robins as they sing from atop nearby trees, each proclaiming his superiority in the robin world. By now, those courting days were over and therefore the song puzzled me. Was it one telling of things to come or was it a song of reassurance that all will pass no matter what's in store. Darkness and the uneasy breeze in the trees above suggested inside was a bet - `the first raindrops announced their part in the evening's entertainment' ter place to be. We moved the things that might get wet inside for now our overcast sky had turned into a menacing black. We both took up some reading material with an air that perhaps it would all just go away but I'm afraid summer thunderstorms on the loose don't like to be sidetracked, so on it came. Each instant roll seemed a bit louder thai� the one before. Our robin sang on, his call seemingly out of place in the ensuing darkness that seemed to creep in with each approaching thunder roll. Then thi: first raindrops announced their part in the evening's entertainment but even these harbingers of things to come didn't dampen our songster. A Focus on Nature thunderbolt five miles away (one mile for every second after the flash is what we kids used to think) told us we were definitely in for one of the really true summer thunderstorms. I read on, trying to concentrate on what was before me, but my mind could not clear itself, particularly when a strong gust of wind shook down the raindrops from the trees above with a clatter on the roof. How the raindrops picked up their tempo on the skylight above! Outside, the bluish bursts of lightning and the rolling thunder moved in all about us. It was as if night had taken over. This stopped our robin's song. For now all we could hear was the continu- ous downpour of rain with thunder claps and lightning flashes in a continuous procession. Much was heat lightning, the kind that rolls and shakes the dishes in the china closets. Just to make the show more spectacular there was an oc- casional "Crack!" that would bring our eves together with that sheepish "It's all right!" smile. We felt secure inside but security in a real thunderstorm is only half - heartedly believed for real thunder- storms carry with them anxiety and a mystery that goes back to when the earth was just starting. For 15 minutes the downpour contin- ued with its companions of lightning and thunder. Every once in a while there'd be a sudden puff of wind that would bring the accumulated crescendo of raindrops down upon us. It was as if some giant, shaggy dog had just come out of the water and shaken itself. Storm Abates Now even though most of the storm was over there were those still -close rumblings that let us know thunder- storms are not ones to quit and run away quickly. On the contrary, it lingered with its light rain for another half to three quarters of an hour. Its far -off rolling thunder reminded us that others would soon be experiencing the trials i_®69A. ■_a.a.L 00%/.L 78 Years Ago Aug. 29, 1914 Shipping Lima Beans: The lima bean output promise i to be heavy. Shipments began in earnest last week from hlattituck and other stations. Every afternoon and every evening the express trains to New York take from 500 to 700 bags a trip from Peconic and almost as many more from Mattituck with a good consignment from Laurel. A Pleasant Tour: Henry Van Scoy of East Hampton, 88 years old, has been making a tour in his horse and buggy of Shelter Island and Southold towns. He has been having a very pleasant time. Up and Down Prices: As several of the big auto- mobile fire manufacturers refused to go up on prices several weeks ago, those companies that increased their rates as high as 20 percent have reduced them to the old figures. Owing to the European war, most manufacturers are look- ing for an excuse to boost prices. 50 Years Ago Aug. 27, 1942 Six Ships in Nine Days: From Aug. 20 to 24 the Greenport Basin and Construction Company has been launching ships in the rapidly expanding defense program. Six vessels will have been launched, including five tank lighters and the fourth of the new series of YMS. MOREL —This mushroom ranks among the top of our edible mushrooms. It is actually quite rare on the East End but the true mycologist will always know where to find it. and tribulations we had just gone through. Most thunderstorms are good for one's soul for they tell of nature's raw power. It's good we have these displays of power every once in a while to let us know there are some things we just can't do much about but sit and wait for them to pass. We need that kind of hu- mility that is so often missing in today's world. After all, even the great NASA spaceships with all their technology and resources must stand by and let thunder- storms pass before launching. It's some- thing that always makes me smile. As you remember that tumultuous thunderstorm brought us a week of wet and dreary weather. No burnt lawns this August. On the contrary, greenery is busting out all over and with it vast and New Parking Lot: Under the supervision of Street Commissioner Merrill Price, the vacant lot on Front Street, donated to the Village of Greenport as a parking site by the Greenport Ice Company, adjoining Steve's Restaurant, has been leveled and surfaced and is now in use, providing extra parking facilities, of which there is at present a great need in the community. Dewey for Governor. The nomination of Thomas E. Dewey as the Republican candidate for the Governor of New York at the G.O.P. convention in Saratoga Springs this week has been a foregone conclusion for many months. They like him because their uncanny native judgment tells them he can be trusted. He was nominated for the second time for gover- nor by the convention in the same auditorium in which he was first selected four years ago. Superintendent S. Went- worth Horton of Southold Town attended the convention. 25 Years Ago Sept. 1, 1967 Levine for Supervisor: Greenport Mayor Arthur Levine reported his plans to head a strong Democratic tick- et this fall in the coming election for Supervisor of Southold Town. He states that a number of persons capable to run the business of the town are now being considered to fill the other positions on the ticket. Mayor Levine has long been in politics and knows his way around. varied shapes and colors of mushrooms are appearing on our lawns, in our woods, on trees and a vast array of other suitable hosts. Just think, sometime in the past, tiny dust -like spores of seeds fell from a ripe mushroom and were whisked away by the wind. How long and how far they traveled no one knows. Perhaps they came from across the sea or merely from your neighbor's backyard. At any rate, they settled and grew unseen and unnoticed to most of us, their thread -like mycelia, or roots, helping break down their host in what we know as decay. Then when the tem- perature and moisture and a vast num- ber of other ingredients barely known to man came together, they fruited into the mushrooms we now see about us. Many are a gourmet's delight but also many are deadly poisonous so if you're not absolutely positive in your identifi- cation leave them alone and appreciate them for their color, form and beauty. To me, mushrooms will always carry that bit of mystery and intrigue; mystery because I know so little about them and intrigue because I'm always tempted to pick them but know better and don't.