Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1876-12-30
WINTER SPORTS.
The Sunny South, in HOrn-A Fleecy
Carpet Foot Thick, and the Uses
Made OF it.
Memphis Under the SnOw-4 Day "Dead
TO Rights" on Universal Fun and
Iii JOllity.
Haps and Mishaps of an Eyentful Sea.
-Sleighing, SnOwballing and
SeasOnable Franks.

SeasOnable Franks.
There was nothing else1 to do yesterday,
and everybody took a hand ins some sort Of
way ''playine In the snow" MI the thorough
| fares were crowded with every conceivable
shape and conditionsof sleighs, sleds and
| drags, drawn by horses and mules, some In
| single and very many-in deubFe teams; some
! elegant turnouts, and others OF fearful get
up-but all intent upon enjoying the unpre-
! cedented season of SNOW, such an one perhaps
as will come but once in a lifetime. Some
enterprising individual ''made his jack"
out of
| AN INGENIOUS CONTINUANCE
! by wkieh buggy tops were easily converted
| into handsome and convenient slelghs., He
| made runners out of one-and-a -half-lnch gas
pipe, bent at each end, ON which a connect
| ing joint was fixed large enough for the axle
| spindles to enter, So that it was only necessa-
ry to teke off the wheels of the buggy and
put the runners On the axles; and it was con-
| verted into a convenient, comfortable and
easy-running sleigh. Some of those who IN
dulged in slpigh-riding manifested some sym
| pathy for the poor animals they were driving,
while In other cases-and we regret to say
| they were many-the dumb brutes were driven
| without mercysuntil they fell In their tracks
| from extreme exhaustion-ln one or two IN
stances resulting in death to the animal. We
| heard of several instances where horses were
| crippled and rendered entirely useless by the
careless and unfeeling. manner In which they
were driven tbroughithe frozen streets. Sew
eral OF the sleighing parties met with
MIsHAPs,
| by the overturning or breaking down of the
| vehicles, but as far as we could learn moth
! ing of serious nature occurred. Mr.. An
derson,, of the house of Guy, M 'Clellan & Co.,
| with lady, in an elegant turnout, went over
and were buried In tile drift at the corner of
| Monroe and. Front streets, but, after scram-
bling about awhile got their heads above the
snow, set the sleigh to rights and resuming
their seats pursued their pleasant journey.
| We saw an elderly gentleman and young
| lady, In splendid sleigh with double team,
suddenly overturned at the corner of Linden
| and Mulberry streets. Both hOundered
around in the snow awhile, but soon recov-
cred their seats in the sleigh and drove rap
| idly to the nearest hot stove to shake off the
snow with which they were covered from
head to foot. There were
OTHER LITTLE AFFAIRS
of the kind, too numerous too mention. The
ladies say that there is no fun in sleigh-riding
unless there is a turnover, or something OF
the kind. They call it romancing, and de-
light in it to the extent that the most reck-
less drivers have no trouble in finding COM
| panion among the fair sex for a sleigh-rde.
Several runaways (of the teams, not of the
happy hearted gallants and their dulcenas)
occurred, in which the occupants of the
sleighs managed to escape unhurt. but gen.
orally the vehicle had to be carriei to the
starting points In baskets-at least in pieces.
Sleighing was not all the sports enjoyed yes
terday. Crowds of people collected on the
sidewalks of the principal streets and spent
the day IN snow .balling the sleigh-riders,
sometimes gathering around the vehicle and
| deluging its occupants with armsful of snow.
! Occasionally they would vary the sport by
! turning on one of their number and wallow-
ing him where the drift was deepest, continue
! ing the operation until the persecuted mdiyid-
ual was forced to yield to the demands for
DRINKS FOR THE CROWD.
In one of these instances Captains Nat
Green and Dick Lightburne, both prominent
river men, tackled each other at the corner
of Main and Madison streets, known as the
resort of the Heather Chinee, when desper-
ate conflict with snow-balls ensued.. Finally
Old Nat went for the wiry Dick, and with
such force that the heftiness of the skipper
knocked the agent over into the snow-drift,
where both rolled about until nearly smoth-
cred in the snow. The crowd gathered
around, determined that
FAIR PLAY
should be observed in the conflict and to that
end all commenced covering the two with
snow, until one or the other-it has not been
determined which-sang out drinks. and
the battle ceased. The most exaggerated
picture of Santa Clause is not a circumstance
in comparison with the appearance Of Captain
Green as he arose from that pile of snow.
Both parties were in a fearful plight, and, OF
course, elected roars of laughter from the
crowds that lined both sides of the streets.
The day was spent by this class of revelers,
which was fun for the boys, you know, but
rough on their victims. Complaint was made
to Chief-of-Police Athy by some one who had
been pretty roughly bulldozed, and that Of
fcer, feeling in duty bound to suppress what,
perhaps, was represented to him as notOus
conduct, went in person to the locality men
toned, and began
| DEMONSTRATING WITH THE REVELERS.
He had as well attempted to contine the
d
lust good -naturedly stood the gallant chief
on his head IN the snow-drift, and gave him
such wallowing that he sang out, not the
drinks" but sin behalf Of my new Ulster,
| boys, | am willing to compromise. The boys
wanted no compromise, and gave him few
more douses of the same character, when
Chief Athy haunted his cambria and readily
agreed to depart in peace and leave the field
to the victOrs. In fact. he expressed his
opinion that there was nothing particularly
wrong in it after all, and the sport was con-
tinued uninterruptedly throughout the day.
There was no end to the fun enjoyed, and we
are glad to note that no bad feelings were
engendered, and that all passed off pleas
antly.
BUSINESS
was out of the question. A dray could have
easily carried all the transactions Of the day.
The public mind was so thoroughly bent on
sport that business was effectually banished.
| The street-ear company made an Intellectual
attempt to clear the track of snow and put
their wheels in motion, but gave it up as Il
bad Job Two Main street cars tired to make
| a trip to the southern terminus of that line,
but at one o'clock they were clogged and
came to a deadlock at the corner of Georgia
street, one of the cars being hopelessly
ditched, and the other unable to move beyond
the obstruction The two drivers spent the
day trying to get the car on the track, with
what success we did not learn. Occasionally
an express wagon, a hack or dray was seen,
emp or with light loads, struggling to get
along but these had to succumb to tn pre-
vailing dullneSs, and the streets were finally
ABANDONED TO THE sLEIGHERs
and snowballers. Last night the black cano-
DIV of cloud which has hovered over the city
| the past week or ten days, moved away to
other latitudes, revealing the beauties of the
heavens, the silver moon and diamond stars,
all shedding a food of shimmering light upon
the Aeecy carpet, presenting picture no pen
could describe nor artist brush reproduce
Long after the hour of midnight the ringing
of sleigh-bells and the merry laugh of the
happy revelcrs filed the air. We heard very
little from beyond the city limits
/ NO TRAINS ARRIVED
or departed on any of the railway lines, con
sequently we are without our usual news by
mail Telegraphic intelligence was received
in the city yesterday that the snow was
I +l.