Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1884-12-31

Z
n rssasne sppsnnunss = 80 =, =.
= hnss snu6Ar hasd uinssr.. =.
azsf ~ snly NJ hasd vinasr =, ~.
had - thas a lss1-A Tn III min
I'll n toszsnes in - Iass wesk a. No.
vsnbss md nrst vssk e Dee,mbw.
No dsnaGs nov worth msntiouine ~
done % q absot ths Sound. hus n "a,
Wiilamstes and saeramenso vallavs tn
hoods vsss he voTst IN The hiseorv a.
tnecuesG Al vharves we're swepe avxv.
farm ho1nss carried Oh, towns ruincd
and oeoecoyed. fences washed into ~
- Hyeee broken, the wh0Ie courfrv
ABOUT Hooded, ard areAt los Of auiusi
me ooeaa5oned. with some Ioas az In
man me-. This vas followed bv cold
md nov about ths middle az Decezn-
Der. Ihe NOV vas net % very desp--
only about fifteen inches altoceiher. On
ne snofes Of the Sound, we mean. The
vsefner turned cold at the same tims.
sno the sn0v stayed. FaYners
nAd made no prsparaslons for such 8
time. and they Lost heavily in couse-
quenee. The Hudson Bay Company
i0st 500o bead of sheep In Pierce county.
and great many cattle aud Indian DO
nisA Many OF the farmers Lest eyery
animal they had except = horse or two.
Ihe sieiRbing was ina, bat the poorle
cot snrfeit OF Il long before ths viuser
was over. House plants we're al killed.
Dwellings, and busiuea4 houses than ware
unpiastersd, and thsir occupants suf.
fered intensely from cold. Tke thar
mo@eeer Of Steilae0om read, one morn
int. ~ degrees below xsro. and az Nev
Weeemfnster ID; lover than has at any
ume sfnce beeu recorded. The snow
stayed on for full two months, gradually
wearing out. tbaving almost impercep-
tioiy ~ day and freezing at night.
kusinsss was Of necessity suspended.
Fresh meats, eR9s, milk and buffer.
vegetables and fruits disappeared from
the markets; and. had Il mot been fcs.
the importation Of hay and feed from
California. hardly horse or GOV would
have been left In all the Poget Sound
country. It Vas % bad, 90 much worse
than anything before il or anything
since, that u has from that time 20 this
oeen deuominated by general consent
= the hard winter The weather was
equally bad throughout ell Oregon,
washington and British Columbia. The
Columbia was ffo0en % hard that no
ocean seeameEs got mp to Portland for |
several weeks. while the warm William
rite was frozen % that teams with load
ID wagons passed from bank 10 bank on
he los. Eastern Oregon and Washing |
Ton were treated to weather a. Siberian |
- ono can imagine. We have nov had |
Ihree weeks OF similar weather, With Q |
lev inches more snoW but few degrees
les cold. What then ali bat DESTROYED
he country would now happily make
but . slight impression. Our people |
i've In better houses, travel by rail and |
On first class steamers. have great barns |
md plenty Of feed. while the supply of |
fruit and like food 10 a6un- |
1ant fer half year to GONE. Such a |
winter 10 not pleasant to Contemplate;
but IL il 10 to come, IL will be stripped |
,f nine teuths of the discomforts and |
IerroFs Of the hard winter of lS61-2.'e |
The Victoria Cotosist has this to cay
,f the same winter:
The winter Of 1851 2 was memorable !
,ns on the Pacific Coast. The quantity
3f snow that fell in Oregon, Washing |
ION Territory and British Columbia was |
The Columbia river was |
frozen for two months. The Fraser
river was closed on the 9Th of January,
md remained 20 until the 10th Of April, |
1862. The snow was not OF the trails |
and roads leading 10 the then newly die |
severed mines OF Cariboo until June. |
There was good sleighing in and about |
Victoria for six weeks after Q January
snowstorm which ragged for q hours |
and obliterated landmarks. streets and |
reads. Farming was then In its infancy |
Dn the Island, and nearly all the stock |
Tell victlms TO Q scarcity Of fodder. |
Cattls, horses and sheep suffered In like |
Hay rose to $50 ton, and |
pats could not Be had at any price, |
California having suffered from doods, |
which swept away most Of the granariss |
n the Sacramento valley, aud food d |
and many other towns of |
note. As in the present year, the win |
.er set In early In December; thaw |
'ook place about the LIST of the year, and |
IN the 9Th Of January a hard frost be- |
gan, the effects OF which were over in |
March on the island, but were felt in |
he interior until June. Since 1859 tie |
Pacific Coast winters have been alwa, q |
mild