The Delaware ledger. (Newark, Del.) 1879-19??, 1886-02-20
AN OLD TIME BLIZZARD.


at makes me tired" said Upcle Jake
Shippers, "to hear these fellows who
have been snowbound on a passenger
train for two or three days kick like
mules when they git out. They ough-
ter've had my experience on the plains
in 40"
Attacked by Indians ?" asked Tom
Rowe.
Nothing of the kind" said Uncle Jake
I'VE wuz showed in down the Platte
here about one hundred miles for three
weeks. A party of us Quilted at ST. Joe
under Jim Brown. There wuz twenty
in the party, including a niger We
left in December and was warned not to
attempt the journey in the winter time,
but we was bound for Californy and was
going to get there in the spring if it
busted hamestring. 1t was a kinder of
an open winter and we experienced no
great amount of trouble till we reached
point down the Platte | should Judge
about one hundred miles from where
Denver now stands, which was, as you
know bowling wilderness then. The
tenth Of January, 40, we camped near a
gulch that had enough water for our cat
tie and plenty Of wood for a rarity.
That night there was terrible snow
storm come up. The snow was about
two feet on a level and we concluded to
stay until it stopped showing. 1t kept
up that night, that day, and the next
night, and the snow was just eight feet
on the level.
1--WE could dig down and get wood,
but we couldn't get water enough for our
cattle, though we could get all we want
ed ourselves. We held several consulta-
tons and came to no conclusion, except
that we was in bad fix. We couldn't
out and five stayed there our cattle
would die for want of water We got
out all the same"
"What did you do?"
81 tell you it was a queer plan and or
iginated in the mind of the niger We
got to prospecting around on some snow
shoes we rugged up and found that the
Platte was about five miles away and up
hill from where we were. The niger
said while scouting party of us were
out that we might turn the Platte into
our camp and wash a road out. We
catched at the idea, and it wasn't long
before we had water started from the
river on our trail from the camp. We
shoveled oira section of ground and
moved our wagons and cattle to place
of safety and let the water rush. Well,
sir, next morning there was as fine a
looking body Of water as you ever saw
flowing right by our camp, but it was
so derned deep the steers couldn't ford
it,"
"What did you do then?n
'Jes made tlatboat out of one of the
wagon boxes and carried the cattle up to
the river, where they could get some
footin' and hitchin' ropes to the wagons
and other truck we soon had 'em on dry
ground"
did you have ropes five miles long ~
mot exactly. We had to splice some
of EN- but we made out by pieeing out
with log chains"
"What did you do them"
"There wasn't much snow to speak of
on the banks of the river, so we travelled
up the river, till we reached Denvar
where we camped until spring that is.
we camped at the mouth of Cherrv creel,
That's why | say it makes me sick when
hear these tourists complain of being
showed in. Why, if they had been in
our place every derned one of 'em would
be where we camped in the first place.
They wouldn't've had sense enough to
get out, and their bleachin' bones would
been found afterwards and their death
attributed to lniuns. "-Dnper Neus.
Gout in most cases first makes itself
known by an acute pain in the joint of
I