Morning journal and courier., 1888-01-30
A NORTHWEST BLIZZARD.

cents to $l.25 per diem. F=
 NORTHWEST BLIZZARD. A Now Haven Man's Experience on the
 Railroads in Northern Wisconsin Fighting BIockades-AC Cold Country.
 CHIPPEWA FALLS, WIs., Jan. 25. To the Editor of the JOURNAL COURIER:
 If one could but homestead section of this 42' below zero weather up here and transport it East for some Fourth of July celebration what price it would bringI Some such reflection passed through my mind as sat in the little hotel office of K waiting for the bus to call for passengers to the depot. looked out of the window snow four feet deep and the wind driving the sfbeautifuI" here and there with restless fury, and the mercury falling down, down, until it seemed as if it must fall off the thermome- ter. The freight was due at 9:15 a. m., and looked forward with but little pleasure to my three hour run on it to G.. Nor was I alone in my misery, for with me were three drummers chewing the eud of discontent. Now and then they would spit out anathemas (mixed with tobacco juice) against the cold and snow. A ride of a mile and 8 half brought us to the depot, where we were met with the cheering information that all freights were abandoned, but that an engine and passenger coach would try to make the trip from B., the end of the section west of here through to G.. Nothing could be done but to sit and wait. small railing only divided us from the depot agents sanc- tum and I could distinctly hear the ticking of the telegraph, whose taps I understood we'll enough to read all that was passing over the wires.
 "How soon will the wildcat be readyf' asked our agent of the train dispatcher at B.. "In ten minutes," came ticking over the wire. Eff No. 14 gets out of the snow hold her for orders" No. IA was 8 freight that had been stuck in the snow three miles east of K since eleven o'clock the night before then heard the train dispatcher call up G., and then ensued conversa- tion, if such it can be called, that showed mo railroad mans life is not happy one.
 sHow much track have you clear east of G-?" "Eight miles. Three engines and 8 blow still working at it. 21 is showed in at F. on siding with IT on the main track and ear off. 20 on the Central four hours late."
 ''Ditch bad car of IT and side track her. Send Jim Ellis and seven men with shovels and snow blow"
 A momentary Hull followed when click, click came from a little station on the branch road. ''Conductor of No. IT has just walked back here. Train is in bank one Eaile south of here, and can go neither one way nor the other."
 "Quickly B.. answers. ''Make passengers as comfortable possible and I'll get you out by night,' then switching on to his line G., asks him, ''Who is driving the wild catF :"
 s'Slim Jim," comes the reply. Good, he'll bring her through if anyone can."
 Just then hoarse whistle is heard and up jumps the agent, saying: "Here comes IA at last"
 Slowly she pulls up to the station, the great engine pufing and snorting, making the sta tion tremble as it stood humming on the track. few moments later two men assist ing third enter the station, one of them calling out as he enters: Somebody run up town for doctor; here's man with his hand smashed" The telephone is called into requisition and while waiting for the physi- clan the conductor of the freight tells his story: "We ran into the drift three miles east of here and had to drive it with the engine and then draw one car at @ time through the break. Billy here was coupin', an while he was holdin' link his glove froze to it an he couldn't get his hand out in time and when the bumpers came together Billy's hand was there and it got smashed" Billy sat there perfectly stolid, not a groan es- capped him, though could see great beads of perspiration standing on his forehead, but when the doctor arrived and after brief examination said that every bone in the hand was crushed and that it must come off, the look of agony that came over his face made me sick at heart. It was his firsG trip too; but the poor fellow had been cut of work, had family to support, and even the mis- erable forty-fve dollars a month that the railroad companies pay their brakemen would keep the wolf from the door. had seen
 &soI- kaIo had no more interest for me. 1 could not drive the thoughts of that poor fellows deathlike face and mangled hand out of my mind. It was with relief that heard the agent call out, t'There comes the 'wildcatl" As she came roaring into the station, with not one engine but two, I heard the order come over the wire to take the engine off the freight and put it on the "wildcat." This was done and away we started for G--. With good fortune I might expect to catch the train on the Central going south as it was four hours late. Even with the three engines we had difficulty in pulling through the pass where IA had stuck. We made it, however, and had no more trouble until within four miles of G---, when we struck drift after drift and were nearly two hours in running 0 mile and half. As jumped of the coach and felt the bitter cold and looked at those three engines covered with SHOW and ieicles asked the station agent how cold it was. His reply sent cold chill down my back, for he calmly informed me it was 52' below zero. Think of it, only 150 less than Greedy recorded on his Arctic expedition. It has run even lower than that ia some parts of this State, it being 62 degrees below at Rice Lake on the morning of Jan. 20. St. Paul is not even contented with that, but must build an ice palace in the heart of the city, in the vicinity of which it is about 100 degrees in the shade.
 This last storm has been the worst known here for years and over sixty people have met their deaths in it. There is train down in southern Minnesota that has been in snow bank two weeks and is liable to remain there two weeks more. The passengers, however, were taken across country to another road. Some idea of the effect of the blizzard on these roads may be gathered from the fact that one hundred and seventy-six trains are scheduled to arrive and depart from the St. Paul Union depot daily and one day during the blizzard none left the depot and but one arrived; that was on the Wisconsin Central, consisting of four coaches and five engines.
 CHARLES RICE THORPE.
 Two Mormon wives (speaking together(-