San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1888-01-16

The Situation Yesterday
Pursuit of Pleasure IN
der DIffIculty--A Sun
Gay Quiet That Was
Phenomenal.
The warm rain OF Saturday, which so
"liQuidated" the streets OF San Antonio,
that the rails OF the street-car tracks
were only dimly seen as black streaks
appearing and disappearing 10 a sea OF
mud, got norther In Its teeth before its
mouth was dry. The opera-goers who
went inside In q perspiration came out
side In q chill. 1t was Mexico when
they entered; 1t was Minnesota when
they made their exit. The drop
in the mercury was worse than the
drop Of six-shooter In the hands OF q
California forty miner. The mercury
dropped from summer heat to freezing
in an incredibly short time and old
boreas made San Antonio howl worse
than the proverbial bowling OF old
Rome. Everyone retired to make the
best of bad night thankful that the
morrow was day OF rest and that no
stores were to be opened and shops
cleaned up before daylight. The weary
car drivers and hsckmen found repose
when the last opera goers had been safe
D.
with their drivers finally at rest. The
saloons were quickly emptied and Sat-
urday midnight dropped down upon a
quiet city SO far az sounds Of human feet
and human voices were concerned.
What the humans did not do In the
way OF noise old Boreas did. Lord, how
the wind howled, and shrieked, and rat
tied the shutters, and shook the doors,
and pounded the roofs, and creaked the
tree branches, and drove the sleet
against the window panes, and charged
upon the gables. and lunged upon the
balconies to carry them off and out howl
ed Rome In the bowliest days Of it's howl
ishness. Some fresh youth who pre-
tended to have tapped the tail end of a
telegraph keyboard, had circulated the
report that bare-headed cyclone was
on its travels from the far northwest
booted and spurred and billed for slaugh-
ter. The report spread and lights we're
seen dancing about all night where the
uneasy ones were waiting 10 terror and
watching In fear for the desolation which
they expected to come like hell and de-
structlon on pale horse, as seen in the
apooyliptio vision. The night passed
and no cyclone came, but a full fledged
norther did duty In it's place.
Morning broke cold and cherries. The
thermometer ranged about IA degrees
above zero, as cold as 1t ever gets 10 this
section. The streets were frozen solid.
The street car tracks were bedded In a
sea OF frozen mud which sometimes COW
cred the entire rail and left no sign of Its
presence. The cars that were started
out with two mules and two drivers to
each car made few rods advance and
jumped the track, the fianges of the
wheels being of little use, as the mud bed
was solidly frozen In the rails. Car after
car was started at intervals during the
day but for all practical purposes the
cars were for once discontinued, and a
Sabbath observance was enforced by old
Boreas such as Attorney General HOgg
could not command by all the authority
Of the state at his spinal column. The
streets were deserted. The church pews
were not crowded; the public resorts
were very lonesome and peace reigned
In San Antonio. An occasional pedes-
trian, a solitary hack driver, looking like
the last hearse driver OF Pompeii, a
stray dog and ENTHUSIASTICALLY ven
turesome youngster In mittens and muf-
fer, was all that broke the universal
desolaetness.
About three hundred males and not
ladies enough to relieve the bald headed
monotony, were all who put in an ap-
pearance at the Grand for one OF the
most laughable performances ever
placed on the stage. For particulars
see as usual the dramatic columns Of
this journal.
The wind died down about shutdown
and the night was quiet and cold until
about midnight when 1t moderated
slightly, the thermometer at o'clock
this mOrnig standing 20 above zero.
The street car company was early at
work this morning thawing out tracks
and getting ready to run on time as
usual. Before 10 O'Clock they had sue
ceeded 10 running cars to the terminus
Of all their lines and, as this article is
read, 1t may now be safely asserted that
the embargo Is raised and that the cars
are making trips about as usual. Very
few people were seen on the streets
this morning and business has been
unusually quiet all day.
The mail carriers and the carriers OF
the press have had to make their rounds
as usual and the work has been anything
but pleasant. These humble servants OF
a too often ungrsteful public are always
most faithful and psinstaking and
deserve more recognition than they
usually get.
The groups around the firesIde, the
stray gstherers around the stoves In
public places, the groups In the hotel
offices, all were busy discussing the
weather, and some northern visitors
were not very complimentary over the
softness OF southern atmospheres and the
balmy air OF San Antonio. BY the time
however that the billiards of the north
are making returns Of their frozen VIC
tins, this old city will be once more
smiling In sun kissed atmosphere Of
about IS In the shade, all traces of this
legacy from Siberia via Minnesota will
have disappeared and the Alamo city
will be In her glory again. Sunday,
January 10, will long be remembered as
the coolest, windiest, dirtiest, most dis
agreeable day the oldest inhsbitant has
ever noted. Only the hack driver will
revert to 1t with pleasant memories as
the day In the early morning hours Of
which he doubled up his fare and thanks
to the kindly assistance Of the Great
Norther, took in q S2.00 fare where ma
ture and grace and customs and the
usages Of this city entitled him only to
half that amount. But what is the use