The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1888-01-24
BITING BILLIARDS..
Terrible Suffering from Cold in
the Northwest.
SNOW FROM TWO TO FIFTEEN FEET

WHICH HAS swept ON Gf lHe northwest, DlOchuu-
ing railroads in FIVE states, is now over and the
victims of its fury are being counted The
pitiful list is growing almost every hour. 1t is
not improbable, when the record is complete
it will show hundred lives sacrificed to the
awful fury of the blizzard. Next to this the
worst blizzard that the northwest ever eX-
perienced occurred January Z, and 8, 1878,
In that storm seventy people were frozen to
death, and thousands of dollars worth of prop
erty destroyed. The present storm promises
to be even more terrible in its results 1t came
without warning. At sunrise last Wednesday,
Dakota never had more lovely winter weather
The air was as clear as crystal and every OBJ
ersect about the horizon was distinctly visible.
he wind was from the SOUTH warm and
s almy, and before the sun was high in the sky
gsyA decided thaw had set in
Farmers took advantage of the beautiful
weather to go to town to draw wood, hay, etc
About noon q cloud was seen along the north
western horizon lying close to the ground, but
stretching from west to north in dark semi
circle Little attention was paid to it, but in
an hour the cloud had swept over the country,
the sun obscured, snow was falling fast
and gale was sweeping from the northwest
with terrible fury. The blizzard had begun
The mercury fell rapidly and by five O'Clock it
was fifteen degrees below zero, and next morn
ing it registered thirty degrees below. All the
while the wind increased in fury, the snow fell
thicker and the large amount of snow that
was already on the ground was blown into
powder and hurled along by the wind. On
the prairie an object forty feet distant could
not be seen. A mans voice could not be
heard six feet distant.
The air was full of snow as fine as flour and
the roaring of the wind and the darkness caus-
ed by so much snow i'll the air made the scene
the most dismal, drear and forsaken that man
ever looked upon. Every railroad in Dakota,
Minnesota and many Iowa, Nebraska and
vail no1 J-epa nlyo1 Tala
wires everywhere were down and it was not
until Saturday that the full extent and awful
results OF the storm became apparent. The
telegraph hourly brings the most pitiful stories
of suffering, terrible struggles for life and
heroic deeds by brave men and women of the
storm-stricken section that have never been
eQualled.
Mary Council, a little school teacher near
Cavour, started home with two Of her pupils,
a boy and a girl. The boy left them and per-
ished. Miss Connell put her dress folds about
the little girl and made her walk all night,
sheltcrlng her charge with her body. They
were found next morning alive, but horribly
frozen. Another teacher, Miss jacobson near
Stoloff, started home with little girl. Both
persisted. When found, Miss jacobson was
crouched in little hollow in the ground with
her arms about the little girl and her dress
skirt wrapped about her. Her own bonnet
was off her head and her hand clutched her
dress, at her throat, but there was smile on
her face.
ANO ClIIuItus d bOy anu girl VI UOSepH
Hutchison, near Gary, were lost going home
from school. Twenty-Five men at once started
on search for them, and the mother could
not be kept from going along. The poor wo-
man was with the party who found them.
They were lying close together, and the boy
had his sisters hands between his own.
Thursday forenoon, just before the blizzard
struck this point, party OF seven farmers,
about twenty-five miles northeast of here
started for their homes having been here with
wheat The report comes that the bodies of
four of them have been found dead. Search
ing parties are out looking for the Others
Mrs. Knutson, of Rushgore, was found
frozen to death within forty feet of her door,
Her husband was absent, and becoming un-
easy, she started to search for him, losing her
life in the act. These are but few OF the many
terrible stories when have come in, a majority
of which have been briefly mentioned before
In these dispatches. a number of the dead
had the appearance of having died from suffo-
cation. Some had torn their clothing away
from their threats and others had thrown
away their head covering and were clutching
at their threats, as though struggling for
breath. During genuine blizzard the air is
filed with fine ice DUST driven with terrific
force, which chokeS the unfortunate victim in
short time if he attempts to stand against it,
ST.. PAUL. January 16.-Saturday night and
yesterday were exceedingly cold all over the
northwest. At Brainerd, the thermometer
registered 4S below at O'Clock yesterday
morning, and at Bird Island. Minnesota, SO
below, at Fairbault, Minnesota, Saturday
night it was AZ below, and at Duluth yesterday
"a below. and at Clearwater, Minnesota, 43
below yesterday morning.
4 Journal special from Aberdeen Dakota,
says that Bessie Stansfcld, pretty nineteen
year-0ld teacher, three miles distant left
school during the storm 10 go to a farmer s
house thirty yards distant Her dead body
was found nearly a mile from the schoolhouse
-Four children froze to death in a schoolhouse
at Melette, where the teacher left them to
get assistance, and her body has not yet been
,i.ih 41ny4 nn0lan
twelve miles northeast Of Aberdeen, was out
oil night in the blizzard. When found she
was barely alive and died shortly afterward
William Morrill,. 80 years old, q farm laborer
six miles west, went out of his house Thurs
day evening to go few rods to q barn. He
became confused and was found dead two
miles away. H. S. Chaplin, of Minneapolis,
collector Tor a thrashing machine firm, left
Northiieid, near Aberdeen, Thursday morning
with a liveryman to visit farmers near by.
They have not been heard from and are proba-
bly, dead. o. L. Owens and wife, of Went
worth ID akota were lost on the prairie Friday
night. They were out eighteen and half
hours and when found Mrs. Owens was dead
and Mr.. Owens was badly frozen and travel
ing in q circle He will survive.
The Storm in Texas
Fort WORTH, Texas, January 16.-The
storm which began Saturday is abating, and
reports OF losses are beginning TO be received.
A farmer named Williams was frozen to death
in Fannin county. A negro boy was found
frozen to death in dry goods box at Cleburne,
and a negro named johnson was frozen to
death in Cooke county. Communication with
the cattle regions has notsyet been opened, but
the impression is that hundreds of head of
cattle were frozen. The mercury ranged from
three degrees below zero to ten above on Sat
nrday night and Sunday
Galveston, Tex, January 1G.-The Dakota
blizzard struck the gulf of Mexico at this point
at 1 o'clock Sunday morning, causing a fall in
the temperature of thirty degrees in two
hours. The blizzard came upon the city with
remarkable suddenness, the bulletin ordering
up signals and predicting freezing weather ar
irving only thirty minutes before the blizzard
itself. From sixty-two degrees at midnight
the mercury fell to twenty-nine by daylight,
and a heavy sleet began to fall, covering the
city with coat of ice.
BY Sunday evening telegraph and telephone
wires leading from the mainland into city were
carried down by the heavy coating of ice
which had formed on them, and the city was
entirely cut Of from Geographic communica-
ton for nearly twenty-four hours. The
weather IL most severe eXDeripncpd here