The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-02-09

the twenty-four hours ending at O'Clock
yesterday afternoon was: Maximum
temperature, rs deg: minimum, IS; mean,
40}z; precipitation, Is inches, with calm
and fair weather at the time OF the last
observation. Last evening there was a
disagreeable cold rain for few minutes,
and at midnight the thermometer stood
at Al
Predictions from the Portland station
for today are: Rain followed by fair;
slightly warmer: northerly gales off coast
The streets remain in q horrible condi-
ton for team travel and pede.trians alike.
The street car companies continued the
work of opening their lines and cars were
running on nearly ali of them last night.
The Union Trunk line was all opened up
during the afternoon and what could he
done by the Front Street Cable Company
was done, but the slo: still remains closed.
The snow and cold of the last fifteen
days has brought considerable suffering
upon the Indians near Sammamish lake,
and letter just received from G. Schaller,
Who lives there, states that three Indian
families, consisting of fifteen persons, have
been reduced to desperate circumstances
Naturally inclined to be improvident, the
snow has deprived them of obtaining food
by hunting and fishing, and not only have
they lacked groceries of any description
for some time past. but have been out of
-four for over a week. He says that they
can neither hunt, fish or find work to do,
and that he and others of their neighbors
have assisted them to the extent of their
ability. and now wish the attention of the
county commissioners called to the SUBJ
ject.
A portion of the cupola of the main
building of the steel works at Ballard coll
lapsed yesterday afternoon. caused by the
amount of snow accumulated on the roof
during the storm.
The continued and increasing weight of
snow proved too much for several small
buildings in different parts of the city yes
terday and they collapsed. They were un-
occupied and valueless.
The Union Pacific railroad is again
blockaded by landslide at the Cascades
OF the Columbia river and no Eastern
mail arrived yesterday.
S. +. Coombs, the well-known pioneer,
who has resided in Seattle for the past
thirty-three years. gives some very inter-
esting history of former cold winters here.
He said yesterday:
The winter of 81 and 81 was without doubt
colder than any since that time. Lake Union
was frozen over and the ice was so strong that
Robert Abrams drove q horse and sled across it.
In company with several others, including
Vane Harris, then . lad Of about IA, crossed
the entire length OF the lake on ice. Harris. by
the way, had the only pair of ''store skates" in
the crowd. Snow having fallen, thereby de.
stroying skating, the party went across the port
age, and on reaching Union bay, or Lake WASH
ington, found the bay frozen nearly to the place
where the Yesler mill now stands The ice was
like mirror. This was the first time so much
OF the lake ever froze and no doubt that winter
was the coolest in the history of Washington as
far as known to the oldest white settler.
During my thirty-three winters residence
here Lake Union has frozen all over but twice,
but ice has formed on the sheltered places, per-
haps dozen times, hard enough for skaters.
The snow storm of January. 1850, was nearly
equal to the present one Then the snow was
four feet deep, and nearly all fell in one night
but lasted only five days, while this storm has
been on nearly fourteen days. During the snow.
fall of 1880 an old Indian was asked If he had
seen snow as deep before, and he said that when
Re was d boy there was fall that nearly
equaled it Only twice before in the past thirty.
three years has the thermometer been down to
zero, and then only on the high elevations OF
Seattle