The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1894-04-12
LAST EDITION
SPRING BLIZZARD
The Predicted Storm Arrives
from New York on Time.

Winter, that by every right ought to have
started on its Northern journey three
weeks back, returned few days ago, and
after fierce battle with spring entered
once more upon its reign. For
two days the weather has been
growing colder and colder. Spring over
coats were returned to the hooks
where they have hung all the winter, and
the heavy ulsters were donned with a sigh
of comfort. Yesterday afternoon at just
$3.50 O'Clock the snow commenced TO fall.
II came gently at first, but by O'Clock
he big flakes were falling rapidly.
Within an hour the ground was com
pletely covered, and before morning .
,nches of snow had fallen.
The snow gathered rapidly and as it
was very heavy it was soon deep enough
to cause considerable trouble 10 all the
railroads and electric wires. Street car
travel was almost entirely demoralized.
Long before dark the snow that had caked
on the rails threw one of the Riverside
cars off the track and for two hours travel
was stopped completely. When the track
had been opened few trips were run, but
ii was soon found necessary to abandon
the attempt 10 get through the heavy
mass Of snow.
Street Car Service Poor.
While no such accident occurred on the
other lines il was almost impossible 20 run
the street cars. More than a week ago the
officials of the company decided that
winter had gone for good and, acting
upon this supposition, the motors were
taken from the electric snow plows to be
placed in the open cars that
they imagined would so soon be
needed. For this reason there were
but five available electric plows in the city
and, with these alone, it was utterly inn
possible TO keep the tracks cleared.
While the heavy cars were able to push
through with great deal of difficulty,
those that were equipped with the single
motors found 1t almost impossible to
make any headway and early in the even
ing they were removed and the double
motor cars were substituted.
Each line suffered. There was not one
that was not from one to four hours late,
and although certain degree of order
was obtained when the company brought
out the plows drawn by six horses, it was
impossible TO run on schedule time.
These horse plows were run all night and
this was the only thing that made travel
this morning possible.
Wind Blew Hurricane.
During the evening the wind blew
perfect hurricane, and those who were so
unfortunate as TO be compelled TO be out
of doors found it almost impossible to
q
that contiued to fall rapidly until late at
night, was hurled with terrific force by
the wind and although it was not badly
drifted, walking was no easy matter.
During the evening the fire alarm rang
continually, and Superintendent Cloud
man stated that he believed that il would
be impossible to sound regular alarm.
The wires were thoroughly out of order
and the police department was instructed
10 notify the fire headquarters rs soon as
an alarm was rung III order that each
static might be notified.
The telephone and telegraph wires were
in the same demoraliZed condition. Many
of the wires were burned out early i'm the
evening, while other wires fell and every
thing tended TO make communication
difficult. Out of town communication
was impossible, and by midnight every
one had given up the attempts TO make
use of the phones.
Even the railroads found 10 difficult to
overcome the obstruction of snow. Every
train to Providence was late, the Wash
ington express arriving at 10:15 instead of
7:15 o'clock, while the Shore Lire arrived
at S:15 instead of GLIB o'clock, and the
1910 train from New York did not Gp-
pear until 2:15 O'Clock this morning.
The storm, in some respects, was one OF
the worst that has been seen i'm many
years and those who imagined that spring
had come were willing to admit that it
was possible to be mistaken.