Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-12-07
r co .ections Of Cold Snaps Told at
the Ananias Club.
SOME WONDERED Ls,ESCAPES
Mercury Bulbs forp'saMatbIes in Da-
kota and Steers Melted in Texas.
FOUR REMARKABLE TALES

serve the quality of the stories told at our
lest meeting. The Star. in its very correct
report OF the proceedings saw the faults
so plainly that 1t said In the headlines that
they were lies. No true follower of the
great and artistic gentleman whom we
have honored by choosing his name should
tell story with the faisehood so paipable
that the lie is capable of detection. 1 hope
that this grievous fault will be remedied,
and we should therefore discuss subject
ton ght that what we tell about it must be
believed. I notice that cold weather and
snow are predicted. A few incidents con-
corning previous snaps and SHOWS will be
interesting. and at the same time will be
believed. while adventures and natural
phenomena require painful study and care
as to details that render them difficult to
relate properly We will hear from our
Brother Johnson Ca1kins."
A Dakota Cold Snap.
Mr.. President and gentlemen" began
Mr.. Calkins, Il not old man, and
therefore the winter I speak of is familiar
to all Of you-that Of 1873. Five of us, with
wives. had gone to Dakota in order to
obtain homesteads, and settled twenty-five
miles from the then small village of Fargo,
near where the city of Castleton is now
situated. but then wild. desolate prairie.
with no neighbors nearer than Fargo. and
bands of Indians or droves of wolves plac-
ing us in constant peril. The five families,
although having sod houses of their own,
all lived in one house for companiorship
and protection. Well. at 1890 o'clock We'd
nesday night, October 2, 1t turned so cold
that we could see the walls moving in and
the house grow smaller from the natural
contraction caused by the atmosphere. 1t
grew colder constantly until morning, and
then remained as 1t was
What was the degree?" some one asked.
ITO tell the truth. gentlemen. I do rot
know" was the response. I'VE had half
fhnrY1 nfxrS hut
mercury kind, ard mercury froze so solid
within an hour that the children used the
bulbs to play marbles with all that winter
and until they thawed out the following
Fourth of July. We had plenty Of fuel and
wore heavy winter wraps in the house, in
this way keeping from freezing. After a
few weeks we became used to 1t. One of
the ladies discovered how beautiful the
icicles We're that grew upon the windows.
They then wore them as Jewels. and dia-
monds never looked prettler. There was
no danger of their melting. even in the
house, and it was actually a source of sor-
row to the ladies when the weather grew
warm enough for US to go out doors and to
melt the diamonds with which they had
est winter I ever experienced. but l cannot
tell just how cold it was, owing to having
no spirit thermometer"
Herd Frozen In the Mud.
Il remember that winter very WELL" said
Tom Anderson II was moving a small
bunch of cattle from Tanant county, Texas,
near Fort Worth, to Greeley, Col, at the
time my brother Calkins speaks of. The
railroad was completed only to Wichita
Falls. and we had to drive across No
Mans Land to Colorado, 1t taking three
months to accomplish the trip. 1t had
been warm and rainy, which was oc-
casion of great rejoicing in that drouth-
infected country When We left Wichita
Falls it was muddy and driving slow work
tNl;,
has just been told about struck US sud
denly. l was feeling warm and comforta-
BILE, when in moment l seemed to be
paralyzed. and. looking around me in a
daZed sort of way, realized what had hap
nened. The ground was frozen soldly
and. of course, each one of the steers had
three feet caught fast having been stuck
in the mud. The other foot which had
been lifted to step with when the blizzard
struck us, was on top of the frozen earth.
Something had to be done at once or we
would lose every steer so l called all Of
my men. Fortunately we had plenty of
matches in the commissary and the supply
of dead mesquite bushes was practically
unlimited, it did not take long to de-
termine upon plan of action. We started
a fire under each steer and watched them
carefully We had twenty men and you
never saw fires built rapidly in your
lives. Within two hours they were all
blazing. We could not thaW the cattle out
of the earth, but they were kept alive and
two days later the sun came out as 1t does
in Texas, suddenly and strong, and in an
other day we were moving along the trail
again as If nothing had happened
His Beard Frozen Mt the Roots.
THAT blizzard must have been very gen.
e1al.' said Silas Adams. II was living in
Peoria, ILL.,, at the time Peoria is built
along the western bank of the Illinois river,
which widens into a lake at that point
Back of the business portion of the city, a
little over mile from the river, is a bluff,
upon which some of the leading citizens
nave erected handsome residences. 1 lived
near the street car stables on the bluff. l
mad an ONCE on South Adams street. near
Main. and started for home early in the
evening. 1t began to turn cold just as 1
passed the soldiers monument and meet
ing Bob Burdette, who at that time was
editing the Review there he remarked that
IT was going to be cold enough to freeze
all the pipes and even the knobs off the
doors. which would boom the plumbing and
hardware trades. left the humorist at the
post office, one block farther on, and by the |
time reached the foot of the bluff 1 realized
that he was right 1t seemed to me that |
could never live to get home The exposed |
portions of my face were frozen, and it took |
a long time to thaw myself out with ice |
before Venturing into the house When l |
entered my wife screamed and looking into |
a mirror saw that my beard which was |
then long, was as white as snow 1t was |
not simply frosted the roots of the hair had |
frozen and taken out every vestige of color. !
The next day We went to Picking ten miles |
below Peoria, to attend the wedding of a |
friend of my wife. had never been there, |
ana 1t was evident that my wifes friends |
were astonished al my seeming age. 1 made |
up my mind to have the beard cut off as |
soon as l returned to P1eria.ifA we sat in !!
the Darlor of the house where the wedding |
was to occur, l noticed first lone and then |
another turn and fix their gaze upon me. |
1t seemed that some peculiar fascination |
existed in my beard. Their eyes opened |
wider and wider and they sat spell-bound. |
All conversation ceased. 1 felt so uncom- |
Portable that, making SOME excuse, l start |
ed to leave the house. In doing so l passed |
a mirror in the hall and part of my beard |
showed up as black as, it eyer was. One
by one the hairs would take on their ma
tural color-the roots were thawing out
In an hour the transformation process was
complete. but while the guests were too |
polite to say anything when an explanation
was made, felt that they did not believe |
me- and that there was something uncanny
about man whose beard changed color
like mine
A Mountain showed Under.
well, down east the blizzard took the
form OF snow" said Macarthur. Il re-
,1or fLo{