Arizona silver belt., 1895-04-13
BAD BLIZZARDS.
Some of tho Horrors Of tho west-
 ern Prairie Snowsborrns,
rho sotucr'e Cabin Poor Refugo from tseIcy SJasts--A Appalling Losses Among tho Herds and FlociSs Of
 tho Plnips,


 The blizzard, as the plain mans yer nacular dcsignates tho prairie snow- storm, is utterly ncomprchcnslble to ono who has not experienced 1t. Gen. crated in thc great storm breeding re- gions of barren British America, and swept on arctic blasts along the vost lovel reaches that stretch eastward from the Rocky mountains, with no forest to break its force, 1t becomes demon of the air, second only Go the tornado or cyclone in dcstructivencss. The moisture is ground as between
 nillstoncs, hurled with bullCt-lilc en- Clgy ovor hundreds of miles of lovel plain, and finally transformed into ycaaty slcct by thc softcnipg effects of lower latitudes, falls in bleak 3howers on the ranges of Texas and No-Man's- Land,
 Lack of cheap building material and the brevity of tho winter seasJn on the prairies contribute to make the settlers cabin a poor refuge Whom tho blizzard cones every resource of fuel is hus banded. and it IS faced with Q grim de- Termination to soo it through, says the Detroit Free Press.
 But not all are prepared even so well as the settler. Occasionally belated emigrant, cn route either to chosen claim on the frontier or toward the pleasantly remembered cnst, where he hopes to Gnd old friends and helpers, is caught by the blast. He may have 8 tiny stove inside the canvaa-topped prairie schooner, but its heat can do littlc agajGst the power of the storm. Sheltered by the low bluff of some ra- vine or water course he may weather the dragging hours of stuff ring, but the chances arc that team and driver will be found a ghastIy monument to the storm l1iags strength.
 The farmer who has hurried ten or fifteen miles to the nearest village to secure supplies for the impending wis Stati0n iJ often ovcrtakln bcfcIV r2lch- n,g his &ailing family and p1ishes on tno rad, for no matter how well he lnorys the path, when Che blizzard rages his way ia as that of the mariner ;githCut coGpGss
 At the prairie achoolhousos, where the satllcr3 children arc gathered from territory covering many miles in cvcry dirc1tior, thn blizzard brinEs terror to the pupils gs well Gs to their parents. le5cuc is impossible Gntil the lull comes, and awful possibilities iurlS ia the boom of the storm A Dakota s.hoolmi5tvcsl last winter failed to dis mis- her acaolaI1 in time for them to reach home, and found herself and lacrl prisoners from 9 blizzards ap- proach. A night end a day at least were before h2r, during which her lit- tlc charyca must bc protected Doubcr- atelv shc opa1rt;oaoj tho food remain inc m the dnncr palis, divided the larger boys into squads nnd put the younger pupIls Co slcep on tho b-u1hcs. Then through the bitter night she sang, dcalliEod, told atorio5, invented games, and kept the frightened caildF-n lrl-ll Iuad ohccrcd .s best she coUlL Tho following day Fos5cl much the same, but stil no e9atcmcnt of the BtoTm nor any rcscue. The second night wGs Gr-1ry indeed. Tho cailLl u cried tlcm1clvlJ 0 sleep, hungry and cold. Wi.h her own hands thc teacher broke up dsskl and black board to ieed the vcrleious stove. With tho morning came @ Ehoat ot the door cs tlio soEtlcra siioyelcd gwoy the snow, and lhen the plueky girl to whom thc children owed thcig lives showed her wonaulinCsB md tainted.
 The lo1s olong gtocis on the plains by each blizzard is cppaHiuG. There is less exposure of herds and aoclss now than in earlier tiEls yet every season causes tAc dcgtructiga of thousands of head of cattle and sheep on the ranges and in tho urlshol-crcd corrala, Sew cral years ago, during ha haightof the To-:r5 cattle trade, blizzard in west crn Ean5a3 early in December de- ctroyod more than half of 509,051 cattle that wcro being hcrded on the open prairie. At ono railway station aitcr the storm, 35,000 hides were shipFcd; ct another, 20,O00. One rauehman found but 225 head alive out Of 7,50O that had been CrGzing before the catas- trophc. Several hundred ponies and score of hcrdcrs also pcrished.
 The blizzard b a permanent feature ofthc prairie winter. Nothing but a decided climatic revolution con secure to the great tran9-Mis .ssippi region immunity from is dcath-boaring pres cnce Better preparations ere yearly being made 10 withltand its fuIy and to protect more generously tho dumb nnima,s who suffer equally with their raa5tcr3. The signal service is render ing aid in warning comnuniticGrcached by telegraph of the storms approach, while the settlcrs, taught by bitter cx- pcricnce, take with each scason better precautions, and provide more intclli- Ccntly for their time of need, which is sure to come.
 But with au mans care and defense, tho blizzard remains unconqucrcd, It is cruel, relentless and unmcrcilul as some Morse god from whose kingdom it comes. It is one of the vests pos sessions which is wholly and nrcdccrn- ably dote5toblc lu its forefront is ap- prohcnsion; at its height, terror; in it's wake, dcsolation and suf5ering-some- times death. NATIONALITY lN EGG EATING.