The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-11-28
AS THE RECENT SNOW STORM.
COMMUNICATION HAS BEEN CUT OFF
WEST OF FARGO AND GRAND
FORKS,
SEVERAL TRAINS ARE .LosT,p
That Is, the Officials do Not Know at
What Stations They Are
BIOclxaded.

ana the TWO days preceding, were the
worst experienced in the last fifteen
years. A railroad official, who has
handled blockades for the last eighteen
years, said yesterday that the blockade
of yesterday surpassed anything he had
experienced during his entire service
with the road
Neither the Great Northern or North
ern Pacific will attempt to open their
lines west of Fargo or Grand Forks
until the storm is over. The officials
say that it will be useless to start ro-
tary ploughs out on the line until the
blizzard is entirely over, for the reason
that half hour after the track is once
opened, it will be in just as bad a
condition as before. All the roads have
their gigantic ploughs standing with
steam up at every divisional point,
and there will be rush westward OF
rotary ploughs at every 100 mile point
1t is expected that after the storm once
ceases, each division can be cleared UP
III from four to six hours and that
trains can follow the rotaries very
closely.
AS a matter Of fact neither the
know themselves just the exact condi-
tion of their lines west of Fargo and
Grand Forks. The wires beyond those
points are wholly down and no mes
sages can be received or sent. General
superintendent Barr, Of the Great
Northern, and General Manager Ken
rick, Of the Northern Pacific, both Of
whom went west to look after the land
slides and floods in the mountains.
have come east as. far as possible to
look after the new trouble. Mr.. Barr
is on the east side of the snow block
ade and sends frequent messages to
headquarters in st. Paul. The Great
Northern overland limited, train No.
3, leaving st. Paul at p. m. for
Seattle, was abandoned yesterday and
did not leave st. Paul. The company
said they would very likely be able
to carry their passengers as far as
Grand Forks, but as the storm ap-
peared to be working down this way,
no guaranty could be offered. Con-
sequently no train was started. Later
in the afternoon, as the reports were
no more encourag ging, it was also de-
cided to abandon trains Nos z and g.
from ST Paul to Langdon, N. D., and
Winnepeg respectively. No leaves
the city at 8 p. m. and No. 9 at 1880
The reports along the line showed that
heavy westerly and northwesterly
winds were blowing and that the snow
was drifting. Some of the east-bound
trains are blockaded within the terri
tory shut off from telegTaphic COM
munication and even the st. Paul Of
ficials of the road do not know where
the trains are. All freight traffic is. Of
course, suspended. Not a freight train
is moving i'll the snow-bound district.
III many places the snow is said to be
four feet on level and over the en-
tire stricken territory the drifts are
ponderous. Nothing but the heaviest
steam ploughs can cut through them
The temperature on the Fergus Falls
division was four degrees below zero
yesterday, with a brisk west wind
on the Wilmar division it was two be-
low with heavy westerly winds; Breck-
enridge division, eight above to three
below, with strong northwesterly winds
and showing; Dakota division, zero, to
five below and intense blfzzards; Mon
tana division, five below and the snow
drifting; Eastern Minnesota division,
five above, light westerly winds, and
little trouble. General Superintendent
Barr wired that he could secure no
reports west of Havre, Mont, which
would indicate that the country west
of that city is also storm-bound.
On the Northern Pacific it was 4 be-
low on the Grand Forks division, and
the same at Winnipeg, with a blizzard
extending along the intervening ter
ritory. At Fargo it was 2 above, with
q terrific wind piling the snow in heaps.
West Of that point the Northern Pa
cific country was shut off from outside
communication by wire However, the
hTr.7.f e. ctr
continental train out of st. Paul on
time yesterday afternoon, but the Of
ficials did not expect to get beyond
Fargo. Every passenger was notified
of that fact, however. and started out
with a full understanding of the stu
alton. The passenger officials are
nursing the hope that the line will be
opened by the time the train enters the
Fargo division, and if not, that the
storm will have abated within twelve or
fifteen hours after that time 1t is an
odd situation when railroad has to
chronicle the fact that two or three
trains are lost but both the Great
Northern and Northern Pacific had to
do it yesterday. That does not mean.
of course, that the trains were snow
bound in the middle of the prairie. IT
means merely that owing to the fact
that the wires are down, the officials
are not able to find out at what sta
tions the trains are laying over. Both
the jamestown and the Winnipeg trains
are over due from ten to twenty-four
hours, were reported indefinitely late''
on the union depot bulletin board. AS
a matter Of fact the officials of the
read did not know where the trains
were. A private telegram received at
the Northern Pacific from Chicago
stated that the only telegraphic com
munication to be found to the coast
was over "slow line' via the Central
Pacific
The 500 and the Canadian Pacific are
also badly hampered with snow The
500 Train No. z, due in the city at Sac
yesterday morning was chronicled as
being seven hours late. The Chicago
Milwaukee & ST. Paul also had trouble
with it's South Dakota lines, trains be-
ing from two to six hours late The
Chicago-St Paul lines were not ser
iously hampered with the snow, trains
being from one to two and one-halt
hours late. The lines to the head Of the
lakes encountered some little difficulty
but trains We're generally on time The
officials Of the tranScontinental lines
are hoping the first tidings from over
the broken wires west of Fargo and
Barnesville will bring news of a bet
tered condition, but the fact that nc
tidings were received would indicate
that the storm was worse than sup
posed.
Yesterday was the first time In fif-
teen years, with the exception Of a few
days during the strike of 1894, that q
west-bound overland train was aban-
doned, which significant fact speaks
more plainly than worG.s of the serious
nature Of the storna It is believed that