Evening star., 1897-01-26
DOUBLE COLD WAVE
That is What Washington is Now Suffering
From.
So Says Maj. DunSOody. the Weather
Expert Looking for Warmer
Weather Next Friday.

Washington is still struggling in the icy
grip of winter and already people are be-
ginning to ask how much longer this con-
dition of affairs is going to last Things
have come to such a pass that about all one
can do is to keep OFF shoveling coal into
the furnace. criticising the working of the
steam heaters and trying to make the best
of the situation. Is
Last evening the mercury in the ther-
mometer hung about the 1O-degree point,
and there was every reason to believe that
before sunrise this morning the zero point
would be reached. Such was not the case,
however for the minimum for the last
twenty-four hours was degrees above
But that was cold enough to suit the most
particular, for the general discomfort was
greatly increased by the strong north and
northwest winds that blew without ceasng
through the long watches of the night. At
no time was the wind comparable with the
hurricane of last September but 1t was
rate of thirty miles an hour is enough to
satisfy any one when the temperature that
goes with it is 20 degrees or more below
freezing point.
At time like this it is but cold comfort
at best to remember that we are well Off
in comparis on with the people in the north
west country. We have come to expect
almost Anything in the way of weather
rot suffice to keep one warm in Washing
ton merely to know that there are places
in plenty where the thermometers have
registered from 20 to 30 degrees below zero
gion north of Lake Superior it was 40 de-
grees below zero. At Manitoba-oh, well,
If Manitoba had never been discovered we
probably never would have known what
cold weather really Is. At the weather
bureau it is customary to lay the respon-
sibility for all freak climatic conditions on
Manitoba, so that it would really be in
the interest of humanity if that geographi-
cal entity were wiped off the face of the
map.
Warmer I'm n Few Days.
At the weather bureau today the cheer
ing information was given cut this morn
ing that a better condition of affairs in
Washington may be looked for in the next
few days Maj. Dunwoody, the forecast
officer, to whom a Star reporter applied for
relief this morning, said that we are now
suffering from the effects of double cold
wave. Before we had time to get over the
effects CT the first one the second was
upon us, so that we are now having taste
of real winter weather for the first time
this year.
First and best. Major Dunwoody said that
the wind had about spent Its strength. and
that, while tonight would probably be clear
and cold the cold would not be anything
Ike as penetrating and disagreeable as it
is when carried along in the teeth OF the
gale. The chances are that the mercury
will 60 as low tonight it did last night.
but the average householder whose weather
strips are bit out of order and whose fur
mace is not quite all the stove man claimed
for II will hardly realize that fact. In the
n. eantime the coal dealers reaping
rich harvest and are planning to take
handsome cottages at Newport or Sara toSa
next summer.
The Chances.
The chances are that in Washington the
temperature will rise slowly for the next
few days. Unfortunately 1t has good
ways to CO. and there is little, if any, hope
of things getting back to normal before the
latter part Of the week-Friday at the earli-
est Tonight will probably be clear. To-
morrow gives promise of being partly
cloudy, but there is no sign of snow in
sight. They We're having a taste of snow
in northern Texas this morning, and In
northern Florida the temperature has gone
to freezing. There is reason to believe now,
however, that things will not be as bad in
Florida as the weather bureau people first
thought would be the case. Major Dun
woody said today that the freezing weather
would probably extend farther south than
Jacksonville. This means less damage to
the vegetation and less loss to the orange
growers than was at first anticipated. There
have been very heavy gales along the North
Atlantic coast but fortunately they have
Teen of-shore gales, which mean compara-
lively little danger to shipping.