Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1899-02-24
NORTHERN NECK.
THE STORY or THE GREAT snow
STORM.
TIE IYoERIEsCE 4 TERRIBLE ONE.
Many psmiItc. Caught without
Wood-Hich No Better ON Than the
poox-uoads BIocknded-So MaiIp--
Missing People.

veek Oar surpassed anything Of the kind /
ev., known along the Potomac slope. 4
and can never BE- forgotten By those who l
wta,ssel o. The snow was the deepest 4
of which there is any record. except that /
memorable one forty-two years ago. and /
fully equalied that The gale was alarm 4
iug. and. $40 times. amounted % "A hurri- /
cane. AI Communication Was cut or be- 4
tween the nearest nelghbOrs. and dwell /
'rrs we're cut on from their surrounding 4
0lfDlidings. in some places 81 was not /
I..sibie for farmers 70 feed and water
f..r horses. cattle. ETC.. and when 1
.. gale subslGed walkways had 20 be- /
.' with hoes and shovel. 10 the stables. /
.."-shelters, DouitrY-houses. etc, and 4
'1fn-cribs and fodder-stacks had 20 be /
dug out Of great banks N snow before 4
hs half-frOzcn animals could be fed. /
Men had 70 work hard Go order 10 cut 4
through the walls ~ white 20 find wells 7
~ water for drinking and cooking pur- 4
poses. From the Potomac two or three /
miles ont ln The country the snow ave I
ragod three feet deep on n general level I
while everywhere could be found drifts /
from six 20 ten feet deep. forming insur- /
mOuntable barriers Whore women were 1
living alone-in some cases mother and 1
several small children constituted the /
household-it was impossible for men 10 |
got 10 them 20 render assistance. in I
these cases the bl0ckadod inmates SUI
fered FOR IRE for 10 was impossible for
women and children 10 get wood from the |
yards near BY The blizzard caught
good many families without nrew0Od !
Hnd aa men could not live out BOO the /
gnlo longer enough % procure fuel I
ornamental and frUit-trces and yard /
fences had ~ Boo used f0r the purpose. /
For Ouco some Of the Well-tO-dO people /
were bur little better on than the penny /
lraH for money ana influence could not l
overcome the dlnCultics then. While tho
storm was RACING Mr.. John Fines.
farmer near here. came very near losing
his nfe lie went out ~ feed hts horse
and cow and The gale proved too strong
for him 10 was blown down and $50
blinded by the torrents Of snow and awful
wind that be- could not find his house,
% hundred yards distant. for some time.
Mr. james Limerick and others also mar
fOwly escaped perishing In The storm ~
wind aud snow Cattle and horses SUI
fcred a8 thov never dld here before. ana /
in spite Of al possible efforts 10 save /
them. good many farm animals per- 4
ished Mr.. William a. smOOt near llamp- /
stead lost nNy-Odd hoad Of fine hogs.
some Of them weighing 90 pounds each. /
Mr. Jesse Newton near here. lost "a fine /
cow and eight hogs. and Or n. r. Ar .
mold lost some Jcrrcy calves. ~ has not /
been possible up 80 to-day to hear from /
ono third Of The county but the mcagre
reports go far obtained show that many
lf.HtIftI. f.f hons and IffUDTOII.
and hundreds of fowls died during the
blizzard and number of animals are
now dying from tho cTects of no.
WITHOUT MEAL
Some comparatively well. to-do families
have been without meal. etc., for nearly
o. week N is atl impossible for ma
fOrity fo get Geo a mill fo blocked are
tho roads and some families had 90 do
without groceries f0r four days. f0r the
reason chat tho nearby stores were enc
tlrcly inaccessible. ono Of the most dis
trc sing features of the awful gale was
the fact that there were some extremely
800 persons. and 30 was impossible f1r the
doctors 60 reach them ION period ~
four or five days. Two persons died or
pneumonia because They were HO come
plct,ly surrounded by great iusurmounto-
hlo wallis ~ snow that doctor could not
IN any way got to see them
mo ANNN Ai.'" 1T Nfli''A Ni'A' fN'''A '''.f
point since saturday tho i'm instant
aud this has not only caused great in-
but serious loss 60 the husi-
ness interests of some men hero News
papers to-day would acll easily for %
o. 900 cents copy. and lo iu demand at
that Tho only mail received anywhere
iu the county for ten days reached osso
posi-. Office Saturday night Mn. Garner
tho contractor ON that route. made re-
pcatDd attempts AN last week 90 set 10
Fredericksburg. and finally succeeded.
and returned Co Osso saturday night
with some letters and papers on horse
back. ON Sunday Mr.. William j. Rogers.
90 Osso. divided some Of HIS newspapers
with the Dispatch correspondent here,
which were the first seen here for ten
days There was no track Of any kind
mada in the road from here 90 the court
house Uhc main thoroughfare OF the
county, until midday Friday. and up to
to-day there are many roads I'm which
there is NOT oven "a dog track, the roads
being hnyd Oom bank Go bank. Since last
Thursday mail matter has been accumu-
latiug m the office here 20 go out hy the
nrst mail
ON THE POTOMAC
Tho Potomac river is Sea- a worse condi-
ton than ever before known The ice
from shore Co shore is from Co lO inches
thick The steamers Nakcdtld and
Harry Randall were caught somewhere
down the river and cannot bo heard |
from here DO ls NOT known whore they
were when the storm and Zee blockade
overlook Them.
Persons living Ia the government nsht-
houses Tar out in the Potomac have NOT
as vet been heard from. 10 cannot bo
learned what their condition is. nor is 10
known whether their supply ol fuel and
provisions are adequate for the trying /
yr.... Attempts have been made to
walk ult 90 some of The lighthouses ou
tNr .U but the mountains OF snow ana
SCI. T..I up between them and the shor,
m.he BE- impossible 60 communicate with
t.. .ted folks. ,
Wharf property AN along the Potomac /
is imminent danger and great deal /
D| r must go go ruin when general
iI.N scts in and the icebergs and freshet
aN..e down the river.
lr Arnold OF This noighborhood. went
i' Richmond city ON the 10th instant 10
.Hru on the 18th but has not been
H irom. and 70 is not known whether {
returned as tar as fredericksburg be- S
'e t1e storm reached there Or v o. 4
tuthers was also caught away from d
county, and no udiugs from him for y
0re than ten days. a
That great many cartridges rabbits. 3
.t other game have persisted there is n
.He doubt Many snowbirds and spar b
'Ws are lying dead in the snow-drlfts n
ana dwellings and barns. Mir VIII G