Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-02-18
TWO GREAT RLIZE iRDS.
The Terrible storms of 1888 and 1899
interestingly Compared.

interestingly Compared.
From the New York Journal.
The blizzard of 1888 is no longer an event
fror, which to date "reminiscences
1t has been surpassed by the blizzard of
1890
Not as much snow fell in the last twenty
four hours as on that memorable 18th of
March, but the winds were higher and the
thermometer indicated a greater degree of
cold. Altogether yesterday was wilder,
BLOWER, colder, more wretched day than
that day eleven years ago, when New York
was PROSTATE in the grip of the blizzard
That the paralysis consequent on great
storms in big cities is not so complete as it
was in 1855 is due to the progress of the
age. If New York were still horse-car
city there would be just as much trouble
now as there was then. The Gripping of
the snow kings power was not by design.
it came about gradually, Incidental to i'm
proVements made without thought of biz
yards.
The establishment of cable lines and
trolley lines made ii possible to run cars
al grea Ter speed and more frequent inter-
NalS; the improVeme Mt in motors brought
locomotive snow pioWs and SwecperS that
keep the cable tracks clear, and thus make
way not only for. the cable cars but for
the few surviving horse cars and other We
hicl6s a. well. 49,.
On the morning of lthe 18th of March,
1SSS', Broadway was IAN unfuTrowed lane
of snow. The cars were stopped: even
snow plows drawn by eight and ten horses
could not force their way through. Cabs
and other vehicles Were unable to cross
the great drifts, and downtown was effec-
tually cut off from the residence district
The elevated trains We're blocked after
lighting q desperate battle for hours.
Three locomotives were put on "A single
train. but even then The train could only
crawl in imminent and continual danger of
being der2iled by the packed ice One
train that did CAT through was over four
hours in travelling from 10th street to
the city hall. Trains We're stalled between
stations, and the fire department took the
passengers TO the street by means of lad
ders.
This condition may be paralleled today
II was due 20 the tremendous amount of
snow that fell in a single day On March
II, 1888, 1612 inches of snow fe,I in New
York city, > inches more than have fallen
during the present blizzard since its be-
and March IA Of 1883 the, total snowfall
was only little over > inches. That biz
card was over in three days. This one has
already been under way for four days, and
the end is not yet in sight.
Already the trains of the Long Island and
Kings County roads have been stopped or
the service crippled, and it viii not take
much more snow to bring the Manhattan
system TO a Standstin
The streets do not look as desperate now
as they did then, because of the lanes of
the cable tracks and the absence of
the tangles Of Telegraph wires that Iroke
down under the load of snow.
The advance Of the city has nut the
wires under ground.
That fewer people have died in the snow
Is another indirect result of this same
progress.
On the morning of March IL, 1855. George
-. Baremore, hop merchant. living at
the corner of 19th street and 18th avenue
was found dead in the drift In the alb
Cd tpa,jT1 I,,rC l,.,
tried to walk home from his place of busi-
ness on Water street. He staggered
against the storm until he reached 49th
street, when he fell and could not rise.
There were many people who escaped
death by being rescued by the police.
The most conspicuous victim OF the biz
zard of 1883 was Roscoe tonkiing, VINO
was overcome in crossing Madison Square
He was on his way to his club from his
Office. He was found by a policeman be-
fore he had frozen to death. but the eX-
posture brought on the disease that Killed
him.
Harry Reilly. the newspaper reporter who
died in the snow while endeavorins to
walk to Coney Island, then. as now. cut
off from communication with New York,
was another dreadful case.
Though the victims of the present storm
have not been of as much prominence,
they are not lacking in the parallel. AL
ready several have been found dead in the
snow and the tale is not yet told.
repeated with eerie accuracy. one by one
the telegraph wires are being reported as
broken. 1T Is not probable that the com
Blcte cessation of teeEraDhiC COmmuniCa-
ton that prevailed for brief period on
March Il. iSSS, win come again, as the
class OF wires now in general use by all
companies are strong enough to withstand
great zeal more than the wires in use
eleven years ago hut il is not a certainty
that they will bear up if the storm con-
tinues.
The New York. New Haven and Hart
ford trains, the New York Central and the
Harlem railroad were an Choked by snow
drifts. and the Long Island and New Jer-
sey suburban traHls wire completely stalled
These are the very railroads that are
suffering now though the upstate roads
nave been able TO Continue some sort of
service by reason of The elaborate snow
fighting apparatus Which they did not
have when the dther' blizzard came down
upon them In addition to these the Balti-
more and Ohio tlre Erie the Lehigh Val
Icy and the West Shore are said 20 be in
worse shape than they'were in 1888.
The trouble WithIthdifcrry boats was not
worse in 1888 than il was yesterday Then
The boats that cross the East river landed
passengers when and where they could
The floating iceI ehostd the river and for
a time stopped all traffic, while Il bridge
formed from shdae to- shore, over which
people walked. So far this time the East
river has kept Inadvertently clear but the
Staten island boats and those to Jersey
are having fully as bad a time as they had
IN the record year
Even in the incidental happenings the
parallel holds
In the midst.o of the freezing and the blow
ing OF that other blizzard huge fire broke
our, and hremep were injured trying
10 eHtinguish 1t. 1t was worse then than
now Tor the wires that now run safely I'M
foreground We're down. Fire after fire
started by reason of people overheating
thelr homes, until the department was ut
terly exhausted.
1t was exactly the same condition that
loiIowed the big fire of day before yester-
day, when Nilsson Hall burned and eight
hremen were hurt in the collapse of the
roof.
steamers We're caught by the ice foe,
ana, dragging their anchors We're carried
by the ice foe through the Narrows and
BACK again, just as the Santiago. the Alii-
anca and Scottish Prince were on Sunday.