Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-02-18
ice, HOWEVER, NOT UNUSUALLY THICK
Serious Difficulties Encountered by
Two Funeral Professions.
TO OPEN ROADS


HloullldilS SO well covered, pul Siio" 10
several feet deep in the narrow streets OF
the town. This condition of affairs makes
it hard for the horses attached to vehicles,
and consequently many of the citizens from
distant points are coming to town on horse
back. 1t is a novel sight to see the milk
dealers on horseback calling their Gus
toners from their houses and serving them
without dismounting. Butchers and others
whose business require them to be out are
using big sleghs. Such vehicles are being
largely used by coal dealers in the delivery
of fuel.
Although the oldest inhabitants admit
not having seen so much snow in this sec
ton before, the ice is not unusually thick,
not so thick as is usual during cold win
ter. This, it is said, is the result of the
warm weather that preceded the cold wave
The water was too warm, they say, for the
ice to get much thicker Most of the ice
houses about here have been filled, al
though the heavy fall of snow interfered
greatly with the ice cutters. The thlckest
ice found was Lake Quigley, on the Shen
andoah side of the mountain, near the
pulp mill Here it was nearly nine inches
thick. Contractor Murphy. who perhaps
handles more natural ice than any man in
this section, says he had cut ice a foot or
fifteen inches thick many times.
Enterprise of Road Commissioners
Ilodu commissioners through the county
have shown considerable enterprise this
week. They had several big forces of men
at work and have now succeeded in MAX
ing it possible for vehicles to move between
here and Charlestown and other points.
During the severe weather the farmers
were unable to come to town, and the stock
of butter and eggs is about exhausted. The
butcher, however, has never failed his Gus
for hoe, ln,
his meats. In fact there has been no in
crease in prices of food products.
A coal famine was threatened, but even
the merchants who had in small supplies
aid not exact eNortitant prices. They di-
vided the fuel as best they could so that
everybody was able to keep warm at the
same old rates.
1t is thought that the storm played havoc
with the birds in this section. Many par
tridSes have been found frozen in the snow
drifts and other birds have also suffered
Today there was flock of wild ducks on
the river near here, but they were not mo-
Tested by the CUR ners.
Funeral in the Snow.
This morning there was funeral in the
Catholic Church on the mountain not far
from Jefferson rock. A former resident of
Sandy Hook was buried. Between here and
Sandy Hook the road is almost impossible
on account of the drifts, but the funeral
party, in sleighs, managed to get through.
The toling of the church bell announced
tie arrival in town of the funeral and con-
siderable sympathy was manifested for the
bereaved ones. Six pallbearers were seated
in IL big sleigh following the corpse. and
the mourners We're all male relatives and
friends of the deceased. AS the procession
moved slowly up the snow-cOvered noun
tain the vehicles standing in the beaten
roadway moved aside until the last sleigh
had passed. Up the winding road the little
II oceSsion moved slowly through snow IN
III the handsome new church edifice was
reached The trip had been a tiresome one
ard dangerous in some respects but the
body was consigned to the grave and those
who had followed the body Of the loved one
to its last resting place returned to their
homes on the Maryland side of the river
Another Funeral Delayed.
Tuesday afternoon funeral party on it's
way down the valley reached here from the
west. OF course, it was impossible to get
through. and there was nothing to do but
wait. During the two days stay of the
party watch was kept over the corpse on
the railroad platform. Those who had
charge of the body finally became tired of
this condition of affairs, and went from
here to Shenandoah junction, hoping to OBJ
tain some relief. Even there they found
1t an imposSibility to get through, and an
other painful delay was caused
young colored man and his sister were
among those who were disappointed YES
terday, and like many others they were
loud in their denunciation of the railroad
company for selling them through tickets
when it was known that the road was
blocked The young mans sister had died
at place near HarrisOnburg. and his
mother was also in a dying condition All
day long he paced the railroad platform,
and would have started on foot had there
been the slightest chance of his being able
to make the Journey.
Few Cases of Suffering.
There has been very little suffering among
poor people because of the storm. Only two
cases in which there was actual suffering
were found by the relief workers. One of
these the Maryland side of the
river In this case family of two women
and six little children We're found in a
shapty near the river side. The window
paneS had long since disappeared from most
of the windows and the children were found
huddied together in the chimney corner
while the women We're doing their best to
keep up the little fire that was in the house
Another case on the Shenandoah river
about two miles from here. was found
During the past five nights the hotels
here have done good business on account
of the snow-bound trains on the Valley
branch of the Baltimore and Ohio road
which goes to Winchester and other points
Yesterday 1t was thought the road had been
cleared as far as Charlestown. and car
drawn by three engines started from here
with the delayed maid At Bulls Falls a
snow slide was encountered, and this even
ing the engines returned with their car,
having failed to get through.
Laborers Clearing the Tracks.
Large gangs of emhave been employed
10 shovel snow along the line of the Balti-
more and Ohio tracks. both east and west
of here. Laborerss were in great demand
when 1t was found Impossible to move
trains on the road, and this work was of
great assistance to many poor people, es-
pecially those living along the line of the
Chesapeake and Ohio canal.
Railroaders Bedome Hilarious
Tuesday night a gang of railroad men
stopped here They were accommodated
at one of the 1otels and they took possess
sion of the town. ALTHOUGH they had been
working so hard, many of them became in
toxicated and it was 2 o'clock In the morn
ing before they were all in bed These
gangs of men are still at work along the
road.
Through this section the snowfall Thurs
day covered the tracks that had been clean
ed so well, and, fearing another storm, this
snow was cleaned away. The big engines
that made an effort to get through the
snow drifts on the Valley branch today
were filed with snow when they returned
this afternoon. One of the engineers had