The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-02-15
THE COLD WAVE.

The cold wave has about passed and
the people of the South-at least the por-
ton of the South in which freezing
weather is unusual-are nov interested IN
figuring up the losses caused by the
freeze a temperature asN low as that Of
Sunday night and Monday was never be-
fore known in Florida. far as the
weather record shows. and Is so rare i'm
this locality as 10 Justify the oldest in,
habitant" in saying there never was such
weather here before As for the snow, it
can be safely said that no one now liv-
ing ever saw so much in this city at any
previous time or remembers that snow re.
manned on the ground so long. There
has been little snow in parts of Florida
before but who remembers a previous
snow storm there In which so great
amount OF snow fell, covering so large a
part of the state and accompanied by such
intensely cold weather? In this part of
the South the storm of Feb. Il and 10
must take its place along with the earth
quake which came so near destroying
Charleston, because the people are not
HioAG uEtu ~ SuEu SiOW StOIlnS IMAM NLCy
are to earthquakes.
The loss caused by the storm must be
considered from two points of view-its
disheartening effect on the people who
have suffered from it and the injury act
ually done. From neither point of view
can the situation be fully discussed yet.
because it is impossible to tell the ex-
tent of the losses. It is certain, of course
that all of the vegetable crops which were
expected to mature early in the spring
are destroyed. The oat crop in this state
is badly damaged and many cattle In
this state and Florida were either frozen
or starved to death. The peach trees in
the middle and lower part of this state
art hurt. how badly no one can yet tell
with any degree of certainty 1t seems
TO be admitted, however, that the crop of
this year will be a very small one-not a
fourth as large as that of last year. 1t
is safe to assume that the fig trees are
killed and that the plum and Japan per-
simmon trees are SO greatly injured that
they will bear no fruit this year.
1t is difficult as yet to form an opinion
that is worth much as 90 the effect of
the freeze on the orange groves of Flor
ida. The thought is thrown out that
the very cold weather which prevailed
early last week prepared the trees for the
still greater cold of last Sunday night
and Monday, and that therefore most of
the groves passed through the ordeal with
the loss of only last years growth and
their fruit 1t is sincerely to be hoped
that this will prove to be the case. 1t
would not be surprising, however. if the
trees in the northern and middle part
of the state were severely hurt, IL not
cut down to the ground as they were
in the great freeze four years ago. Much
will depend however, upon the weather
which prevailed Immediately after the
freeze and which will prevail for several
days TO come. The groves in the south
ern and lower middle part of the state,
Il Is understood, escaped without any
damage practically. In those localities the
cold was not severe enough to hurt the
trees.
All who have suffered losses In cattle
crops OF fruit trees will, of course feel
disheartened to a greater or less extent
There are very few men who can see the
fruits of years of labor swept away with
! out losing a little of the confidence in
their ability to get ahead in the world,
and loss of confidence means a slacken-
ing of the efforts for a better material
condition. Such storms as the one this
week. with their attendant losses, also
have a tendency to create a prejudice
against the section in which they occur.
1t should not be forgotten, however that
there is no section of the country which
does not have its drawbacks All things
considered this section has about as few
drawbacks as any other. The storm thar
has just passed visited pretty nearly
every part of the country, and wherever
it visited it did damage 1t is to be hoped
that when the losses il caused in this
section are counted up they will be found
to be much less than they are now thought
TO be.