Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1901-03-11
'BAVOG AMONG WIRES
Ice and Slest Break Hundreds Of
Telephone and Telegraph
Wires.
City in Darkness Sunday Night
-Householders Resort to
Candles.
Communication With the Outside
World Interfered with..Ex-
tent Of Damage.

WOIlV Aut0TleTeO WltQssEAs
tent Of Damage.
The rain, sleet and snow storm that
set in late Saturday afternoon and con.
tinued all Saturday night and Sunday
develored into the worst storm, as re-
CARDS sleet and damage to wires, that
has ever been experienced in rentral
Iowa. The sleet was not of the ordinary
kind. hut was caused by mixture of
rain, which froze as it fell, and sieet
Wires We're covered so a thickness of a
quarter to a half inch, with the result
that hundreds Of them We're brok IN.
AS result OF the storm Marshall-
town was in almost total darkness Sun
day night, it being impossible for the
Marshalltown Light, Power and Rail-
way Company to operate its machinery
and dynanos for fear of causing fires
on account OF the crossing of electric
light and telephone wires. Unt.l $3.50
Saturday night the city's arc lights
were run, but the ice coated wires of
the telephone companies began 70 fall,
crossing the city,s arc light wires and
forming short circuits so that it made
it extremely dangerous TO keep the big
dynamos in operation.
Mars halltown was certainly desolate
looking city Sunday night Here and
there in the business portion was 8.
pickering light where either natural or
patent gas was used In the hotels
kerosere lamps We're resurrected and
the cheerful tone of the town clock bell.
as the rain and sleet had frozen about
the clcck hands and stopped the ma
chinery. The churches also suffered.
some not being able to hold evening
services on account of not having any
light.
Inthe residence portion of the city the
scene was equally as desolate and gave
the passerby the idea that nearly all
had retired early. Many of the resi-
sdences We're without lamps, depending
entirely on the incandescent lights and
unless candles were forthcoming or a
kind nejghbor would volunteer lamps,
all that could be done was tn sit the ev-
Eening outin darkness or retire with the
checkers.
TELEPHONE WIRES MOST DAM
AGED.
The telephone companies of the city
suffered most by the storm and it was
hardly possible either Sunday or today
for either company To grant more than
half its patrons connections. Wires
We're down in every part of the city.
broken in many instances in several
places and hanging down into the
streets and alleys Practically all toll
connections Mere broken, the Marshall
Telephone Company only being able to
make its Dies Moines connection. The
lines east seemed To be affected the
worst, and II Was utterly Impossible for
either the Iowa or Marshall company to
effect connections in that direction.
Superintendent Bowe, of the Marshall
company, said that 1t would be hard to;
state just in which portion of the city
the lines were most affected, as they
We're badly crippled in every part. In
the southeast part of town eighty-fives
wires Were down, broken and CROSSED.
The alley between Main and State
streets. in which numberless wires OF
all descriptions are strung, seemed to;
nave more broken wires than any other
one circuit.
The damage to each company will be
large. altho neither Superintendent
Ingraham, of the Iowa company, nor
Superintendent Bpwe, OF the Marshall
company, deigned to estimate the
monetary damage today 1t is safe to
say, however, that it will take several
hundred dollars for each company to
make the necessary repairs and putfthe
service into good working order again.
Every available lineman in the city was
routed out early Sunday morning and
kept at work all day. All OF the wires
did not fall in the early morning hours,
either, but kept falling al intervals all
day ard I'm till late Sunday evening
Some that stood the extreme weight OF
the Ice all night fell this morning. COM
gpelling the Marsha1ltown Light, Power
and Railway Company to again shut of
Its commercial circuits.
TELEGRAPH COMPANIES GRIP
Piled.
Never in the history of the city We're
the telegraph companies SO badly Grip
pied, and II will be several days before
their lines are In complete working or
der. On Sundaythe Western Union had
but one wire to Chicago and that was
by way of Burlington. This left Mar
Shutdown. Oskaloosa, Ottumwa and
Burlington TO divide this wire between
them, and of course there was consld-
cradle delay. Today another wire to
Chicago was opened by way OF ST. Paul,
and other business out of Marshal!town
was handled In this way
The Western Union wire to the COM
mission offices OF Martin & Slack was
broken and fell across the trolley wire
OF the street car company and threat
ened to make trouble, but 1t was finally
removed before any one was injured,
The Postal Telegraph and Gable Com
pany had but one wire east and west
and Its business was greatly interfered
with, as Des Moines thru which its
main lines travel, could not be reached.
The railroad companies suffered
equally with the telegraph companies.
and the Northwestern had no wire east
Ut all In the early morning. Finally re-
pairs were made In break between
sere and Tama. and the operators here
Eas able to get that city. Trains from
the east were lost, as far as Marshall
town was concerned. until they reached
fama. After o'clock Sunday morning
Y was impossible to reach Boone.
rrainmen from the east reported that
between Tama and Chelsea there were
Dver eighty telegraph poles blown down
by the high wind of Saturday night Tho