The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1902-02-22
STORM
RACES
"a HOURS
Heavy Fall Of Snow and SIssi,
Slsamar Rhode Island Puts
In.O New London.

Providence and the state are In the
throes of storm OF snow, sleet and rain
that has ragged for more than "a hours and
promises to continue well into the night.
The meteorological record OF the past
decade gives Washington's birthday as
fair ana cold generally, i'm this vicinity,
though on one or two occasions balmy
and indicative of the approach OF spring
but todays direful conditions break the
record.
The storm commenced with snowhakes
falling lightly shortly after l o'clock yes
terday afternoon. but they soon came
thicker and faster and IL was evident
that the heaviest storm of the season was
at hand.
The snowfall of Sunday night and Mon
day last was about IL inches, exceeding
the record for the past score OF years.
with but one exception, and was the fa-
nous February freshet OF 1886. when
dams and reservoirs gave. structures.
small and large, swept along with the
surging stream and hundreds of thou
sands of dollars damage done.
PRESENT A RECORD BREAKER.
The precipitation up to IL o'clock today
according TO the observations taken at
the Olney street station was Is inches
an average of more than 7-10 of an inch
an hour. Estimating on this average the
precipitation up TO 4 o'clock this afternoon
must have been more than 1S inches
surely exceeding the February, 1885,
freshet-and breaking the record for the
past half century.
Furthermore. for the first 16 days of the
present month. the precipitation reached
only little more than 1l2 inches, with
exceptionally iine, cheering weather for
present week alone. Mondays storm, OF
course. included. had already reached
nearly 80 inches up TO o'clock tins az
ternoon. with little sign of abatement at
that hour The total precipitation for
the month will vie with the total of any
previous February for quarter or CEN
tury
HOW LOCAL TRAFFIC FARED.
The flakes in the present storm were
OF that thick, wet and sticky nature as
TO weigh down heavily on telegraph elec-
trio light and telephone wires and from
various points throughout the city the
police reported wires down and tangled
i'm the streets.
The various companies had their men TO .
work relocating I'D repairing as speedily
as possible and there was little disap-
pointment in that direction experienced
in the city UP 10 the present hour of
writing.
Public Works Commissioner Smith act
ed more promptly and sensibly than he
did on Monday last for that storm suf-
feed TO keep himself and his big force of
assistants. 10 say nothing of regular city
employees on the alert He even went fur
ther and engaged every possible cart. sin
gle or double. procurable and setting TO
work laborers and snow shovelers by the
score.
The steam railroad and street railway
managers also realized the Sc yere and Sc
rious conditions that confronted them by
running extra locomotives and snow
plows on the former roads and all the
snow pows on the trolley lines during
the entire night and at intervals, today.
AS result the trains on the New York,
New Haven & Hartford railroad, both
through and suburban kept pretty close TO
the schedule arrangement, the train from
New York due here at noon was only 20
minutes late.
ON the trolley lines, the service was
quite good because General Manager Pot
ter had an exceedingly large force of men
regular. special and all others that he
could employ-steadily at work and the
trolley lines were kept tolerably clear,
making fairly good time.
"Wednesday was balmy day but the
shippers i'm Boston harbor declined to
stalt out for the Grand Banks, saying
the heavy storm OF the season was to
come and they were right.
MIsHAP TO RHODE ISLAND.
Steamer Rhode Island of the New line.
which sailed from New York for Provi-
dence last night. with 660 passengers on
board was forced by the storm 10 put
into New London at 1880 O'Clock this
morning, after she had been severely buf-
feted by the heavy seas.
When near Point Judith one of the seas
boarded her and stove in the shutter on
the forward gangway.
The storm had Increased in violence at
da ybreak 80 that it was not thought safe
to continue the tournay, and accordingly
the boat remained tied up at one OF the
docks special train Of six cars was
made up at o'clock. and tine pass ngers
were forwa rded to Providence by rail.
The damage done 20 the Rhode Island
was slight, and IL Is probabl that she
will sail for Providence as soon as the
storm subsidies.
TO CURE GRIP IN TWO DAYS.
Laxative Bromo- Quinine removes the
- - AZ ttt,