The Jersey City news., 1902-02-17

A train that left Emmet street. Newark
at S:02 o'clock did not reach Jersey City
until 9:2G clock. The run usually takes
twenty minutes. The train was blocked
in the Bergen cut and laborers had to
work ahead of it and clear the drifts be-
fore it could proceed beyond the Marion
station.
A train which left Market street at S;5o
did not get into the station here until
1920. The road was open and everything
ran smoothly until the train reached Ma
rion. eight minutes after leaving Market
street. The trouble was in the yards in
this city and in drilling the trains after
tn eyarrsved. All trains after that were
about an hour late.
The ferryboats were also late. The
thiekly flying snow made the river look IS
though it was covered with a thick fog,
and the boats were run as in foggy
weather.
The Erie Railways Newark branch
came to grief early. Soon after s 6o'clock
an eastbound train jumped the track just
above Newark and as the road IS single
track one it was put completely out Of
business
Chief John Conway of the Jersey City
Fire Department made preparat' 'ons this
morning for the heavy snow fall, and in
case of an alarm of fire he has notified
each company and detailed an extra
horse to each engine SO that there will
not be much delay in reaching the scene
of fire.
All steamers with two horses will have
an extra ono attached and the same will
be done in the cases of hose carriages and
truck companies.
Traffic was as usual impeded along
Grove street and Pavonia avenue. The
snow sweepers piled up the space be-
tween cleared tracks and the sidewalks
and horses ard trucks and men struggled
franticaliy to push their way through it.
Trucks, however, were not so numerous
as on clear days. Many truck owners
knowing the hardships which threatened
man and beast abandoned business for
the day, or at least until the banks could
be cleared away Still there was con-
fusion enough to cause lots of swearing.
The Summit avenue line OF troleys
could not run on schedule time owing to.
the shifting winds piling up snow on the
tracks across the meadows and around
the cliffs as fast as they could be cleared.
between E6l6il7 anu 411lil5 " N<VtkA a lA1i2&7
ber of cars were stalled around the SER
pentine-like curve and on the meadows.
On both lines people were obliged TO wait
long or foot 1t in the teeth of the blizzard-
Unless one waited for cars he would find
himself traversing ha,f the distance be-
tween Newark avenue and the Hoboken
line, or visa versa, before being overtaken
by car and then he would find it
jammed.
Men obliged to be out for any length of
time looked like animated snow men and
the streets presented queer sights
The wind played fantastic freaks with
the snow AT times it seemed to be blow
ing from almost every dEection at once
1t whiried, twisted, cavorted and rico
chetted about every object it could reach,
carrying with it clouds of fine damp snow
that seemed to cling to everything it
could reach, as though in an effort to es--
cape the winds fury The roofs of some
houses were swept clean and the snow
tnerefrom piled up on the snow that COW
cred the roof of other houses. Some tele-
phone wires and poles looked as thick as
three ard four-inch hausers.
Slender branches of trees protected
from the wind were weighted down with
narrow slips piled four ana five inches
above them, looking like scythe blades,
While walls of houses covered with trei-
Used vines presented beautiful huge
frames Of white tracery.
One of the freaks played by the wind
was much appreciated by the residents Of
Grand street. between Washington ard
Greene, and early pedestrians who tra-
versed that section of the thoroughfare.
The sidewalks along the entire south side
of the block was swept as clean as though
a street sweeper had gone over it, It was
blown to the other side Of the street and
piled up into a gradually sloping bank
foot and a half deep to near The centre
of the sidewalk Here the bank took a
sheer vertical drop. A foot and haf
away, between it and the line Of stoops
there was a similar bank, with the same
vertical side and in between them re-
manned less than an inch Of snow, an5
in some places the pavement was abso-
lutely swept clean. A walk seemingly ils
the middle of a foot and half deep bank
had been out in a straight line the whole
length of the block.
The effect of the storm on telegraph and
telephone wires was not what might have
been reasonably expected. Telegrahpic
communication was difficult in the very
carly morning, but this was not because
Of any series injury to the wires. though
in some places there were tangles. W.
erytlling was soon Strengthened out, how
ever, and by { o'clock there was nothing
for the operators to contend with.
The telephone company reports that,
aside from some minor difficulties. they
had no trouble Most Of the minor diff
Guilty were bad tenaDcrs of those VINO
were put out of humor by the elements
and the naturefer shrdlu emfwyp vbg
and the natural slowness of connections.
The different large coal companies Of
the city seemed to have been prepared
for the heavy storm that struck this city
this morning. and to all inquiries as to
whether they were delayed by the heavy
fall of snow in serving their customers,
the answer was always in the negative.
On all the large coal wagons two extra
horses have been attached by the Jersey
city, Hudson and Hoboken Coal Compa-
nies. and they claim that everything Is
running smoothly for them
The smaller dealers throughout the city.
who serve coal in bags Of one hundred
pounds are encountering little difficiil-
ty on account Of having to plow through
the heavy snow. but it looks as II they
will pull through all right.
Superintendent Charles J. Carroll Of the