The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-02-22
That is. the Upright, Dignified
Kind Was.
COMM MUNlCATlON is CUT OFF
Telephone and Telegraph Wires Down-Posta
"Lost" Er.ry City ia the Country, and
Western Union Takes Long Trips
Around-Many Trees Broken or
Fiat Upon the Eartb-CapItol
Square Crystal Garden.

Several times in a lifetime Richmond
secs such day as yesterday.
II some magician or fairy of the old
days. when they went about the world
:sc,ting things TO right or wrong had laid
over every tree and flower delicate sill
Yer Eauze, the appearance of nature might
lave been as yesterday. The very air
was gray-whitc. Richmond, all Rich
mond, whether streets, sidewalks. fences,
houses. trees. or whatnot, was coaked in
ice yesterday. That was the way the day
dawn found her. And when life began TO
appear on the streets life began TO slip
and slide and catch at passing fences or.
clutch the elusive air for support. 1t was
q SIect. No one doubts it. No one who
went ont yesterday needs to be told that
ii was. but because il WAS many did not
20 out, and these have to be told about
II. once off the earth, everything was
beautiful, though not a JOY forever,
scarcely a passing joy. Several got off
their feet and saw stars. Others looked
away from their feet and from the siush
and the crunch, crunch under them and
saw one of the most beautiful Spectacles
of their lifetime 1t was nature looking
distant and evaSive through hcr gray veil
BUT THINGS WENT WRONG.
fEut .asiae II m this, things went wrong.
licre are some of the details;
Walking Was fcarfully bad. IT was
mainly sliding until late in the evening.
then il was sllSh. Slush at every step
glany took the middlc of the street.
The street cars had much trouble. ibis
is notably truc of tho carly morning. The
tlcks were slippery. aud ice chung 10 the
trolley wires. cutting OFF tlle current,
The telephones We're lin trouble many,
inany times Lines were crossed or down
md central was cross some. but mainly
fe VAS as sweetly disposed as ever,
though she had enough TO sivc hts 10
saint
'rbe Telegraph wires Of both Postal and
Western Union were dropping out OF
l.nks of usefulness all day BY night
the Postal office here had lost every city
I'm the United States. Tho Western Union
l.l Jared better, losing many OF the cities
during the day. but finding them later on
imtil late last night was III touch with all
thc large Eastern places, in roundabout
NAYS, however For instance, a message
10 New York went by the way OF Au-
,-tlsta, Ga
The railroads did not suffer a great
deal. Most OF the trains arriving iii Rich
Imond came in nearly on schedule time
James River does not Vet seem To be
disposed To do anything unpleasant Tins
famous. not 10 say notorious, stream was
within its banks last night. and all tile
trains Of the James River Division of The
Chesapeake and Ohio Railway We're mov-
ing as usual.
A VERITABLl I'ATRYLAND.
Capitof Square was a. fairyland, a gilt
tcriug forest OF ice and entirely outside
OF its disagreoable features for purposes
OF walking hundreds Of persons stopped
TO admire it. Every tree was cloaked III
ice from trunk to topnost branch and
The scu17ying squirrels had troubles OF
their own trying to connect with food
iR amy shape Considerable damage, too,
Was done To the trees in the breaking
on of limbs under the weight of The ac-
cumulatcd ice, and thcro is as yet consid-
cradle danger To paSscrs by.
This damage by breakage was general
an over The park. Near the Tcnth-Strcct
Ga,e on The south side Of the square a
limb. some thirty feet long. fell i'll the
afternoon with a crash This made per-
., sons realize for tho first time the danger
of posSing through the park and from
that time forward there was less pass
ing. There was little incentive TO take
the short cut anyway because of the
tobobban slide extending from the Wash
ington monument 10 Bank Street and on
ihe eastern end from the Capitol build
ing 10 the Eleventh and Twclfih-Street
gates, and when the limbs began 10 fall
pedestrnauon through the park almost
ceased.
Nfeanwhilc the squirrels arc having
their own troubles Nuts which have
l-ecn carefully buried for future refer
encc are incCsed IN au armor plate and
the little follows with the hushy tails
made bold 10 hold up passcrs by all
Yesterday. Their natural industry had
lceu taxed TO the utmost in an attempt 10
got their thrcc square meals and at times
- ..Is, IL ..I..
fcrs leg Of humanity and in their own
way ask for goodies Humanity Was
Kind to every possible extent
Sunshine would convert the forest into
brilliant, diamonL-!ille glitter. and in
cidentally a stiff wand would so infinite
damage Tho kodak ficnd has already
heen at work on the park. Yesterday
there were several excellent views OF The
fairsland made by the photogra pliers.
MANY TRES BROKEN.
The destruction pictured in the Capitol
square was noticeable in every part
II the city Not few trees wero bent
down to the ground while scarcely any
that had not suffered The loss OF a limb
or two. A number OF The streets looked
like they had been struck by n severe
wind storm Branches We're scattered
IN unrraceful piles along the sidewalks
on both sides of tho yard fences. This
description is particularly true OF Frank
,in and Grace Streets. The young and
small trees suffered most
Two handsome naples at The corner OF
Third and Grace Went down during the
day They were leaning and the weight
of the ice just tsore them down. ri1zinS
I'D the roots and the sidewalk They stood
In twenty feet OF each other They lay
where they had fallen for, a while and
then tho street-cleaneYs came along and
4ook them away and smoothed the scar
.,,c,, ,i,n street over and he place where