The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1903-01-27
THE BLESSINGS WE ENJOY.

The people of Wilmington hard
=. ,aaliza what blessings they are en-
loving in the mild and beautiful "eatn-
OF they are experiencing. 1t seems so
natural TO them that they should be
shielded from the h~ardsh.ps n suffer
ing attendant at all times upon ex-
tremeIy coId weather and especially
now when there is such scarcity or lei
that they naturally overlook
the fact that conditions here are excep-
tionaI when compared with those to the
north and west and even In other sec
fioas of our own state. This has been
an unusually mild winter with u.s. We
have a bright sunshine and peasant
days while the residents OF latitIdes
only q few degrees north OF US have
suffered from snowstOrms and bllz-
zards-
We have a great deal to be thankful
for In this. While our brothers north OF
a. have been sitting by ~fireless CRATES
Win ZSTO lcL4pCAdNOAC
blessed with weather which made the
denning of wraps useless II rot OPP
Bressive. Even as near to US as Ra-
leigh. Charlotte Greensboro we
hear of streets covered with ice, sleet,
rain and snow. Where such conditions
exist there is bound to be suffering even
with an ordinary supply Of fuel, as we
have in all sections OF this state; but
when you go further north into the re-
gion of the blizzard and the below-zero
temperature the conditions are appalI-
ing. There the only fuel o~btainable
under ordinary conditions is coal and
that now is not to be had except in
email quantities and at eXorbltlnt
prices. At times even those we'll able
to pay the prevailing prices can not
secure the coal and then there is sIf-
fering among the well-to-do as wei as
the poor.
In some sections this condition of
affairs has driven the people TO desper-
alton. A few days ago in a northwest
ern town the people, headed by the
city authorities and the leading citizens
eenfiscated a tram load of coal. Il
was either that or death from cold to a
great many. The press dispatches yes
terday morning announced that in the
city of Brooklyn. the day before. a
orowd of men, women and children
seized a coal train. drove the ira n
crew OF and supplied themselves with
fuel. The people expressed Willingness
have and would have at any cost This
Il the first instance, as far as we car
recall. in which the people have risen
and in their desperation invoked ths
aid of the first law of nature, self
preservation, to maintain life. These
people must nave fuel. They are not
going TO freeze to death while there is
fuel in sight. The danger is that un-
less there Is speedy relief these in
stances will multiply and with the re-
ourrence of each one there is danger 81
the line of self preservation being over
stepped further and further and any
day the country may be startled with
an account of a coal rio accompanied
with violence, destruction of property
and perhaps blOodshed. II the pas
sions of those people who are suffering
for the want of fuel should be once
wrought up to this pitch the conse-
auences of their desperation would ap-
pail the country. The north is facing
such conditions today. The pent-up
food of desperation and anger may
break forth at any time. In the mood
IN which these people nov are it would
take little TO raise the tlOodgates o.
passion and when once put into motion
the in-rush could not be checked before
there had been great destruction.
In this section OF the country we
have no such conditions. There is No
great suffering. Those in want are
looked after and their necessities pro
vided for by those who have the means
to do so. Weather conditions permit
all kinds of work. There is no shutting
down of factories because of severe
weather or for lack of fuel. All out
door work can he carried on. No man
or woman willing to work need be idle
Truly are we blessed and We shou!d be-
sincerely thankful for these great bless
ingS.