The Norfolk weekly news-journal., 1906-01-19
Anniversary OF STORM
EIGHTEEN YEARS AGO TO-DAY BIG
BLIZZARD CAME.
AN ANTELOPE COUNTY STORY
On January 70, 1888, the Most Mem.
orable Blizzard Vet Recorded In
This Country Came up at Noon.
Mornino Was Calm and Warm.
LINrnm ItrIhnN,s pnIlyl

lIrrom Fridays Dnilv.l
IL was just eighteen years ago to
day when the memorable blizzard of
SS swept over the plains of this couu.
try with death In It's path Many still
remember viv.dly the terrible scenes
of that storm aud many too, still SUI.
vivc friends or relatives who met death
in its fury And each now anniversary
of the date brings to light some now
story Of suffering or of escape on that
occasion.
The morning ON that occasion was
calm and pretty warm-vcry much
the same sort of morning ms was
this, but toward noon the wind and
snow began driving down from the
northwest and the mercury dropped.
Antelope County story.
This morning the principal topic of
conversation in the hotel lobby was
the blizzard. The jolly insurance man
lighted fresh cigar and between puts
related the following experience:
Eighteen years ago tonight. gentle
men, | was one among twenty other
prisoners In little frame school house
on the prairie OF northern Antelope
county. The nearest house to the
school house was half milo away.
That storm taught country school
boards to build school houses closer
to some dwelling. But our experience
was n great deal easier than that of
many other teachers and children,
caught without food or fuel In that
terrible storm. our coal box was we'll
filled and we did not suffer from cold.
During the forenoon, which was
mild and warm we had noticed the
prairie chickens acting strangely. on
the north and west of the school house
was II grove of halrgrown cottonwood
trees ana this shelter together with the
school building must have been what
attracted those usually SHY birds for
they came up within easy gunshot of
our windows, and we wondered much
at their strange actions. When the
storm broke at noon we understood
why they had become so tame. As
the fierccness of the storm increased,
n large flock of prairie chickens came
up close to the building and huddlod
behind its protection. Darkness was
coming on ut half past five and as the
storm showed no signs of abating we
realized that we must stay there all
night, One of the older boys and my
self vontured forth as It was growing
dark and with couple of long sticks
knocked down five or six prairie chick
fnhAgn "a in OIL
and. using dinner pail for a kettle
we soon had a bouutiful stoaming sup.
per of slowed prairie chickens. Al
though we had neither sage. salt nor
pepper, II was the best tasting meal
| ever ate.
"My Younger sister had taken bag
of popcorn to school with her that
morning to give to n neighbours chill
dron, and after our chicken supper
was completed we popped quantity
of this in small dinner-pail over the
Goals. Taking it all in all our night
Of imprisonment in school.house
was not unpleasant Some of the
younger children cried for their moth
ers, but were finally soothed to sleep
by the teacher and older girls, while
we older boys took turns fixing fire
all night. In the morning il was nee
essary to climb out of a north window
and dig tunnel through big snow
drift before we could get out of the
front door. When think of the num-
her of teachers and children who lost
their lives or were severely frozen in
that blizzard our experience seems a
remarkably easy one.