The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1907-01-17
FREAKS Of TIE COLD.
HALF THE KETTLE BOILS AND THE
OTHER HALF FREEZES ON THE
UPPER YUKON.
lCICLES ON SAFETY VALVE.
Frozen Hands and Limbs Saved from
Amputation by Soaking Them
in Coal Oil

T.. l.. Parsons, an old time Yukon
miner tells some remarkable stories OF
happenings at Dawson City when the
thermometer drops many degrees below
the zero mark, in Winnipeg dispatch
to the New York Herald:
Strange manifestations appear as a
result of the extreme cold,' said Par
sons. One is the way a fire burns in
a stove. 1t roars and crackes like a
great forge ANA wood in the stove seems
to dissolve III the flames like a chunk
of ice; the wood is gone and we wonder
where the heat went. At sixty below
every stove pipe throws out great
white cloud of smoke and vapor, resem-
blinga steamboatin its whiteness, and this
cloud streams away Tor fifty or one hun
dred feet, minging with the other white
gray mist or haze that remain perma
nent in the atmosphere of the town like
Il dense fog whenever it is forty or more
degrees below zero
Kettle Boiling and Freezing
The white gray fog is not a fog as
you know it, but frozen mist, and
every man, woman, child. animal and
even the fire that burns is throwing out
moisture into the air which is immediate
~ lulucu mo IL ClOuu Oh ITOLcu Ndppl,
which floats away and remains visibly
suspended in the air.
Exposed hands, ears and nose Mr..
Parsons says, freeze in theis tempera-
ture while going Il few yards unless they
are well protected. The breath roars like
a mild jet Of steam, while Il dipper of
boiling water thrown out into the air
emits a peculiar whistling hiss as it
drops through the frosty air.
"prCSppctOrS in attempting to boil Il
dish OF rice or beans upon Il camp fire
unprotected from the weather, find that
the side Of the dish which is in the
fire will boil while the part of the dish
exposed to the weather will freeze
Edged tools subjected to this tcmperu
turc become MS hard and as brittle as
glass and will break as readily under
strain.
i have seen safety valve blowiES
off steam with the temperature 90 be
low zero with iciclcS hanging to the
valve. having formed from condensation,
the iciclcs not melting with the oulrush-
Ing steam. but remaining there for many
days, through blow-offs.
An vegetables, apples, fruit, eggs
etc. can he allowed 10 freeze until they
become like bullets. To make ready for
use place them in cold water for half Il
day before using, and the frost will
slowly withdraw without injury to tie
article. To attempt to thaw them ,'t
by more rapid process by fire or hot
water spells them for use
Some Remarkable Stories.
Mr.. Parsons tells some remarkable
stories of thdwing uut Il frozen foot, ear
or hand by immcrSing the frozen MEM
Der in coal oil for some time-often for
several hours. He says:-"This is abso-
lutely II safe remedy and one thus es-
capeS the surgeons knife, as no bad re-
suits follow. This is not hearsay, for 4
man from our camp, was found Severa
years ago after he had been out all night
with the thermometer 30 degrees below
zero and both his hands We're frozen to
the wrists. He was taken into camp
ana his hands soaked in coal oil for five
hours and all the frost came out OF his
hands without him even losing finger
tip:,r , +hor
thought amputaton would have to be re
sorted to. His hands were as white and
as hard as marble and when placed i'll
the oil they snapped and cracked as the
oil began to act upon the ice crystals.
This remedy is often resorted to by those
who live in cold climates and saves
many n limb.
"The temperature of the oil should be
about the same as that of the living
room. Great caution must be exercised
during the extremely cold weather not
to freeze the lungs, which one will quick
ly do if he hustles about at the ordinary
pace. Quick and fatal pneumonia can
be contracted in few moments. Many
a fine team Of horses has been lost in
this way up in the Yukon.
Beware of the Door Knob.
cone has to be careful about touching
things with unprotected hands 1t is dan
Gerous to take hold of Il doorknob when
il is 60 below, or therea bouts, with the
unprotected hands, unless you are care
full TO release your hand instantly, for if
you do not it will freeze your inner palm
in five seconds, be very painful there
after, and the result is the same as
from touching Il red hot stove.
Canned goods undergo frightful con