Omaha daily bee., 1909-10-13
MERCURY TO TWENTY,SIX
Sudden Cold Snap Catches Public I'm
prepared for Winter.
NO PROSPECT FOR RELIEF
First Freezing Weather Before Snow
City Has Known in Thirty-seven
Years-sufferinE in
Court House.

The cold wave scheduled some days ago
by Colonel L. A. Welsh of the weather
bureau got in its work with a shivering
public a-plenty Tuesday
The thermometer dropped to twenty-six
degrees and water froze quarter Of an
inch thick in exposed places. White frost
covered everything when the early risers
stuck their blue noses out of DOORS chat
tering while they CROPPED for the milk
bottle.
Twenty-six was the minimum early Tues
day morning, but indications In the even
ing were for a colder beginning for today.
The mercury stood at 20 degrees at 9
o'clock last night, as against 81 at the
same time Monday night.
Colonel Welsh has given to Omaha be-
fore October Is a minimum temperature OF
26 and the first freezing weather prior to
snow. the city has had I'm thirty-seven
years, or since the establishment of the
weather bureau. This happened Monday
night when heavy frost sat upon the
pumpkin.
:---FSxtreme cold, with no prospects of re-
/, lief 'Fs9'
This was the weather report at the court
house Tuesday Conditions were too frigid
TO be endured and all the jurors were ex-
cept the twelve men hearing a breaking
and entering case before him and the
jury sitting under Judge Day The latter
body is in the Bee building, however.
A half dozen oil stoves were put in
various rooms in the court house and they
raised the temperature considerably for q
radius Of six inches.
Work in the offices of the clerk Of the
district court and the county court was
greatly handicapped by the cold and the
| girl clerks were excused as was done the
day before.
Warmer weather is the chief hope for
| immediate relief, for the heating plant can
not be used for two weeks, though work is
being rushed on II.
| The cold wave was unsparing in Its
visitatons and many living in big houses
suffered as we'll as the dwellers in lowly
huts, for the cold blasts from the north
caught many unprepared.
! Tenants OF the Ware block on the south
east corner OF Fifteenth and Farnam streets
wore their overcoats all morning. The
cold snap caught w. A. Paxton changing
boilers and remodeling his heating plant
Several days ago a huge new boiler was
lowered into place. but connections have
not been made and as a consequence the
| tenants had no heat. The missouri PacltlC
| ticket office housed a score of ticket
agents and clerks who shivered with their
overcoats on. Lawyers and doctors on the
upper floors had to do the best they could
w. Farnam Smith had a cold string OF
tenants for his one-story stores on Farnam
street between Sixteenth and Seventeenth
The fronts OF these stores are torn out and
| in the course Of remodellng The rear oi
the stores is being rebuilt and here will be
installed the heating plant. Tenants
hustled TO the gas company's office TO gel
! gas heaters for temporary use.
| The cold came so quickly that It caught
many home owners without their winters
supply OF coal and every available team ir
Omaha was pressed into service.
One thing which the cold did was tc
make a rushing business for dealers ir
! CONTINUED on Second PaRel