The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1912-05-25
WORTH TALKING ABOUT
OLD TIMER REMEMBERS WHEN
1T REALLY WAS COLD.
truthful James" Rivals Baron Nun.
chausen In Recalling Winter That
Makes Even Oldest lnhabitsnt
Take Back Seat.

ibid You ever hear" began the
stem-winding story teller, as the UNI
wound five yards of wrappings from
his neck, about the winter l lived
In the country? II was what fell
low might be excused for calling some
winter That Is to say, it was cold.
I'VE began TO notice unusual symp-
toms along in November. To begin
with, the creeks all froze solid--clear
10 bottom, you understand-and in
stead of water flowing along in the
creek beds there was ice moving at
about the same speed, They have
something up in the Arctic regions
very much like what We saw then
they call them glaciers up there, be-
lieve. But there was this difference
up north the glaciers all move down to
the sea and break off and float away,
leaving plenty of room for other ice to
follow. Our ice streams didn't do that
at all.
1.-THE creeks where ] was was all
emptied into the river and, Of course,
the river was as full as the creeks.
So there was nothing left for the creek
ice to do but bump up when 1t reaches
the river and double back on itself.
Then when 1t got back to headquarters
Ii had to double up again and go
down to the river All the creeks kept
up this process until they were piled
on top of themselves four or five times.
or even more than that, We had to
tunnel through them to get from ono
township to another And We had to
keep making new tunnels, too, as the
old tuhhels moved up above our reach
but, bad as this condition seemed
the worst was yet to come. The first
cold snap lasted until along in Janu
airy; then we had the usual January
thaw--Which in the country generally
means something. But this particular
thaw hadn't got good and started when
a big freeze came down on us one
night and froze the ground so quick
and SO hard that 1t popped the rabbits
and woodchucks up out OF their holes
the way little boy pops a pea out
of its pod
Every single one of those poor lit
tie animals just stayed up there in
the air--frozen stiff. some of them six
or eight feet above the ground. There
were so many OF them that fellow
couldn't go out without humping his
head. 1t was much like walking
along under dense forest, only the
animals were closer to our heads than
the limbs Of the trees would have
been The only way we could get a
| glimpse Of the sun was to take an ice
ak and climb up the side Of one OF the
| creeks. never expect to see the like
again"
We'll" exclaimed the Wild eyed
victim, Il don't believe you will. And
| suppose that when you wanted din.
ner all you had to do was to go out
and build a fire anywhere and the
| dinner would thaw ont of the air and
fall down into the pot and be cooked
Eh?"
Not on your lifel" asserted the
stem winding story teller II you
knew what you were talking about you
wouldn't make any breaks like that
1t was so cold that whenever anybody
tried to start fire the air melted and
| put the fire out Every time
"1t was well along In March before
square meal could be had anywhere
I would have starved to death a doz
en- times only for one thing-and 6
| mighty fortunate thing It was. / KEEP
q Jersey cow--just one, but, OF course
she was the pick Of the herd-in G
| Grelcss cooker that / had.
"But since than I never have beer
able 10 say that like Zee cream. AND
l don't suppose ever will ether
| .FFhipaUn NaWg