The Ordway new era., 1913-12-19

HERE are those among uS WuO
see nothing idealistic about
the snow. The varied and ex-
Quisite forms assumed by the
frost particles on crystalliza-
ton, revealed in their fullest beauty
beneath the lens. are lost to their un-
appreciativei vision. To them the
fieecy snow" and the beautiful snow"
are absurdities. The only form OF
snow-inspired poetical effort that ap-
peals to them is the parody. Il
THE snow. the snow. the beautiful
f. snow.
The more you don't want 1t the more
It won't CO."
is not meaningless to them. for they
are the men who must battle with 1t.
Such. for instance. is the railroad
man in any part Of Uncle Sans wide
domain In which the ice king disputes
his sovereignty. The Dakotas. Minne-
sofa and northern Iowa are favorite
haunts Of the wayward monarch, and In
those regions 1t In that he holds some
of his most fantastic revels. The wind
swept prairies of Kansas and Nebras-
ka, level as table for great distances.
are often difncult to manage in mid
winter, but they do not possess the
Essentials Of . great snow country.
The general contour of Minnesota and
Dakota IL rolling. 10 that on most OF
the railroad lines there are many cuts.
ten to the mile in some places. This
Is the ideal spot for the snow block
ade. and for six or seven months Of
q hn aIv
10 going on.
Every railroad traversing these re-
gions is equipped with large force
Of snow fighters. Nowadays rotary
snow plows in the hands of men who
know how to operate them can cut
their way through drifts that in the
early days of railroading would have
established complete blockade. The
rotary plow is one of the marvels of
the age. 1t 10 q liberal education in
the business of snow fighting to watch
one of them eating its way through
an apparently insurmountable drift
that threatens to cut of all communi-
cation between the Atlantic and Pa
clio northern terminals.
Msnaes to Railroadins.
There are several passes in the
great divide region Of the Rocky
mountains which for about half Of the
year offer q constant menace to rail-
reading in their vicinity. The snow
begins to fall late in August or early
in September. and 1t continues until
we'll into May and sometimes June.
There are also Intermittent snowfalls
during the summer. but not enough to
make serious trouble. The great falls
are during January and February.
The roads that cross the great d.
vide must expend enormous sums In
their annual conflict with the snow.
Special crews are provided for this
work, and special engines are. held in
reserve to be put behind the snow
plows as needed. Before the rotary
was invented the man with the shovel
was the sole dependence. In the early
days of the transcontinental railroad.
thousands Of laborers were kept on the
pay rolls simply as snow shovelers.
| The snow sheds erected by these lines
have cost a mint of money. The wind
swept stretches Of Wyoming and 9th.
er states are guarded by wind breaks
consisting of high fences built across
| the most exposed points. These
fences seem to be fragile barriers
against such mighty foe as the snow
king. but they serve their purpose ad.
mirably. frequently preventing 4
blockade. saa 4
In spite Of the greatly improved
methods Of snow fighting. blockades
are still Of frequent occurrence on
these mountain roads. It is not at all
unusual in Colorado and Wyoming for
. train to be stalled between stations
| for hours and perhaps fol- days. Those
who have had experiences Of this kind
do not wax enthusiastic over them
Sometimes provisions are lacking. and
the luckless passengers are in actual
danger Of starving. In these lonely
stretches there II not ranch fol
miles. As rule the roads take ex
tfaordinary precautions against block
ades Of this description. for in several