The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1914-02-25
MANY PERSONS IN HArTEssuRc VIEW FLAKES FIRST
E'ME-mosr SEVERE WEATHER FIFTEEN vEARs-sMALL
sovs REALIZE pREAMs-MANY STREET
HAl and slEET STORM VISITS GULF COAST
Banks And Other Houses in Hatties.
burg Take Holiday in Honor Of
White Monarch.

For the first time in fifteen years
Hattiesburg this morning was covered
with mantel of snow. The dreams
of the small boy+and some big ones,
too-have ben realized, and ayconsid.
cradle proportion of the citys popula-
tion is taking holiday and battling
with snow balls.
Before it began to melt the snow
was about five inches deep, but by mid
afternoon most of it had melted.
Several business houses took holi-
day, and many others ran with short
\ force nr toalp half holiday. All of
the banks closed at noon Gin honor of
the snow" and Hattiesburg had a lit
tie Mardi Gras celebration Of its own.
There were more early risers in Hat
tiesburg this morning than ever before
in the history of the city. The snow
began falling about five o'clock, and
the inevitable small boy scenting the
flakes as he awakened, was out of
doors before daylight had supplanted
darkness. AS soon as he met his COM
panions around the corner, the battle
royal began. accompanied with yells
of delight whenever proud youngster
planted frozen missile behind his
adversaries ear, and screams of pain
whenever a similar missile came in
contact with his own Uranium.
There wasn't much sleeping to be
done after these war cries began, and
the oldest inhabitants, realizing they
would be called on to tell when the
last snow fell and when the worst snow
fell and all about all the previous
SHOWS that ever fell, got up and began
1 racking their brain.
Two Previous Shows.
If the dates given by all the Oldest
inhabitants are accepted as correct,
snow must have fallen every year in
kioteiOoVui6 up W loVU' lOt Oil enS
oldest inhabitants agree there have
been only two previous SHOWS that lay
on the ground, the trouble being that
the most accurate of the city's mental
historians disagree on the dates
According to the most generally ac-
cepted recoilections, the last snow fell
in 1906. Some say this was as far
back as 1894 and some split the diff
ference and call it 1905. 1t really
wasn't enough of snow to be worth
remembering. for the ground had been
wet with rain few hours before and
the snow didn't lay long enough to
make snow balls. And 1t has been
demonstrated today that the chief at
traction Of snow to Hattiesburgians is
snow balls.
The real snow. it Is generally ad
mitted, was something like fourteen OF
Nfifteen years ago. Most people remem
ber It because It came about the time
of the Spanish American war, and the
date most generally accepted is Feb
ruary 10, 1899. 1t is said that eight
inches Of snow Jay on the ground fol
several days.
The snow the older residents love
to talk about, however, came thirty
two years ago. While there was only
Hbout three inches Of it, a drizzle and
freeze immediately following rendered
walking exceedingly difficult and the
farmers spent a good deal of theil
time puliing cattle out Of the ponds
where they had slipped on the ice.
Today's snow turned to slush very
quickly. The fakes were large, but
not Hrm AND contained more moisture
than thosf which usually fall farther
north.