New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-12-16
Five Thousand Students
Help Fill Ranks of
Shovel BrigadeS
WINTER COAT TO COST
CITY $4,000 AN INCH
Few Accidents as Fether-
Ston Works Short Hand
ed; Cold Snap To-day

4 hard working snovstorm. the first
OF the season, visited New York yes
terday. and after lsboring steadily
from 3 IN the morning to 7 at night
departed. leaving foot-thick blanket
Of snow spread over the city as retu-
tation 70 those who have predicted an
open winter.
From r on only a few fakes fell
To-day the Weather Bureau says that
the skies will be clear and the tenn
perature somewhere in the vicinity OF
IS degrees above zero.
The snow that fell so thickly played
havoc with traffic throughout the city
and was also felt TO a great extent by
the shipping in the rivers and hsrpor'
Tie-up of shipping
a large fleet Of small craft was com
pelled 10 tie up at Quarantine, fearing
10 attempt 20 make port through the
storm. and several ocean-going liners
were unable to make their way through
4 Ambrose Chanrel
In the streets Of the FIVE boroughs,
and particularly in Manhattan, the
problem of the police, already made
difficult BY an increase Of 20 per cent
over last year in the volume Of traffic,
was further complicated b. skidding
automobiles. whirling snowploughs and
squads Of snow fighters.
Melting Of the snow caused the pave
ment Of many of the most important
arteries of travel 70 become slippery,
and much traffic congestion was caused
BY horses falling.
Several scores Of accidents were
mostly caused by pedestrians, bowling
before the storm. attempting TO pick
their way through the traffic-congest-
cd streets. Only two persons, how
ever. had been reported by the police
rs seriously injured up 70 a late hour
last night They were Annie Cen
terra. OF l02 East 1O9th Street. who
was knocked down by an automobile
/ a. First Avenue and 104th Street, and
Sanford Greenblat, who slipped on the
ice on the FIRE escape at his home IN
81 West 106th Street and fell.
Big Cost TO City
Commissioner John T. Fetherston
Of the Street Cleaning Department
said late yesterday that the removal
Of the snow would cost the city in the
neighborhood of 100000, this figure
+ being based on an estimate of $4,000
/ for each inch Of snowfall.
To meet this expense, which includes
/ the hiring Of emergency snow fighters,
the operating OF hundreds of ploughs and
| the paving Of the snow removal con
3 tractors, the Board of Estimate yester-
+ day afternoon authorized the issuance
OF S415000 in special revenue bonds.
/ OF this amount. 100000 was for Man
/ haitian. Brooklyn and The Bronx; Sl0,-
600 for Queens, and $4,000 for Rich
mond.
DR.. Sidney (. Mezes, Of the College Of
the City of New York, offered to fur
nish 1000 students for snow removal
work. With his department badly
handicapped by the lack of emergency
snow fighters. Mr.. Fetherston gladly
accepted. and Immediately got in touch
with Columbia and New York uni
versities. In each notices we're posted
and announcements made in clsssrooms.
Between 1000 and 5000 students AZ
swered the call. They were put 10 work
on the second shift, which went on duty
f at I / o'clock last night, and worked un'
T iii this morning.
The college boys were paid the same
wage a. the other men registered as
/ emergency workers, 30 cents an hour,
with the possibility or lO.cent-ah,
hour bonus for exceptionally good
work.
The Street Cleaning Department tn =
wear had the smallest number OF
emergency sweepers thai it has had
since the system Of hiring them was
started. Only 5000 were registered
at the various section stations in Man
haitian. as against $4,000 last year and
F 10000 the year before. OF these 5000
only 800 reported for work when the
cali was sent out at $3.50 o'clock by
f the Commissioner. These were added
TO the 200 regular sweepers and
truck men OF the department.
1--WE could have used a force OF 3d.,
600 men as emergency workers said
Mr. FCthcrston.
Besides the men with scrapers, the
street Cleaning Department by 10
F o'clock had 100 snow ploughs, consist
/ ing Of ten-foot plough blade attached
/ 70 the front Of an automobile truck, At
! work in Broadway, Fifth and Eighth