The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1917-02-09
TRAFFIC IS PARALYzED
TOWNS ARE Is0LATED
STORM AND COLD WEATHER
CRIMP RAIL SERVICE


For Mankato and Other Places in
Southern Minnesota; Lake Crystal,
Napoleon, Eagle Lake, Wells, Fair
mont, ETC., Are Deprived of Mails;
No Lack of Fuel
From fridays Daily.
Fair tonight and probably Satur-
day; not 80 cold. Local barometer
hand today leaned far to fair wealth
er, a little more that way than yes
terday. Mankato maximum tempera-
ture in t~Wenty-four hours ending at
eight o'clock this morning, nine be-
low; minimum, tnirty-three below.
Not for many, many years, railroad
men declare, has the railroad serv-
ice been SO utterly demoralized
through this section Of the country as
now. Some say it is as bad now as in
1881. It is largely a matter of memory
and judgment, but the recent snow
storm, followed closely by the in
tensely cold weather, has tied up
trains in all directions, many of
them being snow-bound. The mail
service, of course, has been ~necessari-
ly bad. People from quite a number
of towns have been stranded in Man
kato and are watching their chance
to get out. Mankato people here and
there are waiting their opportunity
to get home.
Locomotives Were Helpless.
On. the Omaha railroad crossing,
on the track just east of the pas
senger depot, almost blocking Main
street, stood three locomotives and
several cars this morning. The 10
cOmotives were helpless. They had
been there since eleven o'clock last
evening, not being able to make their
way off the snow and ice. Water
from II of the disabled engines kept
trickling down upon the rails and
freezing, until, at nine o'clock this
morning, the wheels of the engine
were imbedded in several inches of
ice. Between two of these disabled
LOCOMOTIVES there was fortunately a
space Of about ten feet, so that teams
and pedestrians could get through,
and the street traffic was not stopped.
The Slippery Rails.
But these were only three of the
eighteen Omaha locomotives that
were disabled in different parts OF
the Omaha right-of-way and the
| yards around the local depots this
tensely cold, the pulling force OF an
engine is greatly lessened, and then
there is the additional handicap of
slippery rails and snow-drifts. Drift
ing snow along the tracks here and
there throughout this section of the
country, has been such a handicap to
the service, that no attempt has been
made to run on schedule. In fact, the
people are lucky to have the little
service that there is.
No. 9 Of the Omaha was stuck
near the depot yesterday afternoon
and evening from five to nine o'clock,
although there were. four locomotives
trying to get it loose. At length a
= 4NoA III "OobC1L lOSOllIOJlFO "ChC ofC1
to the helpless train and it was pulled
loose and taken to the watering tank.
There it got stuck again and was still
stuck there this morning.
Tied Up South Of .Hepe.
The Omaha has had no trains from
Sioux City since the great storm
started ON the day before yesterday.
What passenger trains came yester-
day from st. Paul were held here and
made ready to be sent the other way,
TO attempt being made to run them
even to Lake Crystal. The equipment
that came yesterday from st. Paul
as No. 5, due at 1890 a. M, and ar
irving at 1920 p. M, was still here
this morning. The train that came
Wednesday from st. Paul as No. 9
was also still here this morning. This
is the train that got stuck twice,
once at the depot and again at the
water tank.
Two trains came yesterday from
st. Paul to Mankato, No. s., due at
10:30 a. M, arriving at 1920 p. m,
and No. 8, due at 12:45 p. NJ, arriv-
ing at 2:43 p. m. No. 3 was turned
around and left for the twin cities as
No. IL due to leave Mankato at 5:25
p. M, but actually leaving at $40
p. m. No. 6, due to leave yesterday
at LOS p. M, was made up here and
started for St. Paul at 1886 p. m. This
was made of the equipment of No. 7
that came from the twin cities on
Wednesday.
Mail Service Crippled.
Stopping the trains from the twin
cities at Mankato and not sending
thenl-on to Lake Crystal has caused
some -uneasiness to the people of that
little city, since the mail service there
and the passenger service also has
been at a standstill since Wednes-
day night. No. 3 reached Lake Crys-
stal early Wednesday, afternoon, ac-
cording to schedule, but that is the
last train that Lake Crystal has had
from Mankato.\ On Wednesday, even
ing a train came to Lake Crystal
from the south on the Gilmore branch
and brought fifty passengers, who
were naturally anxious to continue
their journey, but were stranded