Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-01-05
FEAR OF ICE GORGE WHEN
EXPECTED THAW COMES
Merchants Are Warned to Remove
All Freight From Steam-
ship Wharycs.
DIPS BELOW ZERO AGAIN
New Low Record for January Was
Set at Daylight Icstertlay-Ofi-
cial Figures Show 1D1. Had Cold
est December on Record.

est December on Record.
With the promise by the Weather
Bureau OF fair and warmer weather
to-day and tomorrow and the fear Of
n consequent frcshet and ice gorge in
James River, the old Dominion steam
ship Company last night issued
ro;!cc 10 merchants 70 remove at once
all freight now on the local wharvcs
The river Is still! frozen Soldly from
shore 10 shore. and the upper part Of
the state Is covered with :. heavy fall
Of snow. Fear il expressed that
sudden breakup al the ice may be as
serious to the state as would he
continuation o. the present frozen con-
dition.
All water transportation III Virginia
waters Is at a stands;ill because Of
the ice, and freight congestion Is be-
coming a most serious problem. SO
badly has the ice cloggcd in Hampton
Roads that the Chesapeake and Ohio
Railway has been unable t. operate
rs ferry service between Newport
News and Norfolk. and all passengers
are being routed oy the Norfolk and
Western. the Chesapeake and Ohio sell
old Point.
The old Dominion steamship James
town. OF the New York line, left New
port News yesterday morning a: G
o'clock and did not get into Norfoil;
until II. taking nNc hours for "A trip
usually made i'll one hour. The Eay
Line and Washington steamers have
suspended service. including the York
Al ,t,.t,D
Line last night Cancelled its sailing for
Now York. the jamestown. after its
trip across the Roads in the morning
having become solidly packed IN ice
r its slip at Norfolk
IMPORTANT THAT FREIGHT
DE REMOVED At ONCE
1T is most Important said General
Agent George II. Wyatt. OF the Old
dominion Line. last night. that all
merchants having freight in tile Eich-
mond docks remove il A. once. as an
cc Eors. may follow the FIRST thaw.
and would certainly cause a serious
overflow of the lower part OF the city,
including ,he steamship docks"
Ice in thu river ~ Richmond is re-
ported solid from shore tu shore.
situation not before duplicated since
1879. All railway trains from the
North and South are running from one
Il zen hours late. one due At 1880
y. NJ. yesterday not getting i'll until
nearly noon.
The thermometer smashed all jan
Uary records of the local Weather Bu-
reau yesterday morning by going to
degree below zero. Il climbed
steadily. however. during the day,
making = Ivy noon and - by o'clock.
At s i. NJ. tho Weather Bureau reported
a temperature Of -. with the prospect
of fair and warmer weather to-day
and the promise OF the first real thaw
in more than IL week. the slight melt
ing Of the past few days having been
only where enough heat escaped from
buildings to temper the atmosphere re-
ported officially as below the freezing
mark.
The drop below zero yesterday morn
ing was the second time this winter,
the temperature Sunday morning hav-
ing been the record for cold weather
since February. 1899. the thermometer
at . \. NJ. Sunday having stood ID be-
low zero. After yesterday the next
coolest January day on record was
January Il. 1912, when the mercury
fell 10 six tcnths OF Il degree below
zero.
i'or one week Yesterdays maximum
temperature OF - was tho highest
recorded by tho Weather bureau in
struments.
CoLDEsT DECEMnEI,
on BUREAUS RECORD
Last month was the coolest Decem-
Der on record. the average temperature
for the entire month having been be-
low the freezing mark. Section Dircc-
tor IL. \. Evans. Of the local Weather
Bureau. in a special bulletin issued
yesterday gives tho following figures
for December:
The average maximum temperature
for tho entire month was 37.f degrees,
CONTINUED on Seventh Page.) :