The Fort Dodge Messenger: March 2, 1904

Electricity Wins From Jack Frost

Thawing Water Connections by Electricity Just Now of Great Benefit.

The Method is Very Simple

Many Water Connections Frozen Now Being Thawed Out in This Way.

Electricity has gained another victory. This time it is over Jack Frost and is bound to be especially beneficial to plumbers and the city water works employes (sic) who have received many calls during the past two months to thaw out frozen water connections. The old method of digging thru several feet of ground to the water pipes has given away to a more modern method in which electricity is the main factor. Thirty minutes is about the average time necessary to thaw out water pipes in the new way, while by the old method it took from several days to a week.

Forcing a passage through the frozen pipes by the use of electricity, now that it has been tried is a simple matter. All that is necessary is to form a circuit with the water pipes as a part thru which water is carried from the main in the street into the building. The current is then turned on. The wire, the water plug and the water pipe leading from the plug to the service pipe forms the circuit, which becomes heated and readily thaws the ice.

The current is carried thru the metal pipes, while the water itself also helps in carrying it.

This method has been found of great benefit especially since the present winter has been much harder than the usual winter, particularly in freezing water pipes. It is also considered of value because it is no longer necessary to make an excavation to the house connection when the frost has penetrated into the ground much deeper than in many years. Its usefulness can be seen when it is known that in may (sic) instances where excavations have had to be made for the purpose of thawing out pipes a week has been required. By the new method about thirty minutes is required and there is practically no disturbance, the current being turned on and off and the pipes left open and in good condition.

(Editor’s note: I am no plumber, but this whole thing sounds like a public service announcement for “don’t try this at home.”)

Tags: 1904

The Fort Dodge Messenger: Feb. 29, 1904

Death of Mrs. D.A. Haviland

Stroke of Paralysis Causes Demise After Protracted Illness.

She Was Well Beloved

Had Been a Resident of Fort Dodge Since 1854 – Family Assembling.

After an illness which lasted from August last, Mrs. David A. Haviland answered the call of her Lord and passed from this earth at 7:43 last evening at her home, number 1300, Sixth avenue north. Never was news of one’s death met with more sorrow than was this one by many friends of the family who were pioneers of Fort Dodge.

Mrs. Haviland with her husband was among the first to come to this city when it was but a small trading post on the banks of the Des Moines, and has lived here and seen it thru its many changes until the present time.

Cecelia Wood, which was Mrs. Haviland’s maiden name, was born in Delchertown (sic), Massachusetts, November 21, 1826, where she lived until about four years of age when her parents moved to the state of Illinois. Hhere (sic) she lived until womanhood and on December 12, 1844 she was married to David A. Haviland in La Salle by Rev. W. Bassett.

In 1854, Mr. and Mrs. Haviland moved to this state and settled in Fort Dodge in what is now the north part of the city and where had been the family home ever since.

There are left to mourn the loss of a mother, eight children, two of whom reside in this city. they are, Mrs. David Risk of Rolfe; Mrs. W.G. Moore of this city; Mrs. Charles A. Stevens of Des Moines; Miss Hattie A. Haviland of Denver; Mrs. R.F. Coyle, of Denver; F.P. Haviland, of St. Charles, Illinois; Miss Carrie Haviland of this city and E.G. Haviland formerly of this city but now of Ladysmith, Wisconsin. All members of the family were notified by telegraph of their loss and will come as soon as possible.

Mrs. Haviland had been a sufferer from heart failure since last August which caused a stroke of paralysis about six weeks ago. this was followed by a second stroke a month later which with her extreme age was the cause of her death. ZShe was seventy-seven years, three months and seven days old at the time of her death.

Owing to the delay in waiting for absent relatives no definite arrangements as yet (have) been given out (regarding) the burial.

Tags: 1904, Haviland

The Fort Dodge Messenger: Feb. 29, 1904

Webster City Young Men Sad

One Result of a Recent Trip to the Neighboring Gypsum City.

They Were Given Good Time

And When They Went Back Home They Slept Too Soundly.

Two young men whose homes are in Webster City came to Fort Dodge the other day and had an awful time getting home. The Webster City freeman-Tribune says they were shown a good time in Fort Dodge and from past experience of Webster City’s good times in Fort Dodge it is more than likely that while here they contributed generously to the mulct tax.

Their sad story is told by the Freeman-Tribune in the following:

“A three mile walk and a livery bill of $3.50, all extra was what it cost two certain Webster City young men to make a little afternoon’s trip to Fort Dodge the other day. It wasn’t because the Webster City boys got lost looking at the skyscrapers, or bought the new Crawford hotel of a sharper or anything of that kind. Oh no.

“The boys, whom we will call Jack and George, for the reason that these names will fit as well as any, spent the afternoon in the Gypsum City, were shown a first-class time by the natives, saw the gypsum mills, the ruins of the mill which burned the other night, the site where the Great Western shops were to have been built – if they hadn’t been erected in Clarion – went thru the automobile factory and numerous other sites famed on the pages of history. In the evening, tired of their sight-seeing and weary to the bone, they boarded the midnight train for home. It being so late, they felt sleepy and therefore didn’t see the lights of Webster City until the train was pulling out of Blairsburg. The boys wanted the “con” to run the train back, but he wouldn’t . Then they wanted him to carry them on to Waterloo and promise to send them back on a special car – but he wouldn’t . He just wouldn’t do anything that a good, respectable, polite conductor ought to do. The boys then wanted to fight – and he wouldn’t even do that. He just grasped them by the nape of the neck and ejected them from the train three miles out of Blairsburg.

“The men found their way to the ‘burg and by putting up $3.50 induced the livery man there to bring them back to dear old Webster City.”

Tags: 1904

The Fort Dodge Messenger: Feb. 16, 1904

Child Shot After Inviting Death

Four-year-old Marshall Hollis Shoots and Kills His brother Leo.

Says “Shoot Me Marshall”

Boy Pulls Trigger Killing His Brother Instantly – Tragedy Occurs in Bed.

“Leo said ‘shoot me Marshall.’ I didn’t do it the first time, but he toldi me to shoot him again and I wasn’t afraid that time. I put the pistol against his face and pulled the trigger and he felled over and blood came out of his mouth,” was the testimony of four-year-old Marshall Hollis as he sat on  Coroner McCreight’s knee this morning and told the coroner’s jury how he had killed his two year old brother, Leo.

The children are the sons of Mr. and Mrs. H.E. Hollis, living at 426 Third avenue south, and it was while playing in their mother’s bed at 8:30 this morning that Marshall, the older, found a 38 caliber revolver between the mattresses and on invitation of his younger brother, pressed the weapon against the child’s face and pulled the trigger, killing him instantly. The bullet entered the head at the junction of the nose and upper lip and tore its way until it lodged against the skull at the base of the brain.

Mother Finds Baby Dead.

The mother, hearing the shot, rushed to the room and found her baby dead lying in the bed in a pool of blood. The face was covered with blood from the wound and blackened by the powder. Marshall, the four-year-old child who had ended his brother’s life was in the same bed suffering from a badly burned hand, caused by the discharge of the weapon, which he had held with his left hand supporting the barrel near the muzzle. Aside from surprise that his brother should lay so quiet and still, the child evinced no sings of having realized what he had done.

H.E. Hollis, the father, had been employed by the Illinois Central in the capacity of brakeman, but on account of light business had been laid off. Monday night he went to Woodbine, where he expected to secure employment with the Northwestern, and Mrs. Hollis being nervous in the absence of her husband had placed the revolver between the mattresses of her bed. This morning she arose and went down stairs to build a fire in the kitchen stove and Marshall had gone from his own bed into the bed in which the younger boy and his mother had been sleeping. After lighting the fire Mrs. Hollis was called out of doors to show the driver of a coal wagon where to unload the coal. As she was returning to the house she heard the report of a revolver and rushing up stairs found the baby dead. She summoned H.H Porter, the teamster who was unloading the coal, who after going up stairs hurried away from medical assistance. The mother meanwhile carried the child downstairs, but death had been instantaneous and the attention of a physician wa of no avail.

Inquest This Morning.

Coroner McCreight held an inquest over the remains at 10:30 this morning and the jury, composed of J.J. Conway, being shot with a revolver in the hands (sic), J.C. Walburger, and C.H. Smith, returned a verdict which in part read:

“That the said Leo M. Hollis came to his death at about 8:30 a.m., February 16, 1904, at No. 426 Third avenue south, First ward, Fort Dodge Iowa, by act of his four-year old brother, Marshall W. Hollis.”

Child Tells the Story.

The boy, in whose hand was the revolver when discharged, not realizing that he had figured in a tragedy two hours before, readily answered all questions and placidly told what had occurred. He said he had “feeled” the revolver between the mattresses and taking it in his hands had pointed it at his brother. The latter said: “shoot me, Marshall.” This the older child declined to do until bidden the second time, when he calmly pressed the muzzle of the revolver just over his brother’s mouth and pulled the trigger. In reply to a question he held up the first finger of his right hand when asked with which finger he had pulled the trigger. He had held the barrel of the revolver with his left hand and in the discharge that hand was badly burned. Although not fully aware of what he had done, the child realized that he had done something wrong, for after shooting his brother, he had shoved the revolver under a pillow.

(Editor’s note: Sometimes complete lines were printed out of place. There are a few words in the list of jury members that are confusing, but I think should fit in this paragraph in this manner: “That the said Leo M. Hollis came to his death at about 8:30 a.m., February 16, 1904, at No. 426 Third avenue south, First ward, Fort Dodge Iowa, by being shot with a revolver in the hands of his four-year old brother, Marshall W. Hollis.” This is not perfect, as the word “act” doesn’t fit, but is one possible explanation.)

Tags: 1904, Conway, Hollis, McCreight, Porter, Smith, Walburger

The Fort Dodge Messenger: Jan. 26, 1904

The Plumber Reaped Shekels

The Cold Weather Was a Snap For Him.

Bursted (sic) Water Pipes and Meters Were Frequent During Sunday and Monday.

The cold weather did not confine its effects wholly to people’s coal bins and their ears and noses but the frost king made his way into the cellars and played havoc with many of the water pipes so that the ice and coal men are not the only ones who are wearing broad smiles, but the plumber has reason to be happy as well.

During Sunday and Monday, the number of bursted water pipes reported was amazing as nearly eevry (sic) house in town was visited by some trouble. The plumbers were compelled to work Sunday, the same as any other day, thawing out and repairing broken water pipes due largely to the negligence of some people in forgetting to turn the water off below the frost line; but in many cases this was done and still they were victims of the intense cold.

Many people took the precaution to shut off the water in the cellar and drain the pipes and pack the exposed parts, thus escaping hte inconvenience of frozen water works.

There were eight bursted water pipes reported on Monday and seven reported today.

Tags: 1904

The Fort Dodge Messenger: Jan. 25, 1904

Children Rescue Little Playmate

Boy Plunges Into an Air Hold And is Helped Out by Companions.

Brave Act of a Little Girl

Who Helps Form Human Chain – Boy Slides Over Ice and Into The Hole.

What might have been a serious accident, was averted Saturday by the presence of mind exercised by little Beuhla Newsom, who in company with several other children were sliding from the bank of the river out onto the ice. One of the party was a little boy whose name is Scherff and who had discovered a large air hole in the ice and was playing near it. He would slide nearly to it on his sled and then drop off and let the sled and then drop off and let the sled go into the hole and float across to the other side, when he would go around and fish it out.

This worked successfully a few times but on one occasion he forgot to get off in time to prevent being carried into the  hole. The current is swift at this place and threatened to carry the child under the ice, but his little companions came to his rescue and hauled him out of the icy water, nearly exhausted and thoroughly soaked with the cold water.

Little Beula Newsom, who is only thirteen yars (sic) old, lay on the ice next to the hole while her companions held her by the feet to prevent her slipping into the water. She grasped the boy by the hands and after some effort, landed him safely on the ice. Half frozen, with the water dripping from his clothing and turning to ice, the badly frightened youngster was hurried home and now promise to suffer but little from his narrow escape.

The incident was one of the few that have occurred on the river this winter. The children showed presence of mind, creditable to older heads, wh ile the action of little Beula Newsom was in itself heroic.

(Editor’s note: I posted the spelling of Beula Newsom’s name as it was in each case. I’m still not sure of the correct spelling, but if a family member has any proof, I will add it to this note.)

Tags: 1904, Newsom, Scherff

The Fort Dodge Messenger: Jan. 4, 1904

“Beecher Bible” Was a Rifle

Sharpe Rifle Was Given That Peaceful Name

Rare Specimen of First Breech Loaders Ever Made Found at Webster City.

Webster City, Jan. 5 – A “Beecher Bible” was found in Webster City a few days ago by a collector of old and interesting arms, who pronounces it as one of the most perfect specimens of its kind in existence. How it happens that this valuable relic should have found its way to this city might, perhaps, be an interesting story if the facts could ever be learned.

A “Beecher Bible” is a rifle, manufactured by Sharpe, the most famous of early gunmakers in the United States. The specimen now in this city was the property of George MacKown, the missing and much wanted embezzler, ex-manager of the Northwestern Felt Shoe company, and was sold in sheriff’s sale at the court house, when all of MacKown’s personal effects were disposed of on an attachment for debt. There was a long list of goods and much fine furniture, w hich caught the eye of the intending purchaser, and smaller articles were overlooked. Among the effects was a queer-looking gun, a sort of a cross between a rifle and a shotgun. It had a short barrel and a monstrous hammer. It caused a few jocular remarks from the auctioneer and the bidders.

“How much am I offered for this?” said the auctioneer. The first bid was a quarter, which caused a laugh. The rifle was finally knocked down to the proprietor of a second hand store for 75 cents. The second hand dealer placed the rifle in his store window and forgot about it. One day last week a man walked into the second hand store and asked to look at the old rifle. He examined it carefully, but let out no hint as to his value. The proprietor offered to sell the gun for $5, but the man said he would give him just $2 which was finally accepted and t he gun carries away. The second hand dealer had made $1.25 and was satisfied. Had he known the true value of the old rifle he would have hesitated before disposing of it to a stranger for even the sum of $200.

The man carried the gun away and then told what he had found. He said it was perhaps the finest specimen of the original Sharpe rifle in existence. They are very scarce and correspondingly valuable. It is the first practical breech-loader invented and created a reformation in the gun making business when it was manufactured. The gun was made by the Sharpe Manufacturing company at their factories in Meriden, Conn., and was invented shortly before the breaking out of the Civil war. They were first used to any extent in the Kansas-Nebraska war and were shipped to those states in cases marked “Bible,” and afterwards named “Beecher’s Bibles” from a speech made by Henry Ward Beecher.

The gun is a carbine with a 22-inch barrel and shoots the old-fashioned 56-caliber government paper cartridge. The cartridge is shoved into the breech of the gun and the paper end is cut off by the closing of the sliding of hte breech-block, thus exposing the powder which is ignited by a cap. This model was a top-notcher in the rifle building business for many years. In the Civil war they were largely used by the Union cavalry. The specimen picked up here is said to be the finest in the United States.

(Editor’s note: The correct name of the manufacturer is Sharps Manufacuring Company. The Beecher Bible is an actual gun. A modified version was used in “Quigley Down Under”, a movie starring Tom Selleck. An article from the Kansas Historical Society includes a three-page ad for the rifle. I was unable to find any online reference connecting a Beecher Bible and Webster City.)

Tags: 1904, Mackown

The Fort Dodge Messenger: Jan. 4, 1904

New Officers Take The Oath

Successful Candidates in Recent County and Township Elections, Take Office.

Supervisors are in Session

Treasurer Ryan Appoints Assistant Depuey (sic) – Sheriff Selects Woolsey.

County treasurer, sheriff, surveyor, coroner and county superintendent of schools, two supervisors and township officers to fill vacancies took the oath of office today. The county officers are:

Treasurer – J.T. Ryan.
Sheriff – Henry Olson.
Surveyor – C.H. Reynolds.
Coroner – A.H. McCreight.
Superintendent – A.L. Brown.

The supervisors are:

First district – A.F. Simpson of Duncombe to succeed himself.
Second district – P.H. Cain of Clare, to succeed J.T. Ryan.

Treasurer J.T. Ryan today appointed O.F. Weiss, assistant deputy. No appointment was filled for deputy treasurer although it is known that E.H. Cox will be appointed to that office. Clark Woolsey has been appointed deputy sheriff to succeed himself.

By acclamation Swan Johnson, of Dayton, was appointed chairman to succeed A.F. Simpson. The board is now engaged in settling with the former treasurer, J.A. Lindquist. The following program has been made out by the board:

Tuesday, January 12.
Appointment of court house janitors, county physicians and official newspapers and book binders.

Wednesday January 13
Annual inspection of poor farm.

Thursday, January 14
Ditches, roads and bridges and appointment of commissioner of poor and over-seer of poor farm.

The standing committees for the year are:

Claims – Cain and Hilstrom.
Settlement with county officers – Collins and Simpson.
Roads – Simpson and Johnson.

Tags: 1904, Brown, Cain, Cox, Hilstrom, Johnson, Lindquist, McCreight, Olson, Reynolds, Ryan, Simpson, Weiss, Woolsey

The Fort Dodge Messenger: Jan. 4, 1904

23 Below Zero and No Fire Protection

Lamentable Condition of Affairs Brought to Light by Fire Saturday Night.

Building Burns to Ground

Because There is no Pressure to Aid Firemen in Fighting Flames.

One-fourth City in Peril

Saturday Night When Residence S.W. Corey Totally Destroyed.

With the thermometer registering twenty-three degrees below zero and with practically no water pressure, Fort Dodge was visited by a fire at midnight Saturday that in many respects was of a nature unprecedented in the history of the city. The total destruction of the home of C.W. Cory at 209 Twelfth street south is credited to a combination of circumstances, which is claimed by the persons upon whose shoulders rests the property against the ravages of fire to have been impossible to forsee or prevent.

The Corey residence was totally destroyed. The house was reduced to a heap of charred timbers and fallen walls covered with several inches of ice entailing a loss of nearly $5,000 ($119,747 today) not a cent of which is covered by insurance. How the fire found its origin is unknown. The fire department was summoned to the scene a few minutes before 9 o’clock in the evening. At taht time fire was discovered in a small pantry room on the northeast corner of the house in a wing with adjoins the main body of the structure. The flames were soon extinguished, or apparently so, and the firemen remained at the house for nearly two hours to assure themselves that the fire was out. At 12:10 a.m. the department was again on the scene, having been called by a second alarm in a half hour after their departure. This time the blaze was on the opposite side of the house, diagonally from the first fire. There was not water pressure and the firemen were unable to even check the flames. The fire burned itself out several hours later, leaving a mass of smoking embers where was a short time before was a well built residence.

Startling Conditions Revealed.

The unusual nature of the fire is to be found in several facts which cannot be disputed. In the first place there was no water pressure and in the second while not intentionally, the firemen were apparently unfortunate, failing to extinguish the fire on their first visit to the house. The third circumstance is a fortunate one. The night altho bitterly cold was without wind, and in this way lessened the danger of a more serious conflagration. With conditions prevailing as Saturday night more than one-fourth the city was without fire protection. Had there been a wind sufficient to carry the burning embers to the nearby houses the seriousness of what might have happened cannot be estimated.

Friction in the water pipes and the supply of one-fourth of the city thru a single six-inch main is given by Superintendent Pray as a reason why there was not a better water pressure. He explains the conditions in substance as follows:

All consumers of city water south of Central avenue and east of Twelfth street are supplied by a single six inch main running east on First avenue south. This main supplies all the consumers in that part of the city together with the Great Western railroad company and seven flush tanks. The first mishap incident to the fire Saturday night was when the firemen attempted to connect the hose with a water hydrant on the corner of Thirteenth street and Third avenue south. In attempting to turn on the water they broke off the stem to which is attached the crank. In this way, rendering the hydrant useless. As a last resort Superintendent Pray attempted to close the valves at hte corner of First avenue south and Thirteenth street and at the corner of First avenue south and Seventeenth street. Had he been able to do this he could have shut off the water supply from the entire southeast part of the the (sic) city and concentrated the entire force on the fire. The steel covers of the manholes, however, were securely frozen in the ground and defied all efforts to be opened. Under these conditions of affairs there was nothing to do but let the fire burn itself out. Of the several lines of hose carrying water to the fire one had sufficient pressure to throw the water thirty feet, but even then it was lacking in power to break even a thin pane of glass. Under favorable conditions the proximity of the water tower to the scene of the fire would have been beneficial than otherwise.

“After putting out the fire when we were first called we made a thorough search of the entire house before leaving,” said Chief Lowry yesterday. “We couldn’t find the least trace of a blaze and left, satisfied that the fire was out. Mr. Corey went with us thru every room in the house and he too was satisfied.”

When seen relative to the fire, C.S. Corey, whose property suffered said:

The first alarm was sent in shortly before 9 o’clock in the evening. The house is occupied by C.W. Corey and family and Mr. and Mrs. Louis O’Day, the latter living in five rooms on the second floor in front of the house. Just how the fire started is unknown. There was no one on the first floor at the time and so far as can be learned no lamp was lighted and the nearest stove was ten feet away and in another room. The building consisted of the main structure and a wing, the former facing west on Twelfth street and the latter facing east. The The (sic) fire was first discovered by Mr. O’Day. He had scented smoke and going down stairs went into the kitchen on the southwest corner of the wing. Finding no fire there he opened the door leading into the pantry and was driven back by the flames.

At the arrival of the fire department no difficulty was experienced in extinguishing the flames after which the firemen went thru the house in an endeavor to locate if possible sparks or embers that might cause the fire to break out anew. Failing to find anything of this nature they returned to their quarters only to be recalled in a half hour.

Not a Cent of Insurance.

The first fire did but comparatively little damage and only that by smoke and water. Most of the furnishings were removed from the house at this time. The loss in household goods sustained by Mr. Corey is estimated to be between $200 ($4,790) and $300 ($7,185), and to Mr. and Mrs. O’Day, who occupied the upstairs room about $100 ($2,395). Mr. Corey estimated the loss on the house to be over $4,000 ($95,798). Mr. Corey suffered the loss of a grist mill by fire some time ago. As in this case, he carried no insurance. Mr. O’Day said yesterday that it was his intention to take out insurance January 1, but unfortunately he delayed doing so a lay (sic) too long.

Fire on Opposite Side.

Responding to the second alarm, the firemen found the flames to have broken out on the south side of the house in the kitchen. It is thought that fire, which the firemen failed to locate, burned between the walls and finding its way to the opposite side of the building was fanned by a draught until it had gained sufficient headway to burst through the roof. After the firemen left at 11:30 a policeman was left to watch for a second fire. When he discovered the blaze he had to go several blocks before turning in the alarm. By the time the department was on the ground a second time, the fire was burning fiercely in the kitchen and through the roof. Water was turned on as soon as possible, but only a pitiful little stream issued from the nozzle. Ladders were run to the roof ot he wing, and upon a porch on the south side of the house, where the fireman vainly attempted to throw enough water on the blaze to prevent its eating its way toward the front of the house. The flames however were so fierce and the water supply so inadequate that the firemen were driven from their position and forced to the ground and the front of the house. All efforts, however, were unavailing and the men, covered from head to foot with ice, found themselves able only to throw water on the nearby houses. An attempt was made to throw water upon the roof of the Silas Corey house to the porch, but the pressure was too weak. Good fortune along prevented the fire from communicating to the gable of the house, which was only a short distance from where flames were the hottest.

Brave Cold to See Fire.

Several hundred people watched the fire in the early hours of the morning, and although the thermometer was 20 degrees below ezro (sic), they braved the elements. The fire could be seen many blocks away. With scarcely a trace of wind, a column of smoke fifty feet in diameter arose from the burning buidling, and after emerging from the shadows of the trees into the clear moonlight, it ascended many feet intot he air as a might white pillar.

The crowd which gathered at the fire was not lacking in criticism, and had the usual large amount of advice to give to the firemen as to what they should and what they should not do. The unconcealed comments of some persons in the crowd caused several of the firemen to lose their tempers, and on one or two occasions they treated the crowd to a shower bath.

Several cases of frozen feet and frost-bitten ears are reported as a result of witnessing the fire.

(Editor’s note: I chose to include the article below in this post because it is related to the issue of the fire.)

The Fort Dodge Messenger: Jan. 4, 1904

Coldest Weather of Winter

Thermometer Registers 23 Below Saturday Night.

Eight Degrees Colder Than at Any Time Previous This Winter – Warmer Sunday.

Saturday night was the coldest of the winter. The government thermometer at Tobin college Sunday mornign showed that the lowest point registered during the night was 23 degrees below zero. The maximum temperature for the same twenty-four hours was 8 degrees above.

The lowest temperature for the twenty-four hours ending at 7 o’clock this morning was two degrees above, while the thermometer showed the maximum temperature to be 8 degrees above. A comparison of the figures shows that during the twenty-four hours ending at 7 a.m. today, the thermometer varied only 6 degrees while during the same period of the preceding day there was a deviation of 25 degrees.

Up to Saturday night the coldest weather of the winter was registered December 13, when the thermometer shows 15 below. The third coldest was December 26, with 11 below.

Tags: 1904, Corey, Lowry, Pray