eleven o'clock
The wheels of the locomotive clogged , the flues filled with snow , the wet fuel all but extinguished the fire . Before the engineer could back the heavy train , the snow swirled in behind it and built a drift over the platform of the rear coach . The train was completely stalled . This happened after eleven o'clock and while they were between stations . It was a lonely and rugged country , and even farm-houses were far apart . The train was about midway between stations , the distance from one to the other being some twenty miles . The weight of the snow had already broken down long stretches of telegraph and telephone wires .