Daily national Democrat., 1859-03-01
The Buttes and the AvaIanches.


mountain, one of the highest in the State,
turreted by immense perpendicular Hcciyi-
ties, called "the Buttes = here, in times past,
the accumulated masses cf snow and ice, fre-
auently becoming suddenly detached from
the rocky pinnacles rushed down the sides
Of the mountain, bearing away huge frag
ments Of rock and cutting down trees as
grass before the scythe, crushing and grind.
ing to atoms all but the adamanline hills
themselves. Even with the then sparse pop
ulation and infrequency of winter mountain
travel, several times has the unwary stran.
ger been swept out of existence by an ava.
lanche of the Buttes The snow on the
northeast side of the summit is perpetual
A friend, living in the vicinity, who ascended
the height, on last Fourth of July, estimated
the snow at two hundred feet in depth he
was convinced that the first that ever fell
upon it is there yet The comparative light
ness of the winter storms since 1852 has su
perinduced dangerous sense of security,
| and houses and mills have been built in ra
vines, SO liable to form the directing course
of the avalanche This mountain contains
some of the richest quartz lodes in California
or the world a number of mills for crushing
the auriterous rock have been erected there
afurding employment to great many per-
sons all of whom reside in the immediate
vicinage of the mills and for this reason the
avalanche has suddenly become to US word
of fearful import
The storms of the latter portion of the
present winter have been unusually severe
in the mountains. On Thursday, the 18th
instant, the snow was falling for the TWEEN
tieth successive day at the Buttes, and it fell
all day and night without intermission, ac-
companied by perfect hurricane of wind.
During the night of that day, there occurred
six different avalanches one of Refs quartz
mills and Thompson's mill were completely
destroyed, but 10y fortunate chance no one
was in either Of them at the moment, and we
hear Of no damage to life or limb but at
the Reynolds mill, the catastrophe was at
tended with consequences deporable.
We are indebted to Messrs. King and Bow.
| ley, of the latter MILL who were of the party
that came to Downieville for surgical assist
ance, for the following details which, though
they add but little to the substance of what
we last week published, will not be found
devoid of interest:
The dwelling Of the Messrs Reynolds and
the cook house were situated in the ravine
about sixty feet from the mill-three other
buildings, occupied by the workmen, being
/
co rso of the "sde." The night hands were
at work in the mill Robert Wright the
cook and f. II. Murphy were still up in the
cook house; VIM c, Reynolds was sitting
in his house, in front of a large stove. the
doors of which were open, reading; all the
Others, some sixteen or eighteen, were ascer
in their BEDS G. w. Reynolds, whose wife
was absent in Downieville, occupied room
on the first floor, as did also James Phillips
who slept in the companys office; in the
second story was Henry Eberheardt-H. +.
Wood, one of the company, being luckily
away from home At fifteen minutes before
ten o'clock at night, an avalanche which had
started in the ravine a mile and half above
rushed down through the dwelling of Rev
nolds, as whirlwind, scattering it into thou
sands of agments-many of which were
borne with the resistless mass more than 6
mile below. No unusual sound gave to thost
who were up and awake the least token oil
its approach, or premoniton of danger from
such source; it came with the stiffness o
death and the velocity of a thunderbolt.
How Phillips and the Brothers Revnold.
were saved, they themselves can have nc
conception for it was the work of fraction
of a second. VIM. Reynolds who was CLAN.
cling that moment at the fire, insists that he
was carried straight through the stove; h,
found himself lying by the side of an iron
safe, which had been kept in the office, at tn,
bottom of the mill pit, thirty five feet deer
and sixty feet distant, somewhat bruised bu
able to walk his brother George, thougl
found at a distance lying in his bed and still
rolled up in his blankets, with his watch un
der his pillow, was still more seriously iniur
ed, but he is now considered out of danger
Mr. Phillips who is one of the quartz com
pany, was also thrown, with his bed. in tn
same direction, sixty feet, to the top of tn
mill pit whence he leaped through the win
dow into the mill. lie was but slightly in.
jured A corner only of the cook house wa
struck, and though it was completely crushe,
in by the weight of the snow that fell upol
it, the inmates were enabled to make thei
escape through an aperture near the top
OF Eberhardt nothing whatever has beer
discovered. Fifty or sixty men were EN-
ployed for several days in the search for hi
body, but without success, and the furthe
attempt to recover it is, for the present
abandoned as utterly futile The snow i
seventy five feet deep in the ravine, and 81
compressed by the force of the avalanch,
that horses might be driven over the top il
safety. The loss of Mr. Eberhal dt is deeDly
deplored by his employers and fellow work
men, to whom he had endeared himself not
more by his kindly and generous disposition
than by his upright and honorable deport-
ment; thus much, those who knew him best
desire US to say of him He had worked Is
months at the mill was 80 years of age, anC
a native of Germany, where he leaves n wifi,
and three children to mourn their sad be-
reavement
Everything in Reynolds house was either
buried up or carried off by the snow. A
favorite watch dog, five hogs, four goats, ant
a number of chickens. were swept away. A
couple of the pigs emerged from the snow the
next morning, about twenty feet from where
theywere penned, but walked with difficulty
Some one picked up a bandbox, lying bottom
up half a mile below, and turning it over, q
ratR started out and ran toward the mill
Clothing, books, broken furniture, bedding
&c, were found scattered for mile.
The mill as we stated last week, was un
injured, The moving mass of snow was from
seventy five to a hundred feet deep and three
hundred feet wide, At II o'clock on the
night OF the occurrence, party of six volun
| teered to come to DOwnieyille for surgical
assistance the snow they represent at from
eight to twelve feet in depth. They encoun
tered binding storm; there was no trail
nor any crust, and they had no snow.shoes
all night long they toilei through the vast
snow heaps, and at half past o'clock reached
Kanaka Bar, a distance of six miles Drs
Kibbe and Chase, Immediately upon the ar.
rival of the messengers. left here and reached
the mill in a little less than six hours, having
had the advantage of the trail broken by the
party that morning The extent of the iniu.
ries to George W. Reynolds could not be
clearIY aseertained, as they were Internal