Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1867-04-23
+. SSrom the Milwaukee Wisconsin April4l r
How il Feels 10 be ,DrOwned-De-
.ga scribed by a Man who Has
yU.5oI1 II -L.lat. ~ SD fe." H.f4

Il Nrom the Milwaukee Wisconsin Aoril4l :
How il Feels 10 be DrOwned-De-
7ga scribed by a Man who Has
Tried HI. -,...-, ~. rl ...s.,. Ia.
A few days ago a workman employed at
one of the tanneries on the west side of the
river, but living on the east side, named
Grace, attempted to cross to his work upon
the ice, When part way over the river, the
ice broke beneath Grace, and he fell through.
He sank Immediately to the bottom, but
was taken up by one of those hooks en-
ployed for the purpose, and by strong eff
forts the spark of life, which hau apparent
ly departed, was brought back, and Graca
still lives, although having been as near
deaths DOR as man could very well 90
and return to this sublunary sphere.
Yesterday reporter of the Wisconsin, met
Grace and had a conversation with him rel
alive to his narrow escape. During the
W conversation the man gave a sketch of the
sensations he experienced while under the
water, which we will endeavor to give, as
the words fell from his lips. Said Grace :,
81 thought that morning, as it had been
stiffening over night, that the ice would be
stiff enough to bear me, and, as it was
long way round by the bridge, would
save time by going across the ice instead of
going round by the bridge. | went on.
thinking about what / should say to the
foreman about being docked a quarter of a
day, and wasn't thinking but what all was
safe enough, when / trod on a weak
spot and went right down thr ugh
1t was so sudden like. and the water so
cold. that supposed | was so frightel ed
that all my senses went away in flash.
hit my head on the edge of the ice and it
made me stupid, and that's what made it
seem so like dream, perhaps. 1t seemed
like keptsinking, sinking, all the time
not going down like man naturally would
in the water, but going down fast-so fast
that it took all my breath away. Although
know kept my eyes shut all the time, it
seemed like could see all about me, and
like wasin the midst, first of field of
blackneSs which came up all around me,
and was very thick. AS l went do Vn this
kept growing lighter. and brighter, and
from being sort of gloomy at first, soon be-
gan to grow pleaSanter, and my head, which
seemed at firstto be stuffed up and stupid
began to be clearer and clearer. / have
heard great deal about Paradise, and all
| of sudden like it, seemed L had come to
that place. / didn't feel like was anybody
| else, but all my senses came to me, and
| the first lknew was wondering where ]
was and how l came there. Ifelt asifI was
| just so full of happiness as l could be-. EV-
| erything had done in my life seemed like
it was written on little page, and / had it
| right before me, and could tell it all, even
down to the little things. Before L could
see great green and purple and red clouds
! floating along, and would near angels and
fairies singing, and / knew they were hap
! ny, and when | tried to help them L felt as
happy as they were.
/ tried to think it was dream, but I
| couldn't, and l didn't feel as if it was at all
! like death, anu while everything seemed so
| clear to me, even to what the foreman
| would say when he found that l did NOT
come, wondered if should ever 90 back
| again; and if did, what time | should
have telling the boys where had been and
what seen. Every good action had done
came up and looked me in the face: and Al
| though some of the bad actions, all ofwhich
/ could see standing at my back, tried to
come up, they could not. cannot fell Won
how happy / felt, and how long felt So
i 1t was drowning, / know, and if a man
only knew about it, and there wasn't anv
danger OF being brought back again, il
4 would be the happlest way to die that ever
was invented. But the coming back, oh
that was awful!
While was feeling so good as tried to
tell you about and it didn't seem as if il
/ was little while, but like it was years and
| years, while was thinking, it seemed like
one of the bad actions crowded away one
OF the good ones, and came up and looked
me In the face, and instantly all the good
4 scClons, and all OF the angels and the FAIRIES
became devils of the worst kind, and. all
the eolored clouds became black, and the
devils closed around me, and they yelled in
my ears, and passed me this way and that
and then all the clouds became precipice,
and caves and holes, and it seemed as if the
evil ones were trying to push me into al
OF Cnese at once, yelling and bowling all thC
time, and when resisted tearing whol,
handsful of flesh off my bones and hair ON
OF my head. And they seemed to 90 int
y my mouth, and my nose, and my ears, a1it