The Conservative. (M'connelsville, Ohio) 1866-1871, 1868-02-06
Breaking OF Tie Gorge at Sc
HOufa.

Breaking OF Tie Gorge at Sc.
Louis.
The local columns of tho s.. Louis
Democrat, of Friday, contains the fol-
lowing exciting, and at the same
time amusing description Of the break
ing Of the leo gorge at st. Louis
The intense cold of tho past few
days has caused tho ice III tho river to
gorge, and yesterday the ferryboats
were stopped and people passed over on
the ice on n walk OF planks laid by Mr..
Crcvelin, of the Transfer Company
No danger was a%pprohended from this
causeway, and the people Of both sexes
crossed on it.
At half. past four o'clock in the after
noon the passengers who had just ar
rived by The OHIO & Mississippi train,
numbering several hundred, commerce
ed crossing on tho plank road, at the
foot of Washington avenue. There
was n line OF peoplo-mon, women and
children extending nearly across the
river. Some Of them were packing
v~nlises, some carrying shOwls and
~overcoats, and several had babies in
in their arms. Just rs the pilgrims on
the sea Of ice were stretched In u long
line, a crash was heard, and suddenly
the ice began TO move. The widest
CONSERVATION prevailed among tho
travellers. Som ran back toward the
/ Illinois shore, but the immense mass of
ice upon which they were floating had
driited some distance from the shore,
leaving "A gap of deep running water,
twenty orthirty feet wido. Others ran
toward the Missouri shore, but THIS
was also inaccessible from tho samc
cause, and there tho multitude were
left on n rail of ice, floating slowly to-
ward tho Gulfof Mexico.
When the breaking Of tho gorge be.
came known, crowds gathered on the
leyec, until there we're at one time not
less than ten thousand spectators at
the exciting scene. Tho police were
at once marshaled under Commissioner
Codding, and efforts were made TO res
cue the people from thoir perilous stu
alton. The danger was that the large
body of ico would break TO pieces by
coming in contact with tho shore ice,
and that the people on it would be
swallowed up and ground to pieces hy
the ICY boulders. The noise Of the
moving ice WAS heard at a considerable
dlstancc-a hisslrg, grinding sound,
mingled with splashes OF broken Jumps
and the ~crecking of large cakes as they
camo In contact with other bodies.
A small steamboat was lying about
II block below the PLANK road, and the
ice struck, her bow, and to this point
the crowd rushed; Os the Ico came
against tho bow Of the bout it wal
crushed to pieces, and the distance
from the ice TO the boat was too great
for anything but a frog or a g~rasshoppci
to leap.
AT length q stage plank was run on.
from the boat to the moving ice, ant
over this tho excited multitude clamb'
cred on board IN great hastc-somo be-
, ing liter ally dragged al)ng by theiI
hands and clothes, while others were
pushed and lifted oven by tho police
men and the men who stood near.
One fat lady, weighing over tw'
Hundred pounds, was so much excited
on getting safely from tho ice, that sh
tainted, and was carried TO shore owe
the heads of the crowd, presenting
. spectacle resembling a picture IN q re
cent number Of the Last Sensation
An ANXIOUS traveller, who lost sigh
1 Of his wife in the confusion, and wa
watching his chance, with an ovorcoa
4 in his hand and n promising baby il
. his arms. became terribly agitated n
his portion Of the loo drited nea tn
boat. Seeing officer Gordon on tn
other side Of the gap, no called ou'
. 'Ucre, catch this baby" and tossin
G the infant through the air, Il dIstanc
= of twenty or thirty feet turned TO loo
a for his better half. Gordon being q
8 expert base balIist, caught the baby !
his hands, and the young one reward
y ed him by q smile Of thankfulness. II
3 waited ten or fifteen minutes for tn
father to como for tho little rcspons.
bilty, and began to think he woul
have to adopt it rs q juvenile MeLC
o politan, when the, father, having fouG
his wife, came and reclaimed the littl
one.
Tho leo continued to move, and III
!. stage plank was kept in position unit
h the ice was pretty we'll cleared OF il
n passengers.
n One lady, who, in the confusion, ha
It drifted down three or four blocks, va