Bristol news. [volume] (Bristol, Va. & Tenn.) 1867-189?, 1870-05-06


10 my right were Meredith, Neeson
md Eliyson to my left were Wells,
Chahoon, Senators Kin
.lriclk and Hcrndon, Immediately i'm |
my front were DIR. Brock and the re- !
pOrtcrs of the City press, while Patrick T,
Henry Aylctt sat about two feet on I
my lett in my Icar were Robert Mil /
ler of Montgomery, Henry Bowen, of !
TazWcll and Stubs, of Gloucester all I
members of the House by my side
were two old men whose heads were
white. At this instant, ere | had been
three minutcS i'm the room, there was
a loud, sharp report, followed 10y one
luUder, and sharper than before; the
main girdcr Immediately bcncath me
broke, the floor a. stunned II funnel shape,
a sort of sympathetic shuddcr ran
through the vast crowd and in an in
slant of time, ere we could start or
move, we wee hurled and dashed
down wcniy-eight f., (, into the Hall
of the House of Delegates. As we
sank with that peculiar wave, and tre-
NOR that accompanies falling body,
amid the general shout, | looked up
ward aud oh horror OF horrors the
gallery with I'll its human fieight, and
heavy floor, its death dealing timbcrs
and jagged nails, the clerks Office with
all liz ponlcrOus desks and huge books,
the stairway that led out to the roof;
the lofty cCi ing with lie yrCat wOc,lcn
beams, liz iron bolts and heavy -astcr
me thick and fast, crushedand crush-
ing upon our unprotected heads. In
the came fell moment amid the cries of
falling men, the shrieks o! the wound
ed, the calls tor help, the shOUts for
mercy, the death gloans Of the dying,
the lying oil bolts and Breaking of
timbcrs, we struck the floor with n
crash that piled and croSleo both friend
and foe, while the tiIBels from above
/ closed in, and there was borne ND to
| Heaven, by half h1ndrcd so1ls Just ~
| leased from prison, such wall u of agony
| and cry of woe as Inddc my bTaiu reel
and my heart sick, 81 that for time, |
lay inscnsible, buried alive i'm grave
common to the living and the dead. /
saw al, ] knew all, yet | must have
been inscnsible for several minutes. /
heard the wOrkmen removing the tim
bers above me and knew they were
trying 20 rescue us. I knew the man
under me had died witEoit g mu~muY
or n struggle. ! heard Che peer fellow
who lay by my right side say, "Oh
J sus YOU saved the thief unOn The
Gross save me?p and knew that he,
TOO, was dead, for my right arm was
caught between timbCTs and pinned
across his throat, SO that he lad ceased
to breathe. | heard another cry, ooh
death where is thy sting? Oh crave
where is thy Victory?n and | knew
that he, too, was gouc, I knew that
two poor fellows on nly left had fallen
with their facuS Together and heard
one say MY friend, can't YOU turn
your head n little ?p and when told
that he could not move, calmly rc1lied
'thcn | must dic.n Re had no muir
muir to make but died only rs man can
| die in such place. l knew that | lay
upon my face, that Il beam was acroFs
my legs and one across my back, that
my left arm WAS pincd to my side and
| my right caught in the tiinbers, that
could not move n muscle, or turn n V
head, that we were caught between
two floors, that t. ht was shut out, that
no one could hear me, or if heard no
one cared for me above another; vet ]
could breathe without great difficulty
and felt that could live until rescued;
but who can tell, or what language
portray that which pGsscd through my
mind with the rapidity Of thought
| scvcn-fold intensified? Nc grand pan
| Drama of the past rose up to confront
me, but in that pandemonium of stygc-
an darkness, determination seized on
| hope half stiflled, and struggling for Z
| fOot-hold among the stormy crags and
may heights Of futurity. In an effort
to move a beam a brick was driven
! aga nst my mouth, while the lime and
! plaster rushed in to cut Off all air and
! all hope. | tried TO contract the lower
lip and breathe through the mouth
with but little success, for every time
ii was repeated tho lime came in. J
felt that / had brcathed my last possible
breath and that | was dying. 1 was
calm, quiet and resigned, hope, but u
momeat before bright and strong, now
fed; but faith the vanguard of mercy
stepped in where hope oflife'had ceased
and was not afraid TO die. Just then
hard the rescuers cry "Now all lift!'l
In moment the huge gallery floor
was lifted away, the bright light and
fresh air rushed IN and hope was her
self again.
with determination rcdoublcd ]
made an effort TO rise through the de
bris and succeeded i'm getting my head
above the wreck and brcathcd the pure
air of heaven once again then, and
not till then, did ! feel that | was safe
Ny right hand | tore from the TIMBER
that held it, removed the rubbish from
the faces OF two men at my side and
released my LEFT hand, but the beams
were still across my back and legs
These were removed by Henry, ser
want at the Exchange, who helped M
up. Gen. Newbcrry recognized IN,
and hurried me into an omnibus.
,,.a1 gi,ly nd l.esarpI IN lao Ia al on m,
grass assuring my friends / was no
hurt but was driven to the Exchang,
and carried to my room where my
wounds were dressed by DIR. Burrow
did not know up TO this time that
was wounded and was surprised to FIND
three cuts to the skull and my left lel
, badly bruised below the knee, TO say
nothing of numerous small cuts anC
untold bruises. My eye was black
my forehead scraped, my nose black
and blue, my ear mashed, my heGt
cut to pieces, my ankle sprained, my
: leg mashed, my clothes torn to pieces
my hat, stick and pockct-hook gone
my mouth full of clottcd blood ant
still | thought | was not hurt. l all
solutely walked from the Exchange L
the Capitol the next morning, recov
! cred my cane from the ruins and re
turned 70 spend the day in the parlor
! whcnthrec days afteTward could, viii
difficulty, walk on u crutch. And thi
seems to have been the prevailing opin
ion with all those who were wounded
they were not hurt much and yet scv
eral are dead.
How II was that I escaped Canno
tell, nor can any one; but
"Thsre Is a divinity that shapes our ends
: Rough hue them how We may.
: One minute longer under that terri
! bic gallery floor and the seven fet
! of rubbish that was hoapcd on me an
! the dark wing of the Arch Angel &
death must have swept over me and
: would have been with the sixty fOu
: whose spirits havo found rcfue
| IL, q, t,o-n boqpifohln citx. Uhoro IN