The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1872-05-11
DEAD AND ALIVE.
a wooDCuoPpER's STORY.

a Dl Odu Di III llGu lldl anu Ttu lldlHtI Si!it.
He sat on The railing of the bridge, whit
Hing, and talking to three or four others
standing by.
"Yes, sir, said he, 81 was dead once.
Ii was the strangast thing you ever saw
III your life You don't believe it, ha
Well, don't wonder | don't suppose
any other maH ever went through such an
awful siege, and can't expect any one
TO look at IL as [ d.. \ ia see 1t hap .
pened ike this: 1t was winter, we lum
bered on Whtecomb Greek, six or eight .
years ago. Ii was war times then, and .
wages were good. was getting forty |
d liars a month"; and worked like n beaver
until this Iitle affair came off. We went
tn work ahOnt mile from the Ghaoiy--
Jim Robinson ID M, and h al s,asL,d d
into the pine like all possessed. The boys /
were hauling pretty lively, for it WAS early /
January, and sleighing was good jim |
was al work on a big tree about twenty .
rods from where | was.
Pretty soon, after he had yelled at
mo, his tree tUppled over aud fell. IL
was as handsome piece Of pine timber
as ever you saw in your l:le, and | watch
ed it as it fell. Crash it went into the
branches Of an old scrub oak, and hung (
jist thee. never saw a fellow madder
than Jim was We did s. me tall cursims
among them pines. He tried every pos
slble way to loosen the pine, but couldn't
get 1t of. Finally we made up our minds (
10 90 for the tree, and in about ten min-
ues we had it cut through SO it trembed |
like a leaf with every stroke of the axe,
he cutting on one side and on the other. /
When II was almost through, as | was /
the biggest and best chopper, says to |
Jim, and then | ripped out a big OATH
let N finish her, jim. Get out of .
the way and | will have her through in
half a minute
Il had been chopping minute or two
when jim let loose scream that would
have made an Injun's blood run cold. /
had just time TO look up and see that pine
tree tumbiing down, when dropped my
axe and run. | couldn't have got far .
when something seemed TO hit my eyes,
aud then all was dark.
Il suppose was dead.
"Maybe you don't believe me, boys, /
but that's all | can make out of it. All .
ut once The light, the looks of the snow /
on The ground, every thing was shut out .
from my sight. There was a kind of an .
uncertain feeling, just as fellow has .
when he's asleep | knew something .
awful had happened, but | could not stir
hand or foot Il seemed as though it was
night, and that was covered up by some.
thing that pressed heavily on me. Sill
there wasn't any particular pain, and for .
I,,,,r I 81, I
How long | staid there can't tell. | sup
pose it wasn't long, when felt somebody /
pull my ann and heard ,;im Il ,biuson
say:
80 Lord Poor fellow !!
81 knew he was there, and could feel /
him touch mo, and yet | could not speak .
nropen my eyes. lie thought Twas dead /
Then | wondered if all dead folks could (
ihink and hear as | did. tried to move /
,ny hands, tried to scream. Bat | .
couldn't do anything Jim left me, and .
the next l remember of was pulled out
from under the tree aud hauled to the
snanty on one OF the sl.d- Y ou may bet .
there was considerable excitement among .
rns boys when | was taken into camp | !
could feel that was dead. My heart .
didn't beat. | couldn't move But | .
could hear, and had IA Kind of misty no.
tion about everything that was going on
about me.
''Some of the boys. after feeling of my
fcrrud, wanted to send for the doctor.
'l''s no use, boys said the boss, 'Ihe /
poor fellows gone. His neck was broke. /
The mos; we can DO for him is to take /
him TO his folks
"WelI, they laid me out on one OF the /
sleighs, aud fixing me up in as decent a
way as a corpse could be in lumber /
camp, one of lhe teamsters started with [.
ma for o h, sh.
81 first didn't realize just how bad the
situatisn was. When 1t began 10 leak
into my head that | was really dead, and
was to be buried in the cold ground, and
shut out forever from the light of the sun,
II frightened me. The long ride TO O,h-
kosh passed like those things that happen /
in dream. We got there and | was
taken to my brothers house. lie felt ter
rible bad when | was brought hom.. /
hadn't any idea that he thought so much /
If me as be did ] could hear him cry
and talk, and hadn't the power 10 move |
"a muscle. | was put into Il collin, and /. /
finally came out that ! was to be taken to .
Watertown TO be borjed My old moth, /
er lived there, you know. Oh, boys. / !
hope none Of you Will ever be nude to .
feel the horrors that | icli when ] knew .
that | was boxed Up in coffin and would .
soon be buried. Seven years have gone f.
by siuce them, bot naver think of il 4
without shudIer, | icls them putting .
un the lid OF the coffin, aud then knew
i was fastened up,
From that time unit! the cover Of the .
coffin was raised again | haven't any re-
collection of what happened, only .hat
was continually in motion. Though
could not open my eyes, ! sorter felt that
IS was d Ark and | vas gning somewhere