Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1872-08-15
Miraculous Escapes.

ONE Of the most amazing instances of
escape from sudden and apparently incvi
table death occurred few nights ago, on
the Hudson River Railroad. A man named
James Carter, of lIughsonville, was walk
ing ur -" road about a mile south OF the
New Hamburg station. On his back he
carried trunk, suddenly train hove
IN sight, laundering down the track on
which Carter was walking. To see the
red glare and To hear the crashing advance
Of the engine was the work of u moment
in the next Carter ha0 leapcd for safety
upon the other track But 1t was stun
bling from SCylla upon Charybdis The
startled man could not hear, for the roar
of the freight train, new enemy that
was close upon him. As he jumped upon
the up truck, the Pacific express came
hurting along at his back, running forty
miles nm hour, The engineer saw Carter,
shut of steam and whistled down
brakes But il was too late. The speed
of the locomotive was hardly elackcned
when it struck the poor fellow, and he
and his trunk were flung twenty feet into
the air Probably it was n thousand TO
one, ut the moment of collision, that
Carter would never draw another breath
Yet he is alive and well to-day The
case proved TO be one Of those astonish.
ing exceptions to ordinary experience
that we instinctively call miraculous,
Carriers clothes caught in what is called
the draw bar" his person not striking
any part Of the locomotive mt all. Thus,
when discovered, he was lying across the
iron bars Of the "Cow catcher with his
head down and his feet up--the head be.
ing within two or three inches Of the rails.
The train dashed furiOusly on, Garter
continuing to hang in his perijous posi-.
ton until II reached New Hamburg He
was inscnsiblc, hut coon revived with sim.
pie remedies, and was found TO be abso-
lutely unhurt. There was not even a
scratch or abrasion Of the skin.
We believe lady is alive who has gone
through something Of this kind. This was
at Cold Spring Station, some years ago
She WIS crossing the track in a wagon,
and was In like manner struck by a loco
motive The horse was instantly killed,
and the wagon smashed to atoms. But
the lady, strange to say, after heing
thrown into the mir was caught by the
flag staff through her hoop-skirt--.omc-
thing AS one plays the gnme OF 'Eraccs'
and carried on unhutl, She was rcsCu
ed ne soon as the train could ba stopped,
and sustained no injury
When the ship Dunbar was wrecked
some years ago off Sydney Heads, She
foundcrcd near q sheer rrecipice, almost
absolutely smooth on its surface, and
rising 800 feet from the sea. On 'Hal
smooth wall, far above the reach Of any
common waves, is a single tiny croyice
or shelf, few feet in length. II Was a
thousand 20 one when the Dunbar went
down that no one on board would be
saved But y" very fury Of the tempest
that destroyed his ship was one poor mar
incrs salvation He was tossed up into
this creyice by a monstrous wave as neat.
" as billiard bal Is shot into pocket.
There lie lay inscnsiblc, but he was found
in true to save him, and was hoisled TO
the top Of the prccipce above. The
chance Of his going into the crcyice when
thr Dunbar broke up was rather less than
that Of throwing pea into a nail-holG in
wall twenty feet of N T. Times,