Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1873-01-31
Death by Freezing.

Dodge, in the late storm, are taken
from the Sioux City Journol:
Mr.. Baker, the mail carrier be-
tween Sibley and Sioux Falls, s,started
out from the. former place at 10
O'Clock on Tuesday morning, the
7th inst, having as passenger A.
X. jenkins, representative of the
Ohio bridge company, and engaged
in experimenting the construction
Of an iron bridge in Lyon county,
who was bound for Rock Rapids.
Soon after the storm struck them,
when about thirteen miles from
Slblcy, they lost the road and the
horses were soon floundering in a
snow drift. Baker and jenkins both
got out and attempted to get the
horses out of the drift, but were
unable to do SO, and finally doubly
blanketed the horses, leaving them
as comfortable as possible, and
themselves crawled back into the
hack. Their clothes were otcourse
wet and cold from working in the
snow, and must have soon after
frozen to their limbs, despite their
efforts to the contrary.
In this terrible condition Baker
and jenkins passed Tuesday night.
When morning came they found the
stage horses frozen dead. The
storm had not abated whit, and
what was still worse, there was no
visible prospect Of it doing so. No
circumstance occurred OF parti-
cularly noticeable charactes during
Wednesday to the storm bound
waytarcrs. They renamed within
the hack, bundled up as warm as
they could make themselves, suffer
ing the keen pangs of hunger and
thirst and cold, painfully anxious
for the terrible storm to cease, and
well aware OF the precarious situa-
ton they were in.
Thursday morning found the men
alive, but Mr.. Jenkins reason had
departed, and Baker found himself
alone with an insane person. The
day wore slowly away and the night
drew on apace. The storm still
prevailed, bnt had modified sutfi-
ciently for people to travel with
safety. During Thursday a team
passed along the road within half
u mile of the untor1unates, but was
by them unpcrceived. Friday morn
ing, as John Dye and Ezra Monlux
were passing along that road in a
sleigh, they perceived the stage,
and Immediately drove down to it.
The spectacle there presented was
horrible to contemplate. Upon the
snow il few feet from the coach lay
the dead body Of jenkins, frozen
stiff, his hands and feet badly
bruised by his violent endeavors,
undoubtedly, to keep his blood cir
culating. lie died on Friday morn
ing, probably not long before the
stage was discovered by. Dye and
Monlux. On opening the oil-cloth
curtain on one side of the hack,
they found Baker sitting with his
head dropped sidewise on his
shoulder, bundled up with robes
and blankets. They supposed he
was dead, but he heard the sudden
rustic of the oilcloth, and turned his
head, recognized his deliverers by
saying, "Why John, is that you?"
lie was instantly transferred from
the hack to the sleigh and driven
hastily to the nearest residence,
that of Mr.. Bailey, on the Little
Rock river, where he was tenderly
cared for, and from whence he was
subsequently, taken with the body
of jenkins tc Sibley. When our
informant left that town it was not
yet known whether Bakers legs
would have to be amputated or not,
though at times he was SO conscious
Of a prickling sensation in them, as
though the blood was gradually
renewing its circulation. Baker is
a bachelor aud has property valued
at about $1,000.
(. w. II. Wright, Esq, Of Fort
Dodge, father-in-law to Mr.. jenkins
returned to LcMars last night from
Sibley with the corpse, en- route for
home. just before Mr.. jenkins left
Fort Dodge for Rock Rapids he
took out a life policy Of IS 900 and
handed to his wife saying, 81 have
had my life insured; here, take
this" Mrs. Jenkins received the
document, and as she did so burst