The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1874-11-20
USEFUL FTSI-EFNES.
THE EXTRAORDINARY STORY TOLD BY a
MONTANA MINER.


Park last week, jack rabbit came along,
and stopped to look at US.
''If l had thought to bring my revolver
along we would hare jack on toast for
breakfast tomorrow | remarked.
''Not with my consent" he replied.
What reason oan you give for not CON
sentng %
"a rabbit saved my life, and have not
killed one since, and will never kill ono
again"
How did he manage TO save your life ?''
"Three years ago l was living in Mon
tana. A smelter had just been built, and
created demand for silver rock. l owned
an interest in a lead that-had been sunk
thirty feet. Thinking the time had come
to make is available, L concluded TO go
there and get some ore and have it tested.
| did SO; aud reached the place just ia
time to take shelter i'll the mine from a
terrible hailstorm. | lighted my candle,
went to the bottom and went to work.
- had OF been there m IRE than five min,
utes when | heard a noise that sounded
like a cannon. The rock over my head
shook, and in a moment the shaft behind
me cayed. You can imagine my feelings
better than l can describe them, when L
found myself buried alive. l trsmbls
/ even at this distant day when l think of
that moment The roof of the shaft was
rOcss, and when they came down they did
not pack SO tight bu. what the air came
through. There was nothing that l could
. do to release myself. l knew that if relief
did not come from the outside | must per-
ish. No one knew ! had gone there. A
road ian past the mouth of the shaft but
+ it was not travelled much, and l was not
likely to attract attention 10y calling; never
theless, shouted at intervals all day. Tie
following morning l commenced calling
! again and all day, whenever l thought l
! heard sound, l shouted.
when night came again all hopes OF
being released had abandoned me. One
thing added great bitterness to my suffer
ings. L owed quite large amount of
money, and should my fate remain un-
known, my creditors would think 1 had
fled to defIaud them, and my name would
be soigmatized.
~ will not dwell on the aGonies /. en-
dured ; am sorry | cannot forget them.
The morning of the fourth day of rly
Imprisonment, | heard something crawl
into my grave. L lighted my candle aud
saw a rabbit There was only one aper-
ture large enough to adpft him / closed
it to prevent hIs escape | saw in him food
to appeaso my hunger, and my hand was
raised to kill him, when a thought occurred
to me that prevented the blow from de-
scending. / had two fish lines their
united length would reach to the road.
took off my shirt, tore it into strings, tied
them together, and on to the fish line.
wore long gold watch, chain | tied it on
10 the part of the line that would cross the
road. | then cut several leaves from my
diary, w,lich wrote on and lied to that. art
of the line that would be out side. | then
tied the end made out OF my shirt around
jack neck and let him ont. He soon
! reached the end of the line, and ] knew
by the way he was pulling that he was
making desperate attempts to escape.
Soon the tuggiug- stopped, and knowing
gnawing to be Jacks chief accomplish
ment. thought he had cut himself loose.
Aboat three hours afterward | felt the line
pulled. and some one called [ tried 20
answer but the hoarse noise l made died
in the cavern. l then pulled the line to
! show that was not dead.
/ ''All grew still again, and / knew the
/ man had gone for assistance. Then came
/ the sound of voices; | pulled in the line,
! and it brought me food. 1t took all the
f -.1 in, lao cI,of nj,
+ to reach me.
~ very large pine tree that stood near
the shaft had been the cause of my uisfor-
/ tune. 1t had been dead number OF years,
and the storm had blown it over. The
terrible blow it struck the ground had
caused the cave.
/ Jack had wound the line around
bush, and tied himself so short that he
was imprisoned outside as securely as |
had been inside He was taken to town,
put in a large cage, and supplied with ali
the rabbit delicacies the market afforded.
3 He. however. did not thrive. and the boys
believing that he pined in thought, voted
/ TO set him free. lie was taken back to his
| old girding grounds and liberated.
s'IIe not only saved my life, but became
the benefactor Of all the rabbits in the
lneighborhood-the miners refraning from
shooting any, fearing it might be him. -
/ san Francisco Golden Era.
An exchange says An erring husband,
who had exhausted all explanations for late
hours, and had no apology ready, recently
slipped into the house about one O'Clock
very softly, denuded himself gently, and
/ began rocking the cradle by the bedside,
as if he had been awakened out of sound
/ sleep by infantile cries. He had rocked
away for FIVE minutes, when Mary Jane
who had silently observed the whole ma
noeuver, said: Come TO bed, you fool, ysu!