The Albany register. [volume] (Albany, Or.) 1868-18??, 1875-02-26
MOUNTAIN PERILS.
Terrible storms and Snow-s1ides In Utah
SnoSy Forty Feet Deep.

!
A correspondent, writing from Salt
Lake City, Utah, to the Davenport
| Gazette, says In one of our mining
camps known as {" Big Cottonwood, the
mountain peaks loom up to the height of
/ from II 900 to H. 900 feet, and, during
the winter, the snow storms rage inces-
| sanity. Consequently the camp is sub
jeeted to the most terrific snow-shdes.
One of those storms was of the most
fearful character-not little fall of snow
of six or eight inches during night, but
that many feet, with the wind howling, and
drifting the snow in every direction.
There are places up there where the snow
is probably forty feet deep. These
avalanches are caused by the wind sweep
ing up one side of the mountain, and
forming large drift just over the ridge
on the opposite side, which soon becomes
too heavy, and detaching itself, plunges
down the mountain, increasing in size
until a moving mass of snow, covering
acres, and ten to forty feet thick, sweeps
with the rapidity of lightning down into
the canons, carrying everything before
it. No soft snow, but packed and
jamlned togt ther so perfectly solid that
the moment the mass stops, heavily
loaded ore-teams can be driven anywhere
on top of it, the horses shoes only max
ing an impression. A person In front
of one of these slides can commence his
prayers none too quick. Wading in
snow anywhere from his knees to his
neck, with it blowing so that he can't see
four feet in advance of him, he doesn't
| have the least chance to escape, although
he knows one is coming by the terrible
roar it makes, which can be heard at q
| long distance.
One of these slides swept over mine
called the "Anna," last Tuesday, killing
four men. The mine was working six
men, on eight-hour shifts, which
necessarily kept two men at work while
four were either sleeping or resting.
Their cabin, or rather boarding house,
Immediately in front of the tunnel they
were running, was built very strong, and
considered safe from slides. At twelve
O'Clock at night the shifts were changed,
and the two men whose duty came on
left two of the men in the house asleep,
and the other two sitting up at the fire.
One had commenced writing o letter,
and the other was sitting ON stool
smoking his pipe.
The two men had just reached the face
(or back end OF the tunnel, which was Ill
distance of 400 feet), and one had raised
the sledge to strike the drill whom they
heard the roar of the slide. They ran
back to the mouth, which the slide had
ran over leaving it filed with about five
feet of snow which they had to dig
through, and, on getting out, found moth
ing in sight. They raised an alarm as
soon as possible, and, getting word up to
the mine called the GO Prince of Wales, !"
which was running about 100 hands,
they all turned out and commenced
digging for the house, which was not
found until late the next morning. 1t
had been carried down the mountain
about 2, 200 feet with about thirty feet of
snow on top of it.
Four men inside were found just as the
other two had left them. The snow had
broken through the roof, and had en-
veloped them 30 suddenly that they had
not moved. They were not bruised in
any way, but had been suffocated. The
man sat there at the table in the act of
writing, the inkstand not even having
tipped over, but tho man smoking had
probably heard it coming one second
before he was struck, as his pipe lay be-
tween his feet. There they sat, nodded
in the snow, looking as perfectly natural
as if alive. The two men in bed could
not even have woke up-they 10y IN their
beds with the blankets over them as
smoothly as if just laid on. The men
who helped dig them out, and who
brought the bodies into the city, said
that by the looks of the men they couldn't
have awakened at all.