Bradford opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1874-1881, 1877-06-16
A STIRRING ADVENTURE.
Dcnu, NJ the bottom Of u Wcil..IIcroic A.
tempt NJ Rescue.

tempt NJ Rescue.
A gas-fitter and plumber named
Thomas Flemming, went down into n well
on the premises of Charles Sprague neal
Whitestone, l.. J., to mend leaks in Il
pipe. The well was thirty-Ave feet deep.
He took with him into the well char
coal furnace to heat his soldering irons.
When he had been engaged, perhaps
half m hour, he complained to his as
sistant, who was working at the top OF
the well, of sense of suffocation. A
few minutes later he attempted to pull
himself up, hand over hand. When
within foot or two Of the top Of the
well his strength failed him, and while
holding to the rope called to his assis-
tant, mere boy, to pull him up. This
the boy had not strength enough to do,
and he ran for assistance. Before he 70.
turned with Thomas Smith, Flemming
had fallen to the bottom. Smith and the
boy shouted to Flemming and lowered II
rope for him to grasp, but he failed to
respond to either. Some ladies' had come
from the adjacent houses, and Smith
ventured down the well to fasten rope
to the body of Flemming. This he did,
and then tried to ascend by the pipes.
When half way up, either from exhaus-
ton or partial suffocation, ho fell to the
bottom Of the well, coming in contact
with the body of Flemming. Those
above attempted to pull Flemming's
body up, but could not, and additional
help was summoned. When additional
help arrived, the body of Flemming was
brought slowly from the bottom, but I'M
fortunately, when about half way up the
rope broke and the body fell again to the
bottom of the we'll, striking on Smiths
head. Tothose on terra .f,ma it seemed
that both men must perish. 1t was
quickly determined to sound general
alarm, and in few minutes hundreds of
people were on the premises. Not one
among the men seemed willing to de-
scend into the well. The women wrung
their hands in agony. Presently there
came Winfield s. Overton, who consented
to descend, and in few minutes strong
hands were lowering him gradually into
what was believed to be pit of death.
He carried with him signaling line. The
foul air and gases affected him slightly
when half way down. At the bottom he
groped around and felt leg, to which
he attached the signaling line. Then he
felt another leg, and having secured a
rope to that, signaled to be drawn up.
Almost as soon as his head reached the |
surface, the body of Smith WAS alongside
Of him. There was yet life and Drs.
Bleeker and Pitt set to work to resusci-
tate him. He groaned occasionally, and
in about an hour was so far restored as
to leave no doubt of his speedy return to
After needed rest,
Overton again descended into the well
to secure the body of Flemming. He
discovered the mans head and shoulders
just above the water level. He suddenly
became conscious that his senses were
departing, and with one quick effort he
secured the rope under Flemmings arms,
md signaled to be hoisted to the surface.
He was in state of emi-consciousness,
md pulled the signal rope but twice in
stead of three times, SO that the men
sbove did not Immediately heed the sig
lal. He became totally unconscious.
Two or three minutes later the men,
thinking he had been down long enough,
loisted him to the surface. A chill OF
error seized the crowd as Overton's
'enseless body, which many supposed to
,e his corpse, was pulled over the side
If the well house. A minute later and
corpse was lifted out. He
lad been dead perhaps fifteen minutes.
The doctors soon restored Overton to
1t is believed that the
charcoal furnace generated large quanti-
y of carbonic acid gas, which fell to
he bottom, and together with the damp
md foul air, produced suffocation.