The New Bloomfield, Pa. times. (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1877-188?, 1879-09-09
THE TIMES NEW BLOOMFIELD, PA. SEPTEMBER O. 1879

night, and 1t meant to hold Its victim
fast, now that 1t had fairly caught
them.
Mccoy once more urged retreat, but
in the hope that the storm would abate,
1t was decided to defer their departure
for while. There was danger of be-
coming lost when they could not see
where they were going, and 1t looked
simply prudent to wait
However, it proved great mistake
The snow storm was one of the severest
ever known in that section. For six
days succeeding there never was min
ute of cessation.
Sometimes, of course, the fall was
more rapid than at other times; but the
flakes were drifting downward all the
while, and when the crystal clouds
finally exhausted themselves, the snow
lay fully eight feet deep in the canon,
while mountainous masses curled into
all sorts of fantastic shapes and hung
over the cliff. The sight was sublime,
but the fire was needed for cooking, and
its warmth was very pleasant.
On the third day, it became apparent
that there was no saving the mule, and
he was shot, dressed and placed away
in the snow against all contingencies.
It's good deal better to eat mule
meat than to starve to DEATH
With the abatement of the storm the
sun came out and shone with great
brightness. This started thaw, which
continued a couple of days, though it
was not to be expected that it would
last until the snow disappeared. 1t
would require weeks of such weather,
and that was very improbable at this
season of the year, for November had
grown into winter.
During all these long, dismal days of
the storm, the miners remained within
the hut, smoking, sleeping, eating and
passing the time as best they could but
with the appearance of the sun they dug
their way out, and climbing up the
ledge where they had been working,
cleared away some of the snow and
commenced work again.
They kept up good hearts, for the men
were old miners, whose experience was
mainly history of bad luck, and they
tried to cheer themselves with the belief
that their long expected fortune had
come at last.
But such was not the case. There
was chloride ore beyond question, but it
didn't pan out well.
The three men were pegging away as
hard as ever toward the close of the
day, when, as the twilight gathered in
the canon, a low, rumbling sound
caused them to stop and look at each
other with blanched faces, wondering
what it could mean.
1t sounded like the muttering of an
earthquake, and the miners would have
set it down for that, but for the fact that
there was no perceptible tremor in the
ground.
The terrible grumble grew louder and
louder, until, looking.up, they saw an
enormous mass of snow sliding down
from the cliffs far above their heads.
$50 for camp, boys" yelled Nc
Donald, leaping from the ledge and
scrambling desperately through the
snow, his companions but few seconds
behind him.
They were only a rod or two from
shelter, but the snow was upon them
before they reached it. But the ava
lanche, as it may be called, did not fall
at once: it began like torrent rushing
through bank, growing more mas
sive, alarming and stupendous each
second.
Thus it was the miners succeeded in
plunging into the cabin, head first,
just in time.
The frightened men had barely oppor-
tunity to crawl into their prison, when
down came the main body of the ava
lanche, composed of snow, ice, trees and
boulders, burying the party to a depth
of forty feet.
The projecting rock and the strong
poles saved them from being crushed to
death. Some of the supports gave way
under the enormous pressure, but con-
siderable space was left in which the
poor fellows could move about.
1t was as dark as midnight, and as
soon as the miners found they were all
there unharmed, they concluded they
would be smothered to death, for it
seemed that it would take but brief
time to use up all the air at their COM