The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1879-10-24
BURIED ALIVE IN A WELL.

BURIED ALIVE IN WELL.
Last Friday, at noon, says the Neilsvillc
(Wis,) Repubdcdn, well being dug at
the fair grounds caved in at the bottom
after it had reached depth of 11G feet,
burylng William Selves, a workman, under
about thirteen feet of sand, measuring from
his head, while he was in nearly au upright
position. The well had reached a depth
OF ono hundred feet, when a stratum of
loose white sand was reached, which made
curbiny necessary. An upright curling
In sections four feet long was used. While
putting in the fourth section the cavinp in
OF the well took place, first crashing in the
lower section, which was not finished. and
fsasses salses'a solid gard ns,Fly 70 sasss
armplts. 1t was instantly followed by the
three sections above, which were crushed
In the centre. On seeing it start Selves
had instantly raised a section of the curb.
ms over his head, bending backward, face
up, with the arm supporting the piece of
curbing stretched above his head. In this
position the sand settled about him, com
plctely binding him except his head and
one arm, which he could move at that time
The section of curbing which he had raised
above his head created vacuum which
Tor short time communicated with the
vacuum through tho centre of the we'll.
made by the coming together of the barrel.
like curbing. AS soon as possible a gas
pipe Tor the purpose Of pumping air to him
was inserted through tho opening. Selves,
who then had one hand a, liberty, placed
1t as near his mouth as the boards over him
would permit. Soon after this was accom-.
plished the sand settled solidly above him,
leaving only the vacuum under the board,
which soon filled SO close as to imprison
the arm that had been at liberty and also
to render his head immovable
In this situation, plainly depicted by
himself in sepulchral tones through the air
tube and perfectly audible at the top of the
well, William Selves, then six hours with
out food and cramped and chilled by the
cold sand, he would hold on to life if there
were brave hearts enough above him to
undertake his release, knowing full we'll
the danger to those who might attempt
it in hurry. The task was to remove
from thirteen to eighteen feet of sand from
the bottom of a we'll 116 feet deep, by put.
ting in new curbing while taking out the
sapa aS and 80 Ssers Of the old eurbing and
tie vacuum above his face. Coupled with
this task was the appalling danger to the
workmen of fresh caving of the we'll, now
more imminent than the first for above
tho ominous vacuum made by the caving
of the sand. hung the hundred feet of clay
wall with no support but its own adhesion,
its natural foundation Of sand being gone.
The bore through the clay being but twenty
seven inches in diameter, could not, for
lack Of both time and space, be curbed.
In the face of these discouragcments
were brave hearts enough found t. work
night and day, never Stacking except for
short time on Saturday morning, when
for time further attempts seemed suicidal,
by reason of the caving in of small por-
tion of the clay wall But soon new pre-.
cautions were devised, and the almost
hopeless work went on to its practical con
clusion at l o'clock this Sunday morning
when friendly hand raised the plank anG
brushed the sand from the now nearly un
conscious face. He had retained his mine
perfectly up to few minutes before, whcr
the tenderly cautious hands above him, il
spite of their care, had so disturbed tht
| sand as to cover his face, and interrupt the
supply cf air from the tube.
He returned to perfect consciousness il
a few moments, and his head released, tn,
work went rapidly OH, he himself helping
materially after his arms were released. A
$50 o'clock, nearly forty hours after hi:
incarceration, William Selves stepped firm
y from the mouth of his living grave, and
was received in the arms of his young wifi
amid glad shouts Of the throng who had 81
long shared his suspense. His cxertions il
assisting to free himself had given him the
use of his limbs again, and when he reached
the surface about all he seemed to nect
was nourshment, which he had not hat
since the Friday morning before, nearl
two days.
A CAREER OF DISSIPATION ENDED
A young man named Frank Hayward, q