River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1880-01-01
A TERRIBLE NIGHT.
Recalling an Incident # Years Ago.
Er4azin o. n Heath In TN firm.

Recalling an incident IL fesrS Ago.
Freezing to Death Up the silver.
neutrality-suspicious. ofthe Philadelphia Times
FQuINuNK, Pa, Dec. 12-R aftmen, re-
turning from down the river, bring
news Of the death of Mrs. Jacob Moser.
Of Mosertown, Northampton county,
which recalls the frightful work of a
winter night fiity-two years ago, by
which the deceased was mace widow.
1t is "reminiscences of the days when
transportation between Philadelphia
and Easlon was by Durham boats, a
style of craft unknown to this genera
ton.
One day in January. 1928, Jacob
Moser, his brother-in-law, Jerome Mil
Ter, his brother, Rinaldo Moser, and a
cousin named Cortright, were running a
Durham oat from Philadelphia with a
cargo Of whisky. Jacob Moser was
powerful man OF so; Miller was about
the same age, and Rinaldo Moser and
Cortright were lads of Is. Night was
approaching when they were in the
vicinity of Bristol, and they were
caught in q violent storm of wind and
sleet. Unable to make landing on
either shore, they ran their boat on
small island. As it grew dark the
storm increased in fury, and it was
bitter cold. People who remember
that night say that it was the most fear
full one ever known on the river. The
mercury stood below zero and the
wind blew gale. The storm had
commenced with rain, and, IS the cold
increased, the rain was frozen into great
pellets of ice. which the wind hurled
about with tremendous force. To this
awful war of the elements the four boat
men were exposed, with not scrap of
wood on the island with which a fire
might be kipdled, and nothing to shelter
them from the storm. They attempted
to keep warm by running up and down
the island, and, after an hours incessant
exercise in that way, which rendered
but little relief, one of the party sug-
gested the rolling of barrel OF whisky
from the boat and setting it on fire.
This happy thought inspired the freez.
ing crew with hope, and with great diff
ficulty they unloaded one of the barrels.
Then the appalling discovery was made
that there was not match in the pos
session of any of the party. From that
moment Jacob Moser lost his heart. He
would not make any further effort to
keep warm, and for a long time his
brother and Miller dragged him about
the island, endeavoring to keep his
blood in circulation, all to no purpose.
for ut the end of an hour he was beyond
all hope, and they were dragging a
frozen corpse between them. When
the discovery was made that there were
no matches, young Cortright knocked
the head of whisky barrel in With a
stone, and let himself into the liquor
up to his chin. Miller and Rinaldo
Moser continued to fight all night long
against the terrible death that assaulted
them. When daylight appeared they
were discovered by other boatmen, and
a rescuing party started after them. At
the sight of the boat approaching, the
the wonderful nerve that had kept
Rinaldo Moser alive through the fear
fui night deserted him, ana he fell to
the ground unconscious. Jerome Mil
Ter, although his hands, ears, and face,
were frozen as white as snow, and his
feet were so stiff that he could scarcely
move, never lost consciousne IS. Cort-
rights face and ears were terribly
frozen, the latter SO badly that they
dropped from his head. The cold had
not penetrated where the whisky COW
cred him, but from his neck down he
was one immense blister, the liquor
burned him so.
The three survivors of the awful
night and the dead body of its victim
were removed to Bristol and subse-
quently to Mosertown. Rinaldo Moser's
legs were amputated at the thigh, as
they were so terribly frozen that it was
impossible TO save them. He lived, and
became one of the most robust men on
the river. He took up his residence
with his sister-in-law, the widow of
Jacob, and for forty-nine years sup
ported himself and her ferrying people
across the river and by fishing. He be-
came known as the "Legless Ferryman"
and no character was better known
than he was from one end of the river
to the other. He was mot expert
oarsman, and had few equals as a
scientific fisherman. The facility with
which he got around on his legless
body was wonderful. He died in De-
cember, 1876 aged &c years.
Jerome Miller and Cortright both re-
covered, but both met tragic deaths
soon afterward. Miller was drowned
in 1929 in the Delaware, and some
years afterward Cortright was burned
to death in New Jersey. Jacob Moser
left two sons. One of them was
drowned in the Lehigh river a few years
ago, and about the same time the other
was drowned in the Delaware. The
death of their mother removes the last
survivor of the singularly fated family.
She was about 76 years old.