Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1880-11-10

Buried Alive III u Well.
Joseph N. Howell owns farm and cider
ulill sb at mile and halt southeast or the
railroad station at Sni!htoWu. l. L. MIR. How
el's house and ou,buildipgs are old and situa'
I'd in dresry sort OF place. at one corner OF
Mr.. Howais rickety old barn 8 90 old we'll
with dilspdsted oil curb. A part Of the
wslup had runblsd 10. abd The bottom OF the
we'll oeeded Gle aniug out.
Last "Wednesday afternoon w, colored men.
George A Brown and William Helms, set to
work TO repair the well. Mr.. Howell had bar
messed horse to bis gig with the inteD'ion OF
starting of On 40 eighty uiIe trip down the
issod TO take orders for cider vinegar. de gave
ipsruc ions to the colured men, aod then went
in,o he house to prepare binsef tor bis four
daps' iourney. Bronn spd Helms went to work
lmm 4distely They took long rope, made
seye al loops With one end around piece or
.in ber and dropped the other end lnto the
well, 4hich WAS sbnut Iwtntg SIX rect uesp.
The timber was pseoad across the top or the
curb, and Brown. who Wss oosslng the ,o'
q srted )wn 10 explore the well, after telllng
Helms to hold on TO tha timber and prevent 1t
over hsud, bearing part OF bis wight 90 the
stones composiag the walIipg of the we'll. he
hsd pot dowo lltte more than halt way when
tho whole walug of The well suddenly tumolsd
in. A decse cloud of dust shot up as from the
crater of 6 small volcano.
When H+lus partly regsIoed his senses ne
ran ss fast as be could la the direction or the
village He saw several persons On the road
hut he said uolhipg uDtiI he came to gaog OF
lored aborers. 10 these be told what hsd
hspuened ard they all started back with MIN
10 helm tim to dig out the body OF the man who
had been buried alive.
The c,lorsd mn set to work deliberately,
supposiog that after few hours LABOR they
..cuId t1hume the body OF the unfortunate
Brown, or Ginger" as he was al ways fanliarly
called by them. Whom they bad been at work
a frw minutes one of rn"m suddenly stopped
and ,1,Iaimsl, "Hsrk - The Workmen sus-
nended labor for moment, when they heard
,he souud of O voice directly noder their tert:
orylng Help, L. |" aud 20 Gdd, ssvs m ~
After this tho meu went TO work With redouoed
energy, hut at leugth. after baVlug holsted out
mauy tons OF earth and stones, the foundation
| 90 which they stood began TO settle. Inls put
,hem in q o1suday. They saw that IT they
oop,iuued t. work 10 the surface the stooes aod
sand would seltl. do 40 and smother the man,
| vho was all the time crSiog fnr help. CroRds
| of neonle ssiem ,led with lanterns and torches.
! and alter dsIibe:a,ion il was dsoided to sluk
new we'll by the side of the oId oue. Carpent-
ers were sent for and the work beaunI
1t took till three O'Clock Thursday afternoon
TO sink the new we'll twenty t~o fees. AT
about tsn q. m. Of that day oGn's voice
was hushed aod ev~ryb body suu1yssd him to
| be dead. Il sviog reached cnDth OF twenty
l laH
into tbs old well srd were surprised to nod
| i EMMY. A torch WAS taken down, and.
crawIiuy through the tunnel, they shouted TO
the buried uao. No response came. Then,
| lacking 40 toto the dark cIvern, they saw that
rho we'll was open up to vii hln about l5 ieet OF
tbe snr(aee of the grGuod. Tnere it was cogged
| no the wedpiup of three nr four largo boulders
| from the side of the cid we'll. Then the men
| ascended till they reaoned the level or those
handlers. and there made another tunnel. AS
thsv zach. the old we'll and began 10 pull opt
the earth aud etoocs thfy agalo heard 6toWc
voic., TO undermine him would send him TO
the bottor of inc Will, which would be certain
death, 90 the work vas suspended.
Thursday passed, and Friday uleot oamo.
Nobody kneWu what t. do. Ioere was stone
arch undcr the buried mae which prevented
him from falling to the bottom CT the we'll, snd
him from elcg crushed. a great croWo nao
oathered q, the plsc,. and il became necessary
% nut no rough railing around the Well to
keen them back. Fifty burning otches lent
| obos,lu annearsrc CO 70 the sceor, and nov and
moo the sound of q mans v4ics appealing TOR
hsIo gas heard by the excited crowd. N,body
darpd 10 20 down into the old well, ss II was
f.ared a, each removal OF bs-kstful OF
10Th tha, tb, ursh might oAvo 10. A. length
100 or three meo vcluoteered to undertake
tho wn,k mn msti:r what the c)os' 1eocss,
~, onn at tine decepded toto Tho we'll
Ton. upop tons OF Earth aad rook were ra'sso'
and b7 three O'Clock on bridsy nornioe
Brovo's voic, ojuld be distinctly hearo. ne
said that tho saod vas fast hilng 10 soooe nim
that il WAS aeatly ~ TO the l.V1 OF DIS moutn'
.u va ,ba, ;f he w.s not or inside Of twenty
nionrs he would be spf)cated. be had
,hsn been in bis living tomb about thltty-hVe
hourF. a. L., 49,,
douo r. n. jarpe stones that formed the upper
a,oh- They we're then able to converse easily
9th the entomed msn, who begged for water.
rnhher hose was 6l ei wi water aud one
ond vss LEI down 10 Tim Brown took three
sua,loVs aod then the hose was pulled out,
After about Two hours more work his head was
oot iree aud above ground. Then be uss given
hr,ndv and beef tes, A hard ,h was still be-
. fare tie the nc rknen-much harder 10. 10 tao,
thao they expec cd. After getting broWn.
body uncovered It was fluid that one OF DIE
teet wss so wedeed 10 between the stnDes con-
: po,iog be lower stch that is F, omed Impossible
70 %, it out. Houis were spentn futile attempts
70 free the eotrspped foot, add II was suRges'eu
tSa.t7e ouy wsy to get the mao ou' and save we
: bis lif, WIS 70 get surgeon to amputste the
3 ankle Bue by oopstsot wo,k the linb was ex
It tricared. spd at ten nipuses past 90 Friday
- morn,og Brown was hoissed out and sndet
safely 90 the grouno.
e bodIv bruised. He decr,b,s his seDsatloni