St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1884-04-03

CARSON CITY, New, March l9.-Last
| fall family consisting of man named
Maxwell and his wife and four children,
came over the mountains and camped
at an old shingle mill, near Merk's toll
house, i'll Hope Valley.
The season was very late, and
though repeatedly warned by Mr..
Merk, the tOllgate keeper, the family,
deceived by the pleasant weather. con-
| timed to remain. Maxwell said he
made up his mind To winter in the
canon, us he had provisions, and game
was abundant. He was advised not to
take the risks, but he said the place he
was IN was strong structure, and as
1t had given evidence of standing a
good many winters, he would risk it.
On Thursday last there was a heavy
fall Of snow in the canon, followed by
IA sunny day on Friday. During the
day there were several large slides of
| snow from the rocks which rise on the
! sid.s OF the canon, in some instances
as nigh as 900 feet. Heavy bodies of
snow tOppled over from these heights,
and in their descent carried away large
masses of rock, which felled the pines
at the bottom of the gorge. On Sun
day he went up to the shingle mill on
snow shoes, and found that the place
occupied by the family had been buried
under the snow.
| Merk returned to WOOdford'S and
soon raised a force of II dozen or twenty
men, who went up with shOvels and
| picks and other appliances to effect IA
rescue. The snow was packed so hard
that it was almost like solid rock, and
required picks welded by stout hands
| to loosen it. By night they had
reached the logs which formed part of
| the stable, and found that the roof had
been crushed in by a boulder BY this
! time the force had been augmented,
and, building a rOusing fire in the
snow, they worked in four shifts of six
men each. each shift working an hour.
| WOOdfOrd's Station was drawn on for
supplies and, with plenty of food and
stimulants, the men kept to their work.
! During n portion of the time two shifts
worked at separate places.
At little before IL o'clock the
wOrkmen cleared away Il place where
they reached one of the logs which
formed portion of the wall of the
stable. They hammered on this with
x
knock. While they waited and listened
with intense interest, one of them
vowed that he could hear faint taps
from within, but the others doubted.
! The log was again struck with an axe,
and this time there came several dis
! tinct knocks, and the outsiders broke
into cheer that made the old canon
ring. BY midnight they had cut
through the log, but it was hard work,
as the snow was packed close about it,
and the hole made was not over a few
inches wide at the lower end. When
| the edge of the axes went through they
called at the aperture. and were an
swered 10y voice.
'For Gods sake, push in something
to eat my children are dying"
In moment bread, meat, and a
small flask of brandy were pushed
| thro0gh the aperture, and the wearied
toilers in the snow sprang to the work
and made II fresh attack upon the log
which imprisoned six people.
They cleared away the snow several
feet above, and it was o'clock in the
morning before they cut through the
log, about six feet above the first cut.
Then came fear that the place be-
tween the two cuts would fall inward
and crush the family. The second
hole, however, gave IL better chance of
communication, aud Maxwell said that
if they would get II candle in to him,
he would tell where the log would fall.
A candle was taken from a lantern and
given to him, with matches tied to it.
In Il few moments the glow of IA light
was seen from the outside, and this
light must have been very welcome to
the Maxwell family, as they had been
in total darkness since Friday night,
when the avalanche struck the stable.
He soon called out to push the log
forward, but it was fast and required
considerable prying with crOwbars be-
fore it yielded.
Those nearest the aperture followed
the log, and climbed in through the
opening with lanterns. There, in Il
space about ten feet square, was Max
well and his family. His wife was
lying on mattress and some blankets
with IA young child in her arms and
| three others clinging to her and crying
bitterly. When the lantern shOne on
their faces they put their hands on
their eyes and turned away in fear.
The woman was hardly able to move
and Maxwell, who had kept Il stout
heart through all the long days and
nights of darkness, gave out at this
point and cried like a child.
Chester, the oldest boy, who is but 8
years of age, had worked with his
father to get out, and was worn out
with hunger and exhaustion. There
were two loaves of bread within reach
, after the roof of the stable fell in, and
j the little fellow refused to touch a
# mOrsel, giving all to his mother and
: sisters. This was all the mother, the
, baby and the two daughter-MaTy and
Callie-aged and years, respective
ly, had to live on from Friday after
II noon, when they took dinner, until
S about midnight on Sunday. There
was plenty of flour and some game OF
;, the place, but the logs of the roof
which were crushed in, cut off all com
e municatiOn from these, although Max
e well and his son had vainly endeavoreG
to cut a way through a three-fOot los
90 with jack knife. The Inmates of thu
terrible prison hOuse. were taken il
u sieighs to WOodford's, where they wer
1t soon as comfortable as warm fires
" good provisions and kind attention
70 could make them. ....
ct A Postal Telegraph.
u