The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1884-09-10
IN A WRECKED CAR.
EXPERIENCE or A YOUNG WOMAN
IN THE RECENT DISASTER NEAR
AMiiLiiST, VA.
She Feels tho Car Descend at n Rapid
Nntc, but does not Suspect DANGER
Brave Men Come to the Rescue.
From the Augusta (Ga.) chronicle.l


From the Augusta (Ga.) Chroniclel
Tho following extracts are from let
ter by Miss Fannie w. M. Platt, now in
Lynchburg, to her father in Augusta:
ave left Washington on Saturday
on time. | was alone in my berth,
mother and Annie were together across
the aisle and only little while before
We struck the bridge | awoke, sat up
and found to my relief it was day, but
noticed that We were tearing like mad
over the road, swinging so from side to
side that lay back on my pillow again.
In a moment I felt great Jerks, jumps
and fearful turn OF the car to one side,
back again to the other and l saw
through my curtains, which, through
Gods mercy, had remained nearly
closed. that mother and Annie had been
thrown out Of their berth to the floor. l
saw things falling Mt the forward end OF
the car, and rs we began TO 60 down,
down, down, thought, Great God it
has come at last And tore back my
curtains. Not seeing mother or Annie
anywhere, / commenced calling and
begging to know il they were hurt, but
could hear nothing from them. l
reached back for my crutches. which
were in my berth next to the window,
thinking | must get to mother and
Annie somehow. The car settled easily,
| and in some way my window shade
went up and l saw that we were in
water and that men were standing on
some floating logs. But not for one in
slant did / realize where we were, or /
would have died then. turned to
spring out of my berth and, to my joy,
saw mother standing there, but with a
wild, dazed look in her face that to my
dying day will never forget. asked:
"Where is Anniep Are you hurt?
"Annie stepped to my side, and
mother said:
Something struck my head
"Annie said: The water is coming
in
"Some man said Climb to the upper
berth
"NIother and Annie caught my hands
and began to drag me up. We clung to
the curtain rods and stood on the lower
berth while the water rose nearly to our
shoulders.
"The car seemed to have settled, for
the water came no higher, and a feeling
that we would be saved came over me,
but how could not tell, rs the ventila-
tors in the car-top were the only OPEN
J ings that remained above water. They
are little frames Of glass, seven inches
high and about eighteen inches long.
The lady and gentleman broke the glass
In front of them, and he twisted the
frame from its hinges, making for them
however small, an opening to the beau
tlful world outside. Annie broke our
glass, but her weak little hands were
not equal to the task of twisting the
, hinges of what use, anyway, when the
outside was covered with stout wire
, network that imprisoned us still hat
0 our hearts bounded with Joy rs we heard
the voices of men in boats outside. We
! quietly begged them not to leave us and
were assured we would be saved. Mrs.
Farden handed her baby out through
the ventilator, and the next thing we
saw she was going out of the seven-inch
I hole in the quickest possible time.
o could pcarcely believe my eyes when hel
. husband followed, apparently without
an effort, and then sickening feeling
came over me when / saw that we vert
alone in the car-all had gone. Do no
I think mean to blame anyone. Oh, no
Il, God forbid, for truer, braver set O
n gentlemen never lived. Some one calle,
l. for an aI, and told us we would b
! saved; then came the first stroke on th
roof with dull ax that q man brough
!, from the shore in the first boat tina
a came.r
n "Annie very quietly directed then
!, where to cut so as not to strike hel
"" head. 1 do not think this quietnes'
came from our not being frightened &c
4 much as il did from kind OF despair
. Every stroke Of the Ak rebounded like
o malet, and we wondered how long w
. must wait, how long we could wait, TO
\ our suffering from the cold was yer.
a great, and it was 30 hard to have I,
d stand and see the agony in each other
IS IS face, yet never dare to say q tcnde
10 10 word, fearing il would unnerve then
at and all would be over. We heard thel
Of say:
"Ob, what dull ak; can't you 6
=, n hatchet or something better ?
I ,st cat last there was crash, and t
no blessed light shone through; more CT
ch ting and waiting while the lamp was /
no ing torn ont and the floating mattress
eipp and curtains handed out by Annie th
nd ID we might pass to the hole. Then o
is after the olher Annie, myself and mot
" er inst MS wc stood, were lifted from o.
of horrible prison by noble, brave me-
II who had worked so hard to save u.s.