Connecticut western news., 1884-04-02
TERRORS OF A SNOW SLIDE.
A GALLANT RESCUE
A Family Buried Under an Avalanche In
 Nevada-In Darkness and Terror.
From the Carson Appeal.l

city, brought the news of a gallant rescue of family of six persons found under a snow slide in Woodford's s Canyon. The scene of the snow slide was on old deserted shingle mill. Wood ford's canyon is deep and picturesque gorge in the mountains, five or six miles long, and leads into Hope valley. In the fall of last year Q family, consist ing of man and his wife and four chil- dren, came over the mountains and camped at the old shingle mill in the canyon. The season was very late, and though repeatedly warned, the family, deceived by the pleasant weather, con- tinued to remain. After the first snow the man, whose name was Maxwell, came down to Woodford's and made ar rangements to have two horses taken care of during the winter. He said he had no money to pay for the feed at the time. but would redeem them in the spring. He also said that he made up his mind to winter in the canyon, as 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 it had given evidence of standing a good many winters he would risk it.
 On Thursday there was heavy fall of snow in the canyon, followed by sunny day on Friday. During the day there were several large slides of snow from the rocks which rise on the sides of the canyon, in some instances as high as 300 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 bot tom of the gorge. During the night MT. Merk, the toll-gate keeper, heard several of these slides, and the next day the road up to the canyon was choked with snow. On Sunday 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. The slide had commenced on the steep mountain side, about 200 yards up the slope, and started number of boulders in it's course. The track of the ava lanche was marked with prostrate pines, and the mass of snow upon the log structure lay packed hard to the depth of ten or fifteen feet. Seeing he could do nothing, Merk returned to Wood lords and soon raised 8 force of dozen or twenty men, who went up with shovels and picks and other appliances to effect rescue.
 The snow was packed so hard that il was almost like solid rock, and required picks yielded 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 g 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 portion ol the time two shifts worked at separate places.
 At little before Il o'clock the work men cleared away a place where they reached one of the logs which formed 6 portion of the wall of the stable. They hammered on this with an axe anG waited for an answering knock. While they waited and listened with intense interest, one of them vowed that hC could hear faint taps from within, bu the others doubted. The log was agair struck with an axe, and this time there came several distinct knocks, and tht outsiders broke into a cheer that made the old canyon ring. By midnight they had cut through the log, but it was hart work, as the snow was packed hart about 1t, and the hole made was not ove few inches wide at the lower end When the edge of the axe went througl they called at the aperture, and wer answered by voice: "For Gods sak push in something to eat; my childrel are dying" In a moment bread, mea and small flask of brandy were passe through the aperture, and the wearie toilers in the snow sprang to the wor and made fresh attack upon the lo which imprisoned six people. The cleared away the snow several feet abov and it was 3 o'clock in the morning be fore they cut through the log, about si feet above the first cut. Then came
 fear that the place between the two cut would fall inward and crush the family The second hole, however, gave bette chance of communication, and Maxwe said that if they would get a candle ill t him he would tell where the log woul fall. A candle was taken from a lanter and given to him with matches tied to i In few moments the glow of light wa seen from the outside, and this ligh must have been very welcome to tn Maxwell family, as they had been in tott darkness since Friday night, when tn avalanche struck the stable. He 500 called out to push the log forward, but was fast and required considerable pry ing with crowbars before it yielded.
 Those nearest the aperture followe, the log, and climbed through the open ing with lanterns. There, in a spac about ten feet square, was Maxwell an his family. His wife was lying on
 mattress and some blankets, with young child in her arms, and thre others clinging to her and crying bitter ly. When the lantern shone on thei faces they put their hands to their eye and turned away in fear. The woma was hardly able to move, and Maxwell who had kept stout heart through a the long days and nights of darkness