The morning call., 1890-09-07
MRS. MARY
GRAVES CLARK.
The Heroine of the Most Terrible
Of All Journeys.
Survivor Of the Famous Bonner Party-Thirty-
two Days in Crossing the Sferras on
Foot in Winter

Mrs. Mary Graves Clark, one of the sur
viyorS of The famous Bonner party, is stop
ping at the Grand Hotel. Perhaps of all
stories of human suffering and heroism that
have ever been told since the world began,
the story of this Bonner party is at once the
most horrible and the most sublime.
Looking into the kindly face of the low
able old lady. as she sat IN a room of the
Grand Hotel last night and told the story of
her sufferings to a CALL reporter, it was
almost impossible TO believe that fOrty-four
years ago she had crossed the Sierras on foot
over thirty feet of snow, sustaining life dur
ing that terrible journey of thirty-two days
first on a little dried meat, then on leather
and finally on the flesh of her companions
who fell dead by the way, yet such is the
simple truth.
A FATHERS COMMAND.
To people living in the comforts of civili-
zation it seems horrible thing for a dying
father to command his two daughters to eat
his flesh after he was dead; yet the father
of Mrs. Clark so commanded her and her
sister in order that they might reach settle
ment and send aid to his wife and little
ones whom he had left behind. Mr.. Graves
flesh was eaten, but not by his daughters.
Another of the party died the same night.
Mrs. Clark's face shows the traces of that
awful Journey. After she talks awhile
about that experience and the scenes are re-
called freshly to her mind the lines of an
indomitable viii show deep in the other
wise pleasing face-a Will that defied hard
ship distance and death and brought her
through it all alive to tell the tale.
The story of how the emigrant train
known as the Bonner party, on its journey
%, C,1f ~, xrfnc ltrf ha
SHOWS Of that terrible winter on the other
slope of the SierraS and hemmed in to Starve
has been told and retOld until every Cali
fornan knows it by heart The large train
was compelled to camp on Bonner Lake in
November, 1916, and fifteen OF The party
started to cross the Sierras on snow-shoeS
for the purpose of bringing suecor to the
rest.
Mrs. Clark, then Mary Graves, a girl of
twenty years, was one of that fifteen. With
her was her father, her sister and her sisters
husband. The party contained ten men and
i've women; the five women and two OF the
men came out alive. The rest were either
eaten by the survivors or left in the snow.
Two of the men were Indians 1t is to the
eternal credit of theIred men that they sto
iea4i44y died rather than eat human flesh.
THE FIRST DEATH.
The first death occurred on the 9th
night out The party had built fire and
the heat melted the snow, the fire sinking
well was warmth. Young Stanton sat with
bis back to the snow before the fire, and.
lighting his pipe, told the rest to go on; he
would travel no further Mary Graves
pleaded and reasoned with him, but to no
avail. The young man sat there smoking,
and saw his companions leave him.
Months later his dead body. still
sitting upright, guided Nathaniel Rhodes,
who was marching TO the relief OF the in
pris ned people beyond.
NGf long after they lafr Stanton to die
alone, hunger began to dull the sensibili-
ties of the struggling party. They held a
council and decided that one of the party
should die TO save the rest. Little sticks
were prepared 10 draw as lots, but
they could never drive themselves TO the lot
terry. The sacrifice was not needed. One by
one members of the party fell by the way
and died. The flesh of these sustained life.
THEIR FIRST FOOD.
By piece Of rare good fortune, half
starved deer was killed. Mary Graves,
who was the most vigorous of the party,
tracked the ANIMAL and guided a man named
Reed to where he could shoot il. After II
WAS shot the animal was nearly lost 10
them. 1t sprang down steep gorge, seek;
ing to rSach Fwollen stream that rushed
and foamed~2+ar the rocks with a current
thai would havs swept the deer out OF thelI
reacn, but the animal caught In some
bushes Just at the edge and was held.
Mary Graves climbed down that danger
Gus snow-coyered bank and cut the throat
of the deer. Then she cut ont the liver and
tried TO carry it to the top of the gorge
where her sister and brother-in-law were
Her brOther-ln-law was fast dying of hun
ger. Ii she could reach him his life would
be saved, but again and again she slipped
back down the bank. Night fell and rem.
dered the ascent impossible. Her brother.
in-law died that night within stones
throw Of food.
WANTED TO KILL HER.
Once this same man Reed tried TO entict
Mary Graves away from the rest OF the
party so he might kill and eat her. In his
half-delirium he LET fell snrae " orGs which
GyprIseu Ier OF mis- intention. She told him
be might kill her, but he must do it near the
rest so her sister might get some of hel
flesh. After that she kept with her sister
but Reed did not try to kill her.
The remnant of the party gained The coun-
try below at last, and then many relief
parties set out to carry succOr to those OIL
the other slope. Nathaniel Rhodes, who i.
now stopping in the city, was the first tC
reach them. He and seven companion
carried provisions TO them on their back
after the Others of the relief party haC
turned back in despair with the pack train
Since that memorable time Mrs. Clark ha
lived mostly in San Jose. She was the frs
female school-teacher of that town. She
still vigorous and seems good for a lonl
lease OF life. 1t is only when she recall
those terrible scenes to her mind that sh
seems to fade into a weary old woman.