Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1891-05-28
Notable Case Which Illustrates Some
OF the Dangers Experienced in
Travelling.
Men Lost in the Desert Often Become
CraZed From Exposure and
Thirst.


plies. He took a two-horse wagon aud
was accompanied by driver While in
camp on the way, in some manner the
horses got away from them and struck out
for home. This, by the way, is danger
that all old desert travellers guard against.
Horses appear to have perfect under
standing of the danger attending such
journeys, and never lose an opportunity to
run away. Within the writer's personal
experience, a team broke loose from camp
on the Colorado desert one evening, aud
by surprise the next morning they reached
home, nearly sixty miles distant.
Professor Palmer and his companion be-
ing thus left on foot In the midst of the
desert, their only recOurce was to push on
as best they could to their destination
They were of course, unable to carry suf-
ticient food and water, and for two days
they were obliged to subsist upon the
scantiest of supplies, all the time toiling
under brolllng sun over the burning
waste. The driver as is usually the case,
became partially insane, and it was with
difficulty Professor Palmer was able to re-
tain control Of HIM. They finally reached
Dagget, however, in an almost exhausted
condition. and from there Palmer went by
rail to Claremont, in Los Angeles county,
which is his fathers residence, to recuppr-
ate again ami is undecided whether to re-
turn TO Death Valley or not
This experience brings to mind a long
list of cases in which the participants
were not so fortunate as Palmer and his
companion. The number OF men who
have lost their lives on the desert will
never be known, but an idea may be
formed from the fact that In a single sea-
son the writer Kept a record Of thirteen
| who thus persisted. In the old ante-rail-
road days it was frequent occurrence for
the Arizona team5ter and staga-driverS to
tell of the finding by the roadside the
bodies OF men whe had evidently persisted
from thirst. Generally the discovers Of
such CHASTITY remains would dig shallow
hole and give them burial. The coroner
was never called on to officiate, and if he
had been it is doubtful whether he would
have rlsked his life by going 10 the scene.
& notable case, illustrating the danger to
which even the most experienced desert
| traveller is subjected, was that of resident
OF San Bernardine named Cornman, which
occurred out fifteen years ago. \ young
man was sent out by Cornman to visit the
remote mining camps of Ivanpah and Res
ling Springs for the purpose of obtaining
the election returns. After he had been
gone few hours ii struck Cornman that
The messenger bad never been on the des-
ert, and was IN danger OF being lost. AS
he was himself familiar with the routes,
| he sadded a horse, filled a canteen and
started out. Overtaking the messenger he
sent him back, and then continued or what
was destined to prove his death Journey.
He reached the camp. obtained the
returns, and then started back for San
Bernardino But he never reached that
place.
Some time elapsed, and finally parties
arrived in town who had left Ivanpah sew
eral days after Cornman8 departure Tn 5
at once caused al investigation to be made
Experienced crackers were put on trail, and
they found where COrnman, evidently
crazed with thirst, and left the road in
search Of water. had wandered aimlessIy
about for miles, and finally had come back
within a few yards Of the highway. Com
petely worn out, he had thrown himself
down by the side of a boulder and blown
out his brains with siX-shooter to which
he had chung through his Undesirable
sufferings. He left a rudely scrOwed note
stating that he was lost, that his horse had
got away, and that there was no other ref
! uge except suicide.
The singular fact that the belief of the
the victim that he is lost is almost i'm.
r1ediately productive of insanity has been
noted in scores of instances. The pro-
found disolatlon. the appalling quietude:
the tremendous heat of the sun, and the
awful tortures of thirst combine to upset
the stouteSt intellect in an incredibly short
time. While one of the surveying parties
was running the lines for the railroad
across the desert some twenty years or
| more ago, a young man connected with
the party lost his life In a remarkable
manner. In some way he became separat-
ed from his companions in a section that
was traveTsed by range OF low hills.
While he lost sight of the wagon and his
fellow travellers they were in a position
in the hill where they could see him in a
valley below For while he appeared to
be walking along, easily following the
| track left by the wagons. Then he began
| to wander about. After watching him
through their glasses for some time they
| became convinced that something was
wrong, and several Of the party hurried
down into the valley after him. When
| they reached him they found that he was
| stark crazy, having become so through
thirst and the entirely unfouuded belief
that he was lost. He was carried to the
camp and tenderly cared for, but died the
same night, victim Of his own magma
| ton.
In case within the writer's personal
knowledge two pr0spectors found them
oneselves day without water, and to their
| dismay the spring or water hole which
they had dewended upon for supply was
! entirely dried up. Instead Of wasting
time searching for other springs which
might or might not exist, they decided that
their only safety lay in taking the back
| track to the point from which they had
started The journey took all day and
portion of the night. One of the men be
came crazy, imagined he saw lakes and
rivers and wanted to rush to them. The
other, however, retained his senses and
| finally mad to draw his six shooter and at
It's muzzle force his companion to keep III
the trail ahead IF him. Their sutferlngs
were terrible ut they reached a spring at
last after eighteen hours OF torture.
Several years ago the writer happened to
| be camping at Aqua Caliente, on the Arl-
IONA mountain. 1t was a bright moon
light night, and a chance to walk a short
! distance from camp, d wagon was found,
apparently deserted and attached to which
were four bony horses in the last stages OF
starvation. The old rickety vehlcklie was
covered with a ragged sheet OF canvas.
and on turning this back an old man was
| found apparently dead. Examination,
however, showed him to be alive, and some
stimulant diluted with milk was quickly
,,btainpd and poured down MS parched
| nd blackened throat. 1t was heartrend-
| NO to hear the poor fellow tell of his aw-