The morning call., 1892-01-10
CAUGHT IN A BOILER.
A Cincinnati Engineers. Startl-
ing Adventure.

Last Sunday morning Engineer +. W. Rjs-
lev Of 400 West Eighth street, says the Gin
einuaI Enquirer. CraWled into a boiler.
Last Sunday night he crawled out. 1t was
bright. active man that entered the grim
mouth of the bis iron cylinder. Ii was
feeble, broken. ueIYelcss creature that
emerged to light again after an experience
such IS turn mems hair gray in an hour and
skaters their constitutions for life. That
Mr. Hsley is alive to-day Is due both 10 his
presence Of mind ard to the endurance of
hissinewy frame. De3th-a horrible humI-
iatinE death-had stared him in the face for
L.uIs that seemed Ike inteTmnab.e days TO
him.
Nj Risley is employed as engineer In the
factory Of Nathan Drucker Il Co., trunk
and yalise manufacturers at Ninth aud
Broadway Last Sunday the establishment
was .Etary, and Mr. RlSlty took advantage
81 the opportunity 10 clean cut the Oig
boiler. He usually took q candle into the
boiler but could nud none on TINS morning,
and be llt lamp. which he placed IN such
d position that Its bright rays itick-Tei down
through the gloomy fues un.eT which lie
was 20 pass Opening the mauh0le IN tie
end NT. Il Sl-y, whose daily labor gives
him no opp rtuGlty 10 accumulate super
hlcus flesh, had soon Nurmed his way to
the luItHest end IF the CCIu-lke passage
luto which he yeutUred.
Water was standing several inches deepiu
the bottom OF tie boiler, having drlpped
down from above, and the engineer was
chilled 10 the bone. But he cared little for
that expecting T. remain but few minutes.
II e finished his work ana started TO return.
Ii occurred TO him that lie might avoid the
icy water better # he turned round and
sought egress head first Narrow as the
passage was he had accomplished this feat
more than once before, and he anticipated
no difficulty IN repeating IT, Slowly he
turned. closing his limbs together like the
blades # knife and bringing his knees
against his chin. lie succeeded IN turning
Ia.f way round, when he found that he
could 20 no further.
Mr.. Rsiey made vigorous efforts TO COM
Dlere tie turn, but in vain Then he con
Guided 20 resume his original position and
back cut, but 10 bis horror he found that he
could not move. He had become fixed in
the strained position he occupied, ana his
attempts 10 move only made matters worse.
For a quarter Of an hour the engineer
worked 10 free himself, while the pITa-
ton poured from him spite of the chill that
the wafer had produced. Then tie awful
reality OF his preIIcameDt davled upon him
for tire first time and almost drove his senses
away. lie was fastened, without hope Of
freedom, in a space hardly large enough for
body.
The piti'ess iron bore down on his head
above ana seemed TO be acquiring tue weight
Of thousand hundred weight. The faint
-.eam Of the lamp above Illuminated the
darkness OF the Rine-rO0m and TIE Dlacker
night If the boilers Interior. His position
forced the blood % bis beat head. MI Ris-
l-y did not know how long lie could stand
tie strain. Before the morning. however.
VIXEN the factory would resume It's life. he
would be unconscious and the mauhOle
Won d be Shut the fires lighted and be
would awake. If he aWobe az all 10 be
roasted alive before It would be possible to
eXtTcate him.
Filled with the horror Of his position, the
engineer shouted for help, but his voice
vas sm0thered in the depths Of his prison.
lie found, too, at he could not eXeT ise
his vocal powers with effect. as his chest
was pressed against his knees so tightly
that he could hardly breathe
No words could describe the sufferings Of
hr. Riley during that Sabbath. Noon
came, and be thought 1t must already
be night. Then the long, long after
noon, The lamp paled, and with q
final spiuIreT went out altogether The
captive felt himself growing weaker His
body was half frozen as il lay in tile
water. He bad spent the long hours in des-
peTate attempts at freedom, aiternated
by long periods OF desDairing test
Thoughts Of his wife aud three little
children came 20 his frenZed brain. The
hues seemed pressing slowly upon him on
alI sides Ike the famous iron bride" OF the
days II torture.
Ana after nightfall, by some happy
chance, the engineer unlocked his cramped
limbs, now he did It, he does not know.
Half crazed by his terrible experience he
struggled uadly tor escape, aad at last,
successfully. Reaching the air outside he
sank 10 the ground and lay exhausted Tor
an hour before he was able to 20 home.