The morning call., 1892-01-05
A SANDSLIDE.
Saving the Life of "a Man Who Was Pinned
in the Ireacher0us Stuff.

Saving the Life of "a Nan Who Was Pinned
in the TreacherOus Stuff.
While gang of men from Sandwich were
at work on Chamberlain Il Sons cranberry
bog recently, one Of the men, James d lton,
shoyeling in a sand pit, was thrown and
buried to his shoulders by a sandSlide on q
face Of sand some thirty feet high. In spite
of very exact and emphatic warnings the
man was standing with his back 10 the bank
and his barrow between him and the exit.
The falling sand buried the barrow, and the
mans right leg was found fast over the left
handle. The other bug-hands ran to the
rescue, but aside from unc0vering the bar
row and delivering the mans right, leg, could
not move him an inch. The danger was
that more sand might slide and bury its vic
tim alive, for there were already cracks in
the sand visible and one or two huge bowl
ders which might come down any moment.
The powders had just been disclosed By The
sandslde.
1t was soon apparent that without more
and wiser help the man would certainly
perish by exhaustion or be Smothered. The
neighbOTS were reused, and with that aiac-
rity TO help perishlng man, SO creditable
and SO common to Cape Cod folks, they were
soon on hand. Meanwhile the sand assures
above had widened, and with the pine trees
on a mass of earth Weighing tons the pit
face might fall any moment. The man
meanwhile was low down, almost on his
face, and, as it seemed, immoyab,e. Among
the newcomers was Daniel Lee OF the
Beach, who afteTward said he had once
seen man hurled in well, and by common
consent, as the only man who dared to have
a plan where an error might cost the
trapped man his life and perhaps the lives
of others, he was allowed to direct.
First OF all be called for long plank. One
was brought from tine bog and carefully
placed some three or four feet above the
man below and between him and the sand
face and across the sand bank. Then he
ordered plankS TO be saved some five feet
long and these to be placed upright inside
the horizontal plank and lacing In ana
toward the bank, and man TO hold each
plank steady and to stand to il II another
slide came. He then ordered short oak and
pine limbs TO be cut aud tut In the sand
above the upright line of planks, to catch
and step the sand, which momentarily was
sitting down. The whole structure was
then braced at each end by joice and plank
and served as a rude sort OF shield. Then,
with the men holding the planks, the
others tried to dig the man out. His left
foot and lower trunk seemed held as in
vice. A shovelful Of sand taken out
seemed Instantly replaced by the sand Sift-
ing down from the hill. Hands were then
used instead of shovels and some stones
under him removed.
But 1t was slow, tedious work for the
strongest nerved And now came the crisis.
The lifted earth bank above, with the pine
trees on ii, was mOviDg-waS sliding down.
a shout among the men to hold fast-a Sec
ond or two Of the terrible drift of eayth-a
second shout--and the deadly mass stood
still. The plank barrier SO far had been
effectual. But the man in peril had now
been some four hours in situation the
peril of which he knew, not expecting, as he
afterward told "the boys" but that he was
10 be carried home in a box, and, though
bearing up bravely, was very much ex-
hauSted. He must be released speedily or
perish. or all traps, sand. under such con-
ditionS, Is the most relentless we ever set
eyes upon. Every attempt Of strong men to
pull the man out failed.
A new way was suggested by DR.. David
|. Ellis. A strong rope from one OF the bog
screens was brought. A w0man'S stray
shawl, LETT by some Gran b9rry-p picker on the
bog, was found and used to muft the sharp
ness Of the rope against the mans flesh in
hauling the rope was fastened tight under
his shoulders, and then, as God willed, with
strong men assisting and the Others holding
at the plank barrier, and the sand hill Set
ting down every moment, the man was
pulled out of his sand graVe-n0t q bone
broken, not scratchl Ale even brought
his shoes out with him. StimulantS were
given him, the leg was we'll rubbed and
bathed, he was laid on streteher, carefully
covered by the mems coats, and in this
fashion carried to a neighbours house and
cared for The place where the man lay
four hours in deadly peril was the next day
covered with four feet Of sand.