The Lamar register., 1893-09-02
EuR,gD a wHoLs DAY.
Sensations of Man Under burden OF
sand and Timbcr>.

sand and tttnorr>.
The funeral of Joseph Nelson took
place in Oakland lately. and whom
the coffin was lowered into the grave
he was buried for the second time,
says the San Francisco Examiner.
The first burial was twenty-seven
years ago. when he was entombed
alive at the capture aud explosion of
Fort Fisher. when he was buried in
the debris for thirty-six hours be-
fore he was found. and then he was
dug out for dead.
Joseph Nelson was then lad of 2l.
volunteer in Company + OF ,he Six
teenth New Iorl regiment and at
tached to General Benjamin I. But
ler's division. He was at the storm
ing OF Fort Fisher under General
Ames. with u Heet under the COM
mand OF Admiral Porter Fort Fisher
was captured, and when it was evac-
uated by the Confederatcs the mSga-
zine was fred. and when tne Union
forces took possession the fort was
blown into the air aad the Union
troops wich it Mr.. Nelson was
buried many feet under the ruins, and
it was tnirty-six hours before he was
foun5.
He was paralyzed from the burial.
and became a sufferer from sciatic
rheumatism for his entire life from
the Effects Of the shock and exposure
He never recovered, but was for a
time able to perform the duties OF
I conductor on light run on the
southern Pacific railroad.
Mr.. Nelson was not always willing
/ to tell Il his unusual experience II
Z being buried alive for such a length
Of time. He was very graphic in mis-
account, however, and this is the
way he told it shortly before his
death:
1t all seemed like 4 nightmare. or
the things one fancies while in u
fever Fort Fisher seemed to be on
/ top OF me with all the guns directed
at me l could neither move nor
| speak. slowly ! began TO grow cold.
So cold and numb that l began 10
wonder IL l we're dead Il began at
my feet and crept up through my
! limbs and up my body until it seemed
to clutch at nv art thought
i that it WAS death itseli-but | could
I hear noise. 1t was very human
noise. and sounds that told me only
! too plainly that | was still aliye-the
cries OF the dying and wounded from
/ the battle and the explosion. They
| were over me and around me-cries
4 that made my already chilled body
/ grow colder | could hear them
/ everyv here. it seemed TO me. the
/ cries of those in greater pain than l,
/ fer they were wounded and mangled,
/ while IL was only cold.
Il was buried up to my shoulders
] in the heavy sand of the breastworks
hut my head was free. Over it some
| timbers and rocks had become
crossed and iammed. and they had
/ formed a roof over my head This |
did not know at the time. could
| only feel the terrible cold that be-
I numbed me. for the pressure of the
/ sand around by body drove the
/ blood back TO my heart and left me
without feeling.
y could not move. my arms were
| buried in the sand and l was abso-
/ lutely pinioned. / could breathe and
/ that was all Then there came
/ great pain in my head. 1t seemed
as If it would burst and still | could
! do nothing. l was helpless. l hard
/ ly knew whether / was alive or not.
l was conscious for could hear the
cries OF the wounded. but that was
all l knew save that l could not
move and that was cold.
The fort blew up at o'clock in
the morning. and it was the follow
ing day before 1 was found aud dug
out. and all that time l was con-
scious and helpless
When Mr.. Nelson was found he was
taken to the hospital at Wilmington.
\. G. but he never fully recovered
from the injury to his spine. and
during thu greater part of his life
/ walked on crutches. His wife died
before he did. and he left son and
daughter