The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1894-03-02
SAVED BY A RAT.
Thrilling Experience In a Gavin.
Arizona Mine.
The Rodent Burrows His Way TO an Il,
prisoned Mine Surveyor. In Tins Man.
ner supplying Him with the
Needed Air.

"You were asking about that stuff
rat ia my room" said Prof Churcb1l
the mining expert. to New York N,
man The story concerns an ex,s
rieDce that made my hair curl. / "a.
once retained 10 report upon the work
ings of a mine called the Little Who.
Up. in southern Arizona. On an as
joining claim was another mine calls4
the Atlas. A dispute arose. The Atl,.
people claimed that the lower tunus
Of the Whoop Up had been bored iui
their ground and half million i
ore taken ont. The first thing to a
was TO make a survey of the Whas
Up, and, OF course. the Whoop Up De-
pie objected. Finally an order for m.
survey was secured from the court ana
DIR. John Il. Parks and were sent
make the survey. There are tricks h
all trades, and the Whoop Up superb
tendent knew few. When we reachei
the mine he said the tunnel "a.
wished to explore was in dangerou.
condition. There had been a cave Ia
timbers We're rotten, and so on. h
meant a ten TO one chance that NJ.
would be crushed il we tried il. Oi
course, we classed him as liar, thougl
he turned ont 10 be right.
I'VE worked our way in the tuuDs
until we ran against "A jam Of falIe,
tinbers which were sound aud yy.,
plainly arranged to stop our propre,,
Parks went back for an AK. while Il
worked at the roof with pick 10 dis
lodge the center pieces. ] succeeded
and had climbed half way over iUt6
the other side of the tunnel when ther.
came terrific crash of loose ore from
the roof. II fell on both sides Of IN.
timbers, pinning me in a hole which
would have been grave right there
but for a few sticks which held the
mass of ore above. The place wa,
barely large enough to move in. and II
knew it was certain death in Few
hours unless Parks could dig me out
Even then / believed / was gone. for n
did not know how much ore had fallen
In a few minutes the air got heavy
and my eyes began to feel drowsy, and
il seemed like the roof and sides Of th,
hole were closing in on me. This op
precision and drovsiness increased uni.
/ was forced to hammer the sides Of III.
place with my fists and head TO keeBl
awake. Still not "A sound could hsar
from the outside, and only the SLOW
crum bling of ore from above. Thsl
foul air was getting into my brain ana
/ think | was actually insane with the
fearful dread of being buried alive
Anyhow, j remember of dropping n|
the floor of the hole, and giving d fewl
faint shouts which echoed back intel
my ears. 1 had given up all hope. audi
was almost swooning when | heard 81
strange scraping sound above me. Il
yelled, but received no answer, an5l
then threw my body against the walls
and tried To pick out the ore from be-
tween the lodged timbers. Still came
the queer, scraping noise which seemed
20 come nearer and nearer and sounded
not unlike the steady grinding Of d
saw. 1t seemed TO last for hours
though il could hardly have been 81
minute after when a bit Of earth
dropped 10 my feet from the upper end
IF the wall, and along with il came
big gray mine rat, who saved my life
for he had left clear hole for his trail
and through IL came a breath OF fresh
air that gave life to me. The fellow
had bored his way from the shaft side
Of the cave. ] stayed there two hOur
after that, until Parks found the cave
got help, and got me out without
breaking the air hole. / caught The
gray rat, too, and kept him well iel|
until he died, and wouldn't take lot
of money for his skin now"