Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1901-09-11
MET AN AWFUL FATE.
Fisherm an Sinks ia Mud Near eurlins-
ton-Died Of Exposuea


Burlington, Sept. lawful, revolt
ing. horrible was the fate that befell
Frank Smith last week.! "A more terri
BILE experience than his can not be inn
agined.
For two awful days and three more
awful nights he was held waist deep in
foul mud and slime on the bank OF Will
low lake, near Kingston. His suffer-
ings beggar description. Turnout two
days the hot sun beat upon the frenzied
man while he shrieked for help and
struggled in vain to release himself.
The only answer to his cries was the
gentle signing Of the breeze thru the
reeds and low willows about him, the
maddening hum of thousands of insects
and the voices. of cheerful singing birds
that only accentuated his helplessness
and made his misery more poignant.
No human being came within the
reach of his voice or of his ever-strain in
ing eyes.
And thru the long hours OF three ter
rible nights he continued his struggles,
alone, helpless. frenzied to the point Of
madness, the awful stiffness of his sur
lroundings, the calmness of the waters
below him and the starry heavens
above him driving him to the conditions
of a maniac. Now sane. with a clear
conception of the glorious night, the
yellow moon rising over the forest trees.
the sweet rest of everything about HIM;
now beside himself with frenzy. tearing
at the foulness about him, shrieklng a
madman's gibherish and ever splunging
deeper into the merciless, clinging mud.
When he was found on Thursday af-
ternoon by some farmer boys he had
lost his reason. He was emaciated and
reduced to the condition of a skeleton.
He was dragged from the place If his
living death aud at about 8 o'clock the
same evening was placed In Burlington
hospital, this city. Death ended his suf-
ferngs Monday morning. He had died
10000 deaths during the sixty hours
previous.
He had Of course, been withon. food
and drink since he became helplessly
entangled on the bank of Willow Lake
on Tuesday evening. Lack of susie
nance, the exposure. and the physical
exhaustion from his struggles had made
him a prey to the insects in the foul
place. His body was literally covered
with magots, even when his rescuers
reached the hospital with him. He was
almost eaten up by them. In fact, his
physical condition was too awful and
loathsome for description.
The best of care was given him at
Burlington hospital and every effort
made to save his life. Sanity returned
to him sufficiently to enable him TO tell
the nurses that his name was Frank
Smith; he was farm laborer by occu-
patton; had recently worked on farm
near Davenport and was walking to
some point in Missouri. where he ex-
pected to go to work; he was fifty years
old and had no relatives or intimate
friends. He told something OF his ter
rible sufferings while in the mire. He
said he had gone to Willow Lake on
Tuesday evening to try to catch some
fish and that while approaching the
water he sank in the mire and was un-
able toget ont. He went down strong
healthy man, and when he was dragged
out sixty hours later he was as weak as
q baby, and had wasted to a skeleton.
1t was certainly most horrible death.