Milford chronicle., 1903-02-20
AWFUL DESERT THIRST.
RecsiIectiOns of a Man Who Experi-
enced the Horrors of Death.

Rec0lIecfiOns of a Man Who Expert-
enced the Horrors of Death.
]. A. Porterie is probably the only man
in Phenix who ever perished on the des-
ert and after being practically dead for
a week returned to life and vigor SO he
could tell about it. He says that he has
realized fully every sensation of a man
who perishes of thirst with the burning
sunshine beating down on him. He was
found and resuscitated, but he had long
passed beyond the period of consciousness
before help came.
1t was in the summer Of 1877, and Mr..
Porterie was working at the Grand
Gulch copper mine on Grand Wash, rs it
is now called. north Of the Colorado, on
the Supai plateau, in the northwestern
part of this territory. The mines are
being worked by a Mormon company
from St. George, Utah. The company
could not get the proper huXes for its ore
and therefore did not make a success Of
the enterprise. 1t closed down the mine,
and all who were employed there wanted
to go back to Utah except Mr.. Porterie,
who desired to come south into central
Arizona. He knew there was a good road
down the Virgin river and to Mineral
Park, but it was some distance west of
Grand Wash and over desert country
he had never traversed and was not IA
miiar with. He was taken up into a
high mountain by an old man named
Pierce and shown the general direction
of the road to the Virgin river. He was
told where he could find water half way
along the trail, at a well known spring. /
He saddled up his mule and with two /
canteens of water started out alone.
When he got down into the valley, he .
lost the trail, but kept travelling all that /
day and the following night Some time .
the next morning, when the sun got pret-
ty hot and he became almost exhausted, /
he stopped to make some coffee, having
still one canteen of water left. He was
holding his mule by the bride when
along came a desert whrlwind and envel-
oped them, frightening the mule which
dragged him through a cactus plant and.
breaking away from him, started back
over the trail. He followed the mule
for a couple of miles, then gave up the
chase and again started toward the Nir-
gin river on foot and without water or
anything else save an unQuenched thirst.
just how long he wandered he does not
know, but before night he began to get
1eiriOus, and after that he remembered
nothing except the Authorizations that
passed through his mind before he be-
came unconscious. He was. oh, so
thirsty. 1t seemed as if his throat was
literally on fire, and he was aching all
over his body. He tried every method
he knew Of moistening his throat. but the
relief was but temporary. He tore open
he cactus plants and everything that
gave promise of containing the slightest
BIT of moisture, but his thirst seemed to
De an ever increasing one. He could
hink of nothing but water.
Finally as his strength gave way pleas
int dreams began to fit through his
mind. He fancied he saw the Niagara
alls and the vastness of the great river
hat flows away over the rapids below
hem. Then he seemed to face the broad
Of great fresh water lake. He
,ould not see across it. 1t looked so cool
Ind refreshing he could not restrain him
elf and waded into it clear up to his
leck. Then he fancied he could feel the
ish cavorting about his feet and every
hing seemed so peaceful. He was per-
cctly happy and contented: did not know
whether he was alive or dead and did not
are.
he found himself in the
amp Of some cattlemen. who had found
i'm some hours after he lost track of !
imself. His lips were swollen and full )
f cactus thorns, where he had chewed 9
p the priclily pear in his desperate
hirst. The cattlemen said that when
hey found him he was stark naked.
oubtless having disrobed and thrown his
lothes away when he fancied he was
DING down into the lake. His fingers
rere raw and bleeding from wounds
lade while digging in the sand for water.
He says that the agony that comes over
ne when he first begins 10 realize thar
g is about to perish for water is simply
ldescribable, and it increases every min
te till he begins to lose consciousness.
tut when the body gives up the struggle
ne mind seems to become unnaturaly
ctive in its efforts to soothe by seemingly
that for which the body suf-
FRS. and the fna, hours of the thirst
ictim are hours of sweetest anticipation
Arizona Republic