The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1905-12-15


About ten minutes later the boy
glided up to the window, opened 1t
and called out. Pap says all Of you
come over quick, bring lots Of snow
shovels aud couple of blankets.
Let some Of the women get one OF the
bed rooms warm and make some hot
soup and Coffee 1t don't take
much time for us old fellows whose
lives are full Of tragedies and start
ling episOdas. to get ready far almost
amy kind Of contingency; and before
the boy had stopped tallSing, more
/ than TWO dozen ser0ng and willing
men and several of the other sex, not
always the weaker sex In a mining
camp, were gliding over the interven-
ing half mile. 1t was a beautiful
morning after the storm and In the
light crisp air Of that great altitude
every object stood out as clear and
distinct as if all nature rejoiced, and
no thought Of death was possible. The
green branches of the many pines
were heavily weighted with the late
~ fallen snow, and the level expanse
of Meadow Lake with its white COW
ering glistened in the bright sunlight
like an immense mirror.
Not a word was spoken nor sound
heard in the still air, except the
swish Of our snow shoes, as we
glided rapidly toward Cartoons cabin.
This was built. as have said, a lit
tie Distance from the more thiclzly
settled part of the f0wn although
now very many of the smaller cabins
were buried out of sight and upon
our arrival, nothing could be seen to
distinguish its position, except hinge
mound of snow ana the ends of two
snow shoes; presumably where the
chimney was. Two dozen willing
hands were soon hard at work, clear
ing away the huge drifts, and as soon
as the chimney was uncovered we
found, as we feared and expected
that the space around It had been
permitted to lie and harden. lit was
but too plain that what had fallen
during this previous storm had rapid
ly filled the small space below the
chimney cap, and the cabin been her
medically sealed. AS soon as the
! opening was made, couple OF us
climbed down. Poor Carlton stood
, leaning against the bricks of tht
chimney; fully clothed, even to his
blue army overc0at, and the air was
thick with a close, foul odor. There
II were no matches in the cabin or up
!, on his person. He had evidently slep
u long and sOundly and realized from
/ his sensations when he awolze and he
came partially conscious that he wal
I being smothered That he had becOm,
! lbewildered and had wandered afniless
81 ly around the cabin was evident by
NJ the articles strewn upon the HoOr, ami
u when he finally found the chimney
had been too weak to make tin
,lEascent and had gradually fallen int
j his last sleep.
III We judged he had been dead fo
! forty-eight hours or more, and as TIN
{ storm was raging SO fiercely at thu
time, 1t is by no mems certain tha
j he could have been rescued, had hi
5 condition been known.
n The body was wrapped in blankets
! and tendenly ,cRrried to the hotel
! land nrepured sat once for iburiul. Tn
5 grave WINS dug nenr an old pine tire
!, lfhrough twenty four feet of snow
! land steps had to be cut to lead dow
i to the ground. There was no minfste
pIin the camp, but one OF the wnmel
! EbrOught out a prayer book and thu
! IIlburial service was read and prohabl!
ylleach one of us sent up some sort o
E a prayer that he might make hap
nlpy landing ON tire other shore.
Over "a hundred men and women OF
t snow shoes accompanied the bod.
/. from the hotel TO the grave, the wine
: singing a soft requiem as we laid tn
: IIbOdy AWAY in that great white sepul
t cher and commented upon the singu
lar fatality that had CARED him safe
. lily through years of bloody strife, t
/ ut last meet his death in that strang
: manner $500 feet above his home o
/ early days ON the rock-bound shore
! of the Atlantic.