Evening star., 1905-09-20
aREwsoarE ADvENTuRH
Had by Man Who Fell Down Disused
Shaft In Transvaal.
From the London Express.

Z TON tne l1onucn Express.
& It is doubtful If any of the competitors
at Bisley rifle meeting has experienced an
adventure more grewsome or perilous than
one that befell Mr.. Menzies, one OF the
members of the Transvaal team. AS most
people know who live or have lived In or
about Johannesburg, there Is a disquiet-
fields in the shape of abandoned mine
shafts, which have been left without cover
and without being rallied off.
Il was walking from the mine to my
home.' said Mr.. Menzies, in telling the
story, about $3.50 on a dark evening.
! thought was keeping to the road, but
must have turned aside a few feet I was
going along briskly enough, when I lost
my foothold. ! felt fearful blow, and
/. then another. l had fallen down dtsused
enty feet, as I afterward measured. Then
came. second incline. twenty feet or more;
then third section. this dime vertical.
twenty feet more. Finally landed a
ing laid across the last section Of the shaft
about 100 feet below this again was the
bottom part of the workings. full of water.
Had fallen to either side instead OF IN
the middle onto the timbering, / must. of
course, have fallen into the water and
drowned. AS far as I thought at all.
wondered what had happened and what
would happen next. When came to my
self little | put my hand to my head,
where there was an overwhelming pain.
and my hand became sticky, whence con-
cluded that had struck my head against
the side in falling and was bleeding.
For a long time / remained there, cling
ing desperately to the staging, and not
knowing whether l should become so weak
and Siddy as to fall again to my death. l
had no matches. and, of course, was In
total darkness; but l felt my way to the
side timbers and to some piping, and by
these I managed that night to climb up to
where the second section of the shaft be-
gan, twenty feet above.
How l got through the next day have
scarcely a notion. l know l clung there,
and listened desperately for any sound
which might hint of coming help; but as
the hours passed and nobody came | had
to recognize that nobody was likely 10
come near the workings, much less down
them, and that unless 1 could save myseir
there was no prospect of my being saved
Several times 1 heard people pass WITH
in a short distance' of the mine, and then
cried out as loud as l could but l got NO
reply Once I felt sure l heard my nttie
daughter calling to me, and called pacK
with all my might; but nobody came !
found out afterward that my little girl had
been there. but though 1 heard her she
could not hear me, l suppose my voice
was weak, and that the sound, when l.
reached the surface, was dlsslpateo III the
upper air, and SO could not be made OUT.
Early the next mornlng--the secohu
morning of my imprisonment-partly by
Shining up pieces Of timberings, party
by 'clawing' and digging into the SIDES with
nv hands-for I had not even knlfe WIN
mel managed to Chamber to the top. II
was O:3O-thirty-eight hours from the uIne
when I had fallen. 49,,
~ shaIl not forget my first look at the
upper world again. was. OF course, s1aken eei,
all to pieces and when 1 got nome ieil
more dead than alive