The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1906-12-24
"A Thrilling
Story Of Rescue
/. g.. HICKS TELLS OF HIS AWFUL
EXPERIENCE IN THE BOWELS
OF THE EARTH FOR FIFTEEN
DAYS WITH HIS COMPANIONS
WORKING FOR HIS RESCUE.

WORKING FOR HIS RESCUE.
BAKERSFIELD, CAL, Dec. "a
Entombed in the bowels Of the earth,
beneath tons Of stone and earth Of a
collapsed tunnel. L. B. Hicks, the
miner who for 15 days faced death,
was rescued Saturday evening by a
gang Of his fellow miners who have
worked necessarily to save him.
Hicks was nearly crazed with Joy
when his rescuers drew his weakened
body from beneath the tramcaF under
which he had been pinned since the
tunnel fell in, leaving him in darkness
and the plaything Of a mocktng death.
The hardened miners wept as Hicks
tried to thank them. Outside crowd
around the tunnel shaft had heard the
signal. Bakersfield was in q frenzy
Of Joy. Cannon doomed and the bells
in the churches tolled. Men and
women flocked to the, streets and
there hold congratulation parties.
Hicks was brought from his peril:
our position at $3.50 in the evening.
when his rescuers completed scat
folding to prevent fall Of boulders
and dirt. When the timbering had
been ic6nptetad Superintendent INC;
clure of the mine reached down ami
.eraspef' the imprisoned miner by the
hand. Hicks was gently drawn up
through the opening and as he
emerged'from the hole he was grasp
ed under the arms by two miners who
ge1tly;ilfted him to his feet. He
swayed,like a drunken man; the sput-
teriBg ochre lights of. the miners
lamps half blinded him, and then a
realization came to him. that he was
free,~F ~ -:
God bless you all for standing by
! me- was all that he could say, butt:
was enough.
| .:rr: The Miners wept.
There in the cayerns Of the earth,
arlm faced miners wept, and an in
tended cheer stuck. in t,ltheir Threats.
DR.. sttnchfeld placed dark glasses over
Hicks eyes, but the miner said that
he did not ned them asa1 the light OF
he did not need them as the light Of
Hicks joy on his release was al
most hysterbcal. He laughed AMI
cried by turns, and DR.. stinchfield,
fearing a violent reaction, gave him =
mild sedative.
when the crash cames said Hicks
10 DR.. stinchReld,' q was working
with the other men in the tunnel.
There was a roar and a crash of stone
and crushing Of timbefs and then
blackness. Pinned beneath tram car
heard the means of the dying men.
tried to move and could not. I spoke
10 my companions, but there was no
answer. only the means Of the wound
ed. Death came 10 them and there
was silence.
II tried to move my legs and found
them gripped by boulders and earth
On each side of me / could feel the
earth and stone. Just above my heal
was the foot of one Of the men. J
could touch the shoe.
In Dreadful silence.
ut seemd days in that dreadful
silence and l talked to myself 10 keep
from going mad. I thought OF myself
growing weaker and weaker with
thirst and hunger. tried to sleep
but the dreams we're worse than the
torturos of my working hours. call
cd to my companions again and again,
but there was no answer. Then /
wondered how many feet Of stone and
dirt lay between nc and daylight. ]
pictured to myself the rescuing party
working madly to release the men
caught in the wreckage below. Per-
haps they have given up any hope OF
reaching any Of us behind that mass
Of earth and have stopped work, l
thought. I yelled in my agony, hop
ing that my voice would reach those
above me, but there was no answering
call. Only silence. My God, the ST.
lence Of that place. My breathing
sounded like the roar of waves, when
| talked to myself, my voice was flung
back and forth in that narrow hole,
until it died away in faint whisper.
Then thought OF the signals and be.