Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1908-10-22
A QUEER. EXPERIENCE.
IAlma-Tadema's Miraculous Es-
!. cape From Death.
FREAKS OF AN EXPLOSION.

The Artists House Was Wrecked, and
How He Got Out Alive and Unin-
jured Is Mystery-The Puzzle Of tho
Staircase and Hallway.
In 1874 a canalboat carrying a hun
lred barrels Of gunpowder along the
Regents park canal in London eX-
ploded just opposite the magnificent
house of Laurence Alma-Tadema, the
famous artist. across the road. This
happened Mt 4 O'clock on a rainy morn
| ing. Every window in London within
Il radius of Il mile was smashed, and
the houses in the Immediate vicinity.
though soitlly built of brick and stone,
We're wrecked.
81 was sound asleep in bed at the
time" said Alma Tadema. "and the
first knew of the explosion was when
found myself standing out on the
sidewalk in front of my house in the
rain, With my pajamas on and bare
feet. How got there never knew.
The entire top of the brick wall In
front of the lawn before my house was
blown off, and the front OF the house
Itself was as if driven in by the blow
of giants fist.
1.-THE canalboat, we found out after
l>ward, had blown up underneath a solid
bridge that crossed the canal ut that
point. Had 1t not been for that my
house and the others near 1t would
have been utterly knocked to pieces.
1t was fortunate, too, that there was
no one on the street Mt the time. Had
the explosion occurred in the daytime
Hundreds of persons might have been
killed or manned.
"But the strangcst episode connected
l with the event concerned the mar
whose duty it was to keep watch OF
the bridge during the night. His name
was Peter Knox. He was thlrty-sevel
years old. married and had two chill
tlren knew the fellow and had oftcl
chatted With him on the bridge. Thu
day before the explosion he: had NJ
ranged with u friend Of his to come a
4 o'clock and relieve him. 1t was {
Saturday, and he wanted to take hi
wife and children a little trip down t
Rushey park on the Thames, and u
wished to get to his home in east Lo1
don In time so MS to have breakfas
and he off early on Sunday morning
well. as 4 o'clock drew near, Petel
so he told me afterward, began to fet
anxious lest his friend should hav
forgotten the appointment He pace
mp and down the bridge and locke
llp the street, but the morning was S
dark and misty with the rain that h
could see only a short distance.
few minutes before a, he said, lie III
ticed line of canalboats come sloy
ly down toward the bridge but pal
no special attention to them.
Just before the first boat passe
under the bridge lie stepped off
though in doing so he was fnfringir
the regulations, and sauntered up I'll
street in the direction from which
expected his friend to appear. He h;
gone about forty yards when the G
plosion took place, and when he turn'
not brick of the bridge was left.
he had been less impatient or II h
friend had been more prompt, one
both of them would never have be,
seen or heard of again.
"But my own little adventure w
singular enough. AS said. w
not conscious OF having been ava
cned by the explosion. still less
having got out of bed, come dow
stairs, opened the front door and ste
ped out TO the sidewalk. The sho
had knocked all memory of these nt
out of my head, and ! have never
covered it.
"But what puzzled me most was I
condition of things found when
went back into the house. The h
was Il mass of wreckagc, and the sta
case from top to bottom was cover
With pieces of broken glass, sharp
razors and so distributed that fou
1t impossible TO ascend without q lit
TO show me where not to tread.
"Nevertheless had come do
those same stairs, with my eyes 81
or ,lnsecing, and had never so much
scratched my bare feet. The th
was impossible. and yet had done
| had been skeptical about mirac
before that. but since then have b,
both Il believer and an evangelist.
Chicago Record-Ierald.
-
His Quietus.
The bridegroom relaxed for