Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1910-01-07
SALESMAN TELLS
OF PER|Ls OF WALK
Thrilling Adventures Amid Raging
Waters in Meadow Valley
Wash Railroad Disaster.
PULLMAN GOES INTO FLOOD
Hanging by Both Hands Party Makes
Us Way Across Ynwning
Ehasm With Difficulty.

Hanging by both hands to the Icy
rails, with yawning chosm 80 feel
below nllcd with black. surging waters
Harry Cohen, travelling representative
for Joseph Schoen 6 Co, of New YORK.
City. passed through an experience In
Pedro Route, this week that he says he
would not repeat for $4,000
Mr.. Cohen reached Salt Lake early
this morning and Is registered at the
Knu;sford hotel. To The News he said !;
II left Los Angeles Dec 81 on No 4.
my train went into the ditch near Cal
iente: It's no doubt there yet: I walked
Mnd slipped and crawled a distance OF
% miles to get across the washout and
here 1 am In salt Lake 1t requiring
about 200 hours for trip that or
dInarlly is but &c hours.
Everything went smoothly until
nearing Calientc. when effects OF high
water were seen on all sides and our
train took on a snalls pace. Leaving
Calicntc. 1t pulled slowly up the shaky
roadbed along the canyon for two or
three miles when ii was stopped by
sudden termination Of the steel rails
Then the train crew started to back
down to Callente again, the Swlrling
waters having considerably subsidized.
On the way back, the heavy weight of
the train caused a bridge to crash un-
der II. breaking the train in two lcav-
Ing the diner at 45-degree angle. one
end In the ditch, the other on the bank
above. n very undignified attitude In
deed. One Pullman went over the
ls..l
ously hurt
FINALLY. after staying around Cali
ente as long as l could stand II (where.
by the way Joe HIlliar, dining car
conductor, proved himself q prince. af-
fordinG every possible courtesy TO the
passengers, serving free meals to every
one but the railroad employcs), myself
and two other men decided to walk
from Eccles to Barclay. distance of Is
miles to catch n Salt Lake train. The
experiences of that trip | would not
repeat for $1,000 Many time we
wished we could turn back but We had
passed such hazardous places that 1t
was as il we had burned our bridges
back of us and our only alternative
was to push ahead.
OUT IN THE BITTER COLD.
ITO add to our torment the weather
was bitter cold-the thermometer be-
low zero My companions were mill
man conductor and the train auditor.
We started at S:45 on freezing
morning The walking was slippery
and dangerous. nearly every step of
the distance. In places we had to Jump
from on Ice covered tie to another.
not knowing but any false step might
plunge us into the creek bed below
Where the track was completely gone
scaled nrpppnIfnnQ hiIIcIdcy haf
frightend us 10 gaze back upon.
But the worst thing of all was our
friGhtful experience in Big Springs
canyon. Here we were compelled to
get down on our hands and knees
and crawl. Here in great wash we
reached the ugliest place of all, where
the raging river had bitten out sew
eral feet of the rails as IL were, leav-
Ing the end protruding from both
sides We had gone so far. We must
cross. but how. was the question con-
fronting us. There was but one thing
and we did It. From our miserable
crawling posture swung myself down
under the track, the bed OF the river
80 feet below me, and hand over
hand. cold and shivcring. l made my
way TO the tXtrcmc end of my rail-
Then came the most ticklish moment
of my life, l swung my body forward
and grabbed the end of the rail pro-
truding from the opposite side, With
difficulty l drew myself up safely My
companions followed.
This did not conclude our days eX-
pcrienccs, but that was the worst We
left Eccles at SAB a IN. reaching
Baclay at 3:45 that afternoon l am
happy to be In Salt Lake today.
safe and sound"
THRILLING 17-MILE WALK.
Train Agent C. c. Moore and n An
derson. a passenger on the marooned
train at Ecclcs. New left the station
on foot Wednesday morning. walking
through ice and snow for IL miles.
with the mercury below zero. and with
cut oycrcoats. through TO Barclay sta
tion. There they caught a train that
night, arriving in Salt Lake Thursday.
none the worse for their experience. Mr
Anderson continued on to Grand Forks,
n. d. Mr.. Moore says: THE marooned
train broke in two, but there was no
other accident. 1t reached Callcnto
New Years morning about daylight.
and then pulled out for Acoma. with
the water over the tracks. But when
near Mimic. II was found no further
progress could be made. so the train
backed toward Caliente At Eccles sta
tion, the track had become Undermined,
which tied the train up for the time at
that point. The conductor tclephoned
back to Caliente for an engine, but
there was none to be had as the round
house was under water. Another at
tempt TO get out was made by leaving
the rear sleeper behind. az that was
practically over a break and could not
be safely moved at the time. freight
with two cars OF horses were also
caught there, over an undermined
track. the train rolling over into the
river with the horses. Thlrty-three of
the AZ horses were drowned
Finally the passenger train managed
to run west a quarter of a mile to a
higher point. where II remained. as no
progress could be made either way.
Then the water got low in the engine.
pscosaffafInC lettIur Tho 0rn no ont