The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1912-11-11


oblivion and coffee became the sole
article on the bill BY noon on Sun.
day several of the German immigrants
came to the hotel as delegation from
the hundred odd second and third
class passengers and demanded that
they be taken in.
The proprietor Of the hotel said he
had no more food, but that he would
accommodate them with beds on the
floor for pesos a day The immi-
grants left in anger and returned an
hour later.
acted as interpreter My knowl-
edge of Spanish, Portuguese. German,
etc, came in very handy, and in or
der to get even with Hotel Man I
charged him 10 pesos day for acting
as interpreter, which he willingly paid.
as ! was the only man on the train
speaking Spanish and English and he
needed me. In fact, he spoke hardly
ten words in the day to his guestc
without my assistance.
The committee from the station
asked me to tell the proprietor of the
hotel that unless they were allowed
the freedom of the house they would
burn it to the ground Incidentally
they called him hog-dog and other
complimentary names.
Nearly Burned the Hotel.
The landlord dismissed the commit
tee and said his rates never changed.
nj ~ hot
night the entire front OF the hotel was
discovered in flames, and 1t required
the combined efforts of all the guests
to extinguish 1t, which we did by
means of the snow and several bucket
brigades.
On the evening OF Monday, our fifth
day, l was asked to call upon the con-
ductor of the train and inquire if any
thing in the way of relief train was
coming. My call upon this function
airy was useless; he was so crippled
with rheumatism that he would not
utter word save oaths and waved
me away from his bunk in the sleep
er. Repairing to the station | saw the
poor immigrants huddled together en-
deavoring to keep warm Two had
died during the bitter. cold of the
previous night, and the entire crowd
of them looked emaciated and hungry.
Learning where the telegraph OPP
orator lived. | dragged that worthy
from his drunken bed II was now Z
O'Clock and steadily growing colder.
A high wind was blowing and the fine
particles of snow almost blinded me.
The operator accompanied me to his
booth in an outbuilding near the sta
ton and after confessing to me that
he had not sent a word to Buenos
Aires about the plight of the train, he |
transmitted a message which dictat- |
ed. | told him | was Marconi man
In the employ Of the road and under |
stood the various codes. This un-
impressed him, for in reply |
to my message, which read:
Train snowbound. Puenta del In
cas-. Passengers freezing. starving
Send aid Immediately. C. Sriber."
! got this reply:
Rushing train with supplies. Hug.
gins
This is all | remember. know that
{ was far below zero and that my
hands and ears were cold and stiff.
When next | awoke ! was lying in
ny room at the hotel with Mr.. Christy
Ind several Englishmen working over
ne. They say collapsed shortly aft
n leaving the station and that when
did not return by . o'clock Christy
organized search party to rescue me.
had been attacked by the
They found me lying
ace up In a snowbank almost frozen
o death
We finally arrived back In Buenos
Aires, where Mr.. Reichenbach cabled
ny firm and received word 10 return
Seven men and I'VE babies persisted
n the trip. Two Germans tried to
'alk from Puenta del Incas to Mcndo.
a and were frozen. Several immi-
rants died from exposure while liv-
ng at the railroad station. Five babies
led on the return trip. and upon the
rival Of the passengers at Buenos
Tres not one received any part OF the
are back.