The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1916-02-27
developing into one Of the most fertile
farming regions of the earth.
ESCAPES.

Ned. l. Chaplin. member of the
Pasadena (Calif.) Daily News staff,
writes some experiences Of eastern
ers now living in California under the
head of "Narrowest Escapes" In a
recent issue he has a story about J.
X. Huston, formerly with the Center
vile Citizen, which will be of interest
to Nj. Huston's Iowa friends. Chap
ms story about Illusions experience
is as follows:
In an Iowa hailstorm some years
100 East Colorado street, experienced
a narrowing narrow escape. 1t was
a real storm. The hailstones were
all as large as a hens egg or larger,
and were driven with great force by
the wind. After the storm was over,
Mr.. Huston saw a man who had tried
to save a team Of horses. His fore
head and lace were all bruised and
cut by the stones. The local paper
told of a dog that ran yelp1ng down
the street as the hailstones pelted
him. The animal suddenly leaped
into the air in a somersault and fell
dead. II was a bad storm.
Mr.. Huston at that time was a
Junior in the law department of the
University of Iowa, and In those days
was something Of a Splinter. He a
second to Johnny Crum in the so
yard, 1OO-yard and 220-yard dashes,
and made the century in 10 is sec
onds.
On the afternoon of the storm, Mr.
Huston had been out at the fair
grounds, three-quarters Of a mile from
the gymnasium. When he saw the
storm coming, he put on some clothes
over his running suit and started
home. But it caught him on the way.
Looking about for shelter, MI. Hus-
ton observed a corrugated iron hay
shed about rs feet long by 80 feet
wide. It was empty. He went inside
and lust about that time the storm
broke. The noise was deafening. 1t
was worse than any battle, as the
giant hailstones slammed down on
the iron roof.
Whether the roof had been weak
ened by weathertng or not, the hail
stones, as they grew IN size, number
and velocity, began to tear their way
right through the iron. Between the
noise and the puncturing OF holes in
the roof. NJ. Huston grew uneasy.
As soon as the storm lulied at all. he
left the place and started on.
After stepping outside. Mr.. Huston
had gone about twenty feet. He
hadn't been gone more than twenty
seconds. A terrific gust of wind
swooped down by way of topping Off
the storm. He heard a terrific crash
and looked around. The heavy. iron
roof of the shed was fiat on the
ground. The walls had collapsed.
Next day, the future PaSadenan
made a careful inspection Of the
wreck and found no place under the
roof where he could have lain to
escape being crushed. 1t was SO fiat
there was practically no space under
it anywhere, and with the ha1lstone
holes in II. it looked like q sieve.
This narrow escape story is no mar
rover than another Of later expert
ence IN Mr.. Huston's life. He was
skating with some companions on the
Iowa river. above a lam. 1t had been
very cold and the water below the
dam where the river was swnt was
frozen over. Some Of the more ven
turesome skaters vent down, because
the ice there was smoother. IL was
also pepDered with airholes.
Skating along. hand in hand, the
party struck an airhole. The man
in the middle went through, and one
after another two men on eacn size
of him were drawn in.
Under the ice, the five men lost all
sense of direction. They couldn't
back to the air hole. They felt
heads strike against the ice
above, and were about to resign
themselves to their fate. when they