The Washington times., 1921-01-05
BARKOF Doc.
SAVED FL|ERS
Navy BaIIoonists, Nearing Lake,
Heard Faint Yelp in Big
/. Woods Below.
CONTINUED from First Pags)

CONTINUED from FIRST PaGs5
the woods beneath them. This led
them TO believe that they were near
a settlement or at least a homestead
and they decided to make earth.
TREK THROUGH VAST FOREST.
The balloon touched land at ] 80
o'clock in the Afternoon OF December
IA. and then the troupies OF the bal
loonists began in earnest. IL TOOK
them only a short time to realize that
they were lost in a primeyal Forest
uninhabited except by wild animals
Throughout the afternoon and
night of the 14th the men trudged
through the snow. Fortunately there
was little IL any frost in the air
They had taken with them all the
provisions left on the balloon and the
thre carrier pigeons.
PIGEONS ARE EATEN.
On the 10Th the men began to de-
SPAR. They realized they were lost
and began to fcnr that they would
perish In the wilderness. BY this time
all the food hnd been eaten and two
Of the three carrier pigeons were
killed and eaten.
(NOte-The account falls TO shy
what happened 10 the third pigeon.
1t is possible that II may have been
released with n message and lost Its
way. This part of the dramatic
story will not be revealed until the
men reach the railhead either here
or at Mnttice.
RIVER Is FRESH HOPE.
On the 18th, just as the men had
about decided to abandon themselves
to their fate. they reached the Moose
river The sight Of this river gave
them fresh hope. They believed that
If there was any settlement at all
in the wilderness it would be upon
a stream of water.
Plunging through the deep snow
failing, exhausted. the balloonists
'finally discovered Vracks in the snow.
Their hope was strengthened and
they fought their way forward with
renewed confidence.
After a tortuous journey the men
came upon an Indian trapper. hardy
fellow who was getting his winter
catch for sale to the Hudson Bay
, Company in the spring. This Indial
Tom Marks his nameS was on hunt
ing expedition and was looking after
his traps. When he caught sight of
the three white men he was overcome
with fright and disappeared in the
brush.
THOUGHT HE SAW SPECTEh.
The sudden and mysterious appear
ance of three white men in the heart
of that desolate snow waste was
enough to cast fear into heart even
less bold than that of Tom Marks.
Two of the men wore uniforms of the
United States naval air force. The
third was in his underwear. All
were nearly spent and showed marks
OF exposure and starvation.
(The fact that only two OF the
three men wore unifor ms is another
part of the narrative that has not
yet been cleared up
The men kept on and finally reach
ed Moose Factory more dead than
alive. Their appearance at the trad
ing post caused a great sensatio1
among the employees of the little
store and fort. especially among the
few approximations Indians. who
looked upon the white men as spirits
out OF the air. The Hudson Bay en-
pic s SooL the Americans in and
them the best IN care. They
X sat TO bed under layers Of
thick warm furs an hot dr.ni~ ere
adrninisterei After ep
they were given hes 2; I'D
at the end Of twenty-ro rs vs., e
reu8y to start for the nf ne
White mans world.