Year: 1864




there / was. Was that disfgured,


bloody, raving object my once beautiful
boy? Yes, 20, my God p / exclaim-
ed, wringing my hands His mother.
with a ghasuy face and stony eyes, aided


by neighboring women, was about Wa sh
ing him. His eyes were blinded With


clotted blood. His sweet face. his neck,
J the entire upper part of his person, was


crimsoned with his blood Nis reason


,oas gone He might be permanently Y


insane. For moment 1 buried my


face in my hands, and gave vent to my


feelings in n flood Of tears / felt re


lieved.


Bat found that would not do. See


ing the hcroism and fortitude of my


wife in attending to our boy reproached


myself for my selfishness, and set about


aiding her in her labor Of love. 80,
our dear boy is blind."' said my wife, in
her soft, submissive, and touching man
ner between her sobs, for tears had
come to her relief II couldn't be ,


But if it was SO, l would be his eyes.
Being a physician myself. rather than
suffer from the suspense OF waiting to
call in another, / summoned courage to
examine the injuries of my boy myself.
This i did


80, Addie. thank God y I exclaimed,
after completing my diagnosis, Ibis eyes
are uninjured: his only wound is above
the right brow = Her answering re
+ sponse was q flood of grateful tears
The wound inflicted was deep, ugly,
ragged, and triangular; the hypothenusc
of which laid parellel to the eyebrow.
With my own trembling hands L dressed
his wound, and assisted nv pale and
weeping wife to lay him on his cot.
For twenty four hours he was insane


The accident occurred in this way:
The street, on which was the store to
which | had sent Alpha, was in front Of
and ran parallel with the street on which
we lived. On his way to the store he
was abused by some big, rude girls liv-
inc on the cross street 4 modest, re-
tiring, and civil boy, he determined, on
returning home, to take the next lower
cross street to avoid collision with the
rude girls This he did 1t was rare
that he ever passed along that cross
street unless in company with me. 1t
was not much frequented, and rather
desolate. On the street on which he
came home was a well sixteen feet deep,
with about six feet of water in it. 1t
was a little to the one side of the
street, in front of q large hotel stable.
1t had no curbing about it, and was
partly concealed by a rank growth of
dog fennel. In the stable opposite the
well, wild, vicious horse was kept at
the time. On coming nearly opposite
the stable, the horses made a furious
racket inside of the building. At these
unusual sounds Alpha became alarmed
As was very natural, and in his fright
forgetting the existence of the well, he
inclined to the side of the street on
which it was situated, and ere he had
time for moments reflection he stumbled
il head foremost Down, down he went
with great rapiditv. destitute of all
means to help himself, or avert the fear
ful fate that seemed inevitable. About
four feet from the top his right forehead
came in contact with the sharp angle of
rock that projected from the wall of
the well. This temporarily arrested the
descent of his head, inflicted n ohastly
wound, knocked the lad senseless, while
his lower eNtremities kept on descend
ing, so that 10y this means he aliohted
with his feet in the water instead of his
head. On the top of the water, and
resting upon the opposite walls OF the
well, was the handle of broom. Evi
IDENTIFY in an unconscious state. he fell
astrde of this broom handle, his bleed
ing head in the meantime falling against





was supported by the broom handle
Judging from the quantity Of clotted
blood upon the stone on which his head
rested, he must have lain in that posture
fifteen or twenty minutes. Thus he lay
till the cold water and bleeding restored /
him to consciousness.


With the return of consciousness the /
little fellow realized at once all the hor- (
rors of his awful situation Neither !.
Father nor mother was in hearing Of his
feeble voice as it came up family out of .
the well. This he knew. Nor were any I
others near ut the time Neither Of lis 4
had thought of the well. vet he called f
his papa w.th all his remaining strength. 4
Though nelrly q half 4 mile from him.
it was at this time | fancied | heard him
calling upon me for assistance i fen 4
his little voice shreiking into my ear.
Papa, papa! help, help me- But TO /
his frantic cries there WAS no response.
II was too much for his yoang mind
His reason gave way O. it was m
awf ful hour Ny heart almost breaks,
even at this remote period. when | think
OF the intense agony from which he
must have suffered when he heard not
the answering response of his papas
voice. After he rexajnei his reason, 80 I



that hour that he could not he induced
to talk about it After hearing me re
late the incidents to friend. he begged
me, with tears in his eyes, never to
mention the subject again in his hearing.
We tried to make him forget the dread
full incidents.


Alarmed by the bleeding of his head. 1
from its pain, and horror
stricken at the idea of the absence Of I
all living beings. his mind gave way
Beyond this he had no recollection.


As Alpha was praying hoy from the I
first of his ability to utter syllable, his /
Heavenly Father did not forsake him in
that trying hour.


He was found sitting upon the edge
Of the well by q lad of fourteen. blinded 4
by his own blood, frantiely calling for .
me. This lad carried him home


Now follows the most reOarkahIe mart .