DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.70302#0037
MIRACULOUS PRESERVATION.
23
pounds of candles with him in the mine: with these,
when pressed by hunger, he endeavoured to appease his
appetite; but after two or three attempts to swallow such
loathsome food, he desisted; and the candles were found
after his release : his thirst, which he had no means of
alleviating, was excessive. Feeling extremely cold, he
tried to remove this inconvenience by exercising himself
in turning the windlass at the further end of the drift;
but having the misfortune to let the handle fall into the
shaft below he was deprived of this resource.
After the space of three or four days, as he imagines,
being almost in a state of distraction, he ascended by
means of a rope that hung down, to that part of the mine
where the rubbish had stopped in its descent; and by la-
bouring hard, caused a large quantity of it to fall to the
bottom of the shaft. He was employed in this manner,
when, at length, he heard the miners at work above
him, and by the expedient of knocking with a stone,
contrived to apprise them that he was still alive. Though
it is evident, from this circumstance, that he retained
his senses, he can hardly be persuaded that he was not
deprived of them, and fancies that he was prompted to
make the signals by some friendly voice, receiving from
it an assurance, that if he did so, he should be rescued
from his dreadful prison.
The signals which he made were heard by the miners
about eight hours before they reached him; and he de-
scribes himself as so much terrified by their noise, and by
apprehensions that persons were coming to murder him,
that he should certainly have destroyed himself, if he
had not been closely confined by the earth which he had
drawn down, and which so filled the lower part of the
shaft, that he was almost prevented from moving. In
the midst of the panic that agitated him, he swallowed
a considerable quantity of earth, which was afterwards
expelled
23
pounds of candles with him in the mine: with these,
when pressed by hunger, he endeavoured to appease his
appetite; but after two or three attempts to swallow such
loathsome food, he desisted; and the candles were found
after his release : his thirst, which he had no means of
alleviating, was excessive. Feeling extremely cold, he
tried to remove this inconvenience by exercising himself
in turning the windlass at the further end of the drift;
but having the misfortune to let the handle fall into the
shaft below he was deprived of this resource.
After the space of three or four days, as he imagines,
being almost in a state of distraction, he ascended by
means of a rope that hung down, to that part of the mine
where the rubbish had stopped in its descent; and by la-
bouring hard, caused a large quantity of it to fall to the
bottom of the shaft. He was employed in this manner,
when, at length, he heard the miners at work above
him, and by the expedient of knocking with a stone,
contrived to apprise them that he was still alive. Though
it is evident, from this circumstance, that he retained
his senses, he can hardly be persuaded that he was not
deprived of them, and fancies that he was prompted to
make the signals by some friendly voice, receiving from
it an assurance, that if he did so, he should be rescued
from his dreadful prison.
The signals which he made were heard by the miners
about eight hours before they reached him; and he de-
scribes himself as so much terrified by their noise, and by
apprehensions that persons were coming to murder him,
that he should certainly have destroyed himself, if he
had not been closely confined by the earth which he had
drawn down, and which so filled the lower part of the
shaft, that he was almost prevented from moving. In
the midst of the panic that agitated him, he swallowed
a considerable quantity of earth, which was afterwards
expelled