The Man Who Walked With a Bolt Through His Foot

It is not of everyday occurrence when the finding of human bones and other ghastly evidences of shipwreck is a matter to the professional diver, probably one of the most noted divers in this country is John Moore, who is now in this city on furlough. Mr. Moore claims New Orleans at his fame, although he is recently from Seattle, W.T.

It was at the Albion Hotel on Jackson Street that an Examiner reporter met him a few days ago, and heard one of the most thrilling adventures that ever befell a man caught in water, he having been impaled through the foot in 30 feet of water at Memphis, Tenn. Mr. Moore walks with an almost imperceptible limp as a result of his adventure.

"It was last October," said Mr. Moore, "that I engaged to join the underwater work, that is to build the inclines for the Kansas City, Springfield and Memphis Railroad, at Memphis. My work was all under water, having to sink trestle on top of the sand and then drive drift bolts in each pile. The intervals were six in a row, forming what is termed a bent. The incline was about 400 feet in length, the bents being sixteen feet apart. It was on the morning of October 17th that I was sent over to the West Memphis side and made a survey. I found that the incline lacked a foot of being down on the cap, and so reported to the chief engineer. I was directed to bolt the incline further to the cap, and it was in doing this that the incident that nearly cost me my life occurred.

I used the regulation diving dress with helmet and air pump, but relied principally on my life-line and signal. Mr. Moore then explained the method of drawing a bolt fast under water. 'In this instance,' he continued, 'a piece of two-inch gas pipe of the required length was used. After holes had been bored in the timbers, a bolt was sent down the pipe, and being put into position by the diver, was rammed home somewhat after the manner of loading a gun.'

Everything progressed smoothly until about the middle of the day. I had just pointed the pipe over a bolt hole and given the signal to send the bolt down and ram away, when I felt a sharp, stinging pain in my right foot, and found myself impaled. I reached for my life line, but owing to the muddy water in the Mississippi, I was unable to find it for several moments. By that time I realized my position. The bolt had been driven through the string-piece of the incline, then through my foot and then into the top of the pile.

I confess that I was frightened at first, but realizing that if I lost my presence of mind I would be a goner, I braced up and looked about some way to release myself. If I had a slate with me I could have sent it up and notified those above of the fix I was in, but I had gone down that day without one. My situation was a very serious one.

'The current was running at the rate of about six miles an hour, and there I was, a prisoner under 30 feet of water, suffering intense pain and losing a large quantity of blood. There was no other diver within three or four miles of the place, and things looked very blue for me.'

I had been impaled for probably half an hour when the men concluded that something was wrong, and tried to signal me with my lifeline. This was finally abandoned, and a young fellow named John Conners, who acted as my tender, came down. He brought with him the dullest knife I think I ever saw. He came down to meet me in a novel way. He had no diving suit, but got one of the men on the lighter to hold my life-line and hook, and came down by the boat. He had to act quickly, and as soon as he reached me he passed the knife in my hand, and, releasing his hold on the line rose to the surface.

'I can assure you I felt better when I got hold of that knife. My first work was to sharpen it on a piece of railroad iron, piles of which were around me, then cut the upper strap of my shoe and then cut the right leg of my dress off just above the knee. This resulted in the water filling my dress up to my chin. This I did not mind, however, for so long as the air pump was kept going I was safe. The main trouble was to get my foot clear. I could not, from the position I was in, reach down further than the upper strap of my knee. Had I been able to do so I would have cut my foot between the toes.

'I tried in every possible way to clear myself, but it was impossible, and, as a last resort, I had to suffer the torture of having the bolt torn through the flesh. I signaled with my life-line which was attached to the wench and the engine started. The agony was simply terrible, and after being impaled under water for 30 minutes I was brought up very faint from loss of blood.'