HAROLD MCHARNESS FELL INTO A WELL

MCHARNESS, BARNHIZER, COOPER, STARR

Posted By: Nancee(McMurtrey)Seifert (email)
Date: 2/5/2002 at 17:14:47

Decatur County Journal
September l3, l9l4

HAROLD MCHARNESS, son of MR. and MRS. ED
MCHARNESS, had an experience
Friday evening shortly before 6 o'clock that
will undoubtedly make him
exceedingly cautious hereafter when about any
sort of a well. The lad
in company with his little friends, TED
BARNHIZER and WILLIE COOPER, was
playing in the pasture on the METIER land
just northeast of town. They
had gone to a well where a bunch of cattle
were crowding about a
watering trough and the MCHARNESS boy climbed
upon the edge of the
curb. One of the cows began crowding the boy
a little close in an
effort to reach the trough and he caught hold
of her horns. The animal
gave her head a quick jerk causing the boy to
lose his balance and
tumble backwards into the well where he went
out of sight in about eight
feet of water.

As he came to the surface he caught onto some
old boards that had
tumbled into the well and was able in that
way to keep himself above the
water. The other two lads ran to another
well not far away where they
secured a bucket to which a strong rope was
attached. They lowered this
to the MCHARNESS lad who managed to get his
feet into the bucket and
then holding onto the rope the two boys above
were able to pull him to
safety just as MRS. W.C. STARR and others
residing near had reached the
well, being called there by the cries of the
three lads.

The MCHARNESS boy was little the worse for
his experience but he had a
mightly close call and a bad scare.

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Copied February 2, 2002