Legless Man Had Thrilling Experience

GALVESTON, Tex., July 24 - William Davies of Groveton, Tex., a legless man, 39 years old, furnished the most thrilling experience of any of the storm victims so far recorded.

He was a guest at the Tarpon fishing pier, located on the north jetty seven miles from Galveston in the gulf, and, with others was thrown into the sea when the big building was demolished by the hurricane.

Before the building collapsed Davies discarded his two cork legs, and catching some of the debris was carried seaward on the storm tide about fifteen miles. He was washed time and time again from the raft. It finally broke up and he was sent adrift in the gulf. Searching about for debris to catch onto, he was astonished to see his cork legs floating with the current, and grabbed them.

With these supports under his arms he swam back into the bay and was carried by the tides into Galveston upper bay, thirty miles from where the pier collapsed, and was picked up by a boat. He was in the water thirty hours, twelve of which he was battling with the storm waves. Shortly after being taken out he became delirious.

--The Syracuse Herald, Syracuse, New York, July 24, 1909, page 1.