The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1869-03-27 00:00:00

TWELVE LIVES SAVED

Oar re..11.,r4 will reeelle,t V. it the lateit n-wl we ;vivo
W. 1,1 th:it the w ter W:11 being Y....laced at the rate of 2',
iitehea per hour. w.ts enntioncil with miuhat.,.l cue-
C.A. RIO it tV.I4 01011.41 a tho men ten-ill b., g.,t out by the
eif the ,I.ty. howev,,, it I impls,
silile t nitlieirtli wAler w.i4 bit. re
- .

d. and at Izne time at the r Ate. of !Ivo helms per
It oar. Early on Satiorday morning the portahle engine
ettioned woorliine, bottom of the pit having been
Tire ho I heea is good deal oof tolk during the
tip traing. as to what time WWII I be liii t o the pit.
nod it was thou4lot that it would ii iv, been se mat;o'isited
le.fore noon. This partly arose from i:siperre.l utt-.rtn*-
tin having got ahr oa I. Betw,ent eleven and t.velve
o'c!oo,•:: the &lA% of the water wuk again ni...ssured, and
Mr. Pilllt, will bias lilt the in knageolent of this depart-
ment, enrok-eyeil the joyfui intelli4euce, that the water
load fallen below the •• inset " to the eateut if about tea
inches. The 111,11, IV.In received with the greatest sat,
faction, mood eookk sprek I all threekk the diattiet
; About Coke eloek Mr. F. itnith. Mr. tlreenway, Mr
Plant. aml Mr. I)ainty descended the working shaft, for
tIC pm vise t,l ascertaining the state of the water, and
I tike gla I ti unit' were soon sent out of the pit that it walk
twenty inehes below, the "Inset." But although the
water was below the '• inset " twenty inches at the !km*,
till, water was still shove the •• inset "of the pumping
oh, it, and until it fell below that point there cnnl I be no
ventilation. It was then proposed to go down and plumb
Vie wkter in that shaft. bat Mr. It her, the Mining In-
spector. con.idered it would be atoen.ted with some dan-
ger. At half.p.ist sin, the c eamuaication Pf air) be-
tween the two eh kfts was opened.

At half pa,4 six ,i'clock the Ilrat attemot WWI Wia.le to
get into the work age. hut it proved a failure. The ex.
ploriwz painy coast:lca 14 Mr. F. Smith, Mr. E. Green.
way, Mr. M. Fletcher. Mr. Plant, ant Mr. S. Thompson
(the dorlgvl. each being provided with a 1/411, lamp,
in the tank with them Wanl a ladder. Oi reaching the
level of the water, they chanted, bat no reiponee wan
rot rid. The party could see the top of the farmer.
but the water had not fallen low enough to alinit of can
fleeting the cage awl the furoace by the ladder. Even
hal this been so. the chot,e dionp would Ii too precluded
th (cam I...mulling the top airimad Over the furnace.
There were a numlier of ea Ales Ii iaticg an the tip of
lie water. The time i.ccupital in the exploring expedi-
tion '1,14 eighteen minatee.
It was then determined that no explorinl party would
de,eintl again fir Mille hours. in consevence of the
chile-dump, Sad 11 deeper gloom than ever appeared hi
prevail. mid all abandoned hopes of brinciii; any of the
men oat alive, as it Was deemed impossible nu account of
the foul air.

Saturday night wog a very exciting ant trying time to
oil engiged in the operations, and hundred< of prevails
Ito pit to hoar same fresh intolli-
keit watcliing 101.1•1
goltee, Between two and three o'clock on Salley mire-
;„'ay dee woo beard re:,,ending up the choir, an I with
great j IV and eager hate it wee answered trona above,
and again a reply was heard " We're all right right "
Kyery eff irt was now led übled. it pesaiele. to int:ream,
the yentil ition. and every ingenuity and experienee
hoonght to hear to overe one Ow I:hake-item). Previous
to that ",:tter hot been peered in hecketsfal down the
nnnin abaft, in order to iterelerat the force of the pure
;iir. eel eist out or dilute eh I. Wai noxisias. A " blow•
gorge" was kept in ,iperatieu hie the sane pareese,
while great sheets of liurdee were pet on the sides of the
trams of the owneast pit. in such a way a: to catch the
breeze and send it nit.> the shaft la any attempts that
were made to get down the bottom of the cage IVIt pies-
!dell, spread with quick lime. for the purpose of absorb•
leg. MI far as it cci pa •sible, the carbonic mid gas.
The work woe eoutioaed with greet spirit during the
morning. and about eight o'clock the pit presented an
extraordinary appearance, hundreds of persons being
present, and wending their way there from all ports of
the district, awl long before the middle of the day Con.
veyances of ell deseriptiens, from all parts, filled the
High-street, mid Mill.street was almost impassable.
Another attetnpt we< made to go down the pit, acei al-
therigh it failed it became evident that the choke-damp
was baing, driven oat of the shaft. At half-past nine
apother attempt Was 1114.1 e, the party consisting of David
Plant, Benjamin Thompson, Samuel Thompion, and
Thomas Blown, each man being incite fast to the cage by
means of ropes round the body, afraid the gallant men
[eight succumb to the clioke•dinnp ; and steadily they
were lowered, and as the signal that all was going right
tthe striking of a hammer on the iron cage) cease from
a lower and lower depth, till at last the usual signal
from the bottom to the engine men, every one around
the pit experienced a feeling of relief, which, however,
was momentarily succeeded by a feeling of impatience
to learn the result of the eieleavour. The party were
down about twenty minutes, when the signal was given
to draw them up. Amid breathlese excitement every
one near the pit weuth and in view of it waited in ex-
peMation of seeing some of the prisoners come up with
them. When near the top there came a call to have the
raft ready. "There's some of them dead." exclaimed
mine; but no, that was no explanation, and while they
are fastening the raft on the cege we will endeavour to
give it. It has been previously stated that it was pro-
posed to get at the place where it was believed one party
of the men would be found by getting over the top of
the furnace into the top air heading. Some of the
searchers got as far in this direction, but it was found
impossible to proceed in consequence of the badness of
the air. Brown love attempted to swim in, but the air
woo bad, and his found a difficulty at every strike of the
pumping engine, which it required all his strength to
overcome. Fioding that the air was better in the gate-
road than in the top air heading, it was determined to
make the attempt in Wet direction. This, however,
could not be done withent the raft, ant hence the disap-
pointing return to the surface. The appearance of the
cage above the pit mouth was simultaneously with a
statemcnt from one, to the effect, •• All the loon in one
side of the pit are alive—six of them." The newa at
once reached the farthest beund of the crowd, with elec-
tric-like rapidity, and it woo greeted with a cheer, such
as one seldom hears more thou once in a lifetime.
In a very brief spate the raft was fixed on the cage,
which woe again lowered—this time more rapidly. The
raft consisted of a nuntber of planks firmly bound together
from eight to nine feet long by four wide, and fitted
with aping at each end. On getting to the level of the
water, the raft was dropped down into it, with a rope
made fast to one of the rings. Thomas Brown then got
if the ease, on to the raft, and laving himself flat. mulled
it by his hands on the side into the atateroad. Poet-teen
or fifteen yards from the inset he come elongside two of
the men, David Hickman, Timothy Taylor, and one of
the boys, Thomas Sankey. They were seated in an old
road in the tap measure of the coal, and on a wall of
bricks, which was part of a place being built as a More
room for candles, doc. They were just a little above the
level of the water. Taylor, who was nearest the raft,
was first brought out, and then the other two successively.
With this additional freight, then, the signal was given,
end the cage reamended. Its appearance was the signal
for cheering, agein ant again renewed. The poor fel-
lows were wi-apped completely op in blankets. with which
men stood rewly at the pit mq.tth. and were borne in
,itroair mina and whit the h., Mesars. Walker
and &showed, Lb, ti wn hem pre,ot
for hours, were indefatigable in seeing to the men. aud
Mr. Chapman also gam his assistance. Abutadanwe of
milk aml Oniakii load Welt yrovicte4. tad 'Mk mail 6"