The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1857-03-18
Farther Particulars Of the Appalling Coi.
iiery kxpiosisn In Ensland.

hery hxpiohsn In ENGLAND.
ny tne last steamer we received An account Of
.ae sppah'ns coliiery explosion 10 the village OF
nemminSsneld, Yorkshire, England. Further
particulars 60 to show that It was the most dis
astrous calamity Of the kind that has eyer occur
red -
On the morning Of the 10Th of February about
TWO hundred and twenty men and lads went down
the pit to commence the days work the undertook
81 having preceded them to ascer,a ain If the Dit
w.s sne. Az noon number of the men came
out oi tue PIT 10 dtnner-some state twenty some
'h'rfy-and At that time they had not observed the
slightest indication of danger
while the men and the inhabitants of the dis.
.r'ss we're paraaing Of the midday meal about lat
with sensible vibration of the earth Ard Al ths
same time loud report, which was heard At Ho.
iyiand, wentworth, and other villapes soma ycjIa.
distant from the pit Immediately after the explo.
son, vac. numbers OF persons rushed to the mouth
OF the pit, many of whom had relatives amono
those below; aud some idea of the excitemeni
which prevailed, may be gathered from the fact
that sitter the explosion. the mine was fired and
the flames spread with suci, rapldity and vehe.
mence that they ascended up the air sb.f, vh;oh
is about 260 yards deep, and lowered .hova Tho
top OF the cupola for some twenty yards illumina
ung the country for q distance around. :
All efforts to extipguish the FIRE with engines
were found to be fruitess, and 1t then attempt
y1vifh h,
in. Three daring fellows ventured down AID
succeeded In saving nineteen men, more or Iess in
Jured by the explosion. After this, 1t was deter.
mined to hazard an attempt At exploring the work.
io8s OF the pit Among those who went down was
Mr. Webster. who gives the following account of
the state In which he found the mine during his
perilous exploration:
He said that on getting to the bottom of the
shaft they found that the lower portion Of the ses
and board gates were entirely blown nm and do
5tFOVad dip0 fue thc-sh -
coal around the furnace was in complete stste NJ
tgI ttion. The coal and woodwork in the shaft had
taken fire and the flames ware raging furiouslv.-
He could compare it to nothing but . river of mol
ten metal beng poured down the shaft. They pro-
ceeded about 200 $50 yards along the south level
and found the whole of the furnaces down and the
coal on fire. They proceeded up the levels and
boardgates as far as they dared to venture. un-
til they came in contact with the infammable gas
and were obliged to retreat. They returned to the
shaft, and then made an examination OF the north
levels, along which they proceeded for q distance
of 1000 yards, up to the first boardgate During
the investigation they found many dead bodies,
and the men who accompanied them brought the
remains to the shaft. One man was found dead
close to the bottom of the shaft; further on they
found ten bodies In mass. Not far from the fur
mace it was supposed that large number of bodies
were lying, as the men generally congregated near
the fire At dinner time. The furnace was blown
down, and the stables, containing six horses were
saw immense masses of coal and rock falling
down The shaft was like furnace
They were in the pit above two hours The
stoppages and brattices between the two shafts
were completely blown away, and therefore, ex-
cept in the level, the pit Dead viz full of bad air
They would have succeeded in putting up stoppages,
but the fire increased to such an extent that they
were Obgedto retreat. They were so placed that
1t they had not retreated they would have been
excluded from the air and suffocated, because the
90 frCup uboft 49,,
Himself, Mr.. Coe and Mr.. Madisoa ascended the
shaft and held consultation, but their companions
ascendei in haste saying that it impossible for
any one TO remain down any longer. Of course
they then considered II their duty to acquaiut the
owners with the position of the mne and to state
that it wasi Imperative to close the shafts there
was no probability Of saving any more lives; and
that 1t was the only chance to render the pit in
condition fit for working in again"
Mr.. Webster added, my com paniono aud myself
fearing the awful responsibility which rested upon
shoulders, thought 1t was only pruoent to consult
with the men who had gone down with as They
w.re called In separately and asked if they were of
ont Of the mine. They concurred In opinion that 1t
was impossible, and we acted upon their resolution
and our own by covering over the tops Of the pits
n few minutes aft er csme out the mine the
cupos shaft was filled with fire, which reached fifty
yards abave the summit, and the sparks from that
Docy Of flame aseended 100 yards higher"
After ascertaining the number Of parties then 10
the Fit the painful result was arrived at that l6 men
still remsined in the burning mipe of whose escape
from their feaI full doom not the slightest chance
entertained these fires sometimes last not only for
days, but for weeks and months.
As to the cause of the explosion, no particulars
have yet been sscertaiued. nor probably will
The survivors unable to account for 1t, AND the
explosion seems the more strange the pit had been
carefully examined only few hours previously. 1t
IL conjectured that ''fa' had taken place in
distant part of the pit, and suddenly let in
charge of fire damp which by some means ignited,
and so caused the explosion.