Norfolk day book. [volume] (Norfolk and Portsmouth Va.) 1868-1880, 1869-09-16

men below; IL tuc nlon NV" oN| -,
had another shaft, | believe they would
have escaped, because was among the
first to 90 down the day after the accl-
dent, and could see by the size OF the
brattice the men built to protect them
selves they must have spent some time
at it; l don't believe the shaft ever took
| fire from the furnace, for the engineer
and the men at the pumps were accus-
! toned to 60 round between the fiue and
the air shaft, and if there were great
heat there, or sparks flying, they could
i not do so; there is portion OF brattlce
! in the shaft not far from the bottom
that is not burned at all, being merely
scorched. The bottom of the brattlce
is burned, but that would have been
done by the lighted tlmbers falling from
above; am unable to say what the cause
OF the fire might have been, bat l don't
! believe the current of air from the fur-
mace could carry through the Hue sparks
to set the brattice on fire.
| Thomas G Davis, miner, testified
/ worked in the Avondale mine ten
months; the furnace is $50 feet from
the shaft; l have spoken with Mr.. Evan
i Hughes, the inside boss, on the subject
\ of providing another means of egress
from the mine, and at the time of the
suspension of work last May he was
engaged driving hole which, when
completed, would furnish the needed
want; the work was never resumed
since; don't think fire ever caught
from the furnace, for have seen men
working in the Hue and the furnace
lighting; my impression is that the fire
began about the tunnel; some composl-
ton was thrown upon the wood work
and set fire to about the tunnel, the
greatest marks of fire are found there;
the boards at the bottom of the shaft
were too wet to catch fire; the mine had
been closed up some time and the shaft
was consequently damp.
William Thomas, of Plymouth, miner,
testified worked four months in the
Avondale mine, and think if there
was another shaft the men might have
escaped, because there was quite num-
Der of men made their way long dis
lance back in the mine and built brat~
tees, evidently after the fire took place;
| consider 1t too bad that men should
have to 90 down in mines with only
single opening; | remember finding in
the east gangway man who worked
in he west; | believe he had left on &C..
count of the fire in search of place Of
safety.
| Alexander Weir, of Avondale, late
engineer of the mine, testified.-l told
the inside boss there was danger of fire
and flame, because of the heat coming
through the fue; l had hoisted a car
up and dumped it, when | noticed to the
foreman that there was good deal of
smoke ascending in one corner of the
shaft, a minute or two after, IN drawing
up the cage, burst of flame, like an
explosion of powder, shot up in ono'cor
ner of the shaft; it came from the inside
boss of the danger from the furnace in
the mine, and also to other persons; my
father constructed the furnace, but l
don't remember that we ever had con-
versation abour it,
| George Morgan, miner, OF Nantlcoke,
testified he had been employed in the
mines since he was ten years old; the
upper part of the brattice in the Avon
dale mine was completely burned out
from seventy-fve feet from the top to
within twenty feet of the bottom; it
was tolerably sound my belief is that
the fire did not originate at the bottom,
but at point not far removed from the
| top, and if a committee of this body of
miners be appointed, I will show that
the upper edge of the boards forming
the brattice shows all along the dead
marks of fire, while the lower edge has
no marks at ALL my opinion is that the
fire originated at the tunnel, or little
below; | heartily agree in condemning
the plan of having but one outlet to
mines
H. w. Evens.- That is just what the
miners intended to condemn; they knew
that to work a mine with one outlet was
dangerous, and had known it all these
years, but must work in them or starvo,
and they intended on this occasion to
show the perils they arc exposed to.
! Applause.
| Thomas L. Thomas, miner, testified. -
| AaFO WoiACN eiiii W -hFO y0tho 90 @ LIZ
ner; worked two months in Avondale;
have spoken with Mr.. Evan Hughes
upon the danger of having but one
| opening to the mine; we also rad talk
about the furnace, and he asked my
opinion of it; told him thought the
ventilation very good; always consider
ed Mr.. Hughes very careful man; we
also talked about opening a connection
between Avondale and Union mines
something very easy to accomplish, as
only fifty or sixty feet had to be tun-
| neled-and if this had been done it
| would only have taken a week, and
all the men now dead might have been
| saved.
The inquest was here adjourned until
| 9 o'clock Tuesday morning.
| ----------I--1-
| SECRETARY SEWARD ON ALASKA.