The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-09-13
THE COAL ATINE HOEocA Usr.
\ Connected Account OF the Horrible
Affair.

The story of the pennsylvania disaster grows
m ,re and moro horrible as the details are
gradually brought to light. There is part OF
1.-THE closing moments OF the awful agony oil
those two hundred men-whici IN never be
described. Even the manner in which the
catastrophe originated is manly matter Of
conjecture. In NIL human probability. not one
of that wretchcd company survivor to tell tho
secrets of their prison-touse. aud 80 to the
actual horrors of suffering aud death is added
the gloom OF an imponetrable mystery. The
New York Tribune sums up the facts in the
following clear and connected narrative;
The coIliery in which this terrible accident
occurred is entered by perpendicular shaft,
327 feet deep. on the side OF mountain.
From the bottom of it, 40 feet below the sur
sloping upward, one 800 aud .he othpr 1905
feet long. Smaller passages aud chambers, 50
In number, branch off from these. There is no
access to the open air except by this single
shnft, which had to serve all the purposes OF
hoist'Say for the wOrkmen and The coal and
o channel tor the ventilating current whiei in
oil mines must be constantly forced by M
drifts. The sides Of the shan we're built up
with wooden supports, and wooden partition
ran perpendcularly through its whole length,
dividing it into two passages, ono for the up
ward, the other for the downward current.
Right over its mouth stood great wood
en- building, containing the machinery for
hoisting and for breaking, sorting and cleaning
air fire was always kept burning IN furnace
at tho foot OF the shaft, and from this il is
supposed the woodwork must have caught.
On Monday morning two hundred men went
down that shaft to resume work after long
atrike. They were followed about 8 O'clock
by one OF the mule-tenders. with hay for his
beasts. As he reached the bottom he was
heard to cry "Firel" but what ne saw we
shQ n a n mi Nol-
umn OF fame rushed up the shaft, caught
the breaker as IL that had been q house Of pa
per, and wrapped the whole structure in
ed forth destruction. Hundreds Of tons OF
coal in the shutes and bins were soon in
wiiite glow. and dropped With the falling
beams into the shaft. Il was seven or eight
ried to the scene OF disaster from all the
neighboring towns succeeded in extinguishing
the burning mass. Workmen had focked "
was known that tao hundred OF their brsthren
were imprisoned among the deadly vapors Of
that awful pit. The rubbish was cleared away
fr2m the mouth, and fifty experienced miners
no y about in the evening. To test the puri-
ty OF the air dog and lighted lamp were f,rst
lowered into the shaft as far as they would go.
At the end OF five minutes they were drayn rp,
miner named Charles Vartue then won't down
to reconnoiire, but about half way from the
bottom he found the shaft blocked with fallen
cred with hstchets. After tYCnty minutes
they were drawn up again. faint and breathless.
They bad penetrated seventy or eighty yards
into ganggay: finding three dead mules, and
coming at last 10 closed door. They ham,
mered at it and waited for an answering
sound. but no answer came. and through the
crevices poured clouds of suphurous vapor-
in the course Of the evening and night, made
attempts to penetrate into tho gang ways, bnt
with little more SUCCESS. Few could remain
moro than five or Six minutes, and whom
bausted: Several we're brought back by their
companions entirely insensi6le. Two brave
fellows, Daniel Jones and Thomis Williams,
we were brought back BE- dead There was no hope
unesr possibly they had succeeded in walling
themselyes in at some remote part OF the mine
p the entrance o. the
shadow Of hope; ST.. 'e aork went on. while
women ga. wrtD:,ingi 1T r., ,3and weeping for
their husband and ,ildl.,sSnd miners from
their assn &c. BY By nine O'clock on Tues. Tues
day morning an enaino and fan had been
placed In position to- foros fresh air into the
mine; All day long parties went down ct In
and the fans did not seem to gain upob it.
About four In the afternoon IL was discovered
that the fire at the foot Of the shaft which was
supposed 70 ,bo entirely e1tinguished. had
nlunicsted with q mass Of coal lying near.
Thus the workmen had a:tually been accele-
rating tho generation OF gas, and destroying
what little vostige Not hope migbt.remain Tor
was with some difficulty brought to play upon
the flames, and the gre stee part Of the night
was devoted TO the suppression Of the fire,
the Clouds OF gas that came up the shaft being
meanwhile 90 awful hat workmen ut The mouth
were removed ingensible. Between two and
three O'clock on Wednesday morning two hodies
were found, both fearfully disfgured aud un-
ceeded IN penetrAtlpg some distance into one
OF the principal galleries, and came upon The
bo6ies OF over SIXTY more where they had met
their fAte together They had constructed
ped Of their clothes TO stop the crevioos.' One
poor fellow, whose duty IT seems to have been
TO close the last aperture after ell had passed