Litchfield enquirer., 1869-09-16
THE GREAT MINE DISASTER.
Especial Dispatch to the N. Y. Times l

a SCRANTON, Penn, Sept. S.--The terrible calamity at Avondala was proven to the most doubting at the dawn of morning. when the eastern gangway was penetrated 1,200 feet from the bottom of the shaft, and the explorers came to 8 barricade that had been securely placed across the gangway. Tearing this down, horrible sight was en- oountered. The lamp shown upon a heap of dead. A pile of human beings choked the passage. as though they had fallen to- gether in the last agony. Even Hughes, the inside Superintendent, lay but little apart from the mass. He had been resting on his hands. and there was look of plac- i'd content upon his rigid features. This was true. too, of nearly all in the great heap. Some few had abrasions of the skin as though they had been injured in falling down, and some had an expression of hor- rified supplioation, as though their last of earth had been an agonized protest against their fate. These were exceptions. Tne vast majority looked like mea who were rather sleeping than dead, or likemen who accepted the inevitable with dignlhel res ignation; but none had died until they had exhausted all means of saving life.
 WHAT PROBABLY OCCURRED IN THE MINE.
 As had been promised, 1t was found that at the first alarm of danger these brave men had not been appalled,, but, taught by instinct and experience, and knowing tho horrible fact that there was no meaus of egress from the mine except by the shaft then choked with fire, they had fl sd to the furtherest parts of the mine. They had not fled in panic, but had gone back in or der and with full knowledge that their lives might depend upon their actions for they had but closed all the air-tight doors be- hind them, and thus kept the fresh air al- ready in the mine and the foul air out. When they had retreated behind the last door, and found poisonous vapors still fol- lowing them, they had then hastily thrown up the barricade and filled the interstices with clothing, which they had stripped from their persons. ...t .a-. --s
 F THE WORK OF REMOVAL.
 When this mass of dead had been care- fully examined it was found to contain six
 ty-three persons, and without exploring the mine to discover the spots where the others met their fate, the work of removing them to the surface was begun. Tue air in the nlne was still very bad, and the hor- rible heap was necessarily very slowly di.
 utnistota. Ti1o xuisiasy anparatns had been destroyed by fire, and an improvised plat form and rope and tackle was Q poor sub stitute. The actual raising of each corpse from the bottom of the shaft to the tunnel consumed eight minutes, and the horse in winding the rope upon the drum travelled something over mile. Only one body could be brought up at once, and with the time occupied ln getting it to the bottom of the shaft and bringing it ont through the tunnel, it can be readily understood that the work is not to be completed in 8 day, or even two. ,....- ....f
 .2 - AT THE MOUTH OF THE MINE. The scenes outside the shaft were scarce iy what was anticipated. The crowd was as great as on the previous days, and hard ly more in keeping with the scene. As each corpse was brought out on a stretcher and covored with a coarse canvas cloth, 1t was placed under 8 tree, and the cloth re- moved. Mir. Phillips. the outside Superin- teudent of the mine, then stepped to iden- tify the dead. Tne Coroner's Jury viewed tue body, and 1t was carried to tue tempo rary dead-house. The name and residence of the deceased was then announced to the surrounding crowd by Jas. George. Very rarely dld violent outbreak of feeling fol- low. The friends of the dead came forw I'd claimed the body andit was removed. In some cases vail of womans anguish was heard, in others 8 cry of woe rippIed through the crowd, but generally the dead were received without audible sorrow and hurried away with decent ceremony. In every case coffin was on hand, provided by the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Company, and it was decent, being of pol ished wood, and mounted in imitation sil- toAs4 +a g4.rah,%z -s 2ar z ttg ftB ifs al.I4 s I '''' PREPARATIONS FOR 1NTERMENr. 'I .4
 In consequence of the sIownoss with which the bodies are removed, the idea of giest public funeral of all together has been abandoned. The bodies are deliver ed to friends for immediate burial, most of these, however, will occur on the 9th and 10th, and Mayor Hall, of Scranton, has re- quested general suspension of business on those days. Samuel Sloan. President of the Company owning the mine, has also orders for general suspen- sion of work and free trains On those days. The flags on all depots and buildings gem erally are now displayed at half mast. s| sa@oJ THE coRoNERs NoUEsf z a' :.
 Justice Wadhams, of Plymouth, Acting Coroner, ,ahas issued notices to the Miners Union and the railroad company owning the mine that testimony as to the calamity will be taken on Saturday, at 10 A. M., at and requesting both to be present with evidence as to the cause of the disaster. It is intended to make the in- vestigation thorough and searching, and to pnt the blame of. the disaster where it be- longs. The inquest will occupy several days, and the testimony will touch, the whole question. of mining. oa2 A5aL t s4 = z 54e. eas .s.s = a9A sAppER PHAsH. z Fl Later explorations of the mine have de- veloped sadder phase of tragedy. Many of the chambers have been entered and miners found in them dead. the breast ot the miners showing that they had been stricken down by poisonous gas in 2 ra no n,ent and without warning while they were at work. Roadmen. roofmen, doormen. and others were found dead in different oaneways, showing that the destruction Rad come swift and sudden. as.aioJ
 taai BIT BITTER sa' raraErIsa aa ING OF THE msszERs
 The spirit evinced by miners to-day has been bitter in the extreme, and not assta- 0ed by fhe1offers of assistapce and sympa- thy flowing ID from every side. Asa Pack er has telegraphed that he offers $2, 500 to the bereaved; Gov. Geary $5,0O0. The