The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1869-09-30

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might have tQpRprtnnity. This, he
twice repeated but no signal of any
kind came from hslow. IN three min
utcs the engine-F1em was full of smoke.
The, engi,lssr had barely tme t. adjust
his machinery SO chat there could he no
explosion, and to run from the heat.
leaving his hat Behind. From~' the
mouth Of thcs ,ys4tilsting section now
rolled up one tremendous puff Of brown
smoke, and after II leaped column OF
living flame far into the air., The whole
woodwork Of tile shaft-containing
nearly five million feet of lumber was
on fire! A few minutes later the huge,
dry, wooden building over the mouth
| was likewise 6ne vast sheet oi
flame. - ..oa. ~. :, So
From Plymouth, three miles away,
tslegraps wsre sent iD all directions for
help. There was not an engine or a
foot of hose on the ground. Lines al
men with buckets were soon throwing
on water; but half dozen fire-engines
could not have saved the building then
Up the hillside for hundred feet rolled
the flames along the roof; and then
from its highest point they seemed to
slioot up \lsrpendicularly for fifty feet
more. Great forest trees near 10y shrank
and crackcied and writhed in the in
tense heat AS the news spread, work
1nA IN l,l
and the men gathered by hundreds and
Joined in the desperate, unavailing
| struggle with the fire. All thoughts
centercd on the miners imprisoned at
the bottom of the shaft, from which
slowly but surely the flames, to feed
| themselves, We're sucking up every
breath of pure air. The wives and
children of the men thus shut UP in an
exhausted receiver rushed to and fro in
the crowd, wringing their hands, wall!
ing and shrieking: 80! O.! or "My
husband" my father!" my darln!'
'tiod have mercy" Again and again
were they assured, to quiet them: go,
your men are all right; they are entire
ly safe" But the eyes of the oldest
miners, who We're hercely fighting the
flames, met with dull, furtive glances Of
despair; two hours had passed, aud
they felt that there could be no living
being in the depths below.
AT noon hand engine reached the
scene, from Kingston, Ave miles away,
and it was soon playing. n steam fire
engine from Scranton, twenty-five
miles, followed IN hcuc later. But tho
roofs of the buildings fell in, aud heavy
timbcrs and glowing red-hot iron
wheels went crashing down the shaft
Outside, an embankment of coal-dust
90 feet high became one molten mass,
and in the burning sun its white streams
Of fire rolled like lava slowly down the
hill, while waves ofquivering heat filled
the atmosphere.
BY five o'clock tho fire in the shaft
was extinguished; and from rope.
running over II pulley, suspended from
oak logs which had been laid across the
top, a bucket was hanging. But what
living thing would enter that steaming,
reeking mouth of hell? First a dog
and a light, were. let down. In ten
minutes they we,e brought NJ, The
lamp was burning, the dog was alive
SO all began to take heart of hope. Amid
profound stiffness, men ha!loed down
the shaft. A hundred people at the
mouth and in the tunnel were sure that
they heard from below the cheerful re-
sponse, "All right" Then the crowd
cheered wildly. So uncontrolable
grew their excitement that they could
not be kept away from the mouth.
Finally, the hose fyom the steam fire.
engine was turned upon them, and the
drenching shower dispersed them.
At halfpast six Charles Vartue, ali
Irish miner, provided with lantern, a
wet towel, and a pail of coffee, stepped
into the bucket and was lowered. In
seven minutes he gave the return signal,
and was drawn up. He reported that,
100 feet down, the shaft was obstrncted
with fallen timbers; he could have gone
past them, but he feared they might fall
Oh him. Two men then descended with
axes; cleared away the rubbish reached
the bottom; penetrated passage for
seventy yards, and there came to closed
door. They pounded upon it, but no
answer from within broke the dead
silence. Sulphur was streaming through
the crevices, and they feared sulfocation
if they should open the door. Hall over
come by heat aud foul air, they came
up; and then the shrieks aud walls of
the women broke forth afreSh
Two more miners, Thomas Williams
and jenkins Morgan, were next lowered.
In n few minutes they sent up the buck
ct, aud shouted up the shaft for picks
and and shovels. Two fresh men do
scended with thcsa tools. Reaching the
bottom, they found Williams and Nor
gan lying upon the ground in different
passages, and both apparently dead
The bodies were brought up and laid in
the open air under Il tree. Williams
sods dead Morgan's heart showed Il