The Orangeburg news. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1867-1875, 1869-09-18
The Coal Mine Holocaust.
"A CONNECTED ACCOUNT OF THE uoRRl-
BILE AFFAIR.
TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION.

ne story OF the Pennsylvania disaS-
tier grows more and more horrible as the
"details are gradually brought to light
There il a part of 1.-THE closing mo-
!n,ents of she awful agony of those two
hundred nien--which can never be de-
,Rcribcd. Esen the manner in which the
scatastrophe originated ia mainly matter
of conjecture. In all human probabiii-
ty, neee oi;e of that wretched company
survive to tell the secrets of their prison
hnusc. aud so to the actual horrors of
suffering and death is added the gloom of
san imptuetrable mystery. Tho New
York 1ri6nae sums up the facts in the
following clear and connected narrative
The cutlery in which this terrible ac-
cidont occurred is outercd by perpcn-
'dicular shaft, 327 feet deep, on the side
.of mountain. From the bottom of it.
40 feet below the surface of the valley,
run two main galleries, sloping upward,
zone 800 and the other 1900 feet long
,Smalier passages and chambers, SO in
number, branch off from these. There
iis no access to the open air except by
this single shaft. which had to serve all
the purposes Of n hoist-way for the work
iEenSand the coal, and a a,channel for the
'ventilatiDg current which in all mines
tniust be constantly forced by machinery
through the various galleries and drifts
The sides Of the shaft were built up with
wooden supports, and wooden partition
ran perpendicularly through its whole
length, dividing it into two pussages, one
for the upward, tho other for the down
ward current. Right ovor its mouth
stood great wooden building, contain
. ing the machinery for hoisting and for
breaking, sorting and cleaning the coal
TO assist in creating osrrent of air
fire was always kept burning in furnace
mt the foot Of the shaft, and fron this it
rs supposed tho woodwork must have
caught. On Monday morning two hun
dred meli went down that shaft to re-
'sune work after long strike. 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
ito cry "Fire J" but what he saw We new
'er shall know, for in an instant fierce
column of flame rushed up the shaft,
caught the breaker as if that had been
"a house of paper, and wrapped the whole
structure in sheets of ere The mouth
<of the pit bclched forth destruction.
Hundreds of tons of coal in the shutes
and bins were soon in white glow, and
dropped with the falling beams into the
shalt. 1t was seven or eight hours be-
fore the engines which were hurried to
ahe scene Of disaster from all the neigh
'borlng towns succeeded in distinguishing
the burning mass. Workmen had .fiocked
TO the spot from the entire mining region
dor it was known that two hundred of
dheir brethren were imprisoned among
she deadly vapors of that awful pit.
The rubbish was cleared away from the
mouth, aud ifty experienced miners vol
anteored to attompt the descent. 1t was
now about 8 in the evening. 10 test
the purity of THE air adog and lighted
lamp were first lowered into the shaft as
far as they would go. At the end of five
minutes they were drawn up, the dog
WAS alive che laPp still burning. "A