The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1871-05-29
The Latest Coal Mine HorrOr-Ei ahteen
Mon Cooked to Death.

ANU A"tcst Ooei NAino A0frOr-Ef9hteen
Men Cooked to Death.
On Saturday last Pittston, Pa, was the
scene Of calamity similar 10 that which
visited Avondale in the autumn of 1869. The
shaft Of one Of the mines took fire, and as it
was the only means of ingress and egress all
the workmen in the mine were completely shut
out from escape Fortunately the number of
men thus trapped was not as great as at
Avondale, where one hundred human beings
fell victims to the carelessness, inhumanity
or, what is most likely, avarice of the mining
companies. At Pittston only thirty-seven men
were entombed, of whom eighteen were taken
out dead and the others alive, though insensi-
BILE. 1t is feared that the recovery of several
of the latter is impossible.
One would have thought that after the ter
rible catastrophe at Avondale precautions
would have been taken at once against its
occurrence in other mines. The fact that the
number of victims in the Pittston mine is
only eighteen does not make their fate less
horrible to contemplate. Two years ago we
called the attention of the mining companies
to the necessity of providing all their mines
with more than one shaft, SO that the work.
men would be not only secured against death
from sudden and unforeseen occurrences, but
that they would be also provided with a
strong, health preserving current of pure air,
SO much needed in all mines. 1t Is evident
from the tragedy at Pittston that there has
not been any Improvement made in this direc-
ton. The mine in which the thirty-seven men
were immured has but single shaft that
shaft took fire, and instantly every soul in the
depths below was as much cut off from escape
as are any of the souls we read of in Dante
'Inferno." Not long ago the same shaft
caught fire, and, says the report, "has not
been considered entirely safe in Its working
gear for some time. Nevertheless, OF
Thursday last, mine Inspector investigated
its condition land reported everything salts
factory" But, as events have proven, every
thing was not satisfactory, In the first place.
there was danger of the shaft taking fire, and,
in the next, the company was deliberately
violating the law, which forbids the en-
ployment, at one time, of more than
twenty men in mine which has but
one means Of retreat. Furthermore, there was
next to nothing at hand to extnguish fire in
the event Of one occurring When the shaft
ct Pittston was in flames on Saturday
miserable well was the only source from which
water could be rapidly obtained, and as its
supply was insufficient recourse was had to
the river, half mile distant In short, every
fact developed by the tragedy strengthens the
evidence of the criminal negligence of the
company in the matter of providing against
fires.
A witty Englishman has observed that for
people who make it constant boast that they
possess more freedom than any other nation
on Earth, Americans submit to an amount of
tyranny from corporate bodies that would
provoke revolution in Europe. The truth of
this assertion is to be seen in this latest coal
niue horror. So far as we are aware the
Avondale tragedy had not the slightest effect
upon the corporations which own the Penn
sylvania mines. Although the expense of
constructing additional air passages and
means of escape from death is comparatively
trifing nothing seems to have been done.
Our correspondent in Pittston reports the ex-
element as intense at that place, and well 1t
may be. The sudden sitting to death of
eighteen husbands and fathers is q
catastrophe horrible enough to excite
one, particularly where the tragedy could
and should have been prevented by the
simplest and least expensive of precautions
1t is not long since the monopolists who own
the mines crushed all resistance out Of the
miners and compelled them to return to work
on their own terms. During the long and
weary strike, of which surrender was the
result, the companies appealed to the public
for support, alleging that their expenses for
babe their paying the wages demanded. II
these expenses include iife-saving' appliances
we should like to know what amount was
expended for the purpose. 1t is the duty OF
every corporation to adopt all reasonable pre-
cautions for saving the lives Of its employees.
In the Pittston mine there was no pre-
caution whatever taken. The shafts of all
mines are liable to take fire at any moment |;
it is impossible, perhaps, to guard
against accidents of this kidd but where a
mine hos more than one shaft the chance of
the community being Mortified by the whole
sale choking to death of workmen becomes 80
innnitesimally small that 1t can scarcely be
said to exist at all.
1t is, perhaps, too much to hope that the
Pittston tragedy, following within two years
after that at Avondale, will bring the coal
companies to proper sense Of the duty they
owe to the miners. But we trnst it will inHu-
ence the Pennsylvania Legislature to enact
law compelling the monopolists to provide
additional shafts to every mine which at pres
ent has only one, and forbidding under heavy
penalty the working Of any mine as dangerous
to human life as that at Pittston. A law of
this kind is necessary To prevent the racur