Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1873-09-23

near n l4VU l D6lteVo LTldI tueIe
was powder exploded In the mine In
80 the effects In the explosion were
the same last Saturday, but less In
volume ; the blacksmith shop Is about
$50 feet north Of the Jacket shaft
there is an excavation In the drift run
ming to the Imperial, made for black
smith shop; the shop was tlmbered
the timbers were S or 0 feet In length ;
the shop was directly under the winze ;
the smoke and sparks passed up
the wlnze /; the timbers were In
no way protected against fire ;
the fire was first discovered about ten
feet above the bottom OF the cribbing ;
think It l. unsafe to have a blacksmith
shop under ground; the other tires
were In the same place ; the black
smiths told me they always wet the
place down before and after common
cling work ; am satisfied that there was
no explosion Of powder; think 1t was
a bad idea turning water down the
Yellow Jacket shaft; Captain Taylor
ordered them to stop, which they did
there was a barrel OF water at the top
OF the wlnzc, and q Babcock Fire Ex-
tlnguisher on the vice bench.
Captain Cosgrore. sporn-I reside in
Gold Hill ; am a miner by occupation;
am underground foreman In the Yell
low Jacket; on the morning the ex-
ploslon occurred, was at the l500-foot
level OF the Jacket mine ; there were
also two more men with me-Mr.
kohler, Chief Engineer, and John
Donahue, pumpman ; at the time tho
explosion occurred told Mr.. Kohler
that we had better 60 up to the 1900
foot level ; he asked me what was the
matter; asked him II he didn't see
chat smoke coming behind US; am not
sure about the answer he made me ;
think he said bring down the car ; told
him no-that we would walk up !; he
was unwilling to walk up he had
been working a long time putting In
the pump at the 1500-foot level
and was quite exhausted, and
overheated, we were walking up too
fast for him, and l told him no had
better hurry ; I passed him on the lad
ders then, and he went about 20 feet up
and sat down; I came back after him,
and got behind him on the ladder way
and helped him up to the 1300.foot
level ; the first one / saw there was
Dennis Hurley, station tender at the
100. foot level; he told me that tie
smoke was very bad at the 100; that
their lights were all put out, and that
he and James Benefits came very near
%suifocatlng; we five went In 200 feet
east Of the shaft on what we term the
Crown Point switch; l told Mr.. Hur-
ley to 60 up through the Crown Point
and tell Capt. Taylor and the forman,
and not to make any alarm or much
excitement about 1t, but to &c right
out aud deliver the errand ; my mean
ing was to avoid excitement ; Mr..
Louizelle, the Belcher blacksmith was
at the Crown Point switch when we
got there ; he asked me to 60 In with
him ; | told him II he had attended to
his business that there would have
been no fire ; Mr.. Bennetts. Louizelle
and myself all went In to the fire 1t
was burning down the caps over the
tried to crawl through under
meath the smoke | couldn't do It,; my
was to get OH the other or north
side Of the fire. to get water from the
100 to put on the fire when l found
| could not get unnerneath there ow-
ing to the smoke, | turned around aud
told the blacksmith to come back to
the switch and get some tools to cut
the timbers out Of the drift so as to
keep the fire from reaching tho shaft;
Benuetts and myself went out to the
the blacksmith remained
there ; there was a door lying down
I set 1t up against the drift so as to
prevent 50 much air from going In,
would cause tho fire to burn so
much more rapidly | told Kohler and
to keep that door there for a
so as to prevent too much air
blowing through there al that time /;
| then started to 60 to the l0O0.foot
level Of the Crown Point to get on the
north side Of the fire, so rs to get this
OF water from the HOO down to
the 1900, to put out the fire ; on my
way out to the Crown Point shaft I
met Mr.. Roach, underground foreman
Of the Belcher on the l300-foot level ;
told him that the winze over his black
smith-shop was on fire, and that he
had better. get some men with axes
and cut out those timbers, 80 as to pre-
vent the fire from coming south to the
shaft; I started up from the l300-foot
level through the Crown Point incline;
mot some Jacket miners coming down;
told them what I had told Mr.. Roach,
and asked m Of them to come back
with INT and we would 60 In OF the
north side OF the fire; we went up to
the 1000.foot level Of the Crown Point;
when we got there the miners were
very much excited; I supposed they
we're Crown Point men standing at the
shaft, and they asked me what was the
matter; I told them there was q fire In
the .l300-foot winze, over the Belcher
blacksmith shop they asked me II
there WA any danger told them
thought not. About that time I heard
some men hallooins for a light In the
irift; should Judge they were so feet in;
went In with a light met u man
lying down ; asked him to get up ; he
wanted to know OF me what was the
and IL It wouldn't be all over
II minute ; told him yes, 1t was all
over now went In about 20 feet fur
Their and met another man aud right
Of him there was another n
ret ; tried to help the second n l
came to; he was too big aud heavy
and could do nothing toward packing
him !: finally after | turned around to
20 back to the shaft he got up, and l
round to help him come out,
and he fell down again ; went out to
the shaft and asked the man who come
up with me from the jacket II he was
not coming back to the north end with
me he told me that he did not
like to; told him I did not think
that there was any great danger,
and II there was I wouldn't want to 60
there myself; he said he didn't like to
20 In there since so many men came
out half dead l then wanted to come
up to 60 down through the Imperial ;
The cage was passing and some one Of
The Crown Point miners rang the bell
and got on the cage ; In the mean tune
while we were waiting for the cage, |
told them about the men back IN the
irlft. and that they had better 90 back
and help them out ; they told mo
that being [ had n lantern, that ! had
hast ~ ho,E tt,ara snvsnlf. I koI1 kha-