Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-05-06

All day yesterday the scene OF the terrible
disaster of the I'd instant, was an object of in
terest to all citizens and very many tramps who
have arrived from ell parts of the country,
drawn hither by the news spread broadcast by
the GLOBE and telegraph. All that now re-
mains of the once proud milling interest, which
had name famous the world over, is q huge
conglomeration of stone, wheat, -four, bran,
broken and twisted machinery, lumber and
mill stones, thrown together in the widest con-
fusion. Numerous streams of water have been
kept constantly playing upon the hre since
Thursday night. The center of the mass still
contains considerable fire, and is far
too hot to permit asearch for the bodies OF the
missing men. There are no doubts that
at least ten men are under pile of stone
rubbish piled to the height of dozen feet
large number of men have been engaged in
searching about the outer edges of the pile OF
rock but with little success. 1t is slow and
laborious undertaking to remove the
immense pile of massive rock,
thrown in such confusion by the
explosion of the big Washburn mill. One
force of men is engaged in removing the
debris in the vicinity of the Office of the big
mill, for the purpose of securing the safe con-
tanning the papers of the company. Other
crews are removing the shorts, bran, and wheat
in sacks.
Crowds upon crowds of people are constant
ly coming and going, and yet the
interest remains undated. Every train
brings new delegations, who hurry from the
depots to the scene of the disaster as though
their very lives depended upon getting there
in the quickest possible time.
During the forenoon those in search for safes
q n1AA DIX r. W
The books were found all right with the ex-
ception of being somewhat injured by heat.
The contents were all right.
About noon the safe Of Day, Rollins Co.,
was recovered with contents all right.
The Chicago. Milwaukee q st. Paul round
house is being rapidly put in shape.
The shattered walls of the Zenith, Galaxy
and Petit & Robinson mills will be taken down
and rebuilt as soon as possible. In fact, the
entire six mills will be rapidly reconstructed.
Cause Of Explosion.
Theories of various characters are still circu-
lated, and no one seems to know positively,
Just exact y the cause, and probably never
will. The dust theory seems to predominant.
Mr.. j. A. Christian thinks the gas was gener-
ated by fire.
1t is his opinion that the fire originated from
the stones in the east grinding room. The mill
was ABOUT changing Oh, auO CHc beoueS ele "
such times permitted to run dry, the millers
raising the stones as soon as the wheat in the
hoppers is exhausted. It is presumed that
some one of the millers, through carelessness
neglected to the stones in his charge, that
friction was generated, which communicated to
the dust box, the draft from which
| is downward. A similar fire occurred
in the dust box on the other side
of the mill some two months ago. The dra #
from that box is up, and not down, as in the
case of the box on the east side, and an ex-
plosion of the box itself would not have been
sufficient to create the disaster which followed.
But it is the theory of MIR. Christian that the
gas was drawn downward; that from the lower
floors it passed through the numerous elevator
ways and openings in all parts of the mill,
| filled the great structure, was perhaps rarih: "a
by the heat of the fire, and which was finally
ignited the explosion following 1t it his be-
| lief that the mill was shut down as had been
provided for in the rules which prevailed when
the explosion occurred. The night being cold
tho windows were closed and the gas was unable
to escape through the natural openings.