St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1878-08-03
EyspDris0neds i'm n Mime.
THE CORNISH DEATH SIGNAL SOUNDED
1850 FEET BELOW THE
EARTH's SURFACE.
from the Virginia City Enterprise

from the Virginia City Enterpriscl
At about II o'clock yesterday fore
noon, as the tank which is used in bail.
ing water from the shaft OF the Ware
mine was being hoisted to the surface
the engineer on duty. George n. Baker
accidentally allowed it to be run uI
into the sIlcave. The tank, which is OF
500 galous capacity, WAS full of water
and when it struck the slIeave the clevis
.y ueaDs of which it was fastened to
tie steel wire cable was broken. The
1aIE was of wood and ran on guides,
1.;a same as Il cage. When 1t parte.!
from the cable it went down the shaft
like q leaucn plummet, a distance ot
1 $50 feet to the water at the bottom.
Seven men were somewhere at the
bottom of the shaft. News of the acci-
dent spread rapidly, aud Superinten-
dent Thayer was soon on the ground,
and proper efforts were soon made to
ascertain the fate of the men below.
The hosting tank fell down the
south compartment. The next COM
partment. The next mpartment north
is the one in which the cage is used.
The cage was down at the time the
tank fell. The first move was to try 70
hoist this cage to the surface. A move
was made to do this, but no sooner. had
the cage been started than-a signal
came up from below to stop This
showed that some men below were
alive,
The men below then struck twenty
bells, 1t is the Cornish death signal.
The men above again tried to hoist the
cage, and sharp and unmistakable came
the signal to stop. Again came up the
twenty bells. These were followed by
other signals that could not be under
stood. Several times it was thought
that those below might be ready to
have the cage hoisted, and careful
efforts were made to move it up, but
every time came up the peremptory-
"St0p!7 1t was finally concluded that
some one was wedged in between the
cage and the timbers of the compart-
ment, and no further effort at holstlng
was made.
AS the news of the accident spread
people came from all directions and
crowded into the works, Among these
were the wives and children OF some
of the men who were in the shalt, and
the friends and relatives OF others,
AS the cage could not be moved, an
effort was made to communicate with
tile men and learn something OF the
situation at the bottom OF the shalt.
By direction of Superintendent Thayer.
IL rope was lowered to Wblch were at
tacled two lanterns. q bit of board and
a pencil, so that those uninjured below
might make their wants known. But
when it was hauled up one lantern was
gone, the other eXtingnishcd, and it
was clear that it had failed to reach its
lestiuati
What now seemed necessary to be
lone was to make a descent into tue
shaft In order to allow of this being
lone the cable attached to the cage in
he depths had to he anchored 10 the
surface so securely that its entire wei ght
night be sustained and then detachep
rom the reel. This was done, and the
age was put in place, AS soon as all
vas ready, and it took hours Of prepa a.
ion, john Oswell, foreman of the Julia
md Ward, took two companions, tools, |
anterns, &C., and started for the depths.
The guides and timbers in the si:alt had f!
,een SO badly damaged by the descent |
# the tank that it took forty minutes |
or this cage to reach the bottom of the |
haft.
1t had been agreed upon between
Thayer and the fore
nan tiiat it any men were dead he |
hould, as soon as the cage reached the
,oitom, ring six bells, and then one for
ach death.
When at last the cage stopped and no
ignal came mp the suspense of all at
he surface was terrible. What to make
f all this silence of the bell no one
new. At last the bell began to strike
nd all present began to count. No
eath signal was sounded, but instead,
lear, and unmistakable, the signal to
Oist.
AS the cage came to the surface five
zen were seen on 1.-THE three who
Tent down and two others, one OF whom
Tas supported by his comrades. The
Dy of all was great when it was an
ounced that the two men on the cage
7ere the only ones hurt-that all lett
Glow were sound and well.
1t was soon ascertained from the men
liat the lucky escape was owing to the
act that all the men in the bottom of
he shaft were In the north compart-
lent, out of the way Of harm, except
'aull and O'Mara. They were in the
lnk compartment, and must have been
1stantly killed had they not heard the
ank coming down the shaft. They
ashed into the middle compartment,
] which was the cage with car on it.
hey tumbled into and over the car and
age just in time to escape the falling
INK.