The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1880-11-26
A TERRIBLE FATE.
now n Biind Map and a cr,pp,e Esrred
Their Living aud es their Death.


How n BIind Map and a Cripple Earned
Their Living aud mes their Death.
At the mip'e known rs i" Filer's Slope"
resulted IN the instant death of a miner
rameo Felix Slavin, and his assistant,
JooL Dougberty, in the chamber where
tDrey were at work. They were engaged
IN taking down n "skip," or loose piece
of coal, when q huge boulder, known in
mining parlance as ga black sulphur
clod," weighing about three tons, de-
scended upon them from the roof. killing
both instantly, aud crushing them to-
Rether into o shapeless mass. A miner
named Finnerty, working in an adjoining
chamber, had been in a few minutes be-
fore the accident and warned Slavin and
Dougherty of their danger, but they re-
piled that the loose end was onlyf'' a little
SHE'LL" and would not hurt anybody.
When Finnerty heard the crash he knew
what happened, and ran to where the
accident occurred. To his horror he
saw the miner and his assistant crushed
by the "clod," their feet sticking out
from under it and still moving. He
called to his comrades, and a gang OF
men speedily congregatsd at the cham
Der and engaged in the work of remov-
Ing the boulder from the bodies. They
fOah0 bhlo . tuok occupying cCNCial
hours. When it was finally accom-
plished, and Slavin and Dougherty were
exposed to view, they presented a hor-
rible picture. Their heads were crushed
together, and they were disfigured be-
yond recognition. Strong miners, ac-
customed to fearful accidents under
ground, were compelled to turn aside
and shudder as they contemplated the
CHASTITY sight.
A peculiar feature brought to
light by this grim occurrence, and one
that seems almost incredible, is the fact
that Slavin, the miner, had been totally
blind ffom boyhood. Scarcely any other
calling requires the exercise OF such
keen sight, yet this unhappy man CROPPED
his ray for years amid danger, and,
trusting to the skill of his hands and the
eyesof his assistant, piled his perilous
vocation uncomplainingly. His early
days were spent in the mines OF Eng
land, where he learned the business and
lost his eyes. He was quite expert in the
use of the drill, and when his assistant
once placed , accurately on the spot
where the hole was to be drilled for the
blast, Slavin, without deviating a hairs
breadth, made the hole at the proper
angle, and then superintendent how it
should be fired. He had been a miner
thirty years without the use of his eyes,
and managed to get along in a way that
vas altogether wonderful to contem-
plate. He left a wife and three children
wholly unprovided for. His companion
Dougberty, who shared his fate, was
also his companion in misery, having
been a cripple from childhood. He was
physically weak and decrepit. and in
reality. was nothing more than the eyes
for Slavin's skill and brawny arms.
Some days before the accident George
Filler, n of the owners of the mine,
conscious Of the danger these two men
were daring, gave them notice that he
could not employ them any longer; but
they pleaded piteously to be retained,
saying it was the only way they could
think of making a living, and so Mr..
Filler permitted them to remain. The
black sulphur clod by which these two
men were killed is a good deal like lead
in appearance and weight.