Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1883-04-11
Fighting Black Damp.

only 50 TO 81 and others only $3.50.
Fighting Black Damp.
One Of the most remarkable escapes
in the history OF mine disasters ever
known in the SchuylklD, Pa., region oc-
CURED near Pottsville, Pa, recently.
A large force Of miners and several
driver boys were at work in the east
gangway when loud, humming noise,
such as always precedes the approach OF
black damp, was heard. Ibis was i'm
mediately followed by strong current
of air, which blew out all tue miners
lights, leaving them in total darkness,
and before they could realize their posi-
ton they were overcome with the deadly
damp. A driver boy and door boy were
less seriously effected. The brave little
fellows crawled through the darkness to
where their mule was standing. Taking
a good hold of his harness they urged
him forward in the direction Of the foot
Of the slope. Ashort distance only had
been traversed when the mule succumbed
to the black damp and fell over and on
top of the little driver, Patrick Moore,
of St. Clair, pinning him to the spot.
Moore cried for his companion to come
to his aid, which he did, but before
Moore was released from under the mule
he, too, fell victim to the damp. In
the meantime the wind forced its way
into the gangway, while the damp
rushed toward the mouth of the slope
with terrible force and upon reaching
the surface through the cage off the
track, tearing some of the boards off
the shed covering the mouth of the pit.
This gave the alarm to the men on top
and Immediately rescuing party de-
scended the slope. The miners in the
west gangway also heard the wind, and
after everything was apparently quiet
they proceeded to investigate the trouble
and soon met the resculng party and all
started for the scene of the accident.
The bodies of the two boys and the mule
were first found. A short distance fur
Their on the bodies Of nine miners we're
found, lying in the east gangway, which
WAS still heavily charged with the black
damp. The eleven victims we're soon
brought to the surface, more dead than
alive. Many of the men had to be bur-
led in clay for short time and thence
removed to their homes.
A Cave Containing Embaimed Bodies.
Nazareth CORES. New York SUM-
Leaving the high road to Nazareth to
the right, we followed the path for about
half an hour which took us into the vii
lage of Sheik Abreik. It was a miser-
able collection of mud novels, in the
muddiest of which dwelt the sheik. A.
ter much. palaver and promises of abun-
dant backshish we got him to admit the
existence of the caverns of which we were
in search, and persuaded him to be our
guide to them. The first was called By
the Arabs "Ihe Cave of HE'LL" Its en-
trance seemed to justify the ill-omened
appellation. It was steep, sloping
tunnel into the bowels of the earth, just
large enough to admit the passage of
mans body. To slide into this feet FORE
most after heavy rain involved coat
ing of mud from top to toe. After going
down few yards we found a chamber in
which we could stand erect. Here we
lighted our candle and looked about. We
found thatit was the first of a series of SINH.
lar chambers opening one into another.
Each contained stone collins, hewn out
of the solid rock. The bodies were en-
balmed, wrapped in cloths, as we read
in Scriptural accounts of burials, notably
in that of our Savior. "Each in his
narrow cell forever laid" they remain
undisturbed until rude hands, ages after
ward, "rolled away the stone from the
mouth of the cave " and rifled the con-
tents.