St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-08-22
At CLINTON.
BLACK DAM P.
Seven Men Killed in q Shamokin, Pa
Mine.

SHANoKIN, Pa, Aug. 21.-Seven men lie
buried in the Greenback coliery. near this place,
the victims of the deadly black damp. Their
names are: William Kyler, married; William
Carl, married; Patrick H. Hearley, married; VIII
liam Shaukweiler, married; William Fox, mar
RED; Robert White, SINGLE Frank Wardrep,
married. Not since the frightful accident at
Henry Clay works, years ago, has this town
been so excited as to-day when the news of the
disaster spread abroad.
The Greenback colliery is located about two
miles east of Shamekin. On Wednesday fore
noon the Buckridge coliery on the Renshaw and
johnson track, was discovered to be on fire, and
the mouth of the slope was shut up. The Green
back colliery lies next to Buckridge on the Full
ton and Beardly track, a line filler of fifteen
yards intervening When the fire broke out s.
B. Whiting and other mining experts, after care
full examination, decided TO drive a hole from the
Greenback into the workings of the Buckridge.
The men who were engaged in driving the hole
worked all night and had made good progress,
and everything at daybreak seemed favorable to
the plans adopted for extinguishng the fire. By
6 o'clock, however, the fire had burned through
the old workings Of the water level and great
quantities of gas began penetrating into the
Greenback workings, and seven men, whose
names given, were overcome before they
could get out of reach of the deadly poison.
Valentine Depner made an effort to recover the
bodies and narrowly escaped with his life.
Everything possible is being done to reach
them, but no doubt exists any longer of their
fate. Eleven mules are supposed to have been
smothered or burned. The fire is burning
more freely than ever. Both colleries are likely
to be total loss. An estimate of loss to the
Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron com
pany, which owned the mines, cannot be made
until the exact extent of the fire is ascertained.
The Greenback and Buckridge colleries employ
over 600 men and boys, who will be thrown out
of employment in consequence of the fire.
The fire started in the fire house, and the flames
assembled rapidly. All the tmbers which sup
ported the roof of the mines have already been
burned away. Heavy falls of top coal and rock
are constantly occurring. The Reading officials
are on hand and doing all they can to get the
dead men out. The excitement in town is IN
tense At this time but little headway has been
made. The men slowly moving down the
slope carrying with them arbrattro and air pipes
of three inches in diameter. 1t is not supposed
the bodies Of the men in the slope will be recov-
cred before Saturday morning.
The mouth of the Buckridge slope was opened
this evening. Gas at the face of the Greenback
colliery overcomes any one who goes within five
feet of it. If air can be put down to the water
level of the Greenback slope, which is about 200
feet higher than the Buekridge, the men can
easily be reached. Nothing will be left undone,
nor expense spared to reach the bodies. The
loss to the coal and iron company will probably
reach 500, 900, besides the long term of ideness
forced upon the oyees.
SHAAoKIN, Pa, Aug. 21.-The fire has not
abated although two heavy pumps have been
forcing water down the slope all day Bnt the
Buckridge and Greenback Golfers are full of
gas and number of men on the surface were over
come by escaping gas. There is no possibilities
of the bodies being reached before tomorrow.