Morning journal and courier., 1884-03-15

Scenes About the Mfnes-A Graphic Pic
 ture efthe Fire Damp's Awful Work.
 CENTRAL, via BAGo, March 14.-The scene of the explosion at the Pocahontas coal mine was visited by crowds of men, women and children to-day from the surrounding coun- try. Communication between Central and Pocahontas has been almost suspended by blockade caused by land slide which wreck ed special wreck train proceeding to the mine last night. General Superintendent Lathrop of the mines is in charge of the men now at Pocahontas, but no further attempt at rescue can be made. The entrances to the mines have all been closed up in order to smother the flames and they will not be opened for two weeks. No one has any hope of rescuing any of the unfortunate miners who are no doubt all dead. Many of them are from Pennsylvania. The crowd of visi tors to the mining camp appears to be thoroughly imbued with the distress that has visited every home. Men all day long walked quietly around exchanging comments about the disaster and pointing out evidences of the ruin. The entrances are blockaded and shattered and far up the snow covered mountain are scattered dark blotches of debris from the disrupted mine. Brok- en and torn trees are to be seen on all sides and the dark valley at the base of the mountain is black with coal and mud. Passing from house to house the United Press reporter heard wailing and crying on all sides. Every house is closed and in mourning for some one lost in the terrible disaster. The unfortunate residents appear
 
 doers. All hope has died out and they do not appear to have any desire to deceive themselves as to the overwhelming nature of their afaicticn. Under the snow clad naoun- tain which save for three or four hundred yards at the base is covered with dense pail they know the bodies of one hundred men are buried surrounded by glowing furnace fed by thousands of tons of coal. Old miners know that the chances of ex- tiuguishing this mighty fire are small and they mention several noted mines in the country which have been burn inc for years. Long before the fire in Poca- hontas mine can be drownd ont, the bodies of the unfortunate men will be wholly consumed. Superintendent Lathrop states that just before the explosion train of coal cars had been backed into the drift and the locomotive 08u Just EedcuSu SAI6 uIstanc6 when the shook came. The cars were hurled out of the drift and plunged headlong down into the valley below where they now lie in sbapeless mass. The dense cloud of coal dust which poured from the drift was forced hiah in the air and fell upon the other side of the mountain where it now lies an idch eeep. The tattered coat of one of the men in the mine was picked up 8 quarter Yof mile distant to day. The windows in 8 farm house two miles away were shattered, while nearly all of the frame shanties near the mines were pros- ! trated from the force of the eoncussion.
 1 All night, long the citizens who vent to l the scene were busy tending to the wants Of l those injured during the attempts at rescue. The attempts to enter the mine were all ] fruikIess and the ofder to seal up the en- | frances wss given when Superintendent La- throp became convinced that the flames were beyond control. A Hungarian to-day des- 1 perately rushed into the drift and was gone | about i've minutes. His son was among the l victims and his grief was so violent that | he seemed reckless as to the consequences l of his rash act. Upon his reappearance he l said he had found pile of bodies in pile of debris about three hundred yards from the l opening. They were torn and mangled be- l vond recognition. The order to close the entrance was given after consultation with | Colonel Dodd, an experienced engineer. | The coal drifts are not fire. It is the small | coal at the bottom which is blazing fiercely | and emitting great volumes of smoke and gas. The fire it is hoped will be l smothared by it's own volume.