Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-03-14
MINE HORROR.

x,n.tcen Miners Lose Their Lives by sus,
location in a Shaft Mt Leisenring, Pa
Exploding Fire-Damp Generates Poison.
ous Gases in Which the Victims ar.
rsmothered Miraculous Escape OF the
One Survivor.
uS1oSrowN, Pa, Feb 2l.-The little
mining village Of West Leisenring, four
miles north of here, was yesterday morning
the scene of the most terrific explosion ever
known in the coke region. The Connells.
vile Coal and Iron Company, of which
Judge Leisenring, of Mauch Chunk, is Pres.
ident, have two hundred coke ovens here
which have been in operation about a year.
The works give employment to about one
hundred men, and quite a little town has
sprung up, named after the President of'the
company. The coal for the ovens is OBJ
tanned by means of a shaft, which reaches
the coal at a distance of four hundred feet
from the surface. Yesterday morning a
part of the force who had worked all night
left the mines a little after three o'clock and
seventy others took their places, making the
usual morning shift. About $3.50 O'Clock,
while the men were digging, suddenly, with.
out warning, there occurred an explosion
that convulsed the mine in every apartment
and threw the men into the ut
most CONSERVATION. The scene of the ex.
plosion was in one of the apartments fully
eight hundred feet distant from the bottom
of the shaft, and therefore about twelve
hundred feet from the surface opening;
yet the report was heard on the outside for
q considerable distance and caused such a
jar that the top of a derrick one hundred
feet high was Knocked off. Two mules
were standing at the bottom OF the shaft,
eight hundred feet from the explosion, and
the rush of air blew one of them through a
wooden cage, SCATTERING it to pieces. The
other mule died of sutfocation.
OF all the men who were in the heading
where the explosion occurred, Dick Balsley
alone escaped to tell the awful story.
When the explosion came, and all the lights
were blown out, Balsley was just changing
his clothes. He at once wound part of his
clothes tightly around his face and mouth
to keep the foul air from choking him, and
gave the rest of his garments to a COM
eanion with instructions to take the
same precautions. He then started for the
main entrance, bidding his companion
follow. They ran lover the bodies
of men, and over shattered wagons. They
cOulu see nothing, Dut cOulu near Lnc STO1nS
of dying men. Presently Balsley's COM
panion protested that they were not going
in the right direction, and turned back.
He persisted. Balsley pushed on until final
ly he saw a light, and was taken out. Ills
escape is regarded by experienced miners as
one of the most marvellous on record. He
says that some men kept their heads under
water as long as they could, and were
forced to change from water to after-damp,
and at last they gave up the unequal strug.
gle.
The work of r%escuing the men went on
rapidly by willing volunteers, and at noon
nineteen bodies had been carried out HThe
company's books were then examined, the
roll called, and it was announced that all
the men had been accounted for. The bod.
les were taken to the homes near by and
laid out. Most OF the dead bore no
visible marks of violence, but died
of suffocation Their faces were gen.
orally very black, smoke and dust
having been blown into the skin. The
last mar taken out alive was Henry Wilson,
who had managed to subsist on the air in
the very bottom of the mine till rescued.
He was almost gone. Many of those who
were in other parts of the mine suffered Sc.
vereiy.
Coroner Baton, of this place, with many
citizens went from here and an inquest be.
gan at $3.50 O'Clock. No testimony was
taken except that which identified the dead.
After identifying the bodies Coroner Baton
adjourned the inquest until Saturday morn.
inp