New-York tribune., 1885-08-12
sIIFFOCATED IN A NINE.
.,,., vr MEN VICTIMS OF cARsLEssNEss
xrx PUT TO WORK WHEN TUE D
DEADLY GASES WAS KNOWN.
tnY TELEGRAPH TO THE TRIDuxE1


snr rsLEeRArH TO THE rrIpuxE1
wuxEsBARRE, Penn. Aug. ll.-one OF u'o
-. .noalling Of the mine accidents tnat nsso "~Fs 49,
moss sor MANY years occurred to-day at the
49, ~ - ~ the West End Coal Company 1t sn'cksam"s
-. h.,ow Wnkesbarre. the eusquebanna h'ves
o.t tarribe feature Of the accident s not 20 muon
,o.. Of life as in tho fact that II was due u gross
.rs,ssspess and mismanagement.
To-, how many were killed II not yet Known. thero
.sa rumher OF mon In the mine, but tho following
= list of tho victims a. fsw % can ct present 70
tained: - "a ---x.a ~,th five
children Meade miner forty years old. married. with
syS y,%ss Fly MINER thirywo years od married. with
I've ySsSoss Berbsls mncr hy1 years od married.
win w,fNu nys Rgmer aborsr DID, married.
with two eoan miner fty4our years old. widower
ySss xsm sisHsy. Polish sSos. sxontyfour years DID,
'Psis Psssr Bsr. Polish miner twensy'sven years DID,
%SsSeny Bsrush Polish la''r'r' tW'n''i''r years
0d d,sn BSoskosk Polish MINER twentynine years Old
married. with three children. s,x v.ara old
Lubin vywikofsh. Polish MINER '"en"S'A
William Price, laborer. twenty-five years DID, single
The mines of the West End Coal Company are si'"A.o"
near the summit Of the mountain on .ne opp.~ s.,s
~ the river to snickshinny and about two ana
es from that place. They have been ons
f. wears and the region where the disaster ocoureu
4, the newest part OF the mine. Access to the wors
"a eainod through slope In the hillside. Ihis Soi
some 14OO feet long. and near inc p'''vn'
OF it Is situated the ran when keeps VI,
,rorkines supped with pure air. The seams OF coai
mich are nav being worked are particularly free from
as and an explosion IL an unknown thing The COAL
boveyer gives out great deal Of sulphurous rumes
which arc extremely deadly IN tneir haturo
and It IL to keep tho mine cieai Vi '
fumes that the fan Is necessary At present
the coery is working night and day. just before IL
,t a.t night when the night quilted work the
centric on the fan engine broke and the shaft OF the
Fan became bent OF the fan was disabled No d
no,tv was by night shift, however, and
shortly after midnight they came out OF the mine.
Att o'clock in the morning the men on the day shift
came to work They heard that the fan was broken
and before going to spoke to the mine boss Chris
tan Conrad about the state of the fan He told them
tnat the nine was all right, that the fan weuid
he working in hour and that tney
.noum 20 to work. sixty went
aown the slope but many fearing the sulphur fumes
,efu,ed to CO. Nor were their fears unfounded.
SCARCELY had the men got the working places In fact
many we're still the way down the SLOPE wheh ."ey
beoan to feel the sufocatng fumes OF sulphur mixed
with the nauseous gases which had accumu-
lated In the niue over mgh.' i"e'
filed every crevice. Unlike the usuai mine gas vi
black damp these sulphur fumes give their victims no
warning without warning without minute tune W
helm themselves the unfortunate men were overcome
and dropped where they breathed the gas.
Their companions who were aoie heu pacA
10 the fresh air and gave the alarm
Several of those who overcome, getting fresher
air near the grouud partially recovered ana crawied
On hands and toward the surf ace The news was
spread with rapdity The at work In the breaker
Iowsr down the hill FASTENED Relief par
ties were formed and first party that went down the
mine was headed by the boss, Conrad, himself.
The first party reached the OF the slope l4Oo feet
underground in safety They met few men han
stupefed with the fumes struggling TO reach tue
surface, and crawling on their hahds anu
knees or from side TO side like drunken men,
They we're assisted to the fresh air and stmnlanss ad
An attempt to penetrate into the nsn pss
dered unconscious. and the others but In h'e peer
shape - ut, .~.. ,.a ,o,,od thu
party in the hope saving his brother Anthony was
Seen crawling into the workings his hands and knees
Sna soqy nsSeF sS meanwhile G,s Seen formed and they
being well ooversS sS9vPBeS W,B cloth. wss wes with na
succeeded In penetrating deeper into the WORKING ana
brought number Of men They were ionIa as suS
were sen. to The surface ace. nvsa IN rapid rapid
esay applied
at first all brought TO the surface were revived the
intense excitement prevailed Ns W panJ anq
hundreds had assembled round the coiliery among wo
the wives and children OF many 81 and
the Work Of relief was carried forward promptly The
Hrs, dead man brought to the surface was James
Wheelan and soon after the bodies OF Peter Borsh and
Hiram Meade were recovered John Teasda superin,,
PENDENT OF the company, ard one OF the chiet
ockioldtr arrived the spot and entered the mine
with one OF the relief parties He was overcome
nv the gas brought the surface uncon-
scous and remained inscnsible for many hours
DIR. Hughes, Of shickshinny, also went Gown Gown
By noon ali the men hai been recovered that could be
nceouuted for except six and as II was certain
maj by this time an be dead and as the gas vas
accumulating in such quantities as to rem
the work Of relief was abandoned Tor n
time. About p. Mine Inspector Williams, number
Of expert miners and force OF doctors arrived
on the scene and another effort was made
,. lief marty was organized and entered the mine
prom another opening they succeoded IN recovering
three bodies and brought them to the surface;
A sccond party that went down recovered
four more bodies. So FAR as known.
there are only two bodies left inside IL possiDe
Soweyer that may be in the mine several OF tc
PoIanders. A large number We're employed IN , the
and being practically without friends ana not
speaking English they are difficult to keep track Of