The semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1882-1886, 1885-07-18
INTO ETERNITY.
Sudden and Terrible Death 81
E. D. Reynolds.
WHILE INsPECT1N1
The Alice Mine He Falls a Di.taroe
OF Five Hundred Feet---Res-
olutions Of Respect.

reynolds. the mining machinery man ba,
met with a horrible death by falling dow,
the Alice shaft. A MINER reporter eleane,
the following particulars in regards to tn,
d%eplorable affair.
Mr.. Reynolds visited the Alice min,
about half-past two yesterday after
noon, and meeting Mr.. Menhennet, tn,
pumpman, informed him thathe wanted IL
go down into the mine. Mr.. Menhennet sale
That he would be glad to show him through
the shalt, but a permit from the manage
ment was necessary. Subsequently, b,
order OF Superintendent Hall. Mr.. Menhen
net accompanied Mr.. Reynolds down tn,
shaft as far as the
@ 800 FOOT LEVEL,
and then returned to the surface. Wher
the two men arrived on top Menhennet saw
Reynolds walk over to the shaft and lift ur
the trap door over the pumping compart
ment. Menhennet vent over to Reynolds
and asked him it he wanted to go down
there. He said, mo, it is not necessary. >
Menhennet in his testimony before the cor
oner's jury, said hat he left Reynolds
standing near the man-way OF the shaft
and he (Menhennet) went down to the 800.
loot level OF the mine to attend to some
work. After being down there a consider
able time he saw something dropping down
the shaft and called the attention OF the
boys with him to this fact. Reaching out
his hand in the shaft, Menhennet, upon dis
covering
THAT 1T WAS DROPPING
Down, concluded that an accident had oc-
Cured, but had no idea that the man whom
he had a short time before taken through
Tho 49, LII ~o~A -sA1 Z
death.
Thomas Stevenson, chief engineer at the
Alice, says chat he saw Mr.. Reynolds yes
terday afternoon in the hosting works of
the Alice company, and that he was stand
ing about five feet from the pumping com
partment OF the shaft. Mr.. Stevenson and
the deceased had some talk about the
pumping machinery. in which Mr.. Rey-
nolds expressed himself as being we'll
pleased with what he had seen in the mine.
He asked Mr.. Stevenson if he was the one
that had put in the machinery, and upon
being answered in the affirmative said that
he might need the services OF Mr.. Stevenson
about some work which he had under con-
sideration.
HE Walked AROUND H
with Mr.. Stevenson, and chatted in a very
pleasant manner When he stated that
ue HIISuC uccO UHc pldLS Wy WulCu Uue
Alice machinery was put in, Mr.. Steven
son informed him that the entire map OF
the workings were in the office and at his
(Reynolds) disposal. The unfortunate
man, after shaking hands with Mr.. Steven
son three times left the Alice, with the in
tention of going to the Moulton, and Mr..
Stevenson
NEVER SAW HIM AGAIN,
until he saw his shattered remains after
they were brought up from the mine. J.
P. Bosauko, who was in the hosting works
of the Alice mine, testified to seeing Rey-
nolds come in aud 60 straight to the q
way OF the pumping shaft, Lift up the trap
door m go down into the mine. He
thought Mr.. Reynolds was one of the Off
cials of the company. He did not think
that Reynolds asked permission of any
person to go down into the shaft. Fifteen
or twenty minutes after Reynolds went
down in the shaft, L saw one OF the cages
come up with
PIECES OF SKULL UPON IT.
Robert O'Neil, station tender, was at the
5OO-foot level about half-past five yester-
day afternoon, when he heard something
rushing down the shaft, and that finally
fell on the bonnet of the cage that was stop
ping on the chain at that level. At that
moment a mans shirt cuff fell over in the
station and struck O'Neil, and that gentle
man in looking up saw the dead body Of the
unfortunate Reynolds lying on the bonnet
of the cage. O'Neil then too the cage in
the other compartment OF the shaft and
went or top and reported that
AMAN WAS ILLED
Four men descended the shaft with
O'Neil and took the dead body off the cage,
wrapped it in a blanket and brought it to
the surface. The body presented a sicken-
ing appearance. The head was mashed to
a jelly, in fact, nothing remained OF it above
the lower jaw. His legs and arms were
crushed and broken, and the general ap-
pearanceo of his body was OF a most horrible
o HE MET HIS DEATH.
Superintendent w. E. Hall says that
Yesterday afternoon Mr.. Reynolds came to
him and asked permission to go down into
the shaft for the purpose OF examining the
pumping machinery at the O and 300
loot levels. / gave him permission and sent
William Menhennet down with him as
guide. | then went to Butte, and on my
return I was surprised to learn that Mr..
REYNOLDS had met his death by falling
down the shaft.
It appears that after coming up from
looking at the pumping machinery at the
Alice, Mr.. Reynolds went over to the Moul-
ton and in a short time returned to the
Alice, and without speaking to TN person,
lifted up the trapdoor and went down into
the shaft. What really happened after
this no one but God knows 1t is pre-
however, that Reynolds wanted to
take some measurement OF the ing OIL
the pump, and for this purpose descended
the shaft about eight feet, and seating him
self on a center-piece, Q his rule from
his pocket and placed it on the piece OF
timber that he sat upon. He was then IN
the act of placing his candle in such a po-
sition that would enable him to properly
sec. and while doing this the huge bob came
no and. catching him under the legs, threw
him.
OVER INTO THE SHAFT.
The body fell through the east compart-
ment of the shaft about 300 feet, and then
shot over on the west side OF the shaft, and
continued until it fell upon the bonnet
of the cage at the 5OO-foot level. Inc
shaft. from the place where the two-toot
rnle was found, about eight feet below the
surface. to the 5OO-foot level, was covered
wifi blood, brains, bones and hair, ana tne
miners who were put to work cIeanln the
ahaft down last night, declare that they
never performed such
A sIcKENING JOB
in all their lives.
No blame can be attached to any person
in this ~lamentable affair, as MIR. keynolds
went down the shaft on his esponsi-
bility. The deceased gentleman was a ma.
five Of Massachusetts, and was a6out 90
YEARS of age. He has been in TINS Guy
since 1877. and has by his gentlemanlycon,
dnct and honesty in business matters, won
himself the good will OF the multltHue
~ our citizens who are to-day pe"aiiihs
his sad and untimely end.
THE VERDICT.
The following was the verdict oil the !qry'
n;nnnistion holden at Walkerviile, NIL
in the county of Silver Bow, on Ju1y i41a'
4, a. D. 1855, before me, Charles Whltlora;
Coroner of said county, upon the body oa
q n REYNOLDS, there laying dead, oy .de
;nr o.: r whose names are h%ereunto subscribed J.
he sa;d Jurors upon their oaths DO say
that said E. D. Reynolds came to ms o as tha
NV Examining the pumping machinery o. e Sat
~ 1Yy;ce nine and falling from the second go ee.
"a t;mbers in the pumping shaft to the ' the
g, station, his body being found on tne
of the cage. Thejury lind 9y eSa the
nonnen that no blame is ATTACHED to the