The Red Cloud chief., 1888-11-16
TERRIBLE CALAMITY
FriGhcful Coal Mine Explosion al
Pittsburgh, Kan
Nearly Two Hundred Men Eutomt,,d Will
But Little Hops Of Rescue - Frantic
Women and Children v.iniy seek
ing for Lost Ones.

PITTSBURGH. Kan. Nov. m-At 5:lJ
O'clock last evening an explosion awful in
the horror 81 its results, occurred at the
cherokee and Pittsburgh CJmpnny's coal
shaft No : at Frontenac, three miles north
az this city. and the report was distinctly
heard here. The working level OF the
shaft Il sIxty-fiye feet below TIE surface
ard at the time Of the explosion lci men
we're down IN the awful traps Of death.
A lew minutes later one man escaped tv
the air shaft and since then twemtv-four
have reached the surface by the sems
means.
There can be little doubt tha. tie -e-
Tnninder have persisted, Is the man en-
trance 70 the shaft is piled ful, o. debris
and dead mules, and those escaping r--
port crawling over dead men at every ste,
IN the depths below. At least two ,nou-
sand excited men. women and children ARE
gathered round the mouth Of the shaft and
'he cries Of those whose husbands or
fathers are known TO he below are heart
rending. Men are driven TO desperation
ty pitiful appeals from weeping women
and girls to Sc; ''the boys out before the,
all die"
Entrance "a the mine is being achieved
e. fast ne within human power. but th.
main entrance Is absolutely blocked an.
imminent danger attends every aisenD:
ty the air shaft. Among tie a~nxiou,
crowds ut the mouth %: the shaft ale
rowdei every doctor from this city and
many from G!rarl, Litchiield and o;h.I
places an tie county. SaoS and ran have
teen falling since the acciden: aud In.
sniverinE crowd of hal.-lressei women
pleading for soin. one to give then tid.n.-
u loved ones IL pIti!ul.
The cause % the explosion can not 10.
now determined. 4 blast had iY-t been
yu: ia a,sd q good deal of ppwIe- D. known
20 nave beer in the mine, but whether tEiS
81 "A flame from the lamps icuitod toe "a
aud did the deadly work NO one ye: know.
70 such horror has ever shocked m. ,.n-
~. If Southern Kansas aud IA thorough
explanation 81 IL will D.. demanded. A.
ieast L.. ni"n are NOS. lying dead n iI!.
fatal shni:.
A.orHER ACCOUNT.
~. Lurrs, No.. Io.-A |sj.cis' from
P.t;sasTG ga. Kan 70 ia. IsyHbii- gives Iii.
following account o; the Goa mire exp.o-
SION there last evening: feEriti" - i,-
son iha; broke Windows IA this liza. VII
ince ana spread condemnation amen. ~
inhabitants occurred ~ dusk to-ni.h,.
n violence II the shock WINS 80 cr.a: a.
10 huri dishes from shelves AMI I.mpiish
c~himneys. Half an hour after III. .x-
I.!osion the villagers, who wcro pre-
Earring 10 go to the inine~. Mere
Startled 10y a ragged, bleeding rnap
vino nlmos: staggered int" tt. ARM
az the searci,ers. He said ths, No. a>haf,
a: fron'enac. "A mining suburb ot ih..
III. L.A 49,. "
plosion and that nii the men ia IN" mine
at che time, except himself and a ran..
whom sre lett bleed ing at the mouth ot ih.
1T We're undoubtedly dead. Horses Were
quickly harnrss.d 10 wagons and ia "a ,-w
minutes The villagers We're hurrying
through II fierce snow and slice; storm
~h!ch VAS ringing.
AZ the mouth Of she mine the tremendous
force oi the explosion was apparent. Tier.
were hug. seams IN the earth. and the
timhers If the foisting apparatus were
thiy.r.d and burned Foul gases wee
escaping. The DAN. who had escaped
with the men vino alarmed the
villagers lay IN the mud with his
fac. covered with blood. For a long
time II Was thought he Was dead. hut
lie reCaln-d consciousness in n few hours
aHG Is n"v at his horI.e. He can not SPEAK
and does no; know what caused the cN piu-
son. HIS clothes We're in ibbons.
The man who reached this village with
the frs; tidincs OF the disaster and vito
accompanied the rescners back TO the mine.
SAID the men We're about to quit WORK foI
III. iay when the explosion occurred. To-
gether with the Dane IA. had ridden III the
car to the top If Tn. shaft when the earth
seemed To snap beneath him and the mex;
thing he realized was the splasbinr @: The
>now aud water upon his face as he lay
with his conlrai. i'm the wrecka-e above
;t- mine. There were IL, men in the mine
"A; the time II the explosion. and a. they
were at work IT, feet below the surface. IL
Is believed that no one survived H.. shock,
Is the explosion must have destroyed
very thing IN the pit.
Sig fire, were built near .he mouth of
'te pit and beside these blazing li.--> the
omen of the entomted rIin"Is placed
-hcir children. while they themselves tried
Nv all means Of eutrratir> 10 iuGI,. the
miners from the other shafts "a enter th-
p:t and rescue their relatives cn-
r-scDinc party started down th, sl;aii
q; seven u'c.uck.. hut WAS forced Il
IG:n lack ox,rG To tie f"a,
air. Another a:,cmp; was ma .e at u N.
O'Clock. tut the piuckV Icscucr- again
We're forced 10 at.an Ion Their work. They
-oali hear no sound from the claU.h-T,
below. and this leads old Inircr> 20 tN.-
lievs that all the men in the shat; have
persisted. Other attempts Viii lc made 1,
reach the enio;lb-d men before IA srnir..
Those who started down the sha.; carlv
IN the evening say that the shock iIa> ..r-
stTovei whole ..r its and that Il = l.,~sih
that The m.u i'm the lower Levels rv. iuv.yG
beneath tons u: slate. u ack d,rup l.
supposed to have caused The ex,ho,iou.
Most of the miners at these shafts IN me
originally from Illinois and P-unsyi,an,a
lbrmorrat. Conce.ie California.
SAN FRANCISCO. Nov. a.-The count %.