St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-02-24
DOINGS OF DULUTHIANS.
The Dynamite Explosion Inquest Now
In Progress.
SHOCK KILLED THE MEN.
Progress of the Glass Furnace---other
News of Considerable
Interest.
Speeial to the Globe.

Police DOran was busy all the forenoon
to-day Summoning witnesses to testify
Mt the inquest at kendallS morgue TINS
afternoon relative to the melancholy
event of yesterday, the explosion which
caused four deaths and untold suffering
in many local households. At noon to-
day several of the injured men were
on the street, not much the worse
for the terrible experience of yesterday
morning, but others are not yet conSid-'
cred out of danger. \ singular thing is
the statement of the hospital surgeons
on the deaths of the four men who were
taken to them alive and left the hospital
in charge of the undertakerS. This
is to the effect that not one of the four
men died from definite bodily injuries.
They all died. say the physicians, from
the Shock 10 the system. Charles Wat
son. who sustained a compound fracture
of the left leg and slight scalp wounds,
will recover. Leander Anderson, who
was cut severely about the head, is out
to-day with his injuries bandaged.
Jacob TolSen, who was for long time
unconscious, is getting better and is
now quite rational. His wounds were
about the head mostly. Jacob NelS,
right side of head and ear badly bruised,
is out of bed. SeYart Quain, back i'll
iured, may be crippled for months.
Martin HopkinSOn, August Anderson,
Charles \. Johnson, Alfred Davidson,
MagneSS Davidson and \. Ordling are
all out to-day. 1t is thought that the
story of one man being covered by
pile of rocks on Fourth street and being
left there is a canard. Work was re-
sumed on the work this morning.
THE INQUEST.
Coroner McComb and jury held an in
quest this afternoon on the dynamite
explosion. occupying three hours. Law
Yer II. ). Lord represented the relatives
of the deceased and W. L. Mcclellan
for Lundberg. NJ. II. Fitzpatrick, con-
tractor, testified that he knew of the ac
cident only by hearSay. not having been
there at the time it occurred. Ole Lund-
berg had been foreman there two weeks
because the regular foreman was sick.
There are three fOremen and no head
foreman. The dynamite exploded by a
Illuminating cap connected with
the battery. Dynamite eXplodes
downwards and the Illuminating
cap is put on top. After the
first explosion the tamping was taken
the dynamite had been. When the sec
Ond charge was put in and exploded it
was taken for granted that all the dyna-
mite had exploded. Lundberg drank
last fall and l dismissed him, but he
SWOre off and l took him back again.
Ole Lundberg testified that he had fol-
lowed rock work sixteen years; have
used glycerine and dynamite, but in
this cut only dynamite. Il first at
tempted to explode the hole about
o'clock Monday. Twenty cartridges
To-. I Il
three cartridges in the bottom of the
then put in twenty cartridges. Then
with tamping filled up to within one
foot of the top filled four othernholes at
the same time. The holes were eight
feet apart. Then l discharged the
whole five with an electric battery. 1t
blew the rock Off to within two feet of
the grade. The particular hole shook
the rock, but did not blow it away. The
men thought the dynamite had met
with a soft place at the bottom of the
hole. We went down again in the same
hole, put i'll eight cartridges and eX-
plOded them, bursting away the rock.
| examined the hole and saw it had
gone deeper the second time than with
The last charge, so thought L
would drill lower and blow it
out again. being satisfied that all
exploded at the bottom. The men asked
me if l was sure there was no dynamite
in the hole. l told them l was sure
there was none. They started to drill
and spoke about the hole not exploding.
told them would clean out the hole,
which did. This was o'clock Tues
lay night. Wednesday morning went
TO act and was called out at Z O'Clock.
[ started for my house for something |
mad forgot, and when about forty feet
away the explosion occurred" On
cross examination Lundberg said he was
sober: that he asked no one but the
DavisonS to drill the hole; and did not
threaten to dismiss anyone if they did
not drill it. No one refused to
drill it. W. L. McLennon, con-
tractor. testified to Lundberg'S
good character and competency. An
drew Ecklund, laborer, said he helped
He happened to be sent somewhere
else. He heard one of the DavidSons-
say he did not like to drill another hole
in the same place and Lundberg told
him he must drill it in the same place.
James Erickson testified that he drilled
the hole the first time and was then
sent to other works. He told the foreman
that he ought not to put men to work
on the hole, as it had not been exploded.
Il was convinced there was dynamite
in that hole. Ibid not work on
Tuesday" About dozen witnesses
were heard and the inbuest will con-
tinue two days at least.
THE BLAST FURNACE.
A GLOBE representative saw o. H.
SimOnds, of the new blast furnace COM
pany, this morning, and talked on the
progress of the blast furnace work.
I'VE have quite a party of men out
there" said Mr.. SimOndS, "and have
made contracts within few days for
timber to construct bridges, so that
work can be expedited. Our stone for
the foundation will come from up the
river, and we are now preparing for the
foundation, so that the land will be
ready as soon as the rock is on the
ground There are two knobs, on one
of which will be located the blast fur
naces proper, with hot air rooms, tan
room. engine and boiler house, and ap-
preached by sidetracks. Slipping away
from the knoll we will make land where
now it is quite low. Still further out
we will build a dock, the lumber for
which is also ordered. We find that
there is only eight inches, or there
about, of frost in the sandy earth ap-
preaching the knoll. Other sidetracks
will be laid to the docks. The company
HIS loI cIccteu oIncerS yet, as Iney are
awaiting Mr.. Munger's return to Du-
luth. What is being done now is being
done by common consent of all parties
Interested" Mr.. Simonds is quite hope
full of the result, and says while iron is
selling at S23 a ton East he don't see
why it cannot be manufactured here
under good business management at
from SIG to SIS ton net.
BUNNEI.L NOT MISSING,
The story published in a st. Paul
evening paper to the effect that Mile
Bunnell, manager of the Evening Her
aid, was missing, is erroneous. Mr..