, 1888-11-15
DEATH IN A MINE.
Heartrending Horrors of the
Kansas Disaster.
WORK OF REMOVING THE DEAD.
1t Goes Silently and I Tainfuily ON In the
Presence of Heart Broken Wives
and Fatherless Children.

Auh Ao" NsocuiBt Ahuhoo"S eoyo' AhO
most dreadful disaster In the history of
Kansas occurred at o'clock this evening.
When the men were preparing to leave
or their work at shaft No. 2 at Frontenac,
suburb Of Pittsburg, terrible explosion
was heard that shook the earth for great
distance aud completely shattered the shaft.
On investigation it was found that 100
were in the mine at the time OF the explo-
sion. Ceing liz feet below the surface it
is almost certain that they are all dead.
At this writing the only two exceptions
were two men who were in the car coming
up, and being near the top of the shaft,
managed to escape. Pittsburg is in the
center of the coal mines of Southeastern
Kansas. and is about 100 miles South of
Kansas City on the Fort Scott & Gulf rail-
road.
ANOTHER ACCOUNT.
ST. LOUIS, Nov. "a special from
Pittsburg, Kas., to The Republic gives the
following account OF the coal mine explo-
sion that broke windows in this little viii
lage and spread CONSERVATION among the
inhabitants, occurred about dusk tonight.
The violence of the shock was so great az
to hurl dishes from the shelves and demol-
ish chimnevs. Half an hour after the ex-
plosion the villagers, who we're preparing
to go to the mines, were startled by rag
ged bleeding man staggering into the arms
Of searchers. He said that shaft No. 2, i'll
the suburbs Of this village had been de-
stroyed by an oil explosion and that all the
men In the mine, except himself and n
Dane, whom he left bleeding at the mouth
of the pit, we're undoubtedly dead. Horses
were quickly harnessed to wagons and in
q few minutes the villagers were hurrying
through the fierce snow and sleet storm
which was raging. At the mouth of the
mine the tremendous force of the explosion
was apparent. There were huge seams in
the earth and timbers of the hoistinR APP
paratus were shivered and burned. Foul
gases were escaping and the Dane who
had escped with the man who alarmed the
villagers lay in the mud with his face
covered with blood. For long time it
was thought he was dead but he regained
consciousness and is now at his home.
He cannot speak and does not know
what caused the explosion. His clothes
were in ribbons.
STORY OF A SURVIVOR.
The man who reached this village with
the first tidings of the disaster. and VINO
accompanied the rescuers back to the
mine. said the men were about to quit
work for the day when the ex plosion occur.
red. Together with the Dane
tss hs had ton ridden y tss IN shaft car vbto to
the earth seemed to snap beneath him,
and the next thing he realized was the
splashing of snow and water upon his face
as he lay with his comrade in the wrechage
above the mine. There were I60 men Ia
the mine. At the time of the explosion
they we're at work 112 feet below the
surface. 1t is believed not one. sur
vived the shock, as the explosion
must have destroyed everything in the pit.
pit, and beside the blazing fire the wives
of the miners placed their children, while
they themselves tried by all kinds of en-
treaties to induce the miners from other
shafts to enter the pit and rescue their
relatives. One rescuing party started
down the shaft at 7 o'clock but was
forced to turn back owning to
the foul air. Another attempt
was made at o'clock but the plucky res
cuers were forced to abandon their work.
They could hear no sounds from Chambers
below and this leads the miners to believe
that all the men in the shaft have perished.
Other attempts will be made to reach the
entombed men before morning. Those
who started down the shaft
early this morning say that the shock has
destroyed the whole drift. and it is proba-
BILE that the men in the lower tunnels are
buried beneath tons Of slate. The black
damp is supposed to have caused the ex-
plosion. Most of the miners of these shafts
came originally of the mines in Pennsyl-
vania.
KANSAS CITY, Nov. 1O.-A Journal
special from Pittsburg, Kansas. says: The
Developments of yesterday have only added
TO tn, horrors in No. 2 shaft of the Chero-
kee and Pittsburg Coal Company. The
citizens of Girard and Pittsburg have re-
sponded nobly to the call for assistance
and every citizen in the latter place offered
his services. During the long and dreary
night thousands of men, women and child
rem thronged along the main shaft |
awaiting .anxiously for some It'd
ings Of the condition of the men.
that her husband was among the victims
and would break the stiffness of the night
by heart.rending wall of sorrow that
melted the strongest hearts with pity.
The rescuing party did not shirk during
The night and when morning came willing
hands crme to their relief. The |
great cage which had been repaired, made |
regular trips, bringing to the top Of the
shaft the nangled and torn bodies Of the
unfortunate miners. Up to late hour
The most Of t%em Wsrs
70 badly bruised as to be unrecog gnizable
by either friends or relatives. Robert |
Pritchard and Frank Willishinger, Ger.
mans, were found in the bottom Of the
main shaft in a dying condition and
to the top. Both died at o'clock. |
A temporary hospital has been provided,
and neighborinR blacksmith shop has
'erved as a. morgue. Here the bodies were
placed for inspection.
LIST OF THE DEAD.
Among the fortY.six bodies recovered