Daily Republican. [volume] ([Wilmington, Del.]) 1874-1890, 1889-05-10
TEN MEN KILLED.
A DREADFUL COLLIERY DIS
ASTER.
Ten Miners Crushed 10 Death at the Bot
tom of Shaft The Fearful Fall
of Car shatters the As
cending Cage.

PoTTsviLLE, May 9.-At a late hour
tonight news OF frightful disaster
reached this place from the Alliance
Coal Mining CSmpaDy's Kaska William
Colliery, near New Philadelphia. A
hundred people drove out from here
ten miles to the colliery, where they
found the whole countryside collected
and the most intense excitement pre-
vailing.
Ten men had been killed by most
stupid blunder Of cheap imported Hun
garlan laborer.
1t was long while before list OF the
killed could be obtained, and even then it
seemed impossible to gain any informa-
tion about their families, though the
mouth of the shaft was crowded within
an hour with men, women and children.
now IT HAPPENED.
About 5 o'c' ock as ten inside miners
were being hoisted up the shaft, and
when they had reacht d height of sixteen
feet, two Hungarians ignorantly pushed
an empty mine car over the tip.
The shaft descends depth of 500 feet,
and through this awful distance the car,
tie weight OF which was ton and half,
went hustling down, knocking timbers
out, breaking the wire rope with which
the cage was being hoisted and dropping
It into the swamp and finally landing on
top of 1t with irightful crash.
At the foot of each shaft or slope Is a
pit into which the filthy water Of the
mine is drained and whence 1t is pumped
out. At Kaska William this sump was
twenty feet deep. The cage with its load
OF human freight fell into the hole, and
on 1t came crashing and crushing the
mine car from its fearful height. Tht
foot & the shaft was surrounded by mer
waiting to be hoisted. They heard and
saw the slaughter, but were paralyzet
and powerless. They were unable ever
to move from harms way themselves
though luckily none Of them were In
jured.
The alarm was sounded as quickly a
pos. ible, and an attempt was made Il
help those 6pon whom terrible fate hat
fallen.
At 10 o'clock to night ne of th,
bodies had been recovered, aud it was i'm
possible to tell how soou they could b,
reached. 1t Is doubtful whether any o
them will be recognized. They must b,
ground into shapeless mass of human
flesh, discolored and rendered less posi-
BILE OF recognition by the filth and blacl
water Of the sump.
A sad circumstance in connection witt
Foreman Boyle's death Is the fact that |
was not his turn to come up the shaft
He secured passage on that cage by trad
ing with Tom Hoolihan, driver boy, II
order that Boyle might catch a train u
the valley to New Philadelphia TO pro
cure a supply Of oil for the night men
9 Boyle was greatly loved by all the en-
I ployeee for his gentleness.
| A hn .1a rl,ga. H. -aI nh1
q scene were very outspoken In their d,
nunciation Of the company for employin
the ignorant and cheap laborers In sue
important places. There was talk {
| lynching the two Huns who had care
= lessy caused the great disaster, bu
: Squire Winlock, of Middleport, who wa
on the ground, took prompt measures @
checking any such additional calamity.
Mine Inspector Gay did not receive tn
news until late and he was among tn,
earliest 10 start from here for the scene
The rope was spliced as quickly as posi-
BILE and new cage rugged up in short
time. Mr.. Gay descended as soon as h,
could and was still down late at night
Word had come up that 1t would be som,
time before the bodies could be reached
and that the greatest possible destruction
had been worked in the shaft and at the
foot.
The officers of the Alliance Company
are located in New York, and among its
members are the Cooper Hewitt people.