Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1889-11-25
in A FIERY TOMB.
Awful Disaster in a Butte City
Copper Mine.
AN UNKNOWN NUMBER OF VICTIMS.

Nine Pitmen Believed to Have Met Hor-
ribic Dooms-Heroio Efforts at Rescue
In the Face of Desth-Dsshed to Eter-
nifty in sight of ssfety-FoarfuI Result
of Fight Of Roughs-A Babe Literally
Roasted In Its Mothers Arms-Fatsi-
ity at u PhIisdeiphis Fire.
BUTTE, Mont, Nov. 25-During the inter
val between the retiring OF the night shift at
5 o'clock Saturday morning and the coming
on OF the day shift at o'clock fire broke out
In st. Lawrence mine near here. The fire
caught In the 400-foot level OF the st. Law
renee, and. rs that and the Anaconda mine
are connected on every level down to the
soO-foot OF the latter. the fire has communi-
Gated itself 10 both.
Terrible Fact Made known.
Parties were sent down TO extinguish the
flames, but the smoke became so dense and
sitting that this became more difficult every
minute. II soon became known that several
men were down in the mine, and their com
rades, with blanched faces, called name after
name to find out who were missing Ropes
were called for, and cages filled with volum-
teers, who began the rapid descent, but in
minute the signal to hoist was given, and
the cages were brought TO the surface, the
rescuing party almost unconscious from in
haling the sitting smoke.
Four Men HeroicaIIy Rescued
A half dozen more attempts were made
but were unsuccessful At last a party pro
vided with sponges started on the terrible de
scent, after last good-by to the hundreds
who were gathered in the hosting works
This party reached the s00-foot level where
the miners had been left. Four of them were
ragged TO the cage, but before the fifth could
ie reached the rescuers were nearly stified,
and the signal TO ascend was given. It was n
terrible ascent. The men were so suffocated
with smoke and exhausted that they were
powerless 20 assist each other, and could
scarcely retain their hold on the cage.
Dashed Down to Death.
Harry Page, known as the champion ham
mer driver OF Montana, one the rescued
party, lost his hold and fell TO the bottom
Of the shaft, 100 feet below the surface. At
the SOO-foot level Tim Kelleher, brakeman,
fell of, and was dashed to death at the bot
tom of the shaft. Kelleher had four times
made the descent in the endeavor TO rescue
his comrades. Nearly all of the party that
reached the surface were unconscious At
the fifteen-foot level John Lyons toppled
over, but was grabbed by one of the rescuers
Lyons head was terribly smashed and his
left leg broken in two places. 1t is thought
he can not survive.
Five known To BE Dead.
The number OF lives lost Is believed 10 be
nine. The two mines employ upwards of a
thousand men. Five are positively known
TO be dead in the mine and from two 20 four
more are believed 10 have been caught in it,
their whereabouts above ground being 10 far
unknown. To superintendent CAROLS un-
hinching bravery and genernlship must be
credited whatever is saved of these mines
He directed the men, who bravely seconded
his efforts and at the risk of their lives closed
up the mines by bulkheading the avenues of
ingress of the air.
Explosion of Dynamite Expected.
The men who are supposed to be imprisoned
in the SOO-loot level of the Anaconda have
been given up, and all the shafts, drifts and
slopes of the two mines have been bulk
headed % try and smother the fire The
men who fell from the cage in the St Law
renee are still lying at the bottom OF the
shaft, notwithstanding the efforts that have
been made to reach their bodies A great
many men are missing, but 1t will not lie
known positively who are imprisoned in the
burning mines until Tuesday, when the shaft
bosses will call the roll Of men. To add u
the seriousness Of the situation 5 900 pounds
dynamite are on the 50O-foot level, and II this
should explode the cavern which would re-
suit would be- terrible