Tombstone daily prospector. (Tombstone, Ariz.) 1887-1891, 1890-12-02
a FIERY PHENOMENON.
Ibs Thrilling Expsrisaes Of rw. yirxisis
City Nisserx

pbttoufetiAi lDClQent occurred or
the $50 level on the CholLar mine, the
particulars Of which have been dis
closed by two badly scared miners
who played leading parts in the seusa.
tional underground drama
George Murray and Tom Bailey
were engaged in running the main
drift north on this level-which is in
several hundred feet from tho station,
in new ground and newly timbered
from one end TO the other They had
fixed everything for the firing OF
round Of holes in the face Of the drift
and retired 10 the station to eat supper
aud give the powder fumes a chance
- sscrk OF
On returning, Murray lowered his
candle in the mass Of debris 10 ascer
tain the result OF the blast, when he
lost his candle and portions Of his
eyelashes and eyebrows by the sud
den ignition Of a volume Of gas which
belched forth and reared like vol,
cauo.
Tie situation was appalling. The
flames covered the entire face Of the
drift aud were driven back with terri,
&c force TO the upper timbers several
feet from the face.
Murray and Bailey were so awe
struck aud spellb that for q few
moments they could do nothing. Fl.
ually one Of them rushed back 10 the
station and returned with his arns
full Of hand grenades. These were
thrown with great force and broken al
the face of the drift, but it seemed ike
adding fuel 10 the flames. Pieces OF
broken glass could be heard jinglins
against The top Of the drift, as IL the
frantic element was laughing at all
efforts TO check it.
Seeing nothing but terrible catas
lrophe before !he::::::, oso 81 The miners
was dispatched for the shift boss
while the other stood guard over the
fearful fire at distance Of twenty
ieet-the heat being so intense that il
ras impossible for him 10 get nearer.
Re-enforcements shortly arrived
with more hand grenades, which
proved fully as useless as the first
An excited conference was held,
which resulted in a miner being sent
on top With a Rabcock ext..saisher.
while another was instructed TO have
.yery preparation made for blowing
out timbers and bulkheading against
the flames.
When the extinguisher arrived on
the scene stream from the machine
was turned on the face Of the drift,
and in a few moments the fire was
subdued; but whether this result
wis brought about by the exhaustion
Of the gas or the efficiency of the ex
unguisher is a question.
Ensrt he a e
the story is yet TO be told The spread
eagle flame was dazzling in its brill
isncy-nore like that Of electric light
than gas light.
There was no smoke from il and no
smell, but the miners who fought il
experienced partial blindness and Sc
we're headaches. An examination 0.
:he timbers-which il was thought
must surely be badly burned, although
green-revealed the fact that while
blistering hot they were not even
scorched, showing that the flames
Rugged lie ground above pretty
closely.
Murray and Bailey estimate that
enough gas was consumed in the forty
minutes TO have supplied the whole OF
Virginia City with light for six months.
Had such a thing happened in
old ground or anywhere adjacent 10
old timber (which exhale gaseous sub
sLanees), the miners say they could
have accounted for it TO some extent,
but as above stated, both ground and
timbers were new In this case.
No such phenomenon has ever be-
fore been seen or heard of IN any OF
the Comstock mines, and the men
who witnessed il are not eager for q
repetition Of their experience They
have pissed over considerable ground
in the same drift; since without any
thing Of the kind having again occur
red and are now waiting TO hear some
OF the knowing ones explain the myS
terry Virginia City (Ney.j Territorial
Enterprise