Fisherman & farmer. [volume] (Edenton, N.C.) 1887-19??, 1890-05-30
ENTOMBED In A MINE.
Over a Score Of Men Perish at
Ashley, Penn.
First Came a Csve-in, Then Care
lessness Caused an Explosion.

/
reached a climax in the entombinS OF twenty
seven men in the Hartford mine OF the Iehigh
and Wilkesbarre Coal Company at Ashley.
three miles from Wilkesharre At O'Clock
in the morning the community was excited
when the news spread that extensive
cave-in had occurred in No cnlliery, cover
ing an area OF more than ten acres. THOU
sands rushed TO the scene OF the disaster and
found that the surface almost far a. the
eye 'uld reach was scanned and cracked
with long circular tsSures some OF which
were over two feet wide
The colliery EMPLOYS inside. about three
hundred men and boys, and they went u
their work rs usual at . o'clock. At about =
o'clock some OF the men at work in the lower
split saw signs Of cave-in. The mine began
to work, as the miners term II. The roof
cracked, bits OF coal and rock fell and
clipped off from the sides OF the gangways
and breasts Such tokens are never diSre-
garded by miners, and those who noticed 1t
at once flung down their tools and made for
the slope.
The first crash told every man in that part
IF the mine what was going on. for the fall
ng rock drove the All out from under IT with
mighty rush that extinguished every light
and sent clouds of dust and smoke through
the workings. Every man in that part Of
;he mine flung aside tools and everything
Else and ran for his life.
Crash after crash followed as more OF the
mperincumbent rock fell in. Men rushed on
n the darkness amid flying coal and rock.
Some were knocked down by falling pieces
md crushed under others before they could
get on their feet again, hut every man that
,ould pushed on for the ganGUay and the
;OOt OF the slope. conscious that
hat was his only hope OF life
Rescuing parties were at once organized
and an opening broken through into "A man
way along the bed OF a mountain stream
where the chambers in that part of the mine
,ame within few feet Of the surface. All
lay long these men toiled at the stubborn
-ock while the weeping wives and little
)nes of the doomed victims stood around the
opening aud rent the air with their cries and
lamentations.
Gang after gang relieved one another until
1t o'clock the news was passed that they
lad succeeded in breaking through the cham
0ers beneath the cave.
The men tOiled on in silence until $50,
when there was Commotion at the
mouth of the dark opening, and the fore
nan crawled out on his hands and knees
and announced that they had found
)ne Of the victims. He lying at the
SOttom of tifty-foOt plane, and in order
% rescue him it became necessary 10 lower
miner down with a rope. This was done, and
he charred and backened form Of Anthony
FrOyne the first Of the victims was hoisted
% the surface.
The rescuing party worked all night, and
lid not give up hope of taking the men out
alive until George Russ was found next
morning. Russ was IN advance OF the other
men in his efforts to escape. de was work
ng toward the abandoned workings, which
ae knew the rescuers would enter first, when
1e fell down from exhaustion. he died JUS
before he reached the surface.
The rescuing party soon broke through
and entered the chamber. They stumbled
over six blackened corpSes near the
opening, none of them recognizable.
Pursuing theiY search, they found
thirteen other bodies, all more or less
burned The sight was terrible that
.hree OF the exploring party tainted. Many
If the unfortunate men had held up their
olackened hands as if TO ward off the deadly
gas while others were lying on their faces Is
f to escape the damp which suffocated tho.s
who were not burned by the explosion.
The bodies were found nearly mile from
he entrance and the work of bringing them
out was exceedingly difficult. The scene,
when, about nine o'clock. the men carried
1ut the bodies of some of the miners, was
leartrending. Notwithstanding the strong
guard about the entrance of the mine fren.
lied women would rush forward and tear
The blankets from the limp forms and try 20
discover in the blackened remains the fac
d sons fathers and husbands.
Owen Wiliamss body identified OnI
by his shoes He was "a Sunday -scho!
teacher in the Welsh Methodist EpiScOEnl
Church Williams was one of the most =,
pert miners in that region.
Another victim named Henry had never
worked in the mine before. Patrick Nom
nan asked him if he would not work for him
IN Thursday, as he (Monahanl deslrel
TO attend the funeral Of frien'
Henry said he did not like 20 go I.
work in a strange mine, but he would ar
commodate his neighbor. Henry's dauGt-
ter was to have been married next day.
John Allen. the assistant fire boss. and one
of the three men rescued died next morning,
making the number Of the dead twenty
seven He too was horribly burned by tn.
explosion. Allen was the man accused by
the survivors Of causing the explosion. W hen
the cavern occurred all the lights were puI
out.
General Superintendent Phillips says
The men lost their lives through the negli-
gence of Assistant Mine Boss Allen, who in
sisted on relighting his lamp In the presence
of large volume Of gas. Had he not done
so the men now dead could all have been
rescued alive. There was good current OF
air passing through the chamber where the
men had taken refuge after the cavern had
taken place
In MANY Of the houses Of those VINO were
killed there i. no food. and the company Is
looking .fter the wants OF the families.
The cause of the cave-in was the great
amount OF coal removed from the supports
and the thinness Of the roof. james Sullivan
had an extremely rrow escape. he was
standing in the ga. way talking 10 a boy when
the shock came. He caught the boy up In his
arms and ran for life. closely followed by
John Henry. After going a short distance
he heard a crash, and looking back saw
great pile Of rock fail on Henry, crushing
him.
Ats O'Clock next morning all operations at
the mines were abandoned. There were still
six men III the fatal chamber. Six mules
were taken out alive during the afternoon.
The bodies Of five PolanGers were buried To-
cether no one having claimed them.