Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-07-03
THE sUBrERRANEAN SEARCH.
Story Of the Journey Into the Hili Farm
Mine.

II was q heroic exploration which was made
Monday afternoon at Dunbar by three brave
men. The fittsburg Commercial Gds,fie tells
the story: 1t was the first and probably the last
search for the missing miners The party Of
rescuers descended into the Mahoning mine az
about o'clock. About half an hour before go
ing the inspectors held = meeting and dis
eussed the wisdom Of going into the mine at
all There were some who thought the task
not only vain one, but dangerous 10 the ex-
plorers IL was decided. however. TO make one
more effort 10 discover the mystery Of those
underground chambers.
There were sixteen men in the party which
went down. Inspector keighley led the wav,
and siA OF the men crawled through the long
and eramped hole leading from Que mine 20
another. Tins cut Is SIS feet long and is itself
place OF great danger. IL IL. for a larg. part
OF the way cut through loose earth aud is
caylng IN slowly. although umbered up Three
OF the party went only few yards into tine
HUI Farm mine. The other three men then
left them and pierced 100 feet further into the
darkness. These three men mere INSPECTOR
heighley, Secretary Natchorn and Inspector
Doran. They carried with them three clothes
lines, which they tied one 20 the other maxi
ing length OF lsO feet They had also a bottle
Of camphor and cloths. which they saturated
and placed over their nostrlls
The chamber into which they entered A An
old one. Ii has not been used for three years.
In many places the root had fallen lu and over
these piles OF slate and coal the men had TO
crawl la one place the fall had extended 20
feet into the root, and the climb up one side
and down the other WAS at an eagle of about
40 degrees. The opening in some places was
only two feet high. Through such places they
worked their way, crawling one behind the
other. The smoke had all been driven cot 90
the south and the air was pure. Zach man
carried a safety lamp. In some places the
rooms were found 20 be flooded 10 a depth Of
three feet Through tins the brave fellows
waded, uumlndiul OF the possibility of holes
through the floor. At last the rope came to
an end They had gone lsO feet ami had
found nothing. What shall We do now" In
spector Doran asked. Let Us 20 ahead" re-
spondcd Mr.. keighlcy. ANA ahead they went
lhe clothes Inc Was tied 10 a post and tine eK-
plorers plunged INTO hidden places from out
which they had no idea whether or not they
would ever come. They cut IN through across
TO the heading turthest TO the right, aud
there IN a few minutes they came to the short
side room where some Of the men had been
working when the fire occurred two weeks
before.
FINDING EyIpENCEs or rHE RFS.
The Inspectors cannot themselves describe
their feelings as they came UPON two
dinner pals. One tin bucket was closed. When
the lad was lifted the food was found inside un-
disturbed. Beside the bucket wAs a blue Jean
blouse. The other bucket was a bout three feet
away, sitting rEht on the floor OF the mine
The I'D was of and land az one side. The coffee
cup had been lifted out and sat beside the
bucket. The napkin had been removed Just
about two feet from the bucket and between
IL anu blouse, was "a piece OF bread til one
bite taken out OF II. At the time of the dis
covery the searchers dad not know who we're
the owners OF these two buckets. When they
came oft the pals we're recognized as belong
lis TO John Mitchell and Patrick BcYlIu There
had been other men working with them. Half
dozen picks lay IN the room, but no more
buckets were found
Mr.. NatchorH SAYS that Deylin and Mitchell
were evidently just beginning TO eat dinner
when some other miner ran Into the room aud
told them the mime Was GA hUe. They dropped
everything and ran toaard tue man SLOPE
Some OF the men evidently seized their dinner
buckets and carried them with them. The food
found IN these buckets Was an good condition
The searchers entered nine chambers before
they were compelled to yield. About 800 feet
beyond the place where they found the buckets
they came upon dead mule hitched to a coal
cart. As the three men approached the mule
they smelled nothing offensive. The air was
drawing away from them. They stopped aud
looked a moment at the animal Ii had been
suhocated. Ii was swollen ana bursted. Then
/ they passed II, and as they did 80 they star ted
| 10 run. The smell was horrible. They clapped
! their camphor cloths over their noses and hur-
rled on. Tins smell was almost the death OF
| them. They were so anxious to escape from ID
that they rushed into danger
| Ii was not until their lamps grew so faiut
that they gave no light that one OF the party.
| Mr. Natchorn, aWoke TO the fact that he wac
| IA danger. He stopped and called ont Bows
( We have gone too tar" Then ali stopped
The lamps we're almost out There was not
enough oxygen in the atmosphere to make a
healthy blaze. The moment thew discovered
/ they were III bad AR they began to feel II ply
sically. heighley jerked piece OF chalk from
has pocket and marked ON the timber wall.
! Then all turned and hurried back The heat
AT TINS point was intense, although no IRE could
/ be seen. Ii was a difficult journey back Half
| AN hour was lost by Mr.. Watchorn going sstray
Finally at $50 the three tired men crawled
INTO the MahonIng mine and made their re-
| port
AFTSAL CONSTELLATION.
Then q meeting was held in the manwsy
which must have been a solemn affair. Five
men who we're above were telephoned for and
went down There were tweEt--one men IN
| the party. They were Superintendent Frank
| IiIll, Engineers Charlie and Harry Coll. Father
! Malady. DR.. j. Mullen. W. I. smith. Master
Workman William Patterson. John Dilworth,
Isaac q. kubey. bernard Callen, Robert GRAY,
| Inspectors Hugh Doran. Thomas Eyans Peter
! Wise. William jenkins, Henry Louti:t. A. King
| and Il. [. hcighley, Secretary Robert Watch
orn, James BIlck and }. j. Davis Robert
Natchorn WAS elected chairman OF the meeting
ana Henry Louutt secretary. Inspector
had gone. he sand. about 500 feet into the
| Hill Farm mine and had made their way
within about 500 feet OF the main slope. Fur
Their than this they could not 20.
| Mr.. heIghley gave II az has opinion that
nobody could 20 anv further until the fire was
out The men. he believed were an the fire
| and probably burned. he sadly gave has
: opinion that IL useless 20 try any more TO
reach the bodies. lie was supported by
Inspector Doran and Mr. Matchorn. Mr..
jenkins made motion that the search be sus-
pended while the mine at:re. This WAS
| adopted with bus one dissenting vote Peter
Wise was the only man in the party who argued
| against the motion.
| thus the thing is ended. How long viii the
mine burn? There Is one IN Wales which has
been afire forty years. The Beeson mine, near
! Uniontown, has been burning about thirty-hvs
| years All the entrances to the Hill Farm mine
will now be brlcked up. the inspectors thinking
that the FIRE may be destroyed by lack Of air.
There il great sadness over the decision. The
citizens believe. however, that the inspectors
have done the right thing.
Beverly fuckers Sickness.
The Manchester Ladr says that Hon.