The record-union., 1891-11-07
HURLED INTO ETERNITY.
Terrible Explosion at the Powder
Works at Clipper Gap.
Two Employees Blown to Atoms-Joseph
Pippfn Fatally Crushed in the
Keg Factory.

A terrible explosion occurred at the
| works of the Judson Powder Company,
near Clipper Gap, seven miles north of
Auburn, yesterday forenoon. Two white
men and one Chinaman were killed, and
boy about Is years of age was seriously,
perhaps fatally, injured. The cause of
the explosion is unknown, as neither OF
the men who were at work where it oc-
Cured live to tell the tale.
The works of the company are located
about mile from Clipper Gap, at the
mouth of a canyon, and consist of a
number of small buildings of corrugated
iron, each separate and distinct from the
other, connected only by wire cables by
which power is transmitted.
The buildings extend up the canyon for
a quarter of mile or more. The last
four Of these are in the order named: The
corning mill, where the powder which
has been compressed into cakes is ground
! up into grains again; next came the
! glaze mill, where by certain process a
| gloss is put upon the powder; above this
| is the keg factory, and last Of all the
magazine, where the finished product is
| stored.
| The explosion took place in the glaze
mill, of which not vestige remains to
show that building had ever existed,
| save a few broken and blackened tim
bers and deep hole in the ground.
| Two men were at work in this building,
| James Hamilton and a Chinaman.
| OF these two nothing remains but few
| pieces of blackened and torn flesh and
! the Chinaman's queue, which were picked
| up on the hlllsides surrounding the mill.
| y building hundred feet distant down
| the canyon also contained a large amount
| OF powder, which exploded a fraction of a
I second later. There was no one at wor k
in this building, although several men
| are generally employed there.
The other casualty occurred in the keg
| factory, about hundred and fifty feet on
the other side of the glaze mill and up
| the canyon. The terrific force Of the eX-
| plosion crushed this building down like
an egg shell, and Joseph Pippin and
| young Bertie Hicks were imprisoned un-
der the falling mass of timbers and
empty powder kegs.
AS soon as possible these two were eX-
tricacted from the ruins, when it was found
that Pippin had been crushed to death
under his machinery. Young Hicks was
insensible and suffering from a fractured
skull. a doctor was hastily summoned
| from Auburn, who pronounced his in
| juries very serious.
| A son OF Pippin's also worked with his
| father, but had just stepped out doors
| when the explosion occurred and al
| though fragments of the ruined building
rained around him, and he was thrown
violently to the ground, he was unhurt.
| After Pippin and Hicks had been re-
| moved q search for some remains of the
unfortunate Hamilton and the Chinaman
! began, and although the hills, which
| closely shut in on the ruined buildings.
were secured over and over again within
radius Of several hundred yards moth
| ing was found but a few pieces of battered
and burned flesh and the Chinaman's
| queue, which was found some three hun
dred feet from the ruins.
| OF the killed, Joseph Pippin's case is
| especially sad, as he was to have gone to-
night to bring his wife and family who
are in Santa Cruz up to Clipper Gap to
settle.
James Hamilton was single man, al
most the sole support of his mother, q
| widow, who resides at Clipper Gap.
| Bertle Hicks, who is badly injured, is
| between IA and 10 years of age, and lives
with his parents at Clipper Gap.
w. II. Gatfett, the foreman of the
works, was seen, and stated that there
was some $50 kegs of powder in the glaze
| MILL and that he had no idea how the eX-
| plosion occurred, as there was no one left
to tell the tale, and everything was run
ming smoothly, as usual
| Mr.. Gattett Is q careful and cOnScien-
! tiouS manager, and has the reputation of
| leaving nothing undOne to insure the
! safety of the lives and property under his
management, and feels greatly prieved
over the occurrence. He could give no
| accurate statement of the loss to the COM
| pany, but roughly estimated it to be be-
! tween s., 900 and IS, 900.
! The force of the explosion can hardly
| be imagined by one unacquainted with
| the terrible power of the confined powder.
! The ruined buildings stood in the bottom
! OF the little canyon, while the hills rise
| quite steep on either side. 1t was on the
| hlllsldes that the terrible force was most
| clearly shown, for they look as if a yio-
| lent battle had taken place there, the
| brush being literally blown out by the
| roots, and tough pine trees eight inches
IN thickness snapped off like straws.
One oak tree foot in diameter was
| pulled out by the roots and carried bod
! lily over fifteen feet from where it stood,
| while the whole hillsideS are blackened
| as if by forest fire and strewn with
| pieces of timber and scraps of torn and
| twisted sheet iron of which the buildings
were constructed.
Among the underbrush were found
several dead and wounded birds stricken
by the awful blast.
Several OF the employees who were near
at the time stated that the earth shook
| and trembled, horses and men were
| thrown to the ground and cloud of
white smoke rose up like great balloon.
while for mile around broken iron
castings, timbers, sticks, stones and dirt
fell like hail. One man half mile away
had q narrow escape from a piece of a
pully-wheel weighing over twenty
pounds, which fell within two feet OF
him.
In Clipper Gap the shock was very
severe, many windows being broken.
goods thrown down from the shelving in
the stores, and other minor damage done.
AT Auburn, six miles distant, the
shock was like an earthquake, and many
thought it to be one till the great cloud of
smoke was seen, and a telegram was re-
ceived telling of the disaster. All towns
down the line felt the shock even as far
porter, who was taking notes at the
train-wreckers' examination at Auburn,
says that the Courthouse rocked violently
and caused q stampede of those inside
Two painters were at work on the
Superintendents house, which is some
distance from the glaze-house. The force
of the explosion blew them off the build
ing as though they were straws They
were badly shaken up by the fall, but
fortunately were not seriously hurt.
FROM SEATTLE TO SACRAMENTO
Went Up In Pullman and Came Back
on Brakebeam.
The south bound Oregon express train
pulled into the depot the other night, SAYS
the MarvsyilIe 4 DOe0T and &c +Iaro