The record-union., 1891-09-28
THRILLING EXPERIENCE.
SIXTEEN MINERS NARROWLY ES-
CAPE A HORRIBLE DEATH.
Rescued From their Perilous Situation
When they Had Almost Given
Up Hope.
Special to the REcoRp-US1oS.


SHAMoKIN Pa.), Sept. 27.-For eight
hours yesterday sixteen men were i'm
prisoned in the old chamber in the Hick-
ory Ridge coal mine, not knowing what
second they would be crushed to death.
They were Carson Delong, Zach Ham,
Frank Walthof. Daniel Oyster and a
dozen Hungarians and Poles.
When they entered the mine at Z
o'clock in the morning Inside Foreman
William Rheinhardt directed the men to
rob" pillars. This is considered the
most dangerous of inside work. A pill
lar divides one breast or chamber from
another, and after all the coal is taken
from the chamber the pillar is usually
removed. A chain pillar divides the
levels.
At the ridge the men We're working on
the first level, and 100 feet of rock and
coal lay between it and the second lift,
which had been well worked out.
An hour after the first pick had been
sunk into the coal the miners experienced
a tingling sensation in their feet. 1t was
as though a bunch of needles had been
thrust into the soles Of their feet They
grew dizzy. The bottom of the gangway
was cracking in hundreds of places,
while through the fissures came blasts of
air and dirt. A violent swaying then en-
sued, mingling with the sudden roar and
crunching of coal. Then came a success
sion of reports like an artillery battery in
action. THE chain pillar is falling"
shrieked Zach Ham, ''and if we don't
get out of here it means death" A rush
was made for the closed chamber Wal
hotf was in the rear and was lifted to a
place of safety just as the bottom of the
placed they had left dropped and revealed
Il yawning chasm 100 feetdeep and ninety
feet wide.
When the pillar began to disappear the
men on the lower level escaped. The
imprisoned men were surrounded on all
chamber as far as possible and had con-
ference. They found that there was no
possible way of exit other than by the
way they had entered. But there was an
impossible chasm between them and it,
Suddenly they heard voices.
Are you alive?" cried Foreman Rein
hardt, who, with Tom Llewellyn and
David Williams, had gained an entrance
to the gangway as soon as the rush oc-
Cured. The reScuing party We're over
joyed on learning that the men were safe.
How to get the miners across that abyss
was next in order. a rope was procured,
and for four hours Reinhardt and his
men tried to cast rope across. Some
times it would land on the treacherous
ledge almost within reach, and then it
would go Whistling down in darkness
and dust. Cuce it fell on a rock which
seemed solid, but as Dan Oyster was
about to seize it, the rock and rope went
down. The men grew timid and glanced
into each others faces with fear. They
were almost without oil and they had
only what was in their cans.
Was it to be a second Jeansville horror.
and yet within shouting distance of
rescuers?
These gloomy meditations were cut
short by whirling noise and the crack
of blow. The prayed for rope had
fallen at their feet.
''FaSten your end of that rope to the
TIMBER" they heard voice cry, land we
will do the same" Once securely tied
about the post, the men consulted as to
who would make the attempt to cross the
chasm hand over hand, suspended from
the rope. 1t did not take loug for Carson
Delong to make up his mind to try it,
and bidding his comrades good-by, the
intrepid fellow flung himself into space
and went hand-over-hand. The rope
cracked and swayed. Several times he
thought he would fall, but with strained
muscles and stout heart Delong went
over and at last was safe The others
followed, and when the last had crossed
they first wept like children and then
cheered loud and long.
When they were hoisted to the surface.
1900 persons cheered and danced with
ioy.