Fairhaven herald. [volume] (Fairhaven, Wash.) 1890-????, 1892-04-19
BELOW THE SURFACE
LIFE THOUSANDS OF FEET IN THE
BOWELS OF THE EARTH.

Doings in a Great subterranean City
with Hundreds of Miles of Streets
Where Work Never Ceases.
Very different is the life led by the
miner of the Comstock lode when on
duty from that of the old California
gold washer. The scene of his labors is
hundreds of feet beneath the earth in
subterranean regions to which no ray of
sunlight ever penetrates. DR.. guile
says of the Comstock miner that when
he descends the great shaft, going down
and still down from | 900 to 1900 feet,
he leaves behind all the grand upper .
world, so broadly and beautifully lighted
up by the sun. When landed at his sta .
ton from the car (cage) of his vertical
cable road he steps forth into quite a
different world-a world hewn out by
the hand Of man in the realms of eternal
darkness, which, just beneath the sur
face crust, everywhere enwraps our
planet
All is not dark and dismal in this arti-
fetal world On the contrary, the great
stations, the main working drifts and
crosscuts and the large chambers of all
the principal levels are lighted up with
lamps and candles. In one Of our great
mines there is neither day nor night; it
is always candle light. Absolute pitch
darkness prevails only in some far away
and little frequented drifts in distant
parts of a mine.
When landed at the station of his
level, dinner bucket in hand, the miner
trudges away along a narrow subter-
ranean road TO some drift or chamber in
which lies his work. When on duty in
the depths he knows not whether it is
day or night in the world above; whether
it is cold or warm there, calm or tenn
pestuous.
The miner Of the Conlstock lode may
be said to live and labor in a city be-
meath a city, There are streets and
crosscuts through which he may travel
miles and miles at points from 1000 to
1900 feet beneath the cities on the sur
face Virginia and Gold Hill The
great underground city-in which Is suf-
ficient lumber to build twenty towns
each of 5000 people, has its busy places
as well as its lonely and silent hooks
and sections At the stations Of the
great hosting shafts, where many men
are employed on the several levels, cars
loaded with ore are seen arriving and
departing
N TIE DEPTHS.
Great lamps with glazing rehectOrs
(similar 70 the headlight Of locomotve)
light up the station. which is an under
ground hall large enough for a first class
ball room. and the main drifts radiat-
ing from the station to different parts Of
the level also have their lights, the line
Of which extends so far away that the
most distant seen seems a mere spark or
point or hight. like the most distant star
visible IN the heavens-a mere pulslng
twlnkler
The station has much the appearance
Of the store OF lumber room Of some big
factory Of the surface world Along the
floor against the side walls are seen
coils Of rope. boxes Of candles, tools and
many small lots Of various other arti-
cles required on the level Also in the
station Is seen huge cask Of ice water
water N which several small icebergs
are floating against the side Of the
cask hangs a big tin dipper; that is, it
50 hangs when II has moments rest,
but II is almost constantly in the hands
Of some thirsty soul
At each level generally about 100 feet
down the shaft from the point where
ore n first encountered) there Is such a
station as 1 have described 1t is the
center Of life on each level, though at
several points on the level there may be
at work in the ore breast considerable
.
the mine at certain times come the
booms Of blasts, sounding like distant
cannonade. When one is in drift in
the vicinity Of the spot where one Of the
big dynamite blasts is fired one feels
more than hears II. The conclusion OF
the air IN the narrow drift painfully
strains the drum Of the ear, and even al
distance the sensation Is disagreeable
HIGH TEMPERATURE
The mines Of the Comstock are nov
much better ventilated than befOr,
drifts connected the several main shaft
and WINES Of the many levels. Still tn
work Of the miner is often in hot an,
sitting atmosphere. Very frequent.
his work is at the face Of a long pros
specting drift, where the only air he ha
TO breathe is the scant supply pumps
down TO him through pipe from tn
surface, as though he were pearl dive
fathoms beneath the sea. The place i
which he works at times shows a ten
perature Of from 100 to 40 degs., O
even as high as 100 dogs In such place
be is stripped Of all clothing but
breech clout (heavy shoes protect hi
feet and he wears cap TO keep the san
from the shaking rock out Of his hair
yet perspiration streams from ever
pore of his body But for the gallon
on gallons of ice water he swallows b
would be baked in his skin like a potat
the very life blood would be dried
his veins