Smyrna times., 1892-03-16

each of 5000 people, has it's busy places
as we'll as its lonely and silent hooks
and sections. At the stations of the
great hoisting shafts, where many men
are employed on the several levels, cars
loaded with ore are seen arriving and
departing
IN THE DEPTHS.
Great lamps with glaring refiectors
(similar to the headlight of lOcOmotive)
light up the station, which is an under
ground hall large enough for 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 light, like the most distant star
visible in the heavens-a mere pulsing
twinkler
The station has much the appearance
of the store or 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
!
water in which several small icebergs
are tioating-and against the side of the
cask hangs big tin dipper; that is, it
30 hangs when it has moments rest
but It 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 is first encountered) there is such
station as | have described It 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
squads of men, From such sections of
the mine at certain times come the
bOoms of blasts, sounding like distant
cannonade When one is in a drift in
the vicinity of the spot where one of the
Dig dynamite blasts is fired one feels
more than hears it. The conclusion Of
the air in the narrow drift painfully
strains the drum of the ear, and even at
a distance the sensation is disagreeable
HIGH TEMPERATURE
The mines of the Comstock are now
much better ventilated than before
drifts connected the several main shafts
and wines of the many levels. Still the
work of the miner is often in hot and
sitting atmosphere. Very frequently
his work is at the face Of long pros
specting drift, where the only air he has
TO breathe is the scant supply pumped
down to him through pipe from the
surface as though he were pearl diver
fathoms beneath the sea. The place in
| ,A ohr Norv,
perature of from 100 to 10 degs., OF
, even as high as 100 degs. In such places
, he is stripped of all clothing but a
, breech clout (heavy shoes protect his
feet and he wears a cap to keep the sand
from the shaking rock out Of his hair)
yet perspiration streams from every
pore of his body But for the gallons
J on gallons of ice water he swallows h'
!; would be baked in his skin like potato
r the very life blood would be dried IL
E his veins.
!, Though sweltering and gasping tn,
:, miner must still swing his pick or sledge
Z must still handle a shovel or crowbar fo
a certain length of time-tin the end o
his pass" (of fifteen to twenty minutes)
e when he can pass out of the drift to tn
:. cooling off station and send in his part
. ner to work his ''pass."
r. For the dangers a miner must brav
|. and all the suffering he must endur
e from heat and bad air dnsufficient o
# vitiated) four dollars day is by n
e means too large a sum to offer him 70
eight hours work in the sweltering low
or levels. Simply to remain eight hour
in the subterranean regions is wort
something, not to speak of toiling tina
10 number of hours at the hardest of work
IS Visitors who enter the heated regions O
e, the silver mines usually find that merel
le TO walk through the various drifts, floor
OF and chambers is about all they care t
=, endure in the way Of exercise. .-NeV
a York TELEGRAM
ut The Great Bank Of England swIndIe
r Four Americans, named George an
"a Austin Bidwell, George Mcdonald An
=. Edward Hills, contrived to defraud Ii
es Bank OF England Of nearly e1 ZOO, 90
or They accomplished their swindle by tai
ne ing advantage Of custom of the ban
' which had grown up through the ge
eral honesty Of business men and met
ods in England. The bank was accu
~ AOSOANO VI
's' deposit on account without verifyiE
20 their signatures or the acceptance
% Probably until the Bidwells began
~ experiment on them the bank author
- ties never had had such paper offer
them otherwise than in good faith.
=, These men contrived by pretense al
oe talsehood to secure the necessary intr
~ duction TO the bank officers. and opens
- an account with them under an assum'
.si name. They then had several hundr'
81 bills Of exchange printed on counterfe
plates and flooded the Bank OF EnglaI
with these bills from all over the worl
all signed and accepted with appare
regularity. The bank unhesitating
~ cashed these and put the proceeds to &
w credit Of the swindlers, who drew o
ne the money in ostensible business trar
at actions in such a way as to excite
AZ suspicion on the part OF the bank {
~ ficials
- At last the rascals betrayed themselv
ut by neglecting to date the acceptance
two of the fraudulent billA The ban
~ sending these to the acceptors to ha
~ the omission supplied discovered {
ne fraud at once After an exciting cha
by detectives all the men were arreste