Sullivan republican. [volume] (Laporte, Pa.) 1883-1896, 1893-01-06
Three Men Injured I'm . BlOp Up
Of Dynamite which Was Being
WarmeA at . Camp Fire Along
the Line Of Railroad.

At about IL A. NJ. Frluay Dec. 90,
while dynamite was being warmed
by a camp fire at the McCafrey
pit near Philip Karge's twenty-five
sticks of the deadly explosive took
fire. Two drivers passed by at the
time, one colored man perhaps ~
years of age named Nathan Jen-
nings and the other Luther Smith
white boy both of Indiana county.
The colored man seeing the dyna-
mite burning went to throw that
which was on fire away, thus saving
the balance. just as he was in the
act of STOPPING to pick up the stuff,
it exploded. He was thrown thirty
feet and was cut about the head in
a fearful manner. On the forehead
over the right eye there is cash
some four or five inches in length
and the flesh plowed out leaving a
gap of one inch. Back Of the right
ear is deep cut which was con-
sidered more dangerous than the
one on the forehead. He was
sad and sickening sight to behold.
Smith the other driver with his
horse stood on the graded road
some ten feet away. He was struck
on the jaw with stone and felled
to the earth. A piece OF rock was
taken out of his jaw as large as
good sized marble. McCaffrey who
was boss of the works was coming
out of the pit just as the explosion
took place and was hit on the left
breast with a stone. Two horses
were knocked down and dazed. On
regaining, they ran in the opposite
direction at lively gate. The
wounded men were taken to w. X.
Mahan's camp which is only short
distance from the place of the ac-
cident and cared for.
1t is pretty hard to say who was
in the fault of the accident. Old
railroad men say that dynamite cam
not be exploded by fire unless a cap
is Sc: off. The latter, they say will
explode by heat and of course the
Jar would set off the dynamite sticks.
Now the question arises-were these
dynamite caps 0arelessly left by the
Gre. We in company with r. NJ.
Stormont and Paddy Quinn visited
the place of the mishap few hours
after the explosion aud In the char
coal where the fire had been Mr..
Quinn picked up cap which was
perfectly good and also piece OF
burnt fuse. An explanation which
OF course was mere supposition, was
cited to us like this. That possibly
"a cap had been placed on this piece
of fuse and the same carelessly laid
down by the fire, spark igniting
the fuse, hence, the explosion of the
cap, followed by the dynamite.
There are two theories of how the
nap found in the charcoal came
there, one, that 1t might have been
placed in the vicinity of where it
was found at the time of the ar
ranging of the fuse and the other,
it might have fallen out of either OF
the mems pockets or fallen out OF
the tool box which was knocked to
splinters.
The affair shows carelessness on
somebody's part which should not
reign where the lives of hundreds
of men are endangered.
DR.. Hill was called and dressed
the wounds of the injured men.
LATTER The Doc. informs us
that the injured trio are getting
along very nicely. The young man
Smith and McCaffrey have returned
to work. The negro is doing well
and will return to his home the lat.
ter part of this week. He says he
has had railroading enough.
A drive way is being graded
around Lewis Lake. The Eagles
Mere Land Co. are having the work
done which is under the charge of
E. s. Chase. The olearino NJ tho