The morning call., 1894-11-08
A STRANGE FIND.
Discovery in an Ancient
Coal Shaft
IN THE NORTH OF CHINA.
Bodies in 4 Perfect State of
Preservation.
HEAPED AT a TUNNELS MOUTH.
The Ghastly Sight That Greeted q
Party of Explorers for
2 Lost Mine.

AdVices By the steamer Belgic received
yesterday for transmission 20 New York
give an interesting story Of the discovery
of the shaft of one of the lost coal mtnes
of Asia. The mine was developed nearly
800 years ago. II has recently been tun-
Deled for by English engineers, under
direction of an European syndicate. Sci
entistS will be interested to learn about
the discovery of 100 human bodies in the
old shaft, in an almost perfect state of
preservation.
The mine is several miles from Anhui.
1t is parallel with the course of an ancient
river known to the natives as the Kow-yo,
Robert MaTsbfeld of the China Merchants
Steam Navigation Company received the
following account of the researches for
fuel that led up to the locating of the 100
mummies.
Nearly four centuries ago the decedants
OF the present dynasty of Kai drew large
income from the output Of an enormously
rich coal deposit near the present province
of AnhuL The mine was operated BY
about 1000 laborers, who must have been
detailed In small shifts of about 200 men
each. History records that in the year
1900 10 explosion occurred In the coliery
that cayed in Its entire shaft for hundreds
of feet and entombed over $50 miners, who
were working in its lower galleries. The
accident had long since been forgotten,
and had it not been fer the opening of the
new mines at Anhui the disaster might
never have been thought of again.
Last July hundred or more workmen
and miners under instructions from foreign
engineers were tunneling into the side of
hill when they suddenly broke through
the wall into the ancient shaft Of the long
forgotten mine. The Chinese miners fed
IN terror, for their superstitions could not
be allayed, but the foreigners assisted by
few educated natives made an explOra-
ton with the AID Of lamps, scaling ladders
and ropes. The shaft was found to descend
to the distance of several hundred feet,
where iropened into large gallery nearly
q hundred feet in diameter and twenty feet
high. Smaller galleries led from this main
excavation. but most of them were chOked
with debris and disturbed carboniferous
deposit.
The numerous lamps but dimly lighted
the big chamber. It was not until the
mouth of what appeared to be an old tun-
mel and what must have been the origi-
nal exit from the mine was reached that
the explorers stumbled against corpses
u6aDSQ ~ hL luG auCo u TIC BUlc.
Every corpse looked as if the soul had
Just left the body. The faces had retained
their natural expression in number of
individual cases, and traces of agony still
remained drawn in the shrunken cheeks
and contracted brows. This eyes gave the
bodies terribly CHASTITY expression. The
optics were not decayed in the head, but
had remained unchanged save that the
color had left them which rendered them
horrible to look upon. Nearly all of the
bodies were stark naked. All were those
of men. They were huddled one upon the
other, as if they had struggled desperately
among themselves to rush into the passage
way toward fresh air.
In noTthecly direction from the exit
we're al least fifty more bodies lying in all
directions. Some were bent nearly double,
as if in the last throes Of agony from
poisoning. Others Lad their hands clasped
about their heads. their faces turned
toward the earth. Undoubtedly they had
tried to escape the suffocating fumes of
the exploded firedamp,and while struggling
for breath gave up the ghost.
The skin of all the bodies bad a dull
leaden hue and was bIotched. But there
were men with forms as perfect as they
had been when the spirit had not left the
clay; when health ana strength graced
every portion of the anatomy. Crude
instruments were strewn about the place
picks with bulky handles and blunt points,
Queerly twisted bars Of iron and other
tools for working in the coal
Near the southern end Of the chamber
were three bodies lying side by side. One
was that of young boy; his hand was
over his mouth, and his knees were ele
waited toward his chin. The body 10 the
right must have been that of an old man.
for there were traces of white hair abopt
his head, which was leaning on the bows
shoulder.
An examination of the place showed
that the galleries were rich in coal. and
that the deposits would be of great yalne
when marketed.
The survey party returned to the sur
face, secured the help of dozen or more
natives and returned to remove some of
the remains of men who had died 40o
years before.
On arriving back at the chamber of
death it was disappointing to find that the
splendidly preserved bodies had COM
menced to show signs of decomposition.
They were crHmbling slowly. and when
en- attempt was made to remove them thew
broke and vanished into dust and ashes,
the air having done its work Of destrue-
ton.
The ignorant attendants of the search
ers fed in terror. No inducement could
persuade them to return, and though the
old mine is immensely rich no miners can
be secured to operate it.
"a further research Of the annals of the
mine and the history Of the province
showed that there had been 200 lives lost
in the explosion that destroyed the shaft.
The bodies had remained preserved
through the action of firedamp gas.
A NEW SYMPHONY.