The evening world., 1894-08-25
ALL C0uLO HAVE Escaped.
Timely Warning Was Give, Of the
Fire in the Franklin Nine
The Thirty-seven Vine Perished
Tried to kxtinsuish the Flames.
tBy Associated Prsss.)


| SEATTLE, Wash, Aug. 3.-Prepara
tions are being made to bury the thirty
seven miners killed in the FRANKLIN
mines yesterday. The town Of FRANKLIN
Is in mourning, and the disaster has hor
| rif1ed the community.
There were sixty-two men in the mine
when fire broke out. Twenty-Five mer
made their escape In safety. but the re.
mainder. who tried to help their com.
panions to smother the flames, persisted.
The fre started at LIS o'clock. Smoke
was seen by some of the drivers on the
sixth north level and notice was given
to the men inside, who were working
the different places.
rushed back to notify the miners fur:
iher. In. while others rushed out and
reached the main shaft
and before the miners knew It the IRE
had communicated to breasts 80 and 81.
Several OF those who fingered at breast
" took warning and Ned. but all who
lated.
1t is evident that all the men had time
70 come out, for those who worked in
safety. while those who were nearest
the shaft and consequently were removed
from the danger persisted.
Several men were badly bruised. and
one, colored man was taken out with a
broken neck, their wounds indicating
that they had thrown themselves against
posts and timbers of the gangway In a
But the majority Of the bodies bear no
marks at all, not even a scratch. and
their features were In quiet repose. In
dicating that their death had been a
AS soon as the alarm whistle sounded
crowd around the mouth 81 the slope,
quickly spread Throughout the town.
Among the first to reach the scene was
supt Ramsey: The nrst to volunteer
o GfssTse sas down wh the
met men from the sixth level south, who
were doing all they could to rescue men
Others went down from the surface
and found the body of the first man
n the gangway about 900 feet in from
Q: Anderson, and was pulled to the top
Of the slope. Its arrival on the surface
was the hrst intimatlon that any one
The fan keeping air in the mine had
been stopped at the first indication of
IRE, but when the rescuers went to work
the fan was started again.
went in from the surface. proceeded
first body. Then the first Of the miners
were found scattered along in row.
gether. and in another one man was
found under mule, nve mules in
all being dead. Storey, says that the
sanswsy with their hair e in the m El 'a as
II they had tried to bury their heads
completely and thus escape the smoke
He could not believe they were dead,
and turned them over SO they could
breathe. He was soon satisfied, how
ever, that they were really dead;
rey, wa. at work in the sixth level.
south, when a boy named Chapman gave
the alarm that breast g. was on hre.
Storey says he tried t. escape Pc. via the
finding this impossible. he returned.
making up his mind that he would go
out via the May. slope.
from the sixth level south who were
going on to the north level to do what
they could to rescue their imprisoned
comrades, and he Joined them, working
coming to the surface. He thinks that
every man in line with the deadly
smoke was killed in two minutes.
surface. Of the mine slope; the excite
ment Of the wives and mothers and, for
that matter. the whole populace, became
almost uncomfortable.
bodies was brought out, and then they
began to quiet down. Many of them
were completely Frustrated with their
violent grief.
The origin of the fire is supposed to be
due to spontaneous combustion, caused
by refuse and screenings at the bottom
Of the breast Stacking and catching FIRE.
1t is suggested that possibly the fire had
been burning for some time, and from a
smouldering blaze 1t all at once became
q burning fire.
The breast is about 800 feet high. and
Is now all on fire. The fire has also
communicated to breasts so and 81 of the
same level, and the NTH level Is threat
ened. It Is believed, with the active
measures which will at once be
taken that in three months the fire will
have become completely extinEuished.