The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1894-09-06
"A MONSTER CAVE IN.
The Mining Town Of Scotch VAL
ley Swallowed Up.
ESCAPE OF FIFTY MINE WORKERS.

Thefr Usual Means of Exit Cut on. the
Mon Finally Make Their Way to tho
Surface, Aided by Reaouers. Through
an Air shafs. ..=#
LOFTY, Pa, Sept 8.-The little mining
town of Scotch Valley, in Lackawanna
county, near this place, was swallowed
up last night in one of the most complete
rdine cave ins ever known in this region.
THE scene OF the disaster Is on the eastern
slope OF Mount Lookout, the score of
houses composing the hamlet being at the
mouth of the shaft of Mount Lookout
Solliery. The widest excitement prevails
throughout the region and details of the
Gave In are fragmentary. 1t is known,
however, that the dozen houses on either
side Of the principal street of the hamlet
are completely swallowed up in the gap
1ng sink hole and nothing can be seen OF
che other buildings of the town but the
i{oof gables and chimneys. 1t is mpossi-
Die to estimate accurately the number Of
fatalities. Rescuing parties now ex-
srtlng every means to release the occu-
pants of the engulfed dwellings. For
tunately, but one of the buried houses has
thus far taken fire.
The cave in was caused by tho giving
away OF the timber supports in workings
OF the Mount Lookout colliery, which
years About o'clock last evening the
Inhabitants of the hamlet We're startled
by the rumbling, thunder like reports
which warned them of the falling of tons
Of rock and debris into the deserted cav
erns of the abandoned mine, many feet
beneath them. The terror stricken peo-
pie were still further Mortified when the
ground trembled and swayed like an
earthquake beneath them, and then the
Ill fated village sank out of sight in the
gaping cavity.
Meanwhile some fifty miners were i'm
prisoned in the colliery, blindly stumbling
through the dark passages, looking for n
means of escaping from their living
grave They had been at work in new
portion df the mine, and We're suddenly
Verified by the thunder of the crashing
rock and stone between them and day
light. Their usual means of exit from the
mine was completely wiped out by the
cave In James Perrin. one of the oldest
OF the miners, got the handful of men to
gether however, and started to lead them
up through tunnel which had beer
used as an air shaft, but which led to the
surface through a series of steep slopes.
The men had not gone far, however, be
fore the accumulation of coal DAM
warned them of the danger lurking In th
air. 1t was necessary for them TO extin
kuish their lamps to guard against an ex
plosion, and the remainder of their desper
ate journey became n blind cropping abou
in the dark in the footsteps of their leader
Meanwhile rescuing party on the sur
face had made an attempt to cut pas
snge through the mass of debris whic
blocked the main entrance. Failing i
this some of the more daring OF the res
ruers descended the air passage, aud haI
pened to penetrate the slope where tn
imprisoned miners were struggling VI
wards. The men were carried to the SUI
face, where a great crowd of excited
panic stricken people were awaiting then
The work of rescuing the persons impri!
oned in the engulfed houses is still
progress.