Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1895-09-09
PIT is THEIR TOMB
Thirty Men imprisoned in a Mine
Inoerdiary by Fire.
EVERY ONE Is DOUBTLESS DEAD.
Flames Break Out in the Osceola Con.
per Mine at Near Calumet,
Mich.

fTrhrtrending Scenes at the Mouth of the
burning Shaft-smoke Fills the Drifts
and Makes Rescue Impossible-Dcad Men
the Victims Principally of Their Own Tn
belief Of Danger-Though Warned They
Fail tn Appreciate Their Peril Until 1t
L. Too Latc-Names Of the Lost.
HorcHToN, Mich, Sept. 9-Huge vol
umcs Of smoke are still issuing forth from
the mouths Of shafts Nos /, 2 and 3, which
shows that the awful fire which started in
the Osccola copper mine shortly before
noon Saturday il ill raging fercely, and
the bodies Of the thirty miners entonbcd
nrc still lying somewhere below the sur
ficc, without n doubt dead, suffocated by
smoke and gas. The names cf the lost SO
far rs can be asccrtaincd at this writing
arc: Captain Richard Trcnbath, shift
boss: Richard Bicklc, Richard Grenfcll,
William Bryant, Alexander Daniel, John
Cudlip ThoInns Curtis Robert Johns,
William Donald, Barney Elmore, Anton
XycczwcZ, Mike Johnson. Peter Stem
gaar,I. Frank Lander Walter Dahl, Joseph
Harrington, Frederick PcGrdon, Isaac
Harlow, Mike Woke, Isaac Mattiscn, An
drew Rossawick, James Wins, NJ Cook,
Samuel Williams and five Poles whose
names are unknown mt headquarters.
Would Not Believe Their Danger.
The fire broke out at the twcnty-sevcnth
level of the Osccola copper mine, located
two miles from Calumet. As Captain
Richard Edwards was making his way to
No. 3 shaft he SIncllcd wood burning, but
some Of the miners working III the levels
there would not believe there was fire in
the mine, us they could not smell any
smoke or hear flames cracking. On near
ing No. 3 shaft Captain Edwards met
Captain Trrnblth and a party of men
who were looking for the fire, and on
reaching the shaft they found a large
quantity Of logging on fire. Captain Trcn-
bath and party of mon were left to il9i~
the fire below. while Captain Edwards
went to the surface to get hose, but when
he returned he found that the smoke had
made AN up draft instead of Il down, and
III consequence he had to come back To
the surface as fast rs possible
Irrcnycd iicsicge the Pitmouth.
Word wns Immediately sent 70 the men
In the mine fov all to come to the surface,
which most Of them succeeded in doing, but
thcr" still remain III the dry hou.c thirty
suits of clothes The scene az the Dpccchr
shaft, where many of the men came up.
was hCartr'nding, thousands having gath
cred around the mouth of This shaft many
women and children standing around
looking for their husbands ahd fathers
Searching parties wrrc Scnt down in Nos.
l and shafts T. try and reach the men
from tha drifts lcadiurtp No 3-hnft above
the twrnty-scycnth level, but they were
unsuccessful.
K"scucr- Have to Fly for Life.
Captain +. richards, with II gang of seven
men, went down No. , shaft and went
about 40 feet toward No. 1 shaft when
they had to- turn and flee for their lives on
account of the smoke and gas. Some Of
these men were very nearly overcome only
reaching the surface in time to save their
lives. II j. learned that the place where
the fire caught was the worst place il
could have caught in the whole mine. and
the only plac" in the mine where fire Of
any extent could have caught Many Of
the men tina, were working several levels
below the twcnty-Scvcnth, at which point
the fire caught, were seen ns far up as the
eighteenth level. working their way up
Several of the men who escaped claim To
have passed others on the ladders, who
wcrC unable a. proceed further on account
of being OVERCOME with smoke and gas.