The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1896-04-15
IT'S A PLAIN VERDICT
The COroner's Jury Condemns the
Basin Company.
NOT A.SUITABLE AIR SHAFT
Adequate Means of Escape Are Not
Provided he engineer Exoner-
ated-A Witness Says the Mine
Was Poorly Timbered.
NOT A.SUITABLE AIR SHAFT
snec,al DIspatch to the STANDARD.

Special Dispatch to the Standard.
Basin, April 14.-Coroner Fletcher
continued the inquest to-day into the
death of John Buckley, in the presence
of nearly the entire population OF the
town. Attorney Bach of Helena, BROTH
er of Superintendent Bach of the Hope
said that he did not appear for the
Hope company, but for another inter
ested party. Charlie Macarthur, In the
absence of the county attorney, con-
Quoted the examination for his own
interest. as we'll as for the interests OF
the relatives of the dead men.
Jim Dwyer said that the hose used
about the mill and mine was not sum-
cient to throw water to the top OF the
hoist w. r. Lloyd said that when ne
first heard the alarm he was near the
Connick store and started over, but the
flames did not break out until ne nad
nearly reached the building after which
he rendered what aid he could to ex-
tinguish the flames and recover the
men in the shaft.
Kimes. the man who was with Weber.
the engineer of the hoist, at the time OF
the fire. said that he heard the signal
ring FIVE. two. one, but he heard no
other signal The smoke came up in
the hoist in a cloud and he had consid-
cradle difficulty in getting out or the
building. Then he went down and no.
tilted the engineer to blow the fre Sig
nal.
Dennis Sullivan heard the fire signal
and went over to the hoist. He no.
ticed a cloud of smoke over the build
ing and went into the tunnel to shake
the rome connected with the cage so as
to warn the men below. He noticed
the manway was nailed down over the
winze in the tunnel. When coming
over the bridge to the fire he heard
the signal bells ringing. After coming
from the tunnel he went up to the
hoist and noticed Weber standing out
side and asked him why he did not
attempt to save the men. Sullivan
said that 1t was his opinion there was
not too much smoke when he got there
to put up the cage, but nothing could
be done when they broke the window
open.
Hayes Axtell said that he noticed the
smoke and ran over to the hoist; that
he broke in the window to see IL there
was much smoke and soon the building
was enveloped in flames.
David Kirby said he was a timber
man in the Hope and that 1t was the
poorest timbered mine he had ever
worked in, and that he was afraid of
his life whenever he went below. He
said that no man could get out of the
mine as there was no Underway in IL,
| but few patches here and there; that
, If the fire took place in the shaft there
was no possible way out of 1t, but by
the shaft itself Kirby further said
that the Wine in the tunnel was nailed
down, and even If the men would get
up as far as the floor of the tunnel
level, they could not get into the level
owing to the top of the winze having
been covered over and nailed down.
superintendent Bach said that he
was one of the three consulting trus-
| tees. He considered that the mine was
well timbered and said that he had
climbed up to the surface on a ladder.
State Mining Inspector Shoemaker
about seven months ago, when he Wis
| tied the Hope, went down through the
| mine in the slopes and different places
| and he considered the mine reasona bly,
we'll timbered. AS to the means of es-
cape from the mine he said there were
| two ways by which men could escape
| He was asked If there were a fire in
the shaft, would he consider the winze
means of escape, and he answered
no, as the means of escaping would be
cut off.
The relatives of the entombed men
and the citizens were highly indignant
at an article in the Helena Herald that
| said the men may never be recovered
but remain in the mine forever Prom
inent people about Basin say that il
| from the bottom of the shaft, IL will be
done by popular subscription among
/ the miners of the Northwest
The verdict of the jury was rendered
late tonight, and is:
I'VE find that deceased, John Buck.
ley, came to his death in the Hope
mine, at Basin, Mont, owned and oper.
ated by the Basin Mining & Concen.
trating company. We find that his
death was caused by suffocation from
gas and bad air, on the night of April
s. 1896. We further find that the gas
and bad air was caused by the fire
| which was burning in the hoist and
| shaft at this time, the cause of the fire
| being unknown to the jurors.
I'VE further condemn the Basin Min
ing & Concentrating company for mo-
providing a suitable air shaft and ade
! quate means of escape by a continuou.
| Underway from the levels and Slope.
| of the mine to the surface. We further
believe that IL there had been a reason
able good way of escape, the deceased
John Buckley. would have been able Il
make his escape with his life. We here
| by exonerate the hosting engineer
John Weber, from any or all blame.
(Signed) Louis Shonheim,
Foreman.
-. B. Feltz,
Pink Wilson,
y. L. Murphy.