The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1896-04-14

haps 10 or 20 feet beyond where the
| powder was stored"
Have you no theory as to how the
explosion occurred?' inquired Juror
| Cullom.
We'll. believe, with a good many
others who have been working there
| since then, that Quinlan and Lowney
were coming from the magazine with
the powder for the shaft when It.
caught fire In some way and they drop
ped II and started to run and that this
powder exploded first. One of the sticks
OF powder may have caught fire from a
candle. Lowney and Quinlan must
have had nearly a box of powder and
were probably carrying IL in a box. as
they usually did. / don't think ii Is
possible that the explosion could have
been caused by one of the men having
stumbled and dropped the powder and
set IL OF by conclusion. The condition
OF the bodies shows that all of the men
were some feet away from the powder
when Ii exploded. 1t was the custom
for the men who were getting the pow
der to cut their fuse and put the caps
on the powder in the magazine"
John O'Neill, superintendent of the
Anaconda and st. Lawrence mines
was then called and testified as fol-
lows: II was at home and in bed when
the explosion occurred. l had visited
the 1,100-foot level last, prior to that
time, on Friday forenoon about II
O'Clock, and there were about two boxes
OF powder there. My theory of the ac-
ctdent is about the same as that of
Mr.. Eckersley. / think that Lowney
and Quinlan were bringing out the
powder for the shaft and that IL caught
fire in some way and they started to
run towards the shaft. The four other
men may have been running in an OPP
posite direction. If the powder had
exploded near any of the men they
would have been blown to pieces. One
box of powder, or even 10 sticks, would
have done that. About so feet of tim
bers came down, and until the dirt is
cleared away, / cannot just tell where
the explosion occurred. 1t will probably
be the end of the month before we can
get to the magazine. The powder
would not have been any safer II II had
been stored In the west drift, and could
not have been put in a safer place on
that level. We use about 20 boxes OF
powder every day in the Anaconda and
st. Lawrence mines. 1t is delivered
every day at noon"
WAS there any way for the four
miners to escape from the place where
they were working except by passing
the powder magazine, Mr.. O'Neill?" in /
quired a juror.
mo, sir; the level is just being open !
ed up and we have not had time to put I
were just getting in shape to put in a |
raise and were going to start 1t just be- I
yond where the four miners were work
ing"
Hugh Rafter was next sworn and
said ION Saturday morning / was /
landing buckets at the 1100-foot station
for the STATESMEN. About four or five t
minutes before the explosion occurred .
Quinlan and Lowney came out and told |
me they were short of grease. l start
ed up to the top for a can of oil. leav-
ing them standing at the station. Be
fore / got to the surface the explosion |
occurred. They wanted the grease to
use for their primers Quinlan and
Lowney both came out to the station.
They would put the fuse into the pow
der at the magazine. They went into
the magazine about O'Clock. 1t usu-
ally took them about half an hour to
get their powder ready. / saw the
other four men off and on at the sta
ton an hour or two before the explo-
sion When / got back to the 100 with
the grease the station was filled with
smoke. / knew what had happened
as the station tender told me at the
top that there had been an explosion"
Peter ]. Norton testified as follows:
Il was working at the bottom of the
shaft in the st. Lawrence when the ex-
plosion occurred. John O'Brien, John
OMtl N{ulhidh LAW
ney were working in the shaft with
me. We all went up to the station
about % minutes to 4 O'Clock and ate
supper. About 4 o'clock Lowney told
OBrien, Lacey, Mack and myself TO
go back down in the shaft to finish the
holes. while he and Quinlan went in
after the powder and to get their pri-
mers ready. We needed about so
pounds of powder for that round of
holes. l was in the bottom of the
shaft when the explosion occurred, and
have no idea as to the cause of it,"
John Lacey, another shaft man, told
the same story as Norton. He
sadd that Lowney and Quinlan started
Town the shaft He testified that
neither Quinlan nor Lowney was
pipe at the time, and he was
positive that neither one of them ever
'moked. The witness said that Lowney
Ind Quinlan nearly always prepared
he powder.
owen Mack, another of the shafts
men, corroborated the testimony OF
he two previous witnesses. Mr. La
ey and myself" he said, prepared the
powder last Friday night and that time
here were two boxes of powder in the
magazine. 1t was not frozen. / have
helped prepare the powder twice since
have been there and IL was not frozen
,ither time. 1 have seen a stick Of
rozen powder explode from a lighted
andle. i do not know whether there
5 a board walk In the level going into
he magazine, but there Is a car track.
4 there are any ties under the track
hey are covered with dirt Lowney
md Quinlan did not have time to make =
lp their powder after they went into
he magazine and before the explosion
or II usually takes an hour or an hour
nd a quarter to prepare it,"
Peter Ryan. the foreman at the St
stated that nhe was of shift
1 the time of the accident. Asked as ?
o the storage of powder on the 100 ]
DOT level, ne said: THE powder had 5
zen kept on shelves. but about a week 5
go IL was placed In a box as Mr.
WE'LL Thought IL would be safer Two !
oxes were ususally kept there and !
here could not have been more than {
90 pounds there on Saturday morning.
We nnudar IIs.ad x.-aa A tIas :.