The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-09-05
MYSTERY OF 4 MONTANA NINE
People who Enter 1t Fall Asleep and Their
Bodies Become Rigid.
From the Butte. Non. Miner.


From the Butte. Non, Miner.
"In this line Of work we com across some
curious accidents and narrow escapes - said
Deputy Mine Inspector Frank Hunter the other
night. lone thing struck me long ago, and that
10 how much it takes to kill a man sometimes
and how easily the thread Of life is often
snapped.
Down in Colorado 1 knew a fellow who
plunged down 500 feet in a single compartment
shaft. He went to the bottom. but did not break
a bone. OF course, he vas pretty badly Jared
up and a good deal frightened, but he WAS all
right again in a day or two. When he fell he
went down feet first, and q big oilskin that he
wore opened out at the bottom and acted as a
parachute. He said the last part of his descent
was SO much slower than the first that he hardly
thought he was dropping, at all and half en
pected to remain suspended in the shaft Ike
Nearly always when a man fails any dis
lance he turns over, II he starts feet downward,
a nu m1,spe Of n ess esaN Where eos the h man frI P" Win i
boots on and was found barefooted when he was
picked up. ! suppose this is because the blood
Besides the pressure Of tEke air air upon lpSs the heel and
counter acts as a bootjack.
gate an accident in which ono man was killed
ana another had three ribs broken. speaking
Of sand Coulee, it struck me while was here
!hatitl wanted to commit suicide wouid 90
there to do It,: J. don't mean that life becomes
such a burden In the coal country that tho yes
mat bind are more easily severed than else
where, but that II affords unsurpassed facilities
Tor a cheap and happy despatch. It's Il wonder
10 me that some OF the many people who an
nually launch themselves into eternity from
Butte do not take the Sand Coulee route.
DOWN in the coal mines there is one passage
that - three miles long. and in some OF inc
chamoers air does not seem to circulate, Lnoa
the walls there Is a gathering of moisture, anu
II you pun a cigar In one of these chambers the
smoke Will seek the walls. where il cIings WIN
an nndulating movement like u spray of wceG'
under running water. That dew ON the wGlIsls
white damp. and the dead air OF the lhhmucF
where It is found is poisonous. In a few mn
utes q feeling OF drowsiness steals over a man
who breathes II. and before long lie IS asleep
and dreaming deliciously, so those ~
who have been rcsuscitated. But mo
sleep Is akin to that OF the lost traveito.
over whose numbed limbs the arctic snow edl't,
ana drifts. for unless help comes soon here ia
no awakening. II, however, the v,ntnrrsntn"
explorer of these underground dcnrhtralsS
realizes his danger in time and MANAGES ~
stagRer out into the fresh air. he has an cHprri..
shce 70 undergo which may cause him 10 rssInujj
muscle aches with the intolcrabI" pplgnsmyy
tnat is known to convalcsCrnts from ,c.;""
IRs NI The treatment is simple, but cnrrrisSs'
pelnR nearly dead. the sufferer is nearly hlIIot.
a mole 10 dug In the soft earth, and the y!ttiun
made TO stand up in 1t while the dirt is thrown
~ around him until only his head Is seen 49,
tLouna. This draws out the soreness. anaW
, snVTt time the patient has recovered