Omaha daily bee., 1897-12-01
How the Burning Aspen Mines Wsr
Reached by the Firsnsn.
HEAVY STREAMS OF STEAM AyD WAFER
sixty Miles of Burning streets and
Neins-Peculiar Gases Encountered
scheme 90 Blow Up Noun
tnin-Sunering of Miners.

/
Aspen, Colo. Drawn and muscle, money and
science have failed to check the consuming
| flight OF the flames. The men are bravely
facing unheard Of hardships in their battle
against the fiery element They are not
alone fighting in the interest OF the mine
owners-they have a stronger incentive.
They are risking their lives TO save their
homes and the small investments represent
| ing years Of saving
The horrors of Dante's Inferno are being
encountered every day by these hardy min
ers. When they come out from those burn
| ing subterranean passages their minds are
often affected and they act like madmen.
| Only from two to three minutes at stretch
| can they breathe the noXious gases and live.
| Timekeepers stand watch in hand at a
! distance from the front, and imperatively
summon the miners from the inner tunnels
at these short intervals. Even then few
| can go through the ordeal without intense
| suffering. Raw throats, infamed lungs and
| sightless eyes are a series OF disorders en-
| tailed by the effort TO master the fire that
! burns with such a mysterious insistence.
SIXTY MILES OF BURNING STREETS
The situation can better be imagined by
pcturilg sixty miles Of streets burning.
! Deadly gases, falling rock explosions Of dy-
Mantle and caving tunnels are to be anticl-
| pated. Not man who enters the shafts ever
knows that he will see the daylight again.
Poison is diffused iC the already vitiatsd at
mOsphere, and to all this is added the danger
OF drowning. Water at the rate of 200G gai-
Ions q minute is pouring into the work
irgs from each Of half a dozen properties.
Thin walls Of granite are frequently the only
obstacle between the fire and the adjacent
chambers, where scores OF men are en-
ployed in bulkheadng the drifts or directing
blasting operations to forestall the flames
Every hour the pressure against these
walls grows. At any moment they might
yield to the enormous weight OF water that
they hold back. A crsvice even means sud-
den inunGation and the death Of those on
the other side. No encouraging cries are
there or exciting scenes to sustain hope
nothing but the darkness Of the grave, save
for the gray candle CLEANS that show the
presence Of other workers in the deathtrap.
Sixty miles OF streets, none OF them over
six feet high and running In devious courses
through the mountain Ike the cells of
hOreycombl The area represented is four to
five miles square l1y . height OF 8 900 feet.
Probably nothing could approximate the dra-
matte situation, for 1t was living hell into
which the men descended. The fire is CUP
posed to have started in the immense slope
Of the Smuggler, whence millions Of almost
pure silver had been taken out in years past.
The mines adjoining on Smuggler mountain
that are interested in the suppression Of the
fire are the Mollie Gibson, Free Silver and
Johnson. They are all connected, while the
mountain is scanned with watercourses that
assist in disseminating the gases.
HOW THE FIRE Is FOUGHT.
The system OF attacking the enemy is orig
inal. AS the miners advanced to the vicinity
Of the immense crib in the Smuggler they
built bulkheRds OF masonry by blasting down
the sides Of the tunnels ana piling the rock
in an impsnetrEBle wall overlooking the huge
chasm, whicn belched forth hideous volumes
OF smoke aud gas. Here is where the greatess
obstacles had ia be met and overcome. The
fire sucked the oxygen so fast that the men
could not stand against the draught, but
were compelled to lie prone on the ground
and pry the stones into place in the rough
wall. Behind this crude structure was
erected q brick wall with the face closely
cemented and the whole rendered impervious
to air.
In the outer levels the process grew more
difficult the outlets were narrowed dowu,
for thee the drafts increased 20 such We
locity that IL seemed as though no human
power could contend with the tremendous
gales that olrried loose rock along like so
much chaff. Patience proved q victor. and
with the aid Of dynamite the miners added
new barriers until they had circumscribed
the area Of fire TO point where the steam
jets could be played on the upper woodwork.
TO BLOW Up A MOUNTAIN.
To simplify matters it was proposed TO
blow up the wIole interior of the mountain
md thus destroy the timbering where the
the unanimous consent Of oJaer mine owners
and therefore fell fiat. Wnen this was re-
Jected all the resources Of the mining world
were summoned. An equipment Of air hell
NETS was ordered TO enable the men TO pen
citrate the mine with the steam and water
pipes. Each man in the dangerous tunnels
was fitted with these projectors similar to
the divers helmet, through which ne WIS
GuQplcd with air They were close fitting
and excluded noxious gases while rubber
hose connected with air Compressors fur
nshGd necessary oxygen.
Water was then poured In from the upper
levels while steam was injected from below,
The water carried OF the Ess by absorption
and the steam penetrated the reCssses OF the /
woodwork that were inaccessible to water
and thus gradually smotheTed the embers
that with the admission OF more air would
have sprung il life again
In progressing toward the center the men
encountered q new form Of gas thai puzzles
The most experienced. The air is apparently
pure and sweet. IL does not disable those
who tnhale IL. Il has neither taste color nor
smell. There is no warning OF its pres zuce,
but the moment man emCrges from the
mine ne is overcome The fresh al knocks
him like q bullet through the heart Il
often takes hours to recover consciousness, /
and then the victim swakes like perfect
demon he enjoys sort o. masked epilepsy
and runs amuck the mos, peaceable desiring
TO XIII and destroy all within reach. They
IS indescribable, and several men have lost
the!r senses absolutely as the result.
Then the lungs grow raw and all the
symptoms OF pneumonia intervene With
these indications al an altitude OF 3 900 feet
the patient is regarded as in imminent dan
ger That is why they are n3w only SLOWED
20 remain two minutes al d time in the
irri=r workings Frequeut changes are
found the only effective specific but TO avoid
as far as ssible loss Of life tine men are at
tacled 10 safety lines II one falls uucun-
scious his companions feel the strain and q
rush lg made for the nearest shaft TO send
the suCcuubed man 20 the surface
Oua fUrlorn hope remains 10 save the
mountain from being COIsumcd-that is 10
reach the inner crater by driving a drift
through a wall of granite which the oEEi-
neers calculate is directly In front OF the
IRE. Then by centeriug their liu=s OF steam
and water they expect TO kill the last spark /
There is stlll another Theory that If con- (
hrmed nay imply the abandonment OF the (
CHIEF properties. II has been suggested that |
he fire is really in bed Of shale resembling
coal formation that underlies the silver
formation. Tnis fire, some engineers con
tend, Is steadily encToachlng on the mines |
and may YET utterly destroy them.
When Gold VIII BE worthless.
Before the close Of another century" re-