The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-12-10

front OF the mouth OF the Incline walt
Ing To see who of their friends will next
be brought out alive. Occasionally .
shapelsss body comes up on the car.
Rescue parties are working both In the
incline and at the old timber shoot on the
hill.
Sadness nlls the Meredith home Mrs.
Meredith. with eyes moving tears.
fears that not only has she lost her hus-
band. but her son, Daniel Meredith. who.
although said to be saved. has not yet
appeared across his accustomed thresh-
old. A crowd OF sympathizing women
reighbors are grouped around her OFFER
ing their consultations.
Many May Yet Ne RsscssA.
At present II IL stated confidently that
q large proportion OF the unfortunate
miners may be brought out alive. 1t
was customary to work lie men. divided
into three shifts. but the first, the morn
ing shit. was the largest
Was . Previous Explosion.
Several years ago an explosion OF fire.
damp occurred In this same mine and two
men lost their lives. Nobody 90 far
blames the company, a. the explosion
Is regarded as an accident common to coal
mining.
TimbeR Gangs II work.
Timber gangs are now at work replace
ing the deranged timber and incidentally
rescuing the imprisoned miners or taking
out an occasional body. The fans are
working well. and most Of the blackdamp
is rapidly being sucked out Of the mine.
They were not stopped at all by the ex-
plosion.
First Bodies Brought out.
The iirst fye bodies to BE- brought up
the long incline were those OF Watt Jones.
Joe Thomas. Evan Lewis, Richard Dare
and Daniel Davis. Watt Jones was the
chief starter. Daniel Davis was a son
OF the foreman Of the shift. None of
the bodies was at first recognizable. be-
cause the faces OF the dead men were
charred and blackened beyond identinca-
ton. It was only after they were con-
veyed to the morgus and the corpses
were washed that It could be told who
they were.
Mine Cleared ~ After Danp.
The work OF rescuing the living was
completed ct O'Clock. BY that time
the mine had been puriied by the fans to
and egress. Down In the canyon. . mile
from the town. II the tunnel mouth lead
ing to. No. 7. Nearly two miles up the
hillside II the shaft to the mine, and 1t
was here that the work was pushed Wig.
orously.
Injsfsa MuAea In Stacking.
Man went down IN little parties Of two or
more and searched for the living a. fast
a. the deadly damp would allow progress
Those who were brought to the surface
wsre mufnsd in sacking to protect their
burns until they could b hoisted to the
top Of the incline and carried to the hos
pttaL
There were not many of these, but the
search was continued until al hope of
saving life was at an end.
Heroism Of the Resouers.
Many cases of heroism on the part of
the workers were brought to light. Men
would continue until overcome by tho
gases They would be carried to the air
to revive, and go down again. In one case
miner named Meredith escaped to the
pit mouth after the explosion. He had
been working with his son. and the boy did
not come out with him. The father re-
among the missing. His son was rescued
alive.
The first body to be brought to the sur
face was that Of Watt Jones, the only
support OF a widowed mother. The body
was followed by four others, all unrecog-
nixabls in their coating Of coal dust and
CRIME.
At the top Of the incline was gathered
a crowd of men, women and children hav-
ing friends or relatives among the miss
ing They watched the loaded cars with
an air stoical and almost Indifferent. or
asked those who accompanied the bodies
II news had yet been heard OF their loved
ones.
sad Work OF Identification.
In q rough building belonging to the
miners association the blackened corpses
were washed and identified Some were
burned and all were covered with q thick
coating Of coal and CRIME.
shreds of Clothing saved.
Acting upon the suggestion Of the cor
oner, the shreds of clothing torn by the
force Of the explosion. and the personal
effects of each were placed In box and
labeled. The limited amount of space in
the building made 1t impossible to admit
friends and relatives who wished to ascer-
tain their identity to a certainty. None
OF the bodies recovered last night was
crushed. There are undoubtedly num-
Der under the falls of rock and earth in
different parts Of the mine. but they can
not be recovered for some time. Timber
ing and excavating are being carried on
as rapidly as possible.
Nearly All Were Smothered.
All of the men killed. or nearly ALL were
smothered by the gases and damp, al
though some may have died more easily
from the shock of the conclusion or from
being blown against the walls Of the
tunnel.
Explosion . Mystery.
The cause Of the explosion Is a mystery
to everyone. Not even the miners rescued
can give the slightest possible explanation