The Calhoun chronicle. [volume] (Grantsville, W. Va.) 1883-1984, 1899-03-21

ioot OIL II, the steam being generated
IN boilers close to the engines, This
was the custom in the early seventies,
and it was not changed until the dis
aster at No. demonstrated the dan
ger. Nowadays the steam is carried
to the interior engines through bore
holes from the surface. The vein had
been worked but a comparatively short
time when, on January 9th, 1874, the
working in the vicinity of the engines
caved in, the boilers were demolished
by the mass of coal and rock falling
on them, and the boiler-fires ignited
the coal. Thus in a moment occurred
the disaster which cost enough money
to buy several mines. Gangs of men
working in short shifts cleared up the
fallen rock and slate as quickly as
possible, but when the boilers were
reached the fire had eaten we'll into
the big voin and was spreading rap
idly.
The difficulty of fighting big mine
fire is great. The intense heat, the
confined space, the suffocating gases.
all make it well-nigh impossible to
get within striking distance of it by
ordinary means. But miner can en-
dure much, and for weeks q gang of
300 stout-hearted and strong limbed
men waged ceaseless battle with this
fire. Each could labor but few mo-
ments before being overcome, and a
constant streum of workmen were adj
vancing on tie ''face" of the fire, and
being carried back again to revive.
where the air was comparatively pure
and the heat less intense. But the
fire gained steadily, and soon the plan
of fighting it was changed.
Water had no appreciable effect up
on it, and the next course pursued
was that which is called "suffocatinr
it," Fire must have air. So all the
openings and channels, by which air
could reach the blaze, were her
metically sealed with immense walls
of masonry, and thousands of tons of
clay. This work, though pushed with
the utmost vigor and the largest avail
able force, was also failure, for, after
months of waiting for the fire TO be
suffocated, the air-tight compartments
were tapped and the fire was found to
be Of greater extent and fercer than
before.
The work of the first month alone
cost the company $1,000 900, and in the
following months moro hundreds of
thousands had been spent in uns le-
cessful efforts. Then, every method
known to the American mining en-
gineer having failed, the company en-
gagged Robert Brown, an English
mine-fire expert. Still the fire ragged.
until, at last, after years of work. the
effort to subdue it was abandoned.
The officials, anxious to save as
much rs possible, cut off the burning
workings, making them practically an
island of fire in an oasis Of coal. for
there are other rich veins in close
proximity TO the Baltimore. Had the
fire been totally neglected, it would.
in time, have spread TO these other
veins A great gangway was built
around the mass Of coal the experts
considered beyond saving, enclosing
forty acres Of the richest anthracite i'm
the world, which was left SLOWLY 10
burn itself out.
Some idea OF the extent Of FORTY
acres Of coal can be obtained from the
fact that the fire has been burning
steadily for twenty-five years, and Il
is ESTIMATED that ID will last for
another quarter Of q century. The
value OF this mass OF coal is placed at
81 300 600, and the cost of fighting IL
and caring for IL has amounted TO the
same sum.
The work Of Watching this great
fire IS interesting. As soon as the
big gangway encircling tho fire was
built, water pipes were placed along
its entire course, and every hour i'm
oil the years that have interviewed n
strong force Of water is kept in them.
AT convenient distances are ta,s.
All this is made necessary by another