The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-02-25
WAS OVERCOME BY GAS
Investigation of the Death of H.
G. Smithley.
S!CKENED AND FELL OVER
Seven Other Men Were With film on
the Cage-His Brains Were Dashed
Out Against One Of the
Centerpieces.

| IHurSuay, at an inquest held at Sher-
mans undertaking rooms last evening
| The testimony was all in accordance
with the facts as published yesterday,
| and the jury returned a verdict simply
reciting the circumstances and finding
the accident to have been due to the
| deceased having been overcome with
| gas. Smithley was ascending the shaft
at the lunch hour, with seven others,
on the cage. He had been working in
the Bell drift, on the 1900 level, where
| blasting had been done and there was
some gas as consequence. When he
| got into the purer air Of the shaft he
sickened and fell over. his head strik-
Ing against the center pieces dividing
| two compartments of the shaft and his
brains were dashed out.
D. A. Murray, the first witness, was
one of the men on the cage and stood
opposite Smithley. He felt him bend
ing over and reached out his hand to
| get hold OF him. AS he did SO Smithley
| pitched forward, and his head struck
the underside of center piece, striking
each one thereafter till the cage stopped
| Witness saw deceased before the cage
started. He seemed all right. The cage
| had gone about 20 feet when Smithley
commenced ito fall. He was a healthy
man and capable of doing his work.
| Witness did not know what caused the
accident unless it was that deceased had
been breathing gas and, getting into the
| fresh air of the shaft, sicllened. There
| was always some gas in the mine, not
| any more at this time than ordinarily.
| Witness did not regard the mine as a
| bad place to work on account of the
gas. There had been blasting in the
drift that morning, but the gas was not
| especially bad. When witness saw
Smithley falling he tried to ring the
stop bell and the cage stopped near the
800. The cage in the opposite compart-
ment came down after the danger signal
| had been sounded with Foreman Ferns
aboard. -Four of the men got off on to
the cage and went up and Ferns and
the other three took the body to the
surface.
Asked by Mr.. Hunter if the accident
would have been avoided had the cage
| been furnished with doors, the witness
said it might or it might not.
| A. N. Weigenstein, brother of John
| Weigenstein, who was killed in the
Moonlight few days ago, was also on
the cage He told substantially the
same story as the preceding witness
Witness was shoveling and running car
| in the same drift. in which Snithlcy
had been working. After the blasting
| the gas was rather bad, little worse,
| he thought, than usual. Witness was
somewhat affected by the gas 1t was
! very seldom anyone was affected, but
| it sometimes happened. Witness spoke
| to his partner and the machine man
about the gas and said he was not &C.
! ing in so soon again after blasting, but
| did not complain to the foreman. The
| men We're not compelled to go in within
| half an hour after blasting. Deceased
| spoke to the witness in the drift prior
| to the accident about his head aching
! from the gas
N. ]. Powers repeated the story of the
manner in which the accident occurred,
and being asked relative to the gas in
| the drift where he had also worked,
| said there was considerable gas, but it
was no worse than he had frequently
known it. He did not feel it necessary
| to quit work and did not apprehend
that anyone would be injured by it. He
| had no reason to think Smithley was
unfit to go on the cage, though he had
spoken Of being affected by the gas.
Replying to Mr.. Skyrme the witness
| said it was common for men to get weak
about noon, as it was not infrequent
| they went to work without any break
fast.
Thomas O'Neii was also on the cage.
| He described the circumstances of the
| said he was working on a machine. He
| went back to set UP 80 minutes after
the blasting and did not experience any
| inconvenience from the gas.
Joseph Hurley's description of the ac-
| cident correspondent with that of the
| other Witnesses. He had not been
working on the 1900 with deceased and
| only saw him as he got on the cage.
| Smithley stood Immediately in front
| of witness and when witness heard him
striking the center pieces, he got hold
| of him and tried to hold him up, but
| was unable to do so.
J. A. Tremble and John Lowry gave
| the same testimony as the preceding
witness.
William Rule, the engineer, who hoist
| ed the men, was called, and said he
hoisted at he usual rate of speed.
Frank Mcdonald. station-tender at
the 1900, loaded the cage and gave the
signal to hoist. The cage had gone
| only few feet when he saw the bell
| rope in motion, heard the men on the
cage yell. He Immediately rang the
stop bell. He did not hear Smithley
complain of feeling bad at the time he
got on the cage.
|. Foreman Charles Ferns was called
and said he was notified something
had occurred. He went down in the
opposite compartment and transferred
four OF the men ON the cage to the one
on which he went down. Sending them
| on top, he took the body to the sur
| face with the other men who remain
| ed on the cage. He saw deceased al
the 1900 level at 9 o'clock and he did
| not complain of bad air. Witness sat
! ed the drift in question had the best
| air of any in the mine. Air was con-
veyed to within 100 feet of the face by
| the air pipes, and a hose from there car
| ries the air on in. The men are sup
| posed to use their own judgment as to
| how long they are to stay out after
| blasting and are not compelled to go in
on any stipulated time.
Deputy Mine Inspector Hunter took