The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-02-02
He HAD BEEN CAUTIONED
Investigation of the Death oil
Pascoe in the Stevens Mine.
WAS ALONE RESPONSIBLE
The Body Was Crushed Into a Spac, of
Seven Inches, Between the Bucket
and the -Plates-Head
Struck the Timber,

Coroner Julien held an inquest yes
terday afternoon at Richards under
taking rooms to investigate the acct
dent in the Old East shaft Of the Stew
ems mine Tuesday afternoon which re-
suited fatally for William Pascoe. The
evidence was all to the effect that the
deceased had been repeatedly cautioned
against riding in the bucket, and the
jury held him responsible for his own
DEATH
Frederick c. Thomas. partner of the
uncle of the deceased in the lease on
the Old East shaft of the Stevens mine,
and one of the employers of the de-
ceased, was first called He stated that
at about o'clock yesterday afternoon
he was called by his partner and told
young Pascoe had been caught in the
shaft. He went down and saw the body
wedged in between the bucket and wall
plates of the shaft. Witness, detailing
the circumstances, said that about a
quarter of o'clock, deceased called up
to know what time it was. Witness
told him it was quitting time. Young
Pascoe loaded some duh tools into the
bucket and witness got the signal to
hoist He started the horse and then
went to dump car of dirt. While do
ing so witness noticed the horse had
stopped and ran back to see what was
the matter He got a signal to come
to the shaft, and his partner called up
that the boy was killed. Witness went
down and found the body crushed into
a space of about seven inches between
the bucket and timber. Deceased had
been frequently cautioned not to ride in
the bucket.
Questioned by Mr.. Hunter, the wit
ness said that during the two years he
had been interested in the mine no one
had ever been allowed to ride in the
bucket except sometimes in the perpen-
dicular portion of the shaft.
William T. Benefits uncle of the de-
ceased and partner of the preceding
witness, said it was quitting time and
his nephew started up ahead of him,
he waiting to change his shoes. He
was in the drift and did not know the
boy got on the bucket. Witness
changed his shoes and started up the
ladder and Immediately saw his nephew
hanging in the shaft. Witness gave it
as his opinion that the young man was
riding on the bucket and his head and
shoulders struck the timber and he
tried to throw himself over against the
wall plates to save himself, and the
bucket coming on, crushed him to
death. Witness said it was an impos-
sibility for man to ride all the way
up the shaft without getting hurt, and
no one had ever been allowed to ride.
He did not believe his nephew ever at
tempted to ride before.
Erick c. Larsen testified to assisting
to remove. the body. The body was
hanging between the rim Of the bucket
and timber, 70 or Is feet down the
shaft, and was so firmly pinioned in
that position it became necessary to
saw off the timber and remove it be-
fore the body could be released. 1t took
full hour of the hardest kind Of work
to get the body out. Witness was an
old miner and gave it as his opinion
that no one had any business riding in
the bucket in that shaft. When wit
ness went down the shaft he found the
bucket in its proper position on the
skids.
Deputy Mine Inspector Frank Hunter
estified to examining the shaft after
the accident. He found that it must
have been necessary for the deceased
to have ducked under one set on the
east side of the bucket and four feet
further on, to have gotten out of the
other side of the bucket to duck under
another timber, and he did not have
time to do so. The shaft was in very
bad condition, but from the fact that
no one was allowed to ride in the
bucket, witness did not believe any one
was to blame for Pascoe's death.
The jury returned a verdict finding
that the deceased was responsible for
his own death in disregarding the eau
lions of his employers.
Deputy Inspector Hunter yesterday
notified the owners of the mine, the
First National bank, that the shaft
must be properly timbered before men
could besfpermitted to work in it in
f,1tJ1re