The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-05-01
A MIRACULOUS ESCAPE
Shift Boss Collins Had Very
Close Call.
FELL TWO HUNDRED FEET
A Shoe Was Torn From His Foot in the
Descent but He Will Be at
Work Again in Day
or Two.

OF all the stories of miraculous es-
capes from serious injury or death that
have been told in connection with mine
accidents in Butte, one of the most
startling and seemingly impossible to
be true is that of the experience of
Shift Boss William Collins of the St.
Lawrence mine yesterday forenoon.
He fell 200 feet down the shaft, and
even had shoe taken from his foot in
the descent, yet he lives to tell the
story, and not only that, but he Will be
at work again in a day or two, as his
worst injury is a sprained ankle, which
is not hurt enough to be hardly worth
mentioning. The marvellous presence
of mind the man displayed is the most
unusual feature of the strange accident,
| the story of which would be almost ut
| terly beyond belief were it not known to
| be absolutely correct. 1t surely never
| had parallel in some respects.
The accident occurred shortly before
| noon. Mr.. Collins was standing at the
| collar of the shaft waiting for the cage
| to come up and take him below. The
cage stopped at the 200, and Mr.. Collins
heard the signal given to hoist, and he
raised the iron bar which serves as a
gate, expecting to step in the cage a
second or so later.
Just at this instant a door close by
was blown to by the wind blowing
through the shaft house. The door
struck Mr. Collins and knocked him
head. first into the shaft. He gave a
yell, and Station Tender Kelly, hearing
it and seeing something coming down
the shaft, thought it was a timber.
The cage had just begun to move.
Kelly's head was also about him, and
he acted promptly and with great pres
ence of mind. AS quick as thought he
rang a stop bell, and the cage did not
get away from the station, SO quickly
was it stopped.
The stopping of the cage so promptly
undoubtedly had an important bearing
on Mr.. Collins fortunate escape, but
it cut far less figure than Mr.. Collins
own unheard-of presence of mind. AS
he descended he did not lose his head
but kept constantly trying to seize the
rope and save himself. He tried des-
perately, but the rope was greasy and
it seemed he could never get a hold
that would stay his progress. But
Shift Boss Collins is made of stern
stuff His mind was perfectly clear
and he was determined to save himself
He is powerful man and has giants
grip in his hands. Had he been less
muscular his presence of mind would
have awaited him nothing and he would
now lie onsa slab at the morgue. Real
iZing he was nearing the cage and
would be dashed to death on the bon
net, he made one more superhuman eff
fort and succeeded in getting a firm
enough hold on the rope to stay his
progress sufficiently to turn him over
and the descent once checked and be-
ing now in a better position to exert
his strength and handle himself. he
gripped tighter than ever, wrapping his
leg around the rope, and at last came
to a stop 10 feet above the cage. Then
he slid down the rope till his feet rested
| on the clamps, and called to Station
| Tender Kelly to lower him to the level
| There he got off on the station and get
| ting aboard the cage went to the sur
| face. He could not discover that he
| had been hurt in any way except as to
| his left hand. which had been quite
| severely cut by the rope, and one ankle
| which was sprained and quite painful
He went to st. James hospital to have
| his hand dressed and the ankle attend
ed to, and later in the day returned to
his home. He expects to return to
work in a day or two, and said he
would not have gone off shift had it not
| been for the sprained ankle.
Most people are acquainted with the
| fact, mysterious and unexplainable,
which is characteristic of all cases in
| which a man falls down a shaft head
| first in what is called an up-cast shaft.
| He always loses one or both of his
| shoes, no matter how tightly they
| are laced, and, if he goes down far
| enough. his clothes as we'll 1t is sup
posed to be accounted for by the body
travelling at a frightful velocity against
the up draught. Mr.. Collins had his
| shoes tightly laced, yet the one on the
| foot the ankle of which was sprained
| came off and was picked up all laced
up as it had been while on the foot.
Mr.. Collins does not remember striking
his ankle against the side of the shaft
| and thinks it probable the sprain was
caused by the shoe being pulled IF.
| The fact that Mr.. Collins body at
| tanned that fearful momentum that is
necessary before a shoe will come off
| is evidence that therefore the briefest
| instant of time only could have been
| consumed in the descent, yet in that
| time he was able to think and act in a
way to save his life by catching the
rope and stopping himself While travel
ing through space head downward at
that awful rate of speed which well IL
Illustrates what a remarkable escape it
was.
Mr.. Collins when asked to tell about
| his experience gave the facts as stated.
| and when asked what his thoughts were
| when he pitched head foremost down
| the shaft he said:
Il didn't have time to think of any
| thing but getting hold of that rope. If