The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-07-16
MINERS GREATEST DREAD.
Instances Of Deaths in Anthracite
. Region by Deadly Cave-in.
New York Evening PostD

Accounts of the terrible explosion in a
Utah coal mine have brought 10 mind
fOrcibly the precariOus existence that the
miner leads beneath the earth. But Of all
the accidents which threaten the life of
the anthracite coal miner none is more
feared than the deadly cave-in. 1t is far
more liable to cause death than explosions
or floods, runaway cars or falls down
the shaft Dozens and dozens Of men are
crushed to death every year by il. and the
reports OF the mine inspectors show that
a Sarge majority of the fatal accidents Of
the year are due to il. Witness the great
accident at the twin shaft. PittstOn Pa.
few years ago, when fifty-nine men
we're shut in or crushed 10 death; and the
fall at No. IL, Plymouth, Pa, when thir-
teen men were killed None of these vic
TINS were ever found, nor Is there much
probability Of any trace OF them being
discovered
Sudden and horribly fatal as they are
the caves give warning Of their approach
a short time ago the writer was in an af-
fected gangway- There was a constant
and menaCIng noise which is almost in
deScr1bable- II was ike the distant muT-
muir of thunder storm or the deep rum
OF feet above and around the rock and
coal was working 1t was moving and
rolling and crushing itself. grOaning under
the immense weight il bore. staggering
every nber that the remOTSeieSS load
would very soon totally Obliterate The
gangway in which We stood. Massive
timberS, eighteen inches in diameter. were
being crushed and splinteTed. bulged and
cracked The car tracks were distorted
in a hundred different ways. and all the
time, from roof and sides. little splinters
of rock and coal were flying with SurlCiel-
force to cut the hands or lace. At points
the roof had sunk two or three feet and
at others the sides Of the gangway were
I bulged in and threatened at any moment
10 burst, like OVerTipe fruit Big mine
rats, wise as the miner. were SCutJlng %
safe place and we soon followed their
example minute in the gangWay
seemed as long as an hour on the surface
But with all the warning II gives. me
cave too often proves to be the Ceathhel
and grave of the miner who is rash
enough to try to save for his company
| what nature is retaining as her own
So IL was in the two great accidents prey
iOusly mentioned. Valuable chambers oL
! the mine threatened to cave and thou
sands of tons of coal would be lost AZ
PittstCn Superintendent Langan started
] on a Sunday night with SlXty-hve men ID
/ place ma sSive timberS under the affected
roof. hoping to avert the threatened oe-
StructOn. So awful was the noise ana
/ 50 near did death appear in those tr6m'-
4 ling passages that seven men SLl+l---
tendenJ Langan'S son among them. To-
| fused TO work and went back. The super
/ intendent and the fifty-eight men lah'rel
I LOT an nOuT OF so. IQeQ SUQuriLlN i--.--t
( tons of rock and coal fell. and IN an III
/ slant nature had constructed for them an
impenetrable Sepulcher. Whether f--s
were instantly crushed 10 death snHt II
and SuffOcated or slowly starved "-
probably never be known
/ The accident at Plymouth. Pa Va
! caused in like manner As may wei ~
/ ina glned, the conflict between nope ~
! rescue and fear of death. in the hearts =
I the victims friends. Is terrible Hope al-u
1 slowly at PittStOn. and IL Is the >alu7
| elsewhere. This is due 10 the absolute .--
/ certainty Some argue that the N-l-...se
J may be hemmed in an open chdmprI W.
J a Plentiful supply Of air and water. a--
/ quote the we'll known cases, N---r ~
J Sugar Notch q number of men lE-t ~
/ weeks. eating mule entombed WIN ..-5 H.
| and were finally rescued; WE.l- -
/ GAINESVILLE, Pa. a rescue was al-1tr,
/ after nineteen days, in which the hlg- t-i-
| nothing to eat except the leather ~ -5-s
/ bOOts-owing TO their ignorance the --.~
sustaining fish oil in their lamps "aS --Eo
| touched-and again. of the two men ~ ~
! at NantiCOke were rescued allt- -;-s
astride a log in flooded workings tu- ~; H.
days with nothing TO eat WIN J5--14 n
stances of recovery from the l-.--- ,-s
! death. after persistent attempt a. - m
1t is hard for friends OF enJOmDrg -L.,-i,
believe that all hope is gone. ana ,,-,ats
AS at PittstOn-as late as SIX "-,iTa
after the accident they implore '-'V
officials to keep up the effort nine
/ Other accidents affect only l-- &c
and the miners. Caves affect the .---,,1
and many property owners IN lllS ii,av
have cause to regret the day WIZ he
bought land which was under nun -- -sr-
cause il was cheap Recently a 55sv-q
ton of street at Wyoming. Pa, N'- , are
with several buildings and inst ~ - M
numerous Of houses being sWa-iy ,N,C,IIfei
by the greedy earth. of Cdttle yL-77-i-oA-
and suffocated. People are r.E 5sn-
caught, but not often, for the ca ~, ,--ss1IaIy
orally sings slowly, and there !! - besn
plenty OF time TO escape Ihere ~ close
instances of a quick settlement .N-.ssfing-
TO this city were especially A.'Iyg the
4 A ,peddler was driving Slowly ,,1 a-gl Pa,
road leading from this city 10 - gging
when his horse suddenly SANK - - him.
I the front wheels of the wagon d rs sur
When the driver recovered from MS on
prise and terror the wagon PGuI, some
! the edge of a hole thirty feet aee a. an cid
! time later. near the same ,piaLL,,ar shell
4 woman was sitting near heT. deOL -, -Llsr the
I ing peas. Her husband coming - sight.
hill saw her suddenly drop on % no her
ran up and found her busy plch a 5bs SUI
scattered peas forty feet DeioM 0lickE
face. She was uninjured ana ""'
In February a portion of the traI ~ New
the lire of the Central railrOdu smoked
Jersey, two miles from mere "a-
/ down.
Terrible Turk VS.. Charlie Lahss san