The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1901-02-08
DOWN
THE SHAFT
Anthony Smale, who Left
Here About Three Months
Ago, Killed in Montana,

: 1t is with the most profound regret
; that We are called upon this week tt
; chronicle the untimely death of one
: of our former citizens. Anthony
: Smale, or TONY" as he was more
familiarly known. We have been un
able TO hear anything from his re-
latiyes, but the following from d
Butte paper give IL fair account Of the
nature Of the accident.
"An accident at the L. E. r. mine
at 500 yesterday morning cost the
lives of Guy KingSbury and Anthony
Smale. Both men fell from the cage
a distance of something over 500 feet
as near as can be calculated, and
while it is not known what caused
them to fall, it would appear from
his preceding condition that Smale
fell first and took Kingsbury with
him.
The L. E. r. mine is located be-
tween 400 and 500 feet west of the
Parnell mine and the main shaft of
the former has just been completed
by raising from drift run west from
the latter at the 800 level.
Kingsbury and William Shovel
were partners in a contract to raise
the shaft and Smale was miner en-
ployed by them and was working his
first shift. Smale and his partner.
Arthur Goodwin, were working
shovelng in drift at the 800 and
about 125 feet from the shaft when
Smale complained that his head was
aching and said that he guessed he
would go on top. The headache was
presumably caused by the gas arising
from the dirt Smale went to the
shaft where Kingsbury and some of
the men who were working the
bottom of tsse shaft so feet below
were standing. The latter had put
in a round of IS holes and had come up
to the 800 to await their explosion.
Smale told KingsburY that he had
headache and was going on top and
the latter said that he would go up
with him. Both men got on the cage
and ii moment later the men below
heard the sound of the falling bodies
as they struck the wall plates on
either side of the shaft.
deputy Mine Inspector Frank
Hunter made an examination of the
shaft. About 300 feet from the sur
face he found a candle on one of the
wall plates. Ten feet below this he
found Smale's hat and Is feet below
that again he found Kingsbury's hat.
Mr.. Hunter found brain matter on
the wall plates at intervals all the
way down the shaft from the point
where the candlestick was found and
| it is from this that the estimate is
made of the distant the bodies fell.
AS to the cause of the falling, Mr..
Hunter says it was evident Smale
was suffering from the effects OF the
gas where he had been working. and
when the fresh air struck his head as
he was ascending he lost he hold and
in falling grabbed Kingsbury and pull
ed him from the cage also.
There were no doors on the cage,
but if there had been it would not
have been compulsory to close them
as the law specially provides that
where more than two men are on the
cage the doors shall be closed. This
provision was supposed to have been
made part of the law to save the time
of station tenders who are continually
going up and down the shaft.
/ Anthony Smale was a married man
about 80 wears Of age and leaves wife
and two schildren, who reside on
Woolmanf street. Guy Kingsbury
was about 80 years of age and un-
married.
i 1.-THE coroners jury returned the
following verdict:
cYNt nd nnrGnnC