The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1901-06-22
BY MARY NEALoN.

| make their stories NlVld ana Impress
i've. one miner told that a few days
before the accident he was walking
down an old road that led to some old
workings and ghostly form fitted
past him. and he was positive that he
heard voice whisper danger" An
other, that had worked in the mine all
| his life, said that always before the
occurrence Of horrors of this kind some
warning was generally given. Two
! Gays previous to this he had heard re-
| peated knocking and tapping in varl-
Gus places of the mine, and knew that
| some danger was lowering near
| Others told of having stepped over to
| the mouth of the mine to descend Oh
| the fatal carriage, but We're drawn
| back by unseen hands that clutched
| their clothes in a vice-like grip. The
most intimate friends Of some Of the
! victims told that the dead men. them
| selves, had had warning of the i'm
| pending danger-some by dreams that
! had beer related others by a heavy
feeling of dread that seemed to hang
over them.
The chum of one of the unfortunate
young men said: "A week ago, Ned
and were sitting down eating a lunch,
when all at once Ned's face grew
deathly pale, he threw out his arms as
If to ward off blow. and then fell for
ward, as If in a faint. I ran to him
and called out: Ned. what's the mat
ter, are you sick?' But he smiled and
said. TON. believe saw the ghost
of old Ike Penfieltl. the fellow that was
found dead out in the COB in the
North Heading. 1t was as plain as
see you. He stood before me and his
icy, clammy hands clutched my throat.
his eyesockets seemed to be empty, but
l could distinctly hear his voice NUT
tering something. My God. Tom, it
was frghtfu! They say if you see a
ghost and hear it talk your days viii
be short. Well. that's the first l ever
saw. and ! hope 1t will be the last I
tried to make him believe that it was
only imagination, but no. he was sure
1t was Il ghost he saw. He never men.
toned it again. but I know he was
worried. and he had cause. for l believe
that was warning 10 Ned"
No doubt here was a verificaton Of
the truth of the poets words when he
said, Coming events cast their shad-
ows before" BE that as it may, the
disaster in which ten lives were lost
would be only a shadow compared
to the horror that would have oc-
Cured had the accident not happened.
and the mine had worked that day.
for it was found that later in the day
huge cave-in had taken place. en-
tending over a large portion of the
mine. Had the men been working
they would never have escaped, and
the loss of life would have been ter
rible to contemplate. Though ten
hnrr, Ia
greater number, we must believe that
the mystical hand of Providence had
chosen this way to avert a greater
evil.
AS time passed on. the remembrance
of that horror was dying out. but
now and again some one would relate
the warnings given to the dead men.
Though the accident broke up several
homes and left many little helpless
| children fatherless. the saddest of all
and the one that is still remembered
and related by the inlla bitants of that
town was that of genial, jovial Dick
Morris. one Of the men that met such
a sad fate that bright June morning.
The next day was to be his wedding
day. and when pretty, dainty Nell
Gordon, his betrothed. heard Of her
lovers death, she silently and wonder
inely sazed at the ones that brought
the news. In vain did they try to
make her understand, but it was i'm
possible to rouse her from the lethar-
gy that seemed to hold her in its
spell. No words came from the pal
lid lips, no tear came as sOftening
showers, to relieve the burning tor
ture. Her movements seemed me-
chanical. Thinking that the sight of
her dead lover would rouse her. they
brought her to him. She gazed at HI,
pale, lifeless face, then turned and
silently walked away. In the solitude
of her own room she spent the night
and when morning broke she came
down stairs with the same strange
look on her face. EXclamations of
surprise We're uttered when she made
her appearance, but the heart broken
girl heard them not. The delicate
face was white and drawn. the slender
figure was bent like broken lily,
and the hair that yesterday was CLOS
sv and black was perfectly white
One night, nay a few hours, had
wrought the terrible change The
people looked with plying glances at
the young girl that was bearing her
trouble in silence, but she needed
'hehl not "eehs passed pS' ana she
never cnahsso, never once ana she
speaN' tier oass were spent IN gain
eills MOWERS ior ner ioVer ; grave
every hhorhinS at tne same hour sne
went 10 the smart Wnere DICK Morris
met his death, With clasped hands
she stood and watched the men as
they went 10 thelr work. When all
had gone down she would walk home
In, ,..l,