Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1902-07-17
THE NINE HORROR.
Many Heroic Rescues Made at the
Cambria's Mines.
FOURTEEN MEN BROUGHT TO LIFE.


Johnstown, Pa, July 12.-Yester-
day was day of heroic rescues at
the fated rolling mill mine OF the
Cambria Steel company. Thrilling
experiences attended the efforts of
the 40 brave and daring fellows who
went down into the bowels OF the
earth, stirred by very faint hope
that still they might be in time to
restore to life some Of those who
are cntombed. Death lurked every
where around them, but undaunted
they surged forward, swayed with
the noblest of human purposes. The
reward Of their efforts was the saw
ing of the lives of IA of their fellow
men and bringing them again into
the sunlight and back to loving fam
lilies.
Dead and manned bodies were To-
Gated, but no effort was made to
bring them out of the vast theater
Of death until every human energy
was put forward towards seeing that
no living soul might escape their
aid. That done, the dead were at
tended to and put in train cars,
brought up and exposed to morbid
gaze while being transformed to
wagons in which. to be taken to the
morgue. Eighty-seven dead bodies
were recovered from the mine be-
tween daylight and nightfall. Still
a party Of officials and miners battled
on, three miles inside the mine. o.
casionally word would come to the
surface by some mysterious means
that another heap of remains had
been exposed to the vision Of the
searchers. There remain dangerous
headings in the Klondike section Of
the mine yet to be explored No one
knows how many more dead will be
found there. The mine officials re-
frain from guess work on the sub
ject. The impression prevails among
the outsiders and certain employees
Of the mine that $50 is low esti-
mate Of the casualty list.
Along in the early part of the aft
ernoon cheering word came from the
innermost recesses of the mine that
life yet fingered in some of the
bodies found. The rescuers made
first for No. 4, the left heading, which
they had been unable to reach the
night before. Desolate even for the
scenes of a mine interior was the
heading that stretched out before
them Falls Of roof choked the head
ing, but through and over the debris
the brave men pushed their way. In
the front, young Patrick Martin, his
brother Peter, Philip White and sew
eral cousins OF the Martins made
their way. Suddenly in an open
space they were startled by the
maniac laugh which emanated from
a blackened form that rushed at
them out of the darkness. The man
grasped firmly pick handle and
tried in his frenzy to beat down his
rescuers. He was overpowered and
dragged back to the main heading,
to the cars. Thirteen other living
men were found in this chamber and
physicians were quickly on the spot.
At five p. IN. the train of mine
cars came to the pit mouth, where
waiting ambulances stood. Eight
men were lifted over the sides of
the cars and, half carried, wended
their way to the ambulances. They
were all Poles. One big strapping
fellow among them collapsed as he
reached the ambulance and doctors
spent several minutes resuscitating
him. As the men were driven hur-
riedly to the Cambria hospital the
train of coal cars with the physicians
re-entered the mine. In another half
hour they came out again, this time
with six living, but almost dead, min
ers. tine man in his paroxysms had
locked his jaws so that force had to
be employed to pry them open for the
insertion Of life-instilling fluids.
These six were taken in an uncon-
scious condition to the Cambria hos
pital. One man brought out with
this crowd died just as he reached
daylight.
AT that time three more headings,
believed to be filled with the dead,
were unsearched. Thirty-nine bodies
were lying within reach in the mine
heading. These were brought out at
ABS p. m. Their bodies were piled
high in the coal cars and covered
with canvas. Those remains were in
terrible state, showing that there
had been slow death in each case.
One of the men had his mouth and
nose tied about by towel. The
rest of his face was burned beyond
recognition, The bodies Of all were
twisted in horrible shapes, most of
the arms being crooked so as to
shield the face. The only one who
could be identified at the pit mouth
was Fire Boss Joseph Tomlinson.
One Of the volunteer rescuers who
came out with this load of dead
stated that fire was raging in parts
Of the mine. Most Of those who
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