The semi-weekly messenger., 1902-03-04

I'm Do itesu"eo.
Telluride. Col. March 1.-The number
nf lives lost in the avalans hes that
swept down the sides o; Smuggler
mountain is now es imated from twen-
ey to twenty-five. Fourteen men are
known to have been killed, an un-
known number are buried under the
snow, and twelve badly injured persons
are in the hospitals, while several other
men who were hurt are at their homes.
1t is believed that few. IL any, more
bodies can be recovered until the snow
melts.
The most lucid account OF the first
snow slide was given By L. N. Umstead,
who is employed in packing ore from q
crusher to the tram sta, ion. He was in
the stable saddling his animals when he
| heard a terrific crashing and rafting.
| The stable grew suddenly dark and.
| opening the door, he found the outside
| totally dark and the air fillel with fly
| ing snow.
Thinking It was terrlnc gust Of
| wind. he slammed the stable door shut
| and waited a few second. lie pcered
through a crack and as it grew light
| again he opened the door and saw the
tram cable swinging about and buckets
rolling down the hill.
| AS the snow in the air settled he
Stepped out and could see no signs Of
the boarding house and the bunkhouse.
| - H.
boards and timbers sticking out of
the snow and scattered about.
The exact number of men who were
caught in the slide is not known. out
there were probably not less than twen :.
tv in the bunkhouse and boarding
house when they were swept away.
Fortunately large majority of the 25O
miners employed in the Liberty Bell
mine were either in the mine or absent
in town at the time of the accident.
The accident broke the telephone cir
cult and several hours elapsed before a
messenger reached town with tidings
of the disaster. All doctors available
and many citizens hurried up the
mountain to lend assistance IN digs.ng
1
had been recovered and five injured
men brought to town when a second
slide came down in the path of the
first killing two more men anc injuring
n number of others.
This was followed by more snow
slides in which five lives were sacrificed
AS the storm still continued. and the
work OF rescue could only be carried or
under the most extreme danger to the
living and as it was believed that nc
more of those buried Under the snow
could be alive, it was decided to aban.
don the search for bodies until it can
he prosecuted with greater safety.
Drs. Allen and Delaney who went vi
to attend the victims of the first snow
slide were caught in the second. Tbs
former sustained severe injuries about
his lower limbs. snd the laateI escaped
unfniured. Both were carried down 2
distance Of more than fit feet, but
managed to extricate themselves
George Rhorer who was killed in the
was one of the most prominent mining
operators in the district.
The damage tn the mine property is
estimated at $4,000. The tramway ter.
minals are gone, with crushers. etc
and the entire tram and most Of the
towers are down. 1t will be at least
) four months before work can be re.
sumed.
Today broke bright and clear III tins
citv. but clouds still hang over the
mountains.
A large searching party left this
morning to resume the search for ths
dead buried under the snow,
Telephone lines from this city to ths
mines and to Denver are down.
A slide occurred today in Marshall
hasin at the Sheridan mine. John H
Johns miner was killed.
A slide is also repol ted at the Gold
King mine. south Of this city. Th-
tramway was wrecked. bu. it is no,
known whether any lives were lost
TILLMAN VISITS SENATOR PELATT.