Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-11-24
0NE HUNDRED AND
'SITY-E|GHT BODIES
..,Od BY Resouers in the Lower
'''' Vein Of the St. Paul
Mine.
THEY WERE IN TANGLED MASS
,ior across Each Other
'". same sitting up---I'lack Damp
cause OF Death.

m ~ov ei-onc hundred
.n' ..,,.t'y-eigat bodies were ., iou =,
shS ,. ,osay in the lower VEN "' ~. -, ~,
carly 'O '"e The rescuing party FOUND
Pau NJ, ",.s the imprisoned men h"u
~ nom tool boxes ana n'esse7 ~
n . had been wri'e' on P''
slate -.i..,rs ,,naccounted
W no5,ee found this morning were
iu' nrled mass. completely block
y 49, staircase leading from the th'ru
ips So ~ .orond vein, and also we're scat
va along the vein Where thos nau
va 49, before reaching the stairway
me p,sch damp was the cause OF aea,n'
-.o,s of escape having been oiocK-
- = dsbris failing and covering the
,ao II ne staircase. The men had diea
:. ,hsy tried 20 push through me Oh
-,a,,ous or in waiting vainly for
fescuers a..
-. tor hours. if not days. Two rude
Ill., ventllating fans, fashloheu
w. ,ss same manner as those tounu
is,s ago. were affixed TO the smart
WI ~ Stairway. The men had turn
,bese bv hand Ia their frantic
....-si. for air and the hopeless Ell
80, Ia brush back the black damp,
~. bsp5s If one miner We're found
drmly gripped about the fan
REscUERs IN WATER.
The exploring party Of four led by
.e,opv lodiyclene. was I'm the gallery
IN more than an hour before the
iodiss were found. They had waded
IN water. waist deep, through the cir
eular tunnel making their sfay toward
the ELEVATION OF the SHAFT or ridge
where they had expected 10 ma the
men. living or dead. The signals given
by The rescuers and the usual cry,
aAnybody alive ia hereY were not
answered.
when We climbed up the ridge"
ud LOdiyciene I'VE almost stepped
upon the bodies. piled In heaps. Some
Lad their heads resting on folded
arms as Il sleeping. Others were lying
across each other and some were sit
tIng, a. u resting. against the wall
Mild 70 the wall ,pern two fans
rsde OF timberng tied about pick
hnlles and under them were the big
gsst heaps Of bodies.
one poor fellow had his hand up
holding The fan. ! think he died as he
vas turning II. Another held bucket
H vas fat on his back and must have
did as he climbed up on the ridge The
bucket was half filled with black water.
The black damp killed them long
before the water reached them We
bad been in the shaft more than an
hour then and though the air was fair
y good, We knew IL was time for US
q get out
we didn't stop TO examine any Of
ihe bodies or try to identify them. Tom
Nulligan. one OF our party, picked up
piece Of natural slate on which was
written We are here together. lCs.'
which must have meant the number
q men. and ! think il was about the
i.hi number
A LAST MESSAGE.
On wooden box used TO hold tools
saw written with lead pencil. We
u' here 10 die together Some figures
ieie scratched under 1t and read II
d le. but I'm not sure"
No evidence that the men had at
tmned 10 barricade themselves from
ua BACK damp was seen. Many of the
Nlef workers In the mine protested
tHlly after they discovered that tho
lea would have been safe from the
ee.al gas had not tho ventilatng fan
ue mine been reversed shortly after
ne discovery OF fire.
lne announced intention Of the mine
.lcais 10 pump out the water in the
H"g leVel was baked By the refusal
ae maehlnists to aid them. Tn
pump had been disconnected near tho
o.a ieVel and machinists declined 70
"a 'neif lives In repairing the machin-
Robert shaw, a third member OF the
e,orns party finding the bodies. told
eaans piece " slate on which one
~ victims apparently had checked
TOTALS on the groups who clam
y. u, upon me ridge In their last stand
y him, was:
Inlfty more came IN. "A more IA
'gsl nv here now"
D.hss hgures hastily computed bv
NV indicated that The number cx-
el 100 men when the tally endcd.
shlhh Some Of the men had barrie
~. u themselves in pockets in the
$50. NJ pu' were driven 10 the ridge by
is5 's.is water said Shaw. "If th5y
49, az. sol out of the pockets they
sI,a nave been drowned ia them"
msr " ~ told of an attempt of the
ss5 70 20 euld a barrlcade at the west
N,,,g tne ridge 10 hold back In.
M, 1Sqi- -l'p. The wall was only few
sns.rass., however the builders having
l,ras'sy abandoned the attempt on