Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1909-11-24
THE ILLINOIS NINE HORROR.
Work of Recovering Bodies Pro-
crosses SlOwly-Some Still Alive.

conquered. After an all-night battle
in clearing the shafts of the uvrning
mine, three bodies, the first recover
ed through the main shaft, we're
brought to the surface at s O'Clock
this morning. ....aa.. ...
Inspectors and geological experts,
while penetrating the dismal depths,
fighting the smouldering fire in the
coal veins, caught sight of piles of
other charred bodies, but their pas
sage was hampered by fire.
Bodies i'm Piles.
At o'clock this morning a group
of miners and railroad men entered
the mine, working without oxygen
helmets, but there was no suffering
from noXious gases. Struggling
through the dark tomb, the firemen
discovered in the second vein a pile
OF bodies, from which three were re-
covered.
The east portion of the gallery,
where the fire originated, Is badly
caved in. The west portion Is still
atire, but firemen with hose got
within 80 feet OF the vein.
Checking the Fire.
Fireman O'Connor and many other
firemen from Chicago, fighting the
underS round flames, emerged from
the main shaft declaring that they
believed that the fire would be en-
tinguished before many hours. They
saw many piles Of human bodies bur
led in the wreckage of the gallery
running from the main shaft to the
air vent. They also saw bodies lying
in heaps in the west vein, where the
fire is still raging.
Mine Inspector Taylor, who yester-
day declared that he would enter the
mine or die in the attempt, spent the
night in the mine, and gave n grue-
some account of the piles of human
bodies sighted, but impossible to
reach. He sent workmen into the
mine to repair the east vein, the ap-
proach timbers having burned.
Another body of volunteers was
sent later to-day into the mines. On
the second trip Of the cage, four
other bodies, one that Of boy. were
brought to the surface. An ambu-
lance, guarded by militiamen, was
followed by crowds to the town hall,
temporary morgue.
Here scores Of grief-stricken, sob
bing widows sought to identify the
bodies as their own husbands, but
identification difficult. s. ...
Crowds Of grief-stricken men, wo-
men and children formed a great cir
Gle about the bodies brought from
the mines. Many turned away, una
bic to bear the cries of the bereaved
wives and mothers. Three bodies
were identified. The condition of the
bodies recovered indicates that the
men died from suffocation the first
day of Imprisonment.
Fire Again Rctards Work.
Cherry, H., Nov. 20.-At mid
night a small fire broke out in the
mine, cutting off the rescue work
Fire apparatus had to,be lowered and
stream of water turned into the
mine. 1t is feared, if the fire is not
eXtinguished shortly, many of the
men supposed to be alive will per-.
ish. The fire appeared to be spread
ing and the heat grew more intense.
X. E. Maxwell, mining engineer in
the rescue party, was overcome and
had to be hurriedly brought to the
surface. ...h .... '
The gamut from deepest despair to
an hysteria OF hope was run here to-
day when 20 miners, entombed in the
the hour, were brought to the sur
face alive. r@'.< #t
The story of their suffering and
the heroism of their resourceful lead
ers is one of the most thrilling in all
the black mystery of mining disas-
ters. If. '.'. -.
Dawn broke with the bearers of
stretchers moving from the pit
mouth to the tent which served as
morgue, with bodies swollen and
scorched almost beyond human sem
blance. Forty OF them had been
brought up and most OF them iden-
titled when the marvellous report
shot through the PROSTATE commu-
nifty, They've found them alive!"
In moment the morgue was de-
serted, scarcely to be revisited while
the crowd, fairly insane with The
great hope which had sprung like a
miraculous flame from the ashes OF
despair, rushed to the pit.
All thought was of the men who
were alive. 1t took six hours to
bring the survivors to the surface.
There are other resourceful lead
ers among the missing, and they
IKE waite Clelland and others, may
nave led their men to comparative
safety said States Attorney M. l..
Renert tonight. "The search is now
for the living"
EntOmbed Miners Held Service.
Cherry, H., Nov. 21.--From sur.
vivors who were seen, the highest
praise for fortitude and leadership Is
accorded William Clelland. Twice
daily Clelland, who Is staunch
churchman, conducted religious SER
vices, his fayorite hymn, the words OF
which even some of the foreigners
MI a1 Art, -