Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1910-10-10

idly and a sudden rush Of gas, over
whelm the men operating the ma
chine and snuff out their lives.
A touching feature Of the rescu'
work was the self-sacrifice and de
| yotion to duty of James Wilson, SUI
perintendent OF the Starkville mine
| who left sick bed to lead the mer
I VINO volunteered TO face ne deadly
| black damp to rescue their cor 'ades
Superintendent Wilson finally vas
overcome by the eXertion which e d
! his weakened strength and 81
unconscious was forced to s. uI
/ and take 60 his bed again.
As he left the portal of the mine
| Superintendent Wilson said to those
! who followed him out that he would
| be ready to resume charge of the
| rescue work tonight.
| According to q statement given out
| officially BY the coroner, there are
! known to be in the mine twenty eight
| Poles. three Russians ten Americans,
| four Maxcans and ono Servian. These
! nationalities represented in the list
! Of the entombed were classified after
4 carrful l.uttss to i@Hse 'canvHss Of
| the camp made by two men well ac-
quainted with the inhabitants one
| being Il mine clerk and the other the
town marshal.
While this list only totals forty six,
the coroner says that he is positive
that there are fifty-one men in the
mine, and explains the difference in
figures by saying that the nationali-
ties of some of the men believed TO
be among the missing are not known
and no attempt was made TO classify
them.
There are some who are more or
less familiar with the working condi
tiOns at the StarkVille mine who ex
press the belief that the total num-
Der estimated by the coroner is too
conservative, and they freely state
their opinions TO be that when the
list is completed it will number
nearer eighty than fifty.
Hardened by previous experiences
of explosions in mines, the residents
OF Starkyille, In most instances, 81
lently watched reScuers enter and
lave the mine, many To be overcome
and dragged to the open air for re-
sustication None Of the scenes fire.
quently Witnessed at the mouth Of
the mines were in evidence. How
ever. crowds Of men and women and
children watched the coming and GO
ing Of the helmet men and com
mented upon the evident impossibility
III any "a lllt Hltl Ahl WI III Atit ilttttR
having survived the suffocating gases
In addition To efforts made to enter
the mine by the east, or new slope,
experienced miners We're sent into the
Engleyille mine, which adjoins the
Starkville property, To dig through
tho masonry wall built to separate
the mines when the workings ran to-
gether several months ago II vas
necessary to use the greatest care
and only q small opening was made
at the beginning SO that foul mir
from the Starkville mine could be
checked without endangering the lives
of the men in the Engleville mine.
At 6 o'clock word reached the camp
proper that two-inch hole had been
bored through the wall and test of
the air showed 1t to he surprisingly !
good orders were immediately
given to enlarge the opening and II !
the air was found 20 be pure. the
men were to go on through and |
proceed along the crosscuts of the |
Starkvuc mine as far as safety per- |
mitted.
This information was followed by |
news that the men who were install |
ing the fan. which was to take the !
place of the two fans wrecked by the |
explosion had been overcome and /
barely escaped to the entrance Of the /
west portal with their lives. They |
had only penetrated 300 Ieet when
they were suddenly euvelopcd IN
black damn
The helmet men better able 10 cope
with the killing after-damp, hurried
those who were unprotected with
these devices out of the mine and
with the usc of emergency methods
revived them sufficiently to permit
their removal 20 places where they
could regain their strength.
The origin of the explosion, which
destroyed the east slope
N the Starkville mine il e. mystery. I
The mine has always been ciassod az
non gaseous and for this reason
safety lamps were not believed neces-
sary TO the equipment of the miners.
IL is also what is known as pick
mine. no shot firing 10 disiodge the
,oai being allowed.
Many theories are advanced. such
rs the presence of gas pockets dust
'nd other comhustibie material. but
lone of these are accepted hy the Of
'iclais OF the Colorado Fuel and Iron
company as having caused the awful
blast that wrecked the mine and
Ocked nfty-one men within its walls.