Los Angeles herald., 1910-10-10
MINERS STRUGGLE
To FIND FRIENDS
Helmet Men Drag Their Painting
Companions from Damp in
StarkviIIe Shaft
FAN INSTALLATION FAILS
Officials of Fuel and Iron Com
pany at Loss to Explain
the Disaster
FAN INSTALLATION FAILS
Continued from Page One,

| known TO be in the mine twenty-elght
| Poles, three Russians, ten Americans
| four MeXicans and one SerVlan. Inc
| nationalities represented in the list OF
| the entombed were classified after a
careful house to house canvass of the
camp, made by a mine clerk and the
| town marshal.
! While this list only totals forty-siX
! the coroner says he is positive there
are ffty-two men inside the mine, and
explains the difference in figures by
saving the nationalties Of some of the
| men are not known, and no attempI
was made to classify them.
Some who are familiar with working
| conditions at the Starkville mine eX-
press the belief that the total number
| estimated by the coroner is too conser-
vative, 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
and sights surrounding explosions in
| mines, the residents of StarkVille in
most instances silently watched res
cuers as they entered the mine and as
| they were later dragged to the open air
for resuscitation. Tragic scenes usual
at the mouths Of mines where lives are
| lost by gas explosions were not in evil
dence.
| In addition to efforts made to enter
| the mine by the east, or new stope,
| experienced miners were sent into the
| Engleville mine which adjoins the
! Starkyille property. to dig through the
masonry wall built to separate the
mines when the workings ran together
several months ago. 1t was necessary
to use great care to make only a small
| opening at first SO foul air could be
checked and the men in the Engleville
mine be not endangered.
At p. m. word reached the camp
proper that a four-inch hole had been
bored through the wall and a test of
the air showed it TO be surprisingly
good. Orders were Immediately given
to enlarge the opening. and if the air
was found to be pure the men were to
go on through and proceed along the
cuts at Starkivlle mine as far as
safely permitted.
This information was followed by
news that the men who We're installing
the portable fan had been overcome
and barely escaped to the entrance of
the west portal with their lives. They
had penetrated 300 feet when they were
suddenly enveloped in black damp.
The helmet men. better able to cope
with the killing after damp, assisted
| their unprotected companions out of
the mine and resuscitated them.
CAUSE PUZZLES EXPERTS
The explosion practically destroyed
| the east or old stope of the Starkville
mine. It's origin is a mystery. The
mine has been classed as non gaseous,
and for this reason safety lamps were
thought unnecessary. 1t was also q
pick mine, no shot firing for the pur-
pose of dislodging coal being allowed.
Theories advanced, such as the pres
nf c9e ~
cOmbustible material, are not accepted
by officials of the Colorado Fuel and
Iron company as having caused the
explosion.
Although everything in the range of
human effort was done all today to
rescue the imprisoned men, the diff
Guilty of overcoming the spread of the
after damp told plainly upon the tenn
per Of the rescuers, who were Visibly
discouraged, but continued to work.
Among the missing men five of the
Americans are Tom Upperdine, aged
Is, has wife and two children; Lake
Upperdine, 50, wife and five children; ;
Fred Seppe, 21, single; Frank Greet,
10, single, and William Headquist, 20,
single.
The other missing men are Poles,
MeXicans, Russians, italians and Ser
vians. Most Of them have families.
1t was learned that the helmet men
had a narrow escape from death this
morning and were rescued by miners
who had no helmets The men had
entered the mine, and, failing to
emerge, a party entered ana found the
helmet men lying on the floor Of the
shortcut of the west entry, overcome
by gas. The helmets had become eX-
hausted.
The most plausible cause of the
tragedy yet secured was given by
State Mine Inspector J. D. Jones to-
night. He said the mine was inspected
by Inspector Frank Oberding three
months ago and found in excellent
condition, and that it had been worked
ever since its opening in 1892 with open
lamps because of the absence of gas.
He was of the opinion that the mine
was not properly sprinkled to keep
down the dust, and said he could aC-
count for the explosion in no other
way. He said that when inspected
three months ago the mine was no.
ticeably free from dust.
Inspector Jones reported that the
portable fan was working successfully,
driving air into the mine, and the fan
in the Engleville mine had been re-
versed and was now drawing bad air
through the hole made in the wall
dividing the two mines.
Some time tomorrow, according to
Jones, rescuers may be able to pene-
trate the uttermost parts Of the mine,
unless fallen walls are encountered
Mr. Jones thinks some of the men are
two and one-half miles from the
mouth of the mine, while the others
are thought to be about a mile and a
half away, close to the dividing wall.
These may be the first reached by the
rescuers. These men possibly are alive,
the inspector said, basiug his opinion
on the fact that pure air was found
near the wall when the hole was
broken through,