Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1911-09-16
THREE N|UT|LATED
. By AN EXPLOSION
CIGARETTES MAY COST MEN
THEIR LIVES.
SKIN Resembles SIEVES
Dynamite Ilurls Workmcn Twenty
T., Feet and Mangics Bodies
Z Had Been Warncrd.

II took a half-can Of blasting pow
Der and about eighteen sticks Of dyn-
smite-along with a liGhted cigarette
about the time 1t takes to bat an
eve. to put George Martin, Al Clark
and Mel Davis in shape for the hos
bital yesterday shortly after the noon
hour.
Il The accident occurred about ten
miles west Of Tulsa, and about two
miles west Of Fisher, an uninhabited
station on the A. V. & w. railway
The three men were engaged In
road work, and had just repaired Ia
the working ground at the time
driving out wagon. The vehicle
was left standing on top Of a hill,
upon the side of which blasting was
to be done among the rocks. The
dynamite and powder We're carried
back down the new roadway being
cut mp the hill, and deposited be-
meath a tree at the roadside.
( Several other prosous were nearby
at the time. A few minutes before
the explosion, Guy Crawford, a young
man, came riding by on horseback.
He noticed the open powder keg
standing near where the men were
smoking
Boys If I were you I'd cut out
that smoking around that powder, "
he remarked to them.
"Well, we've been smoking right
along so far and nothing has gone
emiSs, so there's no need Of getting
scared" returned one of the trio, who
was minute later entirely denuded
and blown a distance of twenty feet.
That's all right, too" calculated
Crawford, but it doesn't look any too
hppetizng to me. think I'll blow
down the road"
Crawford had ridden about two
hundred yards when he heard ter
rifle explosion. He galloped back up
the hill expecting to find flesh strewn
all over the road. Instead. he found
three men entirely naked. badly
burned, bleeding profusely and writh-
ing on the soft soil from pain.
Lighted sparks from a cigarette
had fallen into the opened powder
.keg and ignited It. The flames from
the powder quickly reached the dyn-
amite caps, and as Davis. Clark and
Martin had just turned on their heels
10 seek a place Of safety, the dyna-
mite exploded. hurting all OF them a
score Of feet away.
! or the three men. Davis suffered
the worst injuries. Not a vestige Of
clothing was left on his body. One
of his ear drums was bursted and
the bone Of his left leg below the
knee was partially laid bare, the
muscles having been torn almost into
shreds and the leg badly scared from
burns, supposed to have been caused
by burning particles Of cloth sticking
to the flesh.
outside OF the foregoing the chief
est other injury received was scalp
wound, occasioned by his head hav-
ing come In contact with a rock
when he fell after having been blown
Into the air, However, there is scarce
ily any point Of his body upon which
a finger point may be laid but which
broken in perhaps two hundred places
where pebbles and CRIME was driven
through 1t and into the flesh His
face suffered as severely as the rest
Of his body. but 1t is not thought that
his eyesight has been damaged. al
though pebbles literally riddled this
part Of his body as well as the rest
OF it.
Martin and Clark suffered some
what less severely. They were also
destitute of clothing following the ex-
plosion. and were hurled similar
distance by its force. Martins left
leg was badly torn below the knee,
this injury being similar TO that suf-
fered by Davis, but not to such a
great extent. His burns were only OF
a minor nature. A steel drill about ten
feet by the shock. nded on his right
temple and made a severe scalp
wound
Clark came out of the mix-up in
better shape than either Of his com
panions, but both he and Martin
have more cuts upon their bodies
than has Davis. Chips Of rock, bits
OF wood and particles of dirt pep
pered their way through the skin
from every angle, and their hides look
mre like a seive than anything else.
That either of the three ESCAPED
with their lives is miraculous thing.
Moreover, it is more remarkable that
Martin and Clark were able, within
a half hours time. to walk to a near
by house, from which they were taxi
Ell to the station at Fisher. They
were there placed on a local freight
train and brought to the Tulsa hos
pital.
Davis was partly unconscious fol-
lowing the explosion. and ii was
thought best to not attempt to move
him at that time DR.. Clinton and
nurses rushed to the scene of the ac-
cident and after Davis received pre-
liminary treatment he was brought
TO the hospital on the evening pas
senger train.
Word from the hospital last night
indicated that natria would bo,.o 4,