Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1911-12-10
EVERY EFFORT PUT Forth
LITTLE TENNESSEE TOWN GATH
ERs A WEEPING MASS ABOUT
MOUTH OF NINE.
women HOPE AGAINST HOPE
Carload of COffins Ordered-Two
MangIed BODIES Recovered
Cause Problematical.

BRICEVILLE, TENN, Dec. o.
That every miner of the number who
walked into the Cross Mountain mine
at Briceville this morning met death
in dust explosion which occurred In
one hour after they had started work.
is a foregone conclusion at midnight
tonight. Although rescuers have been
at work for hours and every known
piece of apparatus in the mine rescue
service has been put to use, there Is
little doubt that every man Is dead.
The force Of the explosion was ter
rifle, and the hope that any one
could survive such a shock Is beyond
bsHef. Between 1875 and 1856 men
checked in this morning. The books
of the company are not available as
to the exact number.
Grief Is Hcartrending.
At midnight the mouth of the mine
was thronged with the relatives and
friends of the entombed men. Several
women are among the watchers, and
their grief is heart rending.
The Knoxville Iron company, own
ers Of the mine, have abandoned hope
of finding anyone alive, and tonight
wired Knoxville to send car load
of coffins.
TO add to the gravity of the stu
alton, there is a flood famine In the
stricken little town, owing to the
great influx of people. Supplies will
be rushed to the scene in the morn
ing.
Rescuers Encounter Hardships
Rescue workers report that they
have encountered dense and compact
deposit OF slate, earth, rock and coal
I'm the main shaft of the mine, and
also In an abandoned entry, which
has been used for an air shaft. A
vertical air ventilator leading to the
top of the mountain Is now being In
yestigated in the hope Of reaching
the ilI-fated men, and fires have been
built about the mouth of the shaft
TO create circulation of air from
within the mine IL possible. Rescu-
ers are engaged in digging the debris
from the shafts, and this must be re-
moved about one mile to the mouth
determine where this blockading of
the entry will end.
Serious Explosion Indicated.
The greater this cavein the more
difficult will be the rescue and further
delay will beset the work of reaching
the entombed men. Wood posts and
trusses In the shaft have been blown
outward, and this, miners state is in
dicatlve of a serious explosion beyond.
Brattlces are now being constructed
by means of which the air is being
forced into the channel as fast as it
Is possible to remove the debris. A
statement made this afternoon by an
official of the United Mine Workers
union Is that twenty-seven men were
I'm the mine at the time of the acci-
dent. OF this, the Knoxville Iron
company declines to make any state
ment whatsoever.
Theories As to Cause.
There are three forces as to cause
of the explosion. One theory is that
In some manner powder or dust ex-
ploded. The second is that an electric
wire came in contact with explosives.
and the third is that the explosion
was caused by poor lamping of drill.
The mining was inspected Friday
of last week by j. l.. Haymaker who
has charge of mines for years. He
stayed in the mine nearly all of Fri
day night. He claims that there was
no trace Of gasses in the mine when
he emerged.
Usual Dream I'm Evidence.
Hugh Laure miner employed in
the Cross mountain mine believes he
owes his life to dream his wife had
last night.
Mrs. Laure said that last night she
dreamed she saw scores of miners
with their heads blown off being
carried out of the mine entrance.
! That she and her little children, and
she has several, stood at the mine
mouth watching the bodies as they
were being carried out. She said
despite the fact that he had not missed
a day from his work for many months
he was prevailed upon today to re-
main out Of the mines. 1t was only
n short time after Mrs Laure recited
her story until the explosion was an
nounced. With tears Of Joy streaming
down her face she embraced her hus-