The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1912-05-14

=
located at McCurtain, in Haskell
county, Oklahoma, which was the
mcst destructive on human life, when
we consider the small damage done
to property. While the explosion
snuffed out the lives OF seNenty-three
men the bodies have been recovered.
The damage to the property was
hardly noticeable, the state law OF
Oklahoma makes it the duty OF the
management of all mines generating
gas, or commonly known as fire
damp, to employ fire bosses TO eN-
anime the mines carefully before the
miners enter the mines (See Sec. l.,
Art. t, Senate Bill 26J No. Mine
which is operated as "A slope mine,
the coal dips at about an average OF
ten degrees, the slope is driven down
this dip for the distance of about
1000 feet. When the dip of the
coal takes a turn at almost right
angles to the main slope and another
slope is driven on this dip for the
distance of about 1000 feet, the
rope on the small slope is operated
through a drill hole to the surface,
where an engine pulls up the coal
cars from the lower slope and is
then taken over by the big slope
rope at the parting which is located
at point between the ninth and
tenth Eft, the mine is ventilated by
an eight-foot fan, Capell make, which
was throwing out about $4,000 cubic
feet OF air into the mine which was
sufficient to ventilate the mine, if
it was properly distributed. The mine
has been in operation about nine
years and has been known as a dan
gerous mine, as it has exploded be-
fore this, which makes about the
seventh explosion that has occurred
since this mine has been in opera
ton, causing the loss of life each
time. Accordingly the mine which is
described above, consists of two
sides, the North and South side. The
company employed two fire bosses,
John Kokoske on the north side and
Frank Croks on the South side to
examine the mines.
The date of the accident the fire
bosses report book shows that Frank
Crook discovered gas in the eleventh
South top entry and in room twenty.
five of the eleventh South entry
room twenty-five being close TO the
teen, twelfth South top entry, and in
the eleventh South stub entry. Al
this mine, as in other mines, where
the ventilation is carried to the
face of the entries from the last
cross-cuts by brattice cloth, this
cloth is usually torn down when
the shots are fired at night and coi.-
sequently the ventilation is disar-
ranged. II is the duty of the mine
management to restore the ventila-
ton before the men 30 into the mlne
in the morning. On the date of the
explosion it was evident that the
fire boss, Frank Crook, did not have
time to do this before the time for
the men TO enter the mine at I:3O
a. m, and he took chance to re-
store the ventilation after the men
were in the mine, as their bodies
were found on the eleventh South
entry with their coats and dinner
pals in their hands. mute evidence
that they were told by the fire boss
TO stay out on the entry until he
would drive out little gas that
was standing at the face of the en-
try, and either lit it himself, or
drove it out with the mine air to
room . where some men We're load
Ing a car and probably lit it, Fear
of losing his Job. or either hc under
estimated the amount of gas in the
places and allowed those poor men,
who placed implicit confidence in
his Judgment, to enter the mine,
when he should nave put dead
line on the mouth of the slope and
proceeded to make the mine safe,
as the law directs. There is no doubt
but what the initial point of the ey.
plosion was on the eleventh South
entry. as the canvass used for brat
tees was charred to crisp and the
bodies We're badly burned. The fire
came out through the room cross
cuts and crossed the slope and EN-
tered the eleventh North enuy abaE.
doned which was connected with the
twelfth North entry by rooms which
had been driven up. There was evil
y,l J.,