El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1912-04-25

it came up to their thighs, then to their
.Oh, save me, George" cried the
young lad, and the leader Of the party
played a fathers part for him As yet
they did not guess that the boys tath-
err and brother had long since been oy-
erwhelmed and drowned by the sudden
thrush. Holding him close, the Dig
pltman battled TO the door and hurled
! himself against il. It did not bulge
Together, lads" he cried
Again and again the men flung all
! their weight against the door. but they
could not move it. Thousands Of tons
of water were piled high in the outer
workings, and such weight as that no
human power could shift II was well
for them that their puny efforts were
unavailing. since but for that door
they would have been drowned al
ready Higher the water rose, and
compelled them to retreat up the slop-
ing level to the highest point in Nor
gan's stall There, win their backs
10 a wall of solid coal, which cut Oft
further retreat they stood and watched
che curling waves leap ever nearer ana
nearer
The water has burst in from the
ola Cymmer workings. It viii rise and
till all TyneWydd is flooded, they said,
in tones Of dull despair. to one an
other We are doomed men."
By now the door was completely COW
cred, and the water swirled round their
feet in the high place to which they
had retreated Yet ever on IL came,
like the rising tide, breaking in great
waves over them When IT reached to
their waists they gave themselves up
for dead Yet neither a lament nor a
curse escaped them With simple
piety they Joined their voices in a IA
VOrite Welsh hymn, the boys sweet
treble leading Higher rose the wa
ter. until # touched the little boys
chin, yet still Unfalteringly he sang:
Friend He is in Jordan's river.
Holds above the wave my head;
With His smile I'll go rejoicing
Through the regions OF the dead"
Never did men face death more
DObly. Hands clasped in hands. they
awaited the end unflinchinglyi yet I
strange to say. IL did not come Sud
denly the raging flood was stilled. Its
surface grew smoother and yet more
smooth, until II looked like glass It
seemed to the men as If a miracle had Z
happened, but there was a scientific I
explanation OF the mystery. a great [
deal Of air had been imprisoned in the I
level and driven back by the Onrush- /
ing water until IL was all packed into Z
the upper part Of Morgan's stall The /
air which the party breathed was as /
tightly compressed as that within a /
diving bell; it was this which kept the I
water back
As soon as they comprehended their /
good fortune, the men felt about them, !
and found a coal tram, into which they
climbed and huddled together for /
behind. The total space between the /
top OF the tram and the roof above
their heads amounted to only p inches.
None of them had so much as a bite
Of food in his possession, and yet
knowing as they did the capabilities OF |
the cOlliery's pumping plant, they
were aware that weeks must elapse be-
fore the water could be sufficiently |
reduced to let them walk out from [
their cramped prison Theirs must
have been faith indeed il they believed /
2 He~ 4 cHHr
came.
Meanwhile. a rescue-party was al
ready at work. Crawling dOwnwards
from an upper level through a mar
row opening in the seam, $50 feet
long. but only IS inches high, the res
cue-party reached. point above Nor
sans stall, but separated from It by
ia feet Of solid rock and coal When
Ii become known that to reach their
antOmbed mates the rescuers would
have 20 excavate a shaft Of that depth
most people lost all hope, but not so
the gallant rescuers. Knowing TO an
ounce their own strength, they be- (
ieved they were confident Of succeed
ng in their almost superhuman task
Because the seam slOped sharply I
jOWnwa rds, every piece OF coal hewn Z
but had 10 be lifted and drawn away
up the long, shallow passage Yet,
though they worked under eXtraOrdin-
airy difficulties, the rescuers swung
their picks as they had never done
before.
because the seam SAoptu Sharply
lownwards. every piece of coal hew1
out had to be lifted and drawn away
up the long, shallow passage Yet,
though they worked under eXtraOrdin- /
airy difficulties, the rescuers swung
their picks as they had never done
before
Working I'm pairs. the miners sue
-eeded one another in shifts of three /
hours each. toiIing so hard that by the
end Of that time their strength was
utterly exhausted. Day and night the
work never ceased. After a week had
,assed there was hardly a man in
'y ales who believed that the entOmbed 1
victims could still survive but the T
would be rescuers refused to despair.
nd when the tenth day dawned, less |
through
Before the last stage was essayei !
dr. Wales H N. inspector of m mes. ]
made il quite clear what perils would | /
ave to be faced Behind that wall of
ock the compressed air had all the /
eadly power of dynamite In another I /
art Of the pit during the course Of
imilar rescue nine days earlier. one / /
no. in, ]