The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1915-03-08
N|NERSRESCUED
FROM TONB'0VE
LIVES TO.H HEROES
Cool-headed, Persuade Men
to Brattice Themselves
in Entry.
THOSE DIS0BEYING DIED
PASSED THE FOUR DAYS PRAY.
ING, SINGING AND
SLEEPING.

THTRMoNT. w. Va, March s.
The experiences OF AZ miners who
were entombed In the earth for four
days and nights in the Layland mine
and then rescued after nearly all
hopes had been abandoned OF ever
being brought out alive, is being told
today by the ones who have recovered
sufficiently to leave the hospital.
The first survivors who walked out
OF the mine explained that they had
kept themselves alive by bratticing
themselves in an entry. This was
done just as soon as 1t was discovered
that there had been an explosion and
there was no hope OF getting to the
entrance without being caught by
the afterdamp.
The warnings OF the cool headed
miners in most instances were
I.obeyed. Where they were not the
dead bodies were found by the res.
cuers.
ln broken English one OF tho Ital.
ian survivors explained that after
hearing the explosion they immediate.
ly, procured cloth, such as Is used for
ordinary brattice work, placed it
across tho left entrance and rushed
oil men nearby into it. Then tearing
small hole in the center OF the cloth
one Of the men was kept stationed at
the opening TO smell the grease" BY
that the miners understood the air
was foul and unsafe to enter. When
the. big fan had driven the fresh air
back through the main entry, OFF from
which these miners had hratticed
themselves, the watchers failed to de-
tect grease" and five of the party
left their barricade and walked out
through the long main entrance, pass.
ing the rescuers along the way, and
turned the mourners watching for the
dead on the outside into a crowd OF
joyous shouters. d
A casket for each entombed miner
was waiting for its claimant. In many
instances graves had been dug to
bury the men now known to be, alive.
Heroes in the Mine.
To Sam Morici. who induced the
miners to barricadc themselves In the
entry, following noise which they at
the time construed to be a fall OF slate
some place. and Hugh Mcmillan and
John Whalen belong the credit for
great heroism. To these two more
than any others, the AZ men found
alive in No: 10 left entry owe their
lives. Both are experienced men and
knew that II every precaution was
taken they in time would be reached
by rescuing parties.
They. like those who went into the
entry 500 feet away, had heard a
noise which they thought was fall
OF slate or roof, but when they dis.
covered the air was getting bad, rea'
lized that all possible haste must be
made to get out Of the way OF the
foul air.
Urging, pleading and in some in.
stances force was necessary to make
some OF the men realize that time
meant life. Some could not be per.
suaded to rush into the entry and
block 1t off with plank. These will
occupy graves, some on the mountain
top. others at various points where in.
tered by relatives. Nor would Nc.
MILAN aud Whalen have been as sue.
cessful as they were had 1t not been
for Sam Morici, who wrote on boards
III Italian and stood the boards along
the entry and in front OF entries nine
and ten, the words. Come quick"
Those Disobeyins Are Dead.
These words we're the final per.
suaders In number OF instances
where the Italians and other foreign.
ers could not understand what the
Americans meant. Only few !of
these who declined to obey the--ad.
monition of the cool.headed self.
constituted leaders and started TO
wend their way out through the main
entry turned back, aud some OF these
who even started and turned back,
reached either Of the two places Of
safety, but every one who continued
on the journey to the outside soon fell
victim TO the after.damp. either In
the main entry or some unprotected
working place, where they fell into
peaceful sleep from which they
never recovered. There were no signs
that any OF them even struggled.
After the entombed men had con.
sumed the food and water in their
dinner pals they ate the bark from
the mine posts and then the posts.
When asked about the scenes when
they reached the entry with the large
number of men, Chief Of the Depart
ment OF Mines Henry said: { "You
hand back to a man his life after he
thinks he has lost 1t and can gradually
feel it ebbing away. and you have
some idea of'how these men felt when
we reached their entry"
The men fell upon the rescuers,
hugging and kissing them, and then
were taken to the company's building
and furnished warm food and cloth.
ing and cared for by physicians and
nurses, provided by the company.
While it Is not believed there are
any more alive in the mines the work
Of examining every working place In
the three mines is going on! i
An indication OF how the entombed
men felt before the rescuing party
located them may be cleaned from q
letter by Hugh Mcmillan TO whom the
survivors owe much for his self-con-
stituted leadership. On a scrap OF