Fergus County Democrat., 1915-10-21

BUTTE, Oct l9.--Fourteen men
were killed at the Granite Mountain
mine of the North Butte Mining COM
pany at 1870 o'clock this afternoon
by an explosion of 800 pounds of giant
powder Eleven bodies have been re-
covered. Eight other men, all work
ing at the surface, were seriously in
jured; one of them, Ed. Bray, shift
boss, will die. The explosion was
heard in all parts of the city The
property loss at the mine was small
and will probably amount to less than
$1,000. The dead:
JAMES A. BLOW, aged, 90, assist
ant foreman.
J. d. LEAHY, aged "a.
GEORGE LARKIN, aged 20.
JOHN McCAULEY, aged 50.
JOHN WINSTON, aged 38, shift
boss.
LACEY GRIsHAM, shift boss,
aged 80.
ERNEST WATSON, aged, 80 shift
boss.
R. /. WATSON, a sampler
RICHARD GENDI.E. aged SO, cleo
trician.
ED. CARLSON, aged "a. top car
man.
PADDY MORRISSEY, shift boss.
WILLIAM BUTCHER, aged 80.
WILLIAM DENTON, aged 3S.
JAMES POWERS, aged 80.
The injured:
Peter II. Brown, carpenter; Edward
Bray, shift boss; William Valentine,
carpenter; Phileas Blanchett, miner;
A. j. Bruce, painter.
Bray had one side of his lungs
blown out. Another Of the injured
had his foot blown off, and without
taking an anaesthetic submitted to
the removing OF his leg.
Three top men were engaged early
this afternoon in lowering powder to
the 2,S00-foot level Powder is sent
day all the powder except one mine
carload had been lowered. One car
containing giant powder was at the
collar OF the shaft. This was to be
lowered, after which number Of
bosses and miners We're to go below.
Five of these men were waiting in
the dog house, small room near the
shaft. Davey, only one of the top
men to survive the explosion, left the
car to get a timber 100 feet back from
the shaft. He was the last man 10
see around the collar Of the shaft be-
fore the explosion. Davey says that
no one was near the powder except
Ed. Bray, boss, who stood about five
or six feet from the car. Davev heard
a terrific explosion and was blown to
the ground. He was not seriously in
jured.
No one could give any theory as to
the cause of the explosion. Ths blast
swept away the frame structure in
which the men were waiting at the
shaft, together with the airshafi be.
side the steel gallows frame. Two
painters were at work on this air.
shaft at the time of the explosion
Neither was killed but both we've in
jured, one sustaining broken .eg
The steel gallows frame was damaged
in places, one big steel support was
twisted. Windows at the Spectacu
lar mine, 800 yards away, were blown
out and other glass in the neighbor
Hood broken.
Many of the bodies were in frag
ments and were picked up in sheets
WOrkmen who We're searching the
timbers in the ruined dog house found
d dismembered leg. Others had found
the fragment of a skull on which d
portion of curly hair remained. Girls
ham was the only man at the tol
with curly hair. 1t is believed that
these fragments are all that is left
of his body.
. Robert Watson's body was found al
the bottom OF the shaft, $500 feet
below the surface. He had beer
blown into the shaft and dropped tt
the stump; only the hand remained
of the mass of mangled flesh to give
1t human senblance. A hundred ant
fifty feet away bloody glove will
two fingers in it was found fifty fee
away two men in an engine house
were killed.
John d. Pope, general manager o
the North Butte company, said thi
afternoon that he had no theory al
to the cause of the explosion.
ITO the best of my knowledge,
said Mr.. Pope, mo one was at the ca
Of powder when it exploded. Their
We're between 10 and 12 boxes of pow
der on the car when it went off. |
there were 10 boxes, that means tina
there were 500 pounds of giant pow
der
The last man at the car was Joh
Dayey, who tells me that when he lei
the car moment before the explt
sion no one was beside it. So far a
! know, no one had been careless i
handling this powder and, as | say
can not lay the blame on any one."
The accident will not retard wor
at the mine, the explosion damagin
only the "chippy" compartment, TIL
other two compartments being uni,
jured.