Denver labor bulletin., 1917-05-05
liz LIVES LOST
in HASTINGS MINE
CONTINUED from Page oneJ


President McLennan Visits Mine
President John McLennan of the
State Federation of Labor left Denver
Friday noon and devoted his efforts
toward giving relief to stricken fam
lilies of the victims. He returned to
Denver Tuesday and later went to
Hastings again to attend the funeral
of the 1T victims, which took place
in Trinidad. Hastings is near Lud-
low, the scene of that awful tragedy
on April 20, 1914.
In telling a Bulletin representative
of the awful disaster, President Nc
Lehman said:
"Words fail in describing the pic
ture of sorrow which prevails in the
little town of Hastings, with its 600
inhabitants and thruout the entire
southern coal region. The scene is
more horrible than a battlefield, for
here weeping women and children
gathered at the mine opening await
ing their dead and mangled husbands,
fathers and brothers to be brought
forth, and when the bodies We're laid
out in rows in the improvised morgue
in most instances it was impossible
to distinguish one from the other. This
only added to the grief of the stricken
families, for they were thus deprived
of mourning over their own dead"
Asked as to his opinion of the
cause for the explosion, McLennan
said:
''As yet I do not care to venture an
opinion on this subject. When l left
Hastings the investigation of the inner
workings had not progressed sufficient
ly to determine the exact cause. 1t
searching investigation to place the
fault where it properly belongs"
Lawson Big Figure.
John R. Lawson. former executive
board member for Colorado of the
United Mine Workers of America, left
for Hastings Immediately upon report
of the accident. He joined the rescue
parties and entered the mines in the
hope of bringing some of those en-
ployed out alive. Being an expert
miner and having worked in the
southern field, he was able to be of
valuable service When all chance
of rescuing any of the miners was
given up, Lawson made the rounds of
the little town, offering consolation to
the stricken families in their great
sorrow.
James Moran, acting president of
the district miners union, went down
from Pueblo to offer financial assist
ance to families of the victims. He
announced that President John p
White of the United Mine Workers
had wired from headquarters in In
dianapolis that $4,000 was available
in event that sum should be needed
to avert suffering of families of the
dead members of the union.
Compensation to be Paid.
G. F. Bartlett, president of the Vic
tor-American Fuel company, and w.
J. Murray, chairman of the company
board of directors, were early on the
scene to make an inspection and see
that everything possible was done to
aid the rescue work and afford relief
to those in need.
Representatives of the state indus
trial commission and of the insurance
company in which the company car
ried employers liability insurance ar
rived at Hastings, Sunday and began
a survey of the needs of the dead
mems families. Definite figures on
the amount of casualty insurance that
will be distributed are not available,
but unofficial estimates place the
amount at between $150,0O0 and
SITS 900
Under the Colorado compensation
law dependents residing here of those
killed will receive $4,000, dependents
IN foreign countries one third of this
amount, or 1888, while for single men
with no dependents, burial expenses
not to exceed 800 is paid. One wife
made widow while on shipboard en-
route to her husband at Hastings, will
raise fine legal question under the
law as to amount of compensation
she is entitled to.
Ship Carload of Collins.
carload of coffins was shipped
from Denver. AS the dead bodies
were brought to the surface they were
taken to the mine machine shop, which
was converted into morgue, and laid
single file to claim their dead. In
many instances the bodies were so
badly mangled and burned that iden-
tlfcation was impossible.
On the body of practically every
Greek miner brought to the surface
was found bag of money. 1t is the
custom of many foreign miners to
always carry their savings with them.
Sklros Pappalus, Greek, is one of
three cousins who were working in the
mine. He carried bag under his
left arm containing 81 300 in Amer
ican money, which represented his
savings of about three years. He had
expected to quit his job and start home
for Greece to end his days in com
fort in his native land and was put
ting in what was to have been next to
his last day of work. His body is
among those recovered. The money
was found intact.
Kneeling in Death Prayer.
Rescue crews have brought strange
stories of events underground. ave
found one man." said A. NJ. Lawrence,
an engineer who went in with the
helmet men, "on his knees in an atti-