Evening star., 1925-02-13
NEW TUNNEL FAILS
TO OREVEAL COLLINS;
F.. DIGGING RESUMED
Exploration of Lateral Crew.
ice DisCIoses 1t Does Not
Enter Cave Trap.
SHAFT MUST GO DOWN
70 FEET; NOW AT so
Passageway to Entombed Man May
Yet Be Discovered, Rescue
Officials Hope.
Bv the Associated Press,


CAVE CITY, Ky. February 13.-H.
T. Carmichael, in charge Of operations,
and other officials who went down
into the shaft being dug toward Sand
Cave, where Floyd Collins has been
imprisoned for two weeks, came out
of the shaft at l o'clock this after
noon and announced that the hope of
rescuing Collins through tunnel dis
covered in the shaft so feet down
would have to be abandoned. The
tunnel eXplora ton failed to disclose
a passageway.
Digging was resumed in the bot
tom of the shaft itself and Mr..
Carmichael said that it probably
would take two or three days to
reach the 70-foot level. where they
plan to begin lateral tunnels in an
effort to strike Sand Cave.
Hundreds Mt Scene.
Hopes OF the rescue of Collins to-
day through the new tunnel attract
ed hundreds of persons to the cave.
For time the crowd, including
newspapermen, were kept away from
the operations, but when the crevice
failed to develop anything passable
all were allowed to approach the
shaft again.
The failure of the high hopes raised
by finding OF this tunnel noticeably
discouraged the officials of the rescue
party, but digging as usual began
at once, in the hope of finding more
promising cavern. The drill hole in
the center of the shaft has gone to
20 feet without penetrating the lime
stone roof, but another more pene-
trable cavern may be discovered in
the side wall as was the one found
this morning.
Work Growing Harder.
The hours of exploration were tense
ones for the miners and spectators,
and when hopes faded again the
chances of extricating Collins alive
We're admittedly greatly reduced. The
70-foot level. if no promising crevices
are encountered on the way down,
will not be reached until Tuesday,
Mr.. Carmichael said, because of in-s
creasing difficulties being met. The
depth of the shaft from the low side
was 80 feet at l o'clock.
Carmichael admitted he still clung
to the hope that cavern or tunnel
will be uncovered again in the side
wall before the 70-foot level is
reached by the shaft.
Radio station 9BRk was installed
during the night by the Louisville
Post and Herald on the hill over
looking the rescue shaft. Its use
was rendered to the military author
tiles, although representatives of the
newspapers planned to use the radio
as one of their methods of sending
the news of Collins rescue to their
papers.
Exploration Is Begun.
Mr.. Carmichael and two miners, at
10 o'clock this morning, began ex-
poration of the tunnel.
The tunnel which the rescuers ex-
pected to lead to the cavern behind
Floyd Collins, was discovered on the
- left or northwest side Of the rescue
shaft early today.
The new tunnel as the mouth of it
was further cleared away was easily
large enough to accommodate a good
sized man.
The tunnel was discovered just un-
derneath a thick limestone ledge.
The use of rope sings around the
diggers, previously arranged for
when the koped-for tunnel was dis
closed, was found unnecessary. since
the tunnel appeared in the side wall
of the shaft underneath a heavy lime
stone ledge. The workmen at the
bottom of the shaft are standing on
a 1o-foot ledge of lime stone, so they
are in no danger of breaking through
into a cavern.
Hole Found at Night.
The hole was first discovered at
80 am. and Carmichael, in charge
of the shaft. and a doctor were
awakened. Meanwhile the diggers
had uncovered a hole which seemed
two or three feet high extending
downward at a rather sharp slope.
Their lamps were blown out by the
downdraft when they looked down
the hole.
The discovery of the new tunnel
was closely guarded. the miners re-
fusing to talk about it. The down.
draft had cleared out the thin fog
which had filled the shaft since the
cold snap. caused by the miners
breathing and the warmth of their
bodies.
The hole was found in the sidewall
at about the 50-foot mark, measuring
from the low side, or 90 feet, meas sur
ing from the high side of the shaft
away from the mouth of Sand Cave
In the original exploration of the dia-
mond-core drill, a few feet distant
from the shaft, soft spot was indi
Gated at 81 feet, and another such
soft spot was shown last night, fol-
lowed by at least 10 feet of limestone
The drill was boring further into this,
early this morning, when jthe top of
the new tunnel was uncovered. Drill
ing was stopped to concentrate on