The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1928-05-25

Mather, Pa, May 20.-With rescue
crews striving to reach the bodies of
miners still entombed in the Mather
coal mine, where an explosion late
Saturday brought known death to SO
workers and uncertain fate to some
ITO others, residents of this village
prepared to forego sleep a second
night.
No bodies had been brought from
the workings since shortly before 9
o'clock and mine rescue experts had
definitely given up hope for those
workers still trapped behind piles of
slate and coal.
Families of the Mather employees
as yet unaccounted for, displayed no
trace of anxiety which must be theirs,
but with the stoicism that is the heri-
tage of miners kin, kept dry-eyed
vigil with each other at their homes
congregated at street corners, or at
the meeting hall that is part of every
mining village
100 Miners Underground
1t is impossible to determine the
exact number of men in the mine
when the death dealing blast swept
all before it. The explosion same Just
as the day men were about to leave
the workings and the night men were
inside prepared to take up their tasks.
Unofficial checkups showed that 100
miners were underground at the time.
OF that number 120 were listed as
missing, 26 known dead, lii a hos
pltal In Waynesburg in critical copdi-
ton and 8 escaped.
Mather, Pa, May 19.-Reports that
the bodies of 20 miners had been To-
Gated by rescuers in the Mather mine
which was swept by an explosion late
Saturday. were brought to the sur
face Saturday night by J. H. Evans,
general superintendent. He said that
the rescuers had found 20 bodies in
the main entry a half mile in the
workings.
Shortly after the explosion rocked
the district the mine telephone in a
shed near the shaft tinkled. This line
carried word to the surface from the
living tomb. Tom Callaghan, veteran
miner, was on the inside end. He said:
have 10 men with me. We are
Drattlced In my little coop some 5000
feet back. We are getting some good
air but we don't know how LONG if will
last. Hurry"
The scene about the mine month
was one of utter confusion. The en-
tire population of the village rushed
out as they felt the quake. KNOWING
the ways OF mines they understood,
teallzing that an explosion had swept
the mine and endangered their kin.
Inc mine officials said they did not
Know how many men were entombed.
A check of the tag board at the shaft
entry showed 155 men were inside but
miners pointed out that it was not a
definite check, many men going to
work IN hurry and forgetting to
hand out their tags.
Stricken by Gas
rive other miners, four of them
stricken by gas, were brought to the
surface by rescue crews and rushed
TO Waynesburg hospital.
The shaft, $50 feet deep. was MART
~ blocked by cave-in, as was the
man tunnel. One rescue crew suc-
Sceeded IN reaching a point 5000 feet
pack where their progress was halted
Dy gas and a series of cave ms. Re-
ports were that the mine was on fire
far back in the workings.
The five men who were rescued had
just entered the mine. They uera
lowered in the cage to the main entry
AS they stepped from the elevator .
gust OF wind gave warning of the
coming explosion. Then came the
shock OF the blast. Luckily they were
near the bottom of the shaft and the
Irst rescue crew brought them out.