Year: 1879

The Terrific Heat that was Experienced in

 the Savage Mine, near Virginia City,

 New. by a Party.

 MT. E. R. Cleveland, of Bodie, New, and Virginia City Chroassc!e reporter accompanied Superintendent Gillette into the Savage mine to examine the great heat issuing from the levels lately drained of hot water While the party were waiting their turn to descend miner came up with nothing on but g pair ot overalls, shoes and hat, hisskin looking as though it had been parboiled. The superintendent inquired: 4e." "

 '' How are things getting on below ?"

 "Oh, very well, sir; heyry thing is hall right, but hit is very lot there now," an swered the man.

 In few minutes the party were rapid ly descending the shaft, which was so full of hot steam as to produce at first a feeling of suffocation. The steam comes up in binding volume, which increases in tenn perat'Ire until the landing place, 1900 feet from the surface, is reached. Here there is still much visible steam although the atmosphere feels dryer and hotter than any yet encountered. sense of horrible confinement from which there seems to be no escape and in which there must be a constant struggle to keep from falling exhausted seizes the visitor and is

  room, where the mouth of an air-pipe coming from the surface strikes him as 8 grateful blast from the North Pole. Without retreats of this kind the miners could not work at all. They are obliged to remain longer in the cOOling-rOOm than at the picks and shovels, so debili- tating is any eXertion in such q tenn perature.

 After attaining a comfortable condi- tiOn in the cooling the party entered the incline giraffe to go to the ?, 100 level, the part of the mine last drained. The iron sides of the giraffe were so bot that they could scarcely be touched without burning the flesh. The heat seemed to come fairly out of the rock on all sides, while a perceptible hot draft proceeded from the bottom of the incline. Each had large piece of ice in his hand to use on his pulse, arms, neck or to hold in proximity to his mouth whenever tine hot air appeared to burn the lungs when inhaled. Thus provided the giraffe was rung down. It descended rapidly until within about fifteen feet of the 2, 100 | level. The heat increased with every foot until the station was reached. Here it was so intense that all felt themselves wobbling when they rose to get out of the giraffe. An air-pipe close to the landing place furnished temporary relief, while a bucket of ice water near by was sought with greater eagerness than ever |. prominent citizen did the nearest bar room after nights spree. The way from the giraffe down to the 2,lO0 level was by a narrow ladder placed between the moving Cornish pump column on one side and a donkey pump on the other "a position from which, if one fell, he must be either killed outright or hOrri- bly mangled. The ice which the party started with had by this time all melted away in their hands.

 When the level was reached a stratum of heat was entered such as might come from hades itself The sensation was no longer that of general oppression, but of the danger of being absolutely burnt instead of the feeling extending through the whole body it was confined to the skin and the lungs, which seemed to be fairly scOrching. When the level was entered the breath for an instant was taken away. A nearly naked miner who saw the party going in cried out: Don't stay there a minute. It's too dangerous. J 1 His warning was unnecessary, for no sooner had all entered than one began to make his way out. The other at once | followed and lost no time in getting to the air-pipe and the ice-water few feet above in theincline.

 " You think this is hot" said miner who had come there for breath, but you ought 10 have been here before the blOw-pipe was put in"

 The drift connecting with the Hale X | Norcross on this level displays an inter esting phenomenon about midway be- | tween the two mines. The drift connects with the lightning drift. running to the l Com binatiOn shaft. at the Hale & Nor | cross incline. There is a strong current of cool air coming from the Combination shaft which meets the hot air of the Savage at the point mentioned. The re' suit is to convert the hot air into visible steam, which fills the drift for about fifty feet. The point of contact of the two currents is as clearly marked as it woulC be in the case of opposite colOrs joined together. The temperature is equally distinct. In distance oftwenty feet ont passes out of an oppressive hot atmos phere to a comfortably cool one, or vice | versa.

 The exact temperature of the heated portions of the mines described has no been ascertained since the late increase O temperature but the water is said to b. about I50 degrees Fahrenheit. The effec upon the visitor is to so thoI Oughly hea him that when he reaches the surface where before he descended he was sweat ing in the heat of the day, he feel as though he had suddenly been trans ported to the regions of frost and snow Cold shower after shower is scarcel, sufficient to cool the body. It takes a least half an hour and the application o floods OfcOld water to reduce the temper ature to a normal condition, after which however, one feels more vigorous thai before.