city and died when the train reached the West Pennsylvania station in Allegheny. His body was brought to the hospital along with the other injured.
Fifty Men at Work.
A rescue party of 50 men has entered the shaft and is working hard to reach the imprisoned men. It is feared, however, that they cannot be reached before they will have been suffocated. The mine was gaseous at all times, but was never considered absolutely dangerous. Many of the imprisoned men are foreigners and their names are unknown.
(from "The Fort Wayne News," Fort Wayne, Indiana, Jan. 25, 1904.)
NO HOPE FOR MINERS.
Not One of the 200 Men Entombed is New Alive.
RESCUE PARTIES PERISHED.
Brave Men Urged On by Scenes at Mouth of the Shaft Die in an Attempt to Save Lives of the Unfortunates Below.
PITTSBURG, Jan. 26. -- The mysteries of one of the most dreadful mining catastrophes in the history of Pennsylvania, or of the world, for that matter, are yet unsolved Harwick mine, at Cheswick, has not given up its secret or its dead.
Nearly Two Hundred Dead.
It can be reliably stated that between 180 and 190 miners were in the pit when the dread fire-damp ignited, blowing the cages clear out of the shafts and burying the inmates. Of these miners but two have come out, one dead and one half dead from injuries and effects of the deadly after damp. Even the rescuing parties have not escaped, and SELWYN M. TAYLOR, the eminent mining engineer of this city, who platted the mine and led the rescuers into the dark depth, is lying dead, while his companions escaped with their lives only with the greatest difficulty. The work of attempted rescue was signalized by instances of the greatest bravery, and the scenes around the pit mouth are tragic in the extreme.
An Inspector's Statement.
A long distance telephone message from Cheswick, received in Pittsburg at 5 a. m., says: F. W. CUNNINGHAM, mining inspector of the fourteenth district, came out of the Harwick mine of the Allegheny Coal company this morning and stated that he had gone about one-fourth of a mile from the mouth of the pit, and did not think there were any living persons in the mine. He went into the left wing between the sixth and seventh headings and saw several dead mules, a number of demolished cars and about sixteen dead men. He said he thought the great majority of the men met death through the after-damp.
Must Remove Obstruction.
Investigation between the sixth and seventh headings was abandoned when Inspector CUNNINGHAM came to a big cave-in that could not be passed. Until this obstruction is removed there will be no means of discovering what may be the conditions in a large part of the mine. Several men were placed at work removing the obstruction and the work of rescue was abandoned until daybreak. The fans are all working in the mine, but at one of the cave-ins it was impossible to pump the air in properly. The water pipes of the mine are all blown in and the mine was left dry, and there will be no danger from a flood.
Scenes Are Heartrending.
Scenes at the shaft, where all the life and hope of many spectators was centered, were pathetic. These heartrending scenes are what inspire brave men to noble deeds. The saddened sights influenced Selwyn M. Taylor, the distinguished and wealthy mining engineer of Pittsburg, with three others, to descent to the bottom in a bucket. He was reported to be dead an hour after he made the descent, and in the early hours of this morning his lifeless body was hoisted to the surface, placed upon a stretcher and carried to the village school house, that had been arranged as a hospital, but will doubtless serve as a morgue. It is not now thought that the services of physicians or nurses will be required in connection with this horror.
Rescuer's Narrow Escape.
Mr. Taylor's companions narrowly escaped a fate similar to his. Selwyn Taylor was one of the best known mining engineers of western Pennsylvania. Of late years his work and investments had brought him rich returns and he was rated a very wealthy man. As soon as he heard of the accident at the Harwick mine he hurried 