Huntly Disaster.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVI, Issue 93, 15 September 1914, Page 4

Huntly Disaster.

HOPE AUAXDOXED. A STRIKIXG UESCIUPTIOX. ' THE .RESCUERS' WORK UNDER- ' GROUND. liy Telegraph.—**ress Association. Auckland, Last Xight. Latest advices from Hiiutly state ttiat bodies) are still being recovered from tile mine. The work of the rescue parties has been continued all day. Ho far no one has come out alive, except those mentioned yesterday, and it therefore seems certain that the death-roll will comprise the list telegraphed yesterday of those already dead and those who wore then missing. A Herald representative, writing of Sunday's scenes, says:— ''The more advanced panties carried canaries which, providing, .an early and infallible indication ic-f the presence of treacherous gases, were simply invaluable. By Sunday afternoon the systematic and scientific bratticling and stopping were beginning to have a percep tible effect, and tilie men from tho mam shaft, expecting always to he delayed by heavy fall of coal, vere ultimately able to win right through and junction with the men from tlhe western shaft. "Mr.. W. Woods, the Kx'tended Mine manager, was the first nun to make the journey and report all comparatively safe, although there was stilt danger ir m gases. The rescuii.g parties* bad now greater liberty, and they pushed hcyon.t tho limit of their former ex jduratims, and late in the afternooi. reported the discovery of Jvclly, Lyons, 11. Burt, Steele, D. Pattcwm," and \V. Patterson. Once more ;,. little pivwes-i-inii of stro.tcher J bearciH took the bod ics to the Oddfellows Hail, where there, were now eighteen. .Work was carried ;.n vigorously at the mw. shaft nil day on Saturday .under very great difficulties. After being repeatedly driven back ;i little party was able to penetrate a short distance into the mine, and, form ing a bucket brigade, made an attack upon tii.e fire, which tu.ey discovered This was out oait, but the air did not «!ear. Further investigations disclosed ether fires, and these also were pu; cut. Then a supply of bricks was sen 1 " down, and bricklayers, and the latter began to 'build a series'of stoppings to ccntrol and direct the vmtilation. The vVntvliition system of .a big mine i,j very carefully adjusted,.and such an explosion as that described Uw . out tho stoppings, destroyed the guiding walls, and disarranged tho whole circulation. The work of remedying this ■was not only highly dangerous, but very complicated as well. • "However, the passages of air through the mine gradually reduced the poisonous gases, and at two o'clock on Sunday nrorning between twenty and thirty men went below, and with hags of sand, cement, and bricks began to. replace the ih!owii j out stoppings between the main roads and the old workings, from which the gas was Steadily Cfx-aprng. These men went nearly half a mile into the irino, taking great risk to themselves, but although they searched fl-hey discovered no sign of the missing miners until they came upon Thompson's body which was taken to the Oddfellows' Hall. "Soon after daybreak on Sunday, there wag work for hundreds of men Mow ground, and roiusteel's Were innumerable, but there was a hmentabla scarcity of safety lamps', and not mow than 25 men could work .at either shaft. , The Huntly mines have always been re- . garded as so safe that safety lamps were never considered r.ece»;ary, and never stocked. The mii.ers habitually vorked with naked lights., Complain 1 ; was also made that it here was not available! a supply of that make of helmet, which enables miners to- go with* ' safety into places' wnsTC there are ' ] oisonous gases. However, from very ; early on Sunday morning thj woifc ilea'. 1 tho main shaft proceeded) 'briskly in shiflg with (the excellent result that, as described, direct communication l.ctwe.:':. the two airshafts was restored on Sunday afternoon. There were five horses in" the mine ait the nibment of the explosion. Two of them were in a stable abc-uf one hundred yards from ibe foot of the main shaft. Vour of them perished miserably, but the iiffc'i. which wasbeing driven by 'Mottam near ' "flie little dip" when "the explosion came, and was abandoned, displayed' al- ' most human intelligence. It uuide its way through smoke ant fume; to »the foot of the main shaft, and being dis--1 cf.vered waiting there by the veiscufi party, it was put into a cage and taken to the surface,

SADDEST SCKN.i 01- ALL. THE FUNERALS OP THE VBTTMS Hamilton, Lust Night. Tho fiuicrat of twenty Huntly victims to:.-k place this afternoon. The bo'lies, which were placed on drays dra-.ni..by a ] air of horses, left 'the King's Hall fc-r the Kimthia cemetery, two miles away, headed toy the iband of t'hc llilh Waikato Begiment, tiro coffins being covered with Union Jacks. A <tremendoiis'ci-owd followed the cortege. Members of several orders, including Oddfellow, lieclmliites, and Hibernians nuarched in the proeessiou, and acted as pall-bearers. T!i> clergymen of various denominations read the. funeral services. Tlu-re were scenes of great grief at the tgravo-wT.', whore several women awoom-d and had to be carried away. Many of the. dead were related by blood or marriage. ■ A requiem Mass was sang at the '(.ii.'Ulwlic Church ithis morning for this 'lend Catholic, miners, of whom six. were buricd to-day. Many of the deceased were members., of the Territorials or volunteers, and they were accorded military honors. The proccHs'on was fully a mile, ami-half lung. Among those present were the Jlon. W. Eraser, Minister for Mines, and Messrs Robertson, Webb, and it. I'. Bollard, <M.siP. l!<\nresontailivctt of the Taupiri Coal Company's directors, and of many local bodies also attended. BREAD-WIN'NKBS CONE.

RF.LIKF MUASIT.KS MSCUSSKD. Auckland, Last. Xight. Of th(! men who have lost their Uvea us the result of the disaster, or who are slill missing, at least 23 had been married. A few of these wero widowers without dependents, hut the great majority had wives and children, nearly all of whom have, been left without resources of any kind. In a number of the bereaved families there are five, six, and seven young children. None of these people are in immediate need. It was pay day on Friday, and even where the, women' and children are short of nionev (heir present needs will he attended to Ivy the other minors in the wav that miners invariably do on occasions such as 'this. Many of tlio dead' miners were members of lodges, and •were insured, and the money will be forthcoming from these sources. The majority of the dependents of the deadmen, however, now that their breadwinners have gone, must look upon a

future that offers little beyond ft liard struggle for \cxistence. It would bo difficult to estimate the numoer of metliers and sisters of single men, and the wtvch and children Of tutu*.*' married, who, in consequence of the explosion, are in need of assistance; but they must represent many scores. Relief measures have been under discussion at Huntly, and «, proposal that a considerable earn of money collected for the patriotic fund should be di ;rted for the purpose of relieving the distress caused toy disaster has received general support. It is pointed out that in liuntly tuere will probably be many cases of distress requiring assistance more urgently than the patriotic fund requires the money. The Mayor of Auckland has opened a city fund. ,

ADDITIONAL BODIES RECOVERED The following is an additional list of bodies recovered to-day: Jas. Mayland. Thomas Taylor, C. 6. MoulesWortc, married; Thomas Oassou, single; Fred-1 trick Taylor, miarricd; William Mite'.e 1 ! single; Arthur Rnston, married; and one unidentified. Thirteen aire supposed to be sittill underground for wham no possible liopo is held out, making in all forty lost. A MINISTER AT JiUNTLY. Wellington, Yesterday. The Minister of Mines U>ft for Hurtly k.»t night. The Prims (Minister frilly intended to go, but, in 'the absence, o' the Minister of Defence, it was impossible for him to get away. Mr. R. F. Bollard, member for the, district, is -i! Huwtly. Mcssra Robertson and We.-b. M.P.'s, also; left ■.Wellington for the scene of the disaster last night. A BRITISH SCIENTIST INVESTIGATES. Wellington, Last Nigh:One of tho British swumtiste, Professor Dixon, who holds the chair of Chemistry at the Manchester University, is a member of t!r; British Home Office on cxplosicns''in coal mines, a-n.t 'has been working on explosions m miincs all through England. Professor Dixon was at Rotorua wl«i thejlunt'. - ." disaster occurred, and expressed "Ms desire to «id at Uhe* inquiry into the cause of the disaster. The Government has been glad ba avail itself of Professor Dixon's servicea, and he proceeded to Huntly to-day.