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Show MULE GETS PENSION Animal First to Know of Impending Impend-ing Disaster Gives Alarm. Runs Away a Few Seconds Before Serious Cave-In Occurs and Men Follow Him, Thereby Escaping Es-caping Being Buried Alive. St. Louis, Md. Pete is a pensioner now. Heroism and long service have at last won recognition. Pete saved the lives of ten men, and for the remainder re-mainder of his life he will have nothing noth-ing trwlo but eat and sleep and kick -. -v-ii 1 1 T,' up ftfWieels. Pete is a little bay mule, who for many years has worked in the Summit Sum-mit coal mines, four miles west of Belleville. He was never idle a day, except Sundays, and most of the time he was far below the surface of the earth, pulling cars of coal through the narrow mine passages. Unlike most animals of this service, Pete did not go blind. His eyes are still keen and he will have no difficulty diffi-culty finding choice tid-hits of thistledown thistle-down in the big pasture which in future fu-ture will be his country estate. Pete has been the pride of the mine since the day when he saved the lives of the shift with which he worked. Pulling his little car of coal through one of the mine passages, Pete sud denly broke from the brisk walk which was his usual gait and started off down the dimly lighted corridor at a gallop. The ten men behind him thought he was running away, and they started after him. Into the next chamber they followed him, and just as they reached it there was a rumble, a roar, and a crash behind them. The roof of the chamber they had just left had given way. Had they been there they would have been buried under tons of rock. Pete's ears, keener than theirs, had heard the warning sound and he had led them to safety. In the 25 years that Pete has worked in the mine he has been 6,250 days below ground. Fifty days in each year he worked on the surface, hauling timbers and rubbish. While in the mine he traveled an average of four miles a day, the total distance which he covered being 25,-000 25,-000 miles. Had he stayed above ground and followed his nose he would have gone around the earth in that time. He hauled an average of five tons of coal a day, a total of 31,250 tons, or 70,312,250 pounds. At the St.. Louis market price of three dollars a ton this coal would bring $93,750. William Edwin, manager of the mine, issued an order by which Pete is forever relieved of doing his humble share in adding to the wealth of na- yons. |