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Show Sutter Creek, California, Scene of Desperate i j&noris ai Jtvescue j Sutter Creek, Cal., Feb. S. One hundred and forty men are tearing at the rock and earth blocking the shaft of the Bunker Hill mine, today, to-day, to rescue 02 miners entombed by a cave-in yesterday at the mouth of the incline shafL Another possibility possi-bility of escape was found by the imprisoned im-prisoned men In an abandoned tunnel tun-nel at the 200-foot level of the mine, reached by an old shaft partially filled fill-ed with debris. One of the men called call-ed through the air pipe that they Had climbed to the tunnel and a crow was set at work early today, clearing tho earth and timbers in the shaft and digging through a cave-In in the tunnel tun-nel which blocks the exit. Wives and daughters of the entombed en-tombed men held torches through the night while miners from nearby mines stripped to the waist, assailed the jam of loose "country rock" which choked chok-ed the main shaft. They worked desperately des-perately -without relief, many having boon on duty almost continuously since the cave. in at 1 o'clock yesterday yester-day afternoon. The sha,ft is believed to be blocked at a distance of about 100 feet from the south. A loaded skip broke .loose at tho surface and shot down the incline, in-cline, striking and tearing loose the collar timbers of the shaft. The upper up-per timbers gave way and the hanging hang-ing walls of the slightly Inclined shaft 'dropped, filling tho opening with an almost Impenetrable Jam of timbers and rock. It was feared that tho debris had filled to tho bottom of the incliue, entombing en-tombing the men on the lower levels, UUL a IfllMl tUIVC lllJVUta" Uig (411 imrJ gave reassurance, and the later word from the men below saying they had climbed to the 200-foot level esLih-llshed esLih-llshed tho fact that only the mouth of the shaft was blocked A singlo air pipe remained opon with which a compressor was connected to force air into the mine Miners were summoned from the Fremont and Old Amador mines and the drive through the rock began under un-der Shift Boss Iloskins, who hnd, narrowly nar-rowly escaped death by leaping'from theskip wjion the cable broke. No food Tvas dropped down the air pipe ou account of the fear of choking chok-ing it, but if the men are not rescued lodav, liquids will be sent down The miners had Just finished lunch when the cao-in occurred, and John Sissons, who acted as spokesman through tho air pipe, said -they were not suffering and adIsed that no chance be taken In sending food through tho pipe The shaft is 2.400 feet deep and the mon on the lower levels faced a per. itous adventure In climbing to the level lev-el of tho old tunnel. Bits of rock from tho mass above richochetted alone? the walls of tho shaft as the mon crept upward, with only one lamp lighted on account of tho need of saving sav-ing the aii. The tunnel in which they await rescue has been "stoped" up for almost the entire distance, and the (52 mon are huddled in a narrow room of rock in which they cannot stand erect. The work is progressing rapidly, both in the main shaft and tho tunnel, tun-nel, and it Is believed that ono of tho openings will be cleared boforo night. E. Merwln. superintendent of tho Bunker Hill mine, reached here late yesterday and is directing tho work of rescue. "We still have a lot of hard digging to do, but we will savo all the men," said Mr. Merwln "It 1b uncertain whether wo will clear the shaft or the tunnel first, but we have evory hope of opening ono or the other before night. The men are well supplied with air and we can send down food If it becomes necessary." |