BLOWN UP WITH DYNAMITE.

Evening Post, Volume XXV, Issue 50, 1 March 1883, Page 3

BLOWN UP WITH DYNAMITE.

« A very peouliar acoident occurred at Belleriaw, no*r Pittsburgh, Pa., od 24th Novomber. About a quarter of a mile* below tho coal mines of Gumbert and Huoy, on the Monongahela River, is tho home of Adam Forsyth, one of the employed, whioh was blown Us piooes undor the followingciroumRtanoes :— Some miners employed in Walton's mines oame to vuit Fowyth, and during their stay they proposed to go fishing. They did not care about the old alow method of capturing one n»h at a time with hook and hne, but (old Foriyth they knew of a muoh better plan, whioh was to uae dynamite. The miners had gome of the explosive material with them, and used it quite »uooeMfolly killing about five hundred pounds of fl«h. Some of the people living In the neighbourhood, who it* the wholesale ¦laughter of fish, protested against it and threatened to prosecute tho men; but, as they were very poor, nothing was done. Foriyth, determined to do some fishing on his own account with the now bait, went to the quarry of Mr. Fleming, on the Youghioghiny River, and asked if he sonld spare

Homo dynamite. Fl< miug let Forgyth have four stinks of dynamite, weighing in all about a pound. Ho r.iw -that Forsyth was ignorant of tho naturo of tho oxploßlve and nlso of the manner of handling it, and thereforo told him that tho stuff was frozon and was useless in that condition. He oxp'ainod to Forsyth that if tho sticks of dynamite were placed nsar a fire they would thaw out and bo ready for uso, and al«o told him that if proper care was given to tho thawing process there was no danger of an explosion; and Forsyth seemed to understand the directions given him. About half-past 5 o'clock p.m. on 24th Novomber, he went home and told his family about the dynamite, bnt none of them were alarmed, as they, too, were ignorant of its qualities. He took the sticks of dynamite from his Docket and plaoed them in the oven of the kitohen stove, and then went off to tho coal works. ' A quarter of an hour later he heard a loud report, and in a few minutes was told that there had been an explosion at his house and that all his family had been killed. Half frantio at tho news ho ran to the house to realise tho terrible consequences of his ignorance and folly. It appeared that after Forsyth left the house his wife and childron sat down to supper at a table near the stove in which the dynamite was placed. While thoy were talking, and just as tho childron woro laughing over some harmloss joke, there was a frightful noise, tho stove was blown into tiny fragments, and the ontire ond of tho house, two-story frame, was wrecked, and the mother and her little ones were hurled in different directions. The mother was seated with her back to the stove t and the two younger boys by her side 'The eldest had risen to get a drink, and being near the stove reoeived tho full force of the explosion. Ho was thrown a distance of 20ft, where he was found in a hole in tho yard. He wai horribly mangled, and died abont two hoars after the occurrence. Mrs. ForsytH was ont and ffalhedin a most frightful manner. She had been sitting close to the Stove, and thirty pieces of iron struok her in dlfferont parts of the body. Sho cannot possibly reoovet 1 . Robert Forsyth, seven yean old, was terribly out abont the head and body, while Willie, tho youngest son of the boys, esoapod with slight cnts in his feofi' Poor Forsvth is almost crazy about the affair, and constantly exolaitns that he is to blame for the disaster. He attempted to oommit suicide, but was prevented.