Mukden, Apr. 19.
Further particulars about the Fushun mine disaster, in which 470 Chinese miners were' drowned, are now available. The abandoned Chienchinchai pit had been purpose ly filled with water as a safeguard against spontaneous combustion of the coal, The partition wall left between this mine and the adjoining Oyama shaft is stated by the management to have been from 50 to 100 fte thick, and, being braced upon the outside by sand and earth to the thickness of 150 to 300 ft. it was considered sufficiently stron to withstand the pressure of water. The accident, therefore, came as a complete surprise to the management.
The draining and repair work is being expedited with all possible speed and is expected to he completed in October, Mining has already been resumed in level 1, and the sealing of the cracks in' the partition is making rapid progress. The material damage, including compensation to the bereft families, is estimated at Yen 400,000 to Yen The ranson why all the victims vere Chinese, no Japanes® "being ninon. them, is that the latter, a foremen, where each equipped. with clectrle. pocket lamp, enabling then quickly. to escape' fromthe invshing. water, whereas the. Chie nese miners, having only oil lamps, hich were all extinguished by the Stcong ust of wind cause! by the protuure of the water, were' lett Beipemy"eroping in the darkness.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.