The bottom of the shaft was not nearing where we should be.  One morning as I came to the top of the shaft to commence work at seven o'clock a. m., I was told by Mr. LOVE, superintendent, that he had charge of the six men; that shaft had closed in near the bottom.  He gave me instructions about timbering, to make the shaft smaller.  It was now seven o'clock in the morning.  I stepped into the bucket and I was lowered down to the place 150 feet from the bottom; the place where the former cave-in occurred.  It was poorly timbered.  The shaft narrowed at that point.  The timbers appeared to be twisted.  Let me say that I knew the danger of going 150 feet below and staying there eight hours.

When I was lowered to the bottom of the shaft I commenced to load the bucket with mud and water.  I could not lower it any.  I noticed that mud came from the space behind the timbers 150 feet from the bottom of the shaft.  I knew it was useless to keep sending the loose mud up as the two shifts did before me.  It was like poking your finger in the river and pulling it out and trying to see the hole.  With a plan in my mind, I rang the bell to be hoisted up.

I found Mr. PETERSON, one of the owners.  He was anxious to know how conditions were.  I told him and then I told him the plan I had in mind to keep the shaft the same size.  I prepared short pieces of boards, then I descended down the shaft with them in the bucket.  It took me near two hours to place them in position.  After this was completed I began to fill the bucket.  After a few buckets of mud and water were taken out of the way, I rang the bell for them to send down timbers full size.  After placing the first set in place it completely stopped the caving in at the bottom.  I rang the bell again to hoist me up.  When I reached the top of the shaft, Mr. ANDERSON, one of the company, stepped up to me and said, "Well, you stopped the caving in." He looked pleased.  I tried to speak back to him but could not utter a word.  My voice was gone.  It was some time after that I had warmed myself by a wood fire that my voice came slowly back.  I had been down the shaft over fourteen hours.  In all this time I had not used my voice, any.  It was chilly and very wet.  Mr. PETERSON would not let the 11 o'clock shift change me so that is why I stayed down over two shifts.

The next morning when I came to work Mr. PETERSON came to me and told me to take charge of the timbering and the workers with increased pay.  With the continued sinking good signs of ore were commencing to show.

Let me relate one incident that took place in this shaft.  On this shift I worked alone.  I had charged a hole with very high explosives, lighted the fuse and rang the bell; stepping quickly into the bucket I was hoisted up six feet.  The bucket stopped.  I could feel a slight jerking movement on the ropes.  With every movement I expected to be hoisted away from the blast.  I realized there must be something wrong with the machinery on top.  I was always customary when a charge was lighted to hoist quickly when the bell rang.  If possible there should not be one second's delay.  Your safety depended on your being clear out of the shaft because of flying rocks.  For me to stay in the bucket when a blast exploded meant death.  I must do something.  The fuse was burning under six inches of water.  I jumped out of the bucket, drew my pocket knife out, reached under the water where the hole was and cut the fuse off close to the hole.  I noticed that the fuse had not quite burned to where I had cut it off.  What a relief! Had I delayed acting quickly it would have been too late.

When I looked up to see the bucket, it was gone.  It seemed that when I leaped out, my weight relieved the strain on the hoisting drum.  I rang the bell for them to send down the bucket so I could go up and prepare another charge.  This was done.  As I reached the top of the shaft, they told me what had happened.  The motive power was a horse and when I gave a signal to hoist, the horse balked after going a few steps and would not do any pulling.  They were all greatly excited, knowing the dangerous position I was in.  I worked in this shaft several weeks longer.  They had good signs of mineral.  The company decided to stop and wait for buyers to come.

After hunting around for a day or two I found work at a shaft only sixty feet deep.  There was only work for two men, one on the bottom digging and the other to turn the windlass.  I was to do the digging.  I noticed that when I came to work the next morning, a heavy rifle and a revolver were lying on the ground.  I asked the windlass man why he had guns lying around and if they were loaded.  He told me that both of them were loaded.  He told me that both of them were loaded and ready for use.  Again I asked him for what purpose; and he said, "Do you see that shaft down the mountain about 500 feet.  It is on a line with this shaft that we are sinking here.  Those fellows down there say that we are on their claim and if we did not get off soon they would come up and shoot us off."  The windlass man had told them that he would not get off and that he would go back down and tell the one who sent him to start shooting and that he was some shooter himself.  I also found out from that several men he had employed before me had quit.  They did not lie to be down in the shaft as they would be helpless there should those men below come up and back up their words.  Having never seen the men closely, I could not tell how rough they were.  But I needed work and I worked there two weeks.  Nothing happened in that time.