COLD COURAGE.
[To SZE Emma os Tao "SracrATos."3 San,—The Milton Colliery disaster has furnished another sad opportunity for Lancashire colliers to show their courage and bravery in the face of danger. The teams of rescuers from the neighbouring collieries have turn, by turn continu- ously descended the pit to explore the workings and bring back the dead. They have groped their way to the coal face along roads in which the props supporting the roof have been blown down by the force of the explosion and in which gas has been present. The details of the work they have done are too gruesome to relate. Each team has nobly and cheerfully taken duty at this work for three hours at a time ; there has been no lack of men.
An incident which happened on the day after the accident will illustrate the spirit which has animated each man throughout the difficult and dangerous work of exploring. According to the time-table which had been. arranged for regulating the descents of the teams, the "W" team had to go down at a certain hour. There were two teams which answered to this description,—one sent by the "A Company" from their " B " pit, and the other sent by the "B Company?' The manager of the latter company, thinking that his company's team would be going down at the hour fixed, went to Hulton in time to meet the men as they came up. They greeted his arrival by telling him they were glad he had come, as they were short of a " boss " to push them forward, and the "A Company's" men had taken their turn. Only those who have been down into the workings can realise what has to be laced; some reluctance would be natural. But these men's complaint was that another team had taken their place, and the other team had.
I call this cold courage. There is no applauding public, no band, no honourable mention in the newspaper; just a few, grim, silent officials and men, with heavy hearts but high courage, working night and day to remove the dead. Heroes all! that make one sadly proud of belonging to their race.—
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