This drastic proposal, however, received no support and the band of workers toiled on through the night swinging in turns at the end of looped ropes, in the morning, Mr. Wm. Coulson, an old and experienced master sinker, was passing by the village in the train, and hearing of the accident, he immediately got out and tendered his services. He was at once given charge of the operations in the shaft, a post to which his abilities and experience entitled him, and in this position he remained until the men where reached six days later. Properly equipped rescue parties were organised, composed of the most capable men, sinkers being preferred, and the work was carries on without intermission, the men being relieved every hour. It was only possible for two men to work at a time in the shaft, and these were slung in loops from the winding rope, to obviate the risk of falling down the shaft should the wreckage upon which they working collapse.

On Friday afternoon the rescue party were within five fathoms of the furnace drift, and the sound of the doomed miners could be heard, toiling upward to assist the rescuers who came too late, suddenly the sides of the shaft caved in, and a vast quantity of rock and earth fell imperilling the lives of the workers, and still further blocking the passage to the lower seams.

It was about this time that Mr. Golightly, an engineer belonging to Cramlington, conceiving the project of getting at the entombed men by withdrawing the spears and clack and bringing them to the surface through the pipes, which, although rather a desperate plan, appears perfectly feasible.

James Thompson volunteered to go down with hammer and chisel and knock off the bolt-heads inside the clack piece, and hearing the knocking inside the pipes, it as thought that the miners would at once understand what was being done, and assist by setting to work on the clack doors from the outside.

Chapman himself thinks that this was a possible way of escape, and certainly should have been tried, as it would not have been attended with danger to anyone but the brave fellow in the pipes: the pump was useless, and even had it been in working order its services were not required, as the men, being in the Yard seam, were in no danger from water.

Mr. Coulson however, negatived the proposal giving it as his opinion that the plan was hopeless, and would only endanger another life, adding that if the project was put into practice he would retire from the work altogether. The matter was therefore dropped, very regrettably, as it prevented the comforting feeling that all was done that could be done.

The sinkers resumed their task undaunted by the bulging, threatening sides of the shaft, and on Saturday morning recovered the bodies of four of the five men lying in the shaft, and later in the day the body of the other was found and sent up. The names of the men thus recovered were Geo. Sharp, Senior (who fell from the loop), Ralph. Robson, William. Brown, Geo. Sharp, Junior and Robt. Bewicke.

Later on Saturday night when the explorers were only four fathoms above the furnace drift, a very heavy fall occurred from the sides of the shaft, hundreds of tons of rock being added to the enormous quantity already in the shaft, and forming a huge cavity 30 feet across. It was necessary to timber this yawning chasm before work could be safely resumed, and this had barely been accomplished when other falls occurred, causing still further delay and hindrance.

These disastrous falls caused the most poignant anguish to the anxious watchers at the pit head, whose hopes of again seeing their friends alive were reduced with each delay.

Despite the inclemency of the weather, many throughout that time of suspense and dread, never quitted the pit head, Chapman relates the case of one, William Brown, the bottle maker from Seaton Sluice, whose son and grandson had made their first start in the mine on that fateful morning, and who never once left the pit until his two unfortunate lads were brought up in their rude winding sheets. In the villages of Hartley and Seaton Delaval, those who had escaped bereavement, with that homely sympathy and kindness so characteristic of the Northern folk, kept open house.

It was here that the afflicted came for consolation and relief, and it was here that the workers came to be fed and rested, Chapman states that on the day of the disaster they had just got a 20 stone sack of flour into the house, and this, together with a large ham and other sundries, were all gone before the end of the week.

However, he added, we were only too thankful to be able to help those less fortunate, out of the 18 houses in Avenue Row where he resided, only seven of them escaped the scythe of the dread reaper.

The rescuers toiled on through the weary days, but progress was slow, for the danger and difficulty of the task were great, on the Tuesday morning following the accident the workers in the shaft were overcome by gas, and several volunteers descended to the rescue.

Three of the latter were also overcome by the deadly compound and were got safely to the surface, operations had now to be suspended until the brattice could be put in and ventilation restored, the gas met with was the deadly carbon monoxide (CO), resulting from the fumes of the buried furnace and the burning strata around it.

Work was speedily continued after a short delay, although the men had to be relieved every 20 minutes, brattice cloth ran short, but a fresh supply was brought from North Seaton Colliery, and a quantity of chain with which to sling the broken pumps, and prevent from falling down the shaft, was brought from Hawke's and Crawshaw's of Gateshead.

Despite the fearful risk of gas, the shaftmen worked on while the brattice was being put in, and on Wednesday afternoon after its completion, the furnace was reached and entered by George Emmerson, who found an axe, a saw, and some sawn timber, showing the vain efforts of the helpless miners, of whom, however he saw nothing, being unable to proceed far on account of the poisonous gas. Later in the afternoon Willaim Adams, of Cowpen and Robert Wilson of Backworth, penetrated into the Yard Seam, and ascertained beyond all doubt that the whole of the entombed men had perished, the lamentable news was received by waiting throng at the pit head with a pitiful outburst of grief.

There being now no hope of the men being recovered alive, the work of exploration was stopped, until the shaft, which while hope remained, had allowed to go as near the minimum of safety as possible, was more substantially timbered, as it was impossible in its unsafe condition to commence the work of bringing the bodies to the surface.

As illustrating on what small trifles hang the lives of the men, Chapman mentioned the case of the horse farrier, who was coming from the engine house to ride down the shaft in the very cage in which Chapman had reached bank. He was half way between the engine house and the shaft, when someone called him back, and whilst on his way again to the shaft, the disaster occurred.!

At about 11 a.m. on Saturday morning the shaft timbering and bratticing were completed, and Mr. Hall, a manager from an adjoining colliery, and Mr. J. Humble, descended to the workings, the sinkers and other shaftworkers having been all withdrawn.

Chapman and a man named Brown were the next two to descend, and on the way down in the looks, the latter, who seemed to be rather apprehensive of the perils that might be lurking below in that awful chamber of the dead, remarked to Chapman "Noo Jack, whativvor happens thoo an' me'll stick together," to which compact his marrow heartily agreed.

Others now came down, and Messrs. Hall and Humble went away from the shaft, leaving Chapman and his fellow workers to clear away the debris and timber, which the entombed men had thrown back in the endeavour to assist in their salvation. While so engaged the two managers returned, and had to be sent up the pit, overcome by gas and shock, and presently Brown fell over and had to be sent aloft.

Soon after Chapman fell ill, but managed to stagger to the shaft, and catching some of the water streaming from the sides, he bathed his face and hands, and felt considerably better. He went back to his work, but was again overcome , and although the water cure was tried, he became unconscious, and had to be sent up. When he came to himself he was lying on the surface at the "horse hole" with a doctor holding his wrists, and a workman pouring water on his head from a pail. This treatment speedily brought him to his feet, and he was then assisted home by his brother Matthew, who as a sinker — but in reality a hewer — had taken a prominent part in the work of rescue.

On the way home Chapman vomited and after this felt much better, he had been home barely two hours when Parker, the overman came for him, and going back down the pit he remained there until all the bodies were brought up, which happened between three and four o'clock on the Sunday morning. Chapman gives some vivid word pictures of the strange and pathetic sights seen in that underground charnel house, the first men discovered were two brothers, who lay one across the other, as they had fallen on the ashes of the extinguished furnace.

It was thought that those two had been the last alive, as they were certainly the last to strike a blow for deliverance, the tools they had used being laid beside them.

All around the entrance to the Yard Seam, and beside the furnace — the deadliest place in that awful catacomb — men and boys were sitting and lying in various attitudes, so natural in appearance as to seem asleep or resting, one property of the poisonous gas to which the men and boys had succumbed is that it preserves the natural appearance of the person and prevents rigidity.

One little fellow, a driver named Cousins sat with his eyes wide open and bright, gazing wistfully in the direction of the shaft, so natural did the lad appear that one of the party of workers went to him and gave a slight shake, thinking he must surely be alive.

Alas ! poor fellow ! an earthquake's shock would not of arose him: his was a sleep that knows no waking, another pathetic sight was a man sitting with his stepson, a trapper boy, upon his knee, his arms clasped tight round the boys slight form, and the boys arms were round his fathers neck.

The bodies were laid in twos on a piece of boarding and placed on a bogie, and in this order they were taken to the shaft, and sent up in a cradle, as they came to the surface they were coffined and identified, and the name written on the coffin lid, all the bodies were recovered 199 in number.

The pit was never re-opened, the royalty being worked by other mines, a year or two ago the workings from Seaton Delaval mine holed into the New Hartley Pit, when several loaded trams were discovered, one of which was taken out and placed in the Newcastle museum.

Such is the substance of the recollections of Mr. John Chapman, as related to me during the past week — such recollections as are happily, vouchsafed to few, one circumstance connected with that awful disaster, in relation to himself and other workers, my old friend considers rather hard.

All the men engaged in the shaft received a pound per shift, and were afterwards presented with a silver medal as a reward for there services.

Chapman says that he was not engaged in the shaft, but was employed in the High Main Seam stowing the timber and other material that was sent up from the wreck: but, as he maintains, he was the first workman in the shaft after the disaster, and the first workman to follow the managers to the workings below. He thinks that himself and some of his comrades deserved a more substantial and lasting recognition of their services, than two shillings per shift that they received.

Two good results accrued from the evil of this disaster, it caused the insertion of a clause in the C. M. R. A. requiring every mine in future to have two separate means of ingress and egress: and it established the Miners Permanent Relief Fund — a fund that has conferred benefit upon thousands of the mining community, including widows, orphans, the injured workman and the aged.