Page 16 Page 14 mine rescues Powerful excerpts from the God son inquiry into the Holling er Mine Disaster Environment moulds character T ragic circumstances evolve he roes I vividly remember Fred Jack son quietly and unostentatiously telling his story of confict with na ture s forces Without exaggera tion or boastfulness he recited how he and his four companions retreated from one vantage point to another slowly and stubbornly backing away from the fumes of the deadly gas how he turned on the air and directed it against a plank to cause the current to re bound connected lengths of hose in an attempt to blow the smoke away and how he cut his smock in four pieces and unselfsh ly gave his companio ns a piece to place over their mouths If you have ever been in a court room setting as I have many times there are moments when your heart begins pounding un controllably A jury is about to ren der a verdict a victim is about to describe their ordeal a judge is about to pass sentence a defen dant is told to stand for the verdict yet another is when a coroner is about to make recommen dations after an inquest They are breath taking moments that even sea soned lawyer s will admit are life altering And then Zolob s determination to break through the impen etrable barrier of smoke and win his way to the surface What took place be tween Jackson and Zolob at that critical moment is best told as Jackson gave it Jackson said My light was only a light about half an inch Zolob put it into his lamp and fxed his lamp and got a light put his pack on his back took a piece of blasting stick about four feet long and he said I go try I says God bless you He says I try go out Maybe I die Maybe not I says Dont go George He says Oh yes I go And he got up and set of down the crosscut unknown heroes Jackson s heartwrenchin g de scription of the moments that he and George Zolob were making life or death decisions is without question the most compelling content of the Godson Commis sion report into the 1928 Hol linger Mine disaster As Godson described it Maybe I die Maybe not Failure means death success life to himself and his companions The die was cast The courage was there and Zolob fought his way to the light of day Jackson s resource fulness refecting the motto of the St John Ambulance Corps of which he was a member Pro Fide pro Utilitote Hominum and Zolob s strength and determina tion accomplished the seem ingly impossible And then V aillancourt the cage tender The smoke was seen the signal given Up went the cage to investigate and then to report to surface Down again to give warn ing And so up and down with his message of warning until he lost control Godson continues to elabo rate on the men who without fear risked their lives to save others Fred Poulin the shift boss hunting his men courting death a duty to be done George Pond the fore man who thought of his men and not of himself And so many more wonderfully courageous men it was my privilege to hear as wit nesses The mine manag er of cials and workmen all ready and anxious to make the descent not a refusal not a hesitant among them a tribute to the manhood of the North made sturdy strong and true by their contact with Na ture s forces and their fellow man By Kevin V incent PhotoGeorge Zolob