[The image below is of an old mine candle.] 

Obituary of James Orlando Herron
12 Apr 1900 Edition of the Deseret Evening News, page 5

LIFE CRUSHED OUT
AT GOLDEN GATE

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James O. Herron's Strange Presentiment of
Death and its Tragic Fulfilment at an
Early Hour this Morning.

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Came to His Home in Salt Lake With His Wife and Children Last Week -- One of the Latter was Operated on at the Hospital and Died Without Recovering Consciousness -- Was Compelled to Return to Work -- Strange Dream, in Which He Saw a Picture Such as Surround Him When the Grim Spectre "Put Out His Light" -- A Sorrowful Separation and a Jocular Remark -- Body Will be Brought Home Tonight.  

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A crushing blow came to Mrs. James O. Herron, of this city, today in the shocking tidings that her husband had been killed at Mercur at an early hour this morning.  

Mr. Herron was employed at the Golden Gate mine and was at work on the night shift.  It appears that at about 2:30 o'clock this morning he sat down for a moment's brief rest in the shaft where he was at work.  Almost instantly and altogether without warning a boulder came shooting down the shaft striking him squarely upon the head and killing him.  

Herron was the son of Orlando F. and Hannah Jane Driggs Herron.  His wife was Lillie Naisbitt, daughter of Henry W. Naisbitt, formerly of Z.C.M.I., and now on a mission to England.  His death leaves a sorrowing wife and three children unprovided for.  

BAD LUCK FOR SIX YEARS  

For ten years Herron was employed in the freight department of the Oregon  Short Line and the old Utah Central. Six years ago, he lost one of his children by diphtheria and since that time his lines are said to have been laid in hard places, ill luck pursuing him at every turn regardless of the many heroic efforts he made to overcome them.

SECOND CHILD DIES

For some time past, he was engaged at the Golden Gate.  His wife and children living at Mercur with him. One day last week one of their children became suddenly ill and it was soon discovered that its condition was exceedingly serious.  The parents therefore, brought their children to Salt Lake and took the little one to the Holy Cross hospital where it was decided that its only chance for life lay in its ability to undergo a surgical operation. Accordingly the operation was performed, but the shock was too much for its frail form and it passed away without having recovered consciousness.  

BACK TO WORK

Herron was greatly affected by the child's death but after its burial went bravely back to his post feeling that he could not afford to loose any more time than was absolutely necessary.

"MY LIGHT HAS GONE OUT."

In discussing his tragic death today relatives stated that Herron evidently had a strong presentiment of his approaching end, though he refered to it in a jocular vein.  While in Salt Lake he slept one night with his brother-in-law, Mr Will Naisbitt, who is employed in the shipping department of the Z.C.M.I., and, during the night, had a dream that was so realistic as to cause him to almost spring from his bed.  On inquiring as to the cause of his strange action Mr. Naisbitt ascertained that trouble had come to him in his sleep over a supposed cave in.  Herron explained that he saw a rock or rocks falling and that his light (the candle that he carried) had been extinguished; that he had been caught in the falling debris and rendered oblivious to all his surroundings. His first words were, "My light has been put out."  

ONLY A "DREAM"  

Not much was thought of the incident at the time and it was passed by as being only a dream and nothing more, though the sequel might tend to show that it was full of an uninterpreted meaning at the time.  It appears that Herron had been caught in a cave-in a week or so before coming to Salt Lake, and that he was compelled to dig his way out to safety.  It is also stated that he had other narrow escapes; and it was thought that the realization of these dangers were preying upon his mind and that they were probably responsible for his hallucinations. Nevertheless, his wife was really apprehensive of his return to work and endeavored to persuade him from going back, saying that it would be better for him to secure less hazardous employment in some other calling.  He replied that he did not know where he could get other employment and that he could probably earn better wages in Mercur than in Salt Lake even if he got work here.  

SORROWFUL SEPARATION

The parting of husband and wife was attended with all the sadness that accompanies a separation of parents so soon after the demise of one of their children, equally dear to each. He was asked when he would be home again and to his brother-in-law laughingly said:

ANOTHER OMINOUS EXPRESSION,

"Oh, I don't know; I'll probably stay until I am carried home this time."
 And so it transpires that another unsuspected truth, foreshadowed in the hour of sorrow and separation has in the mystery of the whole dreadful affair had a tragic verification.

The coroner's jury consisted of J. L. Craft, J.R. Bost and H.J. Hethke, who, after viewing the remains and taking testimony, returned a verdict fully exonerating the company and finding "no one to blame."  The verdict in its entirety reads as follows:  

"We, the jury, find that the deceased came to his death by a rock falling on him while at work in the Brickyard group of mining claims, the De Lamar Mining Company's property, which was purely accidental; no one to blame."

MESSAGE TO THE "NEWS"

A telephone message to the "News" from Mercur stated that Herron was at work on the main level when death so rudely overtook him.  The fatality occurred at 2:30 this morning and was caused by the falling of a mass of rock aggregating several hundred pounds in weight, falling upon him and crushing out his life instantaneously. His remains were taken to the surface, his relatives notified at an early hour and an inquest held this afternoon, Justice Dunlavey, of Mercur, being the acting coroner.

BODY BEING BROUGHT HOME

The foreman of the mine described the accident as being whole unexpected and entirely unavoidable. The deceased had a brother at Mercur and another, Charles, at Pleasant Grove who, on being notified of the tragic occcurence, immediately left for Mercur to bring the body to Salt Lake on this evening's train.

Herron was born and raised in Utah and was 39 years of age. At present it is the intention to have his funeral take place on Sunday.  Interment, it is expected, will be in the city cemetery in the burial lot where rest the remains of his children.