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- ak ian a an THE OSHAWA DAILY TIMES, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 18, 1931 COAL MINE WAS INTERESTING (Continued from page 1) ols and vicinity, Mr, McGurk, Allen, the mine manager, and self, ed for the cag mal was given and in less time it takes to write it, we were . down to the bottom of the ine, a depth of 325 feet. s lunch hour for the miners 'when we reached the bottom af "the. shaft, and they were sitting pund partaking of a hasty meal. was an eerie scene, although the electric lighting system provided sore than the fitful gleam which expected. Near the bottom of shaft we saw a completo ma- ine shop and electrical repair op, in which all the mine ma- hinery is repaired, electric motors sewound, and the equipment kept good shape. Although far be- ground, it was well-equipped, id, according to Mr. MoGurk, d the time of sending nny up paratus up aloft to be given ate ention when necessary. : The Mulo Stables 'We had a few moments to wait \ ae © a tiain went {ato the work: ihe of the mine, so we visited the ne stables, also near the bottom x, the shaft, Here we saw the "huge Mistourt mules in thelr stalls . hore they had been tor periods "ranging from two to five years, without ing thé light of day. These mules are taken down into . the mine when young, and they lay an important part in hauling he coal cars from tho distant workings to the main railway l'ne, from which point trains of coal sears are made up and taken back to the shaft for hoisting up to the top. The average life of a mule in the mine is from two to three ears. At the end of that time, 'they are taken up to the open again, and put out on pasture, or sold to some farmer who flads they ean still give good service in farm work. But in the intervening per- fod, while they are working in the 'fnine, they never wee dayHght, They have good stable nccommoda« tion, abundant fresh alr, which in pumped into their stable nud plen- ty to eat, but for the rest, they ~ pass 'their lives in an abods of darkness, pulling coal cars, each weighing a ton and a Lal and with 8 capacity of three tons of coal, along a railway track, , A Weird Trip ~The underground electric rail Sway which took us into the Inters for of the mine was a thing to cause wonder. Electric engines, of 1,800 horsepower, provided the means of locomotion, with trolley Wires strung along one aide of the 'tunnel to carry the electric julce to the motors. The electric en- gines stood about four feet high, and were entirely flat on top. This accoun for the fact that we rode into the Interior of the mine on top of one of them. A train of empty coal cars was made up, and : the four of us climbed on top of the engine, where we lay flat on r stomachs, with our heads rest- on outstretched arms. At the om of the shaft, the roof of the mine rose to a lofty arch, hut we d not gone very far before wo realized the necessity of lying flat Lon top of the engine. The roof ( gradually became lower, until soon We were tearing along, at a speed of 'some forty miles an hour, with the roof only a few inches above our heads, and everything utter darkness except where the search light in front of the engine shot its rays ahead, For two miles | we raced into the heart of the | mine, passing a weird looking openings at either side, with glis- toning coal seams forming the walls of the tunnel, and a 1me- stone rock overhead for a roof. Round corners we shot with up- abated speed, and the two men on ~ the outside hung on tightly to 'avoid being thrown from the top of the engine. Twice wo seemed to be racing straight for wooden P which lay right ahead, but when within twenty feet of fhom they opened up into doors, close automatically again as soon as the train had passed through. These: were alr doors, placed there to control the alr sup- "ply, and operated automatically hy Jof red and greed light At times we came upon a series These were the signals for the electi'c block svStam, whith also operated auto- matically go' as to make impossible ollislons between trains. As soon ous ho train entered a block, the red signals shone out, and that block was closed to other traffic. When the train passed out of the block, the green ligh' came on, and it was safe, 'Here and there were passing tracks, iong enough to accommodate, about 50 coal cars, at which, as we went into the mine, we passed train. loads of coal outward bound. And all through this tunnel, driven through the outworked portion of the mine, there was no illumination save at the passing tracks and at points where draing were made up and broken ap, The Coal Workings At last we reached the end of the electric track, but we were still some distance from the actual work. ings. With our lamps burning in our cups, wo stepped out in the darke ness, under a roof about six feet four inches high, and between two walls of coal. The seam of coal was Just over six feet thick, Above was limestone rock, below was slate, and between these was the supply of coal which was the reason of the mine's existence. Wo walked along one of thé parallels, from which rooms branched off at either sido at intervals of about 60 feet, rooms from which the coal was being dug and sent up to the outer world. Be. tween these rooms und between par. allels, great plltars of coal were left untouched, to provide the support necessary to hold up the rock above, To me, a layman it seemed strange that so much coal should be left in the mine after the workings had passed on ahead. Yet, ag Sam Me- | Gurk explained, it was necessary to leave that coal there to make possible mining operation with safety. About 45 per cent of the coal, he astimated, had to be left underground by the present methods of mining, since no means had been dovised to holding up the mine roof without leaving these pillars of coal between rooms and parallels, From each parellel, we observed, wore driven in to right and left, hut not far enough to connect up with each other, except occasionally where an entry was driven through to provide for the passage of a current of fresh alr. These entries appeared in many of the rooms, but with boards and cement and fresh entries made closer to the point at which the miners were working. It was interesting to note the sharp, cold current of air which swept through the mine, and the absence of anything like foulness in the at« mosphere as we walked along the mine floor in the direction of the workings of that particular day. Getting Out The Coal | The progressive method of getting the coal out was interesting to study. Roughly, as we saw it, is ¢on- sisted of three phases, first, prepar. ing for the coal blast, second, the blasting of the coal, and third, load. ing the broken down coal gn to the cars ready for shipment to the mine shaft. Iirst of all, we saw miners at work "snubbing" the coal face in preparation for the blast. The coal face, it should be explain- ed, is the smooth surface of the coal gome six feet in depth, stretching across the width of the room which is being worked. It looks like a solid wall of coal, but we could see | the veins in iti The operation of "snubbing"' consist of taking out the coal at the bottom, ta a depth of about four or five inches, and back six feet from the face of the seam. This is done so as to ensure an even fall of coal when the blast is made. A machine with a saw-like appara- tus attached to it cuts right under blows out the coal from the centre, Then the charges in the ribs are ex ploded, and the coal falls fhwards, to make a great heap of broken coal, usually about 50 toms, ready to be loaded on the following day and taken out of the 'mine, "There is little danger in this blasting opera- tion, because the fuses burn so slowly that the miner who is light. ing them has ample opportunity to be a long distance away before the blast Is made. One man usually lights the fuses in a number of rooms, and he is about three rooms ahead 'each time before the explos sion occurs, Loading the Coal Then come the work of loading the coal. The blast breaks it away from the coal face, in huge lumps, with some small stuff mixed with it. Light railway trucks bring the coal cars into the rooms, and an antomative louder is attached, The miners shovel the coal into the loader, which carries the coal up a conveyor system into the coal car I had the opportunity of doing some shovelling into the loader, and it did not seom hard work,---for a few minutes at least, The car filled, along comes the mule driver with the mule. The animal is hitched on to the coal car, and pulls it to the nearest parting where electric ens gines are waiting to haul the coal trains to the shaft, Sometimes the | mules find it hard work, for there are upgrades and down-grades on the mine floor, and at sueh times | there fs usually plenty olfviolent language to encourage the mules on thelr way. We did see more than a little excitement when one of the Mules broke loose and ran away in | to the dark rocosses of the mine as fast as its legs would carry it, | but it landed in a room where the miners were loading, and ft was quickly subdued and brought back to Its tark, Mining Problems All of this we saw as wo mean. dered through the workings of the mine, 325 fect under the ground. Wo went through some old work- ings where we almost had to erawl over the heaps of rock and slate that had broken from the mine root and walls, Here we found the roof propped up with lieavy timbers, to keep the rock from falling down, AL places we BAW a "squees in the mine, where the slate floor and the rock roof came closer together, and left a poor seam, only three or four feet wide, and at such points we observed where the miners had endeavored to cut around the 'squeeze' to got back to the nors mal seam, At places, wo sw slate mixed fairly freely with the coal, and these places the superinten- dent termed "bad work". because from them it was impossible to secure a reasonabply large output of coal for the labor involved, Such places. however, were few and far between in the section of the mine being worked when we saw ft, most of it being "good work". After tramping around the mine for over two hours, we eat down | to walt for our train, There we sat, the four of us, over threo hundred feet underground, the only light the gleams from the lamps In our caps, hut with a pure | and clear atmosphere that was | surprising. The alr was passing through the workings in a strong current, impelled by a huge fan which pumped in 13,900 cuble feet | of fresh air every minute, and | drove out.any impurities at equal | volume, . | Then along came our train, and | once more we lay down on our | stomachs on top of the engine, and the coal, separating it from the slate underneath ,to the required | distance, usually about six feet. | Then miners come in, and with shovels, and occasionally pieks and | bars, clear out all the small coal from this opening underneath the | geam, leaving an entirely clear | space, When this is completed, it is roady for the blasting operation. Blasting the Coal Face To blast the coal, three holes are drilled, ~~by an electric drill--in | the coal face, one in the centre | of the face, and one at each side, or in the ribs, or the face. These holes | are drilled to a depth of six feet, and aro about two inches in dia meter. In each hole is placed a charge of dynamito, with fuse of « slow-burning character attached, and the hole 1s sealed up with ul heavy clay. Each day a sufficlent number of faces are prepared and charges set to provide enough coal for the next day's loading. Then, | Just before the whistle blows to] finish work for the day, the fuses are lit, and the charge exploded. 8 switch which worked as soon as ~ the train reached fit. The centre fuse is shortest, and started the two mile trip back to the shaft. I'rogress was not so rapid on the way out, because the | engine was hauling forty-two car loads of cou), each containing three tons and each weighing, in addition, a ton and a half, Up the grades, it was stitt pulling, but on.the dowh-grades the train | "NEW MARTIN | NOW PLAYING & | Shown Daily at 2.80, 7 ALL SEATS 25¢ " LASY TIMES TONIGHT BOOTH TARKINGTON'S "FATHER'S SON" LEWIS STONE IRENE RICH LEON JANNEY ------------ Added Never Two Such Marvelous Voices In One Picture! The stage play that van more than a year on Bropdway is now recreated . with the screen's two wonder volees, Lawrence TIBDET Or 2--DAYS--2 STARTING THURSDAY "NEW MOON" ADOLPHE MENJOU HOLAND YOUNG ce- te we With ALLL AY hy VEGEN] 2 "THEATRE | aboard the battleship Nelson, { the British navy, which happened gathered speed, and fairly shot along in the darkness. «+ 'vo Gottiig the Cosi Out ,, .. Back to the bottom of the shaft, we watched the cars of coal being lifted up fo the outer world. Ever¥thing leading to the holet | was operated by gravity. The cars ran down to the holst, to be stop ped by automatic blocks close to the mouth of the shaft, When the hoist came down with an empty car, the blocks slipped to. one side, | the full car ran on to the hoist, pushing off the empty one, which ran down the track to be coupled on to a train of empties, and up shot the full car to the head of the tipple. Another car moved down to take its place, being stop- ped again by the blocks, there to wait for the hoist to come down again, when the process was re- peated. The time of waiting was not long. for every two minutes saw five cars taken up, unloaded and returned to the bottom of the mine. At the head of the tipple, each car was tipped over and unloaded into u screening apparatus, which sorted out the coal into various sizes ,and let it down a conveyer system, to be loaded automatically into the railway cars waiting un- derneath, each capable of carry- ing fifty tons of coal, There was the complete operation, as we saw it. Air Felt Good Our trath of coal unloaded, we went into the cage, and in a mo- mont the blue sky and bright out- doors came into view, It was a | strain on the eyes for a moment, after the three hours in the bow- els of the earth, but the fresh air did feel good to the lungs. We drank in deep breaths of it, for, although the air in the mince seemed pure, yet there was a dif- ference, and we noticed it as soon as we came in contact with the alr outdoors, It took a good deal of soap and water to remove the traces of our trip in the underground, and then we changed back into - our own clothes again, It has been an in- teresting experience, one not eas-! ily forgotten, and one which we would like to repeat. Wo had had a good opportunity of observing the conditions under which the miners work, and the various op- erations necessary in taking from the bowels of the . earth thoso precious black lumps of coal, which have so important a place in the Industrial and domestic life of our country, This particular mine, Superin- tendent McGurk, told us, had a capacity of over 5,000 tons of coal a day, but owing to the mild win- ter, was not working more than halt its capacity, since it was being operated on a basis of sales only. Strange to say, this meant that weather fluctuations were quickly reflected in the mine operations. For instance, the week-end snow- storm which swept the country hak resulted in an immediate flock { of orders for coal, and the mine, when we saw it, was working at higher pressure than it had done all winter. Like a Small Clty It seemed almost incredible to believe that the part of the mine In which we had watched the coal being dug was two miles away from the head of the shaft. That would place it well under the town of Staunton, less than two miles dis tant, with the whole country be- tween honeycombed underneath hy parallels, coal rooms ings, served by an electric train system comparable to that found In any small eity, and carrying its lines to the extreme limits of the excavations, About half ofthe whole territory of the mine has been worked out, but at the preas- ent rate of going, there is still enough coal in the mine to last for forty or fifty years, And by that time, remarked Mr, McGurk, | it might be possible to devise some means where by the millions of tons of coal left in the mine as pillars could be taken out, to keep | the mine going for as long again. JOHN STACEY IMPRESSED BY WEST INDIES (Continued from page 1) den for decorative purposes, ft must he fresh running water an must have fish in it for protection. Another regulation for the pro« tection of health was that all anl- mals must be butchered at the gov- | ernment slaughter houses. This applied even to farmers wishing to kill one of their own cattle and all | meat was inspected. Aeroplane Flight One of the most interesting parts of his trip, Mr. Stacey sald, was an aeroplane flight across the | Panama, forty miles, from the At- lantic to the Pacific. There is no automobile road across this zone, only a rallway, and the country | is ao thick jungle which presents an awesome sight from the air. He algo had the opportunity of soivg 0 to he tied up at Panama while he was there, Mr. Stacey was accompanied on | | his tour by his daughter Elena, and they enjoyed nice weather ex- | cept for the last two days of tho | returm journey, vhen ft was stormy. They visited Bermuda, Yorto Rico, Bt. Plerre and Partin ique, Barbadoes, Trinidad, Cyracas (Venezuela), Curacao, Panama, Jamaica, Haiti, Havana (Cuba), Nassau '(Dahamas). | The natural food of the mosquito, a science note points out, is the sap it finds in leaves, and also, we should think, the.one it finds hold- oe ands on country lanes after usk, Jewelled hooks and eyes are the latest craze. They are fastenating Httle things which are sure to catch on, - SENSE OF BEAUTY INCREASED BYCHINA Lady Hosie Speaks of D:bts Western Peoples Owe to Orient Montreal, Mar, 18-"China heen ruled off from the rest ol the world economically, but sho is grad. ually taking her place in the econo. mical policy of nations. In these days of economic problems we can not afford to overlook the purchas- ing and selling power of China, What the Chinese think, what they buy and sell, matters," declared Lady Hosle, English author long resident in China, who addressed a luncheon meoting of the Women's Canadian Club in the Windsor Ho- tel recently. Lady Hosio devoted a part of her address to consideration of what western peoples owe to China, both in material things and in ideas, Tea and silks "which civilization could not contemplate doing with- out" eame to us from Chinn, Co- Iumbus was looking for a short route to China because of its silks when he discovered America, the speaker remarked. We owed hag | to] MORE ~ NOURISHME Made with Milk BUTTE RICH AS RNU BUTTER- SWEET (K1).9 3 AS A NUT ongines supplied at that time are still good. When you sell material objects to a nation, said the lectur- er, you sell also a conception of your own people--the British have been judged bythore engines. The Americans have given China clga- rottes and good honest measures of kerosene. Canada llkewlso will be Judged by the ecellence of the goods she sends, A trade commissioner, asked ten | | | China an increased sense of beauty. | years ago it China conld take Cana. | | The fashions of tho Victoria era, [dian wheat, had thought not, be- | and work- | | | solid and lacking in beanty, had been modified through beautiful colors and materials brought from the Orient. "or her lecture Lady Hosie had donned a Chinese coat of gold cos lored satin embroidered In jude and certge, with border of white blue and gold. "I wore thls coat," she said, "hop- ing you would find it beautiful, al though no Chinese women would be geen in it, because it fg old-tash- foned, There is a pleco of bamboo at the back of the neck, denoting its princely origin, the bamboo be- Ing associated with the idea of Princes because when the winds blow it bends but will not brbak." Another, less well-known gift from China, typleal .of what binds peoples together, was the digcovery lof an eplorer in the first century, | wlio brought buck from one of lis journeys the alfalfa that has gince found fits way to many countries, ns a valuable crop-and food for cattle, The fact that the Chinese come to our shores to learn, Lady Hosle continued, may be an esimple to us They are as proud a people as we are, but are not too proud to ac- knowledge that they have some- thing to learn, The West is proud to owe culture to Greece and Rome and it cgn learn, too, from China, An appreciation of Chinese art is apparent at the present time, The lecturer went on to speak of China's economic difficulties, With railways of only 7700 miles, the matter of transport was a problem. If we could raise the economic standard of China, the lecturer be- Heved, wo could have a solution for ono of our pressing problems, The | present trouble wag not over-prode fuetion In the West but sumption in the East, The beginning of railway build- ing in Chinn, it was recalled, was done with British capital, and the under-cons | such that "once you ask them for caueo in China rice and millet were | staple foods. were getting to like wheaten flour, [ "You have a glut of wheat; 1 do | | hope a way will be found to bring | | those who havo and those who need together." The spirit of nationallsm has gripped some in Shanghal, Lady Hosle sald, and in Hang Chow there | wag a slogan "Don't wear foreign | clothes. Wear Chinese. clothes and | keep the money in the country." [This idea they imbibed from the | west. However there were some {who preferred foreign clothes as | more convenient for general use and | the native silks for special occa sions, The effect of Soviet propaganda and the teachings of such philoso- phers as Bertrand Russell in un- gettling tho mental poise of many of | | But now tho Chinese | the young peoplo in the universities | was touched upon, The personal qualities of the Chinese were spok- | en of as fitted to cement friendship | when understood by the foreigner, | Their generosity was said to bo | anything they are your friends for lte" Tho vicar was worried because the young women of the parish were "getting their caps" at the hand- some Young curate. "I know," he sald to the young encouragement, but such a state of | affairs in unseemly. I am reluctant. | ly compelled to ask you to offer your services elsewhere." | "But surely, sir, there is safety | in numbers." | "There is," replied the vicar, but" there is even greater safety in exo- | dus." | | | | In Glasgow a man stole 23 cushe | fons, It is thought that he is learn: ing to skate. man, "that you have given them no |') MANITOBA TRIES ~10 SAVE SCHOOLS Minister of Education Meet- ing Situation Created by Financial Troubles Winnipeg, Mar, 18.--Despite fin- ancial diffiqultiecs Manitoba is deter mined to prefect the schools of the Province from being closed, as ane nounced by Hon, R. A, Hoey, Min- ister of Education, in the Legislature recently, The Government would do everything possible to prevent inter- ruption of teaching in grades one to cight, he said, but just at present a similar undertaking with respect to secondary schools could not be given. There may be one exception with regard to the primary grades, how- ever, the case of Brooklands, which seems in doubt at present, The Minister of Education has stated that while it had not yet been decided whether the Brooklands schools should close during April, as was suggested, Brooklands had been a heritage from the previous adminis- tration and as a unit in the school system it should never have been created, Ie went further and said that even after it was created it should never have been permitted to rate Grants of considerable size had been made to Brooklands district by the Government in the past five years Hon, Mr, Hoey said, but special con- ditions made the Brooklands prob- len wore serious than had been real- ized. Compared with its total popu- lation of Brooklands was the largest { any district in the Province. More than 90 percent of the residents of Brooklands were employed in Win- nipeg, Closing the schools for 20 days would not make much differ- ence, 'the Minister said, and it was doubtful if increased grants would really meet the situation. The Minister of Education has stated that is his intention to try to merge op consolidate some of the smaller school districts where there is an enrolment of only a few pupils, The rueal schools of Manitoba, many ope of them barely able to keep open owa ing to lack of money, will be kept going, Hon, Mr. Hoey says, as far as as it is "humanly possible," Jersey City Journal: Jxperts sap that women's feet are two sizes larger than they were 20 years ago, From trying to fill men's shoes? Law-breakers in New York, wa are told, have a regular organizae tion with officers. The head officer, we suppose, is the vice-president, Only about one man in every tive hundred is over six feet in height, we are told. And yet ho always seems to be sitting just in front of us at the theatre, Fighting at the sales, reads eo headline, Where there's a frill there's a fray. EDNA WALLACE HOPPER 'The One Woman in The World Who Never Grew Old Tells Radio Lis= teners More of Her Secrets of Beauty, Health and Diet. Watch your local N. B, C, chain programs. TUNE IN (Cut Out This Schedule) Every Tues, Thure., KYW, Chicage, 1:30 PF. M. Every Wed., Fri, WGN, Chicago, 2100 P. M. S---- rt Bankrupt Price, Well tailored of good tonade. Reg. $1.50, 69c MEN'S SUITS 20th Century, Cambridge, and other wellsknown brands, Blue Pin Stripes and Oxford Greys, Some 2 pant. Reg. value $35.00. $14.95 Boys' Suits To Clear $2.88 Men's Moleskin Pants Reg. $2.00. $1.00 Men's Work Pants 50-54 King Street West Work 2 pocket, coat style. Reg. $1.00. ankrupt Stock of W. Went & Son, Napanee Men's 'Blue Shirts $1.00. 49¢ Men's Combination OVERALLS Blue and Khaki. Reg. $2.50. Grey, brown and Made cof strong, terial, black and quality col. Sale Price, 95¢ IT WILL PAY YOU TO STOCK UP AT THESE BANKRUPT PRICES. I. Collis & Sons Oshawa (Opp. Centre st) SL.49 Men's Hats fawn, Reg. $2.50. clear, $1.39 Men's Overalls serviceable ma- blue. Reg. $1.95. Boy's Combination Underwear Spring needle and fleece lined. Reg. Ladies' First quality. All shades. Clearing at Boys' Wool Golf Allen A quality, Men's Broadcloth SHIRTS Various shades. Collars attached and separate, 79¢,2:-$.150 49¢ HOSE 25¢ Hose | Reg. value 95¢. To 49¢ Phone 733w