Ltd.

29, Hewer.

Cramlington
Co., Ltd.

Coal

George Diston,

50, Shifter.

Bedlington Coal Co., | Matthew Wilson, Deceased and another hewer were working together during the fore shift in a lift 5 yards wide, in broken workings, in the
Engine Plane way of the Low Main Seam of the Doctor Pit. They had holed the stook, there being still a shell of coal left,
and deceased sat down to rest beside the stook, when a stone of the shape of a four-sided frustrum of a cone, with a base
roughly 4 feet square and a height of 4 feet, fell from the roof upon him. The side of the fall next the shell of coal and
the opposite side were natural slippery facings or backs; the other two sides were fractures due probably to the roof weight.
No timber was set under the fall, but a pair of gears next the fast side, and a prop and plank in the same line, extended
right across the place 4 feet from the face up to the stook. The deputy had examined the place before the entry of the
hewers, when it appeared safe; he had not visited them while they were at work as the accident happened at 6.15 a.m. The
Local Inspectors reported: "Find that the fall was caused by breakers' meeting with slippery jacks' in the roof, and is
one of those lamentable unforeseen accidents."
Died October 17. Deceased was making a road into a stook, or small pillar of coal, 5 yards by 2 yards, in broken workings, in
No. 2 West District of the High Main Seam of the Scott Pit. The chargeman left him at the place at 7.30 p.m., after
spending 15 minutes with him, examining the place and giving the necessary directions, and would probably have visited
him again had he not been called to a pump that was out of order. No one worked with deceased, and the nearest man was
250 yards away. The fore shift deputy making his examination at 1 a.m. on the following day of the workings, before the
hewers came in, found deceased under a fall with only his head and shoulders free; he tried to release him, but was not able
to do so, and had to go for help, and deceased was got clear about 2 a.m. The stone was post and was about 3 feet square
by 18 inches thick, and was relieved by natural joints in the stone, coated with clay. It broke off at the ends of three
planks deceased had set, and he had set a running plank under the ends of these planks nearest the stook, and two props
found under the stone were either canted out or he had knocked them out after putting up the running plank. Judging from
the work he had done the accident probably happened about 10 p.m., and he had lain 3 hours under the stone before he
was found by the deputy. It is quite probable that the accident might have happened if he had had a mate with him, but
he would have been sooner released, and although there is no specific regulation prohibiting men working alone and it is
quite common in the case of hewers, who are, however, usually visited pretty often by the putters, yet it is very undesirable
in the case of shifters and stoneman, who if fastened by a fall may remain so for hours. The Local Inspectors while saying
in their report and certify the same to be a pure accident," added "would recommend there be two men in future where
timbering broken juds." and the Jury added a similar recommendation to their verdict.

72

Oct. 16

Hylton, Durham

...

Wearmouth
Co., Ltd.

Coal

Matthew Frizzle,

Jun.,
28,
lewer.

Thomas Ball,
28.
Hewer.

86

Dec. 17

Blaydon Burn,
Durham.

Priestman Collieries, William Hebden,
Ltd.
47,
Shifter.

He was hewing during the night shift in a pillar of coal being taken out long wall, in the Maudlin seam, 5 feet thick, in the
1st South Flat of the Strathmore District. The putter left him about 9.50 p.m., and on returning, at 10.10 p.m., found
his lamp burning, but he was under a fall; assistance was obtained, and he was liberated in a few minutes, but he was
dead. The stone was of grey metal and was triangular in shape, the base, about 24 feet long, was next the coal and the
apex about 3 feet from it; the upper surface of the stone was a curved back lying into the place and running both through
the seam and roof, and which was visible in the coal, and as deceased's pick was found sticking in the coal where it was
visible he must have seen it. There was timber set on the sides of the stone extending into the place, and there was a
sufficient supply of loose timber lying near. The deputy visited him at 7 p.m., when he set a pair of gears and left the
place apparently safe. The Local Inspectors reported: "We are of opinion it is a pure accident.'
Deceased and another hewer were working together during the fore shift in a longwall place, in the north district of the
Beaumont seam, 20 inches thick, and had nearly finished their shift, when a post stone, 5 yards long, 2 yards wide, and
varying in thickness up to 24 feet, and weighing some tons fell from the roof across the road head close to the packs and
killed deceased, and caught, but did not seriously injure, his mate. There was no top canch taken down in the road, height
being obtained by a bottom canch; deceased was on this canch waiting for the putter, his mate being in the cut. The
stone was relieved by a curved parting with coal pipes lying over outbye, and meeting a joint, and canted out three props
in its fall. The deputy was in the place before the men started work, when it appeared safe, but he had not visited it
during the course of the shift. There was a sufficient supply of loose timber, and deceased and his mate had set six props
during the shift. The Local Inspectors, after an intelligent description of the accident, concluded: "There was no
evidence of neglect on the part of workmen or official. We were satisfied it was a pure accident."

In the Staple East District of the Five Quarter seam of the Mary drift, the Stone Coal seam, 3 feet 1 inch thick, has been
worked in former times above the Five Quarter seam, 3 feet 5 inches thick, from which it is separated by 2 feet 6 inches of
fireclay, necessitating close timbering in the Five Quarter seam now being worked in the whole or first working of the bord
and pillar system. The bords, 12 feet wide, are turned away opposite each other, 6 feet wide, and holed the same width on
to the headways. A bord had gone a few yards when the timber at the turn, consisting of two crossing planks set close
together with six planks resting on them, supported at their other ends by props, gave way and required renewal, and
deceased and another shifter were at the work. An old headways in the Stone Coal seam nearly coincided with the
headways in the Five Quarter seam. They may have put in some new planks between the six planks supported by new
props at their ends furthest from the crossing planks and then middle propped them so as to renew the crossing planks
when the whole roof collapsed, burying deceased under the fireclay between the seams, as well as any stowage in the old
* All mines are coal mines unless otherwise specified.

Died August 7. Deceased was night shift onsettor and about 2.30 a.m. was at the Low Main seam alone, and wishing to descend
to the Plessey seam below he signalled 2 to the surface; this signal was heard both by the engineman and the waiter-on
but the engineman did not move the cage until the waiter-on shouted the signal to him. He said after he got the shout he
waited 8 or 10 seconds before moving the cage as he knew deceased was alone at the Low Main seam and would rap himself

down.

The engineman had to liberate the steam lever and foot brake before the cage moved. Both the waiter-on and engineman stated at the inquest that sufficient time was allowed for a man to get into the cage between the signals and its moving. The rapper handle used was close to the cage. The cages are double decked and run in end guides; deceased used the bottom deck, 3 feet 6 inches high. At the Low Main seam a person entering has to make use of a space 2 feet wide between the guide and either side of the cages. Deceased had been born lame in one leg but this did not impede his movements. He was found lying in the cage at the Plessey seam by the back overman who was on duty at the bottom of the shaft. Before his death deceased told his brother that he had not been given sufficient time to get into the cage and had been rolled over against one of the guides and rendered unconscious. The Local Inspectors made no report.

A drop staple (8 fathoms deep) in the Ouston A pit is used for lowering coal from the Low Main to the Hutton seam; it is
fitted up with two cages running in wooden guides, each holding a single tub. The rope passes with one dead coil round a
wheel at the top and motion is controlled by a powerful brake applied to the wheel and worked in the Low Main seam.
Electric signals from the bottom to the top are used, the push placed 5 feet from the flat sheets at the bottom on an upright
beam between the cages consisted of a plain spring with a nob on it, and very little pressure was necessary to cause contact.
Workmen had been allowed to use the staple at one time, but latterly this had been restricted to officials, and they were in
the habit of getting on the cage top instead of inside for two reasons-1st, so as not to interfere with the lowering of the
coal, and 2nd, because the cages were under better control when containing the ordinary load. Deceased, who was on his
way to the Hutton seam to write his report, got on to the top of one of the cages which contained a loaded tub and was
safely lowered to the bottom. The attendant there took out the loaded tub and moved away with it. The attendant at the
top took out the empty tub, and stated he then received a signal from the bottom, and in this he was corroborated by
another person at the top; he put in a loaded tub and then commenced to lower, but finding at once that the ascending
cage was light, he put on the brake. Deceased was found jammed between the cage he had descended on and a cross beam
7 feet above the flat sheets at the bottom. The only apparent explanation of the accident was that he had inadvertently
touched the signal while in the act of getting off the cage and that it had moved away before he was clear. The manager
arranged to prohibit riding on the tops of the cages and to fix a push less liable to be accidentally pressed. The Local
Inspector reported, "we are of opinion that it was a pure accident."

Died April 12, 1906. The downcast shaft, 16 feet in diameter, is traversed by two pairs of cages; one pair runs to the Low
Main seam, and the other pair to the High Main, an upper seam. The cages of the latter pair, running in rail
guides, have each two decks, each deck carrying a single tub. There is a scaffold in the part of the shaft occupied
by the High Main seam cages 4 feet below the flat sheets at that seam. There are electric signals on each side of
the shaft at the High Main seam ringing a bell on the surface both on the heap and in the engine-house; these signals are
used for coal winding, and there is a rapper wire working at once a hammer on the heap and in the engine-house, which
was used when work was being done in the shaft. There are keps at the surface but none at the High Main seam. Soon
after work started, the banksman found that the bolts in the bottom ring of the west side High Main seam cage were
loose, and he sent word to the enginewright, v ho instructed deceased and another blacksmith to go down the pit to the
High Main seam to tighten them up, as it was difficult to do so at the surface. They went down in the west side cage, and
when they got off at the High Main seam told the onsettor there they wanted that cage, and he told them they could have
it when it came back. He put two loaded tubs into the cage they had come down in and signalled it away, and then

* All mines are coal mines unless otherwise specified.

Cause of Accident and Remarks.

Sept. 20

Dunston,
Durham.

Dunston Garesfield
Collieries, Ltd.

Francis Bain-
bridge,
23,
Stoneman.

Died September 21. A shot-firer placed his battery in an old gateway at right angles to a cross gateway in which a shot charged with about 1 lb. of saxonite had been prepared to blow up bottom stone. He arranged with deceased to connect the cable to this shot after he had fired a shot in an ordinary gateway, the battery remaining in the same position for the firing of both shots. The first shot was fired and deceased went to couple up the cable to the shot in the cross gateway, and the shotfirer waited a couple of minutes and averred he saw a light pass the old gateway and thought deceased had retired. He fired the shot, and deceased, who must have been close to it, was fatally injured. The Local Inspectors reported—“ We are of opinion that he met his death accidentally."

Walton,
28,
Engineman.

Tynedale Coal Co., Robert Armstrong Close to the side of a dip road, 250 yards from the downcast and drawing shaft, a Tangye oil engine worked, by a belt, a three
throw pump, which delivered to the surface. Deceased went to the pump at 5 p.m., and water was seen flowing from the
Ltd.
delivery pipe up to 10.30 p.m. when it ceased and did not flow again. The winding engineman informed the deputy as to this
The deputy went down the pit. At first he was not able to get nearer than 50 yards to
when he came to the pit at 2 a.m.
the pump on account of smoke, but obtaining the assistance of another pump engineman they, with great difficulty, got to
within 4 yards of the pump, and found deceased lying in the end of an old road near the pump, terribly burnt, and with his
clothes still burning and timber and a canvas door near him in flames, as was also the engine-house chamber. They dragged
The manager arrived, and the fires were got under. It was then found that the valve on the
the body clear of the fire.
delivery pipe was closed, the taps of the ignition and vapourising lamps were closed and the lever of the engine was at stop,
and everything pointed to the engine and pump having been stopped by deceased. The fencing round the flywheel had been
removed, and from the position of the leather belt it was probable that deceased had, after tightening the lacing, moved
round the flywheel to replace it on the driving pulley, and had then been about to ascend a ladder to reach a small tank for
feeding the lamps of the engine. There were three lamps found, a hurricane lamp lay overturned on the floor of the
chamber, a hanging lamp at the side had its soldering melted by the heat and had dropped on to the floor in pieces, and a
torch lamp, also in pieces, and an oil funnel were found near deceased. It was surmised that deceased had accidently upset
the hurricane lamp which he had placed on the floor near the ladder, and that it caused the fire in the engine chamber, that
in his efforts to extinguish the flames his clothing was set on fire, and that he had then picked up the torch lamp and rushed
out to the place where he was found, causing a second and distinct fire there. The timber in the chamber in which the oil
engine was placed had been on fire, and the cover of the oil tank of the engine, which held 4 gallons, had been blown off
with considerable force. The engineman on the previous shift had taken in a drum holding 8 gallons of oil, and some oil
remained in it. Two smaller cans were empty. The owners agreed to make a brick chamber for the oil engine and do
away with any timber, and to use safety lamps in working near it.

At the termination of an endless rope road, which dipped inbye, a rope, about 20 yards long, was used in Died Jan. 8, 1907. The clutch bogie was connection with a clutch bogie to draw full tubs into position for hiulage by the endless rope. attached to the rope on the loaded side at the return wheel, and the loose rope was attached to it at one end and to the full tub further inbye at the other end and the whole arrangement travelled 20 yards when the bogie was disconnected from both ropes and run back. Deceased was standing near some full tubs beside the return wheel while a lad was bringing the bogie back. Two lockings or sprags were used in the wheels of the bogie while bringing it back but sometimes the bogie would not move when both were inserted and then one was taken out until it restarted. The bogie appears to have stopped, and the lad, who was without a light according to one of the witnesses, took out one locking and was unable to

* All mines are coal mines unless otherwise specified.

Whitehaven liery Co.

Col

Henry Garrity,
32,
Hewer.