The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1810-09-14 00:00:00

IN SOUTH AVALES.

71se Committee, to whom the petition of several Orme'
awl 1.4.14 to of Collierin and Lands in Glistoweaeshire,
Caniterthcosliire, Pembrokeshire, and other 'theta in.
Soooloti'ales, was referred; to minnow the nistter
therm?, and report the same, ao it sh.,old appi,r eo
them, to the Holm and who we're eimpowtred to report
the Honors of Eritknre taken before them ; nod to
otomo sertell petition were referred, from the Company
or Proveirtond of the Mounsontbshire Canal Narixothot,
sa an it Pni,a lAUrM deollieries to ilunainuthshoe; the
lbw., A:dentin, apd Enreesses of the hotungii of
Newport, in the county of Moitionoth, in (7ussimon.
Sr Haney Protheror, of Cote.bouse, in
the elide" of Gloucester; the Sirlooty Tram Road
• Cumpeasy; the Company of Proprietors of the Somer-
. "oeishire•Coot Cts:ntl Navotation ; the Itteht Hotiorsrable
• Jemse Bart of Waidegrave; and W Ilium (7oseter
• Jima.. Large of tenant Collieries called Tut Ratlatuke
• Conirric‘ Maid of the said Earl, iti the county of SO-
-1111 tort; aid from several (Owners of Land* and Collie.
in the eueuty s.f tiouterset, on behalf .4 themsetees
• all When iuterested ; arid-also several Aecumet•
coals and codas imported Otto Bridgewater. Bristol, end
Glesferter, awl ether poets thereiu mentword.

lti die dlaii, 1410.
Jahu Pattesou, Esq. in Me Chair.
Charles Smith, F.aci. as called iu ; lsot buil*
egued the petition, he Was nut examined:
Heavy fusith,En. a weather of the Cuinniitice, gave
evidence a 3 fulltrum
_

That I, together with my brother Charles Smith,
Esq. are poteessed of Collieries in the parish of
Leominster, in tilainorgisushire, not far Loin Swan-
; that we succeeded tip four tie divided fifth-pmts
of these Collieries upon the death of our father, iu
the yen. 1797; that we have tener purchased the
other fifth-part (ruin u peewits who had an undivided
newest in ii ; that • Jahn Smith, deceased, our late
father, succeeded to one undivided fifth part of this
isi.thelesr 1770, in the right of his wife
Elizabeth, the rlast_thter of Chauney Townsend,
Esq. ; thetas, his life he purchased three other un-
divided fifth.perts of the same Colliery ; that the
Colliery which we are uew possessed of veil work-
ing in Litosamlet, were originally opened by the
said Chat/Amy Townseed abort the year 1730; that
from my remeutbranee, I being tilts forty-live
years of age. can remember this Colliery as long
. es I can remember Hey thing; and that from my
• earliest • remembrence eery deep pits were- sunk,
which mast have costa great deal of money ; that
there were several very powerful tire-engities at
work, ear of them, I believe, of the !armee '
Woes then in use; that there were very ex-
pensive waggon-ways made, the frieue-eork oith
timber, at that time; and it is perfectly evident
from my recutlectsoli of the whole face of the
country, that a v-ry large capital must have here
sunk previntoi to my tattiest recollectieu, but the
1111101iiii 1 Cionot sp-nk to otherwise thou by guess;
but I siii ccrtaiii that my grandfather had expeeiled
his ample li.risme in it, fur lie 'lied aithout any nth -r
property hot that; bat when soy brother asal my-
self secured...l to the Collieries epee my father's
death. iii 1797, he was theta of his nett proper
ni•isiey, without tekine iisto account env thing whit+
bail hero expende.i previous tito his becouisug
.10 tilt Yell" 1770, to advauvr for these. Collie-
VIC 4 LO the anauunt of upwards of 54.0001.; that I
Items, th,.t it: toe year 1773 he gave or tan
yid d fifth parts of that snide eourero, the soon of
6,unnh winch wee net itioladod its the sum of
51,u001. tied* I have previously mete tuned. and
'which ha I team wholly iniproSteble to luim from the
time he made- the purchase in the year 177 d. mid
with inietest, if interest had betel Calculated unon
it up to the year 1737, the sum which would have
been in the nature of capital Mended upon tb.t
concerts, would have been upwards of 70,0001.
which was the whole of it invested, mod at 64, and
est stake previous to the year 179}; that from the
Tear 17;17 the profits of the Colliery had by no
anions reduced the capital of that advance, and it
t. only to the future prospect of working that Col-
liery thet any reimbursement of tiny pert of
that sum eau arise; that there are now upon the
Colliery two fire-eneioes. I believe, of the largest
dimensious which are made: there is also
small fire-engine for the purpose of drawing
water: there is also a fire-engine for the purpose of
lithium coals from a 'deep pit, soil a very exten-
sive outer-engine for r g them (ruin smother
pit; and there is • caiial, wholly private proper-
ty. whieh was snide some time previous to the year
1796, (the precise time (riom recollection
specify, hat I am certain it was previous to I;t4c)
for the purpose of leading coals down to the water
side; lint I hone by the evidei.ce of my own eyes
and recollection, thstt in the neighlmurhnosl or
Swansea there were existing Collieries, of equal di-
mensions and extent, tuner than one, (rein my ear.
hest recollection. upon 'thick I shoeld think that a
less capital could not have been invested ; that I
also know, that previous to the year 1770, my
grandfather had sank puts, erected • Ilre-engine,
and had mode a canal for !citifies; coals down to the
water-side, near Llerielly iu Carmarthenshire. I
am unable, front %ay rtnenrornt whirls I have ever
riecr.hel to, to ...certain precisely what that repeal-
Gitere was, but I sea very (metope. fe•nt the depth
of the pit. from the vi-sr of the engines, from the
renal, that it most have been a eotisilerable expert-
shier* which was made there; bat that this Col-
l*. ey end concern envied from my grandfin her to
guy tither, and been him to my brother and mysrlf,
gas: we have since made it over to Major-Geti. (lea.
Ward, who is, I believe, now working upon the
same capital which was invested in that cancers,
and that he is making tole of diet esipital, which had
a owe-existence previous to his hemming engaged
in it, and I have heard that he has spent very large
sinus of money in addition to it since he has been
clanged in that work :.het I know to it certainty.
haven; hems down to the bettors% of the Collieries
winch we now week in Lausaunlet, that thee are
working st the depth of upwards of ninety bohemia
from the surface. I al.o Mama, by harin4 *eels
coals Onisro av from Collieries belonging to other
p.rvous near Swansea. Om they are working them
at 0 vary le"." 4.10 h. but never having been down
the it. I tin not tr"inpt:trot to tortr evi,kuce of wh it
curly iii I Ain retain the, ore
"tk, et at vPrY gte,t •lel.ll ; I also kunst this(
titourst (...3tcriev err wouhiel et a 4Mu•