Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1877-08-11

act justice in this matter, and, as
American citizens, We claim the right
to demand it, and to obtain it peace
ably if we can, etc
1t is marvellous that intelligent men
submit to such open, bare faced, ty-
rannical robbery. When We con-
slider these matters, and also how con-
temptuously We are treated when we
presume to ask for redress, it is enough
to exasperate saint. The press of
the country in 6 neral put us down as
set of chronic growlers, but if they
knew but moiety of our grievances
they would treat us differently.
I think that the only way to settle
this difficulty would be for the miners
to petition our next legislature to en-
act law to compel the companies to
have their mine cars gagged and
branded with their holding capacity,
(the Inspector of Mines could attend
to this with his other duties.) If the
companies object to this on account of
its causing them to build their mine
cars larger, they would be amply
compensated by not requiring the
services Of weighmaster to weigh
the mine cars. A car can be built to
hold two tons of coal as easily as a
J box can be constructed to hold
bushel.
The next grievance is the system of
docking rracticed more or less
throughout this mining region. The
Big Vein" as mined on the upper
end of Georges Greek, contains four
strata of slate, which are generally
exceedingly difficult to separate from
the coal, consequently in the darkness
of the mine, lighted only by the
miners lamp, more or less slate will
escape his notice and be loaded along
with the coal; and when it comes out
of the mine into the broad daylight,
any particles Of slate which escaped
the miners notice can then be clearly
seen. 1t is picked out and the miner
is docked one ton for sending out this
slate, although the actual weight of
the slate may be less than ten ponnds.
Understand, Mr.. Editor, that the
miner gets nothing for the coal he sent
out along with this slate, but the coal
is shipped off to market and the com
pany sells it; gets paid for the same
undoubtedly; and we get nothing for
our labor, simply because we cannot
accomplish an impossibility-that is,
to mine the coal and send it out en-
tIreiy free from slate. We are aware
that it is to our interest to send clean
coal to market, and I am certain that
there is not man working in the mines
who would knowingly send out slate
mixed with coal. In number of in
stances miners have been discharged
simply because they had the misfor-
tune to be docked three times in a
month-msn who had large families
to support, and certainly would not
load slate amongst their coal if they
knew it.
Another system of dockage is this :
the capacity of the mine cars in this
region, with one exception-the Bor-
den Shaft,) is from $500 to 5000
pounds; so you will perceive that the
miners have to build dixie a mason)
coal on top of the cars, after the bed
is filled, in order that the load may
weigh two tons or 4,46O pounds. In
their transit from where they are load
ed by the miner to where they are
weighed, q some accident may hap
pen and throw the cars off the track,
consequently this mason-work of coal
on top of the cars is thrown off, and
the miner has to bear the loss. The
company gathers up the scattered coal
Justly belonging to the miner-and
claim this robbery as their prerogative,
like the lion in the fable.
We are also docked for what is call
ed "bone coal, which we consider is
an unmitigatei outrage, The idea of
being docked for coal because it hap
pens to be a little harder than the
balance in the vein
Last, but not least, the President of
the Consolidation coal company finds
fault with the coal because it contains
too much slack, or, in other words,
because it is too soft. How can it be
otherwise when We are compelled to
throw away the bone which naturally
holds the coal together in solid mass
The worthy President is said to be an
expert in the coal business; I will give