Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1881-02-19
ABOUT SCALES.
JUSTICE.

Mr.. Editor II have just returned
from tour of inspection of the weigh.
scales of some of the mines located on
Georges Creek. I had made three
previous visits and found the mines
idle.
The first inspected was the scale Of
the new 'Cony mine. This mine has
been idle this month up to date.
found the scale not working clear on
account of the state of the weather
and not being in daily use the weigh
master soon cleared away the obstruc-
tions when | found the scale correct.
Weighed two mine cars and found
their weight to correspond with the
weight taken for them also weighed
two trips Of loaded cars, and found
them to weigh from two tons up to
two tons FIVE hundred, some one or
two cars going above that. The bed
of the cars are the smallest in the re-
gion-their capacity is set at two tons
three hundred, and if the miner loads
more he is told that he is loading too
heavy. l also had look at the rail
road tonnage of the mine, the fire
coal account for the last month, and
compared them with the tonnage on
the payroll and found the difference
SO email that left this mine with the
conviction that the miners were get
ting justice done them. Those that
are not are some few that load more
coal for the purpose Of getting two
ton three hundred for every car, AS
far as I am concerned I have no OBJ
lection to them doing SO, but | think
under the circumstances they ought
not to growl.
The next in order was the Swanton.
There l found very different state
of affairs. Your readers will remem-
Der what I said about this scale in the
month of June last. Let me assure
them that old Father Time has made
no improvement on this relic Of an
tiquity. At that date there were
some signs Of life in this antediluvian
machine but now it is as dead as
door nail. Let me describe it to the
readers of the JOURNAL. 1t consists
OF an iron rod running down through
the floor of house intended for q
weigh Office; this rcd is attached to
what is intended to represent the
beam it is about two feet long, with
chalk marks denoting, I presume, the
age of the world since the Creator of
it said "Let there be light, and there
was light" In the centre of this
beam is suspended a large weight; at
the other end are seven railroad
spikes, nine washers, three pieces of
burned-out fire pokers, two heads of
old hammers and a number of iron
nuts. 1 was informed that the ma
chine is considerably under the in
huence Of the weather bureau-that,
with warm, south winds, tho manager
added junk, before enumerated, but
when one of Vennor's "blizzards"
came along he had to subtract. l
requested the gentlemen who is sworn
to weigh the coal to introduce me in
to the mystery Of operating the ma
chine. He informed me it was i'm
possible to do SO, as he principal
part Of it was gusss-work. This as
sertion proved to my mind that he
was an honest man if he had told
me anything else l would not have
believed him, I STEPPED outeide
upon what is known as the platform
where the car ought to stand to be
weighed, but my infant body of over
two hundred pounds would not move
it. requested him to go through
the signs and symbols of weighing me,
and found that I had lost sixty.one
pounds in the last thirty minutes of
my life.
Now such being tho facts of this
case, and the law requiring the
product of miners labor to be Justly
weighed and not guessed at. All ac-
tions for the enforcement of the law
has 70 be by indictment and the
grand inquest of the county not being
in session before April, nv hands are
tied up until that time. This shows
that the law is defective in this Sec
ton, as I cannot enforce it at this
time. But I will most assuredly do
so at the next term of court, for there
is no doubt in my mind that the
miners employed in the Swanton mine
are getting robbed daily of the fruits