West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1886-02-12
FIRE DAMP.
What it is, and How Mines
are Ventilated.
Science and Law Brought
in to Aid the Miner.
The Observance of the Min
ing Laws of the State,
And the Introduction of
Modern Inventions
For the Purpose of Expell-
ing and Detecting
Noxious and Inf1ammable
Gases, Would Have
Avoided the Terrible New
burg Disaster.
NoXious and Infiammable
Gases, Would Have
Avoided the Terrible New
burg Disaster.

The attention of our readers gen
orally has been called with striking
force, and in most unfortunate
manner, to the working of under
ground mines. the safe guards
provided, by law and invention for
those who earn their daily bread in
such places, and to the nature and
causes of the deadly fire damp that
has so recently cast such gloom
upon our people.
WHAT FIRE DAMP is.
Coal in all mines produces gases
of various kinds, such as carbonic
acid gas, oxygen gas, nitrogen gas,
and marsh gas, or carbureted hydro.
gen. This latter is commonly known
as fire damp, and usually exists in
larger quantity than any of the
other gases, though the amount of
the different gases found in coal
varies with the class of coal. This
fire damp consists of carbon and by.
drogen, certain parts each, and is
simply gas generated from the coal
in the mines. With four to twelve
times its volume of air, it will ex-
plode upon coming in contact with
FIRE, the miners lamp This was
the direct cause of the Newbur5 ex
plosion. If there is less than four
or more than twelve times the amount
of pure air that there is Of fire damp,
there will be no explosion, but the
gas will simply burn in pale blue
flame. Consequently, at the time of
the explosion, there must have been
only between four and twelve times
the volume of pure air, that there
was Of marsh gas, or the explosion
would not have occurred. Then we
hear of choke damp, or latter damp"
This is gaseous substance consist
in principally of carbonic acid, and
is not explosive, but on the contrary
will extinguish the miners lamps.
1t produces death in a remarkably
short space of time, by suhocating
these in the mine. The men may
escape the explosion, of fire damp
and lose his life from choke damp.
Salty LAMPS.
How then, it may be, asked are
miners to decend into the mines, not
knowing the condition of the air or
the amount Of marsh gas that may
have accumulated, in order to avoid
an explosion from their lighted lamps.
The answer is, by the means of a
salty lamp, so constructed that the
flame can not come in contact with
the gases. The discovery which led
to the construction of this lamp was
made by Sir Humphrey DAvy in
SIG The lamp is called the "Davy
lamp" and is described as follows It
consists Of a small cylindrical oil
lamp, covered with a cylinder of re
gauze about Gin long, and 2lin. in
diameter, with Tat gauze top. The
gauze is mounted in q cage, consist
ing Of three upright wires, secured
into fat brass rings at each end
a hadle is attached 90 the upper
ring, while the lower one screws on.
% a collar on the oil vessel Of the
lamp. When the two parts are screw.
ed together the lamp is locked by a
bolt passing through both parts, which
is screwed down flush with or below
the surface Of The outer ring, so that
the gauze cannot be removed with.
out the use Of O key. These lamps
are used for precautionary purposes
before tho miners bring in their
lighted lamps, and for exploring, af
ter an accident If the atmosphere
Of The mines is dangerous they give
warning by the pickering ofthe flame
within, and 10 other ways which the
carrier must understand. Other lamps
upon Che same principle as The Dayy
lamp are also in use
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