The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-08-04
DOWN IN A COAL NINE.
WANDERING THROUGH PASSAGES
UNDERGROUND.

The entrance to nearly all mines disap
points prcconceived notions. One cannot
say exactly what he expected, but he GER
tainly expected something different from
the reality Here. for instance. there was
no indication Of the existence Of the mine
save in the presence of the breakers anc
the huge pile Of culm. At short dis
tance from tho breaker was little shed
about ten feet square, and yawning in this
was tho mouth OF the passenger shaft.
The other shaft, up which arc hoisted the
tho cars loaded with coal, opens directly
into the breaker.
As wo gathered about the passenger
shaft the car was hoisted several times,
bringing up O number of miners and
laborers, and oil looked like inps from
the internal regions. Their bodies and
clothing were black as jet from smoke
and coal dust, and the only white one
could see about them was tho whites Of
their eyes. In their caps were extin'
guished torches. which still gavo out n
black and sullcn smoke. Men we found
them talking freely OF their lives and
rather enjoying the curiosity they in
spired. Their appearance. and tho mouth
Of that black shaft leading down sheer
800 feet into the bowels of tho earth, led
some of the party to conclude that they
would enjoy birds eye view Of Provi
denco on tho surface rather than tempt
Providence under ground. So less than
forty made the descent.
Each Of us was given little torch, and
then we gathered about the shaft. The
elevator is simply q platform like a
freight elevator. with no railing at either
side Above it is hood to keep of the
water constantly dripping down the
shaft from the seams in the rock. Ten
at q tine we crowded upon the elevator,
the torches Aaring up around us and fill.
ing our lungs with smoke. The signal
was given, and every heart sank little
as tho car rushed swiftly down.
Perhaps | reveal woeful ignorance
when say that l expected to SEQ as soon
as stepped from the car vast rugged
chamber. glittering with distant lights
and alive with eager workers. had read
descriptions of mines and seen pictures OF
them, and yet this delusion clings TO me.
But in one instant vanished all these
chimeras, and ! beheid narrow tunnel,
so low that | involuntarily stopped my
lttu, WHctutA Suti PAOtCNhAHS WIZ
necessary or not, and darker than mid
night On either side were walls of coal,
glittering strangely as the rays of light
fell upon them. and hewn into all sorts Of
irregular shapes and narrow recesses.
But the roof or ceiling seemed as smooth
and polished as marble. Tho vein of coal
runs of almost uniform thickness. and
the slate above and below forms u com.
paratively level floor and roof.
Along this narrow passage we wand
cred, the light from our Pickering lamps
making the darkness ahead the more i'm
penetrable At short intervals were cham
bers where the coal had been mined more
extensively, but between all chambers
pillars at least thirty feet in thickness
were left to support the tremendous
weight of the superintendent rock. And
in the chambers themselves were joists
and beams of wood erected for the same
purpose. One could scarcely realize that
all these passageways and chambers were
carefully laid out by engineers and sur
veyors, and that plans were drawn, mark
ing all the turns and divergences us sccu.
rately as the map of city.
But such was the case, and not a blow
Of the pickax Is struck that is not fore
seen, and 80 two passageways approach
each other from opposite directions, and
are finally united In one. At intervals
are heavy, air tight doors Of wood, which
serve the purpose OF breaking the cur.
rents of air. give perfect circulation, and
allow the steam fans to exhaust the fire
damp that may have accumulated in any
chamber, no matter how far distant. AS
these were closed behind US they gave q
crash like thunder, every sound being
maRnified by the rocky walls. Finally,
when we had gone hundreds Of feet from
the shaft, we began to see dim and
twinkling lights in the distance, and to
hear echoing cries. the crash OF loaded
cars rolling along the rail, and the clang
of steel on the sullen rocks. Mules furn-
ish the only motive power, and perhaps it
is because Of their well known stubborn
ness that they needed such vociferous d.
rection that for minutes we would hear
shouts and cries that were echoed until
thew seemed to come from hundred
lungs. Then wo would range ourselves
close along the walls and up would rum
BILE and clatter and clash loaded car.
drawn by several straining mules and
driven Tor rather directed, for no reins
were used), by boy as black as the coal
itself, his eyes glittering strangely In the
light from tho smoking lamp stuck In hs
hat band.
And finally we reached the miners them
selves, for all the men we had previously
seen were merely the laborers. Each
miner had q chamber to himself, and into
the walls no was viciously digging his
drill OF course his eyes get accustomed
to the semi gloom, but to US 1t seemed as
II he must work solely by the sense Of
feeling. The miner we surrounded told
us that he was almost ready for blast.
While we waited car rolled noisily up to
. pile Of broken coal. and black and
grimy laborer caught up shovel and
sent the Jumps laundering into the car.
Before II was filed the miner told us that
his charge was ready and babe us 60
around tho nearest corner. Fifty feet
away we wero halted, and then came an
anxious pause, each one agitated some
what, II tho truth must DO told Then
came loud and reverberating roar, fol
lowed by the crash of tumbling rock. Tho
earth shook beneath our feet. and from
tho slate roof, a foot above our heads,
splinters of rock seemed to fall around
us. Perhaps no ono really expected the
roof to fall and crush us. but there was