Springfield daily republic. [volume] (Springfield, O. [Ohio]) 1887-1888, 1888-09-01
DOWN IN A COAL NINE.
WANDERING THROUGH PASSAGES
UNDERGROUND.

The entrance to nearly all mines disap-
points preconceived notions. One cannot
say exactly what he expected, but he cer-
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 and
the huge pile Of culm. At short dis
tance from the breaker was a little shed
about ten feet square, and yawning in this
was the mouth Of the passenger shaft.
The other shaft, up which are hoisted tho
the cars loaded with coal, opens directly
into the breaker.
As we gathered about the passenger
shaft the car was hoisted several times,
bringing up a number of miners and
laborers, and all looked like imps 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 the whites Of
their eyes. In their caps were extin-
guished torch, }. which still gave out
black and sullen smoke. Men we found
them, talking freely of their lives and
rather enjoying the curiosity they in
spired. Their appearance, and the mouth
Of that black shaft leading down a sheer
800 feet into the bowels of the earth, led
some of the party to conclude that they
would enjoy a birds eye view Of Provi-
dence on the 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 platform like q
freight elevator, with no railing at either
side. Above it is hood to keep off the
water constantly dripping down the
shaft from the seams In the rock. Ten
at q time we crowded upon tho elevator,
the torches fiaring up around us and I'LL
ing our lungs with smoke. The signal
was given, and every heart sank q little
as the car rushed swiftly down.
Perhaps l reveal q woeful Ignorance
when say that / expected to see as soon
as stepped from the car a 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 beheld narrow tunnel,
so low that | involuntarily stopped my
head, whether such Q proceeding were
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. The vein of coal
runs of almost uniform thickness, and
the slate above and below forms q com.
paratively level floor and roof
Along this narrow passage we wand
cred, the light from our fickering 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 as aecu-
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 so two passageways spproach
each other from opposite directions, and
are finally united in one. At intervals
are heavy, air tight doors Of wood, which
serve th: purpose Of breaking the cur
rents of air, give a perfect circulation, and
allow the stesm 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
magni6ed 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 di-
rection that for minutes we would hear
shouts and cries that were echoed until
they seemed to come from q hundred
lungs. Then We 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 10 reins
were used), by u boy as black as the coal
itself, his eyes glittering strangely in the
light from tho smoking lamp stuck in his
hat band.
And finally We reached the miners them
selves, for all the men we Lad previously
seen were merely the labJfers- Each
miner had a chamber to himself, and into
tho walls ne was viciously digging his
drill. OF course his eyes get accustomed
to the semi gloom, but to US it 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 q shovel and
sent tho Jumps laundering into the car.
Before it vas filed the miner told Us that
his charge was ready and bade us so
around the nearest corner. Fifty feet
away we were halted. and then cams an
anxious pause. each one agitated some
what. II the truth must be told. Then
came q loud and reverberating roar, fol
lowed by the crash Of tumbling rock. The
earth shook beneath our feet, and froni
the slate roof. foot above our heads,
splinter3 Of rock seemed to fall around
US. Perhaps no one really expected tho
roof to fall and crush US, but there was
sigh of relief when the blast was over.
Wo hurried back to the chamber with tbs
smell Of powder in our nostrils. A
jagged hole was pierced in the coal, and
as we looked through the smoke and dust,
blsekened and demoniac face appeared
at US from its depths. The blast had
opened passage directly through into
the adjoining chamber. and the face was
that Of the good natured miner on the
other side. The coal that the blast had
loosened lay heaped in confusion by the
c. hat l..l Is kx,f h.
explosion that it could easily be broken
by a pickaxe into size convenient for
handling. Nothing then remained but |
for the laborer to shovel it all. large and |
small Jumps and even the dust. into car.
w. d. in Albany Argus.