The record-union., 1892-05-27
Transmitting Electric Power in a Min
ing Locality-Why Some Towns
Prosper and Others Decay.
Travelling Correspondent REcoRD-UsIoN.I

strong enough in spoke, hub and axle to
stand a sudden jar that throws the whole
weight upon one wheel when standing at
an angle of sixty degrees. Other roads
are in condition approaching this, and
together they foym a perfect impeach-
ment of the old road system by which
Lee Moulton of Colusa says roads were
made with straw, votes and whisky.
REFORMS PROPOSED.
AS the roads are about to come under
the charge of the Supervisors, they are
discussing the plan Of purchasing a rock
breaker. With enough expense to grade
and macadamize thoroughly, we think a
rock breaker could be used to make al
most perfect highways, but in present
condition of the thoroughfares and
amount of funds at disposal, the purchase
of a rock-breaker looks like sending
Greek leXicons to the freednnen's school.
The board will have plenty OF business
on hand to decide between the many ap-
plicants representing horrible roads that
are largely travelled to decide where the
funds shall be spent. After a specifi-
cation of work most needed has been
made as carefully as details of building
would be given in a contract and bids are
received, it will be known how much
road work may done by the county
funds.
COMPETITION FOR FUNDS.
Instead of each Supervisor putting the
road in first-class order in front of his
own place, or distributing the funds to
please political friends, we suggest petit
TONERS for improvements accompany their
prayer with a proposition stating what
percentage ofthe cost of the improvement
they are willing to raise by private sub
scription. In that way the petition will
show exactly how much the work is
wanted. Without private aid it will be a
very long time before the roads of Amador
can be put in fair condition by public
funds. Before macadamiZing most of
them need to have rocks, trees and stumps
removed, tracks Strengthened, turnpikes
thrown up TO turn water, sluices and
bitches made to carry it off, and the
scraper drawn over to fill the ruts. Many
of them would be greatly improved by
the use of harrow. Several good bridges
have been built, but so far as the roads
themselves are concerned the A, B, c
work remains to be done on most of
them.
ELECTRIC POWER.
In visiting the Cover mine, near Dry
town, your correspondent was impressed
by the economy of electric transmission
of power and convinced of it's great
future. a large stream of water was
coming from the electric pump, and from
the long array of figures that tumbled
the gray matter of his brain around in q
dizzy whirD the writer managed to re-
member that the work was now being
done for $500 per year that formerly cost
by steam Sl75 per month.
A MINERS PLAN FOR HARNEssING A
RUNAWAY.
After the water of the Amador Canal
leaves the mining section, near Drytown,
it has a fall of some SOC feet, and Superin-
tendent Gail of the Cover is negotiating
with the company to transmit the power
thus generated by electricity to run his
hoisting works. AS the water is now
practically useless, and the experiment
opens great possibilities, he is anticipat-
ing reduction in operating expense
similar to that realized by the electrical
puml ing plant.
The very water that he pumps from the
mine is to be returned to the canal in
such way that it will run over the water
wheel and generate power that will be
sent back over electric wires to pump out
the very mine from whence it came.
When in complete working order the
plant may be expected to generate
power sufficient to raise two-thirds the
amount of water that runs through the
wheel to hight equal to the fall, So if
they will follow the water that comes
from the two hundred-foot level until
they get three hundred feet fall they can
make the mine pump itself dry.
THE LATE ACCIDENT AT THE COVER.
The writer visited the scene on the 23d,
saw the trucks and the stick that caused
the disaster, and was carefully shown
precautions used for safety. It was a
round timber, seventeen inches through
and sixteen feet long. 1t was fastened to
a tour-wheeled truck on which it rested
between tmbers that reached half
way up the side of the log and was fast
ened in its seat by four chains with a
heavy dog driven into the log to a depth
of four inches. After the dog was driven
into the log we heard s. offered to anv
man who would loosen it with five blows
of hammer. The truck runs on track
latd down the shaft, which runs at an
angle of 450. The shaft is some eighteen
feet in width, and in case the men hear
anything falling they are accustomed to
dodge against the end of the shaft. One
OF the three did dodge quick enough to
save his lie on that occasion, and the
osher two were killed by the rebound of
the stick when it broke like match as
1t struck the bottom of the shaft.
MIR. Hale OF the keystone mine saws
that they had similar disaster four
years since, and that he always used
clevises for fastening his timbers after
ward. 1t would not seem possible for a
timber, fastened as the one was last Fri
day at the Cover, to come loose, but it
did, and the men are dead.
Instead of looking upon it as an in
scrutable dispensation of Providence, it
is the duty of the Miners Association to
give the matter careful and early atten-
lion and adopt and enforce any method
that seems likely TO promote the safety of
miners, at any increased expense neces-
sary.
MINES DROWNED IN THE SALOONS.
The writer was very favorably inn
pressed with the qualifications of Anna
doris mining managers. They seemed,
as rule, men of good ability and educa-
ton and qualified for their positions by
long practical experience at every branch
of the work.
More than this-he found them at the
post of duty marked by no tell-tale signs
of dissipation. In the vicinity of their
property he saw neat homes and thirty
ing communities. In marked contrast to
this condltlon, he once visited another
county on the same lode and of natural
advantages quite as good where everv-
thing seemed going to decay, industries
dormant and citizens discouraged.
IN SEEKING THE CAUSE.
He found that Mining Superintendents
had generally been saloon patrons who
wasted time that should have been de-
voted to business while property went IN
ruin, owners became discouraped and
Withdrew investments, and as a conse-
Quence promising industries were par-
alyZed.
The saloons went down with the rest.
and we could not see that our historical
friend was very far wrong in his reflec-
ton that wise saloon-keeper would re-
fuse to sell stimulants in way calculated
to befog the brain, waste the time or de-
stroy the character Of Mining Superin-
tendent
1t is to be hoped that the mining engi-
neers TO be graduated from the special
departments of our great universities