Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1899-08-31
PRODUCTION OF COAL.
FIGURES COMPILED BY
THE BUREAU OF MINES.
Over 117,OOO,OOO Tons Taken From
Pennsylvania Coliieries in 1898, Near
ly 53,OOO,OOO Tons of Which Was An
thracite-Number of Men Employed.


ly 53,OOO,OOO Tons of Which Was An
thracite-Number of Men Employed.
The annual report of the bureau of
mines of Pennsylvania, just issued,
shows that SO, SOC, 500 net tons of an
thracite coal were produced in the state
last year and GA ,247,635 tons of btu
minous, making an aggregate of H.
$50, 221 net tons, an increase as com
pared with that of the previous year of
0,794 ,923 tons.
The chief of the bureau says: "Coal
has become one of the essential ele-
ments of modern civiization-in fact,
the progress of the civilization of a
country is now recorded by the amount
of coal obtainable and employed by the
inhabitants in given time. 1t is pleas
ing to note the great increase in the
production for the last decade and en-
couraging to contemplate the possibil-
ty of a still greater production in the
future of Pennsylvania coal. Increased
production necessitates deeper and
more expensive mines, requiring better
and more intelligent supervision than
ever before, and this is one step in
mining progress which, being neither
sudden nor conspicuous, escapes gen
eral notice, but which is fraught with
important results"
The number of persons employed in
the anthracite mines last year was
142, ,420; 7,137 less than the previous
year. In the btuminous mines there
were employed last year s7,S02 persons,
an increase Of 1919. During the year
2,232 accidents occurred, of which 500
were fatal. Forty-one per cent of the
fatal accidents are attributable to care
lessness or violations of the mine laws
by the victims, the chief of the bureau
states. Forty-three per cent of the
non-fatal accidents is charged to the
same cause.
In addition to the enforcement of the
present mining laws, the chief suggests
that the carrying of lucifer matches,
playing with signals, riding on cars,
opening boxes of explosives in proximity
to lamp or pipe, and the shortening of
fuse or its saturaton with oil should
subject the guilty person to punishment,
whether or not the act is followed by an
accident. Failure to properly place
timber should also be punishable.
Certainly" says the chief of the
bureau, "the class of legislation pro-
ic nI ny nT
private rights than was the original
law an invasion of property rights"
He finds fault because many of the
mines are not managed as well as they
ought to be.
This, he says, is due to an utter dis
regard of the laws and the lack of
mining knowledge in those who own
and superntend them, coupled with a
penny-wise and pound-foolish system
that invariably leads to bad develop
ment, with all its accompanying evils,
insufficient ventilation, dirty roads,
poor drainage, inability to procure the
greatest possible percentage of coal,
and failure to furnish at the proper
time sufficient supplies for use in the
mines, to which the cause of many
accidents may be attributed.
The mine boss and the superintend
ent, says the chief of the bureau of
mines, should be held responsible for
the detection and punishment of mine
violations.
The only counties producing anthra-
cite coal are Luzerne, Schuylkill, Lack
awanna, Carbon, Columbia, Dauphin,
Sullivan, Susquchanna
and Wayne. Luzerne, Schuylktll and
Lackawanna supply about tve-sixths of
the output.
The report says that "the prosperity
in the coal trade, Judging from the pro-
duction, applies wholly to btuminous
coal. The market for anthracite coal
has apparently reached its limit. When
it is considered that 14s.d was the aver
age number of days the mines in the
anthracite region worked it can readily
be seen that there are more mines in op-
GRAFTON and more men employed than are
needed to supply the demand for anthra-
cite coal"
The average number of days worked
in the bituminous mines was 2OSH.
st, AIMS Paroehial School,