The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1907-03-14
Recent Exposures in Regard to te
Stuart Mine Upheld and
Verified.
PAYS RESPECTS TO MIR. JoHNslNG

81 have read your articles in tbe
Post regarding the recent nine
disasters in West Virgini., and
particularly at Stuart, in Fayette
county. Your action in exposing
the lawiess manner in which the
mines OF West Virginia, and parties
ularly in the New River coal field
IS, to say the least, commemorative
am a miner, and know the con.
dltlons here better than any in.
vestlgator could possibly find ont
In many months of actual ex-
perience.
First of all, / want to tell your
readers Just exactly how the mines
are inspected. The inspector mott
hes the superintendent that he will
De on hand at certain date, The
mine foreman is notified and n oar.
lsprovided, with suitable seats or
straw, for the inspector to ride in.
The mine foreman hauls him
around, taking him where the best
conditions prevail, and brings him
out, and Mr.. Inspector knows inst
as much concerning the WORKING
conditions of that mine as n farmcr
in Georgia. There is not a mine in
the New River field, whether case.
GUS OF not, but what has from
dozens to hundreds of places that
are from 40 to 800 feet ahead Of
air, and i'll a gaSeour mine. if 81
room or heading is on a rise. gas
enough to explode and DESTROY
every living thing in the mine viii
accumulate in a very short time if
air Is not forced to the face of the
coal. Nobody ever knew or heard
OF q place exploding where air was
properly circulating? If a place is
being driven up grade the gas will
accumulate in the heading. n
seeks it's level from above, exactly
the opposite to water. The cause
OF most explosions comes about bv
the miners walking into heading
with an open lamp, thereby setting
tire to the gas that has accumulat.
ed during his absence.
"Anothcr and one of the worst;
dangers that confronts the miner is
passing moving cars. The hall
way is usually so narrow that the
miner has little chance to get out
OF the way, especially if he meets a
Train OF cars on down grade.
Chief Mine Inspector Paul saws
mine cars kill a great many men in
The course of a year. He says a
miner sees car coming and steps
OIL the track to let it pass. On
one side of the track he has five or
SIX feet room, which would allow
a safe passage. On the other side
is less than a foot The miner, uu.
observant, steps Off on the narrow
side and is caught by the car. His
lie Is literally rolled out Of him.
Now, [ would like to ask Mr. Paul.
through the columns OF the Post.
just to name one mine in the New
River field, where the miner has
i've or SIX feet of room Oh either
side of the track to pass car. 1
nave never seen a side entry in nv
life that would clear by eighteen
inches on either side. This evil
could easily be remedied. but no
attention is paid to it.
Senator johnson, in speech be-
fore the legislature on the Stuart
disaster, made the following state
ment: ''There have been some
silly stories circulated about the
Stuart disaster; that the mine was
as hot as hades and that the men
were kept in while coal was
brought to the top. These are
false''
Now, johnson was misniformed.
The men were detained at the bot
tom of the shaft. Some forced
their way out just before the ex-
plosion. The mine foreman pulled
one man off a car on the last trip
before the explosion. One man
came up on the last trip and bare
ly escaped the falling debris. He
IS authority for the foregoing state
ment.
1t is a known fact that the fan
had not been running for four and