New-York tribune., 1908-07-27
TO END NINE DISASTERS
British, German and Belgian Erperts
Coming NeTt Month.

Washington July @-In response to an invita-
ton extended by the United States government IN
behalf of the geological survey, Great Britain Ger
many and Belgium will send to this country next
month their leading experts in the prevention OF
mine disasters, 10 aid in the opening OF the WORK
here. The negotiations were conducted throush tne
State Department. and word has been received
from the American ambassadors at London and
Berlin and the American Minister at Brussels tnat
the three countries have acceded to the request OF
the United States. and that the experts viii have
a leave of absence for two months from their home
duties to visit the United States for this purpose
The three experts who will sail for New York
next month are Captain Desborough. Inspector OF
explosives. under the Home Office Great Britain;
Herr Meissner. the head of the German Mine Ser
vice. and Victor Watteyne. engineer in chief, Ad-
ministration of Mines Belgium.
1t is expected that the experts will reach New
York about the end of August. and after visiting
the anthracite region will proceed to Ptttsburg,
where the United States Geological Survey lis en-
gagged In erecting plant to conduct Investigations
into the cause of mine explosions In Company with
the experts in charge of the technologic branch OF
the survey they will visit the anthracite fields OF
Pennsylvania, the bitumnous fields of Western
Pennsylvania and the coal fields Of Illinois. Wyo-
ming Colorado, Alabama, West Virginia and Okla
homa in order that they may learn the conditions
under which coal is mined in this country.
Experimental stations for the prevention of dis
asters in the mines have been in operation for
number of years in eacn country represented oy
the experts. and through these the death rate of
the mines has been reduced to minimum.
In the United States there have been investi-
cations along this line the result being that this
country has most unenviable record OF deaths,
the number killed in the several states being from
two to four times greater for each LEGO miners en-
ployed than is the in the foreign countries
named. Last year $500 men lost their lives in the
coal mines of the United States, increase Of
loo over the previous year In December last 100
lives were sacrificed in four explosions the one at
Monongahela, w. Va. with 356 deaths, being the
greatest disaster in the history of American min
ing. The Darr mine catastrophe in Pennsylvania
followed with $50 victims Sixty-one were killed
at Yoande, Ala, and 90 at the Naomi mine in
Pennsylvania. For the year Pennsylvania alone
showed 1,514 men killed in the mines But this is
a record of the past Everywhere in the United
States there is determination the part of both
operators and miners that these disasters must
knowledge that mine accidents have been increas-
ing and the death rate constantly getting larger,
the government authorities fastening to begin
the Investigations which it is believed will greatly
reduce the loss of life. It.s expected that the ad-
vice of the foreign experts will be invaluable in
this direction.
George s Rice consulting coal mine engineer Of
the United States Geological Survey sailed yester-
day for Europe to investigate methods OF mining,
having in view prevention of waste of coal and loss
of