The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1909-01-08

SPLENDID RECORD
FOR Miners.
Kentucky Mines have few Fa-
tai Accidents.
Record Shows Less Than For
Any Other State Of
Equal Production.

having fewer fatal accidents in her
coal mines than any otner State in
the Union or the British possessions
in Norch America. The percentage b
Missouri and Narylend is hess Uean
ones alt of 1 per cent smaller ON tae
face of the returns, but conditions
t,ece make die comparison misleading
as nejther does anything like cl.e coad
mining taat Kentucky does.
The Bluegrass State, with her $4,000
miners and 250 coal mines, producing
100000 tons of coal yearly, has so
excel emily equipped rhe important Of
flee of Inspector of Mines within the
last two years, that doubtless the low
ratio of 1,74-10O accidents per thou
sand men employed will be materially
decreased herafter. In fact, decreas
has been noticed over the five preced-
ing years.
Tie last issue of the Engineering
and Mining Journal of New York in
an article on Fatal Accidents In
Coal Mines of America" by Frederick
L. Hoffman, says tuat ''of all the
States and Territories under review
only two (Missouri and Kentucky dun
ing 1907 returned fatality rate of
less than two per 1000. In the case
of all the other States and Terri
tories the rates exceeded two per
1000, and in the case of eleven States
and Territories the rates We're above
three per 1000.
While this experience would appesr
to disprove the rule laid down in for
mer years that the coal-mining accident
rate, under normal conditions, should
not exceed two per LOCO it is never
theless a safe assumption that such
a rate is not compatible with the con-
ditions under which coal mining opera
tons, combining a high degree of
productive activity with comparative
safety, can be carried on"
The result of Mr.. Hoffmans COM
pi,ation of statistics are startling. In
the lost in coal mining operations, of
which 5000 were sacrificed, according
to complete returns, in 1907. Taken
as a whole. the rate has been increas-
ing for North America, and foreshado
more serious disasters in tine future.
Those States where Gr,e increase for
the ten-years period has been detected
at Alabama. Colorado, Indiana, Kansas,
New Mexico, Pennsylvania, both an
thracite and bituminous fields; WASH
ington, West Virginia and Nova Scott
The safety of the coal miner is an
ever increasing problem and the fearful
mine horrors of the past year in Eu-
rope and our neighboring States, espe-
cially Pennsylvania and West Virgini
in which hundreds of men lost tneir
lives in single accidents, has caused
the gravest apprehension among scien-
tific men. At the recent Mining Con-
gress in Pfbtsburg just after one OF
the most awful disasters ever witness
ed in Pennsylvania, nearly every Mine
Inspector in the United States was pre-
ent and ways and means for prevent
ing mine d.astsers were discussed there
and also in the National Association
of Mine Insr ectOTs held near the same
time. Prof. c. j. Norwood, Chief In
spector of Mines of Kentucky, was
able TO show mis- State 10 be one of
the best managed in the world in
this respect
He was astondshed to find that the
deep impression made upon all minds
by the fearful catastrophe seemed 20
have opened the way for the sugges-
tion coming from Federal officials that
national bureau of mines be created
with headquarters at Washington, to
advise with tie Legislature and mining
departments of tine several States
in the framing Of laws and conduct
of the State inspectors office. Only
one or two men Red the courage to
state their convention that while a
national bureau of mines might be
very good thing, 1t should in mo way
interfere with the rights of the sew
eral States TO look after their own
mines.
Mine explosions are of very rare
occurrence in Kentucky mines. owing
to the constant care and supervision
exercised by The five irspec.orsJb hut are
of farming frequentes in other States
and countries. In Kentucky they are
nearly always traceable 30 some
miners careless disobedtence of the
law, such as carrying powder into for
hidden places, smoking negligence in
lighting safety lamps and firing SLOTS
Il is thought that in the oil and gas
regions OF such States as Pennsylva-
MIA and West Virginia gas from aban-
doned drill holes and wells gets into
the mines and sometimes the miner
himself strikes a flow of gas.
The companies are often at fault in
putting up insecure timbers in the
xx.fr,xe o,I &ha,ahxr <auof,.c< folfu ~