The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1909-02-19
To Cope With the Conditions
Confronting Ii the Re
port States.
port States,
lIiy Charles BROOKS Smith. !

sass 4 ek AkssSk6tkAtSas,s.si
tIsy Charles Brooks smith.
CHA aIsEsToG Fe6s 10 me
mine eonnmittee report continue II
some length. declaring that tlle
nine department Il not stfpng
enough % cope with an ttae3 contll-
lions confronting Il, but the inet-
heiency can not be saId to be due
entirely 70 the officers. It is the
cotaposite Of many resulting causes.
III points ont that it Is physically
impossible for twelve Inspectors to
visit the mines In their districts is
frequently as they should be Visited.
The committee holds. that there
should be an inspector for each mine
70 bring about an ideal condition.
ana this car; only be attained in two
Ways
First, BY strengthening the mine
departments both in number Of dep
lltie and qualifications Of each dep
tity. n
Second, BY throwing the respop-
slgility ,poh the operator BY making
him liable for any, and all accidents
and deaths that ma yoccur by rsa@
son . q hFs mine being in an unsafe
condition.
The committee 'dlscards the first
proposition as being too burdens
some, and approves the second. Ey5
cry individual and company who OPP
crate to any extent employ. a mine
foreman and where there are gas
eous mines, a mine boss, and II. Isl
the committees idea that the most
expert men be employed. and made
INSPECTORS, responsible for the con-
dition Of the mines, and chat they
should be held accountable under
special laws governing this depart.
ment.
The committee reports that local
conditions hamper tae enforcement
OF mining laws; that in certain sec
lions where the operators are not IN
sympathy with the enforcement oil
the laws, II seems impossible for the
department to effect enforcement.
There are sections where shooting
OF the solid seem sto be practiced
generally and that operators do not
exercise any degree Of diligence In
preventing miners from. carrying In
a large quantity of dynamite and
powder. Many prosecutions have
been made by the department Of the
miner and quite few have been
made against the operator for all
lowing mines. to remain unsafe and
unwholesome. In every instance
where the prosecution has been
against the miner there seems toI
have been no difficulty in securing
a conviction, but in all instances
where the department has undef-I
taken to close down a mine or regu-
late some unsafe condition Of the
mine or practice by the operator,
these prosecutions have failed. It'll
seems to the committee that the
courts in some way are under some
kind Of spell or domination Of the
operator
The report says that the miners
carry into the mines too great guam
titles of powder and dyncnite be-
cause more than one-half are ig-
norant and inexperienced. There
are some operators who are carry
ing out the suggestion of the COM
mittee and who employ mine fore
man whose only duty 1t is to look
after the safety of the mine and
who at all times exercises eternal
1t cites the instance of a
mine tname not given) at which
this is done and says that only four
lives have been lost there in a
number Of years. In this particular
case the foreman knows every man
who goes into the mine and the
amount of the powder used and is
fully at work at all times to all.
matters pertaining to the safety Of
the mine. But this happy condition
prevails rarely. In most of the
mines there seems to be no effort
made TO knnw the nnnilnar Of mon