The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1910-02-25
NECESSITY FOR
BETTER LAWS
To Protect Miners From
Awful Loss of Life.
A Miner Writes About the Brow
der Disaster and Points
out Weak Places.

nom the outer world, which knows
nothing of coal mining or the danger
there is in mining and blasting of
coal. They wonder how it is that SO
many mining disasters occur in and
about the mines nowadays from that
of thirty or forty years ago, since SO
many mining experts who make it a
study to get up safe devices for min
ing and whose interest is in no other
than the man whose lot lids 10 mine
and putt out coal. My belief of the
there are too many so-called mining
experts; so many that they are rum
ming opposition to see who can got
up the slickest kind of fad in min
ing that will bring to him the fat
est salary.
A friend told me that one of the
experts of Pittsburg, Pa, got a pref
vt good one up and 1T is to bring him
a fortune 1t is a cold nose-bag, full
OF condensed air. am told it is
70 be placed over khe nose an1
mouth like the oat bag placed on my
horse RED Bird" when L was on
my overland route to California. This
nose-bag will not be lin the way of
the miner, for the miners of today
do not know that they have a nose
only when they wish TO use it. But
1t will be a consolation to them to
have an artificial one that will give
them artificial air, for Ihirty minutes,
after a horrifying explosion; just
long enough to say "Oh Lord for
give me for l am a poor coal miner
Thirty or forty years back miners
needed no such inventions as the
nose-bag. Why do we need them to-
day? Because our mine experts and
} mine operators have placed in the
coal mine dangerous machinery cleo
trciity, compressed air, gasoline and
babes of hay with poor amount of
ventilation, poor drainage backed
UP by a College Bred Penciler, with
a poor per cent of eye and muscle
experience. | admit those experts on
mining are smart, so far as educa-
ton goes. But without the eye muscle
experinece and deep down in the re
cesses of mother earth, they are far
behind the times as, the tenderfoot
was who was TO walk from Denver,
Colorado, to Pixies Peak in sixty
minutes. A friend informed me that
one of the financiers of District
(23) twenty three of Kentucky, one
who is highly connected with Opera
tors association, has got safe de-
vice in his head; that when 1t comes
out ii will knock the Ph1tsburg nose
bag all to smash. He Is just smarG
enough to know, once mentioned to
the miner tell him that II is good
thing, and 1t will sell like hot cakes
on a snow bound train. A friend
said that he intended to keep In
touch with 1T as much as with the
HALEY comet and when it leaked out
he would give me Its dimensions. |
bet It will be a dandy. SO you wonder
why the coal miner is not rich will
find that the old saying is true shat
a figure is figure, all for the opera
tor and none for che digger"
/ am proud to know dhat they are
enforcing the law in Indiana, since
they sent ID. Sullivan TO college for
sticking a pick in a dumb mule. Good
for the law and the men that ell
force 1t. But what of the law of IL
hnois? What penalty have ehey plac-
ed ON the st. Paul Coal Company of
Cherry, that stuck a bale of hay in
TO three hundred or more souls that
sleep on the hillside yonder. And what
of the mine boss, mine experts with
a certificate who were notified of
the danger and did not make It known
10 the men for fear it would stop
the output of car of coal until It
was too late. expect he was an Ex- !
pert Penciler, who was not afraid Of
his job, but of his salary. This is
what Local COZ received from the as
sistant mine inspector taken re-
cent? on the west side of the Gem
trail Cit coal mine, Good climber
ing, poor drainage with sufficient ann
CUNT of air coming down the shaft
but it is lost in the old deadenlngs
the fan could force much more air
in the mine but the long distance
that the steam has to be forced fhom
the boiler house to the fan causes
1T to be condensed" What kind OF
air has the miner to breathe at the
face OF ine COAL Should an'nxplosion
take place in Central City mines.