The Appeal., 1911-05-06

- e.e 1ead burst into her cabin and Selling a
re'olVer rushed at her terrified children. but he
to,e sne could shoot, her arms were seized from
C Inc struggle was short and decisive.
Che plunge backward across the bounded dirt
moor and the second woman staggered tn one
sue pantlns, with the revolver safe in her hand
'usI at tnat dramatic moment the body of her
own husband was being carried to the surface
Ahls was mere incident, almost lost in the
stupe1actlon following local calamity But it
serves as meanngful introduction to 2 snlen-
did example of the kind of occurrence which has
doubled the number M in our coal
mines in the last ten years. .s'.
Inc btarkV1lle mine is an average American
coal mine. The last annual report before the ex-
pioslon showed that the mine had cleared $780,
o0O In the previous year. 1t pointed out that the
property was yielding handsome returns on the
investment, but it did not mention the fact that
the mine was so dusty new airshaft
ly needed. The a1r-shaft would have cost $10O OOO
and the management decided against It, Unfor
tunately there was one in the state of Colo
rado to make the company sink it.
One-hfteth Of the years earnings was too
much to make the mine reasonably safe! Re-
suit, ffty-hve dead, thirty-two widows thrown
upon the world, and almost hundred children
fatherless. They formed important addition
to the years total from the coal mines of more
than seven thousand killed and injured fifteen
hundred widowed, and four thousand children de-
pendent on ignorant and helpless women
Officially these men were killed by an explo-
sion Of the coal dust but they were really killed
by greed. 1t is the same with all mine disasters.
You f1Ed volume after volume on the causes
but, sfft them to the bottom, and in more than
threefourths Of the cases you will find that spirit
of, Get out the coal, never mind how many men
you kill, but get out the COAL" AS Ex-Governor
Dawson Of West Virginia once exclaimed in ex-
asperation, There are coal companies which
have regard whatever for human life"
This explains why there are killed in certain
sections OF the naturally not unsafe bituminous
coal fields of Pennsylvania and West Virginia
twelve times as many men in comparison to the
number employed in the highly dangerous
coal mines of Belgium For in this one section
alone, from killing six out Of every thousand in
1900, by 1908, when the last reliable figures were
obtained, the annual death roll had increased
to more than twelve.
The truth is that men are ruthlessly killed in
our coal fields because the coal operators find It
less expensive to repair damage an pre-
cautions The human cost they do not take the
trouble to figure because, to them, there is none.
To kill miners entails no financial loss. In the
Pfttsburg district, even in the big notorious ex-
plostons OF recent years, the average
operating companies has been less than $50 for
every man dead.
You mustn't blame the mine operators an i'm
portant government official apologized, when the
blame was laid at their doors. TT isn't their
lault They ars doing all they can" #6
You need only turn to the governments own
reports to see the fallacy Of such a statement
The increase in mine disasters became 80 marked
about five years ago that it even attracted the at.
tention OF the geological survey. more scientific
than humanitarian organization and two men,
Clarence Hall and Walter Smelling, were detailed
to study the situation here and abroad They
found the contrast to be almost unbelievable. It
y summarized In these few sentences
TN spite Of all the natural conditions tending
TO reduce the percentage Of mine disasters In tho
United States to a low figure, the accidents dur
ing the last fifteen years have shown directly
contrary results. Considered in regard to the