Evening star., 1917-09-16

0NHE coal and coke products exhibit
occupying one of the large halls
in the arts and industries building
of the National Museum. seems to have
a magnetic attraction for tourists to
Washington in these days of wide dis
cussion of the fuel. dye and ammunition
industries. Many persons have gained
the general understanding from read
ing that coal is one of the most won
derful substances that make up the
earth. and that a long list of things
deemed essential and useful to the hu-
man race, in addition to heat and light,
are obtained from coal. but in this ex-
hibit in the red brick wonder house in
the Smithsonian grounds they can see
nearly all the coal derivatives about
which they read a great deal and prob
ably remember very little.
Before coming to an examination of
those remarkable things which are usu-
ally dismissed briefly under the name
of coal tar products" the visitor to
the museum spends some moments In
looking at the big working models of
coal mines and colliery plants. These
in themselves are remarkable produc-
tions and give one a vivid and intelli-
gent conception Of how coal is taken
out Of the earth. prepared for market
and loaded into the cars which one sees
in long trains on the railroad tracks.
One Of these models occupies as much
floor space as there Is in a medium
sised house. 1t bears the following in
scription:
Consultation Coal Company. An exact reproduc
tion Of the property of the Consoida tion Coal
Company at Fairmont. W. Va. The model well
illustrates the operations aud setting typical OF
the bitumineus coal mining industry in general.
The machinery will be In operation for three
minutes every quarter hour.
x*
I A feature of the model is a big build
ing full of rail tracks and chutes called
"tipple." and of this the descriptive
card says:
Coal tipple. illustrating the process by which
coal as 1t comes from the mine Is prepared for
market. Coal is not shipped directly as it come.
from the mine. but must be loaded for trans
portation. In addition. market requirement. com
monty demand classification into sta ndnrd size.
and under special conditions, also cleaning These
operations are performed in the tipple. the mos;
opt rsfions.
Ihere is Illustrated how electric
locomotives run into the tunnels and
bring out the loaded mine cars Each
or these cars. after being weighed,
runs forward upon what Is known as a
stops Tits forward empties its con-
tents and rights itself more or less
automatically. Then it coasts down
one incline and up another and then
coasts back, switching itself in line to
be returned into the mine.
The coal as dumped from a car in the
tipple falls into a hopper and then "A
long chute leading to a spout imme-
diately above a railroad track This
chute is provided over a part of its
length with grating so spaced as to
allow only the larger pieces of coal to
pass safely over and on down to the
railroad car waiting on the track All
the sizes smaller than lump coal pass
through the grating. or "grizxly," fall
upon the apron Of a second chute lead
ing to a second railroad track and pro-
vided with A perforated screen. which.
IN turn. takes out all sizes larger than
egg coal. the latter proceeding safely
by itself to waiting car.
The undersiZes. which have succeed =
ed In passing through both grating and
perforated screen. fall upon an apron,
by which it Is delivered to third
chute inclined at right angles to the
length Of the tipple. Here screen
ing 10 effected into nut coal. which,
passing the length Of the chute, 10
picked up by q bucket elevator and
carried to nut bin." and into coal
powder or Slack This slack" con-
tains also many loose, finely divided
impurities in the original run of mine"
be removed, as far as possible, before
utilization. 1t is run down into a
trench under the railroad yard. where
scraper -conveyor carries 1t forward
to the coal-washins plant
IN the hall 10 another model Of q