The sun., 1919-07-23
BRITISH COAL CRISIS
NEWS is MODIFIED
Investigation Shows Water
Damage Is Not Yet
Irreparable.
Special Cabis Despdtch to THE srN from the
London Times Service.


Copyright 1919; oil rights reserved.
LONDON, July 22-At midnight the sit
uation In the Yorkshire mines is not
nearly as serious as it is pictured in
sensational London newspapers. Only
six collieries appear to be flooded, and
while dozen others perhaps are in
some danger they are not likely to be
damaged. A Times correspondent who
made fairly extensive tour of south
and west Yorkshire, says that while in
the journey OF thirty or forty miles he
came across more than one colliery
where there was no steam either for
pumping or for running ventilating ma
chinery. yet in every one of these cases
the inflow of water was not serious.
Greater trouble will be found when
the time comes to resume work in eX-
polling foul gases from these pits, than
in getting rid of the water In one in
stance the noxious vapors were rising In
a cloud from the pit shafts. In the wet
mines he found that without exception
efforts were being made to restart the
pumps that had been stopped. The en-
CINE room and maintenance stans re-
main on strike. but the officials OF the
collieries have stepped into their places
and are able TO keep the plants running
though the strain Of long hours is severe.
Mines May BE saved.
If. the strikers refrain from inter
ference the mines will be saved and
when the dispute has been settled they
will nearly all be able TO resume work
without delay. In few cases the draw
ing of boiler fires by Sunday nights mob
has caused flooding of the deep seams
or distant workings which will be diff
cult to empty Of the water and weeks or
even months of unemployment must en-
sue. but up to now the number of men
so affected will be small. ~
The correspondent found unanimous
Discrimination among the colliery direc-
tors and the officials to whom he spoke
to make use Of the services of the naval
| ratings If 1t could be avoided. The gem
eral sentiment appears 10 be that for n
| time at least volunteer stokers and en-
| gineers can carry on and that neither
sailors nor soldiers should be brought in
| except as a final resource. At some pits
| there has been no attempt to prevent the
officials from running the pumps, but at
| others the mob inundated the manage.
| ment's helpers. There was a general re-
| the position Is decidedly better than Il
was the time 10 which the figures quoted
| by Premier Lloyd George relate,
| AS a matter OF fact the strategy of the
mine leaders failed when 1t did not pro-
duce at once a capitulation OF the mine
owners or the coal controller. The miners
| themselves are likely to be the princi-
pal sufferers of the flooding OF the pits,
which would rob them of their livelihood
| for three or four or six months or per
| haps forever There is a pit in one mine
that would be swamped in forty eight
hours II the pumps stopped. The bust
ness of mining pumps has been left to
| the management. hut there has been nc
! disposition to go to any greater ex-
tremes. The men are scarcely fools
enough to ruin their only means of n
living, but one of the officials confessed
that If instead of bearing the strain
themselves they were to call on the
naval engineers and stokers for assist
ance trouble would probably not be far
Off
Geddes Issues Warning.
Sir Eric Geddes Minister Designate
of Ways and Communication. has is
sued an official warning to the towns
drawing supplies from the affectet
| areas in Yorkshire and also In Ian