Sioux County pioneer., 1922-09-14
shaft appear fairly to fly upward past
us. Up, up, up they fly, disclosing
this stratum of rock and then that.

Planned Like City,
Arriving at the bottom, we soon find
that coal mine is planned like city.
There is one main street. or entry, and
1t has been laid out with the nicely of
grand boulevard. Parallel with this
are the other entries, and across these
entries run other streets, at right an
giles usually, which are called headings.
Lining all these headings as houses line
the streets are the chambers, or rooms,
In which the miners work.
When we stop at the bottom we feel
ourselves In q small-sized hurricane.
1t is the air rushing down the shaft
and starting through the mine on its
mission of publication. Setting out
down the main entry, along a railroad
track, we soon hear a changing bell
and whistle. and presently there
looms out of the darkness a yellow
light. As 1t approaches, we see the
outlines Of what appears to be long,
round boiler creeping along the rails;
but in reality it is g compressed-air
| engine-for compressed air, rather
than electricity, is the haulage power
in this mine.
| When the miners 20 down to their
work in the morning they are checked
in by the "f1re boss" He Is q foreman
who has charge Of fire prevention and
Of the safety of the miners while at
their several tasks. During the night
every section Of the mine has been in
spected to see whether there Is gas
anywhere. If there should be an entry,
heading, or room that is laden with
gas, the fact is noted on slate which
is shown to the men as they file past.
The brass check of every miner who
enters the workings is taken and hung
up on board, opposite the number Of
the room in which he is digging coal.
II he has helper, his check-some-
what different-goes up, too; and II
there are two men working as part
nears, that the fact Is shown also.
We walk and walk until we begin
to feel as though we might be coming
out over in China or France, and then
we come to the rooms or chambers
for all the coal in the neighborhood Of
the hoisting shaft has gone up In heat
and smoke long before now and this
mine is far-flung.
Where the Miner Works.
These. rooms or chambers might be
monks cells in some catacombs for the
living. Here the miner bores and
blasts and digs away the coal and
loads it into the mine cars. II he has
helper he does not need to do the
loading himself. The car holds about
5000 pounds Of run-of-the-mine coal,
and miner is supposed to fill two Of
them a day.
When the car Is loaded the miner
puts his number ON it, and presently,
with much ado, there comes up the
heading and into the passageway lead
ing to the chamber string Of mules
walking tandem, or single file. and
dragging an empty car behind. They
pull out the loaded car, set the empty
one where the miner wants it. and 60
back with the load Of coal.
There are other strings of mules,
also, and they distribute the emptles
and mobilize the loaded cars from and
at given points. Then the compressed.
air engine comes along and makes up
train Of loaded cars after dropping
one of empties ready for distribution.
The coal trains are pulled down to the
hoisting shaft, and one by one the cars
60 to the surface, an empty coming
down as q loaded one goes up.
When we reach the top again, we
note the layout of the breaker plant,
where the coal is cleaned and sorted
into the several commercial Sizes.
The first thing that impresses us IS
that the mine owners are almost as
careful In saving, coal as miser 10 IA
boarding his gold.
Going up to the t2p Of the breaker.
we see the coal IS 1t comes from tbs
mine with all its slate and culm, me-
chanically dumped. carload at time.
upon the oscillating bars. which begis
the process Of separating the coal from
the worthless material and the assort.
ing Of the former into groups accord.
Ing to size.