1900 - Coalmininghistorypa.org

180 REPORT OF THE BUREAU OF MINES. Off. Doc.
No. 25. August Mattes, jig boss, employed at Highland No. 2 colliery,
was fatally injured on July 10th, and died at the Hazleton hospital.
On investigating this accident, I found that the steamboat
rollers were blocked, and the breaker stopped. The screen, roller
and platform bosses were taking the coal out of the rollers, passing it
to each other. The screen boss, Michael Nolin, handed a lump of
bony coal weighing about fifty pounds out of the rolls to John
McLaughlin, when he slipped, lost his balance and fell, and the coal
dropped out of his hand© and rolled down a flight of stairs leading
from the screen floor, striking the deceased, who was going up the
stairs, causing a fracture of the skull, resulting as stated. While
these men were in no way responsible for the accident, it shauld be
a warning that they can never be too cautious while doing such work.
This was an unavoidable accident.
No. 26. Andrew Shiner, slate picker, employed at the Eckley
breaker, was instantly killed July 23d, by having been crushed
between a railroad car and the breaker timber. He was standing
between the timbers, and according to the testimony of the men
who witnessed the accident, the boy had no business there whatever.
When the loader was coming down the track with the car the boy
was looking down the track from between the timbers when the
corner of the car caught him on the back of the head, crushing
him against the upright timber, so that when the car passed he
dropped to the ground, dead. Had this boy remained at his place
of work this accident would not have occurred.
No. 27. John R. Cunning, Italian, laborer, employed at Highland
colliery No. 1, was instantly killed July 23d by falling under a car
coming out of the gangway. He was on his way home and he saw
the driver preparing to take a car out to the bottom of the slope and
jumped on the front of the moving car. Joseph Houstin testified
as follows: "We went out the gangway until we came to the curve,
within 100 yards of the siding near the bottom of the slope, when
Cunning fell from the front of the car onto the spreader and rolled
off to the side." Deceased was certainly responsible, it being against
the colliery rules, as that is the driver's position on the car, and it
is only a miracle when falling off the car that the victim did not pull
the driver with him .
No. 28. Martin McNovish, a laborer, employed at Highland No. 5
colliery was instantly killed on August 10th,' by a fall of coal in a
breast. His miner had fired a shot which failed to bring down the
coal. He then took down all that he could reach with a bar, and when
a car reached the face he got on top of it in order to take down
the balance of the overhanging coal with a bar. When Baker,
who stood upon the car with his back towards the laborers, found
that the coal was about to fall, he called out to warn his laborers.