1898 - Coalmininghistorypa.org

Official Document, No. 11.LAWS RELATING TO COAL MINING.AN ACTTo protect miners in the bituminous coal region of the Commonwealth.Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That after the period of three monthsfrom the passage of this act, any miner employed by an individual,firm or corporation for the purpose of mining coal shall be entitledto receive from his employer, and failing to receive then to collect,by due process of law, at such rates as may have been agreed uponbetween the employer and the employed, full and exact wages accruingto him for the mining of all sizes of merchantable coal somined by him, whether the same shall exist in the form of nut orlump coal; and in the adjudication of such wages seventy-six poundsshall be deemed one bushel, and two thousand pounds net, shall bedeemed one ton of coal: Provided, That nothing contained in this actshall be construed to prevent operators and miners contracting forany method of measuring and screening the coal mined by suchminers, as they may contract for.Section 2. That at every liituminous coal mine in this Commonwealth,where coal is mined by measurement, all cars, filled by minersor their laborers, shall be uniform in capacity at each mine; no unbrandedcar or cars shall enter the mine for a longer period thanthree months, without being branded by the mine inspector of thedistrict, wherein the mine is situated; and any owner or owners, ortheir agents, violating the provisions of this section, shall be subjectto a fine of not less than one dollar per car for each and every dayas long as the car is not in conformity with this act, and the mineinspector of the district, where the mine is located, on receivingnotice from the check-master or any five miners working in themine, that a car or cars are not properly branded, or not uniformin capacity according to law, are used inthe mine where he or theyare employed, then inside of three days from the date of receivingsaid notice, it shall be his duty to enforce the provisions of this section,under penalty of ten dollars for each and every day he permitssuch car or cars to enter the mine: Provided, That nothing containedin this section shall be construed or applied to those mines which donot use more than ten cars.( Ixxxvii )