1898 - Coalmininghistorypa.org

Official Document, No. 11.Sixth Bituminous District,(CAMBRIA, SOMERSET AND INDIANA COUNTIES.)Hon. James AV. Lai (a, Sci relaiy of lutenial AlTairs:Sir: I have the honor of presenting herewith my annual rejxnt forthe year ending December 31, 1898. In addition to llie usual tablesI liave formulated a new one, giving the name of )nine. of theforeman in cliarge, the method of haulage, how ventilated (fan orfurnace), whether drift, slojte or shaft, also whethei- pick or machinemine. This will give in a condensed form infoiniation that may beof value to a great many persons connected with the nunes.The total (]uantity of coal mined in the district for the year is7,161,333 tons, an increase of 1,0.59,722 tons over that of last year. 1regret to say that the number of accidents during the year increasedin greater proportion than the quantity of coal ])roduced. I attributethis to sevei'al causes, some of which have been refei^red to in thecomment on the accidents in the district, and in my remaiks on thegeneral condition of the mines. To these we wish to add here anotherprobable cause for the large accident record. It exists in the verylapid increase of operations in the district, in\(il\ing li'e 0])ening upof new fields and the danger consequent to such work until thecharacter of the coal veins and overlying strata has been ascertainedby actual experience. The fact of this great increase can be readilyseen from thped by railroad 0, .).")], 754Tons of coal mined ])er fatal accident .322,787Number of m-'n employed per fatal accadent, 470Total number of men employed, 10,488Total number of mines, 91Tidal number of coke ovens 001Total number of men employed in the mines, 9,021Total number of men emplojed outside, 86738( 415 )