coal trade bulletin - Clpdigital.org

34 THE COAL TRADE BULLETIN.
cally disappeared—have bodies of steel, on bot­
toms of wood. The 12-inch wheels have roller
bearings. They weigh 1,300 pounds light and
carry 2,000 pounds of coal. Bodies are low, and
loading is facilitated by provision of an inward-
hinged small gate at tbe face end of the car.
The inward hinge makes the gate tight and elim­
inates opening on the road. As a result, there
is so little spilling that roadways require clean­
ing only twice yearly. The dumping gate is of
the usual ball type.
The. value of the roller bearings is shown by
the increased hauling capacity of the 3-ton loeo-
motives as compared to former conditions. The
old wood cars with common bearings weighed
2,400 pounds loaded, and 10 of them was a full
trip. On same roadways the same locomotives
now haul up to 20 of the new cars, Fig. 9, weigh­
ing 3,30o pounds eaeh loaded—a total of 66,000
pounds, as compared to 24.000 pounds for a trip
of the old cars.
Here is a mine in which the disadvantages of
low roof are more than offset by exceptionally
advantageous conditions due to the character of
the roof itself, low as it is. An indefinite thick­
ness of solid sand rork—80 feet and upwards—
eliminates all call for props in entries or rooms
and there is no timber in the mine except on the
double-track bottom near the slope. Cars are
handled for the men, and there is no water to
make work unpleasant
No props.
No pushing of cars.
No water in working places.
Under these exceptional conditions there is no
difficulty in getting or keeping men, the low coal
being no rral handicap. Miners are anxious to
get into this mine, where they make maximum
money with minimum labor.
IDLE CARS CONTINUE TO SHOW INCREASE.
The report of the American Railway association,
issued May 7, shows the surplussage and short­
ages of cars as follows:
Surplussages:
May 1. 1914 230,533
April 15, 1914 213,324
.May 1, 1913 53,977
Shortages:
May 1, 1914 1,654
Apri! 15, 1914 455
May 1. 1913 14,178
This shows tbe total surplus to be 228,S79. as
compared with 212,869 a fortnight ago and 39,799
on May 1, 1913.
COAL MINE FATALITIES IN THE
UNITED STATES FEBRUARY 1914.'
The reports received by the Bureau of Mines
from state mine inspectors show that there were
165 men killed in and about the coal mines in
the United States during February, 1914, as compared
with 208 during the same month of 1913.
There were no large accidents during February,
1914.
Fatalities in and about coal mines during
February, 1913 and 1914:
Underground.
Shaft. Surface. Total.
February, 1914 ... 132 11 22 165
February, 1913 .. . 1S7 7 14 208
In making comparisons with 1913, however, it
should be borne in mind that reports for 1914
have not been received from Georgia and Oregon,
states in which there is no inspection service,t
nor from Kentucky, where the operators are al­
lowed 60 days by law to report accidents to the
state inspector. In February, 1913, there were
4 fatalities in the coal mines of these three states;
there are no corresiionding figures for February,
1914. Deducting the 4 fatalities for which there
are no comparable figures for 1914, the figures
become 165 for February, 1914, and 204 for Feb­
ruary, 1913. The actual decrease in fatalities is
therefore 39, or over 19 per cent.
The total number of fatalities during the first
two months of 1914 is 364 as compared with 431
for the corresponding period of 1913.
Fatalities in and about coal mines during January
and February, 1913 and 1914:
1913 1914
January 223 199
February 20S 165
Total 131 364
Deducting 9 fatalities in Georgia, Kentucky,
and Oregon, for which there are no comparable
figures for 1914, the comparison becomes 364 fatalities
during the first two months of 1914 and
422 during the same months of 1913, a reduction
of 5S fatalities, or over 13 per cent, for the
present year. The principal decreases were as
follows, by causes: Falls of roof or coal, 66;
mine cars or locomotives, 21; explosives, 8; total,
95. These reductions were partly offset by the
following increases: Gas and coal dust explosions,
8; suffocation from mine gases, 5; falling down
shafts or slopes, 9; surface machinery, 4; total,
26.
•Compiled by Albert II. Fay.
tEeports are received from these states direct from
Ihe operators at 1 he close ol the year. The total coal
production 01 the two stales named amounts to less than
one-twentieth ef 1 per cent, ul* the entire output of the
country, and fatalities in their coal mines are few only
'•', men being killed in 1913.