M cG ra w -H ill Com pany, In c.
Jam es H. M cG raw , President E. J. M eh ren , Vice-President
Devoted to the Operating, Technical and Business
Problems of the Coal-Mining Industry
R. D aw son H a ll Engineering EditorVolume 28 NEW YORK, NOVEMBER 26, 1925 Number 22
Again Mr. Lewis Speaks
T
H E P R E S ID E N T of the U nited Mine W orkers in a letter to M r. Coolidge once m ore m akes th reats of a general strike th a t will involve not only tne operators who have seen fit to m ake private arrangem ents w ith th e ir men outside of the Jacksonville agreem ent but those also, who, operating a long way from the non
union field, have been able, w ith g reat difficulty it is true, to pay the union scale.
There are m oralists who deplore the situation in the form er union fields which signed the Jacksonville agree
m ent and have started th eir m ines w ith such of th e ir men as are w illing to recognize the necessity for a lower wage, but w hat can these say of M r. Lewis, who, getting from Illinois, Indiana and Ohio all th a t the Jacksonville agreem ent calls for, proposes to call a strike to bring out the m en in those states w here every detail of the Jacksonville agreem ent has been complied w ith, those states, indeed, whose pressure caused the agree
m ent to be made.
No one has criticised M r. Lewis for try in g to call a strike in the F airm ont field. No one could criticize him for calling one anyw here w here the break w ith the union has occurred. B ut the men in those regions realize th a t they are getting the only wage economically possible under present conditions and are likely to tu rn a deaf ear to M r. Lewis.
A few weeks of high production and higher prices, resulting from the anticipation of a strike m ay raise prices and give rise to the idea th a t the old wage rate can be paid, but the m om ent the assurance is attained th a t the coal bin will be kept full the old economic situa
tion will reassert itself and the intervening territo ry between the non-union area of W est V irginia and K entucky and the coal fields of Illinois and Indiana will be back w here it was before, and if m eantim e w ages have been raised, the m en in th a t territo ry will be deprived of work. Let us hope the men will sense this fact and m eet it by resisting any attem pt of M r. Lewis to m ake them take p art in a strike th a t is not to their interest.
Unionism by Decree
L
IC EN SIN G IS T H E MOST effective form of union- j ism. It alw ays creates a close corporation, one kept intact by legislative decree. Exam ine the facts of any licensed body w hether of steam engineers, doctors, plum bers or steam fitters, and you will find a union, which m ay be acknowledged or m erely existent w ithout acknowledgm ent.In the Pennsylvania anthracite region and in Illinois the m iners have th e ir union activities supplem ented by the law th a t licenses them . If th a t law in Pennsyl
vania w ere rem oved there m ight be some hope of reopening the anthracite m ines. T here would, a t least, be no legal obstacle such as now exists. The m iners
will not work nor will they let others work. They m ay be willing to accept other m en’s jobs at a lower rate than th a t at which they will work at th e ir own, but they are able to prevent other m en from taking th eir jobs. T heir would-be successors would profit by the exchange, but the law forbids. A license is unionism enforced by legislative decree.
What Can Coolidge Do?
T
H E M AN ON T H E ST R E ET and the press are patient, but every now and again the cry is heard“W hy can’t Coolidge do som ething?” Those who raise it haven’t thought out w hat the P resident could do.
T heir m inds are by no m eans clear on the subject, but they believe th a t a big strike th a t inconveniences the people can be settled in some way.
W hen Pinchot brought the previous strike to a te r
m ination he burned his fingers badly. He got the oper
ators to m ake a concession which they had to hand on to the public. A fter all, if the strike was to be settled, th at was about the only way to end it. The m ine w ork
ers w ere insistent on getting som ething, and no appeals to reason or public convenience or patriotism could sway them.
B ut this tim e the operators are clear they can hand nothing on to the public, and if w ages go up the m ines m ust close. The public is looking to other fuels. So this tim e the operators are adam ant and not to be swayed. They can’t be scared, for nothing looks quite so terrify in g as a wage increase.
Even Senator B orah’s prospective plans fo r legisla
tive regulation cannot be w orse for the industry than to pay a wage th a t puts the cost of coal above w hat the public will pay for it. W hen a m an faces a firing squad all the guns are equally m enacing, and he is not afraid of any one of them . He bids fa ir to die any way.
B ut Coolidge is “doing som ething.” H e is being fa r more active than any of those who reproach him . He is m aking headway, and they are delaying progress.
Those who buy soft coal and coke at his recom m enda
tion— especially, alas, those who introduce oil— are helping to effect a settlem ent. Those who hearten the mine w orkers w ith th e ir outcries are the very persons who delay the settlem ent fo r which everyone is anxious.
W hen the m iners see they cannot stam pede the public or the adm inistration but th a t both are ready to fight it out if it lasts all sum m er, then there will be a settle
m ent and not before.
The public and the adm inistration w ere im m ensely im pressed and shocked by w hat G reat B ritain did when it ended a strike by the offer of a subsidy. Instinctly everybody said: “Is th a t w here we are tending? Can the unions force us to pay them subsidies? Do they venture to strike against us and hold us up fo r trib u te?” In G reat B ritain the subsidies aid B ritish m ines to compete w ith foreign m ines, but here a subsidy would help anthracite to compete w ith soft coal, coke, oil and
723
724 C O A L A G E VOL. 28, NO. 22 gas. Ju st conceive of a subsidy to help one industry to
hold back the progress of an o th er!
Y et th a t seems to be the only thing the P resident and Congress can do unless we are ready to see the fight through. If it is not fought to a standstill now, it m ust be later. The union is com m itted to continued steps forw ard and no backw ard step. The only w ay to h alt such progress, attained at public expense, is to firm ly resolve th a t this tim e the m atter shall be settled
•once for all by a finish fight.
W hat can Coolidge do? N othing. W hat should he do? N othing. The less he does in this m atter to bring it to a settlem ent the sooner it will be settled. “They also serve who only stand and w ait.”
The Appalachian Washboard
T
H E E A ST E R N M ountain States are corrugated like a w ashboard, and the m ining com m unities th a t lie in the bottom of any one corrugation are p retty well segregated from those in every other. H ere and there the corrugations are defective. Some riv er has broker through and m ade com m unication from one valley to another possible. B ut on the whole, connection has been difficult, the m ore so before the autom obile andwell-paved roads assisted com m unication.
Each valley is a good location fo r a live m ining insti
tu te and should have one. B ut institutes are ap t to have inbred notions unless there is a little travel. So
•when m eetings are being held in other fields the denizens of the w ashboard territo ry should send one or m ore of th e ir num ber to represent them and bring back word across the m ountains of ju st w hat transpired and w hat was learned about the conditions in neighbor
ing fields.
The valleys of W est V irginia in earlier years were inhabited by people to whom the citizens of the nearest county w ere as unfam iliar as the people of England and Germ any. These people had accordingly an extrem ely narrow ed vision. The railroads changed m at
ters a little but directed travel even m ore m arkedly to accord w ith drainage. Now w ith the construction of roads over the hills, travel is being m ade possible in all directions, but still it tends to follow the old roads and
•communities. To overcome all along the Appalachians, in Pennsylvania and W est V irginia, the narrow ing influences of the environing hills some effort should be m ade to forge the bonds between institutes and have delegates interchange visits a t m eetings.
Light and Safety
S
AYS B E N JA M IN FR A N K LIN , basing his statem ent perhaps on an old E nglish sto ry : “A little neglect m ay breed m ischief: for w ant of a nail the shoe w as lost, fo r w ant of a shoe the horse w as lost, fo r w ant of a horse the rid er was lost, fo r w ant of a rid er the battle was lost, fo r w ant of the battle the kingdom was lost, and all fo r w ant of a horseshoe nail.”
We m ay be sure th a t no one ever m ade ju st th a t diagnosis of the kingdom ’s m isfortunes, and there were, of course, other reasons to w hich it could rightly be ascribed. T h at’s the rub. W e can usually find five or six reasons fo r any event and som etim es m ore, and if one of the causes had been absent all the others would have been insufficient to cause the accident. It is so w ith bad light or bad sight. Accidents are never ascribed to those causes, but it is certain th a t they are
alm ost as im portant as carelessness in the causation of injuries.
If in every case of an accident the question w ere asked “W as bad light a contributing cause?” the answ er would often have to be th a t it w as. It is a question th a t should be asked. R. E. Simpson, an insurance safety m an, has been asking it, and as a result of his inquiry he lists 18 per cent of the accidents as due to defective light or 108,000 serious accidents yearly. Com m enting on this, one safety m an said 50 per cent would not be an exorbitant figure fo r a case under bis observation, and he was not a m ining m an, but w as engaged in an industry w here darkness need not be so im portant a factor as it will ever be in m ining.
In m any underground accidents im perfect lig h t and vision have a p art. To see a danger is to avoid it, and how m any hazards there are th a t become m anifest only when the light is strong enough to reveal them . Our m ines need m ore light, and they will receive it.
Our Domestic Coal Problem
W
E MAY B E A BLE some day to find equipm ent th a t will m ake it possible fo r the average domestic consum er to burn fine high-volatile coal, th a t cakes, clinkers and smokes, and do it w ith efficiency and satis
faction but of reaching th a t ultim ate goal we all have some doubts.
Perhaps, it would be b etter to contem plate the possi
bility of a central heating plant w here a large furnace would supply some fo rty or fifty houses and would do it w ith powdered coal or w ith slack on stoker grates.
The grow th of the speculative builder, who thinks not in houses but in villages and com m unities, m akes it possible th a t some day we m ay see the center, the chateau so to speak, in the village a central heating station and the houses of the citizens grouped about as little chatelets under the shadow of the seigniory.
The power house being the largest building w ith an ornam ental chim ney could be m ade the outstanding featu re of the com m unity. In Canada central heating plants are quite common. They m ay be found also in nearly all large cities.
It would be possible to deliver coal to such a plant a t m inim um cost and to rem ove ashes from it more easily by fa r than from the cellars of the citizens. The coal woulu be properly and completely burned, yet w ithal fuel of the finest size would be used.
The houses would need no cellars unless th a t was desired fo r the storing of trunks, fo r laundries or for the keeping of vegetables. H ere would be a consider
able saving th a t would go fa r tow ard paying fo r the laying of piping and the building of the central heating station.
The saving in the cost of attendance on the furnace would be, of course, considerable. To the coal man, however, the feature th a t would commend itself would be the dem and thus created fo r run of m ine or slack coal.
F u rth e r developm ent m ight m ake the central heating plant fu rn ish not alone steam fo r the radiators and hot w ater but also cold a ir and ice-cold w ater. Such a plant m ight be run co-operatively, every household hav
ing a share in the central plant and a voice in its m an
agem ent. It could be separately incorporated and its shares distributed am ong the purchasers of dwellings or it could be held by them inalienably as running w ith the fee.
Novem ber 26, 1925 C O A L A G E 7 2 5
Putting Efficiency Into Siberian Coal Mining Is Hard Job, American Engineer Finds
First Efforts in K uznets Basin R aise D aily Output per Man from O ne-T enth of a Ton to More than One T on and Give Encouragem ent for R ussia’s Future
By Alfred Pearson, Jr.
Consulting: E ngineer, Toledo, Ohio
P
U TTIN G SIB E R IA N coal m ines on a basis of efficiency is a task the like of which no engineer faces in A m erica. Y et it is not impossible. T his con
clusion is based upon an experience of two years in charge of the north ern group of m ines in the K uznets B asin of Siberia. A ntiquated equipm ent, a peculiar m ining system , a w orking force m ade sluggish by R us
sian psychology and the n atural handicaps which Siberia lays upon industry w ere not enough to prevent a new m anagem ent from increasing the daily output per m an in the K uznets m ines from one-tenth of a ton to m ore than one ton, and other im provem ents augur well fo r the fu tu re of the industry.
The K uznets coal basin lies south of the city of Tompsk, Siberia. It is wedge shaped, about 80 miles wide, 250 m iles long and adjoins the Telbas ore field w hich is supposed to be the m ost im portant iron deposit in Siberia.
W hile Telbas is destined to be th e biggest coal cus
tom er of the K uznets field, sales in the past have been m ade principally to the T rans-Siberian R.R. fo r steam coal, to the U ral m etal plants fo r byproduct, gas and steam coals and to a small local dom estic and miscel
laneous industrial m arket.
Before the w ar an im portant p a rt of the K uznets output w as shipped via the Ob R iver and its branches, not . only to the U ral steel plants, b u t to the several im portant cities on the banks of the Tom and Irtish
The headpiece sh ow s the No. 8 m ine a t K em erovo w ith th e tipple and fire observation tow er in the picture. The dilapidated condi
tion in w h ich Mr. P earson found the property is p lain ly evident.
A great deal of tim ber is used in these m ines b u t.th e grow th n ative to the country is poor for the purpose.
T his is the first of tw o articles by Mr. P earson on Siberian coal m ining and his experience w ith it.' Thfe seco n d 'trea tin g of'm inirig m ethods m ainly, w ill appear in a forthcom ing issue.
and to the port a t the m outh of the Ob which is open to ocean traffic four m onths of the year. This pro
vided a valuable route fo r coke shipm ents as coke is seriously degraded by long distance rail transport.
T his field has been comm ercially worked fo r about 25 yr. P rio r to the revolution it had in operation a dozen m ines and num erous prospect holes had been driven. Since, due to the shrinkage of the m arket, w ork has been concentrated on four m ines.
Ku z n e t s Coal Wil l Do m in a t e
T his coal field is so situated, that, as E uropean R us
sia develops, it will be able to ship its products in com
petition w ith the Donetz Basin, the only coal field in E uropean R ussia of im portance. The “Don” is already extensively worked out, its coals lie under m uch m ore difficult m ining conditions than the K uznets coals, and besides it is several tim es sm aller than the K uznets deposit. So the K uznets field will some tim e dom inate the R ussian coal m arket. Even today, if the railroads could handle the coal a t reasonable rates, certain Kuz
nets coals could compete w ith the best W elsh coal at the B altic ports.
R ussian labor is composed of both w hites and Mon
golians, the latter m ostly T artar. It m ust be understood th a t they all are only a generation removed from slavery, th a t they have been kept by the form er gov
ernm ent in absolute ignorance and illiteracy, and th a t the. standard of . life is about the sam e as th a t of the Southern “hill-billy” of. the last generation.
This condition is aggravated by the fact th a t 90 per cent of the population lives a t th a t standard and except in the larg er cities the rem aining 10 per cent,.although living m ore pretentiously, actually attain s only slightly
726 C O A L A G E Vol. 28, N o . 22
Fig. 1—Kuznets Coal Field Map
This show s the proxim ity of the coal region to the city of Tom psk on the one hand and the great T elbas iron m ining field on the other. H ow ever, the R ussian steel industry needs bolstering to m ake it a stron g coal consum er.
g reater com fort, hence these w orkers cannot possibly visualize any b etter standard of life than th e ir present one. The w orker, consequently, cannot be aroused to earn more, because he can see no use fo r m ore than he has.
To combat this indifference of the w orker, the w age scales have been consistently set on a piece-work basis, so low as to force the men to put in a full day for a bare existence. It is said th a t before the w ar the fore
m en also used the lash to drive the men. The natural reaction of the w orker now* is to still fu rth er lim it his production.
The labor union is a branch of the governm ent. In theory the plants work open-shop, as m em bership in the union is not compulsory. In practice, however, it is so m uch to the interest of the men to belong, th a t well over 90 per cent are m embers.
Owing to the psychology of the men and the p ater
nalistic industrial customs, the wage system is highly involved, co n trib u tin g . m aterially to industrial ineffi
ciency, partly through increased overhead and partly because of the reaction of the operating officials who see only the money wage— really a small p art of the labor cost.
I will illustrate the wage system , using a face m iner as an example. I am obliged to use figures from m em ory, those m arked “est.” are item s for which only estim ates w ere ever available. The variables are the cash wages and the hospital charge which was a per
centage of the payroll; in this case I use a figure which is extrem ely high for the country as a whole.
To t a l Wa g e
Money average ...
House light, coal, water (est.) ...
Medical attention ...
Tools, clothing (including overhead)
Total for 120-hr. work m onth... $40 The piece-work system is applied to every class of work. This requires not only ex tra accounting and the consequent extra tim e keepers, but also, when applied to the repair shops and m iscellaneous outside activ
ities, a staff of estim ators to set the rates for the sm allest jobs. And this is not to m ention the endless bickering which inevitably arises over wages. The cus
tom of furnishing tools and w orking clothes calls for an extensive w arehouse and staff.
One would im agine such a system would provide exhaustive and accurate cost figures; but the reverse is the case as the so-called Italian system of bookkeep
ing is employed. It deals w ith the person rath er than the task and results in a m ass of figures alm ost w orth
less fo r operating purposes although likely to be entirely satisfactory to the accountant.
Re o r g an iza tio n Follow ed De p r e ssio n
In 1922 the coal m ines of R ussia w ere in an advanced stage of disintegration, w ith the entire country howling for coal. A fter this period the m ines w ere organized into com petitive groups. E xperts w ere employed, back w ages paid off and large subsidies granted for im prove
m ents. The result w as th a t coal m ining attained about the m ost satisfactory status of any R ussian industry.
The m ines are now producing about one-half the pre
w ar output at a price th a t is cheap com pared to th a t of other comm odities. Due to the weakness of the rail
roads— which are only 20 per cent efficient— as well as to the weakness of industry in general, it has been impossible for the m ines to dispose of th eir product.
U ntil recently the m ines worked on reduced schedules, w ith m ountains of m ined coal cluttering up the land
scape. Financial support was w ithdraw n and im prove
m ent work stopped.
R ussia’s domestic m arket is dom inated by wood. This condition will begin to change as soon as the m arket becomes strong enough to perm it full operation of the mines, whic because of reduced overhead, will lower the cost of coal to a point w here the burning of wood will no longer be advantageous.
It is understood th a t the governm ent is about to apply to the steel industry the sam e m ethods of resus
citation applied to the coal m ines. T his should in tu rn affect the m ines favorably.
The equipm ent of the coal m ines is so shaky and the plants them selves are so nearly obsolete th a t they can
not continue long and will be utterly unable to com
pete w ith m odern m ines w henever (which m ust be soon) new m ines begin to enter the fields.
Eq u ip m e n t Costs Are Hig h
The design of a modei-n m ine in Siberia is a difficult problem. It cannot always be shown clearly th a t the substitution of m achinery for m en will result in a reduction of costs. The n:Jnes are so fa r removed from m anufacturing centers' “ th at t^e-cost.. of delivery of m aterials is extrem ely 'I*1, Eurf.h^;.erm ore g reat fore
sight is required to m aintain a supply at m ines because
$238
45
Novem ber 26, 1925 C O A L A G E 727 Frozen In
T his illustration sh ow s a typical coal property of the.
K u zn ets B asin . It is the tipple, h ead fram e and bucket
w a y o f the South M ine a t K em erovo w here Mr. P earson m ade h is h ead quarters. T he w ide range of tem per
atu res in th is ter
ritory m akes v en ti
lation a s e r i o u s problem . T his how ever, is not the only handicap laid upon coal m ining by Sibe
ria. - i- -4-
it is necessary to look ahead years instead of m onths as there is so much uncertainty about deliveries. This results in excessive w arehouse stocks and oversize rep air shops.
One m ust not expect the application of m odern m eth
ods to show the results they achieve in other lands.
N ot only is Siberian labor hard to train, but to gear up coal m ining to operate at m odern speed will require practically an industrial revolution over the whole coun
try and em bracing all industries. T rying to travel at A m erican speed in Siberia is like try in g to h u rry when you are in the middle of a chain gang.
' Re a so n s for Low Ou t p u t
The northern group of m ines in K uznets Basin was in typical R ussian condition when I assum ed charge of the group. The output per m an was at its lowest ebb
— one-tenth ton per m an shift. T his was due to several causes. All the w orkable m ines w ere operating, although any one of them could have produced all the output. This provided an overhead personnel nearly as num erous as the active w orkers. A serious shortage of equipm ent did not perm it the men w orking to produce anything like th e ir potential capacity. The m orale of men in the technical staffs w as “shot.” These men w ere underpaid, poorly accommodated, discouraged by the past, and apprehensive of the future.
The m orale of the w orkers w as even worse. T heir conception of the results to be expected from the revolu
tion was a total suspension of discipline and the gaining of a livelihood by half the custom ary, labor. In addi
tion, w ages w ere several m onths in arrears. This encouraged nobody to work.
The plant layout did not commend itself to the eyes of a m an accustom ed to m odern m ethods and the m a
chinery was little better than junk.
Sy st e m Not a t Fa ult
Such a low productivity combined w ith a strange m ining system , very naturally was at first blamed on the system . L ater, when some cost accounting m ade possible a com parison of results, it w as discovered th at the system w as at least as good as any other, the difficulties being in the execution of details.
A t the end of two years of the new m anagem ent the net result was twice as much coal from two openings at one plant as the entire group of m ines had been giving a t the beginning. This was accom plished at about one-half the cost per ton, ad w ith a m an sh ift output of m ore than one ton. C oncentration of work, prom pt paym ent of wages, induction of staff and
improved accounting all played their parts in the net result.
In the m ine w ork proper three changes w ere the m ost revolutionary, one w as a reduction of the w orking face, which, by reducing the num ber of men being paid from one check, actually’ doubled the output per m an by cutting out the suspicion on the p art of each m an th a t the other fellow w as loafing at his expense. This was an innovation which received the hearty support of the R ussian engineers. They had spent th eir lives try in g to break up the “artel” system , a typical R ussian institution in w hich a large group of men contract a job together. It had been long known th a t the men did not w ork well under this plan and w ere alm ost impossible to discipline. To produce the change it was necessary to double the narrow work, in itself not good m ining practice, but on tria l it actually reduced the cost of coal.
Big Im pr o v e m e n t s in Haulag e
A nother change w as the substitution of lj-to n fo r the old J-ton wagons. This resulted in a big saving in transport costs but necessitated a revolution in track age. The R ussian engineers had been fully aw are of the advantage of bigger tran spo rt units but lacked the nerve to m ake the change. They feared discredit because the new system is so fa r reaching, involving better road beds, heavier rail, and broader gages.
Broadening the gage conflicts w ith sh aft layouts. O rdi
narily a m odern tran spo rt system will be possible only in new m ines especially laid out fo r the purpose.
In this case it was possible to lengthen the cars w ith
out changing the gage of 22 in. This was not wholly satisfactory but proved better than the old system . The entries had been laid throughout w ith double tracks of 12-lb. steel. It was necessary to lay heavier rail, but as a double track system w as not needed, a single track proved an actual economy.
Ch a n g e Tim e of Sh if t s
The th ird change involved the hours of operation.
The m ines had been w orking 24 hr. a day. U nderground men had worked four 6-hr. sh ifts; outside m en three 8-hr. shifts.
W hen the change was made, at first the policy was to get out the coal regardless of cost or efficiency. By concentrating all handling of m aterials and other non
productive w ork in one sh ift quite an im provem ent was made.
L ater a slackening in demand made it possible to cut off- one m ining shift, by allowing a 2-hr. interval
728 C O A L A G E VOL. 28, NO. 22
Sixty Below but W hat of It?
H ere w e have a couple of engineers settin g out on an inspection trip in a typical horse-draw n Siberian sleigh . T em perature ranges are w ide In this coal m ining field but all you have to do is get used to it— and bundle up in furs.
between shifts. This elim inated some delays th a t had been suffered while w aiting fo r powder smoke to clear.
Also some surface friction was rem oved because su r
face and underground w orkers reported at different hours. U nfortunately fo r the purpose of m easuring the relative advantages of the old and the new system s it was necessary to cut off another sh ift im m ediately as the output was not reduced sufficiently. However, there had been shown a big gain in output per m an.
Soon after, a fire in p a rt of the m ine forced a retu rn to the three sh ifts; and when it was possible to resum e the experim ent several other m inor im provem ents so befogged the results th a t com parison is impossible. One of these im provem ents was the substitution of electric cap lamps fo r oil hand safety lamps. To this change the m ine forem an attrib u ted a gain of 20 per cent in efficiency.
Sa fe t y Pro blem s i n Ma n y Ha n d s
“Safety F irst,” is no by-word in R ussian m ine prac
tice. The m ine law, casually read, is apparently sim ilar to the best of our A m erican laws, but it reflects the O riental idea of personal retaliation, and is inflex
ibly draw n. This results in a loss in initiative on the
p art of operating officials, which in turn, tends to encourage lower production per m an.
The m anner in which the law is w ritten offers inspec
tors and operating officials no opportunity to exercise judgm ent. Enforcem ent of the rigid specifications of the law is supposed to be in th e ir hands but it actually is not. The state mine inspector, being a m ining m an presum ably will favor his professional brother the oper
ating official; so a local labor inspector also goes over the ground. In addition, the m iners’ union m aintains an expert who covers the sam e ground and, as the superintendent of the rescue station has little to do, he, too, takes p a rt in the discussions. A fter one becomes acquainted w ith these w orthies, of course the proper method of procedure for the m ine m anagem ent is to stir up a fight am ong them and plead inability to choose the best advice.
Vo l u n t e e r Resc u e Squad
A fully equipped m ine rescue station is m aintained by the governm ent a t each gaseous m ine— which, in Russia, m eans nearly all m ines. It is m anned by a superintendent, a tra in e r and three attendants on duty turn about, during the 24 hr. of the day. The crew is m ade up of volunteers from the m iners.
It has been said th a t our A m erican m ethod of choos
ing petty m ine officials is too inform al. In R ussia it is too form al. Only m en who have been through a regular course of instruction can hold places of respon
sibility in the m ines. A ssistant m ine forem en take one course, known as a “desetniks” course. M ine fore
men are required to take another. These m en are known as “m ine teckniks.” So fa r as I could learn it took these men as long to finish th e ir course of instruc
tion as it did an engineer to take his degree, yet the m ore responsible positions w ere not open to the fore
men. C onstruction work and surveying are done by men specially trained in those branches. I w as at a loss to discover the real difference between a “tecknik”
and an engineer. One observes th a t the effect of having each job perform ed only by m en who have gone through a certain course, is to m ake the w ork seem poured through a mould. It is to be hoped we never will become so form al in this country.
Siberian Cold Stays Out
T his typ ical S i
berian hou se in a coal m ining tow n is bu ilt 20 x 50 ft.
on the ground and is s u p p o s e d to hou se four fam ilies.
B u t w h en housing w as sh ort in the village, seven fa m i
lies occupied It.
M ine officials are allow ed one room and a kitchen each for their fam ilies.
The house is tigh tly constructed of logs in the R u ssian m an ner to resist the cold w ind s. M ost o f the h eatin g is done in fireplaces.
Novem ber 26, 1925 C O A L A G E 729
New Conveyors Speed Room-and-Pillar Mining
Self-C ontained 12-Ft. B elt U nits for Service in Tandem at the Face D ischarge into a Sectional Scraper Trough E x tended to A ny L ength D elivering to Cars on the Entry
By Alphonse F. Brosky
A ssistan t E ditor, Coal A ge,Pittsburgh, P a.
S
W IFT TRA N SPO R TA TIO N of coal aw ay from the w orking face is essential to concentrated room-and- pillar m ining. In thin coal each fall m ust be rushed out of the w ay w ith especial dispatch. Realizing this and convinced th a t conveyors have the g reatest possibilities fo r speeding coal from face to cars on nearby entries, R ichard A. Suppes, general superintendent of the K nickerbocker M ines at Johnstow n, Pa., has designed and put into his own service two new types of conveyors. One is a 12-ft. belt unit for' use along the face and the other is a sectional flight con-
about 3 in. deep, on the floor of which travels the loaded strand of the conveyor belt. Secured to each side of the trough is a rubber flap the edge of which extends over the loaded strand of the belt. T his keeps slack from overflowing the belt and crow ding under it. The retu rn strand of the belt travels over round rods extending laterally between the channels. Spillage of coal during the shoveling operation is prevented by a dem ountable extension plate which fits over one trough flare of the conveyor.
The drive pulley and the tail pulley are m ade light-
veyor which can be extended to any length to deliver coal to cars.
The two conveyors are intended prim arily to operate together as one system in the m ining of coal from rooms, pillars and entries. In th is arrangem ent the coal is loaded into one or m ore of the lateral belt units discharging into the m ain conveyor unit which delivers to cars. The m ain conveyor unit, w ith a few slight m odifications, is also applicable to face conveying in longwall layouts.
The lateral conveyor, of the belt type, is portable but is not sectional in the sense th a t its length can be changed by adding or taking aw ay duplicate units.
Each one is a self-contained, m otor-driven conveyor.
The requirem ents of any room, p illar'o r entry face can be m et by arrang in g two or m ore such units in tandem .
Each of the 12-ft. self-contained lateral conveyor units is provided w ith a 16-in. com position belt. A plate of steel is bolted to two 3-in. channels form ing the m ain fram e of the conveyor. F lared sides of steel rest on beveled wooden strin g ers and both are bolted to the m ain fram e. Thus is form ed a stationary trough,
w eight by squirrel-cage construction. C ircular disks m ounted on the pulley sh aft are joined by steel staves which are welded to the disks. The drive pulley is double-conical, tapering slightly from both ends to the center line.
A 5-hp. reversible m otor, through sprockets and a chain, drives th is conveyor at a speed of 131 ft. per m inute. The discharge end of the conveyor is elevated over the m ain conveyor by an adjustable 4-legged, tele
scopic pipe support. A take-up on the tail end of the conveyor provides an adjustm ent to take care of belt stretch. The overall height of the conveyor, a t the discharge end, is 27 in.; the m axim um shoveling height is about 16 in. and the m inim um 8 i in. One unit complete w ith the drive w eighs 570 lb.
The m ain conveyor is of the scraper type, portable and sectional. In it are a tail section, as m any in ter
m ediate sections as are required for a given length and a head or drive section, w ith w hich is incorporated a loading boom— all propelled by one m otor.
The tail section is constructed exactly like the in ter
m ediate sections except fo r the addition of a take-up Loading-Boom
In Service
In order to avoid crow ding and con
sequent sp illage of coal a t the junction
■where the m ain conveyor disch arges onto the loading boom , tw o featu res of design are pro
vided. F irst, th e loadlng-boom chain is w ider than th at of the m ain con
veyor ; second, the speed of the boom is 20 ft. fa ster per m inute than th at o f the conveyor.
730 C O A L A G E VOL. 28, NO. 22
This Photograph Shows One Side of an Arrangement of Face Conveyors
T hese short, lateral belt-con veyors w hich disch arge into the m ain conveyor either sin gly or in tandem are self- contained. One 10-hp. m otor drives as m uch as 250 ft. of the m ain conveyor and a loading boom also.
and a tail sprocket. The tail section is m ounted on a pair of channel-iron sled runners to facilitate the in
sertion or removal of interm ediate sections. It is pro
vided w ith a dem ountable extension plate which prevents spillage of coal at the point w here the lateral conveyor discharges into the m ain conveyor. The w eight of this section, w ithout chain, is 363 lb.
Each interm ediate section is 6 ft. long and 13 in.
high. The m ain fram e of each section is a pan of J-in. steel plate which is troughed w ith flared sides.
This trough is 20 in. wide a t the top, 53 in. deep and 13 in. wide at the bottom . In this trough travels a double drag chain. F lights on 24-in. centers are welded directly to the links of the chain. Sections of chain are fastened together by cotter pins.
On the longitudinal center of each trough and riveted to each flare are two strap steel legs which support the trough. These legs are tied together a t the bottom by a |j-in. rem ovable round rod. W ithin the two legs—
one at each end of the rod— are two rollers which act as idlers for and serve to support the retu rn strand of the chain. Above the rollers, the inside surface of the legs is rounded, allowing the chain to rub these legs w ithout fouling.
The ends of the flared sides of the conveyor trough are bent to 90-deg. flanges. Two slots are cut in the flanges on one end of a trough, into which fit two U-bolts on the flanges of the m ating end of an adjoin
ing trough. A soft-iron wedge inserted in the U-bolts key together two trough sections. The bottom of each trough at both ends is bent under in a half-oval, to provide a rounded joint no m atter w hat the vertical inclination m ay be between any two adjoining sections.
The joint flanges spring enough to allow the conveyor to conform to the profile of the m ine floor.
In m oving interm ediate conveyor sections the trough and chain are handled separately. A trough w eighs 80 lb. and a 12-ft. length of chain w eighs 196 lb. To shorten the conveyor by 6 ft. the interm ediate segm ent adjoining the tail section is removed. F irst the take-up is loosened and the interm ediate trough section is dis
connected from th a t adjoining it by the rem oval of the retaining wedge keys. Next, the lateral rod through the legs of th a t section—w hich supports the retu rn stran d of the chain— is w ithdraw n, causing the la tte r to rest on the ground. Then a 12-ft. length of chain is rem oved from w ithin the tro ug h ; the trough is lifted out of the conveyor line; the tail section is shifted fo r
w ard and joined to the nearest interm ediate section; the open ends of the chain are joined, and finally the chain is tightened by m eans of the take-up. Interm ediate sections are added in the sam e general m anner. E ith er operation can be perform ed by three men in about 3 m inutes.
The head section term inates in a heavy sprocket sh aft which, through a worm type speed-reducer from a
A Side View of Loading Boom
T he m ain con - • vcyor is driven by a 10-hp. m o t o r through a w orm - type speed reducer to a sp rocket sh a ft on the head section . A chain from the m ain sp rocket sh a ft drives the loading boom .
Novem ber 26, 1925 C 0 A L A G E 731
Main Conveyor Conforms to Any Bottom Because It Is Jointed
In the flanges, by -which the trough sec- w hich allow s the vertical line of the con- place ind icates sp eedy recovery. "In and tions are joined in the m anner show n by veyor to fit the profile of the m ine floor, out again in a jiffy” is the m otto of the the draw ing is a certain am ount of “spring" The clean and fresh appearance of th is m en w ho operate this m ine.
The Other Side of a Pair of Face Conveyors in Tandem
E ach self-con tain ed , lateral conveyor is driven by a ¡¡-hp.m otor and w eighs 570 lb. com plete. A dem ountable ex ten sion plate is added to one flare of the conveyor trough to prevent sp illage of coal over the side of theconveyor during the sh oveling operation.
10-hp., reversible m otor, drives the m ain-conveyor chain at a speed of 118 ft. per m inute. A flexible coupling is inserted between the m otor and the speed-reducer.
The sprocket sh aft is equipped w ith a safety coupling, held by four heavy nails which are sheared by an over
load or a disarrangem ent in the equipm ent, preventing dam age to the drive.
On the sprocket sh aft also is a clutch which, when engaged, stops the conveyor and drives a capstan lo
cated on one side of the conveyor. W ith the capstan and a rope, sections of conveyor can be hurriedly dragged to safety in case of an im pending fall at the face. The w eight of the head section, w ithout chain, is 512 lb. and the w eight of the drive unit is 975 lb.
The 10-hp. m otor, in addition to propelling as much as 250 ft. of m ain conveyor, drives also the loading boom into which the m ain conveyor discharges. This is accom plished through the m edium of a chain from the sprocket sh aft of the m ain conveyor to a sim ilar sh aft on the boom at a speed of 138 ft. per m inute.
This speed is made 20 ft. per m inute faster than th a t of the m ain conveyor, to avoid crow ding of coal at the junction point.
The loaded strand of a 20-in. scraper type roller chain, w ith flights on 16-in. centers, runs on the floor of a box trough, while the retu rn stran d runs on angles which are m ade a p art of the fram e. The boom is provided w ith a take-up w hich is located on the tail end. The loading boom is 9 ft. long, from sprocket center to sprocket center, and can be set at any angle up to 32 deg. depending on the height of the m ine car to be loaded. A t its m axim um angular elevation the underside clearance is 3 ft., 9 in. as m easured from the mine floor (not from the ra il), and the m axim um height is about 4 ft., 9 in. Bottom clay or top rock, of course, can be rem oved to provide any desired clearance above and below the boom. The loading boom, complete w ith chain, w eighs 885 lb.
None of the chain requires lubrication. *A11 other bearings are lubricated by a high-pressure feed system .
Enlarged Section at D“P
732 C O A L A G E Vol. 28, N o . 22 hoist be provided in conjunction w ith this equipm ent to enable one m an to load and spot m ine cars in trip s of 25 cars.
The new conveyor is m anufactured by the L orain Steel Co., Johnstow n, Pa. Its application to low-seam coal in two central Pennsylvania m ines will be described in a fu ture issue of Coal Age.
What It Costs to Paint Town In Mining Region
Recently The Union Pacific Coal Co. repainted its houses in the tow n of W inton, Wyo., a few m iles north of Rock Springs, using a spray gun fo r th a t purpose.
The costs w ere as in the accom panying table:
Costs of Repainting 75 Houses
C ost of m aterial ... $2,058.54. 132 gal. g a s o lin e ... $36.72 3 qt. o i l ... 3.90
22 lb. paint coloring ... 27.25 641 gal. paint ... 1,867.135 J gal. dryer ... 12.45 63 gal. linseed o il... 90.09 10 paint brushes ... 13.254 ft. s c r e e n ... 0.56
Cost o f labor for gun ... 555.90 Cost o f trim m ing ... 392.86 T otal cost ... $3,007.30 C ost per 100 sq.ft. for m aterial ... 1.60 C ost per 100 sq.ft. for labor on g u n ... 0.43 C ost per 100 sq.ft. for all labor ... 0.74 Cost per 100 sq.ft. for labor and m a teria l... 2.335 N um ber of feet of su rface p a in ted ...128,797N um ber of houses painted, 75
N um ber of roofs painted, 65
The painting of the shingle roofs, using a b rig h t green, gave the village, which is in the arid region, a cheerful appearance. Long Beach, a high-class resi
dential town on the shores of Long Island, fo r m any years prided itself on every house having a yellow roof, and around the tow ns of The Union Pacific Coal Co. m any roofs have been given a. coat of this pleasing color— a suggestion th a t others m ight im itate w ith advantage.
A Mining Operation in the 44-In. Harlan Bed at Balkan, Ky.
Trough and Chain of Main Conveyor
The upper strand of the chain travels in the flared trough and the low er strand idles over rollers on rods w hich are inserted through the su pporting legs. F ligh ts on 2-ft. centers are w elded to the links of the chain, w hich is of the drag type.
The m ain conveyor is reversible to facilitate the tra n s
portation of supplies and equipm ent to the face, and is controlled either from the loading-boom end or the face end, in the latter case through a no-voltage release.
Twelve hours are required by five men to disassem ble the equipm ent, in a worked-out place, move it to a new place and reassem ble it. This equipm ent can be applied to a 30-in. coal seam . It is suggested th a t a 5-hp.
The illustration above, at the left, sh ow s the tipple a t the W hipple m ine of the V irginia H arlan Coal Cor
poration, B alkan, K y. The covered Incline hou ses a rope- and-button conveyor.
The underground picture show s a low -vein m ining m achine cutting
in the 44-ln. H arlan bed w hich is being m ined by the V irgin ia H arlan com pany.
A t the right, railroad cars ' loaded w ith coal are show n ready for shipm ent. The tipple and part o f the button-conveyor line can be seen in the background.
Novem ber 26, 1925 C O A L A G E 733
Use of Pulverized Fuel May Boost Coal Production
Tests Prove That Low-Grade Coal Burris with Good Efficiency and May Create Better Market
For Cheap-Mined Product By P. Nicholls
F u el E ngineer, U. S. B ureau of M ines, P ittsb u rgh , P a.
H
OW W ILL T H E U SE OF COAL in the pulverized form affect the coal producing industry?P erusal of some of the literatu re on the use of pow
dered fuel m ight create the im pression th a t the m ost im portant effect of its adoption so fa r as the coal indus
try is concerned will be a decrease in the dem and for fuel, occasioned by or resulting from the greater efficiency attained in the production of heat from it.
A study of economic laws, however, will relieve all anxiety on this score, since the cheaper production of any finished article invariably increases the dem and for it and, consequently, fo r its raw constituent m ate
rials.
U tilization of coal in the powdered form will doubt
less react upon the coal industry in the three following w ays: (1) A dem and will be created for, and it will become possible to sell, low-grade fuels th a t previously have gone to w aste because of th e ir fineness or th eir high percentage of ash. Thus, anthracite and bitum i
nous fines and high-ash slack will find a m arket. (2) A dem and for lignites and brown coals— some of which have been difficult or even im possible to burn by other m ethods—7-will be created. (3) W here coal is to be m ined fo r use in the pulverized form exclusively, it m ay be possible to cheapen m ining costs by em ploying m echanical m ethods of the “hogging” type, rem oving, coal uncleaned from the mine. If a consum er bought the entire output of a m ine worked on this basis both consum er and operator m ight benefit.
A full consideration of the first effect suggested would involve num erical tabulation of the am ount of coal used in the pulverized form a t the present tim e and the quantities of fine and low -grade fuels now available a t the m ines. A rough estim ate of the first, indicates th a t from 15,000,000 to 18,000,000 tons of pulverized coal is now being used annually. The second is too com plicated to cover in detail and will vary from m ine to m ine, from bed to bed, and also w ith the preparation employed and the dem and in any particular district. A fuel which a t one tim e m ay be considered as a w aste product, at another m ay possess an appreciable value. A ny classification or q uantita
tive estim ate of the am ount of such fuels available would, therefore, be difficult to make.
T h at low -grade fuels m ay be efficiently burned in the powdered state has been repeatedly dem onstrated both in this country and abroad. The records show th a t coals containing as much as 40 per cent of ash, or even m ore, have been successfully burned in this m anner. The g reater p a rt of such data, however, refe r to short periods of tim e and do not prove th a t the use of the particular fuels tested would have been pos
sible or tru ly economical fo r continuous operation.
M any plants, however, have reported continuous operation, on such fuels, the following being a few exam ples: The Susquehanna Collieries Co., at Lykens,
A b stract o f a paper delivered before the spring conference on coal a t the U. S. B ureau of M ines, P ittsburgh, P a.
Pa., is using No. 2 Lykens anthracite containing 12 per cent of ash. It reports an efficiency, including superheater, of 80.7 per cent.
The Cahokia pow er station a t E ast St. Louis, 111., adopted pulverized coal in order to be able to burn low-grade fuel. It reports using an Illinois coal con
taining 12 per cent of m oisture, dried to 5 per cent, and 16 per cent ash (18 per cent of which is iro n), and having a fusing point of 2,000 deg. F., obtaining from 80 to 84 per cent efficiency w ithout economizers.
The Philadelphia R apid T ran sit Co., a t its Mt.
V ernon station, has burned anthracite w aste contain
ing 184 per cent of ash obtaining an efficiency of 62 per cent.
From F rance come reports of burning low-grade fuels continuously at several p lants: A t M ontceau-les- M ines a coal containing 27 to 28 per cent ash, having a fusing point of 2,120 to 2,220 deg. F. has been burned w ith efficiencies of 75 per cent or m ore. A t Etablisse- m ents Delaunay-Belleville a m ixture of coals running up to 42 per cent ash has been burned successfully.
A t a certain m etallurgical plant, anthracite containing 35 per cent ash has been burned w ith an efficiency of 74 per cent.
In this country some m ines are consum ing the low- grade fuels they produce to generate the power neces
sary fo r th eir own operation. A n excellent example of this kind is furnished by the U nited S tates Coal &
Coke Co., of Gary, W. Va., which utilizes its bone ooal containing approxim ately 23 per cent of ash.
Ef f ic ie n t Co m b u st io n Proven
A large num ber of short-tim e tests m ight be cited showing th a t even poorer coals have been burned suc
cessfully. It m ay be considered as proved, therefore, th a t com bustion of low-grade fuel in the pulverized state has been, and can be accomplished w ith good efficiency.
Efficiency of combustion, however, is not the sole fac
tor to be considered, and tim e alone will dem onstrate w hether the overall economy secured will be such as to perm it of a large dem and being created fo r low- grade fuels. Even if equal efficiencies w ere attained, a num ber of factors increase the operating costs w ith low-grade pulverized fuels. Among these should be mentioned the freig h t and handling charges on the ash and m oisture content, the extra power required for grinding, the heavier w ear on all m achinery, the expense of rem oving and disposing of large am ounts of ash, and the m ore rapid destruction of the refrac
tories. Furtherm ore, although good efficiencies can be attained from low-grade fuels, the m axim um capacities of the boilers are lower than w ith the b etter grades, and the possibility of trouble or stoppage will alw ays be greater.
In tim e, num erical values m ay be assigned to these various item s, so th a t it will become possible to esti
m ate the relative economic value of available coals.
It m ight be suggested th a t if the coal industry is desirous of obtaining an outlet fo r its low-grade fuels, it m ust do its share tow ard de'term ining the treatm en t to which these m aterials m ust be subjected at the m ine, in' order to afford g reatest economic results.
U nquestionably the em ploym ent of powdered lignite and brow n coal has opened a w ay to overcome some of the difficulties involved in th e ir utilization. It has im proved the outlook fo r these fuels although reports indicate th a t much of the w ork so fa r done is in the
734 C O A L A G E Vol. 28, No. 22 form of tests and trials. A few of the results reported
are as follow s: A t the plant of the Colorado Fuel &
Iron Co., at Pueblo, P u ritan lignite was powdered in an E rie City pulverizer and burned in a Seym our type of furnace affording 76 to 77 per cent efficiency.
T rials conducted at the St. Paul L ight & Gas Co.’s Island station, on Texas lignite, containing 30 per cent m oisture and 20 per cent ash on a dry basis, afforded continuously 154 per cent of boiler ratin g w ith 78 per cent efficiency w ithout serious operating difficulties. A la tin g of 260 per cent gave 76 per cent efficiency, but excessive slag made it necessary to shut down a fte r a four-hour run. In spite of this, however, the tests were considered sufficiently conclusive to w arra n t plac
ing orders for 10,000 hp. of powdered lignite boilers for a plant at Trinidad, Texas.
M any other tests have been conducted upon th is fuel, both in this country and in Canada. In A ustralia, also, brow n coal has been tried. All of these have demon
strated th a t grades of these fuels th a t have given con
siderable trouble, or have been im possible to burn continuously by other m eans can be used w hen pulverized.
It would appear th a t the claim th a t the utilization of fuel in the pulverized state will ultim ately be of direct benefit to the coal industry is justified. It m ay also be alleged th a t the utilization of powdered fuel has been of direct benefit through the incentive it has created for large-scale experim entation and the pace it has set fo r other m ethods. As to how fa r im prove
m ent in these other m ethods has been due to the com
petition of pulverized fuel and how fa r to th e ir own natural grow th, no one can determ ine definitely.
Dinosaurs Leave Footprints In Utah Coal Mines
A
PR EH ISTO R IC anim al th a t paleozoologists have term ed the “terrible lizard” or “dinosaur” roam ed over the peat bogs of U tah in the Cretaceous period, and he left behind him footprints th a t U tah coal operators still display w ith pride. They— the prints, not the operators— are of various sizes, some m easuring 30x31 in.
The one shown in Fig. 1 is from the m ine of the U tah Fuel Co. and is 24 in. wide from one extrem e to the other.
The lizard walked along on his hind legs and m ust have been a m ost terrible creature, but as its actual identification is difficult, we can only surm ise how tall it m ight have been. To W. D. M atthew s, of the A m er
ican M useum of N atural H istory, it appears to 'be a deinodont or big-toothed dinosaur of w hich group the tyrannosaurus, is possibly the m ost bulky mem ber.
T hat flesh-eating lizard attained a length of 47 ft., and the anim al, counterw eighted by its huge tail, stood in a posture a little m ore erect than th a t of a dog beg
ging. Thus standing he was from 18 to 20 ft. high.
A pparently the m onsters tracked along in the mud above the peat bog, and th eir feet m ade a depression in the vegetable m ass which rem ained a fte r the feet were w ithdraw n, but the m ud th a t was pushed into the peat by the foot ultim ately form ed a cast of sandstone which w as later filled w ith a shaly m aterial. E. T.
Ralph, w ritin g to A. C. W atts, of the U tah Fuel Co., says “this im pression had the appearance of being in
FIG . 1
Dinosaur Foot
print in Mine
In place o f ferns, Roof
the m ines in U tah freq uently h a v e m arkings ind icat
ing the p assage of a big lizard over the su rface o f the peat bog. The coal is surm ounted b y sh ale but w hen the footprints m ade the capping w e r e m ust have been of line sand slim e, for that is the m aterial of w hich the e x terior o f the fo o t
print is m ade. The interior o f the print is o f shale.
Fig. 2—Dinosaur Tracks at Castlegate and Ballard
The sm aller m easurem ents are of footprints in tho old longw all w orkings ju st sou th east of C astlegate No. 1 m ine opening and the larger si- jw the dim ensions of the prints in the old B allard m ine of the A m erican F u el Co. N ote the variation in “w heel gage" so to speak betw een the larger and sm aller anim al— 19 in.
in one case and 4 ft. 4 in. in the other. The B allard track s are taken from notes o f W illiam P eterson and the other track s from those of A. C. W atts, ch ief engineer, U tah F u el Co.
the solid sandstone, but upon cutting around one of these footprints we found th a t the sandstone in the p rint is only about 2 in. thick and is overlaid w ith several inches of black shale betw een the exposed foot
p rin t and the solid sandstone.”
In the Rolapp m ine ju st north of C astlegate, U tah, footprints are found all along an entry, show ing th a t the tyrannosaurus, or w hatever he was, w alked in th a t direction. The outlines have been delineated in crayon and thus is recorded in ancient stone and m odern fire
boss’ chalk the journey which a lizard took perhaps millions of years before the appearance of m an. It is said th a t in m any cases the evidence is th a t there w ere in those days saurian paths like the cow paths of to d ay ; only occasionally did one of these big lizards w ander aw ay from the well beaten tribal pathw ay to m ake a new roadw ay of his own over the surface of the plain.
