McGr a w- Hil l Co m p a n y, In c. Ja m e s H . McGr a w, President E . J . Me h r e n, Vice-President Volume 28
Devoted to the Operating, Technical and Business Problems of the Coal-Mining Industry
NEW YORK, NOVEMBER 19, 1925
R. Da w s o n Ha l l
E ngineering E d ito r N um ber 21
W est V irg in ia T a k es th e P lu n g e
M
e r c h a n d i s i n g h i s t o r y w as w ritte n when m em bers of th e Smokeless Coal O perato rs’ Association of W est V irg in ia decided to support th e ir con
tem plated invasion of th e New E n gland dom estic m ark et w ith a com bustion-engineei'ing service. H ereto fo re th e th e average low-volatile producer has been as backw ard in m ark e tin g m ethods and appreciation of public con
ta c ts as w as th e a n th ra c ite in d u stry d u rin g its long somnolence. Now, to w iden th e ir m arkets, th e smokeless o perators plan a service sim ilar to th a t in au g u ra ted by a n th ra c ite w hen it awoke to th e menace of dw indling demand. They, too, propose to teach th e consum er how to b u rn th e ir coal efficiently and to smooth aw ay th e sh arp angles of com plaint.
The ad vantag es of such a service are too obvious to call fo r comment. These advantages, however, cannot be fully realized unless and until certain less paten t, b u t none the less controlling, draw backs have been overcome.
In New E ngland, th e smokeless producer is faced w ith th e job of estab lish in g consum er acceptance and of b reaking down re ta ile r resistance. T ra d itio n has bound both householder an d re ta il d istrib u to r to an th ra cite.
T hey m ay abuse and dam n h ard coal, its quality, its p re p a ra tio n and its price, b u t it is still th e ir fa v o rite and favored fuel— and n e ith e r th e fe rv o r of the New E n glan d G overnors’ F uel C om m ittee n o r th e m issio nary zeal of M r. H ultm an can change th a t situ a tio n over n ig h t.
The re ta il d is trib u to r will handle o th er fuels d u rin g th e p re sen t em ergency a s a public duty, b u t th e re will be little en thusiasm fo r th e task. He will be ready—and w illing to fo rg e t th e ir existence as soon as a n th ra c ite production is a g a in in full tide. One th in g only will chill th is desire to ignore o th er fuels a f te r th e strik e has ended. T h a t one th in g will be a real, an in siste n t de
m and upon th e pai't of h is custom ers fo r m ore of the fuel th e em ergency forced upon them . The New E n g land re ta ile r loveth a n th ra c ite m uch, b u t he loveth his custom ers m ore.
I t is, of course, th e w ork of th e smokeless coal b ureau s to create and to fire such a consum er dem and. A n th ra cite h as been b u rned so long in New E n g lan d th a t p roper hand ling in th e dom estic h ea tin g p lan t h as be
come instinctiv e. These b u re au s m u st teach th e con
sum er a new com bustion technique. T h a t in its e lf is no easy ta s k w here h a b its have been in g rain ed by g en e ra
tions. I f th e New E n gland c h a ra c te r is as fixed in its mold as common re p o rt states, it will tak e f a r m ore th a n th e m odest sum which th e association h as provided fo r th is cam paign.
B u t th e w ork is still fu r th e r handicapped a t th e s ta r t by th e price situ atio n . The consum er, deprived— w ith out consultation or consideration— of h is accustom ed a n th ra cite, is in a re sen tfu l mood. I t will add n o th in g to th e kindliness of th e reception o r to th e fa irn e s s of th e tria l he gives an o th er fuel if th e price charged
approxim ates w h a t he norm ally pays fo r h a rd coal. In his mind, it will be adding in su lt to in ju ry . T herefore, if W est V irg in ia desires to m ake a p erm an en t conquest of New E ngland, m ine prices on prepared sizes m ust come down or th e enex'gies of th e cam paign m u st be concentrated upon m ine-run.
We are considering here long-tim e m erchandising, not h it-and -ru n speculative selling. I f the la tte r be th e goal, the proposal indorsed a t Boston is an expensive and m eaningless g estu re. The producer m ay be able to ju s tif y a $6 or $7 price on lump, b u t New E ng lan d will rem ain unconvinced. He cannot ju s tify the spread be
tw een $6 lump and $2.25 m ine-run— especially in view of th e eagerness w ith w hich he now is w illing to book orders fo r th e la tte r size a t $2.50. He m ay be able to ju s tify all his prices, b u t he is not helping his cause in New E ngland. To app ear before th e public in the guise of a profiteer— even if th e disguise is false— is too big a handicap fo r any sound m erch and isin g cam paign to carry.
C h eck in g P la n s f o r S a fety
O
N E COAL COM PANY p u ts th e w ords “ S afety, the first co nsideration” on all its m aps and plans as a continual rem in der o f th e im portance of safety. It would be well if, in recognition of th is obligation, large m a n u fa ctu rers had a s a fe ty m an who would check all im p o rtan t draw ings, i f not all draw ings, fo r safety, and if sm aller com panies w ere to re q u ire a s ig n a tu re a f te r th e w ords “Inspected fo r S a fe ty ” even if the sam e engineer who signed a general approval w ere th e m an appointed to affix h is nam e as vouching w ith in reasonable lim its fo r th e sa fe ty of th e device. U n fo rtunately, ra re ly can a device be m ade wholly foolproof.
M ore E le ctric P o w e r
M
OST O t T H E E X P A N S IO N in th e coal m ark e t will come fro m increased use of electric power, and th e coal o p erator should co-operate w ith th e electric u tility in d u s try in pro m oting increased pow er consum ption.
In the W est th e soil is m ade to give good re su lts by judicious irrig a tio n . U n fo rtu n ately irrig a tio n m ay be extrem ely injudicious. T h e s tre n g th of th e soil m ay be leached aw ay and fields m ay be insufficiently drained.
B u t w ith p ro p er m anagem ent a rid land m ay be g re atly benefited by irrig a tio n . F a rm s on which th e ra in b u t ra re ly falls, w hen irrig a te d properly, seldom fa il to p ro duce a bum per crop.
On th e o th er hand, in th e E a s t th e re is no irrig a tio n and th e crops a re u n certain . The lack of ra in m ay appreciably re ta rd p la n t developm ent and th e fa rm e r never knows w h at he will be able to produce. W ith some m eans of fu rro w or of su b su rface irrig a tio n or, if vegetables are planted w ith some provision fo r sp ra y in g fro m pipes, it would be possible to g et a good crop
689
690 C O A L A G E Vol. 28, N o. 21 every year. The only variab le rem ain in g would be th e
sunshine.
The U. S. D e p artm en t of A g ric u ltu re as long ago as ^ 1917 had issued th re e bulletins on th is subject, one on th e su rface irrig a tio n of E a s te rn fa rm s, one on i r r ig a tio n in F lo rid a and one on sp ra y irrig a tio n . Says Milo B. W illiam s in the last of th ese b ro ch u res:
W ithin the p a st ten years the spray irrig atio n method has been adopted over a wide a re a in th e U nited S tates espe
cially in the A tlantic Coast S tates from M assachusetts to Florida. Many spray irrig atio n plants have been installed in the N orth C entral S tates while scattered installations can be found in practically all Southern and W estern states.
The D ep artm en t says th a t it h as received m any le tte rs ask in g fo r info rm atio n re g a rd in g irrig a tio n in E a ste rn localities. I t appears th a t th e pum p an d pipe m an u fa ctu rers, and th e cen tral sta tio n could m ake profitable use of th is irrig a tio n m ovem ent. I t should be called to th e ir a tte n tio n . In th a t advance th e coal in d u stry would profit.
E y e as V ic tim o r as C u lp r it .
W
H IC H A R E T H E MORE im p o rtan t, eye accidents or accidents fro m fa u lty eyes?A t a recen t executive m eeting of th e A m erican Society of S afe ty E n g in eers, w hich is th e en gineerin g section of th e N ational S afe ty Council, a m em ber of th e executive board said he h ad seen only one w orkm an in e ith e r th e construction or th e m achine in d u stry who w ore spectacles to correct h is eyesight. Y et in th a t executive board as th en assem bled— and tw elve w ere p re sen t— all b u t tw o w ore glasses of one ty p e or another.
He could not believe th a t th e average w orkm an h ad any b e tte r eyes th a n the m en in th a t executive board and if th ey had no t th ey w ere exposing them selves to m any hazards. T he Society m entioned is p re p a rin g to m ake a research into th e “ Influence of F a u lty V ision on A ccidents.” I t seems th a t th e m in er also m u st o ften fa ll a victim to fa u lty vision. W orking in th e dark, w ith th e insufficient lig h t of a single lamp, h is condi
tio n m u st be perilous if h is vision is defective. I t is q u ite likely th a t accidents to th e eye a re no t n early so fre q u e n t o r so dangerous as accidents caused by defec
tiv e vision.
O n ly O n e S ize f o r Coal
S
OME T IM E IN T H E F U T U R E coal will be p re pared a t th e m ine in only one size— slack— unless, indeed, it is pulverized befo re shipm ent fo r use in powdered-coal furnaces. T he coal in d u s try should h asten th a t day. O perators should everyw here be stu d y in g th e possibility of a g re a te r use of fine sizes w h eth er a s slack or as dust.W hen th a t tim e comes coal w ill be handled a t th e face w ith less care th a n today, pneum atic tra n s p o r ta tio n m ay be adopted an d coal m ay even be ta k e n to m a rk e t hydraulically th ro u g h pipes. Coal will be coal then, no m a tte r w h a t is its size. No one w ill have to consider in th a t day w h e th e r he can dispose of th e re s t of h is product, if he p u ts h is o u tp u t over an y given screen. I t is probable th a t all th e coal will be crushed a t th e m ine because some of th e consum ers, especially those who use i t fo r heatin g , m ay n o t be equipped fo r c ru sh in g th e ir fuel. The pow er p lan ts a t th a t tim e m ay be all a t th e m ines so th a t only th e coal needed fo r h e a tin g will be “shipped’ by pipe or car, and p erhap s
not even th a t will have to be tra n sp o rte d fo r it m ay be converted into gas before shipm ent.
To m ake these developm ents possible m uch rem ains to be accomplished. A t p re sen t coal should be tr a n s ported to th e local pow er s ta tio n s w herev er energy is needed f a r from a n a tu ra l fuel supply. P ro bably it will be necessary to tak e coal to gas houses n e a r w here th e gas is to be used unless th e load is u n ifo rm th e year round, w hich is no t th e case, of course, w here gas is used fo r house h e a tin g as i t is in a degree in all cities. The dem and fo r gas fo r cooking is less seasonal, and w here so used th e po ssibility of p ip in g it w ith nrofit is increased.
C ertain i t is th a t a m uch la rg e r use of sm all coal can be m ade, an d if th e m a rk e t fo r i t im proves i t will be possible to ra ise th e price to such a figure th a t it w ill be profitable to m ine coal to supply th e slack m a r
k et alone. W hen th a t tim e comes fo r th e high-volatile region one of its g re a te s t difficulties will be solved.
F o rtu n ately , th e low-volatile m ines have been able to operate a t all tim es on a run-of-m ine basis.
However, he would be foolish indeed who would let th e in te re s t in th e fu tu re m a rk e t so influence him as to neglect p re p ara tio n . So long as p re se n t equipm ent is used fo r b u rn in g coal, carefu l sizin g will pay. No one will do well to let a d is ta n t ideal, to w hich we shall fo r y ears only approxim ate, in te rfe re w ith a p ru d e n t effort to give th e p re s e n t m a rk e t th e service it dem ands.
S team B ette r th a n W ater
A
S A R E S U L T of pow er-house economies and th e . skill shown by steam -sta tio n designers, h y d ro electric developm ent seems likely to be k ep t in check.W here, as a t N ia g a ra F alls and on th e Pacific Coast th e re a re ab u n d a n t oppoi'tunities fo r th e m a n u fa c tu re of hydro-electric pow er and no coal, th e re can be no conflict betw een w a te r and steam as a source of power.
B u t in o th er places th e outcom e will fa v o r th e use of steam .
I t is usually th e case th a t hydro-electric pow er is g en erated ju s t w here no one would th in k of u sin g it, in m o untain fa stn e sses w here no one lives an d w here th e re a re few fa rm s. Coal, however, m any y ea rs ago su r- x’ounded itse lf w ith a larg e and in d u strio u s population.
“W hite coal,” o r w a te r power, m ig h t eventually do th e same, b u t th a t tak es tim e.
D ro u g h ts recently have in te rfe re d w ith th e o pera
tio n of hydro-electric system s and have m ade it neces
sa ry to add to th e nu m b er and size of th e steam au x iliaries, th u s add in g to th e cost of w a te r power. Steam - sta tio n en gineerin g has developed to such a p o in t th a t statio n s costing $125 p e r k ilo w att of capacity have been able to produce one k ilo w att-h ou r fo r six mills.
O pp ortu nities ex ist fo r f u r th e r im provem ent of steam plants. They are low in overall efficiency w hereas hydro-electric pow er bo rd ers on a m axim um . So, a f te r all, the savings in th e economy of steam a t central sta tio n p lan ts is n o t going to be alto g eth er a disadvantage. I t is going to p re v en t hydro-electric pow er fro m m ak in g fu r th e r development. T he fa c t th a t th e best sites have been exploited and th e jealousy w ith which th e public w atches all hydro-electric develop
m ents, especially w here th ey d e tra c t from scenery of g re a t n a tu ra l beauty, a re o th er reasons fo r feeling assu red th a t steam pow er w ill alw ays be a s tro n g com
p e tito r to w ater.
No v e m b e r 19, 1925 C O A L A G E 691
Turret-Type Cutters Im prove Coal Mining in Kentucky
Three in One Mine Save Labor Protect W eak Roof and Keep Coal Cleaner — Another Makes the Amburgy Seam Marketable
B y A lp h o n se F. B rosk y
A s s i s t a n t E d it o r o f C o a l A g e , P i t t s b u r g h , P a .
T
H E F A R -R E A C H IN G u tility of coal-cutting m achines th a t can operate in th e top, bottom or m iddle of a seam is well dem onstrated in two e a ste rn K entucky m ines. M achines of th is t u r r e t type th a t can cut across a face from a tra c k position g reatly reduce th e tim e and labor fa cto rs of m ining. C u ttin g a t th e top th e y p ro tec t a w eak roof from th e s h a tte r
in g effect of explosive. C u ttin g a t any level th ey help to rem ove slate b ands from a seam, th u s n o t only redu cin g ash content of coal shipped b u t prev en tin g th e w aste incident to o p eratin g a m achine in coal itself.
T he first tw o benefits w ere th e ones m ainly sought by th e C onsolidated F uel Co. when it installed th re e tu r r e t m achines in its E lsie No. 2 m ine on Smoot Creek in L etch er County. T he th ird w as th e p rincipal con
sid era tio n a t th e ad jac en t m ine of th e S tafford Coal Co. In both m ines th e arc c u tte rs have “ earned th e ir keep” an d in n e ith e r have th e m achines been given an o p p o rtu n ity to reach th e ir full capacity. E xpansion of operations w ill do t h a t later.
T he C onsolidated F u el Co., by using its th re e m a
chines fo r c u ttin g above th e coal in a so ft ro of slate, has largely solved th e problem of se p a ra tin g th is m ate
ria l w hich otherw ise comes down an d m ixes w ith th e coal. In th is m ine, h alfw ay betw een Blackey and W hitesburg, th e H a zard No. 4 seam, 56 in. thick, is w orked. T he thickness of th e cover varies from 600 to 800 ft. Rooms a re driven 15 ft. w ide and 200 ft.
long on 50-ft. centers. E n trie s are m ined 10 f t. wide.
B y t h e u s e o f c u t t e r s s u c h a s t h e o n e s h o w n in t h e h e a d p ie c e t h e C o n s o lid a t e d F u e l C o . h a s t u r n e d in t o a f a v o r a b l e c o n d it io n w h a t b e f o r e c a u s e d i t c o n s id e r a b le d if fic u lt y in d r iv e s f o r c le a n e r c o a l. T h i s m a c h in e i s s h o w n c u t t i n g o u t a s o f t r o o f s l a t e w h ic h a l w a y s h a d c o m e d o w n a n d m ix e d w i t h u n d e r c u t c o a l. A n d , o f c o u r s e , a f a i r q u a n t i t y o f lu m p c o a l is a d d e d t o t h e r e c o v e r y b y c u t t i n g in t h e s l a t e . T h is p la c e , w h ic h i s 10 f t . w id e , w a s c u t in f o u r m in u t e s .
The region of th is seam lies roughly betw een Hazax-d and W hitesburg. The thickness of th e seam is g re a te st n ea r Whitesbux-g. In th e im m ediate vicin ity of H azard th e seam is 3 to 3J f t. thick, h av in g a bottom of h a rd smooth slate w hich is called “jack rock.” In th e Elsie No. 2 m ine and th ro u g h o u t th e vicinity, w here th e coal is thicker', th e jack rock, 4 to 6 in. thick, is u nderlaid by 12 to 14 in. of bottom coal which is absen t w here th e seam is th in n er.
The top above th e seam is no t u n ifo rm in th e E lsie No. 2 m ine. T his creates vax-ying m in in g conditions.
In wide areas th e coal is overlaid by a band of so ft slate, th e m axim um thickness of which is 6 in. B ecause of i t th e tu r r e t m achines w ere installed. In o th er p a rts of th e m ine th e top is of a sm ooth h a rd e r slate, which is tak en down a f te r th e coal is m ined. The slate in some places is ro ug h w ith o u t re g u la r cleavage and contains k ettle bottom s. In places th ese shales a tta in thicknesses of 6 to 8 ft., b eing capped by a deposit of sandstone. Elsew here th e shales disappear leaving in th e ir place th e sandstone w hich occasions little w o rry to th e m anagem ent. Som etim es a draw slate is found betw een th e sandstone and th e coal.
T h is m ultiplicity of x’oof conditions p a rtly led to th e adoption of th e ax-c cu ttin g m achine. M ainly, however, th e decision w as dictated by th e need of keeping th e coal free of sh a tte re d particles fro m th e s o ft slate top.
Thx-oughout m ost of th e regio n th e re lies, im m e
diately above th e 6-in. lay er of s o ft slate, a 4-in. lay er of h ard slate w hich m u st be tak en down. The la tte r does not co n trib u te a h ig h e r ash con ten t to th e coal because a span of th is m a te ria l stay s in place a t least un til a f te r a cut u n d er it is loaded. An illustx-athin typical of th is condition ap p ears in th e accom panying
C
U T T IN G M A C H IN E S w hich operate fro m a p o sition on the mine tra c k are gaining favor.T h is is chiefly due to the saving in tim e and labor in m aking ready to cut and also to m ove w hich these m achines effect, accounting
fo r th e ir g re a te r productivity. A m achine w hich cuts a horizontal k erf a t some level above the floor au tom atically falls into this class fo r it m ust be bu ilt heavily enough to hold against a th ru st above its cen ter o£ g rav ity and
consequently m ust be supported by rails. Ii the fu tu re m achines of th is type are bound to be used m ore and m ore to cut o u t bone and ash, thereb y w idening the m arkets of some of our coals.
T h e y may redeem “lo s t” m ines.
692 C O A L A G E VOL. 28, N o. 21
A Typical Condition in Elsie No. 2 Mine
A b o u t 14 in . fr o m t h e flo o r i s s e e n t h e 4 -in . b a n d o f " ja c k r o c k ” w h i c h i s l i f t e d o u t o f th e c u t a f t e r t h e to p b e n c h i s lo a d e d a n d b e f o r e t h e b o t to m b e n c h i s m in e d . U s u a l l y t h e t o p b e n c h i s s h o t a n d t h e b o t to m b e n c h d u g . A s o f t s l a t e is d i r e c t l y a b o v e t h e c o a l. H a r d e r s l a t e is a b o v e t h e s o f t , w h ic h i s t a k e n d o w n a f t e r t h e Cut is lo a d e d a n d a b o v e t h a t t h e r a t h e r s o l i d r o o f s l a t e .
halfto ne show ing a room face. As th is h a rd band som etim es form s th e top of th e seam th e cu ttin g m a
chine helps to p revent th e s h a tte rin g of th is band of h ard slate and upper s tr a ta d u rin g th e shooting.
L ittle need be said about th e actu al operation of cu t
tin g because w ith these details th e re a d e r is fa m iliar.
T he m achine cuts in th e so ft slate w herever th is m ate
ria l form s th e top and in th e coal w here sandstone or h a rd slate form s th e roof. I t w orks a t approxim ately th e sam e ra te in e ith e r m a te ria l easily c u ttin g 25 to 35 places, 10 and 15 ft. w ide in a day. T he o u tp u t of th e E lsie No. 2 m ine is now about 800 tons. All of th is coal is cu t by th e th re e m achines. However, as th ey do not w ork u n d er th e sam e conditions th e o u tp u t of each varies. The crew s do no t w ork a full 8-hr. s h ift. I f th e y did th e th re e m achines should be able to average J,000 tons a day w ith o u t difficulty.
The occurrence of th e jack rock in th e seam and its effect on shooting a re o th er fa cto rs which m ay have influenced th e adoption of th is ty p e m achine. I f th e coal w ere u n d ercu t th e shots would b rin g down th e jack rock w ith th e top and bottom benches, a condi
tio n to be avoided fo r obvious reasons. F u rth e rm o re , th e jack rock by v irtu e of its com parative resistan ce and location in th e seam is likely to reduce th e effec
tiveness of th e shots. ,
As i t is now, a 7-ft. cut is m ade by an 8-ft. c u tte rb a r.
Two l i - i n . rib shot holes 74 f t. deep a re ch arged w ith e ith e r one an d a h a lf or tw o sticks o f perm issible explo
sive, b rin g in g down th e top bench of coal w hich is loaded first. The shooting of th e upper bench breaks th e jack rock m aking it easy to load, nd sp rin g s th e bottom bench sufficiently to produce arg e lum p coal.
Top cu ttin g simplifies w h a t oi ’ ,ise would be a difficult condition fo r shooting.
The S tafford Coal Co., ope g up its m ine n ea r E lsie No. 2 m ine operates in the A m b urgy seam which is below th e H azard No. 4 seam. I t is u sin g a low type arc-c u ttin g m achine fo r a different purpose. I t is said th is com pany is th e only producer in L etcher County m in in g th e A m burgy seam. A side from a 3- to 5-in.
bone p a rtin g w hich divides th e seam into a 16-in. top bench and a 27-in. bottom bench, th e seam is low in ash. T he ro o f is generally sound and self-supporting.
T h is band of bone s tric tly is n o t a p a r tin g because it is m ore or less b u rn t to th e u p p er an d low er benches and, th ere fo re , cannot be sepavated sa tisfa c to rily . This coal seam is fa irly p e rsiste n t as to thickness and has a good roof b u t little effort h as been m ade in th e p ast to m ine it. T he fa c t th a t w an ts a re known to occur in th e seam m ay be p a rtly responsible fo r th is b u t th e m ain reason is th e bone band w ith in th e seam.
Ot h e r Me t h o d s Fa il e d
In th e several a ttem p ts m ade to w ork th is seam both pick m in in g and u n d e rc u ttin g m ethods w ere tried . In n e ith e r case could enough of th e bone be rem oved by hand to provide a low-ash coal. T he Stafford Coal Co.
reopened a m ine abandoned by a predecessor, w ith th e in ten tio n Of cu ttin g ou t th e hig hly objectionable band of bone. A nd th is is precisely w h a t th e com pany is now doing w ith th e aid of th e m achines.
Rooms a re driven 16 ft. w ide an d 200 ft. deep on 50-ft. centers. Room p illars a re recovered im m ediately upon com pletion of room s by open-end cuts on th e backs of th e p illars, th e m achine re tr e a tin g to w ard th e en try . In th e p illa r w ork as well as in room s th e m achine (a lte rn a tin g -c u rre n t drive) is used. Twenty-five-pound ra ils a re laid on steel ties in room s an d p illa r sections fo r th e m achine.
A fte r th e bone is cu t out, re q u irin g abo ut 5 m in.
fo r a place 16 ft. wide, th e u p p er bench sp rin g s suffi
ciently to re q u ire no shooting. L arg e lum ps (sp lin t coal) a re dislodged fro m th e up per bench by pick m ining.
Occasionally a pop sh o t is needed to loosen th e coal in th is bench. T hree stick s of perm issible explosive in tw o sho ts a re sufficient to produce good lum p coal.
As th is m ine is in th e early stag es of its developm ent it h as n o t been possible to d eterm ine how m uch w ork th is m achine will do in a fu ll s h if t u n d er th e conditions described. I t is believed th a t th e m achine should cut a t least 25 room s in one sh ift.
I t is commonly th o u g h t th a t m achines which cu t a k e rf above th e floor add to th e d an g e r from coal dust ig nitio n. T his of course holds w h ere th e m achine is
Shaker Screen a t Elsie No. 2 Mine
T h e C o n s o lid a t e d F u e l C o. b e l i e v e s in g o o d p r e p a r a t io n a n d , t h e r e f o r e , h a s i n s t a l l e d t h a t e q u ip m e n t w h i c h w i l l b r in g t h i s a b o u t. T h is c o a l c o m e s f r o m t h e H a z a r d N o . 4 s e a m .
No v e m b e r 19, 1925 C O A L A G E 693
C utting Out Bone
T h i s m a c h in e , a n d i t a lo n e , m a k e s t h e A m b u r g y s e a m in t h i s m in e m a r k e t a b le . A b o u t 16 in . f r o m t h e flo o r is a 3 - t o 5 -in . b a n d o f b o n e w h i c h c a n b e s e p a r a t e d f r o m th e c o a l s a t i s f a c t o r i l y b y n o o t h e r m e a n s t h a n c u t t i n g . A t t e m p t s h a v e b e e n m a d e to m in e th e s e a m b y p ic k a n d b y u n d e r c u t t i n g b u t b o t h s c h e m e s f a i l e d b e c a u s e th e b o n e a d h e r e s t e n a c i o u s l y to th e c o a l. T h e l a r g e - d ia m e t e r c a b le In d i c a t e s t h a t a l t e r n a t i n g c u r r e n t is u s e d f o r c u t t in g .
Blue Diamond Mine, One of the Largest Producers
A t t h e l e f t i s t h e c o a l l o a d i n g t ip p le a n d h i l l s i d e s f r o m t h e m in e o p e n in g s o n e a c h a e r i a l r e f u s e c o n v e y o r o f t h e B lu e D ia m o n d s id e o f t h e h o ll o w . O n t h e r i g h t i s s h o w n C o a l C o ., B lu e D ia m o n d , K y . T h i s m in e t h e r e p a ir s h o p a n d s u b s t a t i o n o n t h e “ O ld l o a d s 2 ,5 0 0 t o n s p e r d a y . F l i g h t c o n v e y o r s S i d e ” o f t h e B lu e D ia m o n d m in e , w h ic h is r e t a r d t h e c o a l o n i t s m o v e m e n t d o w n t h e o n e o f t h e l e a d i n g p r o d u c e r s in t h e H a z a r d
Field
F i e ld . T h is s h o p , s u p e r v is e d b y H a r r y K i v e t t , c h i e f e le c t r i c i a n , d o e s r e p a ir w o r k f o r t h e m in e s o f t h e S a p p h ir e a n d L ib e r t v C o a l c o m p a n ie s w h ic h a r e u n d e r t h e s a m e m a n a g e m e n t a s th e B lu e D ia m o n d .
cu ttin g a k e rf in coal. I t applies in lesser degree w here th e m achine cu ts in bone, and not a t all w here the cutting is in slate. In th e la tte r case, cu ttin g really serves as a m easure of safety because of th e slate bug d u st produced. S prin k lin g th e cut w ith w a te r taken fro m a pipe line or fro m a storage ta n k by an a rra n g e m en t such as th a t described in Coal A g e , May 14, p.
711, will p rev ent a dang ero us q u an tity of d u st from floating in th e a ir. R esp irato rs m ay be w orn by th e crew fo r protection a g a in s t th e shale du st com ing from th e kerf, as in th e E lsie No. 2 m ine w here re sp ira to rs are used by th e crews. E lectrically th e top c u tte rs are as safe as th e u n d ercu tters, i t being possible, of course, to procure perm issible equipm ent in e ith e r m achine.
Canada H as M uch Sem i-A nthracite in A lberta R eserve B eds
T he D om inion F uel B oard h as issued a re p o rt by Jam es McEvoy, of th e C anadian Geological Survey, on th e coal a reas of th e Smoky R iver and Sheep R iver d is tric t in A lberta, of w hich M r. McEvoy m ade a close exam ination . These coal a reas are in te re stin g b u t not com m ercially available yet. He states th a t th e re is no a n th ra c ite in these areas. In one locality on Smoky R iver th e re is coal th e analysis of w hich shows a fuel ra tio ju s t w ith in th e sem i-an th racite class, b u t ph ysi
cally it has no a n th ra c itic p ro perties. A larg e a re a on Smoky R iver and Sheep R iver contains sem i-bitu
m inous coal, o r as it is usually called in th e W est,
“h ig h g ra d e” bitum inous. Considered as a new source
of coal supply the p rin cip al fa c t is th e occurrence of a large tonnage of high g rad e bitum inous coal, one notable 14-ft. seam g ra d in g in places by an alysis as sem i-anthracite.
T his seam will give a su p erio r steam coal, b u t it is no t notably b e tte r th a n th e o th er h ig h g rad e bitum inous coals already developed in A lb erta in th e qualities which dom estic users requ ire. None of these coals will s a tisfy th e dom estic consum er who w an ts fu el to take th e place of a n th ra c ite as th ey all have a rag g ed fra c tu re which m akes fine d u st w hen handled and th ey will cause a deposit of soot in flues and chim neys.
While M r. McEvoy re g a rd s these a reas as a valuable asset in th e fu tu re , he considers th a t th e re is no need fo r th e ir development on a com m ercial scale fo r m any years to come.
694 C O A L A G E Vol. 28, N o. 21
Illin o is’ H ope Lies in M echanical Loading and Cleaning, Speakers T ell Institute
B y F ra n k F. T irre
S t . L o u is , M o.
I
L L IN O IS ’ H O P E of re g a in in g its position in th e th e coal in d u stry in sp ite of non-union com petition lies in reducing its production costs by m echanical loading. To accomplish th is it will be necessary fo r union opposition to be softened and fo r coal cleaning m ethods to be adopted generally, speakers in sisted a t th e th irte e n th m eeting of th e Illinois M ining In s titu te Nov. 6 and 7 a t W est F ra n k fo rt, in th e h e a rt of th e so u th ern Illinois coal field. T he tw o-days’ m eeting gave o p p o rtu n ity fo r m uch good fellow ship a t th e F ra n k lin County C ountry Club, a technical session, v isits a t v ario u s m ines, a d in n er in honor of A. D. Lew is, th e newly appointed d irec to r of th e Illinois D e p artm en t of M ines and M inerals, and an election of officers in w hich E. G. Lew is of Royalton, 111., w as chosen p re sid e n t fo r th e com ing year.U nder th e guidance of “Ja c k ” Rodenbush, m ine su p erin ten d e n t f o r th e Chicago, W ilm ington & F ra n k lin Coal Co., th e v isito rs w ere tak en down into O rien t No. 2 m ine, th e p re sen t holder of th e w orld’s ton nag e record, 11,325 tons in 8 h r., m ade on Nov. 4. On th e day of th e v isit 6,000 ton s w ere produced up to th e noon h o u r w ith o u t confusion or in te rru p tio n s of any so rt. O th er v isito rs m ade a general inspection of th e d istric t, including s trip m ines, and m any accom
panied John E . Jones, rock d u stin g a u th o rity , on his sa fe ty inspection to u r th ro u g h Old B en Coal C orpora
tio n m ines. T he fa c t th a t th is w as th e “th irte e n th ” m eeting of th e In s titu te w as no “hoodoo” as th e g a th erin g w as a larg e and in te re stin g one.
El e c t E . G. Le w i s Pr e s i d e n t
H arv ey E . Sm ith, re tirin g p re sid en t, in h is opening re m a rk s spoke sadly of th e re cen t d eath of M artin Bolt, fo rm e r se c re ta ry -tre a s u ry of th e In s titu te an d d irec to r of th e Illinois D e p artm en t of M ines and M inerals. A fte r some ro u tin e m a tte rs w ere disposed of th e co n stitu tio n w as changed to provide fo r tw elve m em bers of th e board of d irecto rs in stead of five, and a f te r th e re p o rt of D. D. Wilcox, ch airm an of th e nom in a tin g com m ittee, h ad been read th e follow ing officers w ere elected: P resid en t, E . G. Lew is, Royalton, 111.;
first vice-president, Wm. Kidd, P eoria, 111.; second vice- p resident, D r. L. E .'Y o u n g , S t. Louis, M o.; secretary - tre a s u re r, F ra n k F . T irre , S t. Louis, Mo. T he exec
utive board consists of th e follow ing: Thom as Back, Ja s. S. A nderson, J . A. G arcia, J. A. Jefferis, Jo h n E. Jones, F. F . Jorg en sen, S. T. Jenkins, A. D. Lewis, Geo. M cFadden, A. C. Callen, Jo h n R odenbush and E d. Coulehan.
The su b ject of m achine loading w as introduced w ith Jo h n A. G arcia in ch arg e of th e discussion. Mr.
G arcia pointed out th a t th e selection of th e m achine w ith w hich to load coal w as not all th a t w as necessary.
T he idea m u st be sold to th e whole o rg anizatio n in a m in in g company.
“M any coal op erato rs have p ersisted in th e old m ethod of doing th is w ork as we used to do i t 50 y ears ago,”
said M r. G arcia, “M echanization of coal m ines is a t
ou r door. A re we going to open th e door or a re we going to let th is opp ortu nity, w hich does n o t knock m ore th a n once, pass on? We a re con fro nted w ith com
p etitio n from o th er sta te s whose fav orable m in in g ra te s are enabling th em to tak e ou r m ark ets. T his h as p u t o u r in d u s try in Illinois in a m ost deplorable s ta te and in m y ju d g m en t th e crisis can be m et only w ith m echanization of our m ines. T his so u th ern Illinois field w ith its th ick seam and good coal is well equipped to m eet com petition.”
Us e l e s s t o Lo o k f o r Re d u c t io n
I t w as pointed out by a n u m b er of speak ers th a t it is useless to expect a red uction in th e p re se n t Illinois m in ing ra te . A complete new ord er of producing coal m u st be m ade if th e s ta te is to m a in ta in itself. M any changes w ill be noted d u rin g th e n ex t five y ears, espe
cially in th e cleaning of m echanically loaded coal. T his is an item of cost ra n g in g fro m 3c. to 10c. p e r ton.
I t seems p ro h ib itiv e u n til one realizes th a t by m echani
zation five tim es th is am ount can be saved. M echanical loading will increase th e q u a n tity of im p u ritie s l b p e r cent to 3 p er cent, an d in some instances i t m ay be necessary to w ash th e coal. A w ash in g m ethod was m entioned w hich cleans by stratifica tio n a t a cost esti
m ated a t 6c. p e r to n as a g a in st a cost of 25c. p e r ton on a jig w asher. W ith th is w a sh e r th e re is no loss of w ater. I t is reused.
M ost so u th ern Illinois coal sm aller th a n 3-in. m u st be w ashed, speakers declared. L a rg e r coal, m achine loaded, can be picked as clean as if i t w ere loaded by hand. M achine production av eraged 264 to ns p er s h ift p e r loading m achine in one m ine on room w ork only, m ak ing a saving of 50c. p e r ton. Several speakers agreed th a t p ro p er coal cleaning should n o t absorb m ore th a n 20 p e r cent of a loading m achine’s savings.
I t w as su gg ested by a p ro m in en t en gin eer th a t in th e ins" illa tio n of m echanical m ethods of producing coal, only a p a r t of th e m ine be equipped w ith loaders a t first. A carefu l reco rd could be kept of th e ea rn in g s and these ea rn in g s applied to th e fu r th e r p u rchase of m achine loaders u n til han d loading w as com pletely displaced.
Ma c h i n e s Qu i c k l y Re p a y In v e s t o r s
M achine loading reduces th e n um ber of m en in a m ine and cuts down by 60 p er cent th e num b er of w o rk ing places req u ired u n d er hand-loading. Concen
tra tio n of th e w orking fo rce such as th is reduces th e leng th of e n try to be kept up, and th e inv estm en t fo r rails, w ire, and supplies. I t w as estim ated th a t in a period of th re e y ea rs a m ine can be fully equipped w ith m achine loaders b o ug ht w ith th e ea rn in g s of those first installed.
In some instances a m achine cuts and loads th e coal.
W here th is is done, sh ooting d u rin g th e d ay w ith men in th e m ine is necessary. T h is is now considered by some to be in violation of th e law. T he In s titu te u rg es a speedy solution of th is question.
No v e m b e r 19, 1925 C O A L A G E 695
In Illinois a jo in t comm ission of m in ers and oper
a to rs h as been appointed to w ork out a scale of w ages fo r m en o p eratin g loading m achines. T he In s titu te is appealing fo r an im m ediate re p o rt from th is commis
sion because f u r th e r in stallatio n of loading m achines in Illinois is blocked by ord er of th e U nited Mine W orkers, D istric t 12, until a scale is provided.
D r. F . C. Honnold, of th e Honnold Coal B u reau in Chicago, acted as to a stm a ste r a t a d in n er in honor of th e new d irec to r of th e Illinois D epartm ent of M ines and M inerals, A. D. Lewis, a b ro th er of Jo h n L. Lewis, In te rn a tio n a l P re sid e n t of th e U nited M ine W orkers.
The first speak er was T. C. Powell, p re sid e n t of th e Chicago & E a s te rn Illinois Ry., who spoke about th e p a r t played by th e railro a d s in th e production of coal in th is country. H e co n gratulated th e so u th ern Illinois field upon th e opportunity i t has before i t as th e g re a te s t coal-producing center in th e world, and deplored th e .p re se n t com petition it has to m eet— a com
petitio n th a t is cau sin g m any of th e larg e producers to rem ain idle w hen th ey ought to be in operation.
“In looking over figures,” said M r. Powell, “I find th a t we have 70 m ines on th e line of th e C. & E. I. O ut o f th e 70 operations, 37 are definitely closed. These 37 have a ra te d capacity of 1,036 cars p er day.
Ci t e s Re c o r d f o r Oc t o b e r
“O ur actual experience d u rin g October was, however, th a t of 33 m ines in condition to operate, th e fluctua
tion fro m day to day h as been extrem e in th a t only tw elve m ines w ere w orking on Oct. 12, and on only one day w ere as m any as 28 m ines in operation. The a v e r
age fo r th e m onth w as abo u t 20 m ines. In stea d of tu rn in g ou t 1,330 cars of coal p er day, th e volume fluctuated betw een 300 and 400 cars w ith th e m axim um never reached.
“E ven th e reduced q u a n tity of coal th a t has been loaded has no t all been sold. We have on hand today unbilled som ething like 400 c a rs of coal. E ach ra ilro a d in te r
ested in th e developm ent of its coal m ines m u st m ake a heavy inv estm en t in coal cars and as long as those c ars a re idle or sta n d u n d er load unbilled, and all d u r
in g th e period th a t th ey a re moving back to th e m ines fo r loading, in te re st ch arg es on th e cars continue to accrue. A coal c a r w hich costs $2,500 and will hold 70 tons of coal, m u st m ake a t least 40 trip s u n d er load before th e cost of th e c a r has been made, to say no thing of th e cost of tra n sp o rta tio n , m aintenance and in te re st charges in th e m eantim e. I t is to th e in te re st of th e coal com panies as well as th e ra ilro a d s to move these c a rs quickly betw een th e m ines and th e consignee. The m ore quickly th e cars a re released by th e consignee th e m ore c e rta in th e m ines will be of g ettin g sufficient equipm ent fo r additional business.
Po i n t s t o Fa i l u r e o p Wa t e r w a y s
“ T here h as been some ta lk of w aterw ays, especially in th is p a r t of th e sta te . I f an y m eans can be found to cheapen th e tra n s p o rta tio n of coal by w a te r ways, I would say ‘A m en’ as I believe th a t th e public is en titled to all such im provem ents th a t a re feasible. B u t before ou r governm ent or s ta te is called upon to m ake so v ast an ex pend iture as h as been proposed, I would w a n t you to look well in to th e situ a tio n , g a th e rin g in fo rm a
tio n as to th e experience of th e C. & O. canal into W ash
ington. I believe i t h as been a fa ilu re . In New Y ork th e E rie canal w as constructed betw een 1905 and 1924
and a sum of $260,000,000 expended, and i t is still unfinished. T he people of New Y ork S ta te pay an av er
age of $4.40 fo r every to n handled by th is canal, and th e only com m odities handled a re a little b it of gravel, sand, oil and g rain . These two examples should m ake ta x payers consider.”
H arvey E. S m ith, p ast-p resid en t of th e In s titu te m ade a graceful address com plim entary, to M r. Lewis, th e new s ta te d irecto r of m ines an d b anq uet g u est of honor. He also extolled th e v irtu e s of th e In stitu te .
Sh o w s Cr o s s- Se c t i o n o f Mi n i n g In t e r e s t s
“M em bership in th e Illinois M ining In s titu te is open to those e ith e r engaged in or in tere ste d in m in in g ,”
said he, “and its roll of m e m b e i’S shows a tr u e cross- section of the m in in g in te re sts of th e sta te . Included in its m e m b e r s and p re sen t a t th is m eetin g a re th e ow ners and officers of coal prop erties, general m an ag ers and general su perin tend ents, p it bosses and a ssista n ts, m ine exam iners and top bosses, electricians and mechanics, consulting engineers, s ta te m ine inspectors, rescue men, re p resen ta tiv e s of th e U nited S tates B ureau of M ines, m in in g engineers and geologists, college professors, ra ilro a d men, officials of th e U nited Mine W orkers, coal salesm en, salesm en selling equip
m ent and supplies necessary to th e operation of th e mines, electrical engineers re p resen tin g th e public u til
ities w hich supply th e m ines w ith power, and, la st b u t decidedly no t least, th e m in ers— th e men who really produce th e coal and who are th e fou nd ation upon which th e whole s tru c tu re of coal production re sts.
"T h is In s titu te h as in th ese lean y ea rs of th e coal business even a g re a te r field fo r service th a n w as p re sented in th e m ore prosperous years. We m in ing men of Illinois, even th ou gh th e outlook fo r th e im m ediate fu tu re is d ark indeed, will no t ad m it th a t th e coal p ro duction of th is s ta te is to fall perm anen tly fro m the record of n early 90,000,000 tons a y ear to less th a n h alf th a t figure. We a re favo red in th is sta te w ith coal deposits which in ex ten t and in favorable m inin g con
ditions are second to none. W ith th ese n a tu ra l riches a t our command we will not ad m it th a t we a re no t able to devise m eans and m ethods by w hich th is coal m ay be ex tracted so as to com pete w ith coals from o th er states.
T he b est b ra in s of th e in d u stry have been w orking on th is problem w ith o u t as y e t finding a solution, b u t th e problem m u st and will be solved.
Co-o p e r a t io n Wi l l He l p So l v e Pr o b l e m s
“The solution, however, will only come th ro u g h th e thorou gh co-operation of all th e v ario u s in te re sts con
nected w ith th e in d u stry . In a rra n g in g th is m eeting in th e h e a rt of th e coal producing cen ter of th e state, affording th is op po rtu n ity fo r th e fre e in terch an g e of ideas, i t w as w ith th e hope th a t some constructive th o u g h t m ig h t be b ro u g h t to lig h t w hich would a ss is t in clearing th e in d u s try ’s trou bles w hich so vitally affect us all.”
D r. Honnold n ex t called upon H. C. M iller of th e B ureau of Mines, who assu re d th e new s ta te d irecto r o f th e h e a rty co-operation of th a t governm ental bureau.
D r. L. E. Young spoke in behalf of th e o p erato rs of th e state, extending h is m ost h e a rty good w ishes and pledging th e sup p o rt of Illinois m ine ow ners. S ta te S enator F. C. Sneed, welcomed M r. Lew is on b eh alf of th e U nited M ine W orkers, D is tric t 12, a f te r w hich th e honor g u est m ade fittin g reply, th u s b rin g in g th e In s titu te ’s sem i-annual m eeting to a close.
696 C O A L A G E Vol. 28, N o. 21
Miners’ U nion Maintain^ D oubtful H old on Far W est and M ountain States
B y S ydn ey A. H a le
S p e c i a l C o n tr ib u to r , C o a l A g e , N e w Y o r k C ity
T
H E LABOR S IT U A T IO N in th e b itum inous coal producing sta te s w est and n o rth of th e a re a covered by th e operations in th e S outhw estern In te r
sta te F ield on th e whole has shown less change in recen t years th a n any o th er p a r t of th e co u n try outside of th e stro n g ly unionized d istric ts of Illinois, In d ian a , Iowa, M ichigan, K ansas and M issouri. To th is g en eraliza
tion, however, th re e strik in g exceptions m u st be made.
Colorado h as been in m ore o r less turm oil fo r over tw o decades. A larg e p a r t of th e operations in W ashing
to n —th e only im p o rta n t producing s ta te on th e Pacific slope— h as broken aw ay fro m th e union and N o rth D akota has established an open-shop basis. In th e o th er sta te s in th e Rocky M ountain and Pacific divi
sions, th e balance of pow er betw een union and non
union fields stru c k several y ea rs ago rem ain s unchanged.
The U nited M ine W orkers established its e lf in th e N o rth w e st in th e early y ea rs of th e p re sen t century.
M ontana and W yom ing w ere organized in 1904, W ash
ing to n came in to th e fold in 1905; full recognition w as extended to th e union in 1908. In general, th e effect of th a t recognition has been th e sam e as in th e older organized te rr ito r ie s f a r th e r east. B asic day ra te s, of course, have been controlled by th e advances g ra n te d in th e C entral C om petitive Field. T hese advances, it w ill be recalled, ra ise d th e level of th e base inside day ra te s fro m $2.84 un d er th e 1912-14 co n tra ct to $7.50 u n d er th e Jacksonville agreem ent. P ick-m inin g ra te s in M ontana and W yom ing w ere increased a to tal of 42 to 43.5c. p e r to n d u rin g th e sam e period. T hese ad
vances w ere m ore th a n m et in th e non-union and open- shop m ines of Colorado and U tah, w here th e n e t in creases fo r typical groups o f operations ran g ed fro m 40 to 52c. p er ton.
Individual v aria tio n s both in basic ra te s and in in creases, however, w ere m uch g re a te r a t th e unorganized m ines. A stu d y of w age ra te s, m ade by th e U nited
F i f t h o f a s e r i e s o f a r t i c l e s d e s c r i b i n g t h e c h a n g e s in t h e la b o r s t a t u s o f t h e d if f e r e n t b it u m in o u s c o a l p r o d u c in g d i s t r i c t s o f th e U n it e d S t a t e s in r e c e n t y e a r s . P r e c e d i n g a r t i c l e s a p p e a r e d in Coal! A g e . S e p t . 25 , O ct, 1, 8 a n d 29 . A n o t h e r a r t i c l e w i l l a p p e a r In a n e a r l y is s u e .
S ta tes Coal Commission, showed increases ra n g in g fro m 8 to 64c. p e r ton a t 32 m ines in Colorado and 16 to 48c. p er to n a t nine m ines in U tah. In th e m a jo rity of cases, th e h o urly ra te fo r typical inside labor, such as brakem en, d riv ers and trackm en, w as slig h tly low er in Colorado in th e s p rin g of 1912 th a n it w as in th e C entral C om petitive F ield. In th a t m a jo r group th e base ra te w as 35.5c. p er hour. A few m ines p aid a h ig h e r hourly ra te in Coloi'ado a t th a t tim e, going as h ig h as 40c. b u t in m ost cases th e ra te w as betw een 31 and 31.5c. R ates w ere advanced generally in 1912 and 1913 and cu t a t m any operations in Colorado in th e second h alf of 1915. Advances w ere common in 1916 an d 1917, th e second h a lf of 1919 and in 1920. R eductions w ere m ade in th e second h a lf of 1921 and in th e first h a lf of 1922, b u t ra te s w ere re sto red d u rin g th e second h a lf of 1922 so th a t Ja n . 1 1923 fou nd th e g eneral average a few cents p er h o u r above th e base ra te s in th e C entral C om petitive Field.
T his su m m ary and th e detailed figures p resented in Table V I illu s tra te sh arp ly th e effect of o rg anization upon th e ad jac en t non-union s ta te s in th e M ountain division. A lthough changes have been m ore fre q u e n t in th e unorganized sta te s of Colorado an d U tah, it' h ard ly can be denied th a t th e p ro x im ity of th e stro n g ly organized union fields of M ontana an d W yom ing has had a stab ilizin g influence upon non-union ra te s — p a r
tic u la rly in tim es of p ro sp erity . W artim e an d p ost-w ar
tim e increases in th e organized fields have been m atched by increases in th e open-shop regions, b u t th e actu al changes in cents p e r to n or p er day have n o t alw ays been th e sam e. T he non-union d istric ts, however, have been in a position to tak e ad v an tag e of depressed con
ditions w ith w age reductions.
T his w as notably tru e of Colorado in th e first h alf of 1922, w hen th e pick-m ining ra te s w ere reduced to a 1917 basis. T he 1920 ra te s, however, w ere prom ptly re sto red th e la s t h a lf of th e y ear. A t th e p re se n t tim e, th e controlling ra te s a re su b stan tially less th a n th e 1920 bases. In o th er w ords, it ap p ears to be th e fixed policy in th a t s ta te to give th e non-union w orkers th e benefit of any w age v ictory won by th e U n ited M ine W orkers.-
Table VI— Changes in Pick-Mining Rates in Mountain States
(R ates in Cents per Ton)
1912 1915 1916 1917 1919 1920 1922 N e t Increase
Col orad o J&n.^June July-D ee. July-D ee. Jan.-June July-D ee. J an.-June* July-D ee. July-D eo. Jan.-June Jan.-June J uly-D ec. 1922 over 19!.
Thick-seam , 132 in. 4 5 .0 4 5 .0 4 5 .0 4 5 .0 4 5 .0 5 5 .0 8 0 .0 8 0 .0 9 4 .0 74 .0 9 4 .0 4 9 .0
42 in. sea m ... 8 5 .0 9 0 .0 8 0 .0 8 0 .0 8 3 .0 9 3 .0 109.0 124.0 133.0 109.0 133.0 48 .0
T rinidad...
M ontana
R ed Lodge, Carbon
5 0 .0 5 5.0 5 5 .0 5 5 .0 5 8 .0 6 8 .0 7 8 .0 8 9 .0 102.0 78 .0 102.0 5 2 .0
C o u n ty ...
Bear Creek, Carbon 6 5 .0 6 5 .0 6 5 .0 6 7 .5 6 7 .5 7 2 .5 8 4 .5 9 6 .0 108.5 108.5 108.5 4 3 .5
C o u n ty ... 7 8 .0 7 8 .0 7 8 .0 8 0 .5 8 0 .5 8 7 .5 9 7 .5 108.5 121.5 121.5 121.5 4 3 .5
M usselshell C ounty U tah
Thick-seam ,
7 3.0 7 3 .0 7 3 .0 7 5 .5 7 5 .5 8 2 .5 9 2 .5 103.5 116.5 116.5 116.5 4 3 .5
113-156 in. 5 0 .0 5 0 .0 5 0 .0 5 0 .0 5 0 .0 6 0 .0 7 5 .0 8 5 .5 9 4 .0 9 4 .0 9 4 .0 4 4 .0
72-108 in. seam ... 6 3 .0 6 3 .0 6 3 .0 6 3 .0 6 3 .0 6 9 .0 7 9 .0 9 0 .0 103.0 103.0 103.0 4 0 .0
6 6 -l3 0 i n .s e a m .. . .
W yom ing 4 6 .0 46 .0 4 6 .0 4 6 .0 4 6 .0 55 .0 7 0 .0 8 0 .0 9 4 .0 9 4 .0 9 4 .0 4 8 .0
Sw eetw ater.. . . .
Frontier, Lincoln 5 8 .0 58.0- 5 8 .0 6 1 .0 6 1 .0 67 .0 7 7 .0 8 8 .0 101.0 101.0 101.0 4 3 .0
andC arbon 5 4 .0 5 4 .0 5 4 .0 5 6 .0 5 6 .0 6 2 .0 7 2 .0 8 2 .0
»Advances in M ontan a and W yom in g took place in A pril, October and N ovem ber, 1917 and in N ovem ber, 1919.
9 6 .0 9 6 .0 9 6 .0 4 2 .0
No v e m b e r 1 9 , 1 9 2 5 C O A L A G E 6 9 7
irii_
Centralia
H „ I N G
‘ •¿'K ing County
o ^Roslyn
Wi I keson- Carbonado
•Ladd
;T
I .
t o n
M O N
Roundup
A N A f
1
jL Fig-. 13. The Labor S tatu s of the G reat W est
T h e p a s t fiv e y e a r s h a v e w i t n e s s e d th e d is r u p t io n o f u n io n c o n t r o l in A V a sh in g to n a n d N o r t h D a k o t a . C o lo r a d o a n d U t a h a r e o p e n - s h o p s t a t e s w h i c h d o n o t r e c o g n i z e th e u n io n , b u t in g e n e r a l s t r i k e s c a l l e d b y t h e U n i t e d M in e W o r k e r s o f A m e r ic a o u t p u t in t h o s e tw o s t a t e s h a s b e e n s e r i o u s l y c u r t a ile d b y d e f e c t i o n s f r o m t h e r a n k s o f w o r k e r s .
B u t it m u st also be confessed th a t the unorganized labo rers a re not p erm itted to re ta in th e fr u its of those vicarious successes w hen dem and fo r fuel dim inishes .a n d prices tum ble.
U tah, as th e figures in Table V I show, has n o t fol
lowed th e w age reduction policy of Colorado in th e p ast few years. T h ere w ere no general downward revisions in th e first h a lf of 1922. Even today U tah is keeping closer to th e w age scales paid in union W yom ing th a n to th e re a d ju ste d bases in effect in Colorado. Inside day m en a re receiving $7.80 to $8.25 fo r eig h t h o u rs’
w ork; outside men, $7 to $8.50. The pick-m ining ra te s ra n g e fro m 75 to 94c. p e r ton and m iners loading a f te r m achines receive 70 to 84c. p er ton.
Ut a h Sets Fast Pace
A stu d y of th e to n nage records in these sta te s since 1898 reveals two sh arp ly d ifferentiated groupings. In th e low er group (see F ig . 14) are Colorado, M ontana, W ashington and W yoming. P ercen tag e increases in output, u sin g 1898 production fo r each sta te as 100, follow th e changes fo r th e country as a whole. W ash
in g to n ’s grow th, however, consistently has been below th e levels fo r th e o th er s ta te s in th is group. A lim ited in d u stria l m ark et, w ith stro n g com petition fro m coal ,from o th er sections and from fuel oil, and a narro w dom estic business m ore th a n union labor have re ta rd e d grow th. In th e upper grouping, U tah, a non-union sta te w ith favorable n a tu ra l conditions, has set a pace not equalled by any s ta te in th e first group nor by New Mexico. On a fiat tonnage basis, however, U tah outpu t is still f a r below th a t of Colorado and lags considerably behind th a t of W yoming. N o rth D akota, no t shown, h as re g iste re d a still g re a te r percentage gain, b u t th e actual ton nage ra ise d is relatively small.
The labor s itu a tio n in Colorado h as been m ore in th e lim elight, b u t to W ashington belongs th e d istinctio n of m aking th e first clean-cut, and successful, b re ak w ith th e union since th e w ar. On M arch 1, 1921, a com
m ittee re p re se n tin g 90 p e r cent of th e com m ercial (non
ra ilro a d ) tonnage of th e s ta te announced th a t it was no longer possible to continue to pay th e 1920 w age scale and proposed an average reduction of 23 p e r cent, to be effective tw o weeks later. I f th e d is tric t officials of th e U nited M ine W orkers, w ith whom th e operators had been in fru itle s s n ego tiatio n fo r tw o m onths, would no t a sse n t to th e plan, th e m ines would close down.
The m iners rejected th e reduction and the m iddle of
\
V -
^Trail Creek.
f B rid g er
* Red Lodge_________ _____
--- ' -««Sheridan r J
! N . D .
Lignite
F ield
P
S . D -
W
Sebo*
Y O M
N H udson
1 N
.Kemmerer »Hanna
j*Evanston
"Coalville
r »>
Rock Springs
Routt 6
Pieasanf
Valley <aCasHe Gate I , ' “Sunnyslde 10 {H iaw atha I
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L O R
Gunnison
■»LDurango
A D O c=>
\jCanon City
A R I Z O N A
LEG E N D
■ ■ i Union districts
Open shoplno union recognition) tl ili“-» and non-union districts
" T ; '
U sG aiiup • ,
1 N E W M E X I C O
M arch saw all b u t one com pany on th e w est side of th e Cascades idle and one larg e com pany an d several sm aller ones on the east side down. The ra ilro a d m ines in the Rosyln-Cle Elum field, however, continued to operate w ith o u t reduction in w ag es; m ost of th e m ines in th a t section sh ipping coal com m ercially also continued to w ork. To th e charg e th a t th e action of th e o perators closed down co n stitu ted a lockout in violation of ex ist
ing agreem ents, th e producers accused re to rte d th a t th ey had p u t th e 1920 ra te s in effect following th e de
cision of th e U nited S ta te s B itum inous Coal Commission in th e C entral C om petitive Field, b u t h ad re fu sed to e n te r into any w ritte n co n tra ct g u a ra n te e in g th e m ain tenance of those w ages. W ith o u t th e reduction sought, declared th e o perators, it would be im possible to m eet the com petition of V ancouver Islan d and U ta h coal and of fuel oil.
The final severance of union relatio n s did n o t come
