Coal Age : devoted to the operating, technical and business problems of the coal-mining industry, Vol. 34, No. 11

C ^{o a l} A ^{g e}

A McGr a w- Hi l l Pu b l i c a t i o n — Es t a b l i s h e d 1911

DEVOTED TO T H E OPERATING, TECHNICAL AND BUSINESS PROBLEMS OF T H E COAL MINING INDUSTRY

N e w York, Novem ber, 1929

Vo l u m e 3 4 Nu m b e r 11

The Passing of The Tin Cup

8 / S /

E I E N the N a tio n a l Coal Associa-

§ / § /

tion m ad e public the results of its recent inquiry into profits and losses a t the Cincinnati convention of bituminous o p e ra ­ to rs last m o nth, it did f a r m o re th an con­

found com m on impressions of the financial r etu rn s on soft-coal sales during the past two years. T h e figures released were significant a n d cheering. B ut the g r e a t e r service lies in the effect t h a t the tre n d s disclosed will have upon the m o ra le o f the industry itself.

T H E P O S T - W A R D E C A D E was not p a r ­ ticularly kind to bituminous coal. Forced liquidations o f excess capacities and the m ore painful re a d ju s tm e n ts in the thinking of the industry c re a te d fertile soil fo r the develop­

m e n t o f an in fe rio rity complex. Bewildered and w e a ry o p e ra to rs encouraged its gro w th by a p a th e tic eagerness to confess inefficiency

— often in advance o f p ro o f. Red-ink bal­

ances w ere glorified. Independence was j e o p a r d iz e d an d self-respect sacrificed in a futile effort to win public sympathy fo r the p light o f the industry.

P R O T E S T and resentm ent against this state of mind were first voiced when a few wise spokesmen h a d the courage to em phasize the p rogress m ade in the technique and m achin­

ery o f production. Since th a t time the revolt against pleading guilty to loose charges of inefficiency has grow n apace. I t is only re­

cently, however, th a t any large body o f the industry has been ready to question publicly the idea t h a t net o p e ra tin g revenues in bi­

tuminous coal generally have been non-exist­

ent. T h e facts revealed by the N a tio n a l C oal Association survey show the wisdom of t h a t doubt.

T H E S P E C T A C L E of a g r e a t basic indus­

try sitting on the curbstone o f commerce and rattlin g a tin cup is not one to swell the bos­

oms o f men who have a genuine pride in their vocations. N e ith e r is it profitable. T h a t leadership in bituminous coal is repu d ia tin g the whine o f the industrial m endicant and is speaking boldly of profit-mindedness is one o f the m ost hopeful promises of sane rehabili­

tatio n and ultim ate stabilization.

U ndercutting a German Coal Bed W hich Pitches

A t Seventy Degrees ts« Pa^ 69~\

By Alphonse F. Brosky

Associate Editor, Coal Age

neumatic Coal Cleaning

Puts Beehive Coke in

F

r e q u e n t l y th e statem ent is h eard th a t beneficiation by m echanical cleaning o f coal intended fo r h e atin g and steam p u r ­ poses in m any instances is u n p ro fit­

able. W h a te v e r m ay be th e econom ic status of refined p rep a ratio n o f coal for use in the raw state a t th is tim e, rem oval of im purities fro m th a t coal which goes to m etallurgical processes provides w ide possibilities fo r im ­ m ediate enhancem ent o f sales value, over and above the cost of beneficia­

tion. A t least th a t has been th e e x ­ perience of th e H u m p h re y s Coal &

Coke Co., su b sid iary o f the A m erican R ad iato r Co., w ith a m ine in th e .Connellsville region of P ennsylvania, near G reensburg, w hich produces an d N ovem her, 1929

— C O A L A G E

Byproduct Class

cokes P ittsb u rg h -seam coal fo r foun­

d ry purposes. T h e installation of pneum atic coal-cleaning equipm ent, now tre a tin g 400 tons a day, has elevated beehive coke fro m th is plant to a com petitor of b y p ro d u ct coke, both in physical ch aracteristics and chem ical analysis, an d has enhanced its value by 12 per cent.

W ith g ro w in g refinem ents in fo u n d ry practices in recent years, has com e a stiffening o f fo u n d ry - coke specifications and a g ra d u a l r e ­

cession o f beehive coke fro m com ­ petition w ith coke fro m byproduct ovens. Q u ite evidently th is com pany could n o t hope to rem ain in the foundry-coke business unless some w ay could be fo u n d to step up the quality o f its beehive p ro d u ct to a level com parable w ith th a t occupied by coke fro m the m ore refined pro c­

ess. I n the C onnellsville region, w here m ore coke has been produced by the beehive-oven process th a n in any o th er a re a o f equal size in th e w orld, this h ad n ev er been accom ­ plished until H u m p h re y s coke w as vastly im proved by m ethods h erein ­ a f te r described in th is article.

A bout th re e y ears ago th e p ro ­ gram , u n d e r A . B. K elley, general

663

m anager, w as in au g u rate d by the installation of a lab o rato ry and the engagem ent o f a chem ist and m etal­

lurgist. Som e o f the problem s to be solved in the period of research w hich follow ed w ere as fo llo w s : K in d and type o f m echanical-clean­

ing equipm ent to in s ta ll; co rrect size o f coal fo r m ost efficient rem oval of im p u rities and fo r m aking the to u g h ­ est coke in beehive o v e n s ; fu rth e r d esu lp h u rizatio n o f coke by chem i­

cal tre a tm e n t o f the c o a l; m ethods o f oven control fo r im proving the porosity, w eight and sh a tte r index o f the coke.

B riefly stated, the processes fol­

low ed in the p rep a ratio n o f coal fo r th e ovens, as a re su lt o f prelim inary studies, a r e : F ir s t the coal is crushed ; then it is passed over tw o b atteries of cleaning tables, the first fo r p ri­

m a ry sep aratio n of im p u rities and the second fo r re -tre a tm e n t; finally it is subjected to a chem ical tre a tm e n t by w hich the alre ad y g reatly reduced su lp h u r content is fu rth e r low ered.

B etterm en t fro m this last process, how ever, is fully realized only in the re su lta n t coke.

F ro m the m ine cars the coal is dum ped into a 200-ton bin, w hence it is d raw n by recip ro catin g feeders and taken to a cru sh er. T h e chute leading fro m the conveyor to the c ru sh e r is provided w ith a b a r screen w hich, w hen unveiled, rem oves the lum p coal fo r sep a rate shipm ent.

A ll the coal passing to the tables is crushed, the red u ctio n being to the

Re-treatment Tables at Humphreys point w here 65 p er cent o f crushed coal passes th ro u g h a £-in. re c ta n g u ­ lar-o p en in g screen. A P ennsylvania ham m er-m ill cru sh er, w ith a capacity o f 75 to n s an hour, is used fo r the purpose. C ru sh in g adds to the effi­

ciency o f the cleaning process and, to g eth er w ith the latter, gives a coke of b e tter physical ch aracteristics. It goes w ith o u t saying th a t the clean­

ing process im proves the chemical p ro p erties o f the coke.

F ro m the c ru sh e r the m illed coal is taken by a bucket elevator to a 50-ton b in ; it is conveyed fro m this m ain bin by an o th er bucket elevator to a secondary bin o f equal capacity located over tw o p rim ary cleaning tables. D irectly u n d er th e tw o p ri­

m ary tables are tw o secondary tables utilized fo r re -tre a tm en t purposes.

A ll fo u r tables o r se p arato rs are identically alike, being o f the A m e ri­

can pneum atic Y -type, each w ith a capacity of 20 to n s p er hour. D ust a risin g fro m the o p eratio n o f these tables and supplem entary equipm ent is handled by a dust-collecting sy s­

tem described elsew here in th is a r ­ ticle. In the design and construction of this plant, M . E . H a w o rth , chief engineer o f the H illm an Coal & Coke Co., P ittsb u rg h , P a ., served as con­

su ltin g engineer.

R e -tre a tm e n t is practiced to insure a u n ifo rm chem ical quality. W h e re re -tre a tm en t of the bulk of the coal is not reso rted to, as a t m ost plants,

e x tra q u an tities o f refuse, in surges, in the feed coal m ay not be uniformly elim inated.

Coal o f a g rav ity below 1.50 is so com pletely separated and classified on the p rim a ry tables as to require no fu rth e r trea tm en t, and so it is cut and bypassed direct to the clean- coal bin. A b o u t 20 per cent of the total in p u t is th u s handled. Refuse fro m the p rim ary tables amounts to about 5 p er cent, and the remaining coal, am o u n tin g to 75 per cent of the input, is given fu rth e r treatment.

M iddlings from the prim ary tables is recru sh ed and recirculated, while the rem ain in g coal is conducted by closed chutes to the tw o secondary o r re-tre a tm en t tables. These sec­

o n d ary tables yield clean coal, mid­

dlings (re circ u lated w ithout further c ru sh in g ) and, lastly, refuse to the e x te n t o f, roughly, 2 per cent of the total tonnage input. T h u s the refuse fro m all o f the tables am ounts to 7 p er cent. T h e clean coal from the tables is taken to a clean-coal bin by a bucket elevator and a closed chute, a t the discharge end of which is ap­

plied the chem ical treatm e n t for pur­

poses of d esulphurization.

A t th is p lan t coal is being cleaned to a specific-gravity basis of 1.50.

Difficulties in th e cleaning are accen­

tu ated by the fa c t th a t the middlings

— re p re se n tin g about 15 per cent of the feed to th e plant— contains low- g rav ity , high-ash coal. A sh in the u n tre a te d coal ru n s a t an average of 9.25 p er cent, b u t by cleaning this is reduced to an averag e o f 7.25 per cent in the final product. In the raw coal the su lp h u r co n ten t is 1.10 per cent and in the clean coal it is 0.75 p er cent. A degree o f this desul­

p h u rizatio n is effected thro u g h the chem ical treatm en t, b u t how much has n o t been definitely determined as yet.

In this desu lp h u rizatio n process a sm all q u a n tity o f chem ical is intro­

duced d ro p by d ro p into a spray of steam , and to g e th er these are im­

pinged on the coal. T h is admixing gasifies the chem ical. By capillary a ttra c tio n th e steam is draw n into the coal cells o r voids, carry in g with it a certain q u a n tity of air. T he free su lp h u r enco u n tered is oxidized in the presence o f a ir and passes off as su lp h u r dioxide. Sim ultaneously, su rfa c e tension o f th e absorbed mois­

tu re fro m the condensed steam tends to b rin g free su lp h u r and perhaps som e in o rg an ic su lp h u r compounds to the su rfa c e o f th e coal, w here they can be readily oxidized by the oxygen, of the air.

664 C O A L A G E —

Vol.34, N o.U

i This steam ing of th e coal p resen ts a fu rth er m ethod of re d u cin g the in ­ organic sulphides (n o tab ly , fe rro u s sulphide) w hich in coal do n o t seem to be readily accessible to oxygen, by reason o f th e fa c t th a t occluded light volatile gases a re alread y in th e coal cells. R o u g h ly SO p e r cent of this volatile m a tte r, in the coke oven, : is composed o f h y d ro g e n gas w hich

will unite w ith th e sm all q u an tity of free su lp h u r p re se n t and fo rm h y d ro - gen-sulphide gas.

But th e h y d ro g en will n o t com ­ bine w ith th e in o rg an ic sulphides.

Heat breaks dow n th e iro n p y rites into iron sulphide an d su lp h u r. T h e chemical as a gas carried by the steam e n te rs into th e cells o r voids of the coal p articles, w h ere it attacks the iron sulphide and releases the sulphur as h y d ro g en -su lp h id e gas.

A typical analysis o f H u m p h re y s foundry coke is as fo llo w s: S h a tte r index, 76 p e r cent on a 3-in. screen and 88 p e r cent on a 2-in. sc re e n ; moisture, 0 .6 0 ; volatile m a tte r, 0 .7 0 ; fixed carb o n , 8 9.55; ash, 9.75, and sulphur, 0.66— w ith a p o ro sity o f 52 and a w eig h t p e r cubic fo o t o f 32 lb.

T hese chem ical an d physical c h a r­

acteristics a re well w ith in th e re q u ire ­ ments set fo rth in the “n ew ” speci­

fications o f fo u n d ry -co k e u sers. P o r ­ osity an d w eig h t o f th e coke are varied to m eet th e re q u irem en ts o f each cu sto m er by accu rate reg u latio n of a ir to th e ovens as d eterm in ed by- form ula in th e lab o rato ry . T h ro u g h the in stru m e n ta lity o f th e la b o ra to ry close control also is m ain tain e d over the p e rfo rm a n c e o f th e c ru sh e r and t h e cleaning equip­

ment. Coal fro m every active w o rk in g place in th e m ine is a n ­ alyzed a t sta te d in te r­

vals an d th e w o rk in g of no idle place is re ­ sumed un til a f te r a com plete analysis o f the coal th e re in is made.

A pneu m atic clean­

ing p la n t w ith o u t a highly efficient d u st- collecting system is a m enace to satisfa c to ry relations w ith labor and th e public. I f d u st is allow ed to escape from th e p la n t in larg e quantities, it so v itiates the a tm o sp h ere a n d perm eates th e hom es as to re n d e r th e com ­ m u n ity alm o st u n in ­ habitable. Ill - feeling

to w ard the m anagem ent is b red by the deleterious effect o f fre e d u st on the landscape an d th e re is a larg e labor tu rn o v e r fro m this cause. D if­

ficult relations w ith em ployees and th e n e ighboring public are know n to have been experienced by o p erato rs of plan ts w here only 5 p er cen t o f th e d u st a risin g fro m the process of cleaning escaped.

D esirin g a t once to m ain tain good w ill, p reserv e the beauty of the la n d ­ scape an d p rev en t econom ic w aste—

also because all th e coal is crushed b efo re going to th e tables— the ques­

tion o f d u st suppression w as given m ore th a n o rd in a ry atten tio n . T h e P an g b o rn system of d u st collecting w as selected, being g u a ra n te e d to fu n ctio n w ith an efficiency o f no less th a n 99.5 p e r cent.

I t is of th e cloth-screen ty p e and o p erates u n d e r a p ressu re o f n o t m o re th a n 3^ in. o f w a te r gage, in consequence of w hich relatively low p ressu re, o rd in a ry w e a r on seals causes p ractically no leakage o f dust.

W h a te v e r d u st m ig h t th ereb y escape fro m th e system is confined w ithin th e p lan t, w h ere m o st o f it is caught by one o r a n o th e r o f th e hoods con­

nected to th e e x h a u st fan . F lu c tu a ­ tions in th e efficiency o f the collectors because o f leaky d u st-d isch arg e valves o r seals is so sm all as to be practically negligible.

D u st is g a th e re d by hoods an d ducts fro m th e cleaning tables, th e c ru sh e r and elevators by a A Cleaning-Plant Problem Solved:

Dust Collectors Preserve Vegetation

100-in. A m erican e x h a u st fa n d riv en by a 50-hp. m otor, w hich has a ca­

pacity o f 30,000 cu .ft. F ro m th e fan the dust-lad en a ir is discharged in to tw o co n tin u o u s-p ressu re, double-duty tw in dust-collecting u n its w hich com ­ prise a stru c tu re sep arate fro m the cleaning p lan t p roper. A u n it con­

sists of tw o casings, each containing a screen section on each side o f a cen tral classify in g section.

I n operation, the d u st-lad en air first e n ters th e classify in g section, w here, due to th e expan sio n o f th e a ir, th e velocity is decreased an d the heavier particles sep arate out. T he lig h ter d ust, rem ain in g in suspension, th en m oves into th e tw o screen sec­

tions, w h ere it is collected on a bank of cloth screens, th e clear a ir filtering th ro u g h the screens and into th e a t ­ m osphere. C ontrol o f th e passage o f a ir into and fro m the classifiers and screen sections is effected th ro u g h d oors and valves electrically tim ed and operated. In each collector th ere a re eight screen sections w hich, one a t a tim e, a re cu t off fro m th e d u st load and are free d of d u st by a gentle

( Turn to page 676)

N ovem ber, 1929

— C O A L A G E 665

AK1NG T H E INDUSTRY

L

E A D E R S of the bitum inous in­

d u stry in search o f elusive J p ro fits w ere told th a t th e ir e f ­ fo rts w ere b earin g fru it a t the tw e lfth an n u al m eeting of the N a ­ tional Coal A ssociation, held a t the S in to n H o te l, C incinnati, O hio, O ct. 23-25. F o rtified by th is w el­

com e new s, th ey tu rn e d th e ir a tte n ­ tion to w ays and m eans o f o btaining still g re a te r re tu rn s. B e tte r m e r­

ch andising w as selected as holding fo rth th e g re a te st prom ise an d ac­

cordingly occupied th e spotlight.

B u t th o u g h m erch an d isin g re ­ ceived the lion’s sh are of atten tio n , o th e r topics w ere n o t neglected as a source o f earn in g s. T h e tra d e - p ractice m ovem ent a n d im provem ent in sa fe ty w ere considered a t length, as well as the relatio n s betw een the in d u stry an d th e g overnm ent. B y ap p ro p ria te resolutions, th e conven­

tio n renew ed its pledge to continue accident-prevention w ork, opposed g o v e rn m en t control, in d o rsed legisla­

tio n in the in te re st o f th e in d u stry and the public, req u ested a su rv ey o f in d u stry ad v ertisin g , expressed ap proval o f ch arg in g to c u rre n t e x ­ pense cost o f item s to m ain tain p ro ­ ductive capacity, an d u rg e n tly recom ­ m ended the consideration o f tra d e practice codes to those d istricts o r fields w hich have not adopted them .

C. E . Bockus, p resid en t a n d c h a ir­

m an o f the b o ard , C linchfield Coal C o rp o ratio n , w as elected presid en t fo r th e com ing year. W . IT. C u n ­ ningham , p resid en t, T r u a x - T r a e r Coal Co. ; J . W . S earles, president, P en n sy lv an ia Coal & C oke C o rp o ra­

tio n ; R ice M iller, vice-president, H illsb o ro Coal Co., and J . F . W el- born, ch airm an o f the board, C olor­

ado F u e l & Iro n Co., w ere nam ed vice-presidents. W . D. O rd , presi­

dent, E m p ire Coal & C oke Co., w as given th e tre a su ry p o rtfo lio , and H a r r y L . G andy w as again th e d i­

re c to rs’ choice fo r executive sec­

re ta ry .

P ro fit and loss in the p roduction o f bitum inous coal w as discussed by H a r r y L . G andy in a re p o rt based on replies to a q u estio n n a ire a u th o r­

ized by th e M a rk e t R esearch In s ti­

tu te of the N ational. T h e q u estio n ­ naire w as subm itted to those com pa­

nies p ro d u cin g in excess of 50,000 tons ann u ally and replies w ere re ­ ceived fro m 585, typical of th e in ­ d u s t r y , p ro d u cin g a p p ro x im ately 150,000,000 to n s o f com m ercial coal annually. O f th a t num ber, 339 w ere used in the detailed com pilation by six -m o n th periods. T h e resu lts o f this com pilation are given in th e ac­

com panying tables, the net profits re p rese n tin g the n et earn in g s of the

C. E . Bo c k u s

President and chairman of the board, Clinchfield Coal Corporation, with offices in N e w Y o rk City and mines at Dante, Va., was elected president of the National Coal Association at the twelfth annual meeting, held in Cin­

cinnati, Ohio, Oct. 23-25. M r. Bockus, who has been a director since 1918 and treasurer since 1924, has a long record of service in the association. H e was born in Dorchester, Mass., July 10, 1868, and before going w ith the Clinch­

field company was, in succession, re­

porter and editorial w riter, Boston He r a l d, 1890-1906; vice-president and receiver, Helena (M ont.) W ater W orks, 1906-11, and assistant secretary, Old Colony Trust Co., Boston, Mass., 1911- 13. In addition to his position w ith the Clinchfield company, Mr. Bockus is chairman of the board, Clinchfield Navigation Co., and Port of Asuncion Concession Corporation.

com pany b efo re eith er the payment o f stock dividends o r interest on b orrow ed m oney.

E x a m in a tio n o f T able I indicates a considerable fluctuation in the re­

tu r n to th e in d u stry by six-month periods. T o g et a b etter line of the tre n d in th e in d u stry , T able I I was com piled fo r 12-m onth periods. This table show s th a t the average net profit increased fro m 7.3c. to 8.6c.

p e r to n in th e second year. This increase o f 17.8 p e r cent represented an increase o f $2,092,640 in net re­

tu rn to th e in d u stry .

M r. G andy, in com m enting on the table, said th a t loose talk in the past w ould lead one to believe th a t every ton is p roduced a t a loss. In 1928.

how ever, th e B u re a u of Internal R evenue re p o rte d th a t 1,065 bitum i­

n ous com panies m ined coal at a profit, th o u g h th e p ro p o rtio n was not as g re a t as th a t indicated by the re­

tu rn s to th e M a rk e t In stitu te ques­

tio n n aire. F u rth e r, th e aggregate loss w as g re a te r th a n the aggregate p ro fit in th a t y ear, so th a t the in­

d u s try as a w hole w as in the red, w hereas th e re tu rn s w ould indicate th a t the in d u stry h ad been in the black fo r th e fo u r six -m o n th periods given in th e table. “ O n e cannot escape th e conclusion,” M r. Gandy said, “a f te r stu d y in g the Internal R evenue re p o rts re fe rre d to and the com pilation o f replies to th is ques­

tio n n aire, th a t th e bitum inous coal m in in g in d u stry is definitely on the u p g ra d e .”

M erch an d isin g as a m eans of in­

creasin g p ro fits w as discussed at con­

siderable len g th by representatives o f the bitum inous o p erato rs and affiliated businesses. T h e rem arks of each of th e speak ers a re covered in g re a te r detail beg in n in g on page 677 o f th is issue.

A t a luncheon m eeting fo r sec­

re ta rie s an d o th e r officials o f the coal o p e ra to rs’ local associations, presided o v er by C harles O ’N eill, secretary, C en tral P e n n sy lv an ia Coal P ro ­ d u cers’ A ssociation, R ich ard M . M c­

C lure, se c re ta ry -tre a su re r, W irebound B o x M a n u fa c tu re rs ’ A ssociation, dis­

666 C O A L A G E

— Vol.34, N o .U

MORE PROFIT-M INDED

Keynote Struck at

National Coal Convention

cussed th e du ties o f th e association secretary in a p a p e r entitled “ T h e T rade A ssociation E x e cu tiv e .”

S a fe ty w as th e su b ject of a g e n ­ eral d iscussion u n d er th e leadership of W a lte r L . R obison, vice-president, Y oughiogheny & O hio Coal Co. T h e rem arks o f rep resen tativ es fro m d if ­ ferent p ro d u cin g d istric ts a re given in detail on page 685 o f this issue.

T h e tra d e-p ractice m ovem ent as a solution fo r u n b rid led p rice-cu ttin g was co nsidered a t one session o f the convention w h ere delegates gave the re su lts o f o p eratio n in each of the p ro d u cin g d istric ts w hich have adopted codes. E . R . C layton, com ­ m issioner, H a rla n Coal B u reau , led off w ith a d escription o f the tra d e - practice code adopted in F e b ru a ry , 1929.

A code o f ethics w as adopted in the H a rla n field a f te r carefu l inves­

tigation and th e p ro d u cers operated u nder it until M ay, 1929, w hen a m ore concise plan w as fo u n d and adopted. M r. C layton w as e n th u ­ siastic as to th e benefits derived from its o p era tio n and, am ong o ther things, said th a t “ we have not had an in stan ce o f one ca r of coal shipped o u t o f H a rla n C o u n ty on consignm ent b ro u g h t to o u r atten tio n since th e code w as ad o p ted .”

T h e tra d e p ractice code adopted by th e S o u th e rn A ppalachian Coal O p e ra to rs’ A ssociation w as discussed by E . R . Elowe, secretary . T h e code was ad o p ted a y e a r ago an d con­

tained tw o im p o rta n t fe a tu re s : an agreem en t th a t no coal should be shipped on consignm ent and a sec­

ond ag re em e n t th a t p ro d u cers w ere not to sell below the cost o f p ro d u c ­ tion to in ju re a com petitor o r to co n ­ trol com petition. U p o n adoption of the code th e S o u th e rn A ppalachian Coal E x c h a n g e w as form ed to c a rry out th e provisions of th e code. T h e o p era to rs a re req u ired to in fo rm th e

exchange of m inim um prices fo r th e n e x t period and also to advise the exchange o f any changes m ade in these prices. O th e r m em bers are th en in fo rm ed of the prices and any changes by the com m issioner.

N o effo rt is m ade to control prices, the only re q u irem en t being th a t th e p ro d u cer keep th e coal e x ­ change in fo rm e d . M em bership in th e exchange is n o t m ade co ntingent

appeared since th e ad option o f a trad e-p ractice code th e first o f the year. O p eratin g , as it did, to b rin g questions out in the open, the plan has b red confidence in the o p erato rs and has resu lted in im proved co n d i­

tions o f operation. N o a tte m p t is m ade to g o v ern prices, th e only re ­ qu irem en t being th a t th ey shall be posted in th e office an d circu lars m ailed to the tra d e . P rices, o r

Refuting the Critics

T h a t a profit has been shown in spite o f n o t inconsider­

able difficulties is a trib u te to th e bitum inous industry. I t is a complete answ er to the sta te m e n t fre q u e n tly m ad e th a t its incapacity u n d e r p r iv a te m an a g e m e n t has been d e m o n ­ s tr a te d a n d t h a t the only way in which efficient an d profit­

able o p e ra tio n can be secured is t h ro u g h the interference o f fed e ra l and state g overn m en ts. I t is a b u n d a n t evidence o f the fact th a t the industry is fulfilling its p rom ise to set its house in o r d e r if left fre e to w o rk out its own salvation.

— H a rry L . G andy, before the tw e lfth annua! meeting, N ational Coal Association, Cincinnati, O hio, O ct. 24.

upon m em bership in th e o p e ra to rs’

association. Som e com plaints as to violations have been received, he rem ark ed , b u t it w as fo u n d in every case th a t th e in fo rm a n ts w ere m is­

taken. O p e ra tio n of th e plan has b ro u g h t to lig h t th e facts th a t com ­ p etitio n w as betw een the o p era to rs in th e field ra th e r th an betw een those in th e field an d o u tsid ers, th a t o p er­

a to rs a re n o t cu ttin g th e published prices, and th a t th e d u m p in g g ro u n d is disappearing.

O liv er J . G rim es, secretary , U ta h Coal P ro d u c e rs’ A ssociation, said th a t d istru st and suspicion had d is­

changes th erein , a re not sen t in to the association.

E . C. M ah an , p resid en t, S o u th e rn Coal & C oke Co., believed th e tra d e - p ractice m ovem ent w ould g ain im ­ p etu s in th e coal in d u stry w ith f u r ­ th e r stu d y and application. H e sketched the h isto ry o f th e m ove­

m en t in the H a rla n field of K e n ­ tucky an d ex p ressed him self as well pleased w ith th e results. In creased self-resp ect on the p a rt o f the o p e ra ­ to r has been one im p o rta n t resu lt of the o p eratio n of th e code. B e fo re its adoption, selling w as o f th e c u t­

th ro a t v arie ty w h erein both th e

N ovem ber, 11229

— C O A L A G E 667

salesm an and the b uyer w ere in a com bination to b eat dow n th e price.

C om plete co-operation is n o t re ­ q u ired , as only a few o p erato rs in any one field m ay receive a m aterial benefit by red u cin g the com petition betw een them selves.

T h e final session, on th e m o rn in g o f O ct. 25, p resided over by W m . E m e ry , J r ., presid en t, C am bridge Collieries Co., w as devoted to a d is­

cussion o f g o v ern m en t relations u n ­ d e r the lead ersh ip o f H a r r y L.

G andy. In his opening rem ark s, M r.

G andy review ed the steps tak en in fighting S .4490 and said th a t the h earin g s set fo rth the pros an d cons of federal control. A s to th e f u tu re o f g o v ern m en t control of th e b i­

tu m in o u s in d u stry , p ro p o n en ts of th a t ty p e of legislation undoubtedly will be active a t th e n e x t session of C ongress. H o w ev er, a sound so lu ­ tion o f the problem s facin g the in ­ d u stry can n o t be expected fro m this o r k in d red efforts an d b e fo re real help can be had th e problem m u st be approached fro m a d iffe ren t d irec ­ tion th an th a t o f today.

“ T h e L egislative S itu a tio n T o ­ d a y ” w as discussed by W . H . Cool- idge, ch airm an of the b oard, Islan d C reek Coal Co. U n c e rta in ty p re ­ vails, as a rule, because legislative action is n o t alw ays along p a rty lines. In discussing th e a ttitu d e and actions of the S enate, he term e d it m ore of an investigative th a n a legislative body. T h e H o u se, on the c o n trary , fu n ctio n s well fro m a legislative stan d p o in t.

I

N R E G A R D to a coal com m is­

sion, M r. Coolidge expressed his belief th a t a co nstitutional bill em ­ bodying provisions fo r its fo rm a ­ tion could not be passed. H o w ev er, n o t m uch dependence can be placed on th a t fa c to r alone. R a ilro a d s are p ro sp ero u s because u n d e r th e term s o f the T ra n sp o rta tio n A ct they are allow ed a certain profit, b u t u n d e r p re se n t conditions th e coal in d u stry is n o t allow ed to fix prices.

I f a com m ission w as fo rm ed it probably w ould fu n ctio n fro m a fau lt-fin d in g an d com plaining sta n d ­ point. A s g o v ern m en t is a g o v e rn ­ m en t of m en ra th e r th a n law s, the view point o f such a com m ission probably w ould change w ith each ad m in istratio n . A lso, in all p ro b a­

bility, it w ould contain no coal m en and w ould not, as a consequence, be so well fitted to cope w ith the p ro b ­ lems o f the in d u stry .

“ R ecent T a x D ecisions o f th e F e d e ra l C o u rts” w ere discussed by S idney P . S im pson, o f Plines, R e a r- ick, D o rr, T ra v is & M arsh all, N ew Y o rk City. H e took up th e case o f the G atliff Coal Co., w h ere v aluation w as m ade in accordance w ith H o s- k o ld ’s fo rm u la, b u t an ticip ated p r o f ­ its from the op eratio n o f th e com ­ pany sto re w ere excluded. In the event th a t th is case, w hich is now aw aitin g decision in th e C o u rt of A ppeals in the D istric t of C olum bia, is decided in th e fa v o r o f th e coal com pany, o th er coal com panies sim ­ ilarly situ ated will be en titled to re fu n d s on the g ro u n d th a t insuffi­

cient allow ance w as m ade fo r deple­

tio n as a re su lt of fa ilu re to take into account sto re p ro fits in valu in g th e m ine.

“ A d v iso ry ra te s ” fo r depreciation, recently p ro m u lg ated by the B ureau, w ere n e x t discussed by M r. Sim pson, w ho u rged th a t th e association oppose th e ir adoption, principally because m ore th a n likely th ey w ould becom e the sta n d ard s, and w ould not apply to the coal in d u stry , w h ere conditions m ay v ary w idely fro m m ine to m ine.

T u rn in g to “ p ercentage d ep letio n ,”

M r. Sim pson review ed th e h isto ry o f the subject, including the recom ­ m endation o f the division o f in v esti­

g atio n of th e jo in t H o u se an d S e n ­ ate C om m ittee on In te rn a l R evenue L egislation ( Coal A g e , O ct. 1929, p. 6 5 6 ). H e recom m ended th a t if the plan proposed by th e division w ould do w h at w as claim ed fo r it, the association should u rg e its ad o p ­ tion. B u t in any case, depletion

based on cost should be retained as an alte rn a tiv e m ethod.

In conclusion, M r. Sim pson took up the q uestion o f deductibility for ta x p u rp o ses o f expenditures for m ine equipm ent necessary to main­

ta in norm al o u tp u t. T h e question 6f w h e th e r ex p e n d itu re s fo r equipment w hich is necessary to m aintain nor­

mal o u tp u t an d w hich does not add to th e value of th e m ine as an oper­

atin g p ro p e rty should be charged to expense should be v ery nearly set­

tled by th e C ircu it C o u rts o f Appeals fo r th e F o u r th and F if th D istricts in the M a rsh F o r k Coal Co. and Roden Coal Co. cases, soon to come up.

I

N th e absence o f Col. W . M.

W iley , vice-president, B o o n e C ounty Coal C o rp o ratio n , and di­

recto r, C ham ber o f Com m erce of the U n ite d S tates, w hose illness pre­

vented his atten d an ce, his paper on

“ T h e D istin ctio n B etw een Govern­

m en t and B u sin ess,” w as read by M . L . G arvey, vice-president, New R iv e r Co. C olonel W iley urged business m en to tak e an active part in g o v ern m en t, as th e tim e spent in th a t m an n er will yield m uch larger re tu rn s p ro p o rtio n a te ly th an if spent in th e re g u la r p u rs u it o f business.

“ A n ti-In ju n c tio n L eg islatio n ” was discussed by W a lte r G ordon M er­

ritt, counsel, A n th ra c ite O p erato rs’

C o n feren ce and the L eag u e fo r In ­ d u stria l R ig h ts. A sse rtin g th a t col­

lective actio n can be a g re a t force fo r good o r evil, M r. M e rritt said th a t by its use society m ay be op­

pressed and, consequently, som e form of reg u latio n is n ecessary to protect the lib erty and rig h t o f action of its m em bers. S tig m atizin g th e pro­

posed an ti-in ju n c tio n bill, sponsored by the A m erican F e d e ra tio n of L a­

bor, as in d ire c t co n trav en tio n of these rig h ts, M r. M e r ritt asserted th a t it w ould rem ove all th e restric­

tions b in d in g up o n th e re st o f society and p ro h ib it th e sam e enforcem ent o f law upon the u nions as on all o th er bran ch es o f in d u stry .

- - T o t a l

P ro fits and L o sse s in the B itu m in o u s M in in g In d u s tr y

T A B L E I— B Y S I X - M O N T H P E R I O D S

P r o f i t s --- , L o s s e s --- % ---

N o . o f A m o u n t P r o f it N o . o f A m o u n t L o s s N o . o f

C o m - P r o d u c t io n , o f p e r T o n , C o m - P r o d u c t io n , o f p e r T o n , C o m ­ p a n ie s N e t T o n s P r o f it C e n t s p a n i c s N e t T o n s L o s s C e n t s p a n ie s J u l y ¡ - D e c . 3 1 , ¡ 9 2 7 ... 176 4 8 ,4 7 6 ,7 4 4 $ 1 4 ,0 4 6 ,6 6 2 2 8 . 9 144 1 8 ,7 6 9 ,9 6 3 $ 6 ,4 7 6 ,5 6 9 3 4 . 5 3 2 0 J a n . - J u n e 3 0 , 1 9 2 8 ... 153 4 0 ,2 8 2 ,1 3 5 8 ,9 8 7 ,8 7 1 2 2 . 3 177 2 9 ,6 2 9 ,0 2 6 6 ,4 3 2 ,2 0 5 2 1 . 7 3 3 0 J u l y - D e c . 3 1 , 1 9 2 8 ... 181 5 9 ,8 7 7 ,1 8 4 1 3 ,3 7 9 ,6 4 6 2 2 . 3 155 2 4 ,9 1 5 ,0 7 7 4 ,9 9 4 ,0 5 7 2 0 . 0 3 3 6 J a n . I -J u n e 3 0 , 19 2 9 ... 177 5 1 ,1 9 3 ,3 2 8 1 0 ,1 7 8 ,2 3 2 1 9 . 8 154 2 4 ,9 8 6 ,6 9 2 4 ,5 7 2 ,9 8 5 1 8 . 3 331

J u l y I , 1 9 2 7 - J u n e 3 0 , 1 9 2 9 ... 2 4 4 1 9 9 ,8 2 9 ,3 9 1 $ 4 6 ,5 9 2 ,4 1 1 2 3 . 3 2 2 9 9 8 ,3 0 0 ,7 5 8 $ 2 2 ,4 7 5 ,8 1 6 2 2 . 8 3 3 9 2 9 8 ,1 3 0 ,1 4 9 $ 2 4 ,1 0 6 ,6 2 5 8

T A B L E I I — B Y T W E L V E - M O N T H P E R I O D S

! ' ! o ? » ' J, u n e ^ 2 0 7 8 8 ,7 5 8 ,8 7 9 $ 2 3 ,0 3 4 ,5 3 3 2 5 . 9 2 0 8 4 8 ,3 9 3 ,9 8 9 $ 1 2 ,9 0 8 ,7 7 4 2 6 . 6 331 J u l y 1, 1 9 2 8 -J u n e 3 0 , 1 9 2 9 ... 211 1 1 1 .0 7 0 ,5 1 2 2 3 ,5 5 7 ,8 7 8 2 1 . 2 187 4 9 ,9 0 1 ,7 6 9 9 ,5 6 7 ,0 4 2 1 9 . 1 3 3 6 J u l y I, 1 9 2 7 - J u n e 3 0 , 1 9 2 9 ... 2 4 4 1 9 9 ,8 2 9 ,3 9 1 $ 4 6 ,5 9 2 ,4 1 1 2 3 . 3 2 2 9 9 8 ,3 0 0 ,7 5 8 $ 2 2 ,4 7 5 ,8 1 6 2 2 . 8 3 3 9

P r o d u c t io n , N e t T o n s 6 7 ,2 4 6 ,7 0 7 6 9 ,9 1 1 ,1 6 1 8 4 ,7 9 2 ,2 6 1 7 6 ,1 8 0 ,0 2 0

A m o u n t P r o fit o f p e r T o n , P r o f it ~

$ 7 ,5 7 0 ,1 2 3 2 ,5 4 5 ,6 6 6 8 ,3 8 5 ,5 8 9 5 ,6 0 5 ,2 4 7

1 3 7 ,1 5 7 ,8 6 8 1 6 0 ,9 7 2 ,2 8 1

C e n ts 1 1.2 3 . 6 9 . 8 7 .3

$ 1 0 ,1 1 5 ,7 8 9 1 3 ,9 9 0 ,8 3 6

7 .3 8 .6

2 9 8 ,1 3 0 ,1 4 9 $ 2 4 ,1 0 6 ,6 2 5

668 C O A L A G E —

Vol.34, N o .ll

w , hy Spruce River Coal Co.

Beat 148 Others on

By J. H . Edwards

A sso c ia te E d ito r , C oal A g e

B

A S E D on p e r cent o f elec­

trification th e S p ru ce R iv er Coal Co., o f R am age, W . V a., has the low est p o w er cost p e r ton in a tab u latio n o f 1928 po w er d ata for 149 p ro g ressiv e com panies w hich purchase pow er and o p era te p rin ­ cipally in th e area co m p risin g W e st V irginia, K en tu ck y , T en n essee and V irginia. A lth o u g h th is com pany operated a t b u t 60 p e r cen t capac­

ity d u rin g th e y ear, th e cost o f total pow er p urchased, including th a t fo r town w a te r p u m p in g an d lighting, was only 4.82c. p e r ton. M ak in g a deduction fo r th e pow er n o t p ro p erly chargeable to m in in g b rin g s the cost dow n to 4.26c. p e r ton.

I t m ig h t be concluded th a t the n atural conditions m u st be th e v ery best, th e com pany m u st have a special

POWER COST

pow er co n tra ct and m ust p roduce a large tonnage. G enerally speaking, the n atu ra l conditions a re favorable, b u t the pow er invoices are m ade ac­

co rd in g to the sta n d a rd “ L .P .” ta riff o f the A ppalachian E lectric P o w e r Co., w hich calls fo r a 15-m inute m etered dem and. T h e total tonnage produced w as 365,216, an average of 30.000 p e r m onth, w hich w as e x ­ ceeded by 36 o f th e 149 com panies included in the com parison, an d one o f these com panies averaged over 93.000 to n s p er m onth.

T h e use o f s tra ig h t sto ra g e -b a tte ry locom otives fo r g a th e rin g and of a lte rn a tin g -c u rre n t m in in g m achines is responsible in a larg e m easu re fo r the low pow er cost. D em and is held dow n by ta k in g ad v an tag e of every p ossibility w hich will n o t in te rfe re w ith the o th e r item s o f p roduction cost, and po w er losses are k ep t w ithin econom ical b ounds by u sin g lines

of am ple capacity, m ak in g freq u en t inspections, and m ak in g re p airs p rom ptly. R e g u la r inspections and re p o rts are obtained b i-m onthly to in su re the elim ination o f all possible sources o f po w er w aste and to g u ard a g ain st un n ecessary m ax im u m pow er dem ands.

In 1928 th re e m ines w ere operated an d p roduced 365,215 tons. T h ey a re in th e Coal R iv e r field of B oone C o u n ty and o p era te in th e A lm a seam , 62 in. th ick , fro m w hich th e yield of coal is 48 in. N o. 4 m ine co n trib u ted 294,978 tons w hile N os.

3 a n d 5 to g e th e r w ere lim ited to a p ro d u ctio n of 70,237 tons. O pened in 1922, N o. 4 m ine now has a m ax im u m haul o f 4,500 ft. E ig h ty p e r cen t of N o. 4 ’s o u tp u t w as h auled over a fav o rab le g ra d e o f 1-J p e r cen t and the rem ain in g ta n n a g e o v er an ad v erse g ra d e o f 3 p er cent.

U n d e rc u ttin g is done w ith G ood­

Starting a Cut IV¡lit an A.C. Machine In No. 4 Mine

N o vem b er,1929

— C O A L A G E 669

In the Foreground: Crossbonds Just Applied to a Repaired Section of the Out­

side Haulway. In the Background: One of the Battery Locomotives on the Way to the Charging Barn at the Close of the Day m an shortw all m achines pow ered

w ith 50-hp., 220-volt, th ree-p h ase, sq uirrel-cage, induction m otors. T h e d istrib u tio n system consists of 2,200- volt insulated th ree-co n d u cto r cables e x ten d in g fro m d r if t openings to tra n s fo rm e r substations, a n d of open w irin g fo r tra n sm ittin g th e 220-volt en erg y from su b statio n s to w o rk in g sections. T h e N o. 4 m ine is equipped w ith fo u r o f th e tra n s fo rm e r su b ­ stations. E ach consists o f th re e 15- kva. single-phase tra n s fo rm e rs rated 2 ,2 0 0 /1 1 0 -2 2 0 volts an d o f th ree 1-2-kva. u n its of the sam e voltage ra tin g w hich are connected as v o lt­

age boosters on the 2,200-volt side.

T h e sm aller tra n s fo rm e rs , w hich pro v id e a 10 p er cen t boost, w ere added a f te r it w as learn ed th a t th e 15-kva. tra n s fo rm e rs should have been equipped w ith 10-per cent tap s to com pensate fo r tran sm issio n loss.

O k o n ite “ P a rk w a y ” cable is used fo r th e 2,200-volt d istrib u tio n . It con tain s th ree N o. 6 con d u cto rs in ­ sulated w ith . v arn ish ed cam bric fo r 5,000 volts. T h e pro tectio n consists o f a lead sheath, ribbon steel a rm o r and an outside co vering o f ju te . T h e cable is suspended fro m th e ro o f along th e airw ays.

T h e 220-volt a.c. distribution con­

sists of th re e bare, solid No. 2 /0 w ires fasten ed one above the other on posts set n e x t to th e rib. T he in­

su la to rs a re N o. 3 porcelain knobs, 1-J in. hig h an d 2 in. in diameter.

A s fa r as possible, th is open wiring is k ep t on th e airco u rse. W h ere the line crosses a traveled way, rubber- covered w ire is used, and this is g en erally p u t in conduit. T o date no electrical accidents have occurred in the m ine on th is a.c. distribution.

A lim it o f 1,800 ft. is the standard fo r co nducting th e 220-volt three- phase energy, b u t it has been tran s­

m itted 2,500 ft. w ith fa irly satisfac­

to ry resu lts. W h e re a few hundred fe e t of w ire will suffice th e lines from tra n s fo rm e r statio n s are paralleled th ro u g h a three-p o le k n ife switch.

T h is im proves voltage and allows the load to divide so as to reduce the tra n sm issio n loss.

A . W . Pollock, vice-president and general su p e rin te n d e n t of the com­

pany, w ho decided upon the installa­

tion o f a.c. cu ttin g m achines a fte r an in vestigation o f th e ir use in Illinois, believes th a t th e ir advantages far outw eigh the disadvantages. This conclusion is based on observation a n d cost d a ta o f a.c. and d.c. ma­

chines e x ten d in g ov er a period of 8 years. T h e com pany still uses d.c.

m achines in th e tw o o lder mines.

I n a com parison he lists the ad­

v an tag es o f th e a.c. m achine as Circles Indicate Locations of the Four Transformer Stations Which Supply the Mining Machines in No. 4 Mine

670 C O A L A G E

— Vol.34, N 0.11

follows: ( 1 ) L ess pow er consum p­

tion; ( 2 ) no co m m u tato r o r b ru sh maintenance; ( 3 ) less m o to r tr o u b le ; (4) pow er available a t all tim es w ith ­ out req u irin g an a tte n d a n t in a sub­

station an d w ith o u t the larg e pow er losses suffered w hen o p e ra tin g con­

verting eq uipm ent at low output, which is o fte n the case d u rin g hours when m in in g m achines a re in o p era ­ tion; (5 ) n o t affected by poor bo n d ­ ing nor by b ro k en b o n d s; ( 6 ) sa tis­

factory o p eratio n of an induction motor d em ands th a t good voltage be maintained, and thereb y uneconom ­ ical transm ission! losses and slowed cutting a re av o id ed ; ( 7 ) u n d er average con d itio n s th e a.c. m achines will cut m ore coal th an the d.c.

machines.

M r. P ollock charges b u t tw o d is­

advantages a g a in st the a.c. m a c h in e : (1) N o t so flexible in m oving from one e n try to an o th er, on account of having to tro lley w ith th re e w ires, and ( 2 ) a p p ro x im ately o n e-th ird more co p p er is required.

T he av erag e c u ttin g fo r the a.c.

machines has been o v er 300 tons per day in th e seam yielding 48 in. of coal. M en w ho have been train ed with a d.c. m achine dislike v ery m uch at first to o p erate an a.c. m achine, but a fte r th e y becom e accustom ed to the la tte r they do n o t w a n t to go back to the d.c. type.

In th e S p ru ce R iv e r m ines the a.c.

machines a re tra m m e d along an e n try by hav in g th e help er w alk along behind th e m achine and c a rry th e end of the th re e -co n d u cto r tra ilin g cable.

For s ta rtin g he touches th e th ree nips to th e th ree bare conductors

A . W . P o llo c k

th a t are suspended along the rib, b u t fo r ru n n in g he slides but tw o o f the nips ag ain st w ires. T h e th ree-p h ase induction m o to r m u st by necessity be energized th ree-p h ase in sta rtin g but can be o p erated single-phase on the light load im posed by tram m in g .

T h e size N o. 3 th ree-co n d u cto r tra ilin g cable used on the a.c. m a­

chines has a longer life th a n th e sam e size-tw o -co n d u cto r cable used on d.c.

m achines. R u b b er sh eathed cables o f the sam e m ake are used on both.

P re su m a b ly the difference in life is due to the f a c t’ th a t the c u rre n t p er co n d u cto r is ap p ro x im a tely 35 per cent less w ith the a.c. m achines.

Seven stra ig h t-sto ra g e locom otives all equipped w ith E d iso n b a tteries do the g a th e rin g in N o. 4 m ine. T h re e a re 4 ^ -ton M an ch a equipped w ith 90 ty p e A -8 cells, one is a 5-ton chain- A t the Right Is the 100-Kw. Motor Generator Which Supplies the

Main Haulage Locomotive by Day and Charges the Gathering Locomotives by Night

driv e Iro n to n equipped w ith 104 type A -8 cells and th re e are 6 -to n g e ar- driv e Iro n to n c o n tain in g 88 type A -12 cells. C h arg in g c u rre n t is su p ­ plied from a 100-kw. 250-volt rnotor- g e n e ra to r set w hich is located n e a r the dum p h o u se an d w hich also is th e su b statio n u n it fo r pow er supply to an 8-ton m ain -h au lag e locom otive.

“ T h e g re a te st ad v an tag e of b atte ry locom otives,” said M r. Pollock, “ is the elim ination o f tro lley w ire and bonding in b u tt en tries. A n d the red u ctio n of peak load m eans a big saving in pow er cost. I find th a t the b a tte ry cost, w hich has ru n 0.8 to lc. p e r ton, is offset ap p ro x im ately by the saving in elim ination o f b o n d ­ in g an d tro lley on b u tt en trie s to ­ g e th e r w ith th e sav in g by n o t having to buy locom otive cable.”

B a tte ry locom otives a re charged a t n ig h t and the cu ttin g is divided be­

tw een day an d night, so as to keep th e d ay an d n ig h t loads ab o u t the sam e and the pow er peak a t a m in ­ im um . E v e n th e b atte ry -c h arg in g load is d istrib u ted ov er 16 h o u rs, so th a t the n ig h t p eak will n o t exceed th a t recorded d u rin g th e day.

C o n sid erin g th e low po w er cost p er ton, it is only reasonable to expect

T a b le I — E fficien c y a n d E a r n in g s o f L a b o r

C la s s o f W o r k

H a u la g e ...

T r a p p e r s ...

G e n e r a l i n s i d e . . . . T i p p l e a n d y a r d . G e n e r a l o u t s i d e . .

T o t a l l a b o r f ... 6 . 9 0 5 . 5 1 * 1,4 7 3 . ¡8

♦ A c t u a l e a r n in g s s l i g h t l y h ig h e r — s e e t e x t . t M o n t h l y m e n n o t i n c lu d e d .

Table II—Power Consumption and Costs

P e r c e n t e l e c t r i f ic a t io n ...

S u b s t a t io n c a p a c it y , k i lo w a t t s 3 0 0 A v e r a g e k i lo w a t t - h o u r s p u r ­

c h a s e d p e r m o n t h ...5 A v e r a g e m o n t h l y d e m a n d ( 1 5 -

m in u t e ) , k i l o w a t t s f ...

A v e r a g e m o n t h ly d e m a n d c h a r g e ...

A v e r a g e m o n t h l y e n e r g y

c h a r g e ... $ 1 ,2 1 7 . 8 7 $ 1 ,0 7 5 . 87 A v e r a g e n e t t o t a l p o w e r b i l l .. $ 1 ,7 8 0 . 17 $ 1 ,4 7 3 .0 7 L o a d f a c t o r b a s e d o n d e m a n d .

L o a d f a c t o r b a s e d o n c o n ­ n e c t e d l o a d ...

E n e r g y c o s t p e r k i lo w a t t - h o u r T o t a l c o s t p e r k ilo w a t t - h o u r ..

P e r c e n t a g e d e m a n d o f t o t a l b i l l ...

K ilo w a t t - h o u r s p e r t o n ...

C o s t p e r t o n ...

D . C . c o n n e c t e d h o r s e p o w e r p e r k i lo w a t t o f s u b s t a t i o n c a ­ p a c i t y ...

T o t a l a .c . c o n n e c t e d h o r s e ­ p o w e r p e r k i lo w a t t o f d e m a n d 2 . 78 T o n s p e r m o n t h p e r t o t a l a .c .

h o r s e p o w e r c o n n e c t e d ...

♦ T a k e n f r o m r e p o r ts r e n d e r e d t o S p r u c e R i v e r C o a l C o . b y t h e W e s t V ir g in ia E n g in e e r in g C o .

t E f l e c t i v e O c t . 1, 1 9 2 7 , a r a t e c h a n g e w e n t i n t o e f f e c t m a k in g - t h e d e m a n d b a s e a 1 5 - m m u t e p '-a k in p l a c e o f a 5 m i n u t e p e a k , a n d a t t h e s a m e t im e s l i g h t l y in c r e a s in g t h e e n e r g y c o s t .

A v e r a g e

E f f ic ie n c y A v e r a g e E a r n in g s I n I o n s P e r M a n

P e r M a n P e r P e r

P e r D a y D a y Y e a r

1 3 7 . 9 7 $ 1 3 . 0 6 $ 3 , 4 8 9 .9 0

;. 1 1 .8 0 5 . 5 6 * 1 ,4 8 6 .0 7 . 1 8 6 .1 3 4 .5 1 1 , 2 0 4 .8 8 i. 1 ,0 5 1 . 19 4 . 4 0 1 , 1 7 4 .7 9 8 1 . 7 0 4 . 6 2 1 , 2 3 3 .8 8

3 5 2 . 6 4 3 . 0 8 8 2 2 . 1 9

1 3 1 .5 6 5 . 10 1 ,3 6 2 .3 8 7 9 . 3 5 4 . 15 1 , 1 0 8 .2 3 8 8 . 2 3 4 . 2 7 1 , 1 4 0 .0 4

1 9 2 7 * 1 9 2 8 * 4 0 ,8 7 2 3 0 ,5 2 1

9 0 90

3 0 0 3 0 0

9 6 ,2 0 0 7 8 ,9 0 0 3 8 6 . 8 0 2 6 4 . 8 0

$ 5 6 2 . 8 0 $ 3 9 7 . 2 0

4 0 . 3 0 % 4 0 . 8 0 % 1 9 .4 3 %

1 . 26o.

1 .8 5 c .

1 5 .9 3 % 1 . 3 6 c . 1 . 8 7 c . 3 1 . 6 0

2 . 3 6 4 . 3 6 c .

2 6 . 9 5 2 . 5 8 4 . 8 2 c .

3 . 5 0 5 . 0 4

2 . 7 8 3 . 4 3

45 3 3 . 6 0

November, 1929

— C O A L A G E 671

78,900 and the average m onthly de­

m and w as 264.8 kw . B ased on this dem and, the load fa c to r is 40.8 p er cent, a high figure fo r th e tonnage produced and consid erin g the fact th a t the continuous fan load is slight com pared to w h a t it w ould be if the m ine w ere gassy. T h e load fa c to r re p resen ts th e ra tio o f th e actual po w er consum ption to w h a t it w ould have been if th e load h ad held con­

tinuously a t the m ax im u m dem and.

O th e r costs a t th e S p ru ce R iv er m ines a re w atched as closely as is Left to Right: A. E. Harris, Chief Electrician; F. R. Scholl, Mine Foreman, and

H. D. Parnell, Chief Engineer

th a t th e m ine cars are equipped w ith a n ti-fric tio n bearings. A ll of the 188 cars used in N o. 4 m ine are equipped w ith a n ti-fric tio n bearings. T h e a v e r­

age loading o f the cars is 2\ tons.

B on d in g o f the m ain haulw ay over w hich th e 8-ton tro lley locom otive o perates is done by a rc w elding, u sin g copper alloy electrodes.

T h e percentage o f electrification of th e S pruce R iv e r m ines is given as 90 in the tabulation m entioned in th e first p a ra g rap h . T h is w as cal­

culated by th e W e st V irg in ia E n g i­

neering Co., w hich serves th e S pruce R iv e r com pany in a con su ltin g elec­

trica l en g in eerin g capacity a n d is the a u th o r o f th e tab u latio n fo r th e 149 com panies p u rch asin g pow er. I f d u rin g 1928 m ules had n o t been used fo r g a th e rin g ab o u t 20 p e r cen t of th e coal, it is estim ated th a t 10 p er cen t m o re electrical energ y w ould have been used. I n M ay o f th is y ear g a th e rin g w as m ade 100 p e r cent electrical.

F o r 1928 the over-all po w er con­

su m ption w as 2.58 k w .-hr. p e r ton and th e n et cost, including dem and, w as 1.89c. p e r k ilo w att-h o u r. T h e ta riff is $1.50 p e r m o n th p e r k ilow att of m etered 15-m inute m ax im u m d e ­ m and. T h e en erg y charge p e r k ilo­

w a tt-h o u r is 2c. fo r th e first 10,000, 1.5c. fo r th e n e x t 30,000, l.l.c . fo r th e n e x t 60,000 and lc . f o r all ov er 100,000. A pen alty o f 2 p e r cent is add ed to th e to tal bill if n o t paid w ith in 20 days.

T h e a v erag e k ilo w a tt-h o u rs p u r­

chased p e r m o n th by th e S p ru ce R iv e r com pany d u rin g 1928 w as

the pow er cost. T h e labor efficiency in av erag e to n s p er m an per day for the v ario u s classifications are com­

p ared fro m y e a r to year. This effi­

ciency m easu re fo r 1928 is shown in an accom panying table. Loaders av erag ed 11.8 tons, and all labor, o utside included, averaged 6.9 tons.

T h e average earnings per day per m an a re included in the table. The m an ag em en t gives c o n s i d e r a b l e th o u g h t to th a t colum n in recognition of th e fu n d am en tal principle that a w o rk er m u st earn enough money to e n jo y a p ro p e r living. T he figures o f $5.56 fo r loaders and $5.51 for all labor are slightly low er than the actual because in the m ethod of keep­

ing the reco rd s it is considered that a loader w o rk s every day th a t any of his coal is dum ped. O n a day that he is off, a car m ay be dum ped that he loaded on the preceding day.

E q u ip m en t, m ethods, and mine w o rk in g s o f the S pruce R iver com­

pany all show th e effect of careful p lan n in g and of follow ing th a t plan c onsistently so f a r as changing con­

ditions perm it. M an y years under the sam e m anagem ent has contrib­

u ted to this resu lt, the same as it has to th e high degree o f perfection in the econom ic use of purchased pow er. M r. P ollock credits F. F.

T a g g a rt, o f M assillon, O hio, now actin g p resid en t and general man­

ager, w ith th e selection o f much of the equipm ent and w ith th e installa­

tion o f m an y o f th e practices current a t th e m ine.

The Transformers Are Isolated in Concrete Vaults— in the Background Are the Three Booster Transformers Mounted

on an Insulated Platform

672

C O A L A G E —

Vol.34, No.11