June 19, 1914.

THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN.

1407

The Bouble Colliery Company, one of the most siucissful
in the South, has applied for an extension of its concession
to cover the communes of Youx and Teilhet, in the Biom
district, so that it may be supposed the company sees coal
there.

As an explanation of their firmness in regard to juices, the
French collieries claim they have no difficulty in disposing of
their output. This is, no doubt, true, but in holding up the
national industries for these high prices they have done a
good deal to cause the present slackness in the metallurgical
section, especially among the smelters, and if, as many
think, cheaper coal prices are coming soon, it will be because
of the falling off of this demand. A very small reduction
would make a great difference to the iron trade. There is no
change in the aspect of the pig iron market, although it may
be said that the other branches of the metallurgical industries
remain in a satisfactory condition. Much depends on home
politics, in the first place if the fiscal legislation restores
confidence and gives a fillip to business, capital will show
itself less shy than it has been of late, while a re-establish-
ment of the present unfortunate Treasury situation will give
the railways a chance to get ahead with their orders. Every-
thing depends on the new French loan, which alone can set
the house in order.

The French iron and steel production continues to increase.
In March the firms which are affiliated to the Comite des
Forges de France produced 410,000 tons of pig iron as
against 377,000 tons in February; 8,900 tons of half-finished
goods, as against 8,500 tons; 22,600 tons of rods and wires,
as against 21,900 tons; 372,300 tons of ingots and castings,
as compared with 340,000 tons; and 161,000 tons of billets,
as compared with 150,600 tons.

The Denain Anzin works is busily modernising the plant
at the Anzin factories, which had hitherto been faithful to
puddling. Four new Martin steel installations are in course
of construction, one of which is already working.

A new limited liability company has been put before the
French investor of late, having for its object the exploita-
tion of the Tchamly Collieries in the Heraclee coal basin,
where already the Societe des Mines d’Heraclee has been
operating for 15 years. The capital is put at 12,000,000 fr.
The coal produced in this district is very dry, with a long
flame, giving a very high percentage of ash, and it does
not meet with a very ready sale. Apart from that, these
Asia Minor coalfields are much handicapped by labour diffi-
culties. The Turkish miners are lazy to a degree, and the
Societe d’Heraclee, for instance, goes to Persia for most of
its labour.

The Tonkin Collieries seem to be going ahead well. They
announce a dividend of 85 fr., as against 80 fr. last year,
after writing off substantial sums to the various reserve
funds. The production of coal goes on increasing. It was
364,143 tons in 1913, as against 306,000 tons in 1912, but
the sales are still better, for the company dealt in 423,102 .
tons last year, as compared with 333,905 tons in 1912. The'
manufacture of briquettes is increasing proportionately. The
current year has started well, for in the first four months
152,000 tons of coal were produced, as compared with 132,000
in the same period last year. But here again the company
is up against the labour problem. It is hard to get
sufficient hands. The natives work a bit when harvests are
bad, but are liable to leave the mines at any moment.

Germany.

Ruhr Goal Market.—Specifications for delivery continue to
increase, and the number of wagons loaded daily now exceeds
30,000. The iron industry is showing signs of revival, but
in other branches the home consumption is not appreciably
greater, except in the case of consumers whose stocks have
run out. Large consignments have been going up river,
but, the local demand being quiet, have mostly to be stocked
on arrival. English coals are being offered at easier rates,
without, however, much business being done. Exports
remain large, both to Belgium, Holland, and France. There
is no improvement in the coke market, and it is doubtful
whether the syndicate will be able to sell even the present
restricted output.

Coal Market in South Germany.—The house coal trade is
naturally quiet, though the cooler weather causes a larger
consumption than usual. Dealers are taking their monthly
deliveries as fully as possible, in order to qualify for their
full quantities later on in the year, and get ready for the
autumn trade. Bituminous nuts and broken coke are in
good request, but there is less enquiry for anthracite nuts,
smithy nuts, and ovoid briquettes. Lignite briquettes also
go off well. Industrial consumers are taking their regular
quantities. The Bhine is in good condition for traffic, so
that nearly all the cargoes under way can be conveyed as
far as the Upper Bhine harbours, now that the Main is
closed for traffic owing to lock-repairing operations.

Goal Market in Upper Silesia.—The improvement in the
market would have been more decided but for the bad state
of the Biver Oder, consumers having held back so long as
to be compelled now to make up their stocks again. Things
are, however, still not quite satisfactory, the volume of
business being insufficient. Coking coals are in better
request again, but gas and house coals are naturally quiet;
and English and Westphalian competition are keen in the
outlying districts. Bussia is again taking larger quantities,
but business is being upset by railway complications; and
the industrial situation in Austria has an unfavourable
influence on the demand for coal. The coke market is
weaker, and the output cannot be disposed of completely.

UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE.

The Repair of Works of Construction.

At the Central Office for Labour Exchanges and
Unemployment Insurance, Queen Anne’s-chambers, S.W.,
on Monday, Mr. A. A. Hudson, K.C., Commissioner, opened
an enquiry with regard to the draft special extension Orde.r
relating to repairing works of construction which it is
proposed to add to the scheduled industries coming under
Part II. of the National Insurance Act, relating to
Unemployment Insurance.

The original Order refers to the construction and recon-
struction or alteration of railways, docks, harbours, canals,
embankments, bridges, piers or other works of construction.
The amendment affects a large number of men engaged at
collieries in the repair of these various works.

It is further proposed to extend the Order by the
addition of sawmilling, and this again affects collieries
largely.

There is a great number of objectors, and amongst those
present on Monday were representatives of the Board of
Trade, railway and canal companies, collieries, gas com-
panies, pottery manufacturers, harbour commissioners, &c.
Sir Thomas R. Ratcliffe-Ellis, Mr. Arthur Ratcliffe-Ellis
and Mr. Charles Pilkington appeared for the Mining
Association of Great Britain.

On the first day the proceedings were purely informal,
arrangements being made as to the order and classification
of evidence and other matters of procedure. It was decided
that subsequent hearings should take place at the Caxton
Hall.

On Tuesday, Mr. A. J. Ashton, K.C., who appeared for
the Board of Trade, made his opening statement. He said
the present position was that with regard to building and
shipbuilding, men who were engaged upon repair would
come within the benefits of the National Insurance Act.
With regard to the construction of works, although if they
were engaged on construction, reconstruction or alteration,
they would be within insurance, if they were engaged upon
repair they would not be included. They were asking
^hat, with a certain exception, the word “ repair"’ should be
inserted, in the second trade after the words “ construction
reconstruction,’" in the same way as it stands in both the
building trade and the shipbuilding trade. The exception
was that this proposed extension should not extend to two
things—first, roads; and secondly, the permanent way of
railways. Referring to some of the decisions of the
Umpire, Mr. Ashton pointed out that workmen engaged
in the repair of blast furnaces, lime and brick kilns, gas
retorts and retort settings, chemical or electrolytic plant-
(other than machinery or buildings) were not insurable,
because in the first place these were works, and in the
second place this was repair. On the other hand, if he was
re-setting the brickwork round one of these retorts instead
of simply renewing it—was putting in fresh bricks and was
re-setting it—then he would be within insurance, because
he would be altering. To take another instance—supposing
in rebuilding this worn-out setting he were to slope it
instead of building it horizontally, that would be an altera-
tion, and, therefore, the workman would come within
insurance. If, on the other hand, he re-laid it exactly as it
was before, it would be merely repair, and he would be out
of insurance. That was a good instance of the first difficulty
to which this gave rise ; that is what might be called the
going in and out of insurance. Again, whenever a man
was working on uninsurable work he was reducing pro
tanto his potential claim to benefit if in fact he came
into unemployment. In the same way he might fail
to attain his 500 weeks which would entitle him
at the age of 60 to receive back the balance beyond
what he had paid, together with the compound interest.
Taking other decisions, Mr. Ashton mentioned that it was
to the highest degree inconvenient that an umpire should
have to draw a distinction between work done which was
chargeable to revenue and work done which was
chargeable to capital. There was another very difficult
cross division which the Umpire had had to deal with, and
that was he had drawn a distinction between buildings and
plant; plant would come within “ construction of works,
and so would be works and not buildings. If it was plant
he was not insurable because the repair of plant was not
construction, reconstruction, or alteration. If it was build-
ing he was insurable, because the word “ repair"’ was in*
Thus persons who were repairing blast furnace plant were
not insurable but workmen employed wholly or mainly in
the maintenance and upkeep of blast furnace plant were
insurable. They might have a man who had repaired the
blast furnace and went on to repair flues in connection
with the boilers, and as long as he was at work on the
blast furnaces he was uninsurable, but as soon as he got on
to the boiler flues he was insurable. The general principle
that ran all through the Act was that they should look at
the work that the man did and not the occupation of the
owners of the business for whom he did the work. The
change, as far as they could judge, would affect about
20,000 persons. It was proposed to except from the
alteration roads and the permanent way of railways.
Representations had been made to the Board of Trade
which seemed to show that it might be desirable that
with regard to those two specified and particular matters

no alteration should be made in the present law. Th
word “road"" would cover only the actual surface of the road.
“ Railways"" included tramways—all railways, both public
and private.

Mr. Ashton next dealt with the objections. He said
the railway companies objected on the grounds
that there was not the same probability of benefit
being required under Fart II. of the Act for the men
concerned when employed by the railway companies
in view of the continuity of their service, as in the case of
men engaged in other industries, and, moreover, there did
not appear to be any desire on the part of the men them-
selves to pay contributions. The objections of the railway
companies were chiefly in respect of their canals. They
contended that the employment by railway or canal
companies of workmen in repairing works of construction
other than roads and the permanent way of railways was
analogous to the employment by them of workmen in
repairing such last-mentioned works, both in regard to the
nature of the employment and the continuity of service.

Dealing next with the objection of the Mining
Association of Great Britain, he said it ran as follows .*—
“It is objected that the application of paragraph 1 of
the proposed Order is too general. The repair of works
of construction is carried on at collieries, not as a separate
industry, but merely as ancillary to the general business
and the workmen engaged in the repair of works of con-
struction have steady and regular employment. It is
claimed, therefore, that these workmen should be excepted
from the operation of the proposed Order.” Mr. Ashton
thought that showed the value of section 107, subsection (4).
If in fact a man was engaged in the repair of works of
construction, he submitted it made no difference whether it
was ancillary to the general business or whether he had
safe and regular employment or not; if in fact he came
within the provisions of this Act, why should not he have
the benefit of it ?

Evidence in favour of the alteration was then given by
Mr. W. H. Beveridge, the director of Labour Exchanges,
and assistant secretary to the Board of Trade in the
Labour Exchanges and Unemployment Insurance Depart-
ment.

It was arranged that the saw-milling extension should
be taken on July 2, 3 and 4.

Inundation in Wales. — The adjourned enquiry into the
deaths of D. James Davies and David Jeffreys, two colliers,
by flooding at Dunvant Fenian Colliery, took place before
Mr. Glynn Frice at Killay last week. A pillar of coal used
as a barrier had been left in for about three months, and
the face of this barrier suddenly blew out and allowed the
water to rush into the workings. The jury added a rider to
the verdict, that they considered the officials should have
used more care in working towards the water, and they
considered that in future the section of the Mines Act dealing
with mining in approaching water should be more strictly
adhered to.

The Senghenydd Prosecution. — Comparatively little
interest was taken on Wednesday in the magisterial pro-
ceedings at Caerphilly in connection with the Home Office
prosecutions arising out of the Senghenydd Colliery
disaster. In all 21 summonses had been taken out, 17 being
against Mr. Edward Shaw, the manager of the Senghenydd
Mine, and four against the Lewis-Merthyr Consolidated
Collieries Limited, the owners, for alleged breaches of the
Coal Mines Act and the regulations thereof. The first sum-
mons was against Mr. Edward Shaw for neglecting to
appoint in writing a person to examine the safety lamps.
The defence was that the lampman, Morse, was appointed
17 years ago, that he was a competent person, and received
a note stating the nature of his duties, and afterwards regis-
tered as such. When the colliery changed hands in 1905 a
similar proceeding was adopted. Several witnesses were
called, and the magistrates decided to hear all the cases
before they came to a decision. The next case was an
alleged breach of section 34 of the Act, which provided that
a safety lamp should not be unlocked except at the appointed
lamp station by . a competent person, appointed in writing.
Mr. Kenshole, in this case, admitted a technical breach.
The next summons related to the appointment of an elec-
trician, but this was withdrawn on the production of the
certificate. The next summons alleged failure to provide a
book for entering the readings of a barometer, thermometer,
and hygrometer. Two other summonses related to the obli-
gation to enter the readings in a book. Mr. Kenshole
admitted that there was no such book provided. The next
summons related to the alleged breach of section 31, sub-
section 3, by neglecting to provide means for reversing the
air current. Dr. Atkinson stated that on the date of the
explosion all that was necessary was to make an aperture in
a wall. The court next heard a summons against Mr.
Shaw for the alleged use of a safety lamp of a non-approved
type. Mr. Kenshole argued that so great was the demand
for approved glasses for safety lamps that the makers were
unable to get a sufficient supply even to-day, and some of
the approved glasses supplied had to be discarded, so that
the company was doing everything possible to get them.
Orders given last January had not yet been supplied. It
was explained that the objection was not so much to the
type of lamp as to the quality of the glass used. The next
summons proceeded with was that the management did not
cause the quantity of air to be measured in the main current,
every split, and other places, in order to free those places
from inflammable gas. Mr. Kenshole argued that the
measurement had been taken, and produced documentary
evidence to show that they had measured on September 29.
Under the new Act they were not bound to measure until
October 16—two days after the explosion. The court
adjourned until July 4.