April 30, 1915. THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN. 929 Explosion of Firedamp at the Gabeza de Vaca Mine (La Explosion de Grisu de la Mina de Gabeza de Vaca). R. Oriel. “ Rev. Min.,” Mar. 24, p. 137. Lessons from the Gabeza de Vaca Disaster (Ensenanzas de la Catastrofe de Gabeza de Vaca). A. Carbonell. “ Rev. Min.,” Apr. 1, p. 152. XVIII.—Mine Fires. The Absorption of Oxygen by Coal—Part VI. : The Rate of Spontaneous Heating of Coal. T. F. ’Winmill. “ Trans. Inst. Alin. Engin.,” v. 48, 4, p. 535; 3 fig. XIX.—Rescue and Ambulance. Rescue Work at Layland Explosion. G. S. Rice. “ Goal Age,” Mar. 20, p. 509. Rescue Work at Layland, West Virginia. G. S. Rice. “ Coal Tr. Bull.,” Apr. 1, p. 30. Self-Contained Rescue Apparatus and Smoke Helmets : Second Report to the Doncaster Coal Owners’ (Gob Fire Research) Committee. J. S. Haldane. “Trans. Inst. Min. Engin.,” v. 48, 4, p. 550. XX.—Drainage, Pumping, etc. Centrifugal Pumps on the Rand. W. Ingham. “ Colliery Guard.,” Apr. 1, p. 701. The Effectual Sealing of Water Dams. F. H. Water- house. “ Iron Coal Tr. Rev.,” Apr. 2, p. 467; 2 fig. (Paper read before Nat. Assoc. Goll. Alan.) The Loss of Head in Pipes. C. H. Lees. “ Engineer- ing,” Apr. 16, p. 441. Preventing and Restricting Irruptions of Quicksand in the Brown Coal District of N.W. Bohemia (Maas- nahmen zur Abwendung und Einschrankung der Schwimmsandeinbruche im nordwestbohmischen Braunkohlenrevier). —. Padow. “ Mont. Rdsch.,” Apr. 1, pp. 205-10; illus. XXI. —Preparation. Blastfurnace Slag for Railway Ballasting. “ Colliery Guard.,” Mar. 26, p. 651; 3 fig. Coal Washer for No. 8 Mine, Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad Company. O. H. Bohm. “ Coal Age,” Mar. 20, p. 495; 2 fig. The Wendell Continuous Centrifugal Drier. E. A. Holbrook. “ Coal Age,” Mar. 13, p. 456; 3 fig. New Heapsitead and Screens at Choppington Colliery. “ Iron Coal Tr. Rev.,” Apr. 2, p. 470; 8 fig. Standard Coal Preparation. R. G. Lawry. “ Coal Age,” Apr. 3, p. 579; 5 fig. (Simple methods of sizing.) Coal Preparation at New Aline of Old Ben Alining Cor- poration. “ Coal Age,” Apr. 3, p. 586; 4 fig. (The use of spiral separators at an Illinois mine.) Progress in the Preparation of Brown Goal : New Pro- cesses and Appliances (Fortschritte in der Br aun- kohleaufbereitung, unter Berucksichtigung neuartiger Verfahren, Maschinen und Apparate). —. Herzog. “ Braunk.,” Apr. 2, pp. 1-6; illus. Central Coal Washing Plant (Lavoir Central a Charbon). “ Genie Civil,” Mar. 27, pp. 200-2. Draining Small Goal in Washeries (Ueber die Entwas- serung der Feinkohle in den Steinkohlenwaschen). —. Stratmann. “ Bergb.,” Feb. 25, pp. 101-5; Mar. 4, pp. 117-19; Mar. 11, pp. 130-32; Mar. 25, pp. 161-64; Apr. 1,. pp. 174-77; illus. XXII. —Briquettes. Briquette Manufacture. “ Collierv Guard.,” Apr. 1, p. 699; 5 fig. Coke Briquettes (Koks-Briketts). —. Behr. “ J. Gasbel.,” Alar. 6, pp. 110-13; illus. (Briquetting small coke with hard pitch at Kolberg Gas Works.) XXIII.—Coke Ovens. Alanufacture of Sulphate of Ammonia—II. : Operation of Direct Recovery Processes. “ Gas. Wld.” (suppl.), Apr. 3, p. 14. Common Difficulties on By-product Coke Oven Plants : Their Cause and Remedy. IV. : Saturator Obstruc- tions. “ Manager.” “ Gas Wld.” (suppl.), Apr. 3, p. 12. The Utilisation of Coke Oven and Blastfurnace Gas. M. Gouvy. “ Gas Wld.” (suppl.), Apr. 3, p. 17; 4 fig. (From Rev. Metall.) Goke Oven Gas for Town Supply. J. D. Forrest. “ Gas Wld.,” Apr. 10, p. 406. (Discussion at Indianapolis.) By-products of the Gas Industry. W. J. A. Butterfield. “ Gas Wld.,” Apr. 24, p. 462; 1 fig. (Paper read at Cardiff conference.) Economic Working of Sulphate of Ammonia Plants and the Quality of Sulphate. F. Shewring. “ Gas Wld.,” Apr. 24, p. 465; 1 fig. Modern Coke Ovens of Unusual Size (Moderne Koksofen von ungewohnlich grossen Abmes,sungen).—. Greek. “ Dingier J.,” Apr. 3, pp. 124-25; illus. The Historical Development of the Ammonia-Soda Process (Aus der Entwickelungsgeschichte der Ammo- niaksodafabrikation). —. Jurisch. “ Ch. Ind.,” Feb., pp. 61-71. (The Striebeck process.) XXIV.—Fuels, Testing, etc. Naphthalene in Coal Gas. “ Times Eng. Suppl.,” March 26, p. 73. The Commercial Meaning of Goal Analysis. G. Al. Ponton. “ Mine, Quarry and Derrick,” Mar. 17, p. 114; 2 fig. Power with By-product Recovery. T. R. Wollaston. “ Engineer,” Apr. 2, p. 326. Dyestuffs and Coal Tar Products. T. Beacall, F. Challenger, G. Martin, and H. J. S. Sand. Price, 7s. 6d. net. London : Crosby Lockwood and Son. Recovery of By-products in German Brown Coal Mining (Die Nebenproduktengewinnung im deutschen Braunkohlenbergbau)., “Braunk.,” Apr. 2, pp. 6-7. (Statistics.) The Utilisation of Lignite (Ueber Verwertung- der Lignitkohle). —. Hubers. “ Mont. Rdsch.,” Mar. 16, pp. 168-73. (Briquetting; generating elec- tricity and gas; utilising the cinders and ash for making bricks.) Liquid Ammonia. A. R. Aluir. “ Gas Wld.,” Apr. 1C, p. 414; 1 fig. (Paper read before Scottish Jun. Gas. Assoc.) Gasoline from Synthetic Crude Oil. W. O. Snelling. “ Trans. Amer. Inst. Min. Engin.,” Apr., p. 695. The Preparation of Concentrated Gas Liquor (Ueber die Herstellungsweise von verdichtetem Gaswasser). —. Hilgenstock. “J. Gasbel.,” Mar. 6, pp. 115-17; illus. (The scarcity of sulphuric acid during the war has obliged gas works and. cokeries to give up pro- ducing sulphate of ammonia, and work up the ammonia into concentrated gas liquor. Zimmermann and Jansen plant for this purpose.) The Valuation of Coal According to Calorific Power and Ash Content (Zur Bewertung der Kohlen nach Kalorien und Aschengehalt). —. Moller. “ Alont., Rdsch.,” pp. 215-22. XXV.—Steam Engines and Boilers. Superheated Steam. A. Beeston. “Iron Coal Hr. Rev.,” Alar. 26, p. 437. (Paper read before Nat. Assoc. Coll. Mgrs.) Economical Design of Steam Piping. A. Langstaff Johnston, junr. “Eng. Mag.,” Apr., p. 28; 11 fig. Temperature Measurement in a Modern Power House. G. S. Jeffrey. “Elect. Rev.,” Apr. 9, p. 523. 6,250 kw. Reaction Turbine. “Engineering,” Apr. 9, p. 399; 42 fig. (in all). Loss of Heat Through Carbon Alonoxide in Flue Gases (Warmeverlust durch Kohlenoxyd in Verbrennungs- gasen). —. Dosch. “ Braunk.,” Feb. 26, pp. 635-39; Mar. 5, pp. 647-50; illus. Mechanical Stokers and their Employment with Coal and Briquettes (Ueber mechanische Wurffeuerungen im allgemeinen und ihre Verwendbarkeit fur Roh- kohle und Briketts im besondern). —. Meuskens. “ Braunk.,” Mar. 19, pp. 671-75; Alar. 26, pp. 683^85; illus. Increasing the Efficiency of Steam Power Plant by Utilising Exhaust and Intermediate Steam (Erhoh- ung der Wirtschaftlichkeit von Dampfkraftanlagen durch Adampf- und Zwischendampfverwertung).. —. Blau. “ Z. Dampfk. Betr.,” Mar. 5, pp. 79-81; Mar. 19, pp. 98-100; illus. Heat Utilisation in New Steam Plants, and the Super- vision of same (Die Warmeausnutzung neuerer Dampfkraftwerke und ihre Ueberwachung). . —. Guilleaume. “ Z. d. Ing.,” Alar. 27, pp. 262-67; illus. Production and-Use of Distilled Water for Boiler Feed (Die Erzeugung und Verwendung destillierten Wassers zur Kesselspeisung). —. Geutebriick. “ Techn. Bl.,” Mar. 27, pp. 49-51; illus. Cleaning Steam Boilers Inside and Out (Die aussern und innern Dampfkesselreinigungen). —. Schmitz. “Wiener Dampfk. Z.,” Alar., pp. 25-30; illus. (Risks; new appliances; cost, etc.) Improvements in Fire Boxes for Solid Fuel (Neuerungen an Feuerungsanlagen fur feste Brennstoffe). —. Pradel. “ Feuerungstechn.,” Apr. 1, pp. 157-62; illus. Heating Experiments with Gas Coke and Pit Coke for Low-Pressure Hot Water Radiators (Ueber Heizver- suche mit Gaskoks und Zechenkoks an einer Nieder- druckwarmwasserheizung). —.Otto. “ J. Gasbel.,” Apr. 3, pp. 166-69. Valve Gear for Internal Combustion Engines (Die Steuerungen der Verbrennungskraftmaschinen). J. Magg. Berlin, 1914: J.. Springer. 16 mk. Venting Boilers (Kesselluftung). —. Hauck. “ Wiener Dampfk. Z.,” Feb., pp. 21-2. (Simple device for venting boilers of Lancashire type, applicable to other types of boiler.) Boiler Explosions in Germany during 1913 (Die Dampf- kesselexplosionen im Deutschen Reich wahrend des Jahres 1913). “ Wiener Dampfk. Z .,” Feb., pp. 19-21; Mar., pp. 31-3; illus. Boiler Explosion in Brux (Die Dampfkesselexplosionen im Brux). —. Riemann. “ Wiener Dampfk. Z.,” Feb., pp. 11-18. (Serious boiler explosion at Prinz- Eugen Colliery, Dec. 21, 1914.) XXVI.—Compressed Air. A Turbine-driven Reciprocating Air Compressor. “ Iron Coal Tr. Rev.,” Apr. 23, p. 570; 1 fig. The Scott Air Compressor. “ Colliery Guard.,” Mar. 26, p. 649; 5 fig. XXVII.—Electricity. Trailing Cables for Colliery Work. J. Bentham. “ Iron Coal Tr. Rev.,” Alar. 26, p. 443. (Paper read before Assoc. Alin. Elect. Engin.) Hydro-Electric Plant of the Cerro de Pasco Alining Company, Peru. G. Hartmann. “ Min. Eng. Wld.,” Apr. 3, p. 627; 9 fig. Electrification of the Small Aline. F. J. Foley. “ Coal Age,” Apr. 3, p. 575; 4 fig. The Control of Alotors for Industrial Work. F. Walker. “ Beama Journ.,” Apr., p. 99; 22 fig. Detecting Transformer Losses by Time Meters (Ueber- wachung der Transformatorverluste durch Zeitzahler). —. Thierbach. “ E. T. Z.,” Alar. 18, p. 121; l'us. Indicator Diagrams of Polyphase Series Alotors (Einige Diagramme zum Mehrphasen-Reihenschlussmotor). —. Moser. “El. u. Musch.,” Feb. 28, pp. 101-4; illus. Method of Obtaining Sinoidal Tension Curves in Alono- and Polyphase Alternating Current Dynamos (Ver- fahren zur Erlangung sinusformiger Spannungs- kurven bei ein- und mehrphasigen Wechselstrom- dvnamos). —. Seeman. “ E. T. Z.,” Mar. 4, pp. 97-9; illus. Electrical Resistance to Penetration of Liquid, Semi- Solid, and Solid Insulating Materials in Relation to Pressure (Die elektrische Durchschlagfestigkeit von flussigen, halbfesten und festen Isolierstoffen in Abhangigkeit vom Druck). —. Koch. “ E. T. Z.,” Mar. 4, pp. 99-102; illus. (Influence of periodicity and the form of the tension curve on penetrability.) XXVIII.—Surface Transport. The Influence of Discharging Appliances on the Design of Large Ore Carriers. J. Reid. “ Engineering,” Mar. 26, p. 349; 10 fig. (Paper read before Inst. Nav. Archit.) Locomotive Coaling Plant at Camden Town. “Engi- neer,” Apr. 2, p. 344; 4 fig. Aerial Ropeways: IV. “Engineer,” Apr. 9, p. 352; 11 fig. V., Apr. 16, p. 375; 12 fig. Unloading Plant in Brazil 1,000 Miles Inland. “ Alin. Eng. Wld.,” Apr. 3, p. 633; 3 fig. The Jeffrey Wagon Loaders. “ Colliery Guard.,” Apr. 16, p. 809; 4 fig. Automatic Coal Handling Plant. “ Colliery Guard.,” Apr. 1, p. 702; 6 fig. The Largest Coal Shipping Dock on the Atlantic Coast. “ Rly. Gaz.,” Apr. 16, p. 406; 3 fig. (New pier at Lambert’s Point, Norfolk, Va. Cap., 90 tons of coal . per min.) A Successful Box Car Loader. “ Coal Age,” Apr. 3, p. 590; 2 fig. (Steel apron and belt maniere loaders.) New Types of Loading Appliances (Verladebrucken neuer Bauart). —. Feigl. “Z.D.Ing.,” Mar. 6, pp. 199-304. (Petravic loading bridge with triangular girders and rider type of under-carriage for swing crane.) Cable Cranes and Aerial Ropeways (Kabelkrane und Luftseilbahnen). —. Buhle. “ Ann. Glaser.,” Apr. 1, pp. 125-29; illus. XXIX. —Sanitation, Diseases, etc. River Pollution in Colliery Districts. “ Colliery Guard.,” Apr. 9, p. 752; Apr. 16, p. 820. (Report of Royal Com. Sewage Disposal.) Welfare Work at Glen White. “ Coll. Engin.,” Apr., p. 473; 4 fig. An American Report on Pit Head Baths. “ Colliery Guard.,” Mar. 26, p. 650. Healthy Atmospheres. Leonard Hill. “Nature,” Apr. 22, p. 205; 3 fig. XXX. —Mining Laws, Royalties. Workmen’s Insurance in Germany (Die Arbeiterver- sicherung des Deutschen Reiches). —. Kieslinger. “ Oest. Z.,” Dec. 26, pp. 755-58. Contribution’ to the History of Mining (Beitrage zur Geschichte des Bergbaues). —. Lowag. “ Mont. Rdsch.,” Alar. 16, pp. 173-78. (The chief provisions of the Austrian Mining Law of Alay 23, 1854.) COAL, IRON AND ENGINEERING COMPANIES. REPORTS AND DIVIDENDS. Alabama Coal, Iron, Land and Colonisation Company Limited.—The report for the year ended December 31, 1914, states that out of remittances there was credited to profit and loss account £207 in respect of the 37 Alabama 8 per cent, gold State bonds of 1870 acquired by this company. The balance, £10,368, appears to credit of land realisation account, and 70 per cent, of that amount (£7,258) was trans- ferred to the bondholders’ sinking fund. Out of the last mentioned fund two coupons, Nos. 96 and 97, upon all the instalment certificates issued by this company were declared payable, leaving a balance of £52 to be carried forward. The company has acquired 6,925 of the 7,384 issued instalment certificates in pursuance of the plan approved bv the share- holders on January 18, 1912, and the sum of £6,925 has been transferred from the bondholders’ sinking fund to land realisation account in respect of the coupons paid during the year on the instalment certificates so acquired. The land realisation account shows a credit balance of £11,056, which, added to £1,721 standing to credit of profit and loss account, makes a total of £12,777, out of which the board recom- mends the distribution of Is. 3d. per share, free of income- tax, on the 184,608 issued shares, leaving a balance of £1,239 to be carried forward. Armstrong (Sir W. G.), Whitworth and Company Limited. — The directors recommend a final dividend of Is. fid. per share, making 12J per cent, for the past year, and carrying forward about £334,000. Mr. J. M. Falkner has been appointed vice-chairman. Dominion Steel Corporation Limited.—Dividend (No. 13) at the rate of 1£ per cent, on the preference shares, payable on May 1. Irtysh Corporation Limited.—A summary of the work up to March 12, 1915, states that the development of the coal mine has up to now been carried out by hand labour. The installation of an air compressor and mechanical coal cutters, now on the way, will very materially increase the present output. For locating the intended large operating shafts, drilling by bores is being undertaken, and with the arrival of more powerful drilling machines in the summer, this work will be greatly expedited. Meanwhile, a sufficient provision of screening plant is being made at the present shaft for this and next season’s coal production. Preliminary tests on a la