1276

THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN.

June 18, 1915.

termed “ bastard cannel.” These were fine-grained,
dull, coal-like rocks, with no definite cleavage, and
much like cannel coal in appearance. They were not so
gaseous. As they occasionally contained fossils, they
were , supposed to consist of fine vegetable detrital
matter mixed with equally fine mud, which had accu-
mulated in quiet water during periods of denudation.

Considering the coal measure massif as a whole, he,
at first on purely lithological grounds, and afterwards
for palaeontological reasons also, divided it into an upper
series of sandstones, binds and coals, and a lower series
of shales, binds and coals. On palaeontological grounds,
he regarded the deeper-seated shales and binds, with
thin sandstones, as equivalents of the Vobster, Ashton
and Bedminster series in the Bristol and Radstock dis-
tricts. This system of shales and binds was clearly
present at the' base of the coal measure massif in the
borings of Ripple, Oxney, Walmestone, Woodnes-
borough, Goodnestone, Barfreston, and Maydensole. It
was not so evident at Mattice Hill. If he was correct
in assigning these shales and binds to the faunistic
level of the upper part of the lower series of coal
measures of Somerset, then the probabilities were very
great that the measures were in the main regularly
bedded upon the limestone. Probably these lower beds
successively overlapped each other upon the limestone,
from the south-west to the north-east, as there was an
entire absence of shales containing Lingula mytiloides,
Orbiculoidea nitida, Productus scabriculus, and P.longi-
spinus at Mattice Hill, whilst these beds were present
in more southern borings. In no known case up to the
present did these lower measures exceed 700 ft. in
thickness.

The lower shales and binds were not reached in the
boring at Stonehall, although the coal measures were
penetrated to a depth of 3,470 ft., and as the limestone
floor at the point could not be much deeper (if at all)
than 3,700 ft., it was highly improbable that the whole
of the lower measures were anywhere present. The
proximity of the limestone floor to the base of the coal
measures also disposed of any question of -the millstone
grit being present in this or any part of the coal field.

Probably the depth of the limestone at Oxney
(3,564 ft.) was near the maximum depth reached by the
upper surface of the carboniferous limestone trough
between the axis of Ebbsfleet on the north and the axis
of Torques on the south. If one considered the predicted
depth of the carboniferous limestone floor, and the
depth of the proved coal measures in the south and west
of the Kent coal field, it appeared clear that little or no
millstone grit could be present, and it was reasonably
certain that the base of the coal measure massif agreed
pretty closely with the plane of the carboniferous lime-
stone floor.

There was no evidence obtainable at present of the
lower shales and binds to the north and west, in which
direction the dip-slope of the carboniferous limestone
floor appeared to be dying out.

Lying upon the lower shales and binds occurred a
thick series of binds and sandstones, which reached
their maximum development in the Stonehall boring.
All the measures in that boring belonged to this series.

The micaceous felspathic sandstones were grey, and
bore a close resemblance to Pennant grits. Like the
latter, they contained occasional thin beds of coarse con-
glomerate and numerous coal streaks, fragments of
woody tissue and blebs of coal. Towards the south the
beds of sandstone were numerous, and rarely exceeded
100 ft. in thickness. In the centre of the area, as at
Barfreston, Goodnestone, Bourne, and Trapham, they
became much thicker and fewer in number; in several
borings beds occurred aggregating a thickness of over
300 ft. The intervening sandy binds occasionally passed
into raggy sandstones. The general character of these
sandstones was undoubtedly that of the Pennant grit,
although the numerous binds intercalated with them
possessed a fauna more comparable to the Farrington or
second series of coal measures above the Pennant grits
of the Somersetshire coal field. The presence of Pennant
grits, accompanied by a fauna elsewhere found at a
higher level, caused him to regard this series of upper
sandstones and binds as in the main a Pennant-Farring-
ton series, although it was possible that representatives
of a still higher faunal level than the Farrington might
be found at the top of this series when better oppor-
tunities for examination were available. His examina-
tion and study of the coal measure massif had led him
to conclude that it was wholly made up of a lower series
of shales and binds, forming a portion only of the upper
part of coal measures equivalent to the Vobster, Ashton
and Bedminster series of the Bristol and Somerset coal
field, and of an upper series of sandstones and binds
which were equivalents lithologically of the Pennant
grit section, and palaeontologically of the Farrington’
series, which lay above the Pennant grit series in the
Somerset coal field. The fact that the coal measures
followed the general trend of the carboniferous lime-
stone floor, and rose steadily to the north-east at
Mattice Hill and Ebbsfleet, determined that the anti-
cline in the latter neighbourhood was post-carboni-
ferous, a fact which had been previously determined on
other grounds.

Dr. Strahan, in his presidential address to the Geo-
logical Society in 1913, from a study of considerations
wholly different, concluded that the upper surface of the
coal measure massif was not exposed to sub-aerial denu-
dation agents, but suffered successive planings by
marine erosive agents, so that no clue could be obtained
from it of the strike of the measures or evidence of
characteristic sculpture. This conclusion was distinctly
confirmed by the upper surface of the plaster model of
the coal measure massif; it showed what was evidently
a decided plane of marine erosion, worn here and there
into a few hollows and rolls, but nowhere rising much
above or descending much below the 1,000 ft. Datum
line.

(To be concluded.)

MINING INSTITUTE OF SCOTLAND.

A general meeting of the Mining Institute of Scotland
was held in the Heriot-Watt College, Edinburgh, on
Saturday last. Mr. D. M. Mowat, president of the
institute, occupied the chair, and there was a represen-
tative attendance.

At the outset the following were admitted to member-
ship :—Messrs. Robert Allan, colliery manager, Silim-
papon, British North Borneo; James Andrews, colliery
manager, Rutherglen; C. M. Annan, colliery manager,
Wishaw; Alexander Dewar, colliery manager, Broom-
house; Alexander Gillespie, colliery manager, Broom-
house; John W. Leask, mining engineer, Lugar;
Thomas Lucas, mining engineer, Greengairs; Michael
McCormack, instructor, Central Rescue Station, Heriot-
Watt. College, Edinburgh; William McLaughton, col-
liery manager, Sanquhar; James Miller, colliery
manager, Auchinleck, Ayrshire; Robert Nisbet, colliery
manager, Cumnock; James M. Sealley, colliery
manager, Kenmuirhill Colliery, Mount Vernon; John
Scott, colliery oversman, Dykehead Colliery, Larkhall;
and James Veitch, colliery manager, Carmyle.

Fallen in Action.

The President said he had to record the death, since
the last meeting of the institute, of two of their
members, who were on active service in France. These
were:—Lieut. Campbell King, 18th Hussars; and
Pte. John Wilson, Airdrie. In addition, a gentleman
in whom they were all very much interested, even
although he was not a member of their institute, Lieut.-
Col. C. L. Robinson, the chief inspector of mines for the
Scotland Division, had also been killed in France.
Lieut.-Col. Robinson joined his old regiment, 1st Mon-
mouthshire (T.F.), and they had been assured that his
services, because of his mining experience and his
ability to handle explosives, had been of the greatest
value in destroying German positions. He would ask
the secretary to record their appreciation of the devotion
to King and country shown by these three soldiers, and
he proposed that an excerpt from the minutes should
be forwarded to the sorrowing relatives.

The motion was carried in silence, the members
standing in their places.

Representatives to the Institution.

The following gentlemen were unanimously appointed
to represent the institute on the council of the Institu-
tion of Mining Engineers for the year 1915-16 :—
Messrs. J. T. Forgie, Bothwell; W. M. Mowat, Coat-
bridge; Robert McLaren, Airdrie; Jas. Hamilton,
Glasgow; James Bain, Alloa; James Barrowman,
Hamilton; C. Augustus Carlow, Leven; Robert W.
Dron, Glasgow; James Gilchrist, Cambuslang; Charles
Latham, the University, Glasgow; Harry W. Lewin,
Glasgow; Wm. Williamson, Hamilton; Wm. McCreath,
Glasgow; James Nisbet, Coatbridge; Wm. Smith, Dal-
mellington; and J. Balfour Sneddon, Mid-Caldcr.

Mining Training and Education.

Discussion was afterwards resumed on the papers :—
“ The Training of Mining Engineers,” by Mr. Robert
W. Dron, Glasgow; and “ Some Notes on the Educa-
tion of the Colliery Manager,” by Mr. John Gibson,
Kilmarnock.

Mr. John Sim, Edinburgh, said he could not allow the
opportunity to pass without taking exception to the
statement made by Mr. Gibson that “ the value of the
B.Sc. degree is futile.” That was a curious and, in
point of fact, an amazing statement. It struck at the
root principle of the application of the sciences ■ to
industry, which was becoming, in the 20th century, a
recognised necessity.

The President observed that there was a great
deal to be said for dealing with the two papers under
discussion simultaneously, because, after all, the dis-
tinction between a mining engineer and a colliery
manager was rather fine. He should say that a mining
engineer should be fit to be a colliery manager, and that
a colliery manager should be a mining engineer. The
difference was more apparent than real, and was only a
question of grade. In considering the training of a
mining man, it was to be kept in view that his sur-
roundings during his work underground were unique.
In many trades • and professions conditions were very
much as they were made by the operator, but in mining
they had to -deal with the conditions existing in the
bowels of the earth, over which they could only exercise
a very slight ■ control. This difference from most other
professions was one which should have full considera-
tion in the training of a mining man. He should begin
to get acquainted with these conditions at a compara-
tively early age. It was almost essential that a learner
should acquire a knowledge and familiarity with the
moods and dangers of his surroundings before he
reached manhood, as it was very difficult to secure the
necessary familiarity at a maturer age. In this respect
there was a great difference between the professions of
a mining and a civil engineer. The latter should pro-
bably, in most cases, undergo a thorough scientific and
technical training before beginning the practical work of
his profession, while if this were done in the case of a

mining engineer the results would most probably be
unsatisfactory. The goal which a student of mining
should have before him was not the attainment of a
colliery manager’s certificate. What a student should
aim at was to become a successful mining engineer.
What, it might be asked, was a successful mining
engineer? He was a person who, by education, experi-
ence and tact,, was fitted to deal with a mining problem,
so that the best,results in safety, efficiency and profit
might be achieved. Personally, he believed it was
possible for the humblest student in these days to thus
qualify himself. In the case of a boy who must go to
work when he leaves school at the age of 14 years, he
ought to attend a continuation school until he was
17, after which he could take a course in mining engi-
neering at an evening technical school for four or five
years. During that time a student of this class had
plenty of leisure, and should be easily able to qualify
himself for the colliery managers’ examination. He
had usually ample opportunities, if he so desired, of
getting a variety of underground experience. In the
case of the apprentice mining engineer, he should, as
Mr. Dron suggested in his paper, begin his apprentice-
ship when he was about 16 or 17 years of age, having,
if possible, obtained his intermediate certificate.
During his apprenticeship he could attend evening
classes, although he was not generally so well situated
in this respect as a youth who was engaged in the mine.
After his apprenticeship ^vas completed, and while ho
was about 22 or 23 years of age, he had still time to get
two years’ practical experience before he was 25 years
old—the age when he might undertake the manage-
ment of a mine. With regard to students who took a
day course of training, he agreed with Mr. Dron that it
should extend over at least four sessions, with practical
work sandwiched in. He thought it was in the interest
of the practical candidate that there should be an oral
examination, carrying with it a fair percentage of
marks. Such an examination was, in his opinion,
more a test of general intelligence than of particular
knowledge of the subject, and most examiners would be
inclined to give full marks to an intelligent practical
candidate. The way ought not, however, to be made
too easy. Students should have sufficient difficulty to
develop their mental fibre. The great assistance which
had been given to industrial students by county coun-
cils, etc., had not, in his opinion, been, an unmixed
advantage.	.

Mr. Wm. Riddell, Bothkennar, remarked that any
tendency to generalise in the education of the mining
engineer or the colliery manager would be a mistake.
He felt, too, that was the opinion w.hch appeared to be
held by the authors of the respective papers under dis-
cussion. It seemed to him that they should obtain
better men, and men more fitted for the work of both
professions, if they encouraged a system of specialising.

The discussion was adjourned till next meeting.

The Rescue Brigade System v. The System of Non-Resident
Brigades.

Mr. Henry Briggs read a paper on “ The Resident
Brigade System versus the System of Non-resident
Brigades.” The following is a summary of his contri-
bution :—

The regulations respecting mine rescue work permit of
rescue stations being organised on two different plans. In
the first of these (which it is convenient to speak of as the
“ old ” system) the station acts as a depot for the
apparatus and the motor-car, and as a training centre for
brigades drawn from the neighbouring collieries; only the
instructor lives at the station. In the other arrangement
(the “ new ” system) the station serves the purposes just
named, and also houses permanently a team of six or eight
trained men.

The writer’s purpose in this paper is to advocate
the old system. Most people agree that breathing apparatus
is dangerous unless the wearer is thoroughly practised in
its use. It has, therefore, been inferred that the more fre-
quently the apparatus is worn the more proficient the
wearer becomes with it. This conclusion may be readily
granted up to a certain point; but it has yet to be proved
that progress is continuous without limit. For one thing,
risks attendant on faulty construction of the apparatus are
not removed by practice. No one, perhaps, wears appa-
ratus oftener than an instructor; yet the death-rate among
instructors has been proportionately very high during the
last few years. It seems to the writer probable that a
certain maximum of proficiency (differing in degree with
different individuals) will be reached by exercise with
apparatus, and that further practice will maintain that
maximum, but only if physical fitness is not allowed to
deteriorate.

According to the instructions issued by the Heine Office
regarding training and practice in rescue work, the same
minimum number of meetings for training (12) are
required under both systems before a man can be accepted
as competent with the apparatus. So far as proficiency
with breathing apparatus is concerned, then the question
resolves itself into, Which is the better way of maintaining
this state of competence : continuing to exercise occasion-
ally with apparatus in a gallery, which the men learn to
know almost as well as the palms of their hands, at tasks
which tend to become dull and stale because they can be
varied so little, as in the new system; or, exercising twice
a year in the gallery and twice a year at the mine with
apparatus, and employing the rest of the time in hard and
active work underground, as in the old system? There can
be little doubt, the writer holds, as to which method best
ensures that the men will be in good physical condition at
a time of emergency; and in few things is fitness more
important than in working with breathing apparatus.

To these arguments the reply could be made that the
members of a resident brigade can be kept in good con-
dition by providing them with plenty to do; but it is a
little difficult to see what work they can be set which will
adequately take the place of continual service below ground.
It is worthy of mention that at Newcastle-upon-Tyne—the
headquarters of the resident brigade system—the station
acts both as a mine rescue station and as a fire station, and
is equipped accordingly. This arrangement certainly has