January 21, 1916. THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN. 133 making industry its application has been highly satis- factory, and its use has resulted in great economies. As applied to boiler and metal furnace firing, it has, how- ever, met with little success, owing partly to want of experience in its use, and partly to the cost of grinding and handling the powdered coal. Its absolute heat value when determined for coal No. 6, Table I., is as follows :—Cost of coal, 180d.; cost of grinding and blow- ing in the coal, 46d.; labour, 30d.; repairs to plant and renewals, 4-5d.; interest on capital, 6d.; total, 266-fld. Hence the absolute heat value is 107,300. Table No. VIII. shows the absolute heat values of all the, fuels considered tabulated in their present order of magnitude. It should not be imagined that the figures will determine the most economical fuel to use in any given operation, as it is possible to utilise in some cases more of the available heat from one fuel than from another. Thus, by using producer gas for furnace heating it is possible to use efficient regenerators, and thus recover a large proportion of the heat usually passed up the chimneys. As the saving in heat thus made possible is sometimes very great, the difference in the heat values of producer gas and small coal may- be so far overcome as to make it economical to use the former. Again, -while coal gas is shown to be highly uneconomical, it may be used for small operations with the utmost success, as the time and trouble saved in starting up, say, a tool hardening furnace heated by gas,' more than counter-balances the increased cost of the fuel. Table VIII. Absolute heat value. Fuel. 1915. ■1913. Coke breeze and briquettes 200,000 ... ... 215,700 Coke breeze (screened) 157,400 ... ... 232,900 Pit heap coal 136,000 ... ... 140,000 Washed small coal 126,000 ... ... 175,000 Screened steam coal 110,700 ... ... 161,000 Producer gas (hot) 110,660 ... ... 160,000 Coal powder 107,300 ... ... — Foundry coke 70,000 ... ... 140,600 Oil fuel 29,000 ... ... 41,000 Town gas 27,000 ... ... 30,000 SAFETY LAMPS IN MINES. Part II. of the General Beport on Mines and Quarries for 1914 gives the following particulars respecting the safety lamps used in the various inspection divisions :— SOME RECENT DECISIONS UNDER THE WORKMEN’S COMPENSATION ACT. Contract as to Provisioning. The House of Lords has heard an action (Parker v. Owners of the s.s. “ Black Bock ”) which raised .an interesting point. Deceased was a fireman on a coasting steamer, and was drowned whilst going ashore to procure food. It appeared that instead of provisioning the ship, the owners had struck out the Board of Trade scale and inserted terms whereby the crew were bound to find their own provisions. In his judgment, Lord Loreburn said that in this case one could not say that this unfortunate man had promised his employers that he would feed himself. If that was the case, and if they could not so construe the contract between them, what did it matter whether the man went ashore because he contracted that his employers should not be obliged to feed him, or because he was obliged to go or to starve? In either case he was concerned to get fed, but that, he (Lord Loreburn) thought, would not entitle him to succeed. He could not find from the facts that the aci- dent arose out of the employment. It arose from the need to have food, which was, of course, a necessity to all con- cerned. Under these circumstances, the .appeal must be dismissed. Lord Wrenbury, in the course of his judgment, said the man must show that it was his employment which took him to the place of the accident. There was no contractual obli- gation that the man was to supply his own provisions, the only thing done being that the master of the ship .was dis- charged from the obligation which would otherwise have rested on him. No doubt the master was bound to. give the man reasonable facilities for going to buy food, but it did not follow that when he was buying it he was carrying out a duty to his employer. Doctors as Witnesses. At the Stoke County Court, before his Honour Judge Buegg, K.C., Henry Henshall Oliver, a colliery loader, applied for compensation in respect of an accident which was alleged to have occurred on January 19 last year, while the applicant was at work in the Bassey Mine Pit, Great Fenton. The respondents were the Stafford Coal and Iron Company Limited. According , to the counsel for the applicant, the latter strained himself, causing internal injuries,. while he was loa’ding a wagon with ironstone. The accident had resulted in total incapacity for an uncertain period. The defendant said he remembered feeling ill. He had had heart attacks before, and they left him very weak. Dr. Shufflebotham said the defendant could not refer to any particular incident as having strained his heart. Witness was of opinion that he suffered from valvular trouble, and that it had been going on for a considerable time.. His Honour remarked that it was no good saying that the man was very ill before. It was a fact that he was doing particular work at that particular moment when, he felt obliged to leave. In the course of further observations, his Honour said he wished to refer to another matter of which he had spoken before. It was not part of a doctor’s duty to extract information from a man other than to make such- enquiries as were necessary to enable him to ascertain what was probably the matter, and to form an opinion on the condition of the person examined. It was not part of a medical man’s duty to obtain any evidence of fact which might be used for or against a man if perchance a trial resulted. In the case before him there would be judgment for the applicant. Voluntary Disuse of Limb. Sheriff Umpherston has issued in Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court a decision in an action, in which the Wemyss Coal Company Limited sought to reduce the compensation of a stone miner on the ground that his condition was not wholly due to the accident, but to his voluntary disuse of the injured limb wilfully practised against medical advice. His lordship found that the claimant was still totally incapacitated, and that his limb was in a worse condition that it was in 1912, but that was due to atrophy of the bones and wasting of the muscles, the cause of which was the disuse of the limb, and persistent and wilful refusal to carry out instruc- tions given to him by all the doctors who had examined him. He gave judgment for the employers. Illegitimate Children. At Wrexham, his Honour Judge Moss awarded full com- pensation in respect of two illegitimate children, whose mother had lived with a collier killed at the Westminster Colliery, after her husband had been placed in an asylum owing to insanity. Trade Union and Injured Applicant for Membership. The dictum of a trade union declining to admit to member- ship a man who had lost his leg, led to a difficult position before Judge- Thomas at the Liverpool County ' Court. The man had received compensation, but this had been stopped, the employers contending that if fitted with a wooden leg, which they were prepared to supply, the man could do his work, at his former wages, at-a flat circular saw bench. They had offered him such work, which he had declined. The union had declined to admit him to member- ship as he was not fit, having only one .leg, for sawmill work. The employers were not prepared to employ a non-union man, consequently the offer of work was conditional on his being able to become a member of the union. His Honour said the man’s earning capacity was a ques- tion of extent after he had tried the artificial leg. The action of the trade union could not decide a point of law. The case was adjourned, the respondents to continue to pay compensation in the meantime, and to provide the applicant with a wooden leg. Number of Safety Lamps in Use in the Various Inspection Divisions during the Year 1914. Flame safety lamps. Electric safety lamps. Method of locking. Method of lighting. Kind of illuminant. Method of locking. Division. Total num] in use. j Lead | rivet. | Magnetic. Screw. Other. By elec- tricity. Otherwise. | 1 Colza or colza and petroleum. Petroleum. Volatile spirit. Other | illuminant. 1 Total num in use. Lead rivet. Magnetic. Screw. Other. Scotland 32,284 14,415 15,010 2,545 314 20,649 11,635 5,002 4,365 17,944 4,973 3,365 290 3,047 4 24 Northern 117,773 40,645 64,804 12,301 23 68,588 49,185 89,203 11,529 5,431 11,610 6,987 4,510 2,469 8 York & N. Midland Lancashire, North 185,179 105,534 68,319 11,276 50 90,775 94,404 85,846 23,949 37,657 37,727 38,035 5,516 32,443 — 76 Wales, and Ireland 103,242 84,081 19,130 6 25 39,693 63,549 47,009 11.670 22,942 21,621 2,398 1,532 1,195 851 15 South Wales 167,446 76,703 76,850 5,216 8,677 102,373 65,073 95,383 1,033 3,970 67,060 23,066 1,856 21,866 1,096 5 Midland & Southern 73,648 45,964 24,583 2,927 174 53,607 20,041 24,907 9,223 28,301 11,217 744 — 16 Total in 1914 679,572 367,342 268,696 34,271 9,263 375,685 303,887 347,350 — 61,769 116,245 154,208 75,707 13,787 61,772 4 144 Total in 1913 740,001 405,381 260,101 60,730 13,789 350,150 389,851 490,429 58,135 122,681 68,756 37,823 14,604 22,756 249 214 Canada. The 679,572 flame safety lamps in use comprised :— Davy, 1,049; Clanny, 193,521; Mueseler, 72,044; Marsaut, 395,139; Wolf, 17,593; and Hepplewhite Gray, 226; and the 75,707 electric safety lamps : Bristol, 68; Ceag, 44,866; Float, 136; Gray-Sussmann, 8,556; Joel- Fors, 491; Oldham, 14,643; Thomson-Bothwell, 10; Varta, 42; and Wolf, 6,895. INDIAN AND COLONIAL NOTES. India. Important changes have taken place since the Jharia coal field has been developed, and by a territorial re-distribution made in 1912, the Baneegunge and Manbhum districts are no longer in the same provinces. In these circumstances, it is now proposed to revive a scheme for the formation of a sepal ate coal fields district, with headquarters at Asansol. By-Product Coking in India.—From the records of the Geological Survey of India, 1915, it appears that by-product recovery ovens exist at Giridih and Burrakur—the one instal- lation consisting of 30 ovens set up by the East Indian Bail- way, and the other of 34 -at Burrakur, in each case built by the Simon-Carves Company. It is mentioned that the Giridih plant yields 40,000 tons of coke annually; that the tar is of excellent quality, and finds a ready sale in Calcutta; and that the sulphate yield of 360 to 400 tons is exported to Java and the Straits Settlements. Sulphuric acid made from imported sulphur is manufactured at Konnagar, near Calcutta. At Burrakur, coke used formerly to be made in the open beehive type of kilns, but is now produced by a battery of 34 Simon- Carves by-product recovery ovens, to which another battery of the same size will shortly be added, after which the monthly out-turn is expected to be about 8,000 tons of coke. At present only coal, tar is recovered, but a plant for the manufacture of sulphuric acid is in course of installation, so that the acid may be used for the recovery also of sulphate of ammonia.. In a recent address to the Mining and Geological Institute of India, Dr. H. H. Hayden deplored the absence of native sulphur, as it prevented the manufacture of sulphuric acid at a reasonably cheap rate, and thus made it difficult to recover sulphate of ammonia at a cost sufficiently low to compete with the imported article. It is also stated that much of the coal obtained in India is of good coking quality, and that the same may be said of the tertiary coals of North-East Assam; and in this relationship there is an allusion to the idea of mixing coking and non-coking coals, as yielding, sometimes, not only a better class coke, but also more by-products. Africa. South African Coal Trade.—As is usual with the approach of summer, the number of tons of coal sold during September registered a decline in nearly all the provinces of South Africa. The only exception was Natal, where the output is principally disposed of for steam and bunkering purposes. The total tonnage sold in the Transvaal, Natal, Orange Free State, and the Cape Province was, in September, 725,100 tons, as compared with 761,985 tons in August, a decline of 36,885 tons. .The average pit-top selling price was the same, however, for the two months, namely, 5s. Id. per ton. The Transvaal province leads the way in the output of coal, being as a rule quite double that of the other three provinces. The total number of tons or saleable coal produced in the Transvaal during September was 448,285, whilst the average pit-top price was 4s. 4d. per ton. More than three-fourths of the total Transvaal output now comes from the Middelburg district, the Springs-Brakpan field having only three pro- ducing collieries, as against 16 in the Middelburg district. The Natal output showed a marked improvement and attained a higher figure than during any month since the outbreak of the war. The total tons sold reached 213,026 tons, with an average pit-top price of 6s. 7d. per ton. This output was obtained from 22 collieries. It may be mentioned that now that the export of Welsh coal is prohibited, the Natal collieries are seeking to obtain an outlet for Natal coal in South America. A sample cargo has been already dispatched to Buenos Ayres, but' it remains to be seen whether Natal coal will be able to compete with Australian and American coals in that market. In the Orange Free State the September results do not show much change when compared with previous months, the saleable output of the five collieries being 59,591 tons for an average pit-top price of 5s. 2d. The same may be said of the collieries in the Cape province, where, in September, eight producing mines only sold 4,198 tons—at, however, the high average pit-top price of Ils. 5d. per ton. Australia. Mining Leases. — The Minister of Mines, Queensland, intends to enforce, as far as practicable, the carrying out of the mining conditions of leases. He finds that in various parts of the States large areas are held up even without exemption. The Minister emphasises the fact that the development of the Bowen coal field will have an important bearing on the future of Cloncurry, especially if the coal prove to be serviceable for the making of coke. Cloncurry is said to be one of the biggest mineral fields in the world, and to extend for some hundreds of miles. Coal Production in 1914.—The preliminary report of the mineral production of Canada in 1914 has recently been issued. It shows that the total value of the minerals produced was 128,475,499 dols., or a decrease of 17,159,313 dols. as com- pared with 1913. The total production of marketable coal comprising sales and shipments, colliery consumption, and coal used in making coke or otherwise used by the colliery operators, was 13,594,984 short tons, valued at 33,433,108 dols., as against 15,012,178 tons, valued at 37,334,940 dols., in 1913, showing a decrease of 1,417,194 tons, or 9-4 per cent, in quantity and of .3,901,832 dols., or 10*4 per cent, in total value. The following shows the production of the various provinces :— 1913. '1911. Province. Nova Scotia ... Brit. Columbia Alberta ....... Saskatchewan... New Brunswick Yukon ......... Tons. Value. Dols. 7,980,073...17,812,663 .. 2,714,420... 8,482,562 .. 4.014,755 . 10,418,941 212,897... 358,192 .. 70.311.. . 166,637 19.722.. . 95,945 Tons. Value. Dols. 7.338.790.. .16.381.228 2.238.339.. . 6,994,810 3.667.816.. . 9,367,602 232/41... 375.4*8 104,055 .. 260,270 13,443... 53,760 Total ..... 15,012,178...37,334,940...13,594,984...33,433,108 The exports of coal in 1914 were 1,423,126 tons, valued at 3,880,175 dols., as compared with the exports of 1,562,020 tons, valued at 3,961,351 dols., in 1913, a falling off of 138,894 tons, or 8-89 per cent. Imports of coal during the year included bituminous, round and run of mine, 7,776,415 tons, valued at 14,954,321 dols., or an average of 1-92 dols. per ton; bituminous slack, 2,509,632 tons, valued at 3,605,253 dols., or an average of 1*43dols. per ton; and anthracite, 4,435,010 tons, valued at 21,241,924 dols., or an average of 4-79 dols. per ton; or a total of 14,721,057 tons, valued at 39,801,498 dols. The imports in 1913 were bituminous, round and run of mine, 10,743,473 tons, valued at 21,756,658 dols. ; bitu- minous slack, 2,816,423 tons, valued at 4,157,622 dols.; and anthracite, 4,642,057 tons, valued . at 22,034,839 dols. ; or a total of 18,201,953 tons, valued at 47,949,119 dols.. The apparent consumption of coal during the year was 26,809,778 tons, as against a consumption of 31,582,545 tons in 1913. Of the consumption in 1914, about 45-4 per cent, was from Canadian mines, and 54-6 per cent, imported. The total output of oven coke during 1914 was 1,015,253 tons of 2,0001b. made from 1,533,365 tons of coal, of which 1,030,053 tons were mined in Canada, and 503,312 tons were imported. The total quantity of coke sold, or used by the producers during the year was 1,019,082 tons, valued at 3,634,511 dols. In 1913 the total output was 1,517,133 tons, and the quantity sold or used by the producers 1,530,499 tons, valued at 5,919,596 dols. The output by provinces in 1914 was:— Nova Scotia, 345,880 tons; Ontario, 377,514 tons; Alberta, 28,541 tons; and British Columba, 263,318 tons. The pro- duction from Ontario was entirely from imported coal. By-products from coke ovens during'the year included 8,572 tons of’ammonia sulphate, 5,714,172 gals, of tar, and 3,201,097 thousand feet of gas. The only coke ovens operated during the year were those at Sydney, Sydney Mines, and West- ville, Nova Scotia; Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario; Coleman, Alberta; and Fernie, Michel, and Hosmer, British Columbia. At the end of the year there were 797 ovens in operation, and 2,297 idle.