December 10, 1915. THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN 1187 ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ supply a convoy of motor ambulances for service in Estimated consumption in the United Kingdom. Year. Production. Exports.* 1 Per head Total of population. Million Million Million tons. tons. tons. 1901 219 ... ... 58 .... 161 3'8 1902 227 ... ... 60 .... 167 3'9 1903 230 ... ... 64 .... .. 166 3'9 1904 232 ... ... 66 .... .. 166 3'9 1905 236 ... ... 67 .... 169 3'9 1906 251 ... 77 .... 174 4'0 1907 268 ... ... 85 .... .. 183 4'2 1908 262 ... ... 85 .... 177 4'0 1909 264 ... ... 86 .... 178 4'0 1910 264 ... ... 84 .... 180 4'0 1911 272 ... ... 87 ... 185 4'1 1912 260 ... ... 85 .... 175 3'9 1913 287 ... ... 98 .... 189 41 1914 266 ... ... 80 .... .. 186 4'0 * Including bunker coal and the estimated equivalent in coal of the quantities of coke and manufactured fuel exported. Pit Props. The appended table shows the quantities of pit props or pit wood imported into the United Kingdom from France, Norway and Sweden, Portugal, and Russia, the total imports from all British Possessions, and the total imports in each year from 1901 onwards ;— Imports. S ■‘5 co 075 cS 1 co o m co o a he g co 00 O & g CO TO CO o Er o g S £ s O PR O H 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 loads. loads. loads. loads. loads. loads. 1901 4 . 685 ... 713 ... 149 ... 262 .. 1,880 1902 2 . 667 ... 724 .. 223 ... 279 .. 1,978 1903 — . 683 ... 768 .. 286 ... 498 .. 2,321 1904 — . 699 ... 713 .. 270 ... 561 .. 2,333 1905 — . 717 ... 643 .. 185 ... 477 .. 2,120 1906 0 . 743 ... 732 .. 265 ... 635 .. 2,452 1907 — . 818 ... 666 .. 244 ... 823 .. 2,627 1908 0 . 876 ... 621 .. 278 ... 1,180 .. 3,041 1909 1 . 726 ... 390 .. 345 ... 1,078 .. 2,628 1910 0 . 776 ... 464 .. 338 ... 1,147 .. 2,821 1911 — . 776 ... 467 .. 285 ... 1,286 .. 2,896 1912 . 0 . 838 ... 434 .. 271 ... 1,277 .. 2,926 1913 — . 984 ... 475 .. 316 ... 1,539 .. 3,451 1914 . 6 . 886 ... 440 .. 293 ... 737 .. 2,477 The exports of pit props or pit wood are practically the Census of [Cd. 6320], the nil. According to the tables issued by Production Branch of the Board of Trade total value of the net imports into the United Kingdom in 1907 was 1'3,049,000, whilst the total output of the United Kingdom was valued at £377,000. At the end of 1914 the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries [Cd. 7729] estimated that the United Kingdom holds years’ supply of pit wood. The North of England Mining Institute’s Motor Ambulance. Board of Trade [Cd. 7728], at the same time, instituted an enquiry into the supply of imported pit timber, with special reference to the shortage of supplies from the Baltic on account of the European war. The general effect of the enquiry was to show that plentiful supplies of timber are available in Canada and Newfoundland, and, further, that these supplies could be placed on the market in the United Kingdom at a price, which, having regard to existing conditions, would probably not be regarded as unreasonable. _________________________________ The Pennsylvania State Supreme Court has declared the legislative enactment of 1913 levying a tax of 2J per cent, per gross ton on the value of anthracite coal at the mines, to be unconstitutional. The case reached the Supreme Court on an appeal by the Alden Coal Company against the decision of the Court of Common Pleas of Dauphin County, which declared the Act constitutional. THE CONVOYS OF MOTOR AMBULANCES SUPPLIED BY THE COAL OWNERS AND COAL WORKERS OF GREAT BRITAIN. Comparisons are invariably invidious, but it will, we think, be generally conceded that few, if any other, industry has made such .sacrifices in the national interest during the past 18 months as has the mining industry; and this is specially so as regards the provision of motor equipment for the British Bed Cross Society and the St. John Ambulance Association. The credit for the initiative and the execution of this work belongs almost entirely to the untiring efforts of Lieut. H. Dennis Bayley, of Lenton Abbey, Beeston, Nottinghamshire, a well-known coal owner in the Midlands. Lieut. Dennis Bayley has visited practically all the coal producing districts and made personal appeals for assistance from meetings of the owners, and also of the workers, during the past few months. In the first instance, we believe, the Derbyshire and Notting- hamshire coal owners and miners each voluntarily agreed to supply a convoy of motor ambulances for service in South Africa in 1913 was about 8,000,000 tons; about 1,500,000 tons of this coal were shipped, principally as bunker coal. - - W I n Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Coal Owners’ and Miners’ Ambulances. Flanders. The owners agreed to contribute on the basis of £1 per 1,000 tons on their 1914 output, and the miners 10s. each, at the rate of 6d. per week for 20 weeks. This has been estimated to produce a sum of £35,000 from the Nottinghamshire and Derby owners and a similar amount from the colliery workers in these two counties. The convoy of motor ambulances consists of 50 motor ambulances, four touring cars, three lorries, seven motor cycles, and one field repairing lorry. The estimated cost is about £35,000. Other coal mining districts have already agreed to make subscrip- tions on the same basis, namely Leicestershire, Warwick- shire, Lancashire and Cheshire, Staffordshire, Cumberland, South Derbyshire, Forest of Dean, Northumberland, North Wales, and Shropshire. In other areas also the appeal is under consideration, and it is confidently anticipated that the response will be an entirely unanimous • one throughout the mining districts of Great Britain. If the scheme is carried out in its entirety it is estimated to pro- duce £300,000 to £500,000; and up to now Lieut. Dennis Bayley has been promised more than 300 ambulances, which will cost over £180,000. The first photo- graph shows a section of the Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire coal owners’ and coal miners’ ambulance convoy entering the Buckingham Palace Gates, to be inspected by their Majesties the King and Queen, on October 14 last, whilst the second photo- graph shows the vehicle presented by the North of England Mining Institute. All the vehicles have been built specially to the War Office specification, so as to standardise spare parts, etc., and it is stated that they have proved quite satisfactory after exhaustive tests. The bodies have been built by Messrs. Stareys and Woolleys Limited, of Parliament-street, Nottingham, and they are each mounted on a 20 horse-power Buick one-ton commercial chassis. The body is framed in the best seasoned American ash, with bent hoops and centre body rail, and running boards are in the best all the floor boards and whitewood. Strengthening rails of ash are fitted across the body where stretcher bearer legs are supported. The body is mounted on the chassis with well seasoned ash runners, and secured through the length of the frame with bolts through the runners and chassis frame. It is covered, both inside and out, with the best quality sail-cloth, and all draught is excluded, the sailcloth being carried well over the ends of the framing and underneath the platform, and secured with metal moulding. The side doors are made of waterproof canvas fastened with a tension spring, and made to roll up when not in use, thus taking up the minimum amount of space. A driver’s apron is fitted to the front, and has flaps either side which completely shelter the driver with the exception of his face. This apron is retained in position by straps to hook on to the top of the body, and is so constructed that it may be rolled up when not in use. A strong step is fitted at the rear of the vehicle, and made to fold up so as to form part of the back of the body when not in use. The back is fitted with sailcloth curtain strapped down to each side of the body with raw hide thongs, and made to roll up and strap on the top of the body. The whole of the body and chassis is painted with _______________________________________________ three coats of service green, with the Geneva Cross painted on a white ground on the two sides, back, top, and top of canopy. The whole of the inside is painted white with a leadless paint. The inside dimensions are : —- Length, 8 ft. 2 in.; height, 5 ft. 9 in.; width, 5 ft. 9 in. All the corners have been carefully finished off inside so as to prevent any accumulation of dust, and to facilitate cleaning. Each ambulance is designed to carry four complete stretchers, and all these stretchers are made to fold up on the side of the body, thus providing room for eight sitting-up cases when stretchers are not required. For this purpose, two long padded cushions are fixed on the inside seats. A bandage box is also provided, the top of which is padded so as to furnish a seat for the attendant. By the side of the attendant’s seat is fixed a speaking tube, through the body, so that the attendant may communicate easily with the driver. Long ventilators are placed across the front of the body, and there are also celluloid lights at the fronts and at either side, whilst there is an electric light for use in the roof when necessary. The inside floor boards are covered with linoleum. Thirty of these motor ambulances, forming the first half of the joint gift of a convoy of ambulances, for service at the front, by the Lancashire and Cheshire Coal Owners’ Association and the Lancashire and Cheshire Miners’ Federation, were inspected this week by the Earl of Derby, at the Miners’ Hall, Bolton; and it is expected that, if the state of his health permits, his Majesty the King will inspect the cars at Buckingham Palace later on. The second batch of 30 cars is due for completion early in the New Year. ___________________________ Exports and Imports of Coal Tar Products. — During November there were no imports into the United Kingdom of coal tar dyestuffs. The values of the coal products, not dyes, exported in November and the first 11 months ended therewith were as follow :— November. Jan.-Nov. 1914. 1915. 1914. 1915. Coal products, not dyes— £ £ £ £ Aniline oil & toluidine 6,127.. .. 2,790.. . 42,856.. . 98,560 Anthracene 334. — 1,046.. 1,808 Benzol and toluol 10,013.. . 50,157.. . 173,277.. . 383,574 Carbolic acid 20,576.. . 24,836.. . 122,689.. . 236,173 Coal tar, crude 732. 161.. 8,914.. 3,793 ,, refined & varnish 4,053.. . 4,486.. . 53,214.. . 52,578 Naphtha 1,198.. . 2,871.. . 16,967.. 22,095 Naphthalene 1,371.. . 3,392.. 22,935.. 45,223 Pitch 43,631.. . 24,535.. . 683,786.. . 306.875 Tar oil, creosote, &c... 17,116. . 50,837.. . 496,300.. . 586,772 Other sorts 29,235.. . 14,047.. . 269,294.. . 281,645 Total 134,386.. .178,112.. .1,891,278.. .2,019,096 Coal tar dye stuffs 11,049.. . 24,947.. . 159,386.. . 235,413 The following quantities of the above products were exported in November :—Coal products, not dyes : Aniline oil and toluidine, 72,284 lb.; benzol and toluol, 819,165 gals.; carbolic acid, 11,849 cwt.; coal tar, crude, 1,679 cwt.; ditto, refined and varnish, 192,153 gals.; naphtha, 50,124 gals.; naphthalene, 4,513 cwt.; pitch, 445,062 cwt.; tar oil, creosote, etc., 2,864,726 gals.: other sorts, 27,078 cwt.; coal tar dye- stuffs, 3,041 cwt. The values of sulphate of ammonia exports were as follow :— To— Germany............................ France ....................... Spain and Canaries..... Italy .................. Dutch East Indies ..... Japan .............. United States of America British W. India Islands (including Bahamas) and British Guiana....... Other countries ....... November. _—A— Jan.-Nov. 1914. 1915. 1914. 1915. £ £ £ £ — — .. 43,087. — 782.. . 4,760. .. 26,903. .. 124,998 24,508.. . 58,293. .. 745,768. .. 874,673 5,793.. . 10,370 .. 57,809. .. 87,155 73,844.. .255,174. .. 560,876. .1.241,733 75,887.. . 5,085.. .1,043,735. .. 125.756 26,781.. . 26,345. .. 441,259. .. 205,929 10,770.. . 17,260. .. 117,184 163,332 56,510.. . 82,681. .. 418.623. .. 909,974 Total__________274,875 . 459,968. .3,455,244. .3,733,550 The following were the quantities exported in November :— Erance, 331 tons; Spain and Canaries, 3,934 tons; Italy, 756 tons; Dutch East Indies, 16,851 tons; Japan, 400 tons; United States, 1,751 tons; British West Indies, 1,076 tons; other countries, 5,539 tons—making a total of 30,638 tons, as against 24,952 tons in November 1914. The following quantities have been exported in the first 11 months of the year, the total for the corresponding period of last year being shown in parentheses:—Germany, nil (3,427 tons); France, 9,397 tons (2,238 tons); Spain and Canaries, 64,593 tons (61,467 tons); Italy, 6,638 tons (4,614 tons): Dutch East Indies, 91.697 tons (47,432 tons); Japan, 10,302 (84,843 tons); United States, 15,862 tons (36,820 tons); British West Indies, 11,770 tons (9,908 tons); other countries, 68,261 tons (34,594 tons)—total, 278,520 tons (285,343 tons).