1094

THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN.

June 8, 1917.

THE FREIGHT MARKET.

Outward coal tonnage chartering shows a slightly
improved degree of activity, especially from South Wales,
this week, but the total volume of business done is not
great. On the north-east coast, most of the fixtures
recorded are for French Atlantic ports at 45s. for the car-
riage of coke to the North French Range, with a couple of
neutral vessels fixed for coke transport to Rouen at the
new officially-sanctioned figure of 73s. 3d. Coasting busi-
ness has been done on the basis of 20s., Tyne to London.
The Spanish Mediterranean has been fixed for at the sensa-
tionally high figure of 180s. to Malaga or Cartagena. Port
Said is quoted at 130s. For Scandinavia, fully 200 kr. to
Gothenburg or other good port is mentioned. Portugal is
represented by 95s. to Oporto. At South Wales, also,
French business accounts for the bulk of the chartering,
with 73s. 3d. paid for neutral vessels carrying coke to
Rouen, and with 69s. for such vessels with coal to Bor-
deaux. Horten, a small port near Christiania, has been
fixed for at the very high figure of 230 kr. for a neutral
vessel from Cardiff. From the same port, the River Plate
has been done at 100s. Glasgow to Gibraltar has been
done at 85s. Coal shipments in requisitioned vessels on
official account continue brisk, and are absorbing most of
the production of the collieries.

Homewards, the River Plate is dull, and unaltered from
145s. for up-river and 140s. for down-river loading for the
United Kingdom. At the United States, coal freights from
Virginia to the Plate are unchanged from 120s., whilst the
rate to Rio de Janeiro stands at 28 dols. On Committee
account, heavy grain is still workable at 45s. from Gulf to
West Italy, with 42s. 6d. quoted for France, and 40s. from
the Northern Range to the latter destination. Northern
Range on net form to the United Kingdom is quoted at
180s. At the Far East, Bombay to United Kingdom has
advanced by 20s., being now listed at 320s. Kurrachee to
United Kingdom is steady, at 250s. Calcutta to Genoa
with jute continues to be quoted at 280s. From Madras
Coast to Marseilles-French Atlantic with kernels still
stands at 500s. Saigon with rice to France is quoted at
475s. Mediterranean ore ports are firm, with a fair
enquiry for tonnage.

Tyne to Boulogne, 500, 45s., coke; Calais, 500, 45s.,
coke; Cartagena, 2,800, 180s., June; London, 1,100, 20s.;
Malaga, 3,300, 180s. ; North French Range, 450, 45s., coke;
and Rouen, 1,050, 73s. 3d., coke, neutral.

Cardiff to Bordeaux, 1,200, 34s.; 2,900 and 2,700, 69s.,
neutral; Cherbourg, 1,100 and 1,200, 23s. 6d.; Caen, 700,
24s.; 700, 48s., neutral; 1,200, 47s., coke; Granville, 900
and 980, 48s., neutral; 1,000, 23s.; 980, 46s. 6d., neutral;
Havre, 1,900, ’45s. 9d., neutral; Horten, 1,200, 230 kr.;
River Plate, 4,500, 100s.; Rouen, 1.700 and 1,400, 73s. 3d.,
coke, neutral; 2,250, 24s. 6d.; 500, 25s. 6d.; 1,600, 25s. 3d.,
fuel; 1,800 and 1,700, 48s. 9d., neutral; and Trouville, 800,
24s.

Swansea to Tonnay Charente, 700, 31s. coal, 31s. 9d.
fuel; Dieppe, 800, 48s. 9d., neutral; St. Brieux, 700, 25s.
coal, 25s. 9d. fuel; Treport, 600, tin-plates, free in and out;
and Caen, 1,200, 46s. 6d., neutral.

Hartlepool to Tonnay Charente, 700, 30s., iron ore.

Birkenhead or Liverpool to Barcelona, 4,000, 160s., June.

Port Talbot to Trouville, 700, 48s., neutral.

Glasgow to Gibraltar, 85s., June.

GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS.

Any of the following publications may be obtained
on application at this office at the price named post free.

Statutory Rules and Orders, 1917: No. 459 (Mines: Coal
Mines Act), “ The Explosives in Coal Mines Order of
May 9, 1917,” price Id. net.

PUBLICATIONS RECEIVED.

“ The War and the Nation,” a study in constructive poli-
tics, by W. C. Dampier Whetham, F.R.S. (John Murray,
Albemarle-street, W. 1), price 6s. net; “ The Journal of
State Medicine ” (Vol. 25,' No. 6), June 1917, edited by
W. R. Smith and A. Corbett-Smith, price 2s. net;
“ Industrial Management ” (26th year of The, Engineer-
ing Magazine), edited by John R. Dunlap (Vol. 53,
No. 2), May 1917, price 25c.; “Monthly Bulletin of the
Canadian Mining Institute ” (No. 61), May 1917, edited
by the Secretary ; “ Compressed Air Magazine ” (Vol. 22,
No. 5), May 1917.

United States Bureau of Mines, Department of the
Interior: “Sixth Annual Report by the Director of the
Bureau of Mines to the Secretary of the Interior ” (for
the Fiscal Year ended June 30, 1916); “Monthly State-
ment of Coal Mine Fatalities in the United States,
September 1916,” compiled by A. H. Fay.; “ Monthly
Statement of Coal Mine Fatalities in the United States,
October 1916,” compiled by A. H. Fay; (Miners’ Circular
23), “Elementary First-Aid for the Miner,” by W. A.
Lynott and D. Flarrington; (Technical Paper 132),
“ Underground Latrines for Mines,” by Joseph H.
White; (Technical Paper 142), “Vapour Pressures of
Various Compounds at Low Temperatures,” by G. A.
Burrell and I. W. Robertson; (Technical Paper 164),
“ Accidents at Metallurgical Works in the United States
during the Calendar Year 1915,” compiled by A. H.
Fay/

Erratum. — The third line of Mr. Hanley’s letter on
safety harness in our issue of June 1 (page 1034) should
read “ safety harness (or rigs) were now in common use.”

Coal in New South Wales.—The output of coal during
1916 was 8,127,161 tons, valued at £3,328,419, a decrease
of 1,221,847 tons compared with 1915. . In connection with
the export trade, the shipments during the year amounted
to 2,434,098 tons, as against 4,668,284 tons for 1915, a
decrease of 1,234,296 tons. The quantity of coal shipped
to oversea ports totalled 1,230,439 tons, valued at £727,511,
which was 826,895 tons below that recorded for the pre-
ceding year. The exports to Australasian ports amounted
to 2,203,659 tons, a decrease of 397,411 tons.

Coal Supplies for Our Allies.—Sir Daniel Stevenson pre-
sided at a meeting of the Executive Committee of Great
Britain for the Supply of Coal to France and Italy, which
was held at the Savoy Hotel, Strand, on June 1. Coal
owners, exporters, and ship owners were present from all
parts of the kingdom, together with Mr. R. M. Stewart,
secretary. A report of the recent meetings of the chair-
man’s committee was submitted, and a recommendation to
continue the existing scheme was approved, in view of the
fact that satisfactory arrangements for controlling all
tonnage have now been made on the French side.

ABSTRACTS OF PATENT SPECIFICATIONS
RECENTLY ACCEPTED.

105396. Improved Apparatus for Treating Peat. W. L.
St. J. Prioleau, 1, Trafalgar-square, Chelsea.—According
to this invention, the raw peat is subjected to a mechanical
macerating treatment by means of crushing rolls, those
after the first pair advantageously being supplied with a
heating medium, the crushed material being carried from
one pair of rolls for delivery to the next, located at some
little distance away, by means of a vibrating tray, or trays,
or chute; the trays will be made with perforated bottoms,
through which the free water may pass, thus relieving the
peat mass of some of its water contents before it reaches
.the next pair of rollers; the trays or chutes will be inclined
at such an angle as to cause the progressive forward move-
ment of the peat. The rolls may be serrated either longi-
tudinally or transversely ; for instance, the first pair may
be serrated longitudinally, the second pair with coarse cir-
cumferential grooves, and the third pair with fine circum-
ferential grooves, or the third pair may even have a smooth
surface in certain cases. Fig. 1 shows the general arrange-
ment of the apparatus, a is a source of peat supply, with
the peat in its raw condition, b, b1 indicate the first pair
of rolls supported on the framework /, and a similar frame-
work (not shown) supports the other end of the several
rolls and the other mechanism; the rolls b, b1 are serrated
longitudinally, and will usually not contain heat, as the
peat at this stage is very wet. c, c1 are a second pair of
rolls, having their surfaces serrated, as shown in fig. 2,
with alternative grooves and ridges of coarse character;
and d, d1 are a third pair of rolls having their surfaces
serrated, as shown in fig. 3, with fine grooves and ridges.
These rolls are advantageously supplied with heat from a
steam generator by pipes and glands passing steam through
a hole in their supporting shafts, e is a drying drum or
roller also supplied with steam extending across the length
of the machine, and carrying, with the aid of the forward
roller h and the intermediate roller i, the heavy felt

Ftg 1

blanket or band y, extending across the full width of the
rolls b, 61. This blanket g rotates about the rollers e, h,
so that as the peat falls from the rolls b, b1, it is carried
forward over the end of the roller h, and removed by the
scraper ;, so that it falls upon the second pair of rolls c, c1.
The same action happens with regard to the drying band
k carried by the steam heated drying drum Z, the forward
roller m, and an intermediate roll n, the material being
.carried forward in this case so as to drop on the rolls d, dx
upon removal by the scraper o. Beneath the rolls d, d1 a
press p of ordinary character, but preferably provided
with a filtering mechanism, is provided, and driven by any
suitable power unit represented by the wheel q; the passage
of the material along the travelling blankets g, k removes
the greater part of the moisture from the peat, conse-
quently it is approximately dry on passing from the rolls
d, dx to the press p, and it can be briquetted by pressure,
assisted by the remaining moisture, into briquettes, which,
falling on the conveyor r, will be of such strength that they
can be conveyed away to where they are required, for
instance, to the inlet of the retort where they are being
treated, say, for the extraction of their volatile contents.
The filter press on the briquette press will remove any
surplus moisture not required for the briquetting process.
In case briquettes are only required for fuel, binding
materials may also be added to the peat while passing
through the press p, The freezing process, if such is used,
would be applied before reaching the delivery hopper a,
and, owing to the great temperature difference between the
cold and the heating rolls, a more efficient breaking up
of the cellular structure is attained when it is desired to
remove the moisture more quickly and thoroughly. (Five
claims.)

105711. * Improvements in Bucket Line Excavators. D.
Whitaker, Huntingdon Tower Buildings, Union-street,
Leicester.—The excavator of this invention works on the
ground, and will dig itself down to any required depth.
Referring to the figure, the top soil 1 is removed by the
bucket line excavator 2, and is passed by the bucket line
on to the conveyor 3, from where it is fed behind the
machine, and fills up the hole cut by the bucket line 2,
and the lower bucket line 4, working on the face of the

ore-bearing stratum 5 below the top soil 1. The ore-bear-
ing stratum is cut by the said second bucket line 4, and is
lifted by the bucket line on to the conveyor band 7. Alter-
natively, the lower bucket line can be arranged to feed the
soil cut direct into wagons or a hopper. The machine,
with both bucket lines 2 and 4, is moved laterally along
the rails 9 over the face of the strata being operated upon.
When the face has been cut for a sufficient distance, both
the excavator and the rails carrying it are advanced the
depth of a new cut, and the machine moved back along the
rails in the reverse direction. (Three claims.)

105716. Improvements in Steam Generators. J. Howden
and Company Limited, 195, Scotland-street, Glasgow ; and
J. H. Hume, of the same address.—This invention relates
to improvements in steam generators, more particularly
multi-sectional steam generators such as described in the
specification of Letters Patent Nos. 26330/08, 27449/10,
and 5383/12. As shown in the figure, the improved
generator comprises lower water drums 1 connected to
upper water and steam drums 2 by upright tubes 3 fitted
into tube plates 4 and 5 connected respectively to the drums

1 and 2. The lower drums 1 are mounted above and extend
rearwardly of the grates 6, the upper drums 2 projecting
rearwardly beyond the lower drums so as to afford behind
the tubes 3 of each element a combustion chamber entirely
unobstructed by tubes, and having an imperforate roof
(i.e., devoid of tube orifices) constituted by the rearward
end of the tube plate 5. The rear end of the upper drum
is also rested on a cross girder 7 sustained by vertical
columns 8, whereby the generator element is supported at
its rearward end. To afford increased steam and water
space, the upper drums may advantageously be of three-
quarter circular section, i.e., of the section of a segment of
a circle substantially exceeding a semi-circle, as shown
herein—in itself a known form ; or both the upper and the
lower drums may be of three-quarter circular section, the
tube plates being formed with overturned flanges enveloped
by the walls of the drums ; or the drums may be of three-
quarter moon section. 9 denotes a steam collecting drum
coupled to and disposed transversely of the steam and
water drums 2. A superheater and air heating device
may be provided, if desired. (Six claims.)

105817. Improvements in Apparatus for Washing Coke
Breeze. W. H. Orbell, 3, Gashouse-yard, Warrengate,
Wakefield.—The accompanying figure is an elevation of
the apparatus, which is of the type comprising a conical
vessel, in which the coke breeze and other similar materials
and water are agitated by rotary agitators, and from which
the heavy impurities are discharged by means of two valves
worked alternately. The present invention relates parti-
cularly to the construction of the rotary agitator, and to
the means for operating the discharge valves. The appar-
atus consists of a funnel-shaped tank A of cast iron, across
the top of which is a horizontal steel driving shaft B, fitted
with a pulley C driven by means of a belt attached to a
pulley on the shaft which drives the coke elevator or
breaker. The horizontal shaft B is supported by brackets
D1 and D2 bolted to a strong joist E, which is in turn

if! a

attached by angle plates to the cast iron tank A. The hori-
zontal shaft B is connected by means of bevel gearing to’a
vertical shaft F in the centre of the tank A, carrying a
steel screw spinner G fitted on the shaft F below the level
of the rectangular opening R, and supported at its lower
end by a steel stay H attached^ by angle plates to the cast
iron tank A. At the bottom of the funnel shaped tank A
is a steel sliding door J1, below this again is a cast iron box
K, and below this another steel sliding door J2. Both
sliding doors are worked by a vertical steel shaft M,
running down outside the tank A and fitted with two
cranks N1 and N2, with opposite throws; these two cranks
are connected to the sliding doors J1 and J2 by means of
sleeves and rods. The vertical shaft M is driven by means
of bevel gearing from the horizontal shaft B, and is pro-
vided with a clutch P, so that it can be thrown in or out
of action at the will of the operator. An inlet for the
admission of water Q is provided in the side of the tank,
and a rectangular outlet R near the top of the tank A, to
which a suitable shoot is attached. The method of work-
ing is as follows : Water is admitted continually by the
pipe Q to the funnel-shaped tank A to a suitable height,
broken coke is then dropped in from an elevator or con-
veyor, and violently agitated by means of the screw spinner
G. This washes the coke and separates the scale, the
former passes through the rectangular opening R in the
tank A into a jigging screen, which sorts it into various
sizes, and from which it passes into suitable hoppers or
bins, and the latter settles to the bottom of the tank A,
from which it is removed when the top sliding door J1 is
opened. It then drops into the box K, whence it is further