MINE VENTILATION.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 420, 1 February 1909, Page 9

MINE VENTILATION.

a test; case.

: ■ ■ ./(Bi;TELEGUArH—rIIESa ASSOCIATION.)- ■ ■;-' 1 ; s. ;. , January 29.'- - 'At-the ; Police Court";,to-day, ; -befo're: Mr.. Widddwspn,; S.MiJ- Alexander Sinclair Gilian- , ders,'; manager ■. of.. Freeman's. Uplliery, -Ab-' , botstord,' ,was,charged that, being manager of ■ '.tho said coal-mine',,'ho did liot maintaui 160 cubic feet.of-:air per minute for every person ■ and' 6oo cubic feot.per minute for every.-ani-mal. employed,'.'unctergrouud, as. required by .: tho Act. . Mr. l''raser appeared for 'the' prb- ' ..secution, and Jlr.-.Hanlon for tho'cle l tendant, : who pleaded riot guilty..', .' ;.,".; : :.V'. . ■ Mr. Frasor'said that the action waslaid -under Seotion-40 of tlio.Coal Mines Act, 1908. • The interpretation he put on the section was" that , there.must 1 be-:an adequate supply of ■ airiforevery person, and for. evory.ammal in .any-working.part of the mme.;.'. : 'J.here'migiit : • bo' an:-adequate flow bf. air into 'the mine, . bnt.ifr.it..didihot-reach.the' working; parts"it : .. "constituted, ; a;'breach:of- , the 'Act. ; .'in this case ■thc.-..anemometer.-sh6wed : that ; an- ade-~ quato: supply • of.: air.' was flowing' in at the ; intakeibut.itwashot-circulating ihthe mineV : The,-boi-ds .were as , much as,a .chain and a half,, so that" men- in- them were .working iin : dor conditions; that Bhpuld not be. allowed to exist. ..Sordid; not. suggest that "the condi- . tions in ilie mine were.bad, but they were : improper. ; . \ ~ •::■•. .-' : .-. > ■ ~' ■ . ~ Edwin,Eidloy Green,, inspector of mines, feid he hid called, the attention of the pre-' vious manager to the state of the mine. On December 29 ho had gone down tho mine in company with :Mr. Gillanders. Ho tried the anemometer at thei.intake, and found 12,250 cubic feet of air : passing into; the mine, but i)i the working: parts; the men. were 'engaged where there;. ; was' ,not' adequate ventilation Mr. ■ Gillanders:.admitted there'' euffii' oiont ventilation in. the working parts, but said- he had only recently , been appointed, and was doing his utmost to remedy tho defect.: The.mine was difficult to work, and Mr. Gillanders seemed to be doing all he jjossibly could ..,'to- remedy.: matters. . Apart irom vcntilationj the mmo was ih : splendid order.-'.;-..'. .■■:-';'■■■!;>.■'•: •■.:..■■ 'W '.

; Mr. Hanlon ; i eaid they admitted that tho ventilation of tho working parts was- defective. Mr.. Green had admitted that an adequate supply of air was entering the. mine and according-to the present wording of the Act that was all' that was required. Mr Gillanders had no intention that men should work 'under adverse conditions, and was doling all; he cqulcl: to remedy them. The present case was the. first brought, and was really a.test case 7 . .. .' .-■.'.. ,

Mr. Fraser:. Whatever construction your Worship puts'on the Act is bound to bo appealed against.'.-.. I; maintain . that the Act meant ventilation in the mine and '■ every working part of it. There is no option but for .your Worship to convict. ", • : :: : His AVorship 'reserved his decision.