13

H.—lB

The other accident caused by trespassing occurred at Saddle Hill on 4th December, 1881. I heard of the coal mine for the first time late on 6th December. (I mention this merely to show why it had never been inspected, and how it occurred that I was not on the ground till three days after the occurrence, although Saddle Hill is within seven or eight miles of this office.) On arriving there on the 7th, I found an inquest about to be held, but having sufficient time to inspect the place, did not ask for an adjournment. The facts are as follows:—Mr. Peter McLachlan was sinking a prospecting shaft, and left all clear at 5 p.m. on Saturday, 3rd December. On Sunday, about 11 a.m., Adam Callander, with two others, went to this shaft, having no right on the ground, much less to descend, which however Callander did. He was almost immediately overpowered by choke-damp, and fell back. His two companions, not being coal miners, were unable to get him out, though the pit was only 22 feet 6 inches in depth, and there was plenty of rope on a good windlass. My opinion is, that if a practical man had been there, his hfe would have been saved, but this opinion was not shared by the other witnesses. As it wag, he was not got out until too late, and then the following treatment was tried : —Got a shovel and made a hole a few inches deep in the earth, and put his head in it. They placed him with his mouth down, and put what earth they took out of the hole on his head."-— (T. Murdoch.) " When I got up I gave them a hand to dig a hole to put his head in, to draw the damp out. He was very little covered, and his face was held up from the ground. This is a common method among coal miners for the purpose of recovering a person attacked with damp. I have seen it tried in Ayrshire."— (A. Harris.) This extract is not given from any desire that the practice described by these witnesses should be followed more widely than it is ; for Dr. McCaw's opinion—" I think the treatment pursued was extremely irrational. * * * It would not be good for a man to remain all that time buried in the ground," expresses in a very mild way my astonishment at hearing, for the first time, of this remarkable method of cure. The verdict of course was " accidental death." Death-rate in the South Island Districts for 1881. The number of men employed being 754, and the tonnage 246,529, it follows that if we count one accident, the death-rate is 754 men employed, and 246,529 tons raised per life lost. But if we count the three accidents, the number of men is reduced to 255, and the quantity of coal to 82,176 tons. Number of Mines. The number of coal mines on this year's list is 99, showing a decrease of two as compared with 1880. Sixteen mines, which have neither done any work nor been visited, have been struck off. There are several on the list which have received some attention during the year, and are consequently included. Fourteen new mines are noted. In three cases, where a new mine has practically incorporated an old one, I have added the " total output" of the latter. This was done in the case of the Koranui, with which I have incorporated the Waimangaroa Coal Mine. Number of Men Employed. The number of men employed during 1881 is 754, or 44 less than during 1880; and this is a very good sign, for the great evil in the majority of our collieries is, that there is too little work for the staff, consequently the places are worked intermittently, and danger ensues. The output, too, being much larger, proves that the coal mining population must have been doing much better last year than formerly, as with fewer men and a larger output, each man must have received a considerable increase in wages. Assuming the figures to be correct, and taking an average, I estimate this increase at nearly £11 15s. per head. Output of Coal. The output for the South Island for 1881 is, as already mentioned, 246,529 tons, being an increase of 43,281 tons on that for 1880. This increase is mainly made up as follows : —Westport Company, 20,306 ; Kaitangata Company, 9,514 ; Springfield Company, 4,868 ; Freeman's Abbotsroyd, 2,938 ; Greymouth-Wallsend, 2,765 ; and Brockley, 2,430 tons: the only noteworthy decrease is Shag Point, 6,057 tons. In the statistical table, I have this time shown coal and slack separately. This slack trade is of far greater importance than would appear from the mere selling price, which is in many cases very little different from the cost of production : it means in the brown coal mines that the danger of spontaneous combustion is being, to a great extent, avoided; and the condition of the mines, both as regards this danger, and also ventilation, is much improved by having the old " sweating " heaps of slack abolished. Methods of Working. Worked by adit—Horse-power used, 9; self-acting inclines, 3; engine-planes, 6; hand-power, 80 ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 48 Open worked ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 28 Prospecting... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 6 Worked by shaft—Steam-power used, 6 ; horse-power, 6 ; water-power, 1; hand, 4 17 Total 99_ Gold Mines. On 10th August I received instructions to visit and report on the quartz mines at Reefton, Boatman's, and the Lyell, with a view to bring under the Act those which required it. I therefore visited all those in which mining operations were being carried on to any extent, with the exception of the Alpine, which I was prevented from examining by the occurrence of a fatal accident which required H. 13.—3.