THE CONNELLSVILLE COKE REGION 199 



state of Pennsylvania. Before these accidents occurred, 

 few dreamed of danger from fire damp in the Connellsville 

 coke region, and I, in common with many other managers, 

 for years went about work with a flaming torch in mines that 

 are now worked exclusively with the locked safety. The 

 accidents occurred mostly in presumed non-gaseous mines. 

 For many years it was presumed to be an established fact 

 that all coal mines alcove water level were non-gaseous, but 

 some of the greatest explosions of late years throughout the 

 states have occurred in coal mines above water level, though 

 in the Connellsville coke region the fire damp accidents have 

 invariably occurred below water level. 



The t}^es of saftey lamp now in use in the Connellsville 

 coke region are as follows, viz.: For examination of the 

 working places by fire bosses, inspectors, etc., the Davy lamp 

 is almost invariably used, though occasionally t}^es of the 

 Clanny lamp are used for that purpose. For the workmen, 

 the Clanny type, bonnetted and unbonnetted, is largely used. 

 The best lamp yet introduced is the Wolf lamp. This lamp 

 has many good features, some of which are as follow^s: It 

 is alwaj^s self extinguishing in the presence of fire damp, 

 in explosive mixtures, or in case of being overturned; it is 

 provided with a magnetic lock that cannot be picked; has 

 an igniter by which the lamp can be lighted without opening 

 it, and it gives a good light. 



The ventilation of the mines is effected by means of 

 furnaces and fans, principally fans, which are of the Guibal 

 and Capel t}^e. 



The hoisting machinery is of the most substantial build, 

 and almost always of the first motion pattern, with difTeren- 

 tial drums at the shaft mines. At slope mines the machinery 

 is both of the first motion and geared patterns, with various 

 forms of friction clutch. The pumping appliances are oper- 

 ated both by steam and compressed air, and include a variety 

 of direct acting patterns in single, duplex and compound 

 noncondensing types of cylinder and plunger pumps. 



Steam is generated principally by two-flue, fire tube 

 and water tube boilers, with a tendency to the general adop- 

 tion of the latter class with the vertical arrangement of the 



