123 COALFIELDS AND COLLIERIES OF AUSTRALIA. 



The Ivanhoe Colliery, 



This colliery, which has been under the management of 

 Mr. W. Burns for three years, belongs to the Commonwealth 

 Portland Cement Company, who took it over in 1902. The 

 coal extracted is used at the company's works. A little work 

 has been done on the upper seam, but it is not being con- 

 tinued. The "dull seam" is the one worked, and this is from 

 6ft. Gin. to 7ft. 9in. thick. The roof, which stands well, is 

 sandstone, while the floor is shale. There is a persistent 

 band in the coal about lOin. from the roof. The lower coal is 

 first holed, broken down, and filled into skips ; then the band is 

 taken down, and finally the upper coal. By this means the 

 coal is kept clean. The coal is a good steaming coal, and 

 burns to a white ash. Two men work in an eight yard bord. 

 The roadway is brought up in the middle of each bord, so that 

 one man can work on one side of it, and his mate on the other. 

 Two skips are at the face at a time; one for each man, and 

 they take it in turn to fill the front one. The skips are drawn 

 out to the surface by horses, and then sent down an incline 

 connecting the tunnel with the coal hoppers. The skips on the 

 self-acting incline are attached to a circulating endless rope 

 by a short linked chain. The speed is regulated by a brake 

 at the top of the incline. The skips have an end gate and 

 their contents are discharged into the hoppers by means of 

 an end tippler. The front end of the tippler is one 

 foot from its axle, while the rear end is two feet ; when full the 

 skip tips over, and when empty the counter weight helps it to 

 right itself again. There are four hoppers, arranged in two 

 pairs, so that four railway trucks two on each set of rails 

 --can be filled at a time. There is a spout at the bottom of 

 each hopper which is closed by a curved door, worked by 

 means of a lever, which can be padlocked in position, if desired, 

 by passing a pin through an iron bar and the lever handle, and 

 placing a padlock through a slot left for that purpose in the 

 pin. 



The mine is dry, so there is no pumping to be carried out. 

 The ventilation is done by means of furnaces. 



Cullen Bullen Colliery. 



The original colliery of this name, which was the second 

 oldest colliery in the Valley, was purchased by the Lithgow 

 Coal Association and dismantled. A syndicate has secured a 

 few acres, which are being opened up, and a small trade is 

 being done with the coal won. At first the coal had to be 

 carted to the railway, preparatory to a horse tram being 

 laid down. 



The Portland Colliery. 



This is a small concern, tke coal being carted for local 

 consumption only. 



