372 



MINE. 



Mnes of 

 Coal. 



Ventila- 

 tion. 



T)r, Clan- 

 ny'i safety 

 lamps. 



Safety- 

 lamps of 

 Sir H. Da- 

 vy, Mr. 

 Stevenson 

 and Dr. 

 Murray. 



the melancholy catastrophe as regarding the unfortun- 

 ate miners. Of the 121 persons in the mine, at the 

 time of the explosion, only 32 were drawn up the pit 

 alive ; and of these, three died within a few hours after 

 the accident. Thus were no less than 92 persons killed 

 in an instant by this desolating pestilence. The scene 

 at the pit-mouth cannot be described. 



The viewer, with his assistants, instantly descended, 

 in the face or' the most imminent danger, eager to save, 

 if possible, any of the workmen ; but the mine was 

 found to be on fire, and they durst not proceed. In 

 consequence of this fire, another explosion took place, 

 and no alternative was left but to shut up the pits, and 

 extinguish the fire, which was accordingly done. The 

 pits were, after a considerable time, again opened, but 

 it was the igth day of September before the complete 

 ventilation was restored, and the last of the bodies of 

 those who had perished was found ; a period of 1 1 7 days 

 from the day on which the accident took place. A mi- 

 nute account of this accident was published by the Rev. 

 John Hodgson, the worthy pastor of Heworth ; who, 

 upon this melancholy occasion, attended most assidu- 

 ously, and performed the most painful duties amongst 

 his suffering people. From his account of the misfor- 

 tune, the particulars above stated are taken. 



This fatal misfortune at Felling roused the minds of 

 every one connected with coal-mines, in order to find, 

 if possible, a remedy for preventing such catastro- 

 phes. 



It appears that Dr. William Reid Clanny, of Sun- 

 . derland, who, from his medical profession, had frequent- 

 ly to attend at the neighbouring collieries, when the 

 workmen were hurt by the explosions of the gas, had, in 

 the year 1813, turned his attention to the construction 

 of a lamp which would bum amongst inflammable air, 

 ;i:id, though an explosion might take place in the lamp, 

 would not communicate flame to the external surround- 

 ing air. This he accomplished by means of an air- 

 tight lamp with a glass front, the flame of which was 

 supported by blowing air from a pair of small bellows 

 through a stratum of water in the bottom of the lamp, 

 while the heated air passed through water by a recurv- 

 ed tube at top. By this process, the air within the 

 lamp was completely insulated from the external air; 

 and it appears that this was the first lamp that ever was 

 taken into a body of inflammable air in a coal-mine at 

 the exploding point, without producing an explosion 

 of the surrounding gas. Dr. Clanny made another 

 lamp upon an improved plan, by introducing into it the 

 steam of water produced from a small vessel at the top 

 of the lamp, heated by the flame. For these inventions 

 the Doctor twice received the thanks of " The Society 

 for preventing accidents in Coal-Mines ;" and he also re- 

 ceived the silver, and afterwards the gold medal from 

 the Society of Arts in London. Although these lamps, 

 invented by Dr. Clanny, were upon philosophical princi- 

 ples, displayed much ingenuity, and were absolutely 

 safety-lamps for mines, yet their construction prevented 

 them from being generally used. Nevertheless Dr. Clan- 

 ny deserves every pi aise for his labours and very zealous 

 exertions in the cause of humanity. It appears that 

 nothing farther was attempted in this important matter, 

 until the accident at Felling colliery, as before noticed, 

 when Sir Humphry Davy, Mr. James Stevenson, en- 

 gineer. Killingworth colliery, Newcastle, and 'Dr. John 

 Mutray of Edinburgh, brought forward safety-lamps, 

 in the year 1816', each constructed upon different prin- 



ciplcs. Sir Humphry Davy's lamp was made of fine Mines of 

 iron wire gauze, without any glass ; that of Mr. Stc- l '' o;i1 - 

 venson's was made of a strong glass cylinder, having a """V^"' 

 metal plate at top, and another at bottom, perforated 

 with very small holes to permit the air to pass to and 

 from the lamp ; and that of Dr. Murray was a glass ' 

 . lamp, or rather lanthorn, to which good atmospheric air 

 was brought by means of a long leather pipe from the 

 air-course. Of these, Dr. Murray's lamp was not ap- 

 plicable but in a very few cases ; the lamps of Sir Hum. 

 phry Davy and Mr. Stevenson were both complete safe- 

 ty-lamps in their principle, and are applied in practice; 

 but that of Sir Humphry Davy is decidedly the best, 

 and is generally used in Great Britain. Having no glass, 

 it is not easily injured, and suflic'.ent light for the 

 miner passes through the wire gauze. To each of 

 these gentlemen the world is highly indebted, and in 

 particular the mining interest of great Britain, for their 

 individual exertions. 



The safety-lamp of Sir Humphry Davy was instant- 

 ly tried, and approved of by Mr Buddie, and the prin- 

 cipal mining engineers at Newcastle. No one was 

 more zealous to prove its safety, and introduce it into 

 the mines, than the Rev. John Hodgson, of Heworth, 

 before mentioned. He descended the mines, enter- 

 ed amongst the inflammable air, and fully satisfied 

 himself of its absolute safety, in order that he might 

 induce the miners of his parish to use it, half of whom 

 he had seen so lately swept away by the dreadful explo- 

 sion before narrated. 



The invention of this lamp has produced a new era New era 

 in the coal-mining of Great Britain. The steel mills in mining, 

 were very expensive, and in certain cases produced ex. 

 plosions, whereas the safety-lamp can be carried with- 

 out danger amongst inflammable gas ready to explode; 

 and although the wire becomes red-hot, an explosion 

 of the gas will take place inside of the lamp, without 

 communicating inflammation to the external gas. While 

 we very much admire the great ingenuity of the high- 

 ly celebrated inventor, we are not less astonished at 

 the uncommon simplicity of the construction. For 

 farther particulars regarding this important discovery, 

 see the article SAFETY LAMP. 



The state and purity of the air in coal-mines, from Test of the 

 the earliest time of mining, until the discovery of the air 1>T the 

 safety- lamp, were judged of by the appearance presented """^ * 

 by the flame of a candle, and this test must, in many cir- ca 

 cumstances, be still used. When there is only a want 

 of air, or the air is partially vitiated by a small quantity 

 of carbonic acid, or by the perspiration and breath of the 

 workmen, the candle burns with a very dull flame, the 

 tallow ceases to be melted in the cup formed around 

 the wick, and the flame is gradually extinguished. In 

 this case the candle may be kept burning, by inclining 

 it less or more towards a horizontal direction, which 

 has the effect of melting the tallow with the edge of the 

 flame. By this method the candle is kept burning, but 

 die waste is great, as sometimes more than the half of 

 the tallow drops to the ground unconsumed ; an oil 

 lamp is therefore preferable in such a case, as it will keep 

 burning where a candle would be Extinguished. When 

 the carbonic acid abounds, no management will make 

 either the candle or lamp burn. In such a case the mine 

 is unworkable, and must remain so, till a circulation of 

 good air is brought forward. The candles used by col- 

 liers in the mines are generally small, with a very 

 small wick, as these are found to produce a more dis- 



