352 Mr. Buddle's Narrative of the Explosion 



a being the engine-shaft. But having witnessed the fatal consequences 

 arising from the blowing out of the brattice by the explosion in the 

 A Pit in 1820, I sunk the G Pit from the main coal to the Bensham Seam, 

 in two separate shafts, leaving a division of solid stone between them as 

 represented in the diagram. By this plan, I expected that, in the event 

 of an explosion, the two separate shafts would give the blast a direct per- 

 pendicular line of direction, and prevent its blowing out the brattice above. 

 It will, however, appear in the sequel that my expectation in this respect 

 was not realized. 



The darts on the plan of the colliery (Plate XVI.) shew the run of the 

 different currents of air to the burning as well as the dumb furnaces. It 

 will also be seen by the plan, that the workings were carried on upon 

 the system of pannel-ivork, that is to say, in small divisions, separated by 

 barriers of coal, so that the working and ventilating of the different di- 

 visions might be carried on, in a great degree, independently of each 

 other. 



The object of this mode of working was two-fold — to prevent the effect 

 of any explosion which might happen in any one of these divisions from 

 extending to other parts of the workings, and also to ensure a more effec- 

 tual working of the pillars. The pillars had been worked out of several of 

 those divisions, as shown on the plan, and as the goaf, or void, made by the 

 working of the pillars could not be ventilated, those divisions became 

 charged with gas, and all that could be done was to carry off the stream of 

 gas issuing from them, by the pipe-drifts, through the dumb furnaces, into 

 the up-cast shafts. Thus there were a number of capacious gasometers un- 

 avoidably standing charged, at all times, but as no naked lights were ever 

 allowed to be taken into the pipe drifts, or up-cast shafts, little or no dan- 

 ger was apprehended ; especially as the man doors*, by which the waste- 

 men had access to the pipe drifts, for the purpose of travelling and keeping 

 them in repair, were double, and kept locked, the keys being kept by the 

 master wastemen. 



It is frequently necessary to alter the currents of air, but at the time of 

 this explosion the ventilation of the workings was effected by two up-cast 

 and three down-cast shafts. The A and B Pits were the up-casts, the C 



* Man doors, small doors, or valves, placed in air stoppings, barely of sufficient size to al- 

 low a man to creep through. 



