G86 
further northwards, I shall have great pleasure in laying the 
results of further observations before the Society. 
I again gladly take this opportunity of making my 
acknowledgments to the coal-owners, landed proprietors, 
and all others in the district, who have placed information 
in my hands, and of thanking them for the liberality with 
which they have, without exception, given me all the 
assistance in their power: without such help, the best 
endeavours on my part must often have been labour in vain. 
I would, at the same time, even at the risk of seeming 
ungracious, ask leave to urge still greater care and exactness 
in the keeping of mining records. I have often had occasion 
to examine the plan of a large colliery with the assistance of 
the underground steward ; and, on asking, may be, about a 
fault marked on the plan, what was the amount and direc- 
tion of its throw, the answer has been : " Oh, those workings 
were before my time; and there is nothing known about 
them, except what you will find on the plan." In fact, 
details, such as I have mentioned, are generally carried by 
the manager in his head ; and when he dies, or leaves the * 
country, all record of them is lost. If every fault had 
marked beside it, on the plan, the amount and direction of 
its throw, as is often, but by no means always, done, infor- 
mation, which will some day be of priceless value, would 
not be thus lost. In like manner, the position of every 
shaft or boring, with the depths and thicknesses of the 
principal coals passed through, ought to be marked on every 
colliery plan. 
Again, it has sometimes, but not often, happened that on 
asking for a section of the measures passed through in a 
sinking, the answer has been : " It is not worth while keeping 
sections, when we know all the measures ; but we can give 
you something far better;" and then there has been pro- 
duced one of those " General Sections," which are the horror 
