102        CONTRIBUTIONS  TO   ECONOMIC    GEOLOGY,  1907,  PART  II. 
Bear  Creek  Coal  Company. — The  mines  of  the  Bear  Creek  Coal  Com- 
pany are  located  on  the  north  side  of  Bear  Creek,  1J  miles  west  of 
the  mining  town  of  the  same  name.  Beds  Nos.  2,  3,  and  4  have  been 
opened,  and  Nos.  2  and  3  are  now  worked.  The  conditions  for  min- 
ing these  beds  are  very  favorable,  because  they  lie  nearly  horizontal 
and  carry  no  water  and  little  gas.  In  the  first  entry  east  on  bed 
No.  3  there  is  one  of  the  small  folds  mentioned  on  page  97,  in 
which  the  crest  rises  only  a  few  feet  above  the  level  and  the  steepest 
limb  dips  13°  NE.  It  elevates  the  coal  slightly,  but  does  not  inter- 
fere materially  with  mining.  The  most  extensive  underground  work- 
ings are  on  bed  No.  3,  where  a  main  gangway  has  been  driven  1,200 
feet  and  three  entries  and  62  rooms  have  been  opened.  Mining  is 
done  by  hand  and  by  two  electric  chain  machines.  Electricity  is 
used  to  light  the  main  passageways,  to  propel  the  haulage  motors, 
and  to  run  the  ventilating  fans.  The  mine  on  bed  No.  2  has  similar 
but  less  extensive  development  than  the  one  on  No.  3.  The  colum- 
nar jointing  of  bed  No.  2,  previously  described,  aids  in  taking  out  the 
coal.  The  outside  equipment  of  these  mines  consists  of  a  large  tipple, 
inclined  stationary  screens,  a  box-car  loader,  and  an  extensive  power 
plant.  Tram  tracks  upon  which  motor  engines  are  operated  connect 
the  tipple  with  the  mines.  The  output  of  screened  coal  from  these 
mines  is  about  500  tons  per  day. 
Smokeless  ami  Sootless  Coal  Company. — The  mine  of  the  Smokeless 
and  Sootless  Coal  Company,  on  bed  No.  2,  is  located  near  the  head  of 
Virtue  Creek,  on  the  north  side  of  the  Bear  Creek  district.  This  mine 
is  now  being  developed.  Two  main  gangways  are  being  driven,  one 
of  which  leads  to  the  west  and  the  other  to  the  southwest.  A  tipple, 
screens,  and  a  power  plant  have  recently  been  built  near  the  mouth 
of  the  mine,  on  a  spur  of  the  Yellowstone  Park  Railroad.  The  coal  is 
undercut  by  hand  and  shot  down  with  powder.  It  is  brought  to  the 
surface  by  mule  and  rope  haulage.  Columnar  structure  is  exhibited 
in  this  mine,  but  is  not  of  particular  service  in  mining  the  coal,  as  it 
is  in  other  mines  in  this  district,  because  the  jointing  is  not  suffi- 
ciently developed  to  permit  the  columns  to  loosen  readily.  Ac  the 
coal  comes  from  the  mine  it  is  separated  into  lump  and  nut  sizes. 
The  nut  is  sold  for  steaming  purposes,  and  the  lump  goes  to  the 
domestic  trade.  From  this  mine  the  coal  is  shipped  to  towns  along 
the  Northern  Pacific  Railway  between  Billings  and  Missoula  and  in 
northern  Idaho.  Since  the  mine  was  opened,  about  two  years  ago, 
10,000  tons  of  coal  have  been  produced.  A  force  of  30  miners  and 
10  outside  men  is  employed. 
International  Coal  Company. — The  mine  of  the  International  Coal 
Company  is  in  the  northwestern  part  of  the  Bear  Creek  district,  in 
