Appendix B to the report of the Commissioners appointed to inquire into the condition of all mines in Great Britain to which the provisions of the Act 23 & 24 Vict. Cap. 151 do not apply, with reference to the health and safety of persons employed in such mines. / Presented to both houses of Parliament by command of Her Majesty.

Great Britain. Royal Commission on Mines

Date:: 1864

Credit: Appendix B to the report of the Commissioners appointed to inquire into the condition of all mines in Great Britain to which the provisions of the Act 23 & 24 Vict. Cap. 151 do not apply, with reference to the health and safety of persons employed in such mines. / Presented to both houses of Parliament by command of Her Majesty. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by Royal College of Physicians, London. The original may be consulted at Royal College of Physicians, London.

522/526 (page 463)

{Mr. James.) Some of the adventurers have come here for the jnirjiose to-day. There is one thing you have not inquired into, which perhaps may be mentioned now, the quahty of the iron in the chain. (Mr. Hadow.) We have rather taken that for granted from what Captain Rowe stated. [The Coroner.) I don't thinly we need inquire further into that. The chain is sworn to have been in good con- dition. {Mr. James.) I shouhl like to have stated that the chain was not working to one-fifth part of its estimated working power; and I beUeve all the engineers here will agree in that. {Mr. Rowland Davies.) It is right I should state that directly the adventurers heard of this accident, they re- solved to avail themselves of what engineering talent was ■within their reach. We got Mr. Brereton, a very distin- guished engineer, Mr. Twite, Mr. Shirreif, and Mr. John Mathews, the town surveyor, to come over and look into things, and see if the accident resulted from defective ma- chinery, or from any cause to which the adventurers could be said to have contributed in any way. We took that step in order that the subject might be thoroughly ventilated and that justice might be done. It has so hap- pened that it has not been necessary to call those gentle- men. But it is right that it should be known what steps the adventurers took in the matter to clear up any difficulties, and to devise better means for the future. {Mr. Hadotv.) Perhaps Captain John Rowe may be able to guard against any mistake in future as to the handle, so as to secure the handle being kept out, free. {Mr. Akennaim.) We may presume, I suppose, that those gentlemen are satisfied with the safety of the apparatus ? {Mr. Rowland Daries.) Yes. Mr. Twite has come down to test it; and as regards the brake and everything else, the gentlemen would have s])oken to being thoroughly satisfied. {Mr. Hadnw.) I examined the carriage carefully, and I believe I understand its principle. It is very important that confidence should be felt in the machinery. (i)/r. Rowland Dairies.) There seems to be thorough sa- tisfaction in the minds of all persons who have examined or used it. Fathers and brothers of some of the deceased are as much satisfied as any other persons with the invention. [At the close of the inquest a subscription was opened by the adventurers for relief of widows and other surviv- ing relatives of the unfortunate deceased.] XIV. Account of some Experiments instituted hy the Commission, under tlic Superintendence of Dr. Angus Smith, with the view of testing the Applicability of Gun Cotton to Mining Operations. From the reports herewith sent of the experiments in blasting with gun cotton, it appears that for blasting hard ground the holes should be charged with three fom-ths of the depth of gun])owder of the strength used in the Cornish mines. The cotton rope used was one eighth of an inch less diameter than the hole, which by tamping would probably be pressed down to fill the hole, by which six inches inserted would be pressed down to five inches ; this would also be the case in the use of powder, so that the relative proportion remains the same, namely, as three to four. We cannot report on the comparative safety of the cotton rope and gunpowder, nor on the effect on the miners' health; Dr. Angus Smith will attend to this. We must, however, observe that the cotton rope is veiy convenient for use in all the positions a hole can be bored in, in some cases dispensing with the use of cartridges required when gun- powder is used. We have not been informed of the cost of the cotton rope, and cannot therefore report on the comparative economy of that article and gunpowder. Reginald T. Gryi.ls, Condurrow Mine. John Daw, Carnbrea Mines. Chas. Thomas, Dolcoath Mine. John Tonkin, Do. JosiAH Thomas, Do. Richard Pearce, Miners' Association of Cornwall and DcA'on. Charlestown United Mines, My Lord, June 10th, 1864. I beg most respectfully to tender you my opinion on gun cotton for blasting in mines, after carefully considering its merits, &c., on witnessing the experiments tried at Dol- coath mine on the 20th day of May 1864, as sent you in tabular notes arranged and made by those whose names are appended thereto. I beg first to state that, as far as all the experiments already made, all danger from premature explosion of the gun cotton by compression in tamping is entirely removed. This, at one period in the history of gun cotton, rendered it highly dangerous for blasting purposes in Cornish mines, and on that account was, perhaps prematurely, condemned and set aside. The proportionate power of gun cotton to the ordinary blasting powder does not, from the experiments made, show but a small per-centage, from 15 to 20, in favour of gun cotton, as no hole blasted with gun cotton (although charged with quite three-quarters of the bulk of ordinary powder) did not show any greater result, or remove more rock, than powder would have done. The gases produced after each explosion appeared to be more transparent, and not in such quantity as the ordinary powder would have generated. My opinion, if my bases are correct with regard to gun cotton when damp, is rendered useless, and believing it has a great tendency to absorb the least moisture, and then taking the re])orted low temperature at which it ignites, and the danger of miners drying the damp cotton, that even if used in mines it should be put in air-tight cases or cart- ridges, or otherwise serious accidents would result in its general adoption and use in mines. In respect to its being more j)ortable and compact than the ordinary powder, and therefore not easily wasted, I do not attach much importance to this, as the quantity of powder wasted in mines is exceedingly small, and it has not yet come under my notice that any accident has occurred to the miner through the agency of blasting powder, only in the premature explosion of the holes in tamping. In respect to the gases or smoke generated in using the ordinary blasting powder in well ventilated mines, but little inconvenience is experienced, and if it could be impressed upon the minds of the miners to use smaller charges of the ordinary powder than is now used we should have less smoke, as in all accidents from blasting that I have myself witnessed the men have had quantity of powder blown into their faces, arms, &c., showing clearly that only a portion of the powder had exploded, and satisfying me that less powder would rend the rock. I may be allowed here to add that in my o])inion the miners would use the same excess of gun cotton in order to place beyond a doubt in their minds the result of the blast. In concluding my report I think that further trial should be made of gun cotton for blasting purposes, and that it should be placed in the hands of some of the miners to use, and let their several opinions be taken on the subject; and it would also enable the agents and managers of mines to arrive at more definite opinions as to the desirability and propriety of adopting gun cotton as an agent for our blast- ing purposes in Cornish mines. I beg to remain Your Lordship's obedient and humble servant, Richard H. Williams. To the Right Hon. Lord Kinnaird, Chairman of the Royal Mines Commission. 3 3 (Continued on p. 466.)

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