Show A practical underground school for green coal miners points the way for securing better results from workmen ina in a paper submitted at the meeting of the coal mining institute of america on the ath instant G W grove associate mining en engineer ineer of the bureau of mines describes a plan for making efficient coal miners out of green material as practiced at the stag canon mines of the phelps dodge bodo e corporation in arizona the paper covers the subject so briefly and yet so comprehensively that it can be read with interest by everyone at all identified with actual coal in mining ining as it points a way of getting results by educating nien men how best to do things and how best to serve their own and ald the best interests of their employers the paper submitted by mr grove is chock full of meat read what he e says as follows it is believed that this is the first effort on the part of a coal mining company to conduct an underground school of this kins kind and it may be regarded as the most advanced system of underground under 6 round education for teaching men the practical side of mining b safety and efficiency while safety is emphasized the increased production and efficiency of operation due to the training herein outlined should not be overlooked education and discipline chief safety factors it is well known that education and discipline are the two no important factors of accident prevention in any industry nau stry this is especially true in mining owing to the inherent dangers that are always present and the diversified hazards that may be encountered the miner may be sur rounded by all the mechanical safeguards that can be installed but unless the company officials put forth a diligent za effort to teach him the dan dangers daners 6 ers of his occupation and how to recognize them and to enforce ri rigid Z id discipline by compelling him to observe the state mining laws company rules and safe practices no permanent reduction of fatalities and injuries juries can be obtained A certain amount of educational work is always in ss Is in m almost every mine and a large part of the mine W 15 time is spent in this way the official when making his s rounds will often point out to the miner the safe and correct way ivay of doing things such as when and how to set a post W to test roof and to drill holes properly but the official quite often assumes that the miners knowledge is greater than man it really it this is especially likely to occur when the dacial cial is is dealing with an inexperienced man frequently such uch a man is et employed ip loyed sent into the mine with an assist nt t foreman foreman shown his place to work and given few it if any instructions regarding his safety if he should be injured StIr prise is carelessness actu t expressed at his dumbness or ally a y he probably probably was using all the knowledge at his comi mand nu to protect himself inexperienced men must be edu ii bated p bea to re cognize dangerous conditions and to work safely before e they y can be expected to protect thern themselves selves gnp practical tactical rac miners with years of experience when chang 1119 0 fron f rom one coal field to another or one mine to another may be in cured crippled or killed before becom becoming ino familiar with local i al conditions irions it ions each coal mine probably has much the sarrie hazards ads however many unexpected hazards are created c by y variations in the Y physical condition of different diffene lit min e in ln the e amount of explosive gas that is likely to be ute redin in the of the coal dust in the char acteria acte st lc cs of method of tin iberi roof and ana coal and in the 27 ng g ventilation haulage and shooting necessity of instructing new men every ery man when first employed by a company should be given sufficient instructions regarding the hazards of his job to insure insure his recognition of the dangers connected therewith he should also be instructed in all safety rules and regulations which affect him and taught the safe and practical methods of performing his work both during his instruction st ruction and after his practical education is completed strict discipline should be enforced to compel him to obey laws rules and regulations and work in a safe manner however discipline while very essential in the prevention of accidents and production of coal can not entirely take the place of education careless on the part of the officials and workmen together with a lack of sufficient knowledge to recognize dangerous conditions are usually found to be the cause of most preventable accidents the workman is quite often blamed with carelessness when actually the accident is due to insufficient knowledge on his part or to insufficient knowledge or instructions by the mine officials it is always easier to charge the workman with car carelessness eless ness than it is to educate him to recognize dangerous conditions or to teach him to avoid dangerous practices in this connection the practical mining school instituted at dawson new mexico by the stag canon branch of the phelps dodge corporation for the training of inexperienced perien ced men is of interest an entry in one of the larger mines has been set apart for the use of the school and a practical miner with teaching experience placed in charge as instructor when inexperienced men are employed they are placed in this school here they are taught the essentials of safe mining practice the proper use of mine tools and methods to provi provide de for their own safety together with the com banys safety rules and practices under the close supervision of the instructor the new men usually develop into capable miners and acquire the safety habit A detailed record of each student is kept by the instructor showing name age nationality previous min mining experience date enrolled the detailed instructions given and progress in tle the school As soon as a student acquires the knowledge regarded as necessary for safe and efficient work outside the school he is transferred to some other mine and takes his place in the regular operating department the period of instruction is usually about seventy days depending on the amount of previous experience and aptitude of the student the school not only educates the miner in safety practices but materially assists in filling in shortage of experienced miners which has existed for a number of years in the field in which this company is is opera operating ting the school is beneficial from still another point of view in that it enables the inexperienced man to have an earning power immediately entering the mine this company has found that when upon green men 7 have been sent into the mines it has usually taken t them some time to get started on the path to reasonable earnings and that before this point is attained they become discouraged disc 6 outraged and lease the service whereas upon and entering the school the instructor encourages the men teaches them everything that is necessary to know and they immediately become producers and wage earners the results accomplished in the school thus far are worthy oi of note both from the sta standpoint endpoint nd point of developing capable miners berof accidents which occur among b and reducing the n num um the new men and the company feels very much encouraged with the results obtained big percentage of men enrolled make good A nearly seventy per cent of the men enrolled during the first nine months operation of the school developed into into good miners with respect to accident prevention the results have been even more encouraging during L the nine months period tons of coal were mined in the school with only one lost time accident this accident resulted in in but three days loss of time among the men transferred out of the school there has not been an accident duties in which the student is given specific instructions and which he must thoroughly understand before being in transferred out of the school are as follows 1 general procedure for checking in and out 2 re regulations and general practices regarding use of man mail trips 3 kinds of tools and equipment required 4 tC lothing best adapted for durability and safety 5 safety regulations of a general nature 6 how to test a roof that looks good 7 how to test a roof that looks bad 8 when and how to report an unsafe place 9 how to measure and cut a prop 10 how to set a plain prop 11 use of ax and safety precautions 12 when to set a prop for safety 13 regulations and practices for setting props at the face 14 regulations and practices for setting props for track clearance k J 15 how to set a crossbar cross bar 16 how to measure and set a 17 regulations and practices in setting a 18 how a dead line is marked and precautions to be observed 19 how to use a shovel 20 how to use a pick 21 when to wear goggles 22 care of tools at working place i 23 how bosses mark for a prop 24 how to tell rock bone and iron 25 what to do with waste 26 when to brush 27 how to brush in average ground 28 how a man is paid for extra bone 29 how a man is paid for breshin brushing 30 when and how to sprinkle coal 31 how to clean up tip for the cutting machine r 22 32 how machine men keep track of cutting jobs job s 33 how to clean up after the cutting ma machine chind 34 how to set a drilling 11 machine 35 how to sharpen a drill r r 36 where and how to drill 37 how men check cars and how they are paid for coal 1 loaded 38 how a man mail is charged for explosive used 39 how to make dummies and the number needed 40 how to lay track to working face 41 how to handle cars and the necessary blackin blocking A 42 how to get spikes ties and rails i 43 when and how to report injuries 44 care of first aid packets 45 need and opportunity for first aid instruction 1 some details of practical mining as taught some of the details regarding practical mining which are taught in the school are as follows t I 1 general procedure for checking in and out a each employee must de deposit posit hi his s identification icasio n check with the fire boss each morning before enteria the mine b I 1 he must ask the fire boss about the condition conditi oil 1 of his working place 0 fl c he must take identification check from check board 11 when leaving his lamp in the lamp house d penalty for not taking r check off the board 2 how to test roof that looks bad 1 l a sound with pick ha hammer illmer or bar at the same time thile holding the other hand against the roof 3 how to test roof that looks bad a stand to one side and reach under 4 how to measure and cut a prop a take two sticks or two pieces of si small nail pipe place one end against the roof one end of the other stick on the floor and allow the two ends in the lia hand fid to tb overlap thickness of cap piece to to be be deducted a length b place the prop in a safe place before starting ng to cut it to proper length c cut the larger end of the prop square and make the beveled cut on oil the sni smaller aller end 5 H how 0 iv to set a prop a set a prop in a vertical or upright position wedge it tight with a cap piece several inches thick and the full width of the prop the cap piece should extend both ways over the edge of the prop and be set across the faces or cleats instead of with them 6 use of ax and safety precautions a maximum len lenth length th of ax handle 2 feet b head should be securely fastened on handle c in making a level cut cut about halfway half way throng through A the prop then turn the prop over and repeat d place cap on oil solid floor before cutting it to proper size size e always see that there is sufficient clearance M f when the ax is not in use keep it in a safe place 7 when to set a prop tor for safety a if a prop is needed NOW is the time to set it b set a temporary prop before taking chances H how ow to set a cross bar b cut the hitching in the rib large enough for the bar a first square the rib so that top coal is not overhanging do not cut the bar to fit the hitching c square bottom side of other end of bar and set prop under the extreme end d wedge tight near ends but not in the center 9 when to set a and how a whenever undermining by hand first set a against the face b set the in a slanting position to brace the coal coal from falling 10 what is a deadline dead line how is it marked what precautions should be observed a A deadline dead line is a danger sign placed in the pathway as an obstruction to stop any person from entering en terino 1 into known dan danger ger b the danger sign is marked on a piece of lumber or a prop in fact on anything that can be plainly written on oil and used as an all obstruction c at no time pass over a deadline dead line if that fire boss or foreman wants men to go into a headlined head lined place he w will first remove the deadline dead line 11 how to use a shovel a use the leg to help push the shovel into the coal b partly relax the muscles while shoveling 12 how to use a pick 1 a have the pick securely fastened on th the e handle b do not lot use a handle when split c do not hold the handle cross handed 13 care card of tools at working place havin ivi n ff a have tools assembled w where here needed instead of w them scattered b when tools are not in use keep them in a sate safe place how bosses mark for a prop chalk a by placing an all encircled cross on oil the roof witti with 15 what to do with waste a waste must be picked out and thrown into the me n ob b must not be loaded out with the coal c this company sells coal not waste 16 when to sprinkle the loose coal it loading iii nr 0 a sprinkle the loose coal thoroughly before loach in the car b after pulling down loose coal sprinkle it aguill affail 17 how to clean up for cutting machine py pay p a square up the face even with the undercut cial attention that the corners are squared 18 how to clean up tip after cuttin cutting machine a pull down loose coal from face 15 set props near face if needed from dust c clean thoroughly illy all under cuttings or alig bug 0 under the cu cut t how to sharpen a drill u it beci 1 a lay the drill on oil sonie some solid object and hold boia in place with the knee b file away from your body not toward it c how to drill holes 20 how to make dummies d a ewh stcl k a roll a piece of paper several times aroix fasten one end and fill with adobe will not lot go f b do not make danli dummies nies too big bi 11 as they into the hole i hole to the kllc c furnish enough dummies to tamp each each i collar 21 how to block cars at the face by biross oss liar a a block end of track with two ties or proa i g unde er a ra j ahead of the last tie with one end of ol 01 ea ch otlie other r rail and the other end of each on top of ot the in last tie b do not allow the car to go ago beyond the alie qs school loo inspection impressed the author it ii will be noted that juill ou nothing SI is mentioned regarding loading 0 tamping to or s shooting pim and I it 1 may be well to 01 state DIMS that m in the ftp mines so of this sull company all loading pul and tamping is s done by shot the dill shooting si is done electrically from the surface with ill all persons out of jo the 11 0 LU mine the writer had the dill privilege SO of inspecting this gitil as school during aupp Q the early part laud so of the dill year the dill school at 41 this time consisted so of about twenty five working Q places and the gill ak writer dl I 1 has never observed miners old places sd kept adz ili in such good 0 P condi tion it 11 si is impossible to ol visit working places kept in u such uv an admirable olau manner pur and to 01 talk with III the students instructors tle e and tl p officials ili in charge without being tui impressed saia s 3 P with the ay efficiency and common sense manner ill in which I it 1 ST is conducted const conis c and pu without realizing 0 the vast 3 amount SO of good that imp um can q be accomplished by such a school ili in teaching im |