DANGEROUS MINING.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2338, 14 September 1880, Page 2

DANGEROUS MINING.

SECOND EDITION

[Bv Telegraph.] "Westport, Sept. 13. At (lie Resident Magistrate's Court Mr Bi tins,lnspector, prosecuted Fergusson the manager of the Wellington Colliery, and Young, contractor for getting out coal; the lirst for not providing sullicient ventilation in the mine, and the other for not appointing competent persons to examine it with safety lamps each morning. A similar charge to that against Young was also brought against Fergusson. The prosecutions were the result of an explosion of fire damp in the Wellington mine, whereby four men named William, Daniel, and Robert Young (father and two sons), and Collingham, a brother-in-law, were burnt to such an extent as to lay them up for eight days. The evidence given before the Court as reported in the “ Westport Times,” shows that the explosion was caused by a fall of some twenty tons of coal, liberating the gas, and the air current not being sufficiently strong to cany it out, was ignited by the miked light carried by William Young. The witnesses for the prosecution, including the injured men, aver that the mine is not and never was, properly ventilated, whilst the witnesses for the other side say the ventilation, never was better than it is, and that the cause of tiie accident was a mishap caused by a full of coal, not preventable. Fergusson pleaded that the mine was in charge of Young, and that lie was responsible. Young pleaded guilty to the charge

against him. It being an important case, Mr Revell reserved judgment until the 21st inst. The Colliery Company are getting coal down daily, the engineers of tho St. Kilda, Grafton, and Wallaby reporting favorably on it.