A HUNDRED YEARS' FIRE.

Southland Times, Issue 1978, 20 December 1872, Page 2 (Supplement)

A HUNDRED YEARS' FIRE.

(From the Glasgow Herald.) At Parfcgate, near Sheffield, extraordinary pnenome^^g^^aera. several Parkgate gentlemen sunk a «haft, known as the Old Bassett Pit Th^fc^gMfoggdj^t figaJßiglrfess! coal was worked in a very careful fashion for several years— great blocks and pillars of coal, containing many tons, being left to support the roof in place of the modern wooden props. For several seasons everything proceeded smoothly, but one day the pit caught fire. No one can tell how it was ignited, and the ancient miners appear to have been utterly dismayed by the unexpected disaster, as they left the pit to burn at will, instead of closing up the shaft and commencing anew, as they might have done. Many years afterwards, " the burning pit" was again approached, by the lord of the manor, Earl Fitzwilliam, who begaD to work out the coal in the locality. A shaft was sunk at some distance from the Old Bassett Pit, and the coal in the direction of Rawinarsh was got at — the new workings being kept at what was considered a safe distance from the fiery pit. Everything proceeded satisfactorily until 1868, when a miner named Parkin descended the Bank Pit shaft — the name by which the new shaft was known — and was greatly alarmed to find fire only 10 feet from the pit bottom. He at once gave the alarm, and the principal officials were upon the spot, and efforts made to extinguish the tire. " Parkin's flames" were soon put out 5 but it was found that the whole pit was on fire, and as the earl's collieries extended for miles, it was feared that the fire would spread over the entire workings. The Old Bassett shaft was at once filled up ; the Old Bank shaft was also closed ; a third shaft, the Top Stubbin Pit, was also filled up. A long and thick wail was built up to separate the Old Bassett workings from the newlyopened portions of the pit. Explorations bad to beconducted by crawling on bands and knees in the midst of suffocating smoke 5 but the wall was at length completed, at tremendous expense and great labor, it being 1000 yards in length and from 1 foot to 5 feet thick. Cross wails were also built to cut off air-ways, and so belp in choking the fire. Thick iron pipes, with iron plugs, were inserted in the wall at intervals of 50 yards, ao that views could be obtained of the interior of the Old Bassett workings by looking through these pipes. The great wall occupied the time of a large number of workmen for a whole year. A new 4t futtrell" — the entrance to a coal mine — had to be constructed. It had to be brick- arched above and below with strong torick walls. Entering by this place, the wall is inspected daily, to get information if the old fire haß reached it in any way. The last fire was seen in 1871, and on being examined last week nothing but *" black damp" came through the iron orifices ; but the most dangerous placewhere the workmen labored at the great wall at the peril of their lives — is believed to be the fiery stronghold. Here the flames are still believed to be raging, although securely imprisoned by the work of the underground heroes who built its prison -walls. Until a year or two ago, the farmers found that their crops over this pit were materially accelerated in growth by the heat ; and" the fact that this acceleration is not so apparent now, is the strongest proof to professional minds that the burning pit has about spent its strength after a v long fire" of 100 years.