BOLTON COLLIERY DISASTER

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 221, 30 December 1910, Page 5

BOLTON COLLIERY DISASTER

GAS IX THE IIKE. By Cable—(Press Association—Copyright. London, December 28. The newspapers chronicle New Zealand's donation of £SOO to the Bolton disaster fund. A witness at the Bolton inquest gave evidence that his son, who was killed, complained oi the heated condition of the air and lamps.

Another witness testified that one miner used to say it was necessary to use a smoke jacket occasionally to extinguish the gas and get fresh air.

579 BODIES RECOVERED. .REFERENCES AT MINERS' CONFERENCE. Received 29, 0.25 pjn. London, December 29. Two hundred and seventy-three bodies have been recovered from the Bolton colliery. Rescuers believe that the explosion occurred close to the electrical coal-cutting machine, where the heaviest falls were. Robert Smillie, in the coarse of his presidential address at the Scottish Miners' Conference, expressed indignation at tiie statement that the inadvertent use of a match Jiad hurled 350 souls into eternity, and characterised it as a charge against the dead. It had been answered by the inquest, which, had shown that gas had been accumulating daily. Doubtless the explosion was largely, if not wholly, due to coaldust, and probably it did not originate at the coal face, but in the main road, as it was a dry, dusty mine. Owners ought to remove or water the dust. The law ought to forbid electric cutting machinery where gas was present, and more inspectors were required. COMMONWEALTH GIVES £2OOO. Received 30, 12.5 a.m. Melbourne, December 29. The Commonwealth Government has I cabled £2OOO to the relief fund at the 1 Pretoria colliery, Bolton. I