“Holing” the Bottom Coal. The Graphic 28 September 1878: 309. Source: Internet Archive web version of a copy in the University of Illinois Library. Click on image to enlarge it
“Here the miner is shown at work in what is called a ‘drift.’ After the coal has been cut away to a depth of about five feet for the whole width of the working, which is about nine feet, the collier will drill holes in a horizontal direction in the coal as close to the roof as possible, and then by the aid of ‘shots,’ or charges of powder, the whole mass will be broken and brought down for removal. The lamp is kept fully two feet from the swing of the pick, amd in some collieries the use of ‘stands’ is enforced” (319)
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Bibliography
Work at a Coal Mine, II.” The Graphic (28 September 1878): 309, 319. Internet Archive online version of a copy in the Library of the University of Illinois at Urbana. Web. 25 July 2021.
Last modified 26 July 2021