To prevent the annoyance to the onsetters at the bottom, from the hot smoke, the following plan has been adopted, as shown in the wood-cut, [fig. 857.], where a represents the lower part of the upcast shaft; b, the furnace, built of brick, arched at top, with its sides insulated from the solid mass of coal which surrounds it. Between the furnace wall and the coal-beds, a current of air constantly passes towards the shaft, in order to prevent the coal catching fire. From the end of the furnace a gallery is cut in a rising direction at c, which communicates with the shaft at d, about 7 or 8 fathoms from the bottom of the pit. Thus the furnace and furnace-keeper are completely disjoined from the shaft; and the pit bottom is not only free from all encumbrances, but remains comfortably cool. To obviate the inconveniences from the smoke to the banksmen in landing the coals at the pit mouth, the following plan has been contrived for the Newcastle collieries. [Fig. 858.] represents the mouth of the pit; a is the upcast shaft, provided with a furnace at bottom; b, the downcast shaft, by which the supply of atmospheric air descends; and d, the brattice carried above the pit mouth. A little way below the settle-boards, a gallery c, is pushed, in communication with the surface from the downcast shaft, over which a brick tube or chimney is built from 60 to 80 feet high, 7 or 8 feet diameter at bottom, and 4 or 5 feet diameter at top. On the top of this chimney a deal funnel is suspended horizontally on a pivot, like a turn-cap. The vane f, made also of deal, keeps the mouth of the funnel always in the same direction with the wind. The same mechanism is mounted at the upcast shaft a, only here the funnel is made to present its mouth in the wind’s eye. It is obvious from the figure, that a high wind will rather aid than check the ventilation by this plan.
The principle of ventilation being thus established, the next object in opening up a colliery, and in driving all galleries whatever, is the double mine or double headways course; on the simple but very ingenious distribution of which, the circulation of air depends at the commencement of the excavations.
The double headways course is represented in [fig. 859.], where a is the one heading or gallery, and b the other; the former being immediately connected with the upcast side of the pit c, and the latter with the downcast side of the pit d. The pit itself is made completely air-tight by its division of deals from top to bottom, called the brattice wall; so that no air can pass through the brattice from d to c, and the intercourse betwixt the two currents of air is completely intercepted by a stopping betwixt the pit bottom and the end of the first pillar of coal; the pillars or walls of coal, marked e, are called stenting walls; and the openings betwixt them, walls or thirlings. The arrows show the direction of the air. The headings a and b are generally made about 9 feet wide, the stenting walls 6 or 8 yards thick, and are holed or thirled at such a distance as may be most suitable for the state of the air. The thirlings are 5 feet wide.
When the headings are set off from the pit bottom, an aperture is left in the brattice at the end of the pillar next the pit, through which the circulation betwixt the upcast and downcast pits is carried on; but whenever the workmen cut through the first thirling No. 1., the aperture in the brattice at the pit bottom is shut; in consequence of which the air is immediately drawn by the power of the upcast shaft through that thirling as represented by the dotted arrow. Thus a direct stream of fresh air is obviously brought close to the forehead where the mines are at work. The two headings a and b are then advanced, and as soon as the thirling No. 2. is cut through, a wall of brick and mortar, 41⁄2 inches thick, is built across the thirling No. 1. This wall is termed a stopping; and being air-tight, it forces the whole circulation through the thirling No. 2. In this manner the air is always led forward, and caused to circulate always by the last-made thirling next the forehead; care being had, that whenever a new thirling is made, the last thirling through which the air was circulated, be secured with an air-tight stopping. In the woodcut, the stoppings are placed in the thirlings numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and of consequence the whole circulation passes through the thirling No. 7., which lies nearest the foreheads of the headings a, b. By inspecting the figure, we observe, that on this very simple plan, a stream of air may be circulated to any required distance, and in any direction, however tortuous. Thus, for example, if while the double headways course a, b, is pushed forward, other double headways courses are required to be carried on at the same time on both sides of the first headway, the same general principles have only to be attended to as shown in [fig. 860.], where a is the upcast, and b the downcast shaft. The air advances along the heading c, but cannot proceed further in that direction than the pillar d, being obstructed by the double doors at e. It therefore advances in the direction of the arrows to the foreheads at f, and passing through the last thirling made there, returns to the opposite side of the double doors, ascends now the heading g to the foreheads at h, passes through the last-made thirling at that point, and descends, in the heading i, till it is interrupted by the double doors at k. The aerial current now moves along the heading l, to the foreheads at m, returns by the last-made thirling there, along the heading n, and finally goes down the heading o, and mounts by the upcast shaft a, carrying with it all the noxious gases which it encountered during its circuitous journey. This wood-cut is a faithful representation of the system by which collieries of the greatest extent are worked and ventilated. In some of these, the air courses are from 30 to 40 miles long. Thus the air conducted by the medium of a shaft divided by a brattice wall only a few inches thick, after descending in the downcast in one compartment of the pit at 6 o’clock in the morning, must thence travel through a circuit of nearly 30 miles, and cannot arrive at its reascending compartment on the other side of the brattice, or pit partition, till 6 o’clock in the evening, supposing it to move all the time at the rate of 21⁄2 miles per hour. Hence we see that the primum mobile of this mighty circulation, the furnace, must be carefully looked after, since its irregularities may affect the comfort, or even the existence of hundreds of miners spread over these vast subterraneous labyrinths. On the principles just laid down, it appears, that if any number of boards be set off from any side of these galleries, either in a level, dip, or rise direction, the circulation of air may be advanced to each forehead, by an ingoing and returning current.
