tor has expressed his view point or his feeling under
the ordeal, whereas the strikers have made the street corners vibrant
concerning the villainies of their employers whom they designate as
Capital. In dismissing this phase of mining, I would say a strike is
to be avoided at almost any cost, for, apart from its factor as a
somewhat strenuous builder of character, it is a victory which costs
the operator too dearly both in the expenditure of nerves and of money.

... Before being led into the discussion of finances and strikes, I had
started to tell you about an Albertan mine and its workings. The theme
is worth picking up again. Before you go down, it is well to have a
look around the machinery-room where the engines pump up the water and
pump down the air. You will also be interested in the great spool or
drum which unwinds the long steel cables by which the cage is lowered
or hoisted in the shaft. One man stands beside it and controls it with
a lever. The man behind the lever needs to be equally as steady and
effective a worker as the man behind the gun, for it is by this cage
the men enter and leave the mine, although they may, if so disposed,
ascend or descend by the escapement or ladder-shaft beside it.

It is the strict duty of the foreman to examine this drum, these
cables, and the cage every day, and to record his findings in a book
which he is required to keep in compliance with the laws regulating
coal-mines. This man must also carefully test for gas. The
maintenance of the air-circuit is a matter of much concernment to the
operators, for on it depends not only the health and security of the
men but the safety of the mine itself. Carbon monoxide, which is white
damp, is more dreaded by the miners than any other gas because it is
difficult to detect, having no odour, taste or colour.

The Bureau of Mines in the United States have recently discovered that
canary birds are extremely susceptible to it and, after being exposed
for three minutes to air containing one-sixth of the one per cent, of
the gas, show marked distress. In eight minutes, they fall off their
perches. As a result, many American miners are now using canaries to
watch out for gas while they are at work.

Black damp, or carbon dioxide, may be detected by its peculiar odour.
It is heavier than air and tends to suffocate fire. After an explosion
has taken place these two gases become mixed and form what is known as
after damp, a mix