Dear All,
It is normal that I have four or five books in the process of reading at
the same time(!), and getting back last night to (most other reading delayed
due to that excellent new vol. on Shrops. mining), the Special Reports of
the Min. Res. of GB - Vol.XXVI, Lead & Zinc Ores, Durham, Yorks. & Derbs.,
with Notes on the Isle of Man, Carruthers & Strahan, 1923 - post the
following from a text footnote:-
"In the Gang Mine, whence a slickenside runs through the vein, the miner
avails himself of a curious property attending such veins by drawing laces,
stoops, or nicks, at about six inches apart and four inches deep, with the
point of his pick, from top to bottom of his face of work, which he then
leaves for several hours, and on his return finds all the vein-stuff so
furrowed, speeled, or slappeted off, and laying on the sole ready got to his
hands," (This text is quoted as being from Farey, p.367 - I maybe should know,
but does anyone know what Farey vol. this could be???).
Can't quite tell the date of when this might have occurred, but think it to
be between 1811 and 1830 - or therabouts.
Another ref. in the same vol. (pp.49), refers to "When one of the surfaces,
possessing the grooving and polish known as slickenside, was pierced with
a pick, it rent with violence and exploded with a crackling noise. Mawe
relates that he saw a man, 'when he came out of the mine, only a few minutes
after the explosion, who, regardless of the danger, had pierced the sides of
this substance, and who was much hurt, and cut violently, as if stabbed
about the neck and other places with chisel". The same is quoted in this vol.
(& as I have already mentioned in prev. Posts), as occurring in some of
the mines around Eyam as well. The date of this quote is uncertain, but I
would suspect it to be around the same date as the previous.
I hope of interest to someone.
Regards, Bernard
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