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These have just arrived and are excellent books *British Mining No 91 - Mines of The West Pennines * Richard Smith and Sam Murphy, Sb, A5, 216pp, includes many tables and 76 illustrations. This monograph is the result of over 15 years research by the authors and covers the mines of the West Pennine escarpment from its northernmost extremity at Tindale Fell to Mallerstang and Garsdale in the south. The main subjects are the lead mines, although some iron and coal mines are mentioned briefly. The monograph contains mine plans and histories of the major mines at Cross Fell, Silverband, Dun Fell, Knock, Dufton, Netherhearth, Hardshins, Birkdale, Murton, Hilton, Long Fell, Stainmore, Brough, Hartley, Ravenstonedale and Mallerstang together with information on smaller mines and trials. A separate section deals with the smelting mills. £15.00 (this book is free to NMRS members) *Barytes Mining in Benbulbin (Sligo) 1859 - 1979 An Industrial Heritage*Gerry Foley, A5, sb, 48pp Sir Henry Gore Booth of Lissadell, Co. Sligo, became involved in the mining of Barytes in the 1880's. In 1888 he entered a partnership agreement with George Tottenham of Glenade, Co. Leitrim to mine Barytes on Sir Henry’s lands in Gleniff. The enterprise was called The Gleniff Barytes Company. The miners work was hard and dangerous. Every day the workers made their way to the valley on foot, some travelling long distances. From the washing shed they had to trek over the steep scree and ascend the vertical ladder, 30m, to reach the mine entrance. According to local folklore they laboured by candle light and a day's work was measured by the "length of a penny candle". Conditions would have been damp and dirty. The Book looks in detail on the mining operation on Ben Bulbin £9.00 +postage *The Mechanical Methods of Dressing Tin Ore Etc: Excursion in Cornwall, 1857 * Leon Moissenet **(mining engineer**), Translated into English by Tony Clarke , HB,175pp In 1857, Leon Moissenet, a distinguished French engineer, visited Cornwall and examined the workings of several famous mines, including the great Dolcoath. Moissenet was particularly interested in the way that tin ore was raised, crushed and dressed. His extremely careful and intelligent observations of these processes led to the book he published in French the following year. Tony Clark was a senior mineral processing technician at Camborne School of Mines for 25 years. His translation of this book is a tremendous achievement, and the value of it to researchers cannot be exaggerated. This is a book that will be most appreciated by the connoisseur: those men who love to discover the way science and mechanics have developed over the centuries. No industry displayed more ingenuity at the „grass roots? level, historically, than the Cornish mining industry. Every part of the tin ore dressing process witnessed constant improvements over the centuries, and most of these innovations resulted from the efforts of the ordinary men who operated the systems. Moissenet observed and described the state of play in the middle of the century, which saw most of these improvements. Contrary to a widely-held, but inaccurate belief, Cornish mine managers were constantly trying new methods and improving on old ones. The idea that they were universally „old fashioned?, reactionary and reluctant to change is a myth which is quickly dispelled once the evidence is examined. Moissenet described an industry which was fundamentally forward looking and constantly seeking improvements in both economy and efficiency. The sheer variety of systems and processes he found in the many mines he visited proves the desire for improvement evident throughout the industry. This book is highly recommended and for all those interested in how things worked**(review from cornish miners assiciation newsletter**) £18.99 post free until 30th April *Those Dirty Miners" - A History of the Kent Coalfield* J P Hollingworth, A4, Sb , 96PP A painstakingly researched history of this small but fascinating coalfield. The material covers the period from the late 19th century to its final closure and encompasses the colliery of Shakespeare at Dover, several lost collieries such as Wingham and the four productive collieries of Tilmanstone, Snowdown, Chislet and Betteshanger. Also contains a fully illustrated chapter by Tom Heavyside on Kent’s Last Days of Colliery Steam. Full of informative detail and with many previously unpublished photographs. £16.00 *Shale Oil - A History of the Industry in the Lothians *Guthrie Hutton, SB,57pp The fascinating story, written by the well respected Mining Historian Guthrie Hutton, begins with visionary chemist from Glasgow, James Young, and his innovation and tenacity in developing and refining the process of extracting useable oil from the Lothian shale fields. Much has been written about mining and Scottish coal but relatively little about the shale oil industry which brought whole villages into existence and transformed an entire area west of the capital and south of the Firth of Forth. Includes a series of black and white photos of the industry £7.99 All available via my website www.moorebooks.co.uk and of course other book sellers mike