Dangerous Conduct at Denaby.

Horace Deacon, pony driver at Denaby Main Colliery, was summoned for a breach of special rule 4, for doing an act in the nine likely to endanger the lives of persons working therein.

Mr Hickmott prosecuted, and explained that the defendant was a driver whose duty it was to take coal from the working place to a certain place where it was taken up by machinery. It there was a small quantity of dirt falling in the driving way it was his duty to remove it, but if the fall was a pretty large one the working place was stopped altogether for the day and the dirt was removed in the night, with the result that the defendant would get off earlier than usual. By this he would sometimes get pay for the work of a full shift when he had perhaps only performed part of it.

For several days it had been noticed that in the defendant’s gateway there were falls of dirt and the defendant had gone off work before the ordinary time. The management became quite convinced that the dirt was being pulled down intentionally with a view to someone getting away earlier, and therefore they sent a man who was strange to that part of the mine to go to the place in the dark and watch. The defendant had a lamp, so that the man who was secreted watching was able to see him without being seen.

On this particular day the man was watching and he heard a noise as of a stone being knocked against the roof. He listened a short time and then crawled on his hands and knees to the point from where the sound proceeded. When he got to the place he saw the defendant striking with a stone to get the roof down. He said to the defendant. “Don’t you think you have done enough?” The defendant apply, “are you going to report me?” And when the man said he was defendant asked him not to do. The result of the defendant’s action was that about 8 cwt of stone fell from the roof.

George Alpine, the man who had been ordered to watch the defendant gave evidence in support of the advocate’s statement, and Mr Bond, a deputy who has changed that part of the mine, spoke of the danger of the defendant’s action.

A fine of 10s and costs was imposed.