Another unpleasant report on an industrial "accident" is before us.
This is the report presented to Parliament by Mr Arnold Morley, who was sent down by the Secretary of State to inquire into the circumstances of the explosion at Whitehaven Colliery which occurred on the night of April 25 last and resulted in the deaths of four men, besides inflicting serious injuries on a fifth.
The first noticeable thing about the matter is that Mr Morley differs entirely from the view taken by the coroner's jury.
The latter declared that the deaths were accidental and that no-one was to blame, while the former submits the question whether prosecution should not be instituted against the officials of the mine. It would be interesting to know by what reasoning the coroner's jury brought their verdict into harmony with the circumstances detailed by Mr Morley.
The Whitehaven Colliery extends far under the sea. The Main Band seam, in which the explosion occurred, has been worked over 3,000 acres, the workings in one direction extending to a distance of four miles from the shaft. Obviously the ventilation could not be a simple matter, as the air had to be drawn through very lengthy passages.
But far in the workings there is a downthrow "fault", the region beyond which is known as the "Countess" district. The lower level of this district is reached by a stone drift, and it was beyond this passage that the explosion took place.
The passage is 208 yards long, and when it was constructed ventilation had to be carried in by means of a brattice [partition] built up along it, of single brickwork 4½ inches thick.
Another passage was driven back through the coal to another point, and an independent connection made across the "fault" between the two levels, a complete circulation being thus established without the brattice.
But early this year a heavy fall occurred at the point where this second connection had been made, and necessitated temporary recourse to the old brattice arrangement.
The intake air has already travelled 2½ miles before it reaches the stone drift, by which it had now both to enter and return.
For two whole months nothing seems to have been done to open up the blocked communication, and at the end of that two months the explosion occurred. Meanwhile, it was known that there was a considerable mount of gas in the district, and "Geordie" lamps only were allowed to be used in this part of the mine.