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Vancouver Coal Company

As part of the Chinese Historical Wrongs Legacy Initiative, we’ve digitized a small selection of inquests and inquiries from 1872 to 1934, found in series GR-0431. These were chosen to reflect the experiences of early Chinese immigrants to B.C. – their living and working conditions, and their unfortunate accidental or unusual deaths.   They range from a woman working in a brothel in Barkerville who died of natural causes to three sawmill workers who died from malnutrition. Learn more.

*All transcriptions are provided by volunteers, and the accuracy of the transcriptions is not guaranteed. Please be sure to verify the information by viewing the image record, or visiting the BC Archives in person. 

BC Archives GR-0431

*Please note that archival source materials are original historical documents that have not been censored, reviewed or otherwise altered by the Royal BC Museum. Some materials may contain content that is racist, sexist or otherwise offensive. The Royal BC Museum is only the custodian of archival materials; the content does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Royal BC Museum.

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48 was the driest. [?It’s] I have been frequently down there when shots were fired. I some times [?did] a quick deal of dust would arise from shots. I have never noticed any explosions of gas down there. [ ? ? for thirty five years]. I have done a good deal of practical mining myself. I have seen the flame extend forty feet from a shot and these shots partly do their work. I have accounted for this partly from the quantity of powder used and partly from the dust left in the hole. The tamping is generally done here with damp dust. I would not attempt to tamp a hole with dry dust. I cannot say whether a coal dust damping will extend the flame any further than my other tamping. I have seen fireclay and other material used for tamping. I cannot say what the holes were tampered with when the flam of the shot extended out this distance. I have never seen man burned at forty feet but I have been compelled myself to get out of the way of a shot at that distance I ascribe the length of flame to the powder principally. It might be from dust as well as powder. I would not like to say that the flame was form the powder or that flame from powder would extend forty feet. Powder flame from a [?well] conducted shots would extend timber to fifteen feet. I have seen it. It is not very rare. Han had an opportunity of testing the ventilation of the mine. It was very good. Some of the men thought that it was [much] at times. This is the first explosion I have ever been in I the ventilation down the diagonal was as good as required. I was down at the face of the diagonal that day. I did not hear of any gas having been fired that day. I know Hague and Griffiths and the Cross Cut where they worked. I was down at the front of the diagonal about three oclock and I was within one hundred and fifty yards from the face at half past four and heard nothing of the lighting of gas there. It is much the driest part of the mine. I have worked in the mines in Scotland. I have never worked in such

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