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All over England you can see capital living in mansions, and behold labour in hovels and rags. This, in a country like England is a crime too monstrous to be borne in silence by men who have the thoughts and feelings of human beings.
When hundreds of miners are suddenly killed by an explosion, a few thousands being subscribed seems sufficient to satisfy the conscience of the country, which is fed by wealth produced through the blood, groans and tears of 500.000 men. This is the only value they put on the mining population, therefore we think it is high time we valued our own life, labour and manhood to our advantage. |
The jackals of capital would persuade the country that the miners all commit self-murder, and get smashed up by their own carelessness, or wilful, wicked negligence while at work. We hurl such an infamous lie and liable back with all the manhood we possess.
We challenge them before the country to show how an explosion can happen if the mine be kept free from gas, according to law.
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We defy them to, legally or morally, saddle the blame on the miners when the law places the mines under the management of the employers and inspectors. We dare them to hear the workmen before any tribunal in England , if the workmen were protected in speaking the truth.
We are willing to accompany the “public” through the pit and prove our charge to the letter, irrespective of any consequences they can impose. The law is broken; the rules signed by the inspectors are set at nought by ignorant, clumsy unqualified officials in every part of the coal trade.
Not by all of the managers and officials. No not by no means do I make this charge on all of them, for I know many who are both competent and over careful, and who grieve bitterly when explosions or accidents take place anywhere.
But the results of our present inspection and management bear me out in saying that those dreadful holocausts are directly caused by mismanagement, ignorance, carelessness and utter neglect, apart from the miners. |
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Since 1862 there have been about 15,000 men killed and 150,000 injured in our mines. No greater loss or sacrifice of life could be well planned if we had neither law, managers or inspectors. A Surely then the country must see clearly that it is not the miners that are in any way blameable in the matter.
Of course, we cannot lose sight of the fact, that the workmen sometimes do commit reckless and important acts which result in accidents to themselves, but they have not the knowledge of the condition of the mine, nor can they keep the mine clear of gas, or distribute the air, or interfere with the management in any degree whatever. They are entirely dependent on the authorities that are bound to see and know when all is going on in accordance with their authority and instructions.
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| Let the inspector make a monthly examination of each pit under his care, and I should imagine no such thing as that two or three hundred men could be murdered at a time by the accumulation of deadly gas. |
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