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The Compleat Collier

Collieries, or the Coal Trade being of so great Advantage to the Crown and Kingdom, I have thought fit to publish this short Treatise thereof, (having not met with Books of that Nature hitherto,) in order to encourage Gentlemen, (or such) who have Estates or Lands wherein Coal Mines are wrought or may be won, to carry on so useful and beneficial an Imployment, as this is, which I need not mention the Particulars of, both in respect of Fires, for private and publick use, as also in respect of the Revenue it brings in Yearly, or in Respect of the great Advantage it is, being a Nursery for Saylers, &c. or lastly, in respect of its imploying so many Thousands of the poor in those Northern parts of England, which are maintained by it, who must otherwise of Course be Beggars, or would be starved, if Coal Mines were not carried on; as also explain tho whole Art of Collery, that Coal-Owners, (or such who have or may work their Colleries) may of themselves by this Book know better how to carry on such an Undertaking, and that they may not be too much imposed on by their head Servants, or such who imploy the poor Labourers or Miners in their Colleries; by keeping the Owners in Ignorance of the Work and Charge; therefore in order to proceed on these several Heads, I shall begin (and with as much Brevity as I can) after this plain following Method.

Coal-Owner.] Friend, you tell me you have hopes to win a Colliery in my Grounds, pray tell me your Reasons for it?

Servant, or Undertaker.] Sir, my Reasons are as follow: In the first place your Ground Borders on other Colleries, which are working Colleries, which makes it plain that there is Coal so near you; but more especially, you may please to observe in your Grounds, the Undoubted Tokens or Signs of a Collery, which are these following First, there is an Out-burst or an appearance above Ground, of some Vein of Coal, which some History Writers says, was the first Encouragement to begin Coal-Work : Or, Secondly, you have an Out-burst or appearance of such Stone (as we call Coal-Stone) but if these Sign do not satisfy you throwly: We havc in the last place this undeniable Proof and Assurance by boreing the Grounds with proper Instruments whereby we can discover the Nature of the Earth, Minerals, and Water, that may be met with in our way of Sinking, nay we can thereby discover to a small Matter how deep your Coal lies in the Earth, and what thickness the Coal-bed is of.

Owner.] Pray Name me your boreing Instruments, and let me know their use.