No. 139. — May 10th. Mr. Stewart.

Has been here 33 years, and has been under-viewer above 20 years. Went to pits at 8 years old and kept a door for 3 or 4 years; then was a horse-driver for 4 or 5 years; then was a putter for 2 or 3 years; then began to hew coals. Went through these degrees at Walker colliery, at Bigges's Main, &c. Work was harder then than now. Used to work as a horse-driver 14 or 15 hours a-day, going down in the morning at 2 o'clock and riding at 5 o'clock p.m. There was only tram-ways in some particular collieries then. Walker was a wet and slavish colliery at that time. There have not been such long hours for this 25 years as there were then. Lads were harder wrought then than now. Did not observe that they were more injured in their health than at present, although they were harder wrought. At that time they put upon deals. The boys then was rather more corrected than now. Now they are only corrected when they stand in need of it. The overman gives them a few strikes with a whip or stick but not to hurt them at all badly. Boys are not beaten so as to make blood come. The heating is not more than gentle correction.

No. 140. — May 10th and 11th. Thomas Yeates.

Aged 18 last March. Is bound for a half-marrow. Goes down every morning at 4 o'clock, and starts work directly. Comes up in general at half-past 6 o'clock [p.m.] At first he drives in a rolley, with all the men upon it, to their different places, where they are going to hew; that takes two hours. Then starts his own work. Gets 2s. a-day, being 3d. more for driving the men in than usual. His own work is now driving, loosing the chains that draw the corves up the incline plane and greasing the rolleys. Works about the incline plane always. Has been down these pits about 8 or 9 years. Kept a door for one year and a half at first. Now works 2 hours longer than other boys. Has been doing so for 2 years. These long hours make his head work 2 or 3 times a-week. Many times makes him sick. Is often sick, and throws up his victuals from his stomach, perhaps 2 or 3 times in a month sometimes; and some boys do this once a-week or so. The air in the pit is bad, and many times makes boys dizzy. Can read [imperfectly]. Cannot write at all. Went only to school when he was a very little boy, for a very short time. Went down the pit at 8 years old. Goes to Sunday-school regularly, and to chapel afterwards. Once got his head split by a horse tramping upon him, when he was kept off 3 weeks or so.. Was also off a fortnight with a bad foot.

No. 141. — John Maffin.

Aged 16 last month. Puts for a half-marrow. Gets about 1s. 9d. and 2s. a-day, as he can make by piece-work. Goes down at 6 o'clock, and starts work at half-past 6. Rides up at half-past 6 [p.m.], having come away from the face at half before 6. Has been down these pits about 6 years. Is putting in a hard place — the full corf up a rise mostly. It is a 20-peck in many places the corf scrapes against the roof. Sometimes rubs the skin off his back by rubbing against the sides. Many times strained himself a little. Sometimes his head works, very often; he throws up his food very often. Was strong before he went down the pits but is not so now, from being over-hard wrought and among bad air. Sometimes feels dizzy from bad air. Was off a fortnight once by a horse flinging at him. Has been off bad a good few times. Is working in the broken now where they burn only Davys. The stythe often puts the lamp out. His lamp was put out to-day nearly 20 times by the stythe. Has been bad this fortnight all over, but has been working all the time. Cannot read or write. Went to a school a little bit before he went down pits. Goes to Sunday-school now, and chapel in afternoons. [Looks unwell and sickly.]

No. 142. — Thomas Newton.

Aged about 14; turned of 14. Is a helper-up. Has been down pits three years. Works from 6 to 6 in the pits. Is away 13 hours from home. Gets 1s. 9d. a-day now. Has been helping up a fortnight. Has been very bad to. day with the stythe and is working in broken Finds his head very heavy. Threw up his victuals last night when he came home. Never does so down the pit, but often does when he comes home. Helps the empty coif up and the full one down, by holding it back with his hands and putting drags in wheels. Last year held back with his back against the corf. Was putting a year before he helped up and then he had to come down and hold back against the tram, which skinned his back very often, nearly every day. This made his legs and arms work, and a his head. Only knows his letters. Cannot write at all. Goes to no school now, or any place of worship.

No. 143. — Moses Clark.

Aged 17 in November. Puts for a half-marrow. Has been four years down this pit, a two years at others. About two years since he strained himself by slipping his foot while putting. Feels very sick often and the headache. Throws up his victuals nearly every day at home and down the pit. Is working in the broken. [it is all broken here.] Thinks hard work and bad air makes him bad. Feels sometimes swelled in his stomach. Was never weak before working. Was nearly as strong before 10 years old as he is now. The pit, he sure, has not agreed with him. Many times knocks himself against the sides, and so on. Can read [fairly]. Cannot write at all. Goes to no school now and only sometimes to chapel. Was at Thornley pit for 3 months, where the air was very bad. [Does not look healthy.]

No. 144. — Fifteen Boys. The oldest 16, the youngest about 9 years old. The following are their respective ages — 16 to years of age. Seven of them are drivers, 4 boys are door-keepers; 4 boys a half-marrows. Of these boys the witnesses No.145 to 153 inclusive, gave evidence.

Aged fourteen and a half, has been down this pit 4 years. At first he kept a door for 6 months. Drove about a year and a half. Next he helped up for 2 years. Is helping now. Goes down 6 o'clock [getting up at 5 o'clock [a.m.]; and stops work at 6 at night, and rides up the pit about half-past 6 o'clock. Takes breakfast before he goes in the morning — a pint of coffee and some butter and bread. Takes baits down the pit — meat and bread and a bottle of coffee. Eats these baits at different times, at any time he has a mind, if he has time; very seldom has five minutes to eat; sometimes not a minute; and has often to eat while he is working. Never eats regular down the pit. Eats more down I he pits than up above. Takes victual down in a bag, and the bottle of coffee. Sometimes gets 'sour' from the bad air of the pit. Is well clothed himself in winter and summer, but some folks are badly off. Wears mostly the same clothes in summer and winter. Father is dead; was a hewer. Has 2 brothers down the pit putting; i about 18 and the other about 20 years of age. Whiles some boys stop longer than 12 hours. It is a long way in by for some and they cannot get to the shaft bottom at 6 o'clock. Pit has never made him bad at all. Has felt sleepy and sick down the pit many times. Has spewed up his victuals many times; perhaps 5 or 6 times since he has been here. Thinks the bad air has made him do this. They are all working in the here and have Davy lamps, that is the putters, hewers, &c. not the drivers and trappers. Is putting with rolleys now on a nearly level way. There are 2 corves upon a rolley and 1 upon a tram, because it is an over-short road for horses; perhaps about 40 yards in length. Witness, and another lad of about 17, put each a rolley a-piece, and help each other now and then. Gets himself 2s. a-day; works by the day. Mostly he puts up hill the full carves and runs the empty ones down. Some places are low. Many times the skin is rubbed off his back and off his feet. His head works very often, almost every week. His legs work on sometimes so that he can hardly trail them. Is at hard work now, shoving rolleys and hoisting the crane; the former is the hardest work. His back works very of ten so that he has sometimes to sit down for half a minute or so. Is worse since he went down the pit than before. There is no drawing with soams here. Whiles used to work in the night-shift. Them is a night-shift working here now, as they have over-many men. The putters hit the little boys at times with their hands and throw coals at them sometimes. Can read (fairly). Can write his name. Goes to no school now regularly; but sometimes three or four times a-year to Sunday-schools. Never attends church or chapel regularly. There is no night-school here now but sometimes in winter; only the master cannot get many scholars, if any.

No. 146. — Ralph Hutchison.

Aged 15. Drives in the men upon 3 rolleys to where they work. Gets up at 3 o'clock, [p.m.]; goes down at 4 o'clock [a.m.]; and rides up the pit about 7 o'clock [p.m. ], every night; seldom before, except on the pay Friday nights. Has been at this turned a year. For this he gets 1s. 6d. a-day. Also keeps a switch, chalks on work, and takes out drags for this. There is another boy, Thomas Yeates, about 17, who goes in about the same time, but rides about 6 o'clock, and gets 2s. a-day. Has been down this pit three and a half years. Kept a door at first for 3 months; next he drove for 2 years; next hung on chains at the bottom of the incline bank, and then began to stop long hours. Has been sick often, and spews up his victuals now and then, perhaps twice in a month. The bad air and little sleep makes him do this. Head works almost every day. Has not much running about. The air being bad makes him bad. Is working where they burn candles, in the whole. Can cat well enough; but is worse since he went down the pit. Father is a deputy overman. Has two brothers, a putter and wood-leader, down the pit. Can read [fairly], and write his name. Goes to no school now. Attends no place of worship now. There is no night-school here now.

No. 147. — Seven Drivers.

From 15 to 13 years old. All go down the pit at 6 o'clock [a.m.] and ride about 7 o'clock (p.m.); and some few, far in by, a few minutes after. All get 1s. 3d. a-day. Five have been slightly burnt by rolleys at different times and were kept off, none less than a week. The pit made Anderson Tulip, 13 years old, unwell at different times. The bad air made his head work, and made him throw up his victuals, about twice a month. Has not much appetite. Had a good appetite before he went down the pit 3 years ago. At first he kept a door for a year; next cleaned the way for a year; helped up for a month, and so on. Was never laid off work but 3 days, When he was bad in his inside from the bad air at Greencroft Colliery and from the cold, because it was a new pit. Has been at 3 pits — Wreckington, Look Hall, and this pit. Greencroft was the worst pit. Gets plenty to eat and enough clothes. Father is a deputy. Can read the Testament. Cannot write his name. Goes only to Sunday-school now. Goes to chapel once on Sundays now.

No. 148. — Edward Simpson.

Aged 13. Was bad before he went down the pit with (intermitting) fever and is worse since he went down the pit. Has been down 2 years and a half. The barrow-men bray him sometimes.

No. 149. — Robert Bell.

Aged 14. Is often sickish, and does not think the pit agrees with him. Has been down 2 years.

No. 150. — William Short.

Aged about 12. Is often sickish. Sometimes throws up his victuals once a-week from foul air, which smells damp-like. Took the measles down the pit. Has been down 3 years.

No. 151. — John Tulip.

Aged 14. Has been down 4 years different pits. They have not agreed with him. His head has worked often and he throws up once or twice a fortnight. Whiles he throws up when he is out of the pits, twice or thrice a-year.

No. 152. — William Cole.

Aged 14. Keeps a switch now; and gets 1s. 3d. a-day for this. Has been down this pit 2 years. It was very wet the first year and that gave him cold, and he was off a week twice or thrice.

No. 153. — Four Boys, Trappers.

All about 9 years of age. Two have been down pits half a year or so, and two about a few weeks. Go down at 6 o'clock [a.m.] and come up about half-past 5 to half-past 6. Seldom so late. Their fathers are down the pit and there of them are hewers. Sometimes the barrow-men bray [beat] them a little, not much and only if they are idle. Three read the Testament; two write their names. All go to Sunday-school pretty often, and frequency to chapel. None go to any night-school.

No. 154. — Sixteen Drivers, respectively of the following ages, 10 to 14.

All work the same hours, from a little before 6 till about 6 and after in the evening. Many of them having some distance to go do not get home before 7 and 8 o'clock. It is very often 7 before they come up the pit, as they loose the work at half-past 6 and some have to walk more than a mile, or 2 miles sometimes, to the bottom of the shaft; and so it is sometimes they get up the pit. Four boys have worked once a double shift, 24 boys hours without coming up the pit. John Forster, aged 13, had his leg broken by slipping his hold of the rope when he was going down the pit and he fell to the bottom, and was off 20 weeks. Not lame now. John Trahan had the rolleys run over him at Wreckington and was off 2 months with a bruised leg. Has been often off from sickness and head-aching, and so on. Was not strong before he was in pits. Eight other boys have had slighter accidents at times. Ten boys can read easy words. Four boys write their names. Fourteen attend Sunday-schools pretty often. Five attend worship mostly. None attend a night-school. Three four complain of the headache and sickness sometimes from bad air, &c.

No. 155. — Seven Door-keepers, 9 to 13 years of age.

All go down the pit about a quarter to 6 o'clock [a.m.], and come up about 7 [p.m.] The shaft looses at half-past 6 and then they have to come from their different doors to the bottom of the shaft. They ride up mostly on the rope by holding on with their hands and feet.

No. 156. — Michael Mikings.

Aged 13. Never has a mind for his victuals; never feels himself hungry; and feels dull and want of appetite mostly if the men are firing shots and make a smoke. James Scott were down pits before 9 years of age and another boy went down at 9 years old. Two have been lamed twice. Michael Mikings had his leg broken 3 years ago by the rolleys running over it and he was off 3 months. Had his arms burnt at Shieldfield pit and was off 6 weeks.

No. 157. — Jonathan Brunshill.

Aged 12, has been lamed about 2 and a half years ago, by having his head cut by falling out of a corf at the bottom of the shaft. Then he was off a fortnight. A year and half ago he got squeezed by the rolleys, and was off a week. Five can read easy words; write their names; 6 go to Sunday-schools; and 5 go to chapel pretty often. Three have worked a double shift (of 24 hours) once.