1306
THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE.
[No. 98

Special Rules for United Italy and Inglewood Extended Quartz Mines, under “The Regulation of Mines Act, 1874.”

Mines Department,
Wellington, 26th August, 1884.

THE under-mentioned special rules for the following quartz mines are published in accordance with the provisions of section 31 of “The Regulation of Mines Act, 1874:”—

UNITED ITALY, WESTPORT DISTRICT.
INGLEWOOD EXTENDED, WESTPORT DISTRICT.

J. MACANDREW,
Minister of Mines.

The penalties for the violation of any special rules established under “The Regulation of Mines Act, 1874,” and for offences against the Act, are provided for in sections 22 to 28, in Part VI.

SPECIAL RULES.

1. No officer in a place of trust shall depute another person to do his work without the sanction of his superior; and no person in a place of trust shall absent himself without having previously obtained the permission of his superior officer for his term of absence.

2. Intoxicating drinks shall not be allowed in or about the mine without the consent of the manager, and then only in cases of necessity; and no person in a state of intoxication shall be allowed to be in or about the mine.

Manager.

3. The mine manager shall take all reasonable means for carrying out the requirements of the Act and special rules, by publishing and, to the best of his power, enforcing them. He shall be responsible for the appointment of a sufficient number of competent persons to carry out the requirements of the Act and the special rules, and also to see that the working of the mine is carried on with all reasonable provisions for the safety of the persons employed.

4. The mine manager shall see that an adequate amount of ventilation is constantly produced in the mine, to dilute and render harmless noxious gases to such an extent that the working-places of the shafts, levels, stopes, tables, and workings of the mine, and the travelling roads to and from such working-places, shall, so far as is reasonably practicable, be in a fit state for working and passing therein.

5. The manager shall see that an ample supply of timber, props, and other requisite materials are always on the premises, and the “boss” of shift shall see that the same are distributed, and also report any deficiency. The underground manager shall see that the roof and the sides in all working-places are properly secured by the persons working in them, and that the roof and sides of every travelling road be made and kept secure.

6. The mining manager or underground manager shall visit, if possible, daily all the parts of the mine being worked, and shall weekly record in writing, in a book kept for the purpose, the safety of the works carried on.

7. The underground manager, whenever practicable, must personally attend to the matters and duties required by the following rules, and the performance and observance of such matters and duties shall not be intrusted to a deputy, except in cases in which the underground manager cannot reasonably perform them, or during his lawful absence. In these cases he may require his deputy or deputies to act for him, and they shall be bound to do and perform all acts, matters, and duties deputed to him or them by the underground manager according to these rules.

8. The manager shall see that all the provisions contained in the Act as to the employment of boys and male young persons are strictly enforced.

9. The mining manager shall see that all the provisions contained in the Act and in these special rules relating to the use of gunpowder and other explosive substances used in the mine are strictly adhered to and enforced.

10. The mining manager or his deputy shall see that proper man-holes and signals which are made or provided are kept in good order, according to the provisions of the Act.

11. The underground manager or “boss” of shift shall withdraw men from working-places which are in any way unsafe, and shall report the same to the mining manager.

12. The underground manager shall see that sufficient bore-holes are kept in advance of and on both sides, to prevent inundation in every working approaching a place likely to contain noxious gases or water.

Miners.

13. Every miner shall, under the direction of the mining manager or his deputy, set a sufficient quantity of props and bars for safely supporting the roof and sides in his working-place. The timber shall be properly set, and be removed and renewed as often as is necessary.

14. No miner shall use, or allow to be used, any gunpowder or other explosives, except in conformity with the general rules for its use.

15. In addition to any examination by the manager or other officer, each miner must examine his working-place before commencing work and from time to time during his shift, and withdraw in case of danger.

16. Any miner or miners, having been told by the “boss” of the shift to work in any ground that he or they consider unsafe, shall report to the mine manager the condition of the ground, and it shall be considered imperatively necessary that such officer shall have such ground properly secured immediately on hearing such report; and, should the manager consider it necessary, such work to take priority in every instance; and no miner shall commence work in any such place until it has been examined and made secure.

17. Any person discovering any stoppage or derangement of the ventilation, injury to doors or air-pipes, or observing any obstruction in an air-course, a weakness in the roof, or deficiency of timber, weight on the stopes, or accumulation of gas or water, shall immediately give notice to the men and boys in the mine, and to the mining manager or his deputy; and it shall be the duty of every miner to make a complaint to the mining manager of the violation of any portion of this rule if he finds the same has been or is being violated, and the manager shall enter such complaint, with the name of complainant, in a book to be kept in the company’s office on the claim.

18. Any person passing through a door must instantly close it; and no person shall injure a door or leave it open, or do anything to interfere with the proper working of the mine, without an order from the manager or his deputy; and no person shall leave any light in any part of the mine, nor shall he leave any gunpowder or other explosive, except in an authorized place.

19. Shots must be rammed with soft material not likely to strike fire. When a shot has missed fire it shall not be unrammed, but shall be reported to the mining manager or his deputy, and the place shall not be approached without the permission of the mining manager or his deputy within thirty minutes after missing fire.

20. In changing shifts no miner being relieved shall leave his place of work until the next shift takes his place, and every miner on being relieved shall point out to his successor any weak place, or any ground that is dangerous or wants securing; and it shall be the duty of each miner composing the relieving shift to ask of those relieved the state of the ground before commencing his shift.

The following special rules shall be in force at every mine where men are raised and lowered in any shaft:—

Manager.

21. The manager must see that the signals for moving the cages are painted upon a board and placed in a conspicuous position.

Underground Workmen.

22. During the time of the mine-drawing every person in descending the shaft shall be under the directions of the braceman, who shall, subject to the manager’s direction, have full control over all persons employed under him, and in ascending shall be under the directions of the chamberman, who shall, subject to the manager’s directions, have full control over all persons under him, and no other person than the braceman and the chamberman shall give any signals during such time. No person shall get on or off the cage after the signal to go on has been given, nor until it has settled on the bearers or reached the bottom. No person shall take with him down or up the shaft tools, rails, props, sprags, or other bulky materials, except for repairing the shaft. No person shall get on the cage after the numbers stated on the board at the pit top and bottom are on. Every miner and boy shall leave the cage immediately when ordered to do so by the braceman or chamberman. No person under the age of eighteen years shall have charge over the pit top or bottom.

Braceman and Chamberman.

23. The braceman or other appointed person shall be at the mine at the appointed time, and shall provide a sufficient number of lights on the bank, and shall, before the engine is started, and from time to time during the day, see that the pulleys, ropes, cages, chains, and landing-doors or frames are in safe working condition; and he shall not allow any person to descend the shaft until he has put the loaded tubs into the cage, and the ropes and loaded cages have been run up and down the shaft, and the ropes, chains, cappings, and cages carefully examined by him. If any weakness or defect is found in anything belonging to the pit-top, or in the engine or machinery, he must not permit any person to descend or ascend until it is made secure. The braceman shall also attend to the proper signals.

24. The braceman in charge of the pit-top shall not let a stranger go down the shaft without the authority of the