Page:The South Staffordshire Coalfield - Joseph Beete Jukes - 1859.djvu/83

26. (XXL) Fire-clay coal.—We will again take the Stow Heath and Priestfield collieries, between Wolverhampton and Bilston, as the typical locality for the description of this coal. It has there an almost invariable thickness of 9 or 10 feet, with or without a "parting;" and at a distance of 1 to 3 feet below it is another small coal called there " the Little coal." The following is the section of a shaft a little east of Stow Heath Furnace:—

	FT.	IN.	FT.	IN.
Fire-clay coal, top			6	0	$\scriptstyle {\left.{\begin{matrix}\ \\\\\ \\\ \\\ \ \end{matrix}}\right\}\,}$	9 feet
Parting	1	0	—
Fire-clay coal "holers" [1]			3	0
Slummy batt	2	6	—
Little coal			2	6
	3	6	11	6

This thickness and arrangement of beds, with some slight variations, seem to prevail through the Chillington, Rough Hills, and Parkfield collieries down to Coseley, and also about Deepfields, Dockmeadow, and Highfields.

In other places, however, both north towards Bentley and south towards Dudley, the Little coal is entirely wanting, and the Fire-clay coal much altered in thickness. In the northern direction we have the following sections (see Vertical Sections, sheet 16, Nos.6, 11, sheet 26, No. 45):—

Trentham Colliery, between Wednesfield and Willenhall.^[2]

	FT.	IN.	FT.	IN.
Coal			1	2
Parting	1	0
Coal	2	4
Parting	1	0
Coal			0	10
	7	0	4	4
Total with parting			6	4

 

Sandbeds between Wilenhall and Bentley.^[3]

	FT.	IN.	FT.	IN.
Coal			1	2
Parting	0	9
Coal			2	8
	0	9	3	10
Total with parting			4	7

 

Bentley Heath.^[3]

	FT.	IN.	FT.	IN.
Coal	2	1
Fire-clay	0	7
Coal			1	2
	0	7	3	3
Total with parting			3	10

On the southern side of Stow Heath we get frequent sudden changes even in spots surrounded by places before mentioned. At Friezeland colliery, for instance, just south of Priestfield, there is only "batt and coal, 2 feet," to represent the Fire-clay coal. At Lower Bradley we have "coal and batt, 5 feet," but at Mr. Addenbrook's colliery at Upper

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1. "Holers" is a term frequently applied to the lowest of a set of coals which are sufficiently close to be "gotten" together. In getting the coal a low wide hole is excavated by the pick some distance into the bottom bed of coal; the upper beds are then cut on each side of this 44 hole," and, of course, fall into it.
2. Communicated by Messrs. Bate.
3. Communicated by Mr. George.