Gathering in coal mines

It was evidently the intention of your Committee that this paper should deal principally with a comparison of costs for different methods of gathering. One case, cited from records of the Consolidation Coal Company, will show that such comparisons are hardly practical. During 1916 coal was gathered for 5 cents per car. During 1920 coal was gathered with the same locomotive, from the same mines, and under mining conditions more favorable to the locomotives, for 20 cents per car. This increase is accounted for by large labor increase, poor and irregular railroad car supply, and decrease in efficiency of labor.