LAST Wednesday, 20 members of the Radcliffe Probus Club visited the National Coal Mining Museum, Wakefield, Yorkshire.

The organiser was ex-president Ken Jubb. Ken is to be congratulated on the hard work and organisation that he put into this venture, it really was a success.

On arrival at the museum, Ken ushered us all into the restaurant where we had coffee. Afterwards we were introduced to a young lady who gave us an insight into the history of the museum and Caphouse Pit. We also saw some of the heavy machinery used to drill out the coal.

At lunch time we returned to the restaurant where we enjoyed excellent food. After lunch, Ken took us all along to the lamp room. Here, we formed a queue ready to be issued with our white helmets and lamp. We were then introduced to our guide, an ex-miner, who had a great deal of knowledge. We were now ready to descend into the pit. All 20 of us were crammed into a cage, it really was a squeeze. The cage dropped 140 metres in a matter of seconds. We then explored the twisting tunnels and compared the hardships and risks faced by the early miners to the efficiency and safety of modern mining.

In the early 1800s, women worked down the pit pulling wooden trollies laden with coal, on their hands and knees. Small boys as young a six years of age also worked. We saw the stables where the pit ponies were kept prior to going down the pit.

Our guide explained that we were not allowed to take smoking materials and battery operated equipment such as cameras, watches and mobile phones. This was a safety precaution due to the various types of gasses found down the pit.

Prior to going down the pit we saw a number of canaries in their cages. Our guide explained that canaries were taken down the pits and at the first sign of any gas, the canary would drop to the bottom of the cage. Of course, since the closure of the pits by Margaret Thatcher, not only the miners became the redundant, but also the canaries.

Our guide pointed out various types of cutting and drilling machinery that had been left down the pit when it closed. He showed us how holes were drilled to check for nitro glycerine, it all looked very dangerous.

Surfacing from the pit 90 minutes later, we went for another coffee before heading home. However, Ken had two more treats for us. We visited a TV mast which stands 1,200 feet high, and after climbing back on the coach, Ken presented us all with a memento, a small piece of coal "from Caphouse Colliery", mounted in a presentation box.

Well done to Ken, from all the members.

TN