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Feb. 11, 1878 J In view of the attempt now Lelng made to establish a Nova (Scotia School of Science and Technology in this town, it may not he out of place to attempt to anticipate the objections that will be raised against it by those who have not considered clearly its aims ; and to endeavour to show the advantages tliat its training would confer on those who, in a few years, by the irresistible march of time, nmst l»ccome rulers and leaders of our country. 1 would be glad indeetl to explain and show lunv wide-spi'ead 380 TRAINING FOR MINING ENGINEERS — GILPIN, and directly felt, would be the advantages of having among us men more skilled to apply practically, physics, mechanics, agri- culture, natural history ; and even to investigate that most im- portant, yet least undei-stood field, the world beneath the waters, whence we draw our harvest of the deep ; such an important item to a people whose land borders on two oceans, and is intersected by the largest lakes and rivers jf the world. But I must leave that to abler hands than mine, and touch only on what I am best acquainted with — the professions of the Civil and Mining Engineer. These two professions are of great antiquity, although the records of their achievements are too frequently obscured in the annals of conquest and intrigue. The ancient aqueducts and harboure of Europe and Asia form striking monuments of the value attached to the services of the Civil Engineer engaged in those two most important duties, the supplying of towns v/ith fi-esh water, and the formation of com- modious harbours at points of commercial and strategical impor- tance. The enterprise of an English ti-aveller has recently re-opened the historical milling district of Midian, and certainly from hid account of the richness of its mineral resources tlie " old men" deserve credit for their selection of a good mining ground. Still the progress of these twin professions was very slow, and it appeared at one time as if the art of the continental Coal Miner was doomed to extinction, for it became very evident that with the appliances of the day it would soon be impossible to raise the water of the coal mines from a depth materially ex- ceeding that already reached by the workman. The discovery of steam however has changed all this, and opened to the Civil and Mining Engineer a vast and unlimited field. To the one it gave the Railway and its accessories of bridges, tunnels, and the improvement and deepening of rivers and harbours at points hitherto undreamt of. To the other it furnished a powerful agent for tleepening and extending the subterranean galleries, and by its economical application af- forded scope for a vehement and yet well regulated extraction of minerals, so that it is not unusual to see an English Colliery TRAINING FOR MINING ENGINEERS— GILPIN. 381 ,>;. raising over one thousand tons of coal daily. And by its aid, more or less directly applied, minerals are smelted which were before considered valueless ; al! the labours of the metallurgist are facilitated, and his products correspondingly cheapened. We thus find that these pi-ofessions have widely extended their aims, and now call to their assistance and use practically every item of knowledge that has been gathered about the com- positi )n and laws of the earth, the waters and tlie atmosphere — electricity — chemistry — geology — the laws of fluids — the yet almost unknown currents of the air, — all are pressed into the service of the Civil and Mining Engineer, and we are in-esistibly led to the thought that their preliminary training must corres- pond in liberality and breadth to the iuiportance of the subject they are to deal with. Few,perhaps, except a professional man, can detect and account for the imperfections in the practice of the subject he is inter- ested in, and I can hardly hope to take you all behind the scenes this evening ; but the leading facts to be noticed ai'e quite fami- liar to you all. When the scant production of Canada is considered, and the preponderating importance of agriculture and the fisheries, the first and most natural question is, whether these professions are important enough to require any special training for those in- tending to engage in them ; in short, would it pay to give our engineers a better training than that at present in their reach. When a practical question is to be dealt with in a practical manner, figures m^ perhaps convey a clearer impression than any mere assertion. The value of the minerals raised in Canada for export and home consumption for the year ending June 30, 1870, was, on a rough estimate, $4,038,000. The readiest way of estimating the value of the Civil Engineer- ing profession is from a consideration of the number of miles of railway annually built in the Dominion. From figures fui-nished to me I believe the amount under construction in 1877 to be about 1000 miles, which would involve an expenditure of over $5,000,000. The amounts paid for private and prelimiiiaiy -1 J?S2 TRAINING FOR MINLVO ENOINKFRS— OILPFV. survoy.s inuHt also he very lar<^e. The value of the railway iron imported dining' the yeai'H 187')-7G was S3,0.')l,000. If then we have two items amounting to an annual value of SH,000,000, no one can justly »ay that he would a heading ous linie- ing their 3 contain no small valuahle contractor e him to form an idea of the hartlncss and state of aggregation of the rocks and soils likely to be met in tunnels, cuttinsrs, etc. In one or two instances a slight acquaintance with Geology would have effected a large saving of expense in bridge-building on the Intercolonial Railway, as for instance the Miramichi and Restigouche Bridges, and an instance of the neglect of the phy- sical effects of sloping rock surfaces was shown on the Eastern Counties Railway. As the Engineer is forced in the pursuit of his profession to spend nnich of his time in the forests and mountains, an acquaintance with mineralogy will always prove an interesting occupation for his leisure moments ; hist collections, especially when made in untrodden lands, will always prove valuable ; and by a fortunate discoveiy he may .secure an independence for himself. The systematic study of the effects of river currents and tides on the deposition and removal of diluvium, is one of great value anil almost indispensable to a permanent and economical opening and improvement of harbours. An interesting instance of this is furnished by the almost complete destruction of Port Hood harbour by the winds and tides of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Take again the case of a veiy respectablt; body of men who are extensively engaged in the laying ofi' and division of proper- ty — the land surveyors. Who has watched an ordinary land surveyor, with an antiquated compass gravely running out a set of farm lines, and not noticed with aduiiration liow bravely he conceals his fear of local or daily variations of the compass. The care with which the chaining is carried up hill and down, and the gravity with which ten per cent, is added to the distance measured, irrespective of the nature of the groiind passed over would be amusing if it were not for thtr thought of the trouble entailed on the future tenants of the properties. In many cases extensive blocks of farms have l)een surveyed, and no date given, nor any reference made to the astronomical Noi-th. The conse- quence of this is that endless troubles arise when attempts are made to find the boundaries of old properties ; which as a rule are either imperfectly or not at all marked on the groinul. And 384 TRAINING FOR MINING ENGINEERS— GILPIN. the remark made to me by an eminent barrister that the " land surveyors were his best friends," is fully justified. The surveying compass is liable to several errors, which in ordinary practice cannot be sufficiently guarded against to allow of accurate work. The magnetic variation can be readily provided for if the surveyor confine his work to a limited district, otlier- wise frequent observatiofts a?'e requisite. Daily variation and local attraction are almost beyond regulation, and it is not un- common to find that the brass work of the compass contains such a (juantity of iron as to make the indications of t^o needle valueless on certain courses. The variation of the seasons is also another source of annoyance. This variation amounted in a compass .wuivey made during the summer under my superintend- ance to a difference of 32 ft. at the end of a two mile C(iurse, be- tween the*same line as run on a fixed course in May and October, starting from the same point and using the same compass. There are othei* sources of inaccuracv to which I will refer fur- ther on, but those above mentioned are quite sufficient to con- demn the compass as an instrument of precision. Surely it would be worth while establishing a Chair of Civil Engineering, were it only to piovide competent men for survey- ing and valuing our public and private lands. This is a point that should be taken hold of by the variou s Provincial Govern- ments, and no surveyor should receive a commission unless he is able to make his surveys with the transit theodolite from the true meridian, and to chain his lines properly within a variation of two feet in every mile. I believe that the importance of accuracy in land surveying has been undei-stood by the Manitoba and Ontario Governments, and that there the public and private lands &ve required by law to be surveyed by men of higher standing than those filling cor- responding situations in the other Provinces. I would even go further, and M'ould advocate that no man .should be allowed to practice as a civil engineer except he hold a certificate of com- petency. And without in any way wishing to detract from the necessity for field work which is indispensable in this case, it appears to me that the certificate should include a course of col- ho "land whicli in to allow piovided ct, otlier- tion and not un- contains needlo IS is also ed in a trintend- urse, be- Octobcr, compass, fer fur- to con- pf Civil survey- a point jrovorn- ss he is om the iriation 'veying imonts, )y law ng cor- ven go rved to com- rn the 2ase, it of col- THAININQ FOR MINING ENGINEERS — GILPIN. 385 legiate instruction, extending over at least two years, the sub- jects taught being the same as those found in the calendars of the various foreign schools of science where civil engineering is taught. I think I am safe in saying, that were a school of civil en- gineeiing founded by the various govenuuents, that in a single yroper foi'ethou<^ht woiiltl luive made one answer all purposes. Under this headin<^ 'oft^y he classed a custoin which has re- cently crept into oui <,'ol(l i:iinin<^. Within the las*'- ♦'ew yeai"s numerous gold areas, and pn'tly woikeid mines have .oeii let on short leases tc men paying a percentage rent. The effect of tliis is a superficial working of the richer pa>ts of the auriferous veins, which on being abandoned fill with water, and become a burden to futui'e operators, 'vho are forced to mine at a greai-er distance fi-om the sinface. Gold mining in Nova Scotia will, 1 am afraid, never pay until it is conducted systematical y and on a large scale, as is the case in Australia and ( 'alifornia. Mi-. Selwyn, the Director of the Canadian (Jeological 8urv«?y, who has had a large expeiience in Australian gold mining, in a con- versation with me last summei' on this subject, expressed similar views founded on a careful examination of the veins, and the conditions under which they occur. Take again the case of underground surveying. In the Do- minion this is nearly always done with the niagnetic compass. In addition to the errors already referi'ed to in coiuiection witli this instrument, it is liable to the attraction of iron rails, etc., under ground, and to a serious source of eiTor arising, 1 believe, from the presence of various ores of iron in a decomposing state. It may Lo considered indispensable that, in order to ensure ac- curacy in mining plans, the theodolite must be used, and the in- clined measure properly reduced to the horizontal. Unless these points are carefully attended to now, in the future old plans will prove practically useless, and all miners will be liable to serious dangers when approaching abandoned workings. The systems of ventilation are another point to which every attention should be directed, and constantly as the workings of coal mines are extended, we hear of increased trouble from this source. I would only weary you if I went fintlfor, and merely leave 888 TRAINING FOR MINING ENGINEERS — GILPIN. those among my hearers who are interested in coal and other properties, to recall the cases they have noticed themselves of neglect of the above fundamental principles of mining. I am myself acquainted with a mining engineer in this Province who has ruined three collieries b} his want of skill. It is at this point that collegiate learning steps in and extends the engineer's knowledge of each special branch of his pro- fession. I do not wish in any way to underrate iractical train- ing, for in mining no man can rise even to mediociity unless he has been through the mill himself. No mining school can sup- ply this want, and he leaves it provided only with a general knowledge of his profession which may divert into any par- ticular channel, to be perfected by practice and accumulation of experience. At present there are more specialists in mining than in almost any other profession. And it is frequently the case that an expert manager of a mine is unable to survey, or an^ange his woi'kinofs, or on moviuLi- to a new district is at a loss to meet the change of conditions under wliich his work is usually to be carried on. The mining school meets this difficulty as well as it can be met in the closet. It gathers and presents to the student all the methods of mining adopted in the principal districts, the various engines, pumps, etc., used in every country, and so on, through all the branches of his educittion. Finally the pupil sliould leave with his education directed cliietly to the systems employed in his own country, and yet carry with him the most valuable points connected with foreign mining. It is almost too soon yet to judge of the practical working of the system of certificated manageis adopted in England. The intending pupil spends five years, I believe I am correct, in a coal mine, and then passes an examination to entitle him to his certificate as a competent engineer. This system is open to the great objection that the education is comparatively limited, being confined generally to one district, and the pupil is ignorant of all but coal. Au instance of what the adoption of this system among I TRAINING FOR MINING ENGINEERS — GILPIN. 389 i-oiigh \v^ of Tho in a to his :,o the mited, lorant ourselves would lead to, occurred to Mr. Selwyn and myself last summer. We were standing at the mouth of a coal mine in this Province, and noticed that in the excavated debris of a gallery there were specimens of clay ironstone, s .milar in appearance and quality to the famous blackband of Scotland. On enquiry we found that no one connected with the practical working of the mine was aware that a bed of iron ore was being passed through. Were it possible to establish, as would be most desirable, a system of certificated mine managers throughout the Dominion, I would suggest a modification of the English plan, and would require the attendance of the pupil for a fixed time at a school of mining. Here the points more particularly studied would be mathematics, including trigonometry, algebra, etc. A general system of geology, more particularly of the Dominion, a gene- ral knowledge of paUeontology, to enable him to judge of the age of the strata he may find minerals in — which has frequently an important bearing on the probable permanency of the depo- sits. Mineralogy, and the use of the usual re-agents and tests for detecting the presence of metals, etc. Metallurgy, the composi- tion, etc., of the most important ores, their concentration and reduction. Wet and dry assaying. Surveying and drawing of plans, and finally the most comprehensive course of mining that can be presented to him. After passing a satisfactory examination in these subjects he should be compelled to spend a certain time as a mining pupil, and then be entitled to a certificate, after undergoing a second examination of a more practical nature than the first. I have not ventured to suggest any details for the more effec- tive carrying out of this scheme, as they could be decided on only after careful and lengthy consideration of the necessi- ties of the various mining districts. If as is the general case throughout th<^ country, tlie minerals are held by the Government as a source of revenue, the public are not wrong in requiring that their exploration be managed by men directlj" under its control, and as well educated as possible. By this means there will be increased confidence in mining en- terprises, when it is known that they are conducted by men liable to lose their certificates if guilty of carelessness ; and the fact of their proper education will equally lessen the liability to error.