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Coal Miners
| Open Poetry #36 |
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Coal Miners |
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Abe Senior Member
since 2003-05-28
Posts 694Looks like Vero Beach, FL until the end! 
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JUST ONE MORE COALMINERS DAUGHTER Another Coalminer’s Daughter (and Son) Has Heart and Soul beneath the Ground With Tears and Hopes and Prayers That their lost Daddies will be Found. Hoping for some great Miracle Not only Found, but Safe and Well One more Escape from the Hazards That Stories and the Folklore tell. A Dangerous Job at its best And for some the only one To take care of their Family It’s one Chore that Must be Done. We all know the Historical Of the company town and store Some say those days are gone?? But, it’s known they could do More. The wages for the "Muckers" (look it up) And those Men who run the Drills May be Paid a little More But, the Lack of Safety still Kills. The Bureau of Mines (and Safety) Although they have done much good Like most all federal agencies Not Half, nearly what they should. So the Money, buying favors Flows much faster than the Ore To protect the mining companies From the Pimp, to the real Whore. The preceding written Tuesday After the news they were found alive I'm adding this this morning From joyful, happy, jubilation To the pain and tears and mourning. How could this have happened? Why was the good news so wrong? And though some knew about it Why did the truth take so long? Then there is the rage and anger That has come a bit too late About all the safety violations That have sealed those Miners Fate. If the officials with the power From Fed, State, or Company Had fulfilled their obligations They could have stopped this tragedy. If the men themselves had complained They probably would have been let go But what could those violations cost? Well sadly now, we all know. Just another of those lessons learned (Though we all know that isn't so) Soon it will be the same ol' same To guarantee the money flow. Lives are cheap and expendable When it comes to the bottom line Seems it's always been and will be For those folks down in the Mine. Del "Abe" Jones 01-04-2006 My Grandfather worked underground, owning a coal mine in Colorado for awhile, as a superintendent on the Aqueduct, Hoover, Coulee and other dams and diversion tunnels and tunneling and Reclamation projects. He worked most the time for our Government but I feel his heart was always with those doing the dirty work and was never above getting into the “muck” himself. He was also a poet and here is a part of one of his mine poems from his book, “THE AQUEDUCT”. THE WIDE CANYON TUNNEL CAVE-IN Standing grimly, dark mouth yawning; Stretching far ‘neath mountain’s crest; Days are marked by no bright dawning Where the tunnel hides its breast. Timbers large, great rocks upholding, Steel and crown bars keyed and blocked; Wedge and foot blocks hold unfolding, Myst’ries Mother Earth has locked. But as Nature, in great fury At the secrets from her torn, Manmade structures break and crumble; Of their strength she shows her scorn. Creak! Snap! Shouts! A roar! A grinding! Dust and ground stench fill the air! Strong men flee! A safe place finding, From the dangers hidden there! Lights are gone! The darkness smothers! Matches flicker through the haze! Names are called! Each thinks of others As they stagger from the maze! Some men missing? Count each man! Are they caught beneath that fall? Were they buried as they ran? Surely they could hear them call! But at last there comes faint tapping, From that fallen mass of ground! Listen closely! Hear that rapping? That’s someone a moving ‘round! For Dame Nature, through some error, Left a place for one to hide! And though he was weak with terror, Soon he crawled to the outside. But this story has an ending, Different far from one you’ve read, With a cheerful color lending To a tale of fearsome dread. Copyright 1936 by Charles F. Thomas, Jr. Berdoo Camp, California Del "Abe" Jones |
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| © Copyright 2006 Del - All Rights Reserved | |||
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Enchantress Member Empyrean
since 2001-08-14
Posts 35113Canada eh. |
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Mysteria 
since 2001-03-07
Posts 18328British Columbia, Canada |
I know whenever I see you posted it will only be something so profound that it is worth the read, and printing. This of course was no exception. I couldn't believe it last night when they got the 12 alive! I am so sorry for every coalminer's family as each day they leave for the mine, it may well be their last. My grandfather was a mucker in the States before he married my Gramma and moved to Canada, and he told us all about it. I can still remember when he died, he still had dirty hands, and always smelled of earth. God rest his and every other miner's soul. Thank you for always picking sensitive topics and doing them with such grace and reverence. Carpe' Diem |
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Midnitesun
since 2001-05-18
Posts 28647Gaia |
Damn, what news are you guys reading? The report that I just read indicates only one survivor...a 27 year old, and that all the others did not make it out alive. Such a sad story. Oh, I hope your news stories are the accurate ones, and not the one I just read. and omg, but these names... the owner is Hatfield the survivor a McCloy |
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Mysteria
since 2001-03-07
Posts 18328British Columbia, Canada |
Good gracious! You are right Kacy - today is a different story - so sad, so sad! They had their miracle taken away. http://www.cnn.com/ |
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Abe Senior Member
since 2003-05-28
Posts 694Looks like Vero Beach, FL until the end! |
Maybe hard to understand but I talk about the false news of them being found alive and then the story changing later. The preceding written Tuesday After the news they were found alive I'm adding this this morning From joyful, happy, jubilation To the pain and tears and mourning.(of them being told truth) How could this have happened?(The lie they were told) Why was the good news so wrong? And though some knew about it Why did the truth take so long? |
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Midnitesun
since 2001-05-18
Posts 28647Gaia |
yes, I hadn't read carefully enough so terribly sad and all those violations are final for those who died and their families |
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littlewing Member Rara Avis
since 2003-03-02
Posts 9655New York |
YES today - I just heard.  |
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