Safety lamp it. Air is drawn in and descends just inside the glass, passing up through the flame in the centre of the lamp. The outer casings of lamps have been made of brass or tinned steel. If a lamp bangs against a hard piece of rock a spark could be generated if iron or untinned steel were employed. Within months of Clanny's demonstration of his first lamp, two improved designs had been announced: one by George Stephenson, which later became the Geordie lamp, and the Davy lamp, invented by Sir Humphry Davy. Subsequently, Clanny incorporated aspects of both lamps and produced
The Racecourse Colliery lamp' mines, i.e. the miners would have to make do with tallow candles set in a lump of clay. Mines were run on a day-to-day basis by the butty, this position can be compared to the modern-day contactor who would agree to sell coal to the mine owner at a fixed price. The butty would also hire and fire the men as required and at a pit like this, between six and 30 men could be employed. Every morning before the start of the shift the butty would go down with his safety lamp and check the workings for gases