Disaster in a Pit (Yama) and Methylated Sake Which Was Rampant in Pits
1958 - 1963

Yama no Saika to Mechiru-shu no Oko
[Disaster in a Pit (Yama) and Methylated Sake Which Was Rampant in Pits]
21.1 x 30.0 cm Ink Painting

Text on the Right
(It is impossible for me to check through and describe each of the countless disasters in coal pits but this is an exception.)
At the long wall working face of the No.2 level right of the right branch slope in the No.2 pit, an accidental blasting of dynamite occurred around 1:40 p.m. on December 3rd, 1945, injuring five pit workers. The accident happened because unexploded dynamite suddenly exploded when the workers approached the working face soon after blasting it with dozens of pieces of dynamite.
The young 25-year-old manager Wataru Imon, who was an unmarried member of a miners' group called Suematsu Gumi led by Satoru Hishiba, was taking the lead. His face was blown off and his left eye was lost. Each of the other four miners named Seki, Oya, Ichiyasu, and Naito had only minor blast injuries, which took five to ten days to heal completely.
Because of the lack of dynamite after the war, those stocked and left by the military were sold and sent to pits little by little. The inferior fuses attached to them were cut ten shaku (about 3 meters) long. Therefore, some pieces of dynamite often did not explode timely after their fuses were ignited. As a rule, workers using dynamite had to confirm if there were any unexploded pieces of dynamite by waiting for fifteen minutes after blasting. However, they often made mistakes in judgment because of the echo of each explosion. It was said that Mr. Imon was somewhat too eager for success because he was a young man who had just advanced to a manager's rank.
Note: One additional piece of dynamite was added for the blasting of a coalface (two pieces in total). When a fuse as long as 2 shaku 5 sun (about 76 cm) was attached to the dynamite, it exploded in two minutes after the fuse was ignited.

Rampage of Fatal Methylated Sake
Mr. Sadao Miyawaki, also known as Mr. Tadashi Matsumoto, of more than 40 years of age, died after drinking methylated sake on the evening of November 26, 1945. Two other people named Mr. Shun-ichi Kikusui and a certain Mr. Nishioka also drank the same sake and died later. Two or three more people were physically damaged (lost their eyesight and the like) by this sake, though they did not go to the afterlife. It was not only in Ito Coal Pit but everywhere that this dangerous methylated sake killed people. All three dead people were select miners in the pit and it was very tragic that their lives were lost.
Mr. Miyawaki, who was well-built, very strong, and skillful, had received a secondary education. He had not been able to live a peaceful life until our director gave him a job because he had joined the socialist movement. He was a scholar and miner who had the highs and lows of life. It goes without saying that he had been ruining himself by drinking sake. However, one thing we should not forget is that he was one of the victims of methyl alcohol which was generally used among Japanese people at that time to reduce postwar tensions.


Translation Assisted by Mr. Nathan Johndro

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