1.Let us take a lump of coal in our hand.It is black in colour，and it will dirty our fingers a little，but we must not mind that.
MINERS AT WORK（矿工在工作）
Coal is hard；but it breaks into pieces if we strike it with a hammer，and so we say that it is brittle.
2.Where does coal come from？It is found in beds，or layers，or seams，deep down in the earth.The seams of coal are often from three to eight feet thick，and there are layers of sandstone or of clay between them.
3.Look at each lump of coal before you place it on the fire，and some day you maySEAMS OF COAL（煤层）find the mark of a leaf，a fern，or a piece of bark on the coal.
4.Coal is now called a mineral，for it is found deep down under the ground；but it was made from trees and plants that grew long ago on the surface of the earth in dense①forests②.These trees grewup and died and fell down，and others grew on the top of them，till at last a mass of wood was formed many feet in thickness.
5.Then the land on which these old forests grew sank slowly down，and the sea washed up sand and mud on the top of the mass of wood.Since then the wood has been so squeezed and heated，deep down in the earth，that it has been changed from wood to coal.
6.In the layers of clay and sandstone between the seams of coal we often find the remainsof plants very well preserved③indeed.In the coal itself it is very hard to tell one plant from another，for they have all beencrushed together.
MARK OF A FERN IN A PIECE OF COAL
（一块煤上的蕨类痕迹）
①Dense，thick；crowded.
②Forests，large pieces of country covered with trees.
③Preserved，kept.
7.To get coal，men called miners，or colliers，dig deep holes straight down into the earth，until they reach the seams of coal.These deep holes are called pit shafts.
8.From the bottom of the shaft the miners cut low passages through the seams，and dig out the coal.These passages often extend for miles.In some coal mines seams of coal are worked which are three thousand feet below the surface of the ground.
9.Some day you will，I hope，go down a coal mine.You will have to get into a big cage or box，which is fastened to a strong wire rope，and is lowered down the pit shaft by means of a steam-engine.
10.Then you will walk along the low passages cut in the coal seam，and you will see men with pick-axes①breaking down and cutting out great blocks of the coal.
11.These lumps of coal are put into little wagons or trucks，which are pulled by ponies to the bottom of the pit shaft.Then the trucks are put into the cage，and hoisted②up the shaft by thesteam-engine.Last of all，the railway brings the coal to the town where you live.
SUMMARY
Coal is found in beds，or layers，or seams deep down in the earth.It was made from trees and plants that grew long ago.The trees died and fell，and they gradually sank down until they were covered up with sand and mud by the sea.Great pressure and heat turned them into coal.Coal is got out of the mines by miners.They have to dig deep holes called pits，and the coal is sent up in cages.
①Pick-axe，a tool for digging out coal，like a pick at one end and an axe at the other.
②Hoisted，raised；lifted up.
【中文阅读】
1．小朋友，咱们把一块煤拿在手里看看。这块煤是黑色的，会把手指也染黑一点儿，可不要在意。煤是很硬的，但如果拿锤子敲，就能敲碎，所以我们说煤很“脆”。①2．煤是哪儿来的？是从深深的地下的“矿床”（bed）或者叫“煤层”
（layer或者seam）中找到的。煤层的厚度一般是3英尺到8英尺，煤层之间是砂岩或者粘土。②3．把每一块煤放在火上烧之前，先看看煤块。有时候，兴许你能在煤块上找到一片叶子，一片蕨类植物，或者一块树皮的痕迹呢！
4．煤是一种“矿物”，因为它是在深深的地底下找到的，但它在很久很久以前，是地球表面茂密森林中长着的树和草。树先是长大，然后死去，倒下了，又有别的树长在这些树的上面，最后就积累了许多英尺厚的木头。
5．后来，这些古老森林下面的陆地，慢慢地沉了下去，海水将泥沙冲到了木头的上面。然后，这些木头在深深的地下被用力挤压，加热，于是就从木头变成了煤。
6．在煤层之间的粘土层和砂岩层里面，我们经常会找到保存得十分完好的植物遗骸。可是，在煤层里面，就很难把一棵棵植物分开，因为植物全都压碎了，混在一起了。
7．有一些叫做“矿工”（miner或collier）的人，在地上挖出深洞，深洞笔直地向下延伸，一直挖到煤层。这些深洞就叫“矿井”（pit shaft）。③8．矿工们从矿井底部，在煤层里开凿出巷（）道（low passage），把煤挖出来。这些巷道经常会有好几英里长。在一些煤矿里，矿工开采的煤层，足有地表之下3000英尺深。④9．我希望将来你也能下到煤矿里看一看。你必须坐在大笼子，或者大箱子里面，箱子拴在一条牢固的钢丝绳上，用蒸汽机放到矿井里面。⑤10．然后你就可以沿着煤层中开凿的巷道走一走，会看见人们拿着镐头，把大块的煤砍下来，挖出来。⑥11．这些大块煤，放进小小的矿车（wagon或truck）里面，然后用小马，把矿车拉到矿井底部，把矿车放进笼子，再用蒸汽机沿着矿井升上去。最后，用铁路运输，把煤送到你居住的城市。⑦译注①煤是人类有史以来发现的最重要的工业资源之一。我们在前面提到那么多次蒸汽机，实际上，当时如果没有煤，蒸汽机根本不可能那么风光。18世纪晚期的产业革命，说到底正是煤的功劳。今天，中国消耗的能量有67%依然是煤提供的。
②现代的观点认为：煤层厚度一般在0.3-8米左右。2009年，新疆吐鲁番地区沙尔湖煤田勘查区发现了一处煤层，单层厚度达到了惊人的217.14米！煤也有一些埋在比较浅的地方，这些煤层可能更厚，内蒙古锡林郭勒盟胜利煤田有一处煤层，最厚达320.65米。
③这种开采法是“矿井开采”，占全世界煤矿生产的大约60%。前面说的那些比较浅的煤，可以进行“露天开采”。中国露天开采的煤，只占全部储量的7.5%。山西省朔州市的平朔煤矿，是中国最大的露天煤矿。另外还有一种海底的煤矿。目前，中国是世界上最大的产煤国，2011年的原煤产量高达35.2亿吨。
④现在的巷道是用掘进机开凿的。3000英尺合914.4米，在现代也算很深的煤矿了。目前世界上最深的煤矿，可能是德国的安斯道夫（Ensdorf）煤矿，深达1712米。从前的煤矿是一个非常危险的地方，生产条件十分恶劣，引发了历史上的很多抗议活动，如1921年英国的煤矿工人大罢工。多年来，人们一直在努力改善生产条件，应用了很多更先进、更安全的设备和管理制度，下面还会提到一些；但是实现真正的安全生产，依然是一个艰难而反复的过程。
⑤这种运送人员的设施叫“罐笼”，现代是用电动机开动的；此外也有电动的小火车。
⑥这是“手镐采煤”阶段。现在采煤用的是“综采机”，还有单人用的“风镐”或“水钻枪”。
⑦18世纪中期到20世纪中期，马拉矿车在英国比较普遍，中国的一些煤矿也用过。1913年，英国最多的时候有7000匹拉矿车的马，最后一匹可能是在1999年才退休的。现在，巷道内部运煤，主要使用皮带输送机，效率要高得多了。
APPLES，AND THE APPLE-TREE