Another of the series was the Hartley calamity on the 16th of January 1862--a calamity which is unique in the history of mining disasters, which moved the heart of the nation, and turned the minds of men everywhere to two very important matters--first, the sinking of two shafts to every mine; and second, to the provision for the relatives of those who lose their lives, or for the workmen who are injured. And thus it has ever been: our industry has offered up its human sacrifices before necessary reforms have been introduced. Death has in many instances opened the gateway to life and blessing. It is sad, but yet true. Then we had two very notable strikes--one at the Brancepeth Collieries, which is known as the "Rocking Strike." The name arose from the custom which obtained of setting out the tubs if they were not level full when they came to bank. In order that this might be attained the hewer used to walk around the tub and strike it with his "mell," or rock and shake it so that the jolting on the road out-by might not lower the coals below the rim of the tub, and thus result in the forfeiture of the entire contents. This system was enforced even after the Act of 1861, and in such a glaring manner, that the master's weighman was paid a commission upon every light tub he found. The demands of the workmen were payment by weight and an advance in wages. Those whose memory goes back to that period will remember the meetings that were held, and especially one not far from Mr Love's (the owner of the collieries) house, just outside Durham city, then called Mount Beulah, now by the more earthly name of Springwell Hall. At that meeting on the platform was a working model of a miner rocking a tub, and a song composed by a local poet (Mr Cooke of Trimdon Grange) was sung. Part of the refrain was, as near as I can remember, as follows:-- "The rocking so shocking long, long we have bore, Farewell to the rocking, we will rock them no more." The second strike took place at Wearmouth, and was the real, although not formal, starting-point of our Union.