This photograph was taken in 1913.
Riding the Gun
Here we can see a lad of around 12 or 13 years old doing the job of underground haulage with a pony.
Around the body of the pony is a u shaped iron bar called a shaft which is attached to something called a gun. The gun is a s shaped iron bar that connects the shaft to the tram, hence the term shaft and gun. You can see the lad holding the shaft with his right hand while at the same time sitting on the gun which was a very dangerous activity to say the least but was carried out by most people doing this job. The term was well known as riding the gun. " Just what today's Health and Safety people would have to say about the above practice, one can only imagine"
