Bowie Coal Company Petition

Opinion by

Mr. Justice Bell,

The question involved in this appeal is a very narrow one: Did the Court of Common Pleas of Mercer County or of Dauphin County have jurisdiction of the petition of the Bowie Coal Company?

Six partners trading as Bowie Coal Company are and had been for many years engaged in the mining of bituminous coal by the open pit mining method. On August 29, 1945, they registered with the Department of Mines. Their registration was duly accepted and approved by the Secretary of Mines, and since then they have continued open pit mining, and have complied with all the requirements…