The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1856-11-28
s~ SEE FIRST PAGE,
Coal is King.

nestle Preside, come and depart with its
presence or absence. Steam moves the world,
and coal gives steam its strength. The forces
of the commercial and mechanical world are
in its coal beds, and they will remain the seats
of its power, TIL the lightning is harnessed
made to propel them.
After the experience Of this year. no place
can confidently be adopted as seat of man
ufactures and mechanical labor, that has not
a certain and uninterrupted connexion with
coal mine and those places only that have
such resource can for the future expect to
become great manufacturing emporiums. The
loss to Louisville, Cincinnati, and other towns
now deprived of fuel by the peculiarites of
this season, will suffer, not only by the sus-
pension Of labor and the interruption of bus
mess for the time, but the injury will be per-
manent, and will have an important influence
on their future growth. If they cannot find
some access to a constant supply Of cheap
fuel, those who are seeking locations for work
shops and factories, will pass by them, what
ever other advantages they possess, to those
places that have this source Of all industrial
power.
Nature has been so bountiful in the crea-
ton of these valuable deposits on the Lower
Ohio, that their Importance in the future is
not now fully realized; although as subjects
for humbug speculations they were a year or
two ago fctitiously magnified 1t was how
ever, only making draft at no very long
date upon the future. The abundance of coal
with us is SO great, compared with the pres
ent limited use of it, that we have no adequate
idea of its importance to'us. We are in the
centre of basin with coal under us, and
around US in every direction, and coal shafts
might be multiplied till they were as hume
r0us as farm-houses now are, without ex-
hausting the supply for ages. Coal here,
therefore, can never bear a price above rea-
sonable profit on the cost Of digging. Coal
lands here, will never be a source of great
wealth to their owners and operators, for they
are too extensive to afford any monopoes,
and the production is SO ready it will always
equal or exceed the demand. This, there
fore, must be one of the points for the cheap
est fuel; and fuel being now almost the sole
agent in generating power we have the great
est means of prosperity, and chief attraction
to labor and enterprise
To get an idea how rapidly coal has in
creased in Importance, and of its future infu-
ence, from it's past advancement to power, we
should recall the fact that in 1929, only thir-
ty-seven years ago, the first cargo of coal, Of
only forty tons, passed down the Lehigh VAL
ley, drawn by one horse, and navigated by
the owner and boy. With much difficulty
purchaser was found, and the owner cor
delled" his boat up the river to the mouth of
the Canal, and returned home discouraged
with the enterprise. This was the beginning
of the Lehigh coal business, then the first,
but now only one of the avenues Of the i'm
mense trade in Pennsylvania. A capacious
canal and double track railroad, are now in
sufficient, through this valley to transport
the quantities of coal that are pressed upon
them. There are now ten or twelve outlets
Of the anthracite coal region of Pennsylya-
MA each one Of which is delivering at tide
water, from $4,000 to 5000 bushels per
day, or from 100000 to 37,5OOO00 each,
annually; which, when multiplied by the
number of avenues occupied in the transport
tation, give quantities difficult to grasp. This
is the result of less than forty years progress,
and the ratio of increase still continues the
same; and more than half-probably two
thirds-of this enormous quantity of fuel is
used for motive power. s..- a..
Fifteen years ago, but one mine was in ope-
ration below the Falls of the Ohio producing
about 1900 bushels daily. Not one steamer
in twenty would then accept coal as gift
experience had not taught its value. There
are now twenty mines in full operation below
Louisville, producing on the average, daily
from $4,000 to $4,000 bushels, or from 13,
100000 to 100000 bushels annually; and
of this quantity, three-quarters is devoted to
the production of steam power Taking this
statement as basis Of calculation we can
form some imperfect conception of what con-
sideration coal will be in the industrial econo-
my of this region of the country, fifteen years
hence; and by it we may be impressed with a
notion of the advantages of having good
coal bed under our feet. H-"rF
OF The damage done inss Chicago, by the
gale of Friday last, is estimated at $780,