The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1863-07-25
A Remarknble Salt Mine--HOw the
Rebels gOt their Salt.


ouarried out in solid blocks. From this
vast and valuable deposit the rebels drew
large part of their supplies:
The mine is not far from the town of
New Iberia. The visitors left this place
and travelled in a south-southwesterly di-
rection over q most beautiful level prairie
Main about six miles distant. This plain
Is go much Of dead level that the land al
though very rich soil, is deemed by the
srmers almost valueiess, because the wat
sr falling upon it finds no declivity by
which to run off from its very fiat, even
surface. The writer says:
1--WE then approached the celebrated
raised plank-road, which had been built
through a sea swamp, about two miles in
length, extending from the dry or main
land through the swamp, to the salt island
of Petite Anse. This road is the only land
passage to the Island, and is now SO mar
row that the teams or vehicles cannot pass
each other upon it.
"a signboard at either end designates
the hours OF the day for passing either way
upon the road. BY this crossway we reach
ed the northeasterly border OF the Island,
and then, by winding road over it's I'M
duiatlng yet cultivated surface, distance
OF about two miles to its most southwester-
ly border, we approached the great salt de-
posit OF North America. AS we neared the
saline bed, we could see through the scat
Ucitu Ices anu bushes Wnllc Oh tf0
quarried rock salt, stacked up in piles
from ten to fifteen feet high, short distan-
ces apart, giving evidence of the wells. or
shafts, excavated within the earth below,
and adjacent TO these several piles of guar
ried blocks of salt.
''These wells or shafts, for the blasting
and excavating this rock deposit, are about
twelve in number, of different sizes, and
located within radius of about four hun
dred feet. They consist of a square or OBJ
long excavation down from the surface in
to the earth-a depth, on the average, of
about nineteen and a half feet below the
surface-to the hard, smooth rock salt de-
posit below. These pits are sunk and
walled up-something similar to Golfer
dam-either by planlls thoroughly braced
from the opposite sides against the earth's
bank on either side, or sort of frame
work of logs dovetailed together Mt the
ends like the walls of a log house, and ex-
tending from the surface of the ground
down to the salt quarry below and made
so tight that the crumbling, falling earth
was thereby entirely excluded from the
pits.
'These shafts are on the average about
twenty feet square. One of the pits how
ever, which has been made and worked by
the rebels, Is much larger than either one
OF the other pits, is made in the form of an
II, and Is about eighty feet long on it's out
er line, and about sixty feet on it's inner
line, and about twenty feet wide. From
all of these pits there has been excayated
more or less salt down into the rock a depth
OF from ten TO thirty-five feet below it's sur
face. This larger pit had been worked
much more than either one of the others.
The salt rock has been blasted and taken
from this shaft to the depth of about thirty
three feet, and far into the rock below out
side OF the walls of the pit and under the
earth, and salt banks left standing above
A large column of the salt rock, about six
ieet IN diameter, remains standing under
the inner elbow or apex of the pit, to sus-
tam the rock arch of salt and earth above
it. Over and around these pits there were
erected during the last year several build
lngs, sheds, and much machinery for drill
ing, blasting, hoisting and barrelling the
blocks OF salt Just as eXcavated from the
NINE, without any granulation whatever.
II was informed that from four hundred
to SIX hundred men were constantly en-
ployed during portion of last year-a part
OF the time both highland day-to exhume
and barrel the salt, and load ii upon up on
from one hundred to five hundred teams,
constantly there on the ground, and driven
from almost every section of the rebel
States, each teamster standing about and
IN most anxious waiting. with cash in
hand, the next turn for their long wished
for load
Some OF these pits were worked by the
owner of the soil; others were worked by
contracting parties, who furnished or de-
frayed their own expenses, with the neces-
sary labor, and paid the owner stipulated
sum per pound for the salt
"The.average selling price of the salt on
the ground was 4lc per pound.
u VIII here remark, by way of contrast,
that the average price in the city of New
Orleans for Liverpool ground alum salt. in
sacks commonly called coarse tine,) has
been, from on shipboard, during the last
hiteen years, about fifty cents per sack of
about three bushels, or one quarter OF a
cent per pound including the cost of the
sack.
Il nave Deen assured by persons who
know the facts, that Judge Avery has re-
ceiNed within the last year, over one mil
uon two hundred thousand dollars for the
salt, IN addition to the many smallersum
when have been received during the same
time by the other contradicting parties at
the mines.
ut is said to me that there has probably
been received in all for this salt within the
last fiscal year, at the works. the enormous
sum of from two to three millions of dol
lars. Such another prolific source of mo
making has never vet been discovered
within the United States since the forma-
t!on OF our Government. l was told on the
island that Judge Avery, with his family,
had left the plantation to reside for the pre-
sent more securely within the rebellious
districts of the South
The only way to quarry out this salt is
by drill aud powder blast; and L am
assured by Mr.. Robertson, an Interested
party, that the drilling is quite as hard
and as difficult as the drilling of granite
rock; the blasting is, however, a little more
free
- 4 Of these buildings and the machine
sy works have been entirely destroyed by
our army. Nothing remains but one or
TWO frail sheds, the lining of the pits, and
several small stocks of the salt blocks
pued around upon the earth near the
wells. l am assured by Major General
Banks that the Confederate guns were
loaded with this salt, and fred upon our
soldiers.
This body Of land, or island, is called
BY the French appellation, Petite Anse,
which, in our English tongue, means Lit
Tie Elbow Island from the peculiar shape
ofthe land, and the crooked course which
The Bayou Petite Anse and the smaller hay
ous making from it make in their circuit-
Gus course up from the south or head wa
ters Of Vermillion bay to the southerly side
iS1a nd. lnn . ID, I