The Potter journal. [volume] (Coudersport, Pa.) 1857-1872, 1865-10-24
rom sulphur and is unsurpassed for blackmith

from suiphurand is unsurpassed for blackmith
use.
1t has been tested for locomotive fuel on
the New York Central Rrilroad and pronoun-
ced superior to the Erie coal. 1t yields'4 56
cubic feet of gas per pound of very superior
quality. Some Of the veins cake very freely
while others, especially the largest vein makes
light open fire, cakes but slightly, it is an
admirable coal for domestic use, and would
in all probability prove good for the smelling
furnace.
With an ample supply of such fuel within
100 miles of Buffalo, it would seem that the
citizens of that place should not be long in
reaching it. Certainly nothing could be more
beneficial to their manufacturing and CONNER
cial interes.s, nor of greater profit to the road
that carries it.
At the existing high rates of labor and ma
terials ofall kinds, coal from these mines could
be placed in the cars at cost in no event ex-
ceeding 81 so per ton.
Can there be any doubt, that so long as the
mining and freight are at such figure, the
Buffalo market would take 100000 tons per
annum at so per ton. This would give
clear profit Of $500, 900 per anDum on the coal
alone. and would also furnish an income to
your road from Larabees to Buffalo of $780,
900 sum sufficient, after deducting so per
cent for working expenses to pay over per
cent interest on the total cost of those 80 miles
even though its cost be as high as two and
half millions
There is another view of this matter that
may be of Importance to your enterprise:
a continuation of this branch road beyond
the coal mines % miles will reach the Phia-
delphia & Erie Railroad at Rane, the entire
distance being along an unbroken ridge on
which no heavy grades will be required using
l6 miles of the P & E. R. r. west of Rane, the
Tlonesta Creek is reached at Sheffield.
Down the Tioneta, very favorable route
can be obtained to the Allegheny River, thence
down it to the mouth of Pithole and up to
the oil wells, the distance from P. Il E. R. R.
if 81 miles making the entire line from Buffalo
to Pithole wells l75 miles. with coal field
upon the route"
Buffalo is very little more than one hundred
miles from an immense coal field, which will
be reached by the Buffalo and Washington
Railway. 1t, IN connection with the Phila-
dclphia anb Erie Railway penetrates the an
thracite coal measures, in the Shamoln VAL
ley, in the vicinity of Sunbury. The distance
by this railway from Buffalo to the bituminous
coal deposits will not vary much from that of
the Pennsylvania coal fields from Erie, or the
Ohio coal fields from Cleveland and by it
the anthracite coal beds are brought nearer
to Buffalo than by any other route of commu-
nication either by rail or water, or both COM
bined.
The course of this line ofrailway from Buff
falo to Emporium is very direct, following the
valleys, which all run in neaIy the same di-
rection. The grade line are all favorable for
the trade. The demand for supplying the
gas companies at the East, and that oiBuffalo
for domestic and manufacturing purposes, can
be more cheaply furnished from the mines pen
etrated by the B. & W'n Railway than from
Cleveland or Erie, as the margin of lake
freights from those ports to Buffalo would be
against them. The wants of tie West can be
supplied from Buffalo at cheaper prices for the
anthracite, and at as cheap or cheaper prices
than from Cleveland or Erie for the bitumn-
Gus coal.
Buffalo being the western terminus Of the
Erie Canal receiving between fifty aud sixty
per cent of the surplus products of the West
and northwest, moved Eastward to market,
has and extensive lake commerce, but not an
evenly balanced trade as the large fleets Of
vessels arriving from the West come with full
ly laden cargoes, and three -fourths of them
return with none. The coal viii supply this
def cheney in the balance of trade.
The Buffalo Board of Trade report for 1864
states; that dur ng the navigation season for
that gear s, ,958 vessels of all classes arriv ed
at Buffalo, having tonnage of3, ,42l, ,767 tons
aud 7, l47 vessels cleared having q tonnage of
3, 450, ,58l tons. For want of return cargoes
many of these vessels go to Erie or Cleveland
for coal, sailing 100 to so miles off their di-
rect course for the upper lakes and by so do
ing frequently losing a favorable wind and
consequent loss of trip or more during the
season of navigation.
All vessel owners having vessels engaged
il the trade between Buffalo and western lake
ports would much prefer to take coal cargoes
from Buffalo even at a less price than from
Erie or Cleveland. Taking these facts into
consideration it is evident that the West can
be supplied with coal from Buffalo of both
varieties on equal if not better terms than
from Cleveland or Erie,
The weekly shipments of coal from Cleve-
land hava for sevaraI vraaI,z I;poI,J;oo. I'll
August, and September) averaged ten to
twelve thousand tons, and Erie nearly as much
more, and this is mainly carried by vessels
from Buffalo, bound to western lake ports.
Erie and Cleveland are not places of much
commercial importance aside from their coal
shipments, and vessels on their return only
go there for ballast, from necessity, and if