The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1865-05-31
The Re.ource. of West virginia.

The Of West Virginia.
The termination of the war and the re- |
~storation of peace and security through
ont the borders of our State, have re-
moved the main obstacles to our pros
perity. For the proper development OF
the splendid agricultural and mineral 70
sources Of, West Virginia, twothings are
neutrality-suspicious. aud capital Duh
population, always small, averaging only
one person to thirty-eight acres OF land,
has been seriously diminished by the
civil war, and the same cause mas hioner-
to kept from our State the emlgrants
from other countries, who have, in some
of the Northern States, almost replaced
the numerical loss sustained during the
mast four years. The operations OF the
war have also resulted in the impover-
ishment of many of u citizens, and, at
the same time, tended to prevent the
investment of foreign capital for the de-
ye.opment of the natural wealth OF the
State. Happily, these barriers to our
advancement are at last removed, and
we can now promise peace and safety to
those who may settle within our borders,
and a rich reward to whatever capital
NAV be invested in our lands and mines.
During the past four weeks it is said
that more than twenty-four thousandem-
isrants have arrivedin the Atlantic cities.
WHY may not a portion Of these, or OF
those still to arrive (for the tide ofemigra-
ton is rather increasing than diminish
ing) ~beinAuenced to comet to West Virgin
lar Land may be obtained cheaply. There
are thousands of acres now lying Idle
and u~nproductive within the limits OF the
State, which the patient industry ofthese
emisrants would soon convert into flour
isbing farms. The soil is rich. the Gil
mate is propitious, nature has done her
rart well and will do still more, II mai
will perform his. We have lands suited
for every branch of agriculture. All
kinds Of grain may be produced In aoun
dance: fruit trees, of all kinds seldom
fail to Weld a bountiful crop; grapes
NAV be cultivated here with good success
and "a fine quality of tobacco may ais
La raised in this State. But labor, intel
lioent and patient labor, is needed for
the production of all these things. Our
population is insufficient and must De
increased from without unless we are
willing to lag behind our sister States in
the march of improvement and wealth.
But. rich as are the agricultural re-
sources of our Stale, they do not constr
tute the only nor chief advantages which
it affords. Cur mineral wealth is ever
greater than that of the soil. Vast beds
of coal nnderlie all Our hills. Immense
deposits of valuable iron ore are found In
I'D r~---- -c~~~G- end
duced, i'll large quantities, from numer'
Gus wells, and by her immense yield Of
petroleum West Virginia has fairly mer.
tied the title of "the Oil State" In this
last respect, we may challenge the rival
ry of the world. In every county in
West Virginia where wells have been
sunk for that purpose, oil has been OBJ
tanned Thousands Of wells have already
been bored, and we have yet to hear of a
single well being sunk in this State, in
which some quantity of petroleum has not
been obtained. The supply seems mex
hanstible, for while the wells in the
Pennsylvania oil region are diminishing
the Volume of their product, those in
this State are generally increasing. 1t is
estimated that two thousand wells are
being sunk in West Virginia at the pres
ent time, and still there is room, and oil,
for thousands more. New discoveries
are being made daily, and tend to dem
onstrate the fact hat almost the entire
area of the State may he considered
good "oil territory"
The region of the Little Kanawha riv-
er and its tributaries seems destined to
become the richest oil region yet discev-
cred on the continent. Already, in the
neighborhood of Burning Springs, more
oil has been produced than in the same
circumference in Pennsylvania OF Ohio,
and there is good reason to believe that
the territory on both sides of the river,
from its source to its mouth, will eventu-
ally prove as productive as the small por-
ion that has been already developed
Among the streams of West Virginia
whose valleys promise immediate and
certain reward to the oil seeker, may be
mentioned the Great Kanawha, Elk, San
dy and Hughes rivers and their tributa
ries, on either side.
But it is almost useless to specify 10
~calities. Oil may be obtained in greater
or less quantities, by greater or less diff
fculty and expense, in nearly every por.
tion of the State. We need money for
the development of this and our other
great mineral wealth We need money
"