The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1867-10-29

OFFICE Y. u ~. mENDENHALL x Co.,
No. q Vine Street,
CINCINNATI, October 10, 1867.
J. G. Patton, Esq, Lexington, "a:
DEAR SIR-Your note making in
quiry respecting the character of KA-
nawha coal as a blast furnace fuel is
received, and in reply may briefly say
that we have thoroughly tested its
quality for this purpose in our furnace
near Wheeling, with the most satisfac-
tory results, regarding it as better
adapted to smelling iron than any
known coal of the Allegheny field. We
used the Campbell's Greek and Coal
burg GOALS with about equal results.
The estimate in which our furnace
manager holds those cOsls Is evidenced
by the fact that am authorized to con-
tract for u supply to be carried up the
river to Wheeling for use in our fur
mace
nearly all parts OF our Allegheny coal
field, Justifies me In saying that know
OF no coal equal to 1t in every respect,
and that4theTe Is no portion of the field
so richly developed as on the waters OF
the Great KauRwha, or where IL can be
brought into use at SO cheap a rate.
The coal in the MAhoning valley,
which is now used by the works Of
Governor Todd and others there, has
hitherto been regarded us of the finest
quality known by the works which
use it; but our founder, who has man
aged furnaces many years in that val
lev, places the Kanawha coal unques-
tlonably before IL; aud the extent to
which the seams OF that coal are devel-
oped, bear no comparison with the
seams on the KanaWha, while the cost
of mining the former must always be
two or three times the cost OF mining
the latter.
Since the trial of Kanawha coal by
US in April last, two furnaces, of large
size, have been, or are about to be COM
menced at Ironton, Ohio, designing TO
use it as a fuel, and one near this city
is also provided for, intending to use
the Kanawha coal, Missouri IIOn
mountain ore, and the lime stone OF
this vicinity. A careful comparison of
the cost of making pig metal with these
materials in this place proves II to have
a very decided advantage over any
other IL on district in the Ohio valley;
an advantage which cannot be super
ceded until you can by a railroad TO
connect with the Virginia Central Rail-
road, or an Improvement of the navi-
gallon Of New river, bring together the
rich brown bematIte ores existing along
that railroad aud river, and the Goals OF
Kanawha, and also the limestone of
the Greenbrier. lam informed that the
DEONh heuA1IALG OlGa " "hlGh 4 AGAGA
can be mined and placed on the Yir-
ginia Central Railroad at cost of
about one dollar per toni SO, by
reciprocity of ireights between
this district and the KanawhA coal
region, this ore can be laid down at the
KanawhR salines for IS per ton, or for
a ton of iron, So; three-quarter ton OF
limestone from Greenbrier, 81 so; and
two and a half tons OF coal, 40 bushsls)
at not over four cents per bushel, 81 so;
making the total outside cost of mate
rial per ton OF iron $40 80. These aP-
pear TO me to be the highest cost for
materials at the present high prices of
labor, and is less than half the cost of
similar materials in the most favorable
OF the districts where iron is now made
in the Ohio and Mississippi vallies.
Intelligent iron men have seen clear
ly since the trial of the character of
your Goals, that If the materials have
referred to are thus brought together, the
Kanawha valley and the ore region will
be at an early day teeming hives of in
dustry and wealth, and one of the
most important centres of the iron
manufacture of the United States must
be in this portion of the interior Of the
State of Virginia. Yours truly,
CYRUS MENDENHAI.L.