The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1868-01-15

the practical value OF the stratum of mari re-
Gently brought to light in our neighborhood,
and the qualities Of which, as fertilizer, have
The correspondent writes:
Doubtless the fact is familiar to all your
readers that the South Carolina planters have
been for some months agitated by reported
discovery of valuable substance upon Ashley
River Some called it bone earth; others phos-
phate guauo; others gave it no special name,
but declared it the most valuable fertilizer
ever dlscovered-exactly the thing needed to
grow cotton-capable OF renovating the most
wealth richer than gold or silver" &c. And
then We heard Of company organized, OF
course with foreign (Northern) capital; and
that the article was being excavated, and
shipped to Philadelphia, "to be manufactur ed"
That last sounds little suspicious to those
who have used manufactured" bone dust,
under the name OF superphosphate. GER
tainly never went in pursuit of knowledge
under greater difficulties, than did while try
ing to quarry the truth out of the velley Of
know-nothingism, touching this new fertilizer.
found several very intelligent planters, who
assured me that they had the real article in
abundance upon their plantations, and from
several Of them, and from different localities,
obtained samples, some Of which forwarded
to you. To me they looked exactly like first
rate shell mari; the shells being well decom-
posed, pulveruent, and firmly cemented to-
gether into masses of rock, which one man
said had broken lots Of ploughs for him. I
pronounce this good calcareous manure, when
reduced to powder, either by fire or mechan-
ical manipulation. The question will be the
cost OF quarrying, grinding, transporting, as
compared with its value as fertilizer. This
is matter OF experiment, which chemistry has
little to do with guess-work still less. Its
value must be tested in the field.
found out the location Of 1.-THE South Car
olna Mining Company" on the corner Of KING
and Wentworth streets, and learned thatit had
been organized with million of dollars capi-
tai, for the special purpose Of developing this
stgreat deposit" was told that it's President,
Prof. Holiness could tell me all about it, and I
have no doubt he could; but he did not. At
first he was not in, and learned nothing then,
and not much more in the hour that spert
is remarkably fluent talker, who possesses
wonderful ability not to convey any informa-
ton that he does not desire to communicate.
At both my visits to the Office Of the company
it struck me as singular that they had not
single specimen Of phosphate" but lam sure,
from little practice that snw some speci-
mems OF gold ore, and overheard the remark
that some OF them were remarkably rich.
Hence T concluded that the South Carolina
Mining Company are not exclusively devoted
to efforts to enrich the soil. learned from q
son Of Prof Holmes that he has been engaged
for some months in buying up all the planta-
tions containing the rich deposits. whatever
they may be. also learned that about oao
hundred men were now engaged in bringing
these deposits to the surface. But did not
learn what for; nor what they we're. have al
ready said they show no samples in the Office
of the company, nor give any lnformatlon-at
least, none that would satisfy my inquiries,
and from which could gather anything useful
to your readers. So went to look for it some-
where else. had formerly known something
OF DR.. st. Julien Ravenel; and later had heard
of him as still devoted to scientific inyestiga-
tons, and Of truthful, honorable character,
and bethought me that he was the man to
give the desired information. Upon inquiring
at his brotner's Office, found he had gone to
Nea York. Thus I missed that opportunity;
but met with a gentleman who knew, and
could rely upon, who told me that he had fire.
quently talked with DR.. Rsyenel upon this
question, since 30 much has been SAID about
it, and this is what he says: "The substance
in question is simply rich mari, from decom-
country, particularly between the Ashley and
Cooper Rivers, but generally being too deep to
work. AS the stratum is only twelve to eigh-
teen inches thick, it cannot be mined like coal
veins, but must be eIcavated by removing tho
earth from the surface. No doubt this mari
contains phosphate, but have never found
any that gave sixty per cent, which have
which I have analyzed have generally shown
four to fifteen per cent. Of phosphate, and
sixty to seventy-iye per cent. OF carbonate OF
lime. OF course these were selected speci-
mems. The mass will not average as high In
either carbonate or phosphate, being much
mixed with siliceous matter, and the whole
formed into pretty solid rock, which must be
reduced to powder before it can be Of any
value as q manure. l have no doubt it will
prove valuable application to the soil OF
South Carolina, particularly when mixed with
swamp-muck for cotton manuring."
This is one side. Here is the other, as near
as can give 1t, condensed from q subsequent
ed the almost universal Southern suspicion by
q preliminary inquiry: "What is your object
What use do you want to mako Of this .infor-
ma ion2 2" Having assured him that was not a
rival mining company, nor Yankee specula-
tor, who, taking advantage OF poor South
plantations, he then told me, In many words,
.dhatithis great phosphate deposit was moth
ing new to him that it was something entire
" different from tn" mari deposit Of DR.. Rave
mel, and others that it was almost pure bone
earth, averaging si1t i-two per cent of soluble
phosphate, and some specimens, which he had
himself analysed, gave ninety-five per cent;
that 1t was only found in one basin containing
sixteen square miles, on the Ashley, five to
nine miles out OF Charleston, all of which his
company had already purchased"
His son had previously assured me that he
had been engaged all summer in buying up
the whole Of the land, covering the great de-
posit, and Therefore all persons outside of that
limit who pretended to have anything OF the
same sort were simply mistaken. He even
assured DR.. Sym, who owned an adjoinin plan
tarion, and was exhibiting some specimens to
me, that they were quite worthless, although
he could not, nor could his father to whom
they were exhibited, discover wherein they
differed from the Simon Pure article. DR.. Sym
assures me that such as his specimens are,
"msy be found cropping out over wide extent,
reaching from the sea-beach far back, and
Afty miles along the coast"
But Prof. Holmes says: "Only in one small
basin, at particular location on the Ashley,
is the deposit phosphatio, although In other
places it looks as though it was the same.
FIRST discovered this great bed Of phosphate in
1843, and showed it to Edmund Rufin, Geo
logical Commissioner of the State, and to Prof.
Agassiz, both Of whom declared it was one of
the wonders Of tn world for found not only
the remains Of sea animals, but those OF man.
GeoioKically, this deposit is Of tho sane age as
the London BASIN, aud in some things the two
are strikingly alike" They are to me strik-
ingly unlike, If this South Carolina basin con-
talns human remains, inbedded in sea de-
posit Of flour of bones ancient enough to
have become solid rock, and of the same age
-. Il alxo n