The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1871-04-06
A Mountain Of Pure Salt-The Eighth
Wonder Of the World.
A correspondent of the New York

correspondent OF the new 0fk EG-
press, writing from Santo Domingo, says;
I have to tell you something SO stranga
that it will almost seem fiction. I refer to
''Mt. Silemus,' as it is called This is ve,
liable mountain of salt. 1t lies fifteen miles
back from the bay, and is niue miles Ions.
with an average breadth of l ! miles aud 500
to 900 feet high. This elevation has been
penetrated by drilling at different points to
the depth of over 800 feet without gettin,m
below tho region Of salt Another strange
feature of this meteorological wonder is, that
just one-haf only Of this range from end to
end is composed of salt, reaching lateralfy
just to the summit, while the backbone, or
dividing line, consists of perpendicular wall
Of alabaster from Is to 80 feet thick, rum
ning through the centre almost its entire
length. and of unknown depth This im-
mense layer Of alabaster is of the purest anu
whitest kind, and susceptible of very high
state of polish. ae.
The other half of this mountain range be-
yond the alabaster back bone, is composed
first Of limestone, then comes various grades
of sandstone The salty side of the noun.
tain is found by careful and repeated analj
sis, to be chemically the purest and best Of
all known salts. 1t is proved to possess over
SO per cent. of genuine saline matter. aud
some 2 per cent. purer than either that Of
| Syracuse or Turks Island. have not been
| able, as yet, to see this great natural wonder,
but [ derive my Information from at least a
dozen different people, white and black, who
have. There are several gentlemen of the
| first responsibility in New York to whom
| these facts are known. 1t is called gem OF
crystal salt; aud [ hare seen quite large
blocks of it resting upon the maptels ard
shelves in the houses Of the natives herea
| bouts.
These blocks Of salt, locking like huge di;-
monds, are used by many old people here as
ornaments, in the same manner that statuary
nd such like thiag are with U.S. Its clear.
ness and transparency is truly surprising.
could read the Express clearly and distinct
" through solid block Of this crystal sa's
four feet thick, and did read at that distance.
This immense salt range during its course, Is
often broken into ravines and guches, some-
times forming high and perpendicular cliff,
in form somewhat resembling the Palisades
of the Hudson, and which shine and gister
in the bright sunlight like mountains Of burn-
ished silver This immense saline deposit was
doubtless thrown up from the bed Of the sea,
or the bowels Of the earth, at some remote
period. and it is susceptible of ready demon
stration that rock salt exists here in this range
in sufficient quantity to supply the world fts
a hundred years,
Fatal RA1LnoAD AccIDENr.-A freight
! train coming east about o'clock Tuesday
morning, on rounding the curve about two
and half miles west of town, found the
bridge over Limestone creek, generally
known as Lynch S bridge, in flames, and be-
fore the train could be stopped the ongino
4 ran upon the burning structure, and was
dashed, with four following ears, into tina
chasm, which is about twelve feet deep,
and in few moments the whole mass was
in flames. The engineer and a couple of
the train hands. who were upon the engine,
| jumped and thus saved their lives Tho
fireman, however, a Mr.. Shinn, of Grafton,
was at the head of the boiler at the time,
oiling up, and fell with the engine, no doubt
meeting with an instantaneous death. The
engineer called to the unfortunate man
twice before leaping from the train, but
the waning was not heard.
4 force was at once put upon the ground
to clear away the wreck, and about 10
o'c,ock, Tuesday morning, the body of the
unfortunate man was recovered, cut, bruis=
ed and somewhat burned, and was sent to
Ibis friends at Grafton.
The fire, it is supposed, was caused by a
spark from train which had passed sevc-
raj hours before, but it is hard for US to see
how this could have been SO. A spark to
set timber framed like bridge on fire is
very unusual, and on lis particular night,
about midnight, quite q shower of rain had
fallen Hence, while we have no other
theory as to the cause, it nevertheless seems
strange that it should have been a mere
spark = Ciarhs6nrg (W. Fo) Conservatives,
9th. 5F