The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-03-26

had greater resources of wealth; for besides
coal and iron there were other minerals. gold
having been obtained in many districts with
advantage. aud 1t was certainly not yet ex-
hauStcd. There was also copper, limestone,
marble, salt, and other earthly minerals,
which he would not ailude to. With all
these advantages, he looked forward 10 Nir-
ginia being
oNE or THE COUNTRIES OF THE FUTURE,
and he was happy in being able to lend
what assistance he could in pointing ont
these matters, because he had visited it at a
time when it was much less populous than
it was now, and had foreseen that when the
coal was worked IL must rise in import
ance.
Mr.. Christopher Cooke asked what
was the climate of Virginia, rs he had
heard il stated, though he believed
enormously, that it was unhealthy; also il
there was Il good system Of landed property,
with registration of title.
Mr.. j. Bowron {Newcastlc) said that two
years ago he spent some months in Virginia,
more particularly for the purpose OF investi-
eating its mineral resources. and he could
concur in all the remarks Of Professor An
Stcd. There wa> no doubt of the regularity
OF the coal-edS throughout the whole OF
Western Virginia, while the country was SO
interscctcd with valleys that it was very easy,
indeed, to open up at any point coal
seams which could be readily identified with
the same seams occurring twenty or thirty
miles of. He himself followed one seam a
long distance. and its regularity he could
hardly have believed ii he had not traced It.
On approaching the Appalachian region he
found such immense deposits Of hydrated
he,natite ore rs he had never seen elsewhere,
though he WAS familiar with deposits OF a
similar kind in Cumberland and also in
Sp in. Besides these resources, the capabil-
ity Of
VIRGINIA AS A PAPfR-PR0DUCtNG COUNTRY
were greater than lie believed existed any
where else. 1t had the materials at hand for
produein" those chemicals for which, ut pre-
sent, America depended mainly on England.
being well supplied with metallic sulphuretS,
salt, limestone possessing JS per cent. ofcarbo
nate Of lime, manganese, pure water, ana
coal, and having these. ii could not lack any
thin. for chemical manufactures; aud 1t pos
seSScd besides such growth OF non-reslnouS
trees and plants, suitable for the manufac-
turc OF paper, that ne had no hesitation IN
saving that The one State alone could easily
supply paper for the whole OF the civilized
world.
air. Newton said he had twice recently
visited Virginia and Western Virginia, for
the purpose of as@ertainiug its suitability as
4 colony for English ayricuuriStS. Iicfound
that the land was richer than in England.
and the climate better; land could be bought
for little more than one years rent in this
country; every crop that would grow here
might be cultivated there, and some especial
ones besides; there were rs good markets.
and every necessary could be obtained at II
lower price. In fact, all that an English
farmer wanted was little capital to start
with, and lie could not fail Of doin. well
there.
Mr.. Ethcridre. +. r. s., referring to the
recent statement OF Sir w illiam Armstrong,
THAT under the present prices OF coal England
WAS paving what was equivalent to an al.
nlal tax Of sc;j, ,00o,OO0 on that article. drew
special attention to
TIE EIcE MINERAL RESOURCES OF VIRGINIA,
and expressed his opinion that unless
some solution Of the difficulty could be
found at homeland there was no ab-
solutp necessity for such famine prices,
scciu@ tiat ut the present rate of conSump-
ton our own coal-ticltis would not Ec cX-
miuSlrl in less than 800 ycnrs-Nir"inia
would, AT no distant dltc, he found supply
illy the whole world with coal and iron. He
recommended every one who WAS Interested
in the Goa! qUcS'|on-and very few were not
iD these davsto pcrlse he report Of the
ROYAL Commission "D Coal supply. whiclI
would be found very Instructive; and trust.
cd that something would be done before
long to bring about more satisfactory state
OF things in the labor market.
Coloncl Montgomery UNITED States Army
said the mineral resources of Virginia did
not lie wholly in the future. torat the present
moment negotiations were going on for the
supply of Virginia coal in the London mar
kct, rs we'll lis to France and Belgium. Nir-
ginia could contract TO deliver coal in London
ut % per cent. under present prices, and still
retain profit of 30 per cent. All that was
required was little English capital, and he
had no doubt this would be forthcoming,
to the great advantage of both countries.
A gentleman inquired II an Englishman
could hold land in Virginia.
The Chairman said he could answer that
question in the affirmative, rs far us regards
Virginia. In West Virginia it was neces-
Sarr for foreigners to hold lands through 4
trustee.
MAJOR HuTCuKISS ENLIGUTENS THE AUDIENCE.
Maior Hotchkiss, in replying to the various
observations and questions, said 1t was as
impossible to give IN exhaustive account OF
Virginia in an hour us it would bc To do SO
with regard to England in the same time. AS
10 tic public debt, he would simply say that
the population Of Virginia consisted OF 500,
0G0 blacks and 100000 whites, aud 50O,0 600 OF
the latter were undoubtedly in favor OF pay
ing rhe interest not only upon two.thlrds OF
its bond debt, but upon the whole il need
be. And the voice of the people would
make itself heard. The courts had decided
that coupons should be received for taxes,
aud the State had backed out Of its false po-
.ition. and eilaccd from the statute book the
law which said that should not be. a con-
ference was now being held between the
hondhniderS and the representatives of the
State for the purpose OF settling, not the
terms, hnt the time OF payment. Inc last
census OF the United States had with 1t Il
mlp of wealth. showing in golden figures
the wealth of its people. Golden streaks
stretched across from New York to the MIS-.
sissippi, and Chicago, and st. Louis, and
California, but the southern portion OF the
country w;s represented by Il td6utd rdSu 1;
far different, however, was the census OF
1860, nor would IL bear the same appearance
in 1850. Virginia had been called "a nes-
lcctcd State" but it WAS not so in laOo.
There was no land the sun shone upon "hlcn
poured into the laps OF its people such
abundance Of wealth. 1t had no need to
look abroad Tor people. to occupy it; it was
se!f-suppying and self-supporting by means
of its own agriculture. When that was
swept away by the war its present capital
WAS destroyed, but there still remained its
magnificent mineral resources md rolific
soil us the basis upon whichto rebuild. Al
reody in one of the centre counties of the