Lamoille newsdealer. [volume] (Hyde Park, Vt.) 1860-1877, 1874-09-09

lent quality and Unlimited quantity
abounds. 1t can be bought for 50 per
, tou-s5 is the ruling price. Think Of
that. o We! who have been in the habit
of luxuriating with coal fires and paying
!. twice aud thrice that amount for the priv
iIege! Nature works quietly, but with a
purpose. Some writer has said that, away
back 10 the unknown Past, Nature knew
it would become necessary in the order OF
things for man to take possession of these
broad prairies. As au equivalent for the
scarcity of growing timber, she quietly
slowed in her vast store-house, the earth,
those wonderful carboniferous treasures
for mans use and comfort. 1t is estima-
ted that the State has grand coal-feld OF
20, 900 square miles; at least it is mined
in thirty counties, giving employment to
thousands of men, profitable business to
railroads and of inesiimable benefit to the
dwellers within her borders. And, then,
there are found Incalculable deposits Of
peat in many OF the northern counties,
particularly Winnebago. In Winuebago
county there are 1000 acres Of good peat
land. Its prospective value must be great.
The State geologist calculates that 100
acres of peat four feet deep will supply
200 families with fuel for from twenty
FIVE to thirty years. At Dubuque 5 ,O00,.
900 pounds of orc are annually smelted.
Iron, zinc aud copper have been found.
but not in large quantities as yet. Lime
stone, and building stone of all kinds is
abundant. Perhaps the purcst gypsum
deposit IN the world exists at Fort Dodge
on the line Of the Iowa Div. Of the III.
Central X. R. 1t is from twenty-five to
thirty feet thick. or this material aud
at this place the celebrated humbug aud
swindle-the Cardiff Giant"--.was made.
Fine residences have been constructed from
it-good enough for anyone to inhabit, at
least We judge so, for candidate for Con.
gress built him house of it. Mineral
paint is found, aud clay for brick is abun-
daut everywhere. Within sight of the
window before us as We pen these lines
can be seen the smoke rising from n kiln
of burning brick. The brick are nodded
from the soil adjoining the yard, mixed
with little sand, piled up with coal be-
tween the interstices, and then FIRE is APP
Piled after burning a proper length of
time, they are taken out in condition
suitable for building fve.thousand-dolar
school.houses, which is the cost and mate
rial of one in process of erection in this
city.
What shall we say Of the soil? Not
much, for we are not an agriculturist, aud
practically know very little about the soil
Of Iowa or the soil of any other country.
Our eyes are sharp, and the productions
of the soil we can measure, and fathom,
and estimate as easily-wc were about to
say as accurately, but will not--as any
other man. The editors of Appletons
Cyclop@dia are good authority. One of
them says: The soil of Iowa is rich
and elastic, black loan, from two to six
feet deep. 1t is congcniai to the growth
of every product of the temperate zone."
This embraces the entire subject, aud is
all one could ask for. There is deep
covering Of vegetable mould caused BY
the prairc fires of ages. 1t is susceptible
of the highest cultivation. Abundant
crops of wheat, corn, and all the cereals
are grown. Iowa Is second only to Hi
uois, a larger and older State, 10 the pro.
duction of corn. The soil, when once
broken. is easy to cultivate, and seems to
have capacity for resisting droutbs not
possessed by that Of Eastern States. On
the other hand, the effects of long-coutin-
ued wet weather arc easily overcome by
reason of the soils tendency to rapidly
absorb excessive moisture. The effects of
too much rain whenever that occurs. also
are counterbalanced by rapid evaporation.
In thirty.ive years there has not been
total failure of crop, which cannot truth.
fully be said of many States in the West.
Iowa is sub-divided into one hundred ,
counties. Most of these are twenty.four
miles square ard contain sixteen townships. c
There are exceptions to this rule, howev. c
sr. Pottawamie county is forty.four miles
IN length and contains twenty.four town.
ships each six miles square, and seven '
fractional townships, iu all $50 square i
miles. Each township, if fully organized G
contains 30 sections of GAO acres each.
These are again surveyed into quarter
eighth, and lesser sections. The govern.
nent Of counties is vested in board of !,
supervisors, three, FIVE or seven in number |
heir duties correspond very nearly to ]
hose Of town-boards of selectmen in Yer. !
mont. Other officers are clerk of the
,ourts, q recorder who registers all trans. f