Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1876-09-15
the editOr Of the Aierunolriu Guzette

To the cditor Of the Aie.ranolrtu Glzette
liz my COMMUNICATION, pub lshed III your pa
per August 24,h, gave statements from the
Geological Reports OF New Jersey, 1875, il.
Illustrating the value oil iron ore suitable Tor the
manufacture of Bcsscmer steel, cvau in the
present depressed condition OF The iron inter
ests OF the country. 10 show the value of the
Bcsscmer steel rail, its superiority over the
comu,oD iron rail 10 securing profitable work
Jugs of our railroads, and low rates upon the
roads using it, will give an extract from the
American Railroad Journal, Ju!yS, 1876, page
$751; The General Manager Of the Chicago and
North Western Railway gives the following
statement:
III was mistake to suppose that low rates
always cause loss. Ii road was we'll QUILT
with steel rails, good rolling stock and properly
managed, low rates ami good profits were pcs
>ibIe. The benefits to ti:e trade vi this country
arising IRON the introduction OF steel rails no
man Can iorcsee. Cheap transportation was to
be Obtained DOT by special freight railroads,
uor by legislation or by clamor, but through
the meaus of steel rails. The substitution Of
change. The iron rail which lasted for few
months and gave much trouble 10 constant re
palrug and replacing was superseded by rail,
the life Of which extended over years. As a
CO.'S qucncc the cost oil transportation had been
So diminished that the steel rail roads could
work Il, Il rate so much lower than before Known
d. 10 excl 9 the aSOulshmtnt OF those who
were not familiar with the lacts. The Chicago
and North Western Railway Company operated
. 900 miles of railroad. As last u the iron
rails give out they arc rep AGED by steel. The
company will lay LIS miles OF steel rail this
year.
| am satisfied that the magnetic iron ores oil
FauQulcr, and the magnetic and specuiar ores
cf Orange, Albemarie, Amherst aud Nelson
c cunt, land the brown AMI red hcmclllc Of The
Fa.l,yu uutleS, wien properly op:ucd up aud
Developed, will take as high rank as pur,
ores, tree of >G phu:, titanic aud phosphorll
ACIDS, and as ultab3c for B s,emer steel a. thu
ores Of the Lake Superior region, Mlssourl,and
bc far supcrl,r 10 the ores OF Pennsylvania
Ncw jersey AID New York. have tdctS il
NY possession which satisfy me 10 til" Know
leuge OF the superiority OF he ores OF Fauquel
county; that they are The purcst ores OF Vlr
gina, ard have not their superior ID the world
They are only waiting their proper develop
u
: ] he remark is often made by our citizens anc
By mcu of great intelligence, who >taud hlgl
III lie community as professional men, MGR
chants, farmers, and men OF great persona
and political Influence: We have too much rOl
, ore, TOO much lroD, there will be 10 demand
, for it, we eau find market for our iron WheI
it is manufactured; We have too much iron or
IN vi. giLia ior it to have any value. Now wha
are he facts According to the u. 5. ceesu
the total amount OF pig Iron produced 10 tht
UAteu States in 1870 was 2,O52 sd tons, con
suuiDg in its manufacture +. 3O3 S41 to0s T.
iron ore, Pennsylvania producing ,U33, 2l2 too:
Of pig iron, Ohir Soc 1868 tons, Missouri So,
U9U t0us, and Virginia II 233 tons, West flr
giuia orly Ii $50 tons The total production
oil the two VrgiDiss (Od Dounion) only
"a S3 tous July l. 1874, there we've in tht
.itc1 States 673 stocks, or furnaces, there
being in Pannsy lvan!a 263 in OHIO IS, in Mis-
, souri, IS, New Yolk IS, Michigan 81, iu Vir
, ginil 81 ann West VI girls s. Yet Virginia
has r.cilcr aud more extensive deposits OF irU1
orc than either penuS. vaaia, Ohio or Nj s>ouri
or any Of her sister States of the Uni'ec
States, and if her iron interests were only prop
crly Develop d, she would out rauk all the State:
0t the Union as 40 iron producing State Ii
1874 the total number OF rolling mills 10 tht
s atts and Territories was 343; there were To-
Gated out of this lumber, in VirgIgia, only /
The uur;b"r of rail mills 10 the United Stat,
: il he same year Was So but no rail mill IT
Virginia. All the railroad iron used III the
State being manufactured out Of the State anc
out III ore foreign TO her hills and mountains
also very large share OF the merchantable iron
the agricultural machinery and other article!
requiring iron, being the produce of other
~, anal (lt,t Yttl has l,,
mills there were located 10 New York :, Lii
nois /, OH" lG aud Pennsylvania e. There
are In he UGited States | rolIiog mills Dauu
FIGURING Bcss,mcr steel rails, all being outside
Of Virgbil The steel wurks. except Brssc
MGR. in tn United States arr IS, being ! in
Ohio, 10 New York +, New jersey I, Penn.
!, syIvania - there being no Steel works in Viz
gpia 4 steel works located at Richmond, the
only one 10 Virginia. was destroyed by fire On
the evacuation Of Rich nood by the Uonirdc
rates in April, 1868. There are t. bIoomAries
in the United States, OF which number Flr
GINA has and Pennsylvania 81. y. the cat
alinc forgc-2 are lie Vermont, "A in NV York
and III North Carolina. Is there not aHpG
room in Virginia Tor the establishment Of iron
works. furnaces, rolling mills aud steel works
With such establishments the opening up OF
her mines, her population wcud Increase, they
i would add to her wealth and enterprise, her
taxation would be reduced, aud 10 few years
She would be able to pay off her State debt,
and then occupy her proper position am )ng the
States OF the Union, to which she is utIy en-
titled BY her climate, her navlgsblc waters, her
commodious harbors, her great agricultural re-
sources, aud above all to her splcndd and val
liable minerals now undeVelopcd, lying buried
and bound up from view 10 her bills AID
mouI;alus. HUGH lHOS. DOUGLAS.
CATLETT's. Fauqni.r couYly, Va.
ATTEMPT TO BRIDE A CoLoRED DEMOCRAT.
The success OF Rev. J. w. Duojce, the we'll.
know and respected colorcd dcm ocrat in this