The daily intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Territory [i.e. Wash.]) 1876-1881, 1879-07-27


nate WAS Z. s. Smith, who opened q
mine near that Of the company and
who also has suspended work. Bu.
higher up in the foothills and at dis.
tauce OF two miles southwest from vii.
keson Station, prospec.ors discovered
the really valuable beds cropping out
on the sides of high bluffs where Car
bon river had cut its way through the
hills To depth of 600 feet The grouud
here has been prospected ard the rich
vein.. regular and nnbroken. traced for
several miles on the side OF the canyon.
lying vein upon vein TO the number Of
fourteen Of extraordinary thickness
dipping to the east aud uphesved 10 An
angle Of from IS to 50 degrees this in
the midst of one Of the widest re-
gi1ns on the continent, covered by q
deuse forest Of Dir. pine and cedar. the
trees Of which. ranging in hight from
300 to 400 feet, were monsters when yet
the Black Prince was in swaddlin z
clothes. Wild and rough as is the
country here, it i, easy Of access by o
railroad from Wilkeson. and the forma-
ton of the ground presents no Difficult.
ties, bat on the contrary is adju1ged By
experts to favor
TIE CHEAPEST MINING
On the coast. Such is the position of
these veins that the quantity of coal in
them is approximately calculsble to
mining experts. who have estimated
th.t they contain nearly thirty millions
of ton. above high-water mark or drain
age line. The value Of this fact has
reference to the cheapness Of mining.
since above the line Of drainage coal
can be mined without the expense of
pumping By analysis and PRACTICAL
tests tins coal has been proved superior
to any in the market - superior
to. though closely resembling
the renowned Cumberland coal,
which commands SIC per ton in
San Francisco, where it is used Chi. fly
for forging Your correspondent. by
laborious anil somew hat dangerous
climbing. visited the outcroppings OF
the principal veins on Carbon river
bluffs. in company with Professor Haw-
kris ot the University of California ard
others. finding a vein of 2l feet, with .
feet 2 inches of clean sand rock partiDgs,
iraving over IS feet Of workable coal
another of IA feet of solid coal. with
out par,ings another of 20 feet of pure
coal, and yet others of lesser size. the
smallest beiug 3ls feet in thickness.
The superior quality of this coal being
placed beyond question, we may fairly
appreciate the wealth Of these veins by
comparison with those of other foreign
AMI domestic mines as to size. A VEN
of three to five feet is regarded as of
good workable size. The South We'll
lington of Vancouver, which recently
made its first shipment. has but one vein
of y feet. and its owners have expended
ab out $3.50. 600 and several years of time
in opening it. The Seattle brown coal.
pure and good Ignite, but no use
comparable to bituminous coal, is taken
from vein of II feet, whose partings
reduce it at the present time to 81 feet
Of workable coal. That company ex-
pended:S4OO 900 to open this vein. and
have made q success Of it. The aggre-
gate thickness Of the workable coal in
the Carbon river coal veins is 12l feet,
and their roofs, floors aud partings. in
stead Of being slate and shale, as in
many other mines, are OF solid sand rock.
The presence Of shale and slate parting
is damaging, sometimes ruinOus, to coal
veins, as the coal il not. without costly
labor, entirely separable from such
brittle and crunbling partings. The
average thickness Of the workable coal
in the Mount Diablo mine is but 6 feet;
of
THE COOS BAY MINES
But AZ feet of Wellington and Na-
naimo, British Columbia. only 8 feet.
These are the principal Pacific coast
mines. Extending the comparison to
Eastern and English mines, we find the
average thickness Of the famous anthra.
cite coal field Of Pennsylvania to be 60
feet-the largest coal field known in the
United States, except this newly -discov.
cred field on Carbon river, which is
more'than twice its thickness The av-
erage thickness of all the English coal
fields developed is but IS feet. Pro-
fessor Hawkins pronounced the Carbon
river veins the most remarkable in size
of ell that were known to him. Re
Gently Mr.. Shattuck. under whose man
agement the Seattle coal found success
full competition, after visiting Carbon
river, stated to the writer his opinion
that the Carbon river Goals would soon,
il properly handled. drive all other
Goals out Of ihe market, not excepting
Seattle. The nearest outlet to deep
water for this coal Is at Tacoma, and it
would insure the building Of q large
town there, independently Of the
Northern Pacific road. Not only so.
bu, there is the dependent iron Interest.
Within short distance of the supposed
coal veins there is an inexhsustable
supply Of bog ore or brown hematite.
Over south of Mount Ranler, IN the
ueishborhood Of the Cowli,z Pass. and
on the projected line Of railroad. lie
great quantities Of rich magnetic iron
ore. which will be transported for mix
ture with the other ore near the coal,
and here will in time develop an i'm
mense smelling industry. Lime rock
for fuxing is near st hand. Close to
Alderton station is . large deposit Of
corallins of lime. 50 called from its
close resem blance to coral. Observing
it freighted on platform cars through
Tscoms. upon iDqairy was told that
they we're sending it to the Oswego Iron
Smelling Works near Portland, where
il WAS used for fux in preference to all
other lime rock, on account OF its supe-