Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1880-12-01

saw that the slate from this vein is the best
they have ever seen. Ii can be split very
thin, has an even surface and never warps.
A piece of this slate, at the office OF
Boston company having quarry on the
vein near the New York line. was tested
as to its strength. 1t was piece twelve
by sixteen inches in surface area and one
quarter of an inch thick 1t sustained a
weight of one thousand pounds before
breaking. This shows a strength greater
than that of any other slate known by
about twenty-five per cent. The color OF
the slate is gray. of greenish tint but is
called sea-green. Ii is free from coarse
grit or quartz, and splits very easily, So
that there is no waste in its manufacture.
The vein was discovered only six years
ago. and though, wherever its proaucts
have reached, they have found high favor
with skaters, owing to the lack OF means
IN the part of those owning the quarries
the yield has been extremely limited.
And vet it would seem that there is
enough slate in this one vein to yield
several million tons year for the next
one hundred years. The vein, too. is so
wide, and the slate so easily quarried, and
can be split with such little waste, that ii
can be made TO yield its product at so
cheap rate that, by-snd-by, they must
come into general use. One of the most
prominent skaters in Boston-a Welshman
by birth-gives it as his opinion that
during the next ten years the demand for
roofing and other states in this country
alone will be greater than all our quarries
can supply, if worked to ten times their
present capacity while it is equally certain
that if the stock could be furnished, there
would be no difficulty of getting demand
in Europe for three millions squares year
ly, with growing demand
There is also vein of purple slate
twenty feet thick and of unknown depth,
which they have not yet reached, though
they are within ten or fifteen feet of the
large quarry.
They now employ fifty six men and a
large number of horses. They have
twenty-five or thirty slate makers and
want more, and their pay roll reaches
1900 or 81, 900 per month. This is quite
sum to be paid out every month in a
little village, and business hourishes.
There are pleasant streets with coy little
homes lining them.
Now what does slate cost? Messrs,
Griffith & Nathaniel sell on the cars at
Poultney No slate at from 1926 to so 80
per square, which is one hundred square
feet of roof, and No. 2 at from fifty cents
to seventy-five cents less. The freight
from Rutland to points on the Central
Vermont railroad will vary according to
distance, Randolph being the most dis
tant point. The superintendent of local
freight has given US rates to some promi-
nent points, for the car load, which are
ten dollars per car lower than formerly,
and now car of slate can be sent from
Rutland to Randolph for $50 90; to Mont
peier for $4,000; Waterbury or White
River Junction for 1924 90, to which should
be added thirty-five cents per square from
Poultney to Rutand-a much higher rate
than from Rutland on. A Car will readily
carry forty squares or little more, so
the buyer can get No. Il slate laid down
ut his station at or between the points
named for, say, SO % to So SO per square,
which is considerably cheaper than the
best shingles.
Slate makes a lasting, safe, handsome
roof costs less to lay than shingles, and
where the water coming from roof is
used, is,much cleaner.
The roof needs to be no stronger for
slate than shingles, as no snow stays on it,
Our readers will see we are enthusiastic
young converts, are notably Jealous, and
our barn is the first one, or the first
building with one exception) ever slated
in town, and we feel sure we have a better
roof at cheaper cost than we should have
had had we used shingles.
One can easily calculate what it would
cost him for slate from the figures we have
given by getting the size of the roof de-
sired to be covered. For instance, a
building 30x40, rafters 90 feet. long
20 multiplied by 40 equals 800, multiplied
by 2-for the two sides of the roof-equals
1900 feet, calling for sixteen squares OF
slate.
But perhaps we have taken enough
space for slate this time, and we will call
I the barn slated.