Bristol news. [volume] (Bristol, Va. & Tenn.) 1867-189?, 1881-02-15

ore in every county on our line, near the
road, and at this place Il deposit of five
miles long of the beautiful tennessee
Marble" But, to crown all, at the END
of our road in Wise, at Big Stone Gap,
on Powell's river, he finds above water
level, and easier mined than the Goals of
Kanawha, five workable seams of coal
of the respective thickness of 8, 8, 10,
323 and z feet, including all the varie-
ties of btuminous, splint and camel
lie estimates the quantity available at
one thousand millions of tons! AT an
"out-put" of two thousand tons day,
say twenty train loads, 1t will take over
one thousand six hundred years to WORK
IL out! He sent specimens Of all these
Goals to Mr.. McCreath, at Harrisburg,
Pa, the State chemist, for analysis
They proved to be the richest Goals yet
found on this continent in fixed carbon,
and the freest from sulphur. No other
known coal makes so rich coke-and
this is not all. lie and the State geolo-
gist of Kentucky pronounced the region
the best timbercd in this country with
the finer hard woods-walnut, ,iash, hick-
ory, oaks, cherry, maple, &c.
See what a tonnage all this Will make
not only for our road, but for others.
The coal company have contracted
with our railroad company to finish the
road its entire length by next October,
and they are in dead earnest about it,
With the usual sagacty of Northern
business men, they are looking for more
outlets than one or two to market. !
understand they have about perfected
arrangements to extend the road from
Bristol over into North Carolina and
South Carolina to reach the Southern
ports with their Goals and iron, and are
negotiating, with fair prospects OF sue
cess, to reach the Ohio river at CalIetts-
burg and Cincinnati. This would give
our little road national Importance as
the shortest possible route from the
Northwestern to the Southeastern States
by an mbrokcn line Of three-feet gauge
| railroad.
Now, why should you not turn your
eyes this way? Suppose you were to
extend your road from Henry county up
through Patrick, Carroll, Grayson and
Washington counties to Bristol You
would here meet line that could take
up your cars without break or gauge
and run them on to Cincinnati, ana
| thence to the lakes and all over the
| Northwestern States, where these three
feet roads now aggregate over l,OOu
miles of finished lines, and if you should
then work eastward from DanviIle, say
to Roxboro, n. c., thence to CiarksYlllt
Va, and on down through MecklcnburS,
Brunswick, Grcensyllc, Southampton,
Nansemond. and on TO Norfolk, what
magnificent line yours would be. YOU
could put these rich Goals from Wise IN
TO Norfolk cheaper than the Kanawha
region can send their coal there; nnC
from Danvile to Bristol you would de-
vclop an iron interest equal to any WIN
i'm similar area in this country. Fron
Bristol to Norfolk yours would be the
shortest possible line and forever sal'
from competition that could hurt you
and besides the tonnage referred to, ther'
Is another article that, as farmer, yW
will appreciate. The enormous plaster
banks OF Washington county, as well Il,
It's salt, are so near the line OF our rOnt
that branch to them is inevitable in th'
near future, and YOU would thus be ena
blcd to furnish the farmers all alont
your line with thousands of tons yea
of plaster and salt cheaper than they
can be otherwise had.
Pardon me for the great leugth of TIM
letter, but as President of the Bristo
Coal & Iron Narrow Gauge road, | may
have become a sort of enthusiast on TN
subject of these cheap highways, and
| Al 4. A.. IA "a huNn
TO wind It ali up | cordially invite
Won TO come out here as soon ma We hav,
pretty spring weather, and spend weel
or two and see for yourself whether
have not fallen under, rather than over
the mark In my cstimatt"of the sources
of wealth about to be opened up from
such small beginnings, when we used Il
talk these things over In Richmond.
Very truly, your friend,
II. G. Woop.