Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1883-04-28
WONDERFUL SALT MIME IN
LOUISIANA.
A Puzzle for the GeOlOgists-H0w 1t
Was Dlsc0vered-ROck salt by the
Acre-JOe Jcffers0n's Louisiana
HOme-LOnEfell0v Acadians

From Harper's Weekly.
Southwestern Louisiana is justly regarded as
the garden OF that state, and the Bayou Teche
the picturesque water-path into its delights.
Longfeow in his 'Evangene" has in clear out
line and brilliant coloring given to the world
truthful description Of its dreamy bayOus sepia-
tinted praires, and Druid oaks. The subject Is
fully as luxurious as were the poets imaginings,
and those who are familiar with this land of the
Attakapas Indians are lost in wonder at Mr..
Longfellow's accuracy of delineation. knowing
he never had visited the land he so graphically
paints.
Our artist on the little steamer Susie B, Of the
New Orleans Times Democrat, has penetrated
this fertile land Of flowers. and has caught some
OF Its curious pictures and remarkable fOrma-
tons. About sixty miles above the mouth of
the Teche, where it enters the Atchafalaya
river. the thrifty town of New iberia Is situated.
built on the site OF New Town. one of the
oldest settlements in the state. Within it's pre-
c!ncts are still preserved many of the quaint
houses of the Acadian settlers, with their low
soping roots and cool verandas Eight miles
south OF New Iberia is the island, as it is
called. of Petite Anse-a remarkable eieva-
ton In the sea-marsh bordering the bay of
NermiliOn. Nowhere on this continent has
nature built such a stOrehOuSe of salt as is
here found-a formation which even to the pre-
sent has not been accounted for by the most pro-
hcient OF our geologistS Petite Anse, as one
approaches it over the level prairie, looms up in
the distance, Il thickly wooded series of hills,
whose highest elevation is $50 feet above sea
level Here and there gOrges Of orange sand
barely visible between the trees indicate that it's
soil bears no relation TO the black earth of the
surrounding country aid kindles the curiosity
at its unloohed-for presence in the almost limit
less sea-Inarsh which trinGes the coast of Lou
isana. In extent the island is about three miles
q nfain to thn S,,ay
lsh measure generally adopted here Formerly
occupied by Indians. OF whom traces are found
on every side, tradition has it that owing to
some terrible calamity within the memory of its
earliest settlers the red men refused to make it
place of habitation, and no iDducement would
prevail up0n them to revisit the SPOT. A number
OF artificial mounds are found upon it, and eX-
ploitatiOns have brought to light arrow heads,
baskets. war-pant. and tomahawks. once the
property of the prehistoric dweers.
The first authentic history of this strange up-
heaval-for it is generally conceded that it was
an upheaval-cOmes from one John IIays hunter
and trapper, who squatted on it's hills in the
latter portion Of the last century. In the wear
l19l whilst out after deer, he discovered there a
salt spring, the brine from which was soon after
ward manufactured into salt. The supply of
this brine was too limited for profitable manu-
facture and the spring was neglected until 1912,
when the high price Of salt, on account of our
war with Great Britain. gave an impetus to it's
production and small works were operated
until 1918, when the cessation of hOstilities
lowered the price of that article of prime
necessity. Judge D. d. Avery who SUBJ
sequentiy became the owner of the
island. in 1861, after the establishment of
the blockade of southern ports, commenced
boiling the water from the spring long neg
lecf"d and as salt was scarce throughout that
section. all the product of his factory was
eagerly sought for. To increase the produc-
ton it was resolved to enlarge the well. and
hands uvha oh
struction was met. Mr.. John NJ. Avery son OF
the proprietor OF the island in 1862 descended
to the bottom Of the we'll and whilst striking
the hard object impeding the digging. Clipped
OF plece0t transparent rock salt. An investi-
CATION followed and a solid bed of salt was found,
\ report was made to the confederate govern
ment and mining commenced. Behring'S show
that the deposit underlies about $50 acres of
surface area. and wherever struck was identi-
cal In quality. The depth of the deposit is
unknown. but already 115 feet of solid
rocksat has been penetrated; and as the work
ings show the stratiticatiOn to be nearly perpen-
dicular, the indications that its present width
was its original depth, and it's present depth
beyond conjecture. The floor of the present
workings is 40 feet from the surface. the shaft
penetrating % feet of surface soil and Is feet
of salt, of which SO feet is left for a roof
As this level alone will yield Is, 600. 600 tons
the supply may be considered Almost inexhansti-
ole. This 50 t. which is now being mined by q
New York company. is of the purest quality and,
strange to say, chemical analyses show the entire
absence Of many of the invarlable constituents
CT seawater. The manner OF mining is by driving
galleries or tunnels into the solid rock salt and
crossing these by others at right angles, givinga
width to each of about thirty five feet and height
OF seventy feet. The salt is blasted out with
dynamite by miners imported from the salt
mines OF StraSsfurth. After it Is mined it is
carried on the tramway to the shaft, and hoisted
to platform some sixty feet above the ground,
where it Is dumped into a powerful rock
crusher. which reduces it to suitable size. 1t
thence descends into bin, which in turn sup
plies three ordinary mills. The present yield is
about $50 tons per day including the coarse for
packing and fine for table USE
The descent to the mine is made on the plat
form used In hOstng the salt cars, and when
the bottom of the shaft is reached it requires
some time for the eye to accustOrn itself to the
darkness Down the broad galleries miners
lights fit about, tiny firefles in this subterra-
mean night. The salt crystals of wall and roof
reflect their rays Oh all sides with wonderful
brlliancy; and as the chambers were Illuminated
by locomotive headlight on the occasion of
our artists descent, the pure white ock-salt
was brought out with ghostly effect Salt was
everyw here. The floor was solid salt; walls, roof
above, below and on either side one vast cavern
OF this valuable deposit. The advance of the
chambers is made by underwriting or blasting
out for considerable distance a space about
eight feet from the floor. and then blowing down
this overhanging mass as it is needed for ship
ment
Whilst the visitors were watching our artist
sketchin@ group of miners boring in an under
cut, suddenly sharp crack was heard, like the
explosion of a musket cap, and this was almost
Immediately followed by deep roar, as OF the
sound OF an earthquake. The sound was dull
heavy and tremulous, vibrating from gallery to
gallery. accompanied by rapid conclusions and
an unpleasant pressure on the tympanum of the
ear. The very foundations Of the earth seemed
to tremble, and little bits of salt, long after the
sound had died away in dry musical cascade.
fell from the roofs and sides. Hardly had the
lrst report ceased It's reverberations when it
was followed by another and another, until the
mine was shivering with sound. CONFUSION of
nature could have been hardly more grand and
awe inspiring. The surprise of the party caused
much merriment to the phlegmatic miners. who
had gathered from an adjacent chamber, where
the dynamite blasts had been fired
Some two hundred yards from the present
shaft another has just been opened about sixty
feet square and about thirty in depth, to the
upper surface Of the salt. This is intended for
ventilation, and is Of itself curiosity The ex-
posed salt-sO pure is its cOndition-resembles q
sheet OF smooth ice, and looking down upon It
one can hardly believe that it is salt, and net
clear water in frozen state. In digging this.
but week or more ago, the wOrkmen I'M
earthed the bones of o huge mastOdOn, some of
the teeth OF which weighed over five nOunda