Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1888-09-12
THE BLACK DIAMOND.
The Almost Incomprehensible Magnftude
of the Worlds Coal Industry.

put at APO, 100000 tons, of which Great
Britain does 100000 the United
States 120,000,000, and Germany 75,-
900, 900 of tons. The production in the
United States is divided between thirty
one States and Territories, the largest,
of course, being Pennsylvania, which
last year gave us 100000 of anthra-
cite, and 100000 of bituminous. In
money value the output in the United
States is safely $5O,O0O,OO in the
markets where used. This is greater
than the value of the gold, silver, cot
ton, and petroleum produced in our
country. The first mention of the dis
covery of coal in the United States is by
Hennepin, who mentions finding it in
Illinois when on his travels from the
great lakes to the Mississippi, at or
near the place now known as Ottawa.
Father La Sale does not take much
stock in many OF the reports of Hen
nepin as put down in his discoveries,
but the result has shown that in this
instance, at least, the truth was record
ed. 1t is is put down as a ''cole" mine.
Colonel William Byrd, in his history of
Virginia tells of it's discovery in that
State in the year 1901, being found in
what is known as the Richmond basin,
although it was not until 1880 that it
was worked for sale and USE. Anthra-
cite was used during the revolutionary
war at Carlisle. It was transported
from Susquehanna, from the vicinity of
Wilkesbarre, in fat boats. AS a COM
mercial venture, however, it was not of
any moment until 1920, when the first
coal was sent by the Lehigh canal, in
1925 by the Schuyl1ill canal, and in
1929 by the Delaware and Hudson
canal.
1t is only within a few weeks that the
semi-centennial of ocean steam naviga-
ton has been held. In 1888 the steamer
Sirius, of 700 tons register, 1910 tons
burden, arrived at New York. 1t took
her fourteen days, and she used 600
tons to make the voyage. Now we
have the Etruria, with a burden of
7,71S tons and using 1000 tons and
making the trip in six days. 1t is
stated that the exports from Great Brit
ain for the use of foreign steamers is
100000 tons annually AT New York
alone the ocean steamers take on /, 250,-
600 tons, while if we took into consider
alton the vessels on the rivers, the in
land lakes, and the coast, we might
make the sum total 10000, 900 tons.
The railway companies of the United
States furnish the next largest con-
sumner. 1t is stated that 22,0000 900 of
tons are used annually by the railways
of the country. Iron may be set
down as the next largest consumer. 1t
is safe to say that 100000 of tons
were used in making pig-iron in the
United States last year. The produc-
ton of coke in the United States is set
down at 9, 100000 of tons for last year,
and this would represent 100000 of
coal. Gas-making in the United States
is another large consumer and might be
put down for 1000, 600 of tons. Now,
the remainder can be credited to what
we call domestic consumption, and
from careful estimates and statistics
which have been gathered it is seen
that two tons per annum per inhab-
liant is about the average consump-
ton, particularly in the larger cities.
What is million of tons? Did you
ever stop to consider what is meant by
that phrase? just fancy, if you can
grasp the idea, that last year we mined
120.000,00 of tons in the United States
alone. This is large tonnage, and
you hardly know what to make of it.
One million of tons would represent
a string of gondola cars, twenty-five
tons each, forty in train, and
thousand of such trains. They would
stretch across this continent running
only a mile apart. 1t is, no doubt,
difficult to grasp the idea of this
quantity magnified 120 times. If you
can do so then you have some idea of
the extent and magnitude of our fuel
consumption in the United States,
What is it worth? We can best answer
this question by giving the value at
the initial point of production, as the
price varies with the distance from the
mines. Taking the "a. 100000 tons of
anthracite coal produced last year, at
value of 50. SO a ton, would be a fair
basis, and the IS, 900, 900 of bituminous
at $1.25 per ton. 1t takes an army of
$4,000 persons merely to produce and
prepare this commodity for the mar
ket, to say nothing of those who are
engaged in the traffic after it has been
produced-along railways, at shipping
points, in the yards, etc. It is safe to
say that 80 per cent. of the selling
price at wholesale is made up of wages
paid. The main source of supply of
hard coal is found in five. counties in
the State of Pennsylvania, there being
detached base in three other counties
of the same State. The general area
of country in which this fuel is found
does not exceed 470 square miles.
There are five principal railway lines