The San Saba news. [volume] (San Saba, Tex.) 1873-1966, 1888-08-03

disposition If q person attempted
o. demonstrate that Texas had rich
mineral deposits. Now, the exist
ence 81 rich deposits Of iron, lead.
copper manganese. precious met
ais and other valuable materials,
j. regarded as d well established
fact particularly since northern
syndicates took advantage Of our
ignorance in mining matters and
bought large tracts Of valuable min
eral land in central and western
Texas. and some Of it too at ride
alously low prices. As kind of
eonsoliiig excuse Tor neglecting
these natural treasures it Is now
said. We'll, we anyhow had no
fuel 10 work and utilize our ores
and other valuable minerals" and
the assertion, that at a very low
estimats Texas has about $4,000
square miles Of NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
alton, and that the coal measures
Of this formation hold good coal, is
received with the same incredulity
a. was formerly the assertion of
the existence Of ores.
The reason Is plain: the materi-
al Of the upper seams Is mostly Of
/ inferior quality, full of slate streaks
and pyrites. the veins are hardly
ever thicker than two feet, the out
crops Of the third and larger seam
Of good coal are very scarce aud
the existence Of even thicker veins 1
Of perhaps still better coal can at
present not be demonstrated, be-
eau-s II has nowhere been looked
for. but their existence can not be [
denied, because the upper carbo- I
nIferous the coal measure strata) /
extends under the third seam;
borings or shafts were sunk with /
out making previous careful geo
logical examination; the overlay-
ing sirata, which in many locali-
tics may be estimated at 1000 feet
or more, were not considered; and
IL some cases, where the borings
Here continued 10 500 feet and
more, no coal WAS struck, or if It
was struck il was one Of the upper
seams. consequently quantity and
.sa.-ii4---a-.i -ssi~f-~tv-y7 zz..- tho
work WIS stopped
And Why Because in Ohio
Kansas. Illinois, Pennsylvania, or
perhaps on d newly discovered
spot on the moon, the coal, if such
exists, was always struck, if not
sooner az least at such a depth. /
But Texas Is neither Kansas, Ohio,
or Illinois, and the
structural geology of Texas is, in
many places, in many ways differ
eut from that Of those states.
Wherever the carboniferous
sandstone, limestone and slate crop
70 the surface, there the coal strata
are closer TO the surface; but where +
the las, cretaceons, and the still {
never formations oyerlay the coal
formation, there the coal seams
may be from 1900 to 1000 feet, ]
and even more, below the surface.
Each Of the two cretaceous periods
the limestone and mari group
alone deposited strata about 2,000 /
feet thick, IN many places of Tex
AZ. where these dimensions were
not lessened by the coeyal subse-
queut vashings. But still there is
d large area where the strata of the .
carboniferous formation are plain
lv visible on the surface. For in
stance. the sandstone Of the ccal
formation, easily recognizable by
fl grain. component PARTICLES and
fossils. crops out on the west side
Of the Guadalupe mountains; If
disappears on the east side Of the
mountain range, under the gypsum
d creiaceous strata; raappears /
again at the Clear Fork of the
Brazo-. and may be traced easily
60 oid Fort Belknap and farther
sasL where Limestone appears.
From the upper cross timbers,
however. we find again the sand
stone, which can be traced to the
lower cross timbers and farther .
east
Last yearI was professionly oc-
copied al summer IN tracing the ,
strata in the Chick
asar Nation, along the line Of the
SANTA lie railroad, and I found
thst the coal formation Of the In
dian Territory Is evidently con-
nected. at least in two places with
that Of Texas, bat the two connect
81 streaks are mostly covered by
thick strata of more recent peri
DDS.
I also iud that the earbonifer-
5as strata Of Texas show less up
hearals. eoyes. and other disturb
ances, than those IN the western
part Of the Indian Territory. and