Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1891-07-19

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geological formations, and then takes up
the economic features and tells where the
coal, natural gas, salt, copper, gypsum,
building stones and other economic mineral
deposits are to be found, their value, guam
tity and accessibility.
COAL.
In regard to coal, he says: The outcrop
OF coal seam No. begins on the north, near
the town of Bowie, in Montague county. and
runs thence southwestward through Jack
county, crossing the West Fork of the Trim
ity river near the mouth of Lodge creek.
Thence by the town of Gertrude; thence
through Young county, by Flat Top the
month of Coal creek, Belknap, and crossing
the south line of Young county near the
town OF Carbondale; thence through Steph-
ems county, passing Crystal Falls, Coal
Mountain, the mouth of Sandy creek, and
up Sandy creek to Cisco, in Eastland county
where few miles to the south the seam
passes under the cretaceouS strata. 1t APP
pears again on Pecan bayou, near Byrd s
store, i'll the northwestern corner of Brown
county; thence crossing into Coleman
county, on the Wofford survey; and from
thnce crossing Home creek, on the Scurlock
survey, and to the mouth of Bull creek, on
the Colorado river; and passing Waldrip, in
McCulloch county, where few miles to
the southwestward it passes below the
higher part Of the strata.
This gives about one hundred and ninety
miles OF outcrop on direct line for this
seam. 1t can be safely calculated that for
distance of ten miles to the northwest
ward of the line of outcrop this coal seam
may be made available. This would give
an area OF 1900 miles under which a work
able bed of coal may be found at a conven-
lent depth for economical purposes.
The outcrop of coal seam No. l is first
seen on the north, near the town of Bridge
,tst IN and
through the western edge of Parker county,
between Millsap and Mineral Wells, and
through Palo Pinto county, passing Cor
don, and into Erath county, passing Thur
bcr to point about ten miles south of
Strawn, where it passes beneath the newer
strata and does not appear again anywhere
10 the southwark. This gives line of out
crop about eighty miles long; and if the
same calculation IS made as in the case of
the other seam it would give an area of
500 square miles of available coal lands of
this seam, making the whole area of avail
able coal lands in this part of the state
21G0 square miles.
AMOUNT OF COAL IN A GIVEN AREA
The usual mining estimate of the produc-
tive capacity of a coal seam one foot thick
is about 1000, COO tons of coal to the square
mile. The coal seams of Texas will aver
age two and half feet thick, which will
give 2,500,0 600 tons per square mile, or per
section of land, in the coal area. 1t would
take plant producing 600 tons per day,
with 200 working days in year, over
twenty years to take out the coal on a sin
gle square mile The lands under which
the coal seams are situated have no greater
intrinsic value at the present than other
lands in the vicinity, for the reason that
most of them are distantly situated from
lines of transportation, and further fact
that it requires large investment Of CAPT
tai to carry on mining operations. Coal
will not bear rehandling before reaching
the lines of transportation because of the
increased expense attached but when our
present undeveloped industries are well es-
tabliShed they Will create Il demand for
fuel, and then the means of transportation
will be provided and lands become more
valuable.
This is followed by much good advice
relative to coal lands and the selection of
sites for mines. THE only kind of coal
found in this coal field is what is known as
bituminous. 1t is high in volatile matter,
and burns with an abundant yellow flame"
He expresses the opinion that ''Our Goals
will make good coke upon proper treatment
in the ovens.'
Much information is given about the pro-
duction of salt, which may be summed up
in this sentence, which we quote: sit is
only question of cheap transportation
when this part of the state will he famous
for its salt works.
COPPER
A full account is given of the copper de-
poSits, and good reasons assigned why eff
forts hitherto made to work them have
been unsuccessful. He says:
No attempt had been made TO make a
geological examination of the country and
to determine the relations of the copper de-
posts found in various counties in that part
of the state until the work Of this survey
was begun.
The country was known to belong to the
Permian formation, but the relation of the
copper beds and the nature of their occur
renee had not been studied.
Capt. Marcy made the mistake of calling
an indurated water-worn clay volcanic
scoria, and nearly every geologist who has
visited that field since has gone with the
idea that there would be found veins of
material traversing the coun-
try rock in various directions, and that the
best deposits of copper would be found at a
lower depth than the outcropS.
The origin of the copper is not from vol
canic sources. 1t is not vulcanite, but it
is neptuneite, and was precipitated from
the sea water at the time of the deposition
of the strata. There is no evidence any
where in this entire region of volcanic up
heavals sine the time OF the dispositions Of
the Permlan beds. These beds lie almost
on the north, and no veins of igneous ma
terial have been found traversing the coun-
try in any direction.
The copper lies in beds parallel with the
strata. which dip at small angle to the
northwesf. 1t lies generally in beds of blue
clay, which are themselves highly impreg-
mated with copper. There are three distinct
horizons of this copper in the formation,
separated by several hundred feet of inter-
vening strata. The lowest is found in the
Wichita beds of the Permian, which are the
lowest beds in the formation. 1t is found
in greatest abundance in Archer county,
and extends in a northeast direction, cross
ing Red river near the mouth of Cache
creek the locality where Capt. Marcy first
made the discovery of the copper:
At the center of Archer county the prin-
cipal part of the ore occurs in two forms.
One that of pseudomorph after wood, and
the other in round nuggets.
The pseudomorph ore lies embedded in q
blue clay in the form Of logs of wood, and
may at one time have been wood, but now
has been transformed into copper. Six
thousand pounds of that material taken out
of the mines at one time averaged 80 per
cent of Of copper.
That this material was once logs of wood
and other vegetable material l Judge from
the fact of having found logs of petrifed
wood that were partly iron, partly silica,
and partly copper. l have found many |
leaves of ferns in the sandstone that were
into copper. AT one place Ia
found small petriied vertebrate animaH
that had been transformed into copper.
The nugget ore lies also in the blue clay4I
and is obtained by digging into the clay |
where they occur like digging potatoes. |
The miners for that reason gave one Mace