Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-10-22

the general appearance of the lake. Its con-
tents are nearly pure asphsltum, with a small
proportion of earthly matter. An old geologi-
| cal report estimates the quantity in sight at
4.752 900 tons. but since this reckoning was
made several hundred thousand tons have been
removed without perceptibly diminishing the
available supply.
! WHAT TIE LAKE OF PITCH LOOKS LIKE.
| There is something altogether weird and
strange about this lake Of pitch. It's surface
does not present continuous sheet, but j.
traversed by network Of channels in which
| the rain water collects. Its aspect may be
| llkened to piece of marbled paper. There are
| about a score of small islands scattered over
| the lake. which are covered with vegetation,
some Of them supporting trees twenty or thirty
| feet high. These islands do not extend down.
ward very far into the lake, but appear to be
| merely superficial accumulations of soil. When
one of them is destroyed the asphalt beneath il
rises to the general level. Although the action
! is SO slow as to be imperceptible to the eye the
entire lake is always in motion. SO that the
| islets are continually being transported from
one part of it to another. II is said that some
| times one of them sinks into the lower regions
| of bitumen, to be again thrown up at a dis
lance, its verdant hue changed TO the black dye
| of the pitch. About the islets thousands OF
beautiful butterflies and more brilliant hum
ming birds gather, while higher in the air focks
| OF gaudy paroquets and cuckoos disport them
selves. The richness Of the vegetation and the
superb array of birds and insects afford strik-
! ing contrast with the gloom Of the stygian
lake.
| THE SURFACE OF THE LAKE
is hard. SO that q horse may be rid
den over it, except for the space OF about
an mere in the center, where the pitch
is soft and bubbling. A man walking
across this part of 1t sinks to above his ankles
but at times it would probably be dangerous 10
venture there, lest one be engulfed and find a
horrid grave in the inky depths below. Every
body who has walked on asphalt pavements
| knows how readily they absorb and are softened
by the, rays of the sun. That orb shines with
such torrid glare in Trinidad that the tenn
perature Of the great sheet Of bitumen varies
| from 20 degrees to 140 degrees within twenty
four hours. Thus during the hot Part Of the
middle of the lake. 1t always has
an abominable smell of sulphuretted
| hydrogen, which is the kind Of gas generated in
| bad eggs. Here and there over the surface are
sweliings small and big which are filed with the
| gas 1t is fortunate that the material when
| compact will not burn without wick, for
otherwise the entire region, including the
neighboring village, might suffer the fate of
Sodom and Gomorrah. Nosoundings have ever
been made, and the depth of the deposit is I'M
known.
THE SOIL OF THE ISLAND
in the vicinity of the lake rests on a substratum
of asphaltum. Inasmuch the latter readily
yields to pressure it is not surprising that
houses built over it should exhibit tendency
to tumble down. Although the palm-thatched
cottages are light, the posts that support them
are apt to sink into the earth. or more often to
lean over sideways, apparently endnngering the
| buildings. This does not ut all alarm the in
mates. though the dwellings often look like
card houses on the point Of falling The move
( meut of the asphaltum is too gradual to cause
| accidents Furthermore, when a cottage seems
on the point of falling it is as likely ss not to
regain Its plumb, the posts resuming the per-
| pendicular through new movement of the
asphaltum. When the pitch is dug from the
| land deposits the hole from which il is taken
soon fills itself up. Thus an excavation that
yielded 5000 tons has been known TO fill itself
| up within few months to level with the sur
| rounding ground.
HOW THE PITCH IS GATHERED.
The Barber Paving Company. which has the
| exclusive right to get asphalt from the lake,
| procures its supplies from the central portion,
where the pitch is dug with picks and pulled up
| in Jumps, which are thrown by hand into bar
rels for transportation in carts to the ,eashore
not far away. In the hot part of the day the
stuff is 30 liquid that bhoveis are used instead
| of picks The work is performed by e1cayat-
ing areas thirty or forty feet square TO q depth
on one of these holes the latter begins to be OBJ
liberated, the bottom rising up to the general
| level, SO that within few days no trace re-
mains. The old proverb, that one can
not touch pitch without being defled, does not
| hold true here. II if did the place would be
| intolerably loathsome. The material can be
| taken in the hands and nodded into any shape
| without staining the fingers. Certainly there
are few things in the world so wonderful as this
| great puddle of asphalt, which looks to the eve
as though billions Of tons of black pitch had
boiled out Of the earth from the effects of an
| immense subterranean fire.
The ENORMOUS PROFIT
The company gets its pitch from the lake at
cost Of 40 cents ton. 1t sells the material
in the United States for $I4 ton. This leaves
| fair margin Of profit even after the rental OF
S50.00O annually has been paid to the colony.
For this price the colony not only grants sx-
elusive rights as to the lake, but also prohibits
competition by forbidding any persons to dig
/ asphAltum from the public lands or other
bitumen,produeing lands the same monopoly
owns or holds by lease nins-tenths. The re-
manning tenth belongs to private individuals
and it alone would produce enough to break
the market but for the fact that the owners are
shut of to great extent by an export duty of
CLEO a ton. The monopoly is obliged to pay
effected by which the charges against it in this
way 60 toward the $50. 900 yearly rent In
short, it controls and has in its grasp the en-
tire industry, and it will submit to no rivalry
Although It freely sells asphalt for trans
portation to Europe, it will not sell one
pound Of the material for trsnspor alton to the
United States. All the pitch fetched to this
country from Trinidad it brings over for itself.
Not very long ago Philadelphia firm wanted
1000 tons Of asphalt and asked to buy il from
the company In Trinidad. The agent there
stated price that he thought prohibitory, and
when the demand was acceded to he coolly
withdrew his Offer, declaring that be vould not
soil his merchandise At any price for shipment
/ to the United States.
In the yeaf 1871 tho colony granted lease Of
the entire asphalt lake, with the exception Of
one ave sore lot. TO G. F. Stollmeysr, George
| r. Field, Thomas A. Finlsyson and Tie arm Of
Previte b 0rsig Of London. Ths,s rival
] that they were united. ". A. L Haxber had