The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1895-11-23
Mica MINIS in the South.


says
This quiet little town in western North
Carolina forty miles from any railroad. Is
the centre of one of the most important
mining interests in the country. The
mica business is so commonplace. and at.
fords such small show of machinery. that
it is not unusual for stranger t" be >kep
teal when told of its actual magnitude.
1t looks insignificant and vet it is one of
the greatest industries in the State. and
has Welded immense fortunes t" those en-
gagged in running it. 1t requires N" capital
to set one going on the road to fortune: all
that is needed is to own or get control ct ii
deposit. 1t can be mined cheaply. as the
labor of this region is low The dealers
who handle mica occupy little >harkS.
which are amply furnished with crude
work bench and pair of shears. This is
all that is needed: million dollars would
not secure better outfit for the work.
Mica is mineral. bur OF tn" many
millions who spend hours looking at the
glowing fire through the little windows in
the stove. few know where that thin.
transparent substance. whose durability
Knocks the fusion of the most intense heat.
came from.
The wild and apparently worthless noun
tain region of which Baker>ville is the
metropolis is the main source Of supply
for the United States This town looks as
if might have been built of mica ar else
stands on the site of ruined city that
was erected of it, 1t can be seen scatter
ed all about the city and suburbs. The
river is full of the shining PARTICLES. and
the streets and alleys are stlewn with heaps
of the refuse. Its formation is like that
Of stone. and here and there about cliffs
aud. reHectin" in the sun. makes a most
brilliant effect. 1t can he found III the
formation of almost any rock and of more
or less size mostly in fuccam. quartz, and
feldspar. The purer veins are found be
tween walls Of slate 1t is taken from the
mines to the little shops spoken of by means
Of various conveyances, from the shoulder
of Il native to the cart drawn by IL hridled
and harnessed steer. Here it is split int"
thin sheets trimmed into regular shapes.
and is prepared for the market.
4 stranger is always welcome t" the bed
and board of these mounrainecrS unless one
happens to drift into .'moonShinc
locality; then he is apt t" get cold comfort
or hot lead Many IA man whose offence
was no greater than an innocent prospect
inc for mica has been led out uf these
noroes. given two or three menacin" kicks
and made to understand that he had better
not be found again in that region. But
even the moonshner will give YOU his best
bed and sleep on the floor himself if he is
satisfied that your mission does not concern
him or his. The mica miner ~ owner of
mines has nothing to fear. and is therefore
free to bestow his hospitality on all, and
none who have the appearance Of gentle
men are ever turned from his rude door
step. If stranger manifest amy interest
in the property of native. he will take
great pains to show him anything and in
giving him every possible assistance in
obtaining the desired information.
\ visit to the works ON the mountain
side WAS taken. 1t required no shafting
to reach the veins. a. the mines were ex-
posed and in good workin" shape which is
the condition of most of the working mines
i'm this section. On reaching the mines
men were set to work drilling holes with
steel rod and hammer 1t took about half
4 dav to drill two or three holes. which
were promptly filed with dynamite and
exploded. The rock was shattered 10
pieces. but the mica was preserved from
the shock and came out in large chunks.
as it has wonderful tenacity unless in the
direction it splits From 80 to 100 pounds
of mica is obtained from IA shot of this kind.
After it is split and trimmed down it will
lose about half On this occasion eighty
pounds were procured at Il cost of less than
So. 1t brings on an average $ pound,
The price varies with the size and color
"f the sheets The Bakersville product is
known to trade as rum mica \ 2x4
sheet, good clear quality, is worth about
80 cents Il pound while l0xl2 will bring
81 to Sc. Sheets of these dimensions are
extra size as the average is only about
4x6 Rare sheets 24x1S inches have
been found Occasionally mine is found
&where the mica is too much scattered in
the bed rock to make its operation protita
bic; hence there is a possibility of man
sinkiHgka little money without the expected
tenfold return; but generally the expert
mountaineer can tell ip few shots whether
there is any use of fooling with a bed or
not 1t is not an uncommon thing for
couple of natives to leave in the morning
with box of dynamite and return at night
with $50 worth of mica Blocks worth
$500 have been found after shot.
In view of these facts it is not surpris-
ing to find man. an ordinary mountain
bred man. who has amassed fortune by
simply having the horse sense to push Il
good thing along. Occasionally shaft
mine is found which is operated bya com
pany and pays good dividend, but the
most individual money has been made out
of mica blasted off bald peaks and cliffs on
private land Most of the shaft mines
have shut down of late. but some of them,
such as the Clarissa and Spread Eagle.
were regular bonanzas for "a while.
The old Clarissa, Spread Eagle. and
Goose Neck shafts were all sunk in the
same vein, and mining was done as deep
as 800 feet with considerable machinery.
These mines were not far apart. The old
Clarissa is the best mica mine in the world.
but by reason of litigation it is not now in
operation. 1t was worked last by a Chat
tanooga firm that leased it out, and in three
months cleared $40 000 This work was
done on bench in the mine about half
the way down, and so much rock was
blasted off that the old shaft was actually
filed ap, 1t is estimated that there is a
million dollars worth of feldspar in this