New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-02-04
DRAINING A COAL NINE.
A FIVE-MILE Tunnel. TO REPAIR IhE
WORK OF \ FLOOD.
MINES ABANDONED FOR SEVEN YEAEs-WoN-
DERFUL ENGINEERING Sklli--fi''NiSH
or NEW PROSPERITY


ViIkesbarrc Penn. Feb. J.
III. ,r;,.,,~ ~ tho creai Jcddo tunncl five miles
dor ,D.o Mountains through solid rock. for the
nurnose Of draining mine workings containing NM
ions of tons Of fine coal. and at the same ''ihe A'-
comrlisbina the rehabilitation of mining district
which for the las: seven years mas pech p'H'"-
caliy deserted has been completed.
Started four years ago by several cntefpriSihs
anal onora.ors the tunnel was then looke1 upon ~
an unavoidable scheme by the majority OF mining
engineers and waste Of the N'J"o" "hch u
would take to complete IT. II was now departure
I'm mining engineering. Hitherto operators nah peen
oor,o,, n resurrect flooded mines by the SLOW and
extensive process OF pumping ana when OWING 10
the nature of the food and It's extent such course
o-nod ~,cticab!c the operators had been forced
10 abandon the ml"es.
The work Is finished. and now al tha' reSfai'S
the ZOO 600 gallons Of water In the WORKINGS Is
common piece OF hickory wood. four nches III nam
eter and six inches long When TINS - "l'h'ra"h
,be immense body Of water will pour from the
,so, IN vbch for seven years II has been pent up.
and in a shor, time the miners will once more have
access to the coal in the Jeido basin Inc desoate
mountains the dresrlness OF which - no" acceh'u-
atcd by miles and miles Of gaunt ana oidcKchei
tree stumps will soon be hives OF Industry. "here
NOW bnt one or two small and lifccss villages are
Gases In the ruined forests viii soon he 'hr'Nlhs
towns marked for miles around by great breakers
from which will risr clouds OF steam.
\ SPLENDID FIELD
Tho Jcido hasin is on the mountains about forty
miles a. the crow flies. from this city, ana near by
is the highest spot In Pennsylvania here some
ten years ago found Goa! Reid containing
countless tons of the finest coal In the world. 50
pure and rich that il commando mt market % cents
more a ton than any other grade. The ground h"-
ongcd to three operating firms. A. :. Van Wickle
e. Co. NJ s kemmercr & Co an1 y. u. Markle
The basin Was more than six miles long ana abont
a mile wide. Three shafts were SINK ana three
bre ,kprs built. the Markcs' at Jsddo. the KEN
mercrs at Iarlegh and the Van Wicklcs' AT Eber-
vale and soon around each prosperous villages were
huilt For three years coal Was mined In all the
workings and the operators were rdpldly becoming
mllionalrcs when ono day work suddenly stopped
The great engines ceased 20 ORA" cars inl 90 coal
from, tho DEPTHS Now the big breakers are falling
20 pieces the engine houses are crGmb.ins aud the
Few scraps OF worthless iron which mark the rest
ing places Of the boilers ana engines are covered
with
This occurred in tho spring ~ 1851 on that day
the little creek which run. through the middle ~
tho valley was swollen By the melting SHOWS on tn
mountains. until its narrow bci was far too SINAI
Two days tho freshet continued. ard on the third
day the torrent was larger and ilerccr than bcfDie.
II WAS on this day that. spreadn: over lana u htd
not known before. Il came to c.evice IN the ground
and fell into it. every moment widening the hole.
unt I'm = sior; timo It had worked new path FOR
itself. and the hole the cc1re OF lts bel. Then
there was Wild aarm around the shaft al Har'eigh:
The big whistle on the brsak.r sounded IT'S kne ~
hundreds OF miners bare.y escaping me ieatn "n ne,
threatened them below and spreading the news that
The msn had driven headings too rear the sur
qs h sa ton o n.a ssf" ed was Ss ali
is waters into the mines Disaster stared the op.
the stream into another course. but II was useless
In a few hours the Harleigh mines .ef" flooded
hers into the Ebcrvale mine TO the north. hoodinF
II completely. and into hall the Jeido nin" io tho
the coal guarded from the miners by vast
body OF water.
REPAIRING THE DAMAGE
For ;wo years no EFFORT made toward rcsior.
ing these great mines TO working condition. but
1870 the operators began looking about for som"
means OF ngan reaching tho coal The property
was too valuable go 10 waste. the opening D. !
been extended FOR tno milos and only partly
worked: the veins extended FOR six mes and Two
OF them had never been opened The iopmosi vein.
the Great Mammoth was OF unusual richness. IL
was only 80 feet below the surface. and measured
from % to 6o feet IN thickness. 10 foot further
down was the Wharton vein. fla feet thick. and
thirty fee, below This thc foot Buck Mountain
vein.
J. D. Markle or the Jeido mine. at Last thought
o, scheme which might prove successful Wl'h
the assistance % Minnie Engineer Thomas MnNnir
OF Hazoion h" Fpont weeks surveying tho sround
and making calculation and az last b" decided
that his plan was not only practical but would be
successful. He went to kcnmercr and Van Wicklc
and offered to drain their mincs and insure them
protection from all floods and Keep the inaes dry
The operat tors agreed
The plan was 10 drive great tunnel under two
mountains and tap The basin containing the Ebrr
vale. HarleIgh and Jeddo coal mines. The mines
being situated on the top OF the mountains and the
lowest workings only 80 feet below the surface. 1t