Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1896-04-30
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
Governor iacCorkle's Review of the West Virginia
Coal Trade
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bilities of this splendid coal being mar
keted all over the world
The Goals Of West Virginia are OF
every kind except Anthracite. The
writer, few days ago. had occasion
to look into the shipment OF one kind
o fcoal-to wit, Camel coal From one
small mine on Elk River he discovered
that the cCal was being shipped to "a
different places. The gas coal Is not
surpassed in the country. The oOking
Goals are equal TO COnnellsville, and in
the great markests of the West the New
River and PocahOntas Goals command
greater price. For steam-raising pur-
poses these Goals have been adopted by
the United States Government as the
standard for that purpose. The Welsh
coal, which so long held undisputed SUI
premacy, has been distinctly shown as
inferior To the steam-raising Goals of
West Virginia. For making iron less
amount of West Virginia coke than
ConnellSyille coke has been shown by
the most exhaustive experiment to ne
necessary 10 ton of iron.
As a matter of fact. the territory CT
West Virginia has been but touched.
The hest part Of it to-day remains as il
WAS in 1866, virtual wilderness. The
great section from which the celebrated
Flat Top coal is being mined, and
which last year produced 3.462 .920 tons
OF coal, is to-day an undevelopcd sec
ton. In that region the magnificent
counties Of Logan. Wyoming. Raleigh,
Boone, Lincoln and Wayne. filed with
Camel coal, splendid coking coal, the
best steam coal and Splint coal almost
Us hard as iron and indestructible by
travel or by the elements. arc to-day I'M
touched.
In comparison with other coal-pro-
ducing countries the price OF coal lands
in West Virginia are phenomenally
small. Against the Pennsylvania prices
OF $3.50 TO $500 an acre, our best coal
lands IN West Virginia average SO, SIS,
$40 to SIS an acre. These tracts Of the
most valuable cCal land, covered with
timber, are sold very frequently within
this State at these prices. The vast
possibilities of money-making in the
production Of coal and of the sale OF
coal lands in this State are we'll illus
trated by what occurred TO the writer
about six years ago. He was interested
with some Eastern capitalists in the
purchase of tract of $4,000 acres OF
land, OF which The sale price was about
100000. The timber on a vast portion
of this land was untouched and would
have paid for the whole OF the land.
The Eastern capitalists who had the
money and were engaged in this bust
ness, held eff for a smaller price. In a
short time the land was divided; 5000
acres o. it we're put in operation, and |
am informed that last year the royal
ties on cc1l from this small area alone
amounted to $45 .OCO. This is a fair il
lustrati0n OF the development OF this
great Industry in West Virginia.
The whole central portion of West
Virginia. filed with splendid domestic
coal. is to-day untouched. But this
condition Of affairs IS rapidly changing
in the year 1880 we had 691 miles of
r9ilrOad; to-day We have 2,OSS miles of
railroad.
Notwithstanding our wealth of oil and
timber. these railroads have been al
most universally built 10 bring from the
mountains our rich and sought-for
Goals No State except Kentucky can
compete with West viz inia in uiv- coal
markets CT the world. With the build
ing of the NicaraUgUan Canal, she is
nearer The Pacific markets than any
other Of the great and good coal fields;
she lies close by Virginia, at the door
way Of the South, touching Ohio and the
West, within easy access of the great
manufacturing regions of the East and
West, with water transportation, with
three great railroad systems wing with
each other in the carrying of her Goals
20 market; washed as she is by the great
Ohio. with her mountainous couatry
and magnificent river touching on one
side the grsai brown hematite deposits
OF Virginia, she has before her a career
second 20 10 State in all this country.
As | have said before the State Is
splendidly located in reference to trans
pcrtation. We are only seven hours by
freight from Cincinnati within fourteen
hours Of Chicago, thirty hours of Pitts
burg, five days of New Orleans, TWEEN
ty-four hours OF Newport News and
Baltimore. We can place our best coal
on shipboard at Newport News at $3.50
per ton. We can ship coal TO Cincin-
nlti at S71s cents per ton. and for New
Orleans the Kanewha operator who
hires both barge and towing can deliver
coal ut cents per bushel or 1925 per
ton. or Il of a cent per ton per mile.
But TO the operator who owns both
barges md towboats this is much cheap
or. The above is given as an illustra-
ton OF the ease with which West Vir-
ginia Fan approach the great coal mar
keiS of the United States.
Gradually she has crept UP in the
lire of coal production. oyerhauling
with tremendous strides her sister
States which have been prominent in
the production Of this great article Of
commerce. until to-day she stands third
rs 4 coal-proGucing State and within
but a short tine she will oyerreach
Illinois and soon her great competitor,
Pennsylvania.
I have not attempted any thorough
discussion of West Virginia as coal
producing State, but have only discuss
ed her capabilities in the line OF future
production.
WILLIAM 4. M'CORKLE,
Governor.