The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-05-08

west of the missouri ana no GOu west
of Kit Carson" If there ever was
semblance Of truth behind this saying
that time has gone, as our party Will
cheerfully testify. For ten days past
we have been driving and tramping
through the widest part of New Mex
leo, and the party has been surprised
TO find so little evidence of lawlessness
and such appearance of hearty well
come for any enterprise that Will tend
TO open the country. The days of the
"bad men" in this region seems to have
gone forever. In out of the way places
one hundred and fifty miles from any
railroad-almost from any market
thrifty farmers have settled, and they,
as well as the herders, miners and
prospeCtors are as anxious for stable
government and the protection of prop
erty as are the people of any Eastern
community.
Wherever there is flowing water, or
n spring. the land is almost sure to be
found under fence. Experiment has
proved that almost anywhere on the
mesas a well sunk from 10 to maybe 20
feet will yield reasonably good waters.
The fact is evident from the windmills
that are found in all parts of the coun-
try, and we were told that their num-
Since the primary aim of this inves'
tigating expedition was to see what
promise the country afforded to those
who would build a railroad from FL
Paso to the coal fields at Salado (spok-
en- of as "Salow" by the natives) we
were especially careful to inquire into
all the material resources of the land,
and to examine as many of them as
possible.
The wagon part Of our journeF began
at San Antonio, n. NJ, on the Santa Fe
road. Ninety miles of dry and dusty, up
and down driving took us across the
northern end of tornado del Muerto
Cthe Journey of Death), through the
rough land between the Chapadero
Mesa and the Oscura Mountains and
through the northern END of the Nal
Pals to White oaks. The Nal Pals is
q deposit of lava of recent origin 16SO
some authorities say) that cover the
plain from to so feet deep for
length of over 80 miles with a width of
from to Il miles. The eruption that
produced them is supposed to have
wrought the geological changes that
made the Gran Quivera a ruined city
in a waterless waste.
At White oaks our real work began
and during the succeeding days we in
spected timber tracks, crawled into
mines, burrowed like prairie dogs in
prospect holes, looked wisely at OutCrOp
and pay StreakS ore from here, there
and everywhere, and so worked zig
gag together and in sections across
the entire region of FL PasO. Our route
included the Nogal district. the Bonito.
Fort Stanton, the Captains, Eagles
Creek, the Rio Duodoso, the White
Mountains, a diagonal drive through
the Mescalero Indian Reservation, and
a most hearty welcome from Lieuten-
ant V. +. Stottler who has, without a
soldier or gun, completely metamOr-
phosed his Apache charge. From this
point portion of the party went to the
famous potato and timber regions of
the Sacramento Mountains and thence
TO La Luz, while the others went down
TularoSa caron to the lovely orchard
town of that name. Then there We're
other days by the marvellous deposits
of pure gypsum-almost as large as a
Pennsylvania cOunty-and dry camps
and hill climbing, and mine seeing,
and cattle herders and flying column
1.-TWO strong) to the lower foot hills of
the Sacramentos and to the Jarila
Mountains And so with welcome
everywhere, with every question volun-
teered, we skrted the San Andreas,
the Black and the Organ Mountains
until Fort Bliss and the Old Flag, un-
der the shadow of the Franklin peaks,
told us FL Paso was at hand.
Having thus touched upon our course
/ will now briefly summarize the re-
suits of our Investigations under sep
arate heads.
THE COAL.
At White Oaks we examined with
great care the Parker and the Shinsing
veins, situated in the mountains about
three miles from the town. In each of
them we found a vein of coal aggre-
eating something over three feet in
thickness, exclusive or the streaks of
fireclay and shale. They are of a fair
grade of bituminous, with good sand
stone roof, and dip westwardly into
the mountain at about a 2O-degree
pitch. While there is undoubtedly
considerable amount of coal to be had
from these mines, and possibly from
some other deposits thereabouts, the
Eastern coal men were by no means
enthusiastic over them. To the I'M
trained eye it seemed that faults and
broken veins must surely be encounter
ed in such a rough country, with the
sumo the peak shape.
l fancied that the coal contingent of
the party approached the Salado region
20 miles to the south, with no great
expectations after this experience, I
have been with investigating parties on
a great many important trips, but |
never saw more complete surprise
than awaited them there Before we
had seen even blossom" one of the
old stagers remarked: "Wel, this looks
something like" 1t was plain even TO
me that If there was any coal at all in
that section there must be lots of IL
We had been seeing veins in a noun
tain's top; here was a great peak-sur-
rounded basin, broken by low, irregu-
lar hills, and apparently underlaid by
coal in much of its area. After exam
lining many of the drifts and prospects
Col. Boies climbed one of the low hills
and after a long, all-around look from
Its top, hazarded a guess, based on the
geology of the thing, that this coal
field might be six miles by three" Mr..
Lathrop did the measuring and samp.
ing and whenever rule or pick were
In use the space around was crowded
with eager watchers.
We entered more than dozen drifts
and openings, some of them fully 100
feet In depth, and in a few Instances
chambered to some extent. In every
case the breast of the drift was in the
solid vein, and there was nowhere any
sign Of serious fault or Of any pinching
out.
There are two well-defined veins of