The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1897-04-03
A QUEER TOWN.
England Has One of the Strang-
est Municipal Freaks on Earth.
Why a General Appearance OF
Topsy-Turveydom Prevails.

Assuredly the most curious town IN
England, and the most upside-down-
looking place. is Northwich. AS a
stranger walks up one of the streets
he wonders whether he is the victim
OF a disordered imagination or whether
an earthquake has been visiting the
locality. Here two houses are lean
ing one against the other, as If for
mutual support; three more are lean
ing from each other, as if in sullen
anger; higher mp are dwellings sunk
en- in the center or at the ends; the
pavement on one side in certain places
is higher than the other, while little
farther on it is lower.
In short, everything has general
appearance of topsy-turveydom in this
town of what are described as "drunk-
en- houses" The cause of it all is not
far to seek. Northwich. as every one
knows, or ought to know,i is the center
of the salt industry, and it is the draw
ing of brine and rock salt for the man
ufacture of this very necessary COM
modify that is the moving factor In
the mischief. On nearly all sides OF
the town are. big salt works, with their
engines pumping hundreds of thou
sands of gallons of brine every week,
while the extensive mines of rock salt
are being cut into in all directions
At depth OF some 200 or 800 feet
are immense submarine lakes of brine,
and as the contents Of these are
pumped and pumped away the upper
crust of earth is correspondingly
weakened and the result is ON occa-
sional subsistence. In some of the
mines where the salt is blasted and
cut away one can travel a mile in GER
tain directions. As the glistening
white or deep red rock is cut away
great pillars of it, some eight feet
square, with large thickness all
along the roof, are left to support
the earth above. Sometimes, how
ever, the mine is flooded, the pillars
dissolve in the water and the earth
falls in. with oil on top of it. Luckily
this kind of subsistence generally hap
pens in spots. where houses are not
numerous, and for this rea-
son no lives have been lost
within recent years. One morning
a few years ago a horse left
in stable overnight was found to be
and hole filed with water
occupying the place where the animal
should have been. Near. Wincham
and Marston, suburbs of Northwich,
lakes acres in extent are now seen
where green fields used to be, and
there is a spot where the highway
takes the form of railway embank-
ment. On either side are big ponds
where the earth had subsidized and the
road goes through like bridge. This
itself is bound to go at some future
time, and it is to be hoped at that
time no one will be in the immediate.
All these subsidences have pull
ing" effect on tho nearest buildings,
which are drawn .all ways" Such a
state of things is amusing as well as
interesting. "This desirable property
10 let' is the sign one may seek cheek
oy jowl with one at the beginning of
. stile road bearing the legend: "This
'oad is dangerous" One has to be
lware of such roads at night time in
his neighborhood. A part of the
bath may have sunk 100 feet or more
Turing the preceding hour and an in
drop into the water, which
Uses as fast as the earth falls, is o
apid way out of this world.
In order to make oil buildings last
fairly decent length of time all new
rections are built in frames of wood, |
his style holding the bricks together |
longer length of time than if the
'ailding was on the ordinary princi-
lies. Even under those conditions,
nd taking into consideration the fact
hat in the town itself the subsidences
re gradual and give some warning,
wing must be rather exciting in GER
ain portions of Northwich. : Philadel-
hia Telegraph.
Metals More Precious Than Gold.