The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1898-12-11

ian wells at Gate City. The negro WAS cor
rect in his statement that the place was ap-
parently remotely situated from any COM
munity where the dater-even 1t should 1t
be found-could be successfully used. This
| fact taken in connection with the persist
| ent silence which the gentlemen at the head
| of the undertaking maintain, makes the
digging of the wells more and more of a
mystery.
Gate City District
The approach to the we1ls-or holes in the
ground-either you choose to call the bor-
ings-is very interesting one For about
quarter of a mile beyond the Gate CITY
terminus of the electric car line the county
road is followed in a course parallel to the
Southern and the A G. S. railroads. On
either side of the road are seen the great
ebert quarries which have furnished the
macadamizing material for the streets of
Birmingham, the county roads of jefferson
and the streets and roads in so many other
parts of the state. Up on the hill are also
seen great quarries of limestone, which at
present are not being worked
turning to the right road directly across
the hills is followed. The road is a very
sandy one, and in this respect very novel
one in the Birmingham district
why don't you put some ebert on this
foad?D asked the weary scribe of his guide
| as the two plodded along
Too much sand around here" he replied.
And there's what this sand did to some
folks, I don't know who they were back in
the boom days. They spent a lot of money
putting up those glass works up there on
the hiil but they went broke. Their BUSH
ness was too brittle for EN-" And with
that he laughed at his vile pun.
me glass works, which were once the
Doast OF Industrious Birmingham indeed
bore depleted and desolated appearance.
The sandy road continued on down hill
under two big railroad trestles whose lines
led goodness knows where. The stranger
at Gate City, just as in all other parts of
the great Birmingham district, encounters
almost innumerable and everlasting rail-
road tracks.
The New Borines
At last about mile beyond Gate City. the
derrick where the new wells are being dug
Is seen, standing directly in front of what
turned out to be ]. G. Worsham's residence
1t is an open clearing, about a hundred
yards above the old artes'an wells which
were dug a number of years ago. but from
which very little water has ever been OBJ
tanned.
A. B. Garfield, of st. Louis is In charge
of the work, and he has about ten carpen-
tiers. mechanics and laborers under him.
Mr.. Garfield talked very pleasantly yester-
day concerning the work which was be-
Ing done out there.
'I have a contract with Mr.. HILL" said
he, "to bore as many wells and bore them
as deep as he may desire. I can't say
whether are going to get any water or
not, for 1t my business to dig the holes and
not to say what we are going to find in
them.
1.-THE derrick which you see there put
up on Thursday. Tt is about sixty feet
high. and is a typical oil well derrick. My
partner w. A. Irwin. and 7 both learned
of Pennsylvania. Our outfit consists of
twentv-horse power boiler a fifteen-horse
power engine. plenty of drills, ropes and
in fact all the machinery and tools neces-
sarv for successful well digging We are
fixed to go 5000 feet deem If necessary. Our
wells are ten inches in diameter"
Mr.. Garfield took pains to explain the
whole process of well digging, how the
drills worked. ard how the pipes through
which the water is to run to the surface
were lowered as the hole deepened.
eff things turn out as we expect them
to-" he continued. I'VE will begin the drill
ing next Tuesday or Wednesday. though of
course this may be put off day or two. 7
the drilling commences. for know very
little of the formations of this valley
through which we must bore. Tn sandy soil
like this. our progress is very rapid, but
through the stone which we will inevitably