Evening star., 1899-04-15
QUARRIES OF CARRARA
Where Some of the Worlds Finest Marble
issObtained.
A Great Mountain Is Being Blasted
Away-Au Work is On the
Surface.
From the Scientific American.

From the Scientific American.
Carrara marble is known throughout the
world. yet few of the many tourists who
are whirled along the Mediterranean rail-
way from Rome to Genoa ever stop to visit
the spot from which this famous stone Is
obtained. Carrara lies on the railway be-
tween Pisa and Florence, and an excursion
to the Carrara mountains Is not difficult.
Carrara itself is hardly worth visiting, be-
ing simply aggregation of home1y
houses on the banks of muddy torrent at
the base of the mountains. The mountains
themselves can be seen even from the lire
of the Mediterranean railway, the marble
cropping out in numerous places. All the
inhabitants of the little town are directly
or indirectly interested in the quarrying,
working and shaping of the marble, and
the glare of marble dust and marble meats
one on every side. The marble quarrieS are
entirely different from what might be eX-
pected, and in place of craning the neck to
gaze down into the bowels of the earth, che
only has to admire the long, irregular rift
in the flank of the mountain, for the guar
rying is all done the surface, and does
not require the construction of pits or gal
leries. The qudrries have been likened by
one writer to cascade of water suddenly
hardened into stone.
The percentage of men VINO meet horri-
BILE deaths in the quarries is very large,
Notwithstanding the fact that powder and
these accidents are caused by carelessness
on the part of the workmen, but these could
in nearly every case, be safeguarded against
by proper appliances. When the great
blocks are once detached, they either roll
down the mountain or ara lowered to the
desired place by means of ropes and tackle.
NO machinery is employed, and all the
work is done with the crudest appliances
a blast is announced by three long notes on
horn, but little attention seems to be paid
to this signal by the workmen, and many
terrible accidents result in consequence.
A few years back, when accidents oc-
cIrred, the cathedral bells were tolled to
give warning to the people; but owing to
the anxiety and anguish of thousands of
poor families on hearing this gruesome
sound, the custom has now been abolished
and the workmen all leave the quarries as
soon as an accident occurs, in order to as
sure their families of their safety, and they
are allowed their full days pay. The pay
of the workmen is wretched, varying from
60 to 80 cents a day. blast is very eX-
citing to d stranger, who is usually accom-
panied by a guide, who contrives to get him
in place of absolute safety during the ex-
ploslon. The marble is blasted high uD on
the peak, and the pieces bound or leap
downward until they strike some obstruc-
ton or the valley below. Formerly all of
the immense chunks of marble had to be
transported by primitive carts hauled by
oxen. but now the railway affords an easy
means Of transporting TO the market. The
huge trucks are met everywhere founder
ing along, finging great clouds of choking
white dust in their train or splashing mud
which is white in this remarkable locality.
Each car is drawn by eighteen twenty
pairs of oxen, which are covered with the
white dust which is everywhere They are
goaded by their cruel drivers, for the Ital-
ians are notorious for their cruelty to ami
mails.
An interesting excursion is 10 one of the
quarries which We're worked by the
Romans. and the quarries show how primi-
tive were the means employed by men of
antiquity. They first marked out the block
upon the solid mass, and they actually cut
it out by hand labor. In many places
still see blocks which lie embedded in
the rubbish caused in quarrying and ship
ping them. The Romans split their blocks
into slabs by inserting wooden wedges and
keeping them continually wet until the
swelling of the wood burst asunder the
stone. A Roman altar was unearthed some
years ago near the quarries, and few
rusty implements have also been discov-
cred.
The views from the mountain are superb.
To the east lies Tuscany, and to the south,
clear day. can be seen the blue coasts
of Corsica and Sardinia. CaTrara marble
has been favorite with sculptors for near
ly 1900 years, and today it is nearly al
ways used by the sculptor in preference to
marble from any other locality. 1t is also
largely used in decorating churches.