The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1901-09-01
ARKANSAS rich zinc FIELDS
VALCABLE ORE AWAITING THr
COMING o. THE RAILROADS.



ef the Mines some An ansa. 1a,N.
II has long bern q fsvotte saying anon,
miners that the unc market could easIv
he cornersd, because there IL NJ such thing
m scrap metal to interfere with tho nu'u-
plcte control Of the mining output BIZ
this notion must now Is abandoned for 'as
discovery OF millions Of dollArs worth =
the metal In Arkansas will render a corner
impossible. II would not even to possible
20 buy up the mines and form a comt.na.
ton. because nearly all the mime Ar" n
Government land. OF which any one J"r-pn
may buy only 40 scre-.
several railroads are racing into 10
district, which heretofore has hsen n much
despised region. and the day thai M" bret
sets itS feeders into tho mines Thousand,
Of people who car hardly gnIh q h,Irg
on their land nov will hsConIe wealthy
And yet ali the Government land p r.'
taken up. although the nIsh into 'hn lis.
trict Ia tremendous.
Every one in the region l. dealing n
futures. Every one Il waiting eiI.rr,
waiting. for the wealth ~ com" l.i
cannot buy ORE from thess poop" r."
why they sny. the ore will be v.r'.
dollars where II l. nov worth cents whom
the railroad gets through. Tho interest,",
will warrant a few years waiting
Near Jasper. Marion county 100 '''1
81 ore lies piled on the ground WAITING
for the future market. II u a. leas' a. l"'
cen, ore. and the mine from which y "a ne
.esn,s n h. inexhaustible tn" Thousand
tons was blown right ~ the ~uria~ 80
| the ground On the Bufd lo river thor" I,
a ahaft which had been sunk a. feet 'frHIgI
zinc and tho ore se.med 10 10 getting t-.''.-
J Ia grade the further down th"y v".'
Near Dodd CITY l. another shaft ~ 'sa.
decp. On feet ~ which was pay nr" b.
tween Harrison and DDdd city a Nps.n-
chu-etis man who had purchase "ig.'T
acres At s. al acre refused Sl'o 'pr
his land and stands pat for 5000" won
the railroad gets through
The writer Wa riding along a mountain
road one morning and stopped a. p iafr
gate for n drink ~ water Tn" women
no procured the water seemed - h.
better educated than most Of the p~'p'
~ the n~.ighborhood During th" o'n-
vers.tion she said she had com" from
cage. Her husbands health had hros"n
down aud with almost their last ussins
thew had purchased a mountain farm IN
Arkansas They paid only 81 an aero
They had lived there three years hIt
in eoing there the man had found not onIv
hi- lost health. but riches as well Tor 'h"F
farm rests on the zinc bed. and when 'hs
railroad gets through 1.-THE inevitable pref
ncr to ali things In that region they eNP-'t
10 settle down 60 a lie 81 ease and comfort
somewhere In civilization. You mee' m
stanC@- ~ this kind all through the regl'h
Meantime the railroads are racing 10
bring the futures ~ these people nearer
to them. The ~ lOuis and San tIancis"'
Railroad las already got a. Tar a. hairls'i
on the wAy tn y~ellville, the centre OF Tho
zinc district. One OF The o'ohld r"Hnr -
cons, rlc,ing a connecting link passing 90
the northwest near Harrison into the Joplin
district Another road will be bullt IRON
salem. Mo. to Fort smith, passing rght
through the zinc belt. still another roah
is being bull, from Harrison 70 WinnerNa'
he heal 81 navigation on the White River.
where the Government - putting In Jocks
and dams 20 improve the water transport
tation. One 81 the roads u boring q thn-
mel 1000 feet long through the mountain
near Eureka Springs.
stacl-- with which the roads have 70 con-
tend make the race exciting Inc mme
owners watch tho efforts put forth IN thetr
behalf and take all things goo naturcdN.,
knowing that the md Of !, means wealth
Tor them. The roads will radiate like Q
star from the c-n,re 81 the zinc district.
A curious feature Is the attitude Of the
Joplin miners toward the new dis'rict'
Zinc ore il locally known as jack ana Jop-
lin No h. the TOW tina Jack built. Judg-
ing the new Ind nv their own rgloL'
tho Joplin miners do not believe 80 mum
ore can exist Ia the direction OF ieuNule
They say the dip should carry " swaN
fFOm There. Vnf W lufEN INV 800
ory came down 20 Panther Greek and "h-
plained Ia one 81 the new district owner,
an old man. how impossible " was 'h"t
any ore could exist In the egion Al 'h'
laws az geology and m"ialIurgy. ne ~
were against 4 After some arguing ihs
old miner got angry, went 20 his shan,V
and returned presently with n dril hs
bored a hole. put In a charge OF pown"t Aun
blew out a couple of tons OF zinc ore if''h
the very rpot on which the man ~ 'h"'fv
had been standing during the argument
II converted the Joplin man
Jack II not the only good thing ~ "hl.n
the region boasts. There ar" many Wa
ural curiosities around ahout Near M"-,-
ern Grove there IL q cave wh'ch rN'.
underground for eight miles fNpl"'"'.
have rowed on the underground nv
for that distance. and they did NOT -" 80
end Of Il. They were afraid OF running
out Of provisions and grtting lost ~
went further A. Jasper there - "h'''''
large cave. which has spectacular features
The columns Within II. formed To- ~
.talactites and s~talsgmitss which mas
t~oome Joined, are ffty feet high
81 them are pure white. oiherN aT"
colored bv the earthly substance va
drip from the limestone roof 81 W.
This is called the Diamond cave. h-7'
he wny in which the crystals ~lh'a"alS
when the light IL thrown on then
In one Of the great chamherS 81 ''" I'-
mond Fave the columns give for'l a mast
" NNtNf wv 'h -
Zach j. Of q different pitch. anu ~ "a
-ician oluld jump around qulckl' 'n't.
from column to column h" might nai'f'
TO play a tune The placr gives ono
impression 81 a great pipe organ uh'''-
ground
Ru, the native has no time Tor thHS
natural wonders, which In a more ac'r>-'
hla region would soon heCone v'id
,nous His talk il all Of jack st"ei p"
ruby Jack. resin lack. salmon jacs
,le Jack, and all the other Jacks. ain
fact, that though the yield 81 the ''I
field last wear was worth to.ep'''
IN only those mines In the Arkan-'s
already or@ned are worked. ih"i" =
ready s. 90 oo worth of ore Saiilng .'
railroad transportation
Curiously enough. the discovery ~
or. In this region was made IN A'SH'-'
and No, in Missouri M ns'iNe- N
~.re booking for silver. amt ~h"n '''
found zinc they s~tandonei u ~ d'ss
Yet, the very min. they -
,urn~d ou, the rch--i In "a" di-lf!'i
Two farmers giris made the dtN'n''',
Driving home the cow one eNcui,g ''
tscked up pi-ce- % y shining m,t'
Which th~y called firker- Ia" mon
Thought they had found ptccrs ~ s.'"
- Z.-N aWN NH.mHH