Sequachee Valley news. (Sequachee [Sequatchie], Tenn.) 1896-1952, 1902-04-03
TRIP TO SOUTH AMERICA.
CHAPTER s.

expect TO get ship for the Strait OF
Magellan.
This part OF Chile is especially inn
portant, because it contains some OF the
chief coal fields Of the Pacific coast Of
South America, These coal fields lie
along the shore for a distance Of almost
one hundred miles, but tho coal is not
so good as that brought from England
and Australia, and is sold at lower
price. The mines, however, arc so
close to the sea that they can be work
ed at profit.
1t is for coal that tue steamer for the
Strait of Magellan has stopped in Aran-
co Bay. She now lies at anchor near
Lota, with great barges loaded with
coal by her side. We see tooty-faced
rotos standing the barges shoveling the
coal on board
The ship is bound for Hamburg She
must force her way through the ocean,
distance of about 5000 miles, before
she can get coal again. 1t takes a vast
deal of fuel to make steam for such a
big ship, This vessel uses more coal in
one day than many families can con-
sumo in year, and IL will keep the ro-
| tos shoveling from morn till night to
load up. AS we 60 on board the cap
tain tells that we have time to visit one
of the mines. We are tired and at first
think it hardly worth while, until the
Captain tells US that the coal bods OF
this region slope from the land down
under the ocean, and that the coal
which they are now shoveling on board
comes from under the sea.
This seems very strange so we call a
small boat which is near the ship wait
ing for passengers, to take us on shore.
We are soon landed at the entrance to
one of the greatest OF the coal mines
We tell the manager that we wish to
visit his mine and he kindly sends
guide with US.
We are taken to great shaft or we'll
in which, by steam engine and pulleys,
two elevators are raising cars filled with
coal and lowering empty cars to the
bottom. We step upon the elevator
that is just going down. Down, down,
down we go until at last rays of light
shoot up from below us. Our speed
grows slower and we stop before long
tunnel with a line of electric lights ex-
tending on and on in front of US grow,
ing less and less in size until they fade
into stars in the distance.
AS we step out of the shaft train
of loaded cars comes laundering to-
wards us and we see that they are NOV
ed by an overhead trolley like the cleo
trio street cars of some of our cities
But there is another train going back
Can we get on! Yes, a special car with
seats upon it has been attached to thu
train for US, We climb upon the plat
form and speed away over the track a
the rate of twenty miles an hour. II
few minutes we leave the shore an,
soon far out under the bed of the Paci
fic ocean.
Think whore we are. We are hun
dreds of feet down under the ocean an,
big steamers are floating above US; blu
still it is dry. There is not drop o
our clothes for the great beds of rocl
just over our heads are such that th,
water cannot get through
As we ride on now aud then trail
passes, aud in tho tunnels al the side
we see half-naked miners, covered will
dirt, digging out the coal and loading
upon cars, What great mine this il
There are hundreds of men at work /
it, and vast quantities of coal are take
out daily.
We return to the shaft on trail
with twenty-seven cars of coal in from
of us, and another train arrives Will
we are waiting to ride to the top.
Again we are back on the steame
which is almost ready to sail loade
with nine hundred tons of coal in tn
. last twenty-four hours. 1t is big shi
- and carries vast deal of freight B
- low deck are 5000 tons of nitrate of S
da, two thous mi barrels Of liquid hor
ey and great rolls of sole leather, a
going TO Europe. We have wheat, VIII
and -four for Punta Arenas on the Stra
of Magellan, and similar freight +
Buenos Ayres. Everything is careful
4 packed for we ara now going into 500
l., of the stormiest seas of the world II
yT extreme southern end of the contine
"a may be called the very ONE Of Il
D, winds. We are anxious to be off al
=, are glad when as evening falls there
10. a rattling of chains and the anchor
e raised. We hear tho thump, thum
on thump, of the engines, and as we go
ter bed we are moving out of the smoo
water Of Aranco Bay into the ocean.
10 We awake to find the ship rollir
and have to hold to our borths viii
sh- we dress aud lurch OF the vessel
ay, ten sends US against the walls of o
'nt rooms. We climb upstairs to tho dec
AZ. and bracing ourselves against the II
to look out over the sea. The waves ri
ger and fall in huge masses. They VII
og- the ship striking It's sides with a moi
a. like cannon.
n, When we sit down at dinner there