Evening star., 1903-11-28
MARBLE FROM VERMONT
Great Value of Quarries in That State
How Work is Done.
From the New York Tribune

From the New York Tribune.
The early settlers of New England did not
know what mistake they made when thev
called the mountains of New Hampshire
White, and those of Vermont Green. 1t ts
true the beautiful color of the verdure
which covers the Vermont peaks seems to
give them an appropriate name, but in
places where the top has been scraped off
masses of marble have been found which
are almost equal to the famed products of
Italy. The story goes that one of these de-
posits worth literally millions of dollars,
was traded by the man who owned 1t in the
early days of the state for mule SO that
he could move his household goods into a
country where the soil was richer From
this "stone farm have come monuments
and statuary which can he seen in all parts
of the United States.
1t was in the colonial days when the fret
Vermont marble quarry was opened In the
little town of Dorset, but, like some of tha
other great resources of New England, the
extent OF the marble beds was not realized
until about twenty-five years ago. Since
then, however, the industry has advanced
so rapidly that within the last ten wears
the capital invested in it, as we'll as the
production, has increased over 80 per cent
At present over 5000. 900 worth Of marble
is being taken out yearly by the 5000 men
employed In the quarries, while nearly 4 OOO
others are busiiy engaged with chisel and
.A'0'i. VI Po"Si 'ooi III cutting II into Nari-
Gus forms for ornament and use. While the
marble embraces a variety of hues from
deep black to the purest white, the bulk of
II Is OF an exceedingly fine grain and so
durable that 1t is being used for publjc
buildings and edificeS throughout the coun-
try, as we'll as for mere ornamentation.
In the vicinity of Rutland and Proctor
one can look into holes In the mountain
side actually large enough to accommodates
the biggest office building In New York
city, FOR some of them over 300 feet In
depth and nearly half mile in length vet
the walls are principally composed of solid
marble, although the blocks have been cut
out so regularly that they appear to be
built up like the palaces of the Greeks and
Romans. Even at this depth, however the
beds continue downward as far as the drill
point has yet pierced, and only a few OPEN
ings have thus far been made, Such is the
abundance of the material that 1t is seldom
extracted at depth below 300 feet, owing
to the distance 1t must be hoisted from its
bed, but the most modern machinery is
used for cutting and hauling it--machines
which Will do the work Of 100 men, Marble
Is too valuable to be blown out with explo-
sives, so what are called channelinR ma
chimes are used. which, operated by cleo
trfcity and compressed air, cut out blocks
from the walls of white, some of which are
twenty feet In length and eight feet in
thickness The machine Is composed of a
set of powerful drills which bore holes from
six to eight inches apart In the blocks
Thus weakened the block is detached from
the wall by wedges.
Perhaps at the very mouth of the opening
from which the marble was taken 100 men
and boys are fashioning it into various
forms Some of these artisans have also
become expert sculptors.