The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1908-02-05
ENORMOUS TOTAL
OF 3,OOO,OOO,OOO TONS
Doubt is Thrown Upon Ac-
curacy Of Estimate by
Mining Inspector

There IS coal in paying quantities
in more than 20 counties IN Oklahoma
The greater part occurs IN the East
ern part of the state in what was ori-
ginally the Choctaw, Creek and Chero
kee nations
Before the Choctaw and Chickasaw |
Indians took their allotments they /
made a treaty with the government |
whereby the land that was underlaid |
with coal was segregated or set apart |
for the benefit Of the nations as /
whole. That IS. this coal land could |
not be allotted by any individual cit. !
izen OF either nation.
The government turned the work of
the segregation OF this landoyer TO the !
United states geological suryeS. and |
the director of the survey detailed Mr.
Joseph A. Tan to perform tho work
Mr. Tan hal already Spent five
years IN studying and mapping the
coal deposits of the indian Territory
and was the best informed man in the
country on the subject lie spent
nearly a year additional time going
over the ground, checking no and yer
| flying his previous work aud then sub
mitted his report
Tie total amount OF land segregated
Is nearly half a million acres 437.743
acres to be exact This land lies in
| What is known as l-e Flore, Haskell.
Latimer Plttsbnrg. AtolSa. Coal and
Carter counties.
The main body extending uninter
lruptedly from the Arkansas line near
Fort Smith, for distance of l25
miles southwest as far as Atoka.
Mr. Taft estimated that the area was
underaid with veins of coal, the com
bined thickness OF which approxi-
mates seven feet This means that
the average output for the entire re-
gion may be placed at 1000 tons per
acre This amount multiplied by the
number Of acres underlaid with coal
win give q total of approximately
8 900, ,000. 900 tons of coal on the segre-
gated land.
1t is but just to say that doubt has
been thrown on the accuracy of Mr..
Taffs estimates by a number OF min
ing men and particularly Mr.. VIM.
Cameron the mine inspector for In
dian Territory Mr. Cameron is of
the opinion tnat All. Tan overesti-
mated the number of acres underlaid
: with coal as well as the average thick
ness of the vein sand the depth 10
which the coal can be profitably
worked. Mr. Cameron estimates that
900 tons per acre is a fair average
for the amount OF coal that can be se-
cured and that onethird of the land
can never be mined on account of the
depth and pitch OF the coal Accord
ing to bis estimates the total amount
OF available coal on the segregated
Hand is 1.252.9l6000 tons.
The value of the coal Is also a moot
. ed question Senator la Toilette IN a
speach in the senate, March %, 1906,
estimated that the coal was worth
So 90 at the mouth of the mine and
that on the basis was 1887 00O, 600.
Il is Obvious, however, that $500 Z,
to- Is 100 high an estimate for the val
ua OF the coal Ia the ground Perhaps
! hte most accurate estimate that could
? be made az the present time IS the
= royalty that the operators pay the ln
= dinas, cents "a ton Taking fafts ef'
tinate OF the amount OF available
!, coal. 2,945.l3S 900 tons the Vaine Al
cents ton would be S236,3Si Gao
. Taking Mr Camerons estimate o. J..
= 252. .9l6.l00 tons The coal would be
y worth Sl00233, $50
: rhe apparent discrepancies betwee'
the estimates Of the two gentlemen
both Of whom are privileged 10 speai
8 with authority may be recnnciiet
s when we remember that Mr Cameron
q evidently bases his concllaions on
4 the present wasteful methods OF min
a ina in vogue ina the resior whereof
only about two thirds of tile coal /.
utilized. He also diacards "A number
OF veins from two to three feet tnici
r. which Mr. TAFT included. Mr. fan nl
tha oher hand has looked into the iu
tnre and attempted to incNtie an thl
IN lavailable coal Ia the region
IL Judge by present mipics meihod
y Nr. Cameron is probably not iai IRON
-e correct in his siim1tt bwhed 4
"A the future Mr Tan IS iish-
~ According TO tn pi) 'l'tst' ~ On
~ ltreatp made with the ni.acs The EVi
u. ernment has 40 sell the sfssfeSate
y local land Mr. Tall dividei the eAtf
area into tracts 81 approximately -
acres each. and the seCreJ.uy pi th
interior ADVERTISED f3f piis. who
were opened August 2. 1896 All IN
bids we're rejected because ia the omi
~ ION Of the secretary au<ware 100 loV
=. second attempt 20 sell ihe ialsd lns
~ with the same fate so az the preset
~ time none ol the land boa bcea sol
~ Il must be imagined however, IN
IN All the coal in the state has Det
rs aggregated Il is true that q
,ss thickes ana best veins In the sta
El nave heen seggregaied but there
large amoeai of coal which b
never been fset apart but which n
beeu allotted " Individual ind|at
The greater part III the seeereeat
coal Is found IN sequoyah, hugh'