The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1909-04-11

West Virginia Coal Mine Defies All Efforts of
Man After Years of Burning

Charleston. ". Va. April IA FIRE
which has been burning f0r fOrty-eight
years. and which has resisted. during all
that long time. the efforts Of men 20 put
It out. Is one Of the sights Of the Paint
Creek Valley. 20 the south Of Charleston.
II is in a mountain coal mine. and II II
could be eNtinguished the mine would be
OF considerable value. for the tracks OF
the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway run
near by. and ready markets are al hand.
Just how much coal has been consumed
during the half century no one knows
The Are runs deep into the mountain. and
there are these who hold that IL has burnt
out a vast cavern
Some estimates OF the coal destroyed
run, indeed into the millions OF tons.
Fantastic Bits OF Flame.
A haze OF acrid smoke hangs over the
little volcano day and night When there
Is a wind it lifts somewhat. and small
spirals q smoke may be seen rising from
orey1ces in the ground. At night these
crevlces show bursts OF fame Fantastic
lights and shadows move about. and the
effect is altogether weird and fantastic
the mine was first worked in the hope Of
extracting oil from il. This was IN the
early SOS At that time mineral oil was
obtained by disrlling such lOw-srade
Goals in retOrts
When the mine vac opened. Alfred Cor
don. a typical. out-spoken. grun old Eng
lishman. was made superintendent As
IS so often the case, a veneer OF crusti-
ness only covered a big-hearced man.
I Loyal 10 his neighbors and equally as
highly esteemed by them. GOrdOns whole
affections were ceptered on this mine and
I beautiful daughter. ROwena. the only
remnant OF the past. the only tie between
him, and the land he had left behind
( In every way but a viii as determined
as her fathers Gordon's only child was
/ his very antithesis. She was vivaCious.
lcompaaionable. animated. dispensing sun
shine wherever she went. and while some
thing Of a Diana as a hunter. she was not
/ impervious 20 the ardent wooing OF the
men OF her neighbOrhOod, nor was her
/ heart as adamantine as her parents
! The Gordon home became q Mecca for
the youth OF the Paint Creek Valley. who
worshiped az her shrine. loving the girl
and fearing the dragon who guarded her
with Jealous care
A Romance Of the War.
From among the many who paid her
court. she. in time. capitulated to prob
ably one OF the most promising OF them
all. who had early won the fathers favor
by his honesty and industry in the old
mans employ. IN the ordinary course OF
events. marriage would have been the
only sequel to such a romance. but the
civil war. which arrayed brother against
brother and father against son. was des-
tined 20 rudely shatter this one
Both Gordon and HIS daughter were
confirmed UniOnists. and unalterably op'
posed 70 the principles espoUsed by the
! Confederacy movement IN the South The
girls lover. on the contrary. was in sym
PATTY with secession and bitter against
the North
When the war clouds began 70 hover
over that part of the State which IS now
West Virginia. and sediment on all side:
became more pronounced. clashes be
tween Gordon and his daughter on the
one side and the lover on the other be-
came more frequent, until finally, after :
series Of stormy interviews, the young