The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1912-10-02
MINERALS OF WAYNE COUNTY
Damascus, Sept.


There's wealth in our hills, and
it only remains for the husbandman
to bring it to the surface. You will
not dispute this, dear reader, when
you go to the feed store to buy
hundred of corn. These golden
batons or ears of corn are almost as
precious as the shiny particles of yell
low metal mined from the earth.
The farmer coaXes the golden corn
from the earth in an entirely differ
ent way. 1t aggregates a vast
amount of wealth annually. Just
now corn is king.
A productive soil is a farmers
wealth-he knows something of the
surface and but little Of what lies
underneath or that lies ridden in the
hills he owns. While he goes on
tilling the surface in the sweat of his
brow, there may be lying dormant
in the depths of his possessions that
which, when fully developed, would
give him an independence such as he
had seen oft in his day dreams and
castle building. We say this very
thing undoubtedly exists right here
in the hills of Damascus township.
That there is minerals in our hills
esty, and good nature in humans, it
shows on the surface. Anthracite
coal shows on the surface. This fact
has been known for many years. An
attempt was made a few years ago to
develope it, A mutual fund was
raised, an experienced driller from
the anthracite coal fields was hired
| to bore" in search of the dusky
diamonds. He knew the conditions OF
| the rock through which his diamond
drill cut and in which stratas of coal
were found, but those who hired him
! to prospect for them had not this
| knowledge, consequently when he
saw fit his drill refused to work, he
made a trip back to the Wyoming
Valley, and when he saw fit he re-
turned, collected his pay, packed his
machinery and left. Why? There
are those who know just why thai
prospecting was cut short. That jot
and what lies hidden there near Cali
lee is on record.
Near the center of the township
along a circular line of hills blue
copper shows for a distance of hal
mile wherever the surface is ledgel
or the rock crops out. 1t is ther,
awaiting development. The rock
hold it and the earth claims it unit
! man in some way claims it and turn
! it into use for himself and his fel
lows. Any one with a curiosity t
see what we have described can hav,
that curiosity satisfied by a visit Il
the locality.
In the east-central part of tn
p township is a deposit of graphite, o
, black lead. This was stumbled upo
, by accident many years since. Fo
about two years this substance is be
ing removed from its bed in Natur
} and is being put into use. The wor
) is being done privately and on
small scale, yet the work is pei
sistently and constantly carried foI
= ward, the strata of plumbago increas
e ing in depth, wedge-like as the wor
, advances.
q What is true OF our Damascu
hills may also be true of the minera
: ogical conditions of the hills of at
: jacent townships and throughou
{ Wayne county. The plugged oil hole
? of the DyberTy may yet be mad
gushers that will in the future ro
J. up rich harvest for those who wi
: open them at the dictum of thos
n now controlling the secret of whf
h lies below the surface.
But until such times shall be mad
manifest the farmer must stick
s his calling and draw his wealth frol
T the superficial layer Of old cart