Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1914-02-11
Coal Valley Mining Com
pany Gets Control of
1900 Acres.
MAY OPEN NEW FIELD
Trying to Escape. 1t Is Said,
From Results of Bad Con-
tract With r. |. S.

Driven to seek new fields, It Is said,
by ruinous contract with the Rock
Island Southern road the Coal Valley
Mining company is about to undertake
a new and important enterprise in this
county.
Options have been taken by tire
company on coal rights on approxi-
mately 1900 acres of land between
Sunny Hill and the county poor farm.
lying mainly in the northeastern part
of Rural township, and it is more than
possible that a new field rivaling in
extent and richness the original one
at Coal Valley will be opened, with
new mining town located somewhere
in the eastern part of Rural.
Year to Run.
The options will run for a year and
during that period the mining COM
pany will do its prospecting. If as
much coal is found as is believed to
exist terms will be met and shaft
sunk at the lowest point in the new
field. Coal known to exist in the dis
trict is from three and one-half to four
feet eight inches in thickness. The
only question is whether the veino is ~
continuous, or nearly enough 80 ito
admit of profitable working. -
DR.. w. F. Myers CT Coal Valley, who
is one of the larger land owners in
the coal field, took the options as the
representative of the company. Coal
rights were priced by the acre instead
of by the ton, and the average rate
was $50 per acre. Where owners de-
clined to sell the coal alone options
were taken for the outright purchase
of the land at about the actual value
for agricultural purposes with $50
added for the coal.
Near the Railroad.
The new field is a continuation OF
the Coal Valley and the Sherrard coal
districts, lying midway between the
two. To reach the lowest point in 1t
switch track from the Rock Island
road at Sunny Hill can be convenient
ly built. Probably it will not be nee
essary to lay more than half mile of
track, and the country is practically
level
That the anxiety of the company to
find a new source of fuel supply by
bad deal with the Rock Island South
ern is the statement of one who
claims to know. The deal was made
in connection with the Matherville
mines. which were opened few wears
ago when the Sherrard field showed
signs of playing out. The mining CON-
pany bought up the land at Mather-
vile and then offered inducements to
the Rock Island Southern to build into
it. The Southern, it is said, pays
500 900 for coal rights
for its own use and secures about
twice that sum from the mining COM
pany in freights
Profit In the Haul.
There is little profit in mining coal
in the comparatively thin veins which
prevail in this part of the state, it is
claimed, whatever money there is in
the enterprise being derived from
freight charges. Coal is worth at the
surface of the mine about what IL
costs TO get it out of the
earth and mines here cannot compete
in the general market with those in
the central part of the state where the
expense of mining is about one-half
what it is here.
So the Coal Valley Mining company,
while not of itself big dividend pro-
Queer has been valuable as an origi-
nator of traffic for the Rock Island
road to which it has been conducted
as a subsidiary concern. In the case
of the Matherville field the Rock Is
land Southern gets whatever net reve-
nue. there is to be had, so it is said
and the mining company is forced
to look for new sources of supply in