Mexico Missouri message., 1917-12-13
UNDER THE HILLS IN
THE BUCKEYE STATE.
L. Roy Ferris OF Mexico Writes In-
terestiDgIy OF The Coal Regions
OF Ohio.

Valeski, Ohio, Dec. 6, 1917.
Dear Mr.. Beal:
o, these beautiful hills, five miles
cut from McCarty, Ohio the coming
cal mining section of the universe.
Years ago people made their liv-
ing by burning charcoal. Many a
giant hickory, chestnut or beech
were burned to charcoal. But when
gas, coal oil and gasoline soldering
pots came into use the charcoal bus
iness faded away. Next came the
melting of iron into charcoal, and
calico sheets and joint of stovepipe-
would last for years, but Yankee
invented a quick, cheap way of max
ing polished steel sheets and the old
honest way of making sheetiron was
thing of the past. Now days If
man will hurry home when he buys
joint of stovepipe it will last at.
least 20 minutes if you don't use
coal.
People around here settled down
to farming these hills. OF course
they had to plow them in circle,
and it caused a fellow to walk like
one leg was longer than the other.
But all things come to the fellow
who waits, and finally the State of
Ohio built dandy good cement roads
in every direction, thus giving the
farmers a chance to dig into the hills
and get out the coal which old
Mother Nature had stuffed into these
hills, like Christmas pudding.
The coal runs in layers, about 20
feet above eachother. Some hills
having as many as six veins of fine
COAL from six feet down to three
feet in thickness, also. having from
two to three veins under the level.
Many curious things are found
while digging for coal. l found the
backbone of some fish or possibly
blodded animal which was about a
foot in length, larger than any fish
l generally catch in the soft state,
imbedded in the roof of a mine.
We also found a perfect iron bolt,
having the nut and thread 1t was
petrified and was taken out of
solid piece of slate, possibly part of
the ware of some prehistoric man
who evidently ran hardware store,
We find many small shell-fish, etc,
thatswere at one time in the bottom
of the sea, 800 feet higher in these
hills. Large trees are found 800
feet under the surface in a fairly
good state of preservation, which will
give some of our nature students
to think about.
The miners get one dollar per
ton and some of them dig s to 10
tons day; $3.50 per month is rather
a modest. little pay check I should
think. But if you had to handle dy-
Mantle and powder away under the
ground you would think that not too
much money. The miners are So
ber, hard-working, honest lot, live
upon the cream of the market and
are very hospitable. Many poor
fellow is flattened as thin as a bis
cult board under a thousand tons of
falling slate.
The different veins of coal can be
reckoned fairly accurately by sur
face reading, but not so with me. 1t
battles some scientists, appearing on
some lands and not appearing on
others when by all the calculations
of wise men it should be there, and r.
at the same time running up and
joining with other veins.
Now when you go out to the coal
shed on a cold morning and the coal
pile looks like the boys play-sand
pile, don't say mean things of the
coal barons, for they are only charg-
ing what the State allows, and it is
very,very dangerous work to mine
coal!
Will be at home in time to hang
up my stocking.
7. y EEDDTG