The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-07-13
COUNTY FUEL BOARD ID URGE BUILDING OF ROAD ID COAL FIELDS
Board of Revenue Urged to Built New Road to Cahaba Coal Fields to Relieve
 City Shortage

Tn order to increase the supply Of
 coal available for use in this district
 during the next winter the Jefferson
 county fuel administration will so be-
 fore the county board of revenue to-
 day at 10 o'clock and urge the building
 of good road across Red Mountain
 to Birmingham to connect several
 wagon mines in the Cahaba field.
 These mines have a combined capacity
 of between 200 and 300 tons day
 and with facilities for getting it to
 market would add materially to the domestic supply.
 This matter was first suggested by
 the Civic association, and yesterday
 Charles smith, representing that body
 appeared before the fuel administration
 and asked their co-operation in pre- .senting it to the county board of
 revenue.
 Chairman Frank B FowlSes of the
 county fuel administration. speaking
 of the matter yesterday afternoon.
 said that there is almost certainty
 of an acute coal situation next winter.
 GOVERNMENT REQUIREMENTS '~rbe government will require 100,- 900. 900 tons more this year than last year. he said ''and up to May 31, the production was only 12,000,000 greater than in the first five months last year. That means that for the last seven months the production must exceed the output in the corresponding months uf
 1917. by YS.00O. 900. and from all reports that seems Impossible. II the govern
 ments expectations are realized and the demand satisfied. coal mining op- erations will cer tainlJ have to be speeded up during the balance of the year.
 I'ne road to the upper Cahaha coa field is graded part of :he distance
 and only a stretch of about three miles
 will have to be built to connect the mines with the city. 1T is not conteil- plated at present to construct hard or metal surface but merely to grade and macadamize the load which would answer the purpose until the rainy season sets in late in the fall or early winter. Motor trucks hauling from three to four tons each at load could
 make three or four trips daily between the city and the mines, the distance being only about nine miles. COAL TO MARKET It is estimated that this section of i the Cahaba coal field has q deposit ot about 17,000.000 tons, or quantity l sufficient to last several years at the l rate of output now in contempla ton l There is no railroad or other means ! of getting the coal to market at pres | ent. the few tons mined daily there ; now being used by people living in the vicinity.
 i The veins worked there at present contain a good quality of domestic I coal, and if worked to their capacity they would go far toward relieving the l shortage expected to prevail next l winter
 The Civic association has agreed to I advance the money necessary to pay | for the materials needed to construc, l the road if the county will build it and it is believed that when the prop
 osition Is put up to the county board l nr revenue today they win orde, it's construction.
 f If built the road would connect witi l either Twenty sixth or Twenty -nrn1i street at their present southern ter ' minus.
 | Domestic consumers generally arr :! laying in their supply for next wir' ter. Secretary J, IT. Duncan of th' ! county fuel administration issues 2 large number of permits for carload
 shipments every day, the deliveries b. retail dealers in May and June show
 ing great increase of the deliverie!
 for May and June, 1917.