The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1921-11-27
.RiUer Floods
Heat a Citu

We sweeps the river to keen ,ou
warm;
We mops its bottom to light rop
well.
An We cruises about on our wc,
farm,
workin' where only the fishes can
tell.
We're the flats. them coal saoAin
flats.
You sees from the windows OF trims
An, being perlite, we doff our smoke
caps
AS ysy rushes by, KNOWN mono OF
T our aims.
The vefy first miner who slammed
"A pick into vein OF anthracite
along the north branch of the sus-
quehanna river began laying tine
foundation for not inconsld,rable
business that was to flourish boz tho
Years TO come. Tho storms which
rushed down the narrow valleys OF
the river and its tributaries as FAR
up as Scranton carried mine refuse
away. dropping the heavier slate
soon, but carrying the lighter coal In
some gases for 150 miles or more
until the freshet spent itself In tho
wide reaches south OF Northumbor-
land. Year after year. every spring
and frequently in the fall, the floods
frelghted themselves with coal 20
make sandbars az black as "A crows
wing far down the river.
As the river shrank, usually
reaching its lowest ebb late In
August, the thrifty farmers along Sc
banks saw these black bars They
looked like piles of coal; the farmers
experimental and found the black
sand was coal. The fuel problem IN
those days, especially in the coun-
try, was not n pressing one, and it
remained for n city man to profit by
the fuel so thoughtfully transported
by the river. Almost Immediately
the idea OF using an arrangement
like n sand dredge suggested Itself
and the coal sucker resulted. ANY
old thing answered for n boat; even
big raft with sides high enough 20
breast the wash. Engines that do
duty in the autumn on threshing
machines furnish the motive power
when belted by n sort OF watcr
wheel rigged at the stern. They also
run the pumps that bring up a
steady stream of inky water to spill
Il over a fine screen, whore the bits
Of coal are caught and held and the
sand slips through.
Soon a considerable fleet swept
the rivers bottom, which belongs 10
any one who can equip himself for
the work. especially in the vicinity
of Harrisburg. In those early DAYS
a ton of river cold sold for 80 or 90
cents. IL was chiefly used In manu-
facturing<6lants and as the product
direct from the mines mounted
higher and higher in price that from
the river had became increasingly
popular.
Fourteen years ago Albert Emer-
| lex came down from state college "a
| become chief engineer of the state
buildings. and one day while walk
| Ing along the river front he noticed
the great pke of river coal. He made
q few inquiries and determined 10
use Ii. Within short time the
| CRATES and blowers needed to burn
| the fine coal were installed. and
since that time the state Buildings
have been heated and lighted by fuel
furnished, rather transported, by the
| Susquehanna. The first year the luel
cost 81 a ton, but Il, too. has in
creased in price until II now brings
| from $3.50 to S27b a ton. The Har-
risburg Light. Heat and Power com
pany is probably the largest iudivid-
ual consumer of the river coal, using
100, 900 to $50. 900 tous yearly. The
householder is also using II in the
kitchen range, and, as a matter OF
fact, lthe sweepings from the bed of
the noble river that flows through
the city literally heats and lights the
states capital.