History of Northampton, Lehigh, Monroe, Carbon, and Schuylkill ...

210 HIii'Ol.Y OF CARBON COUNTY.
Id with the Ncoqiiihoiiing creek, to the ravine ci d\i
mountain, mado by Room run, wiiich it ascends. It
would be dilTiciilL perhaps to conceive a method of
making a road iiiore substantially than, has been
adopted oa this. Tlie rails arc about tweiUy feel
long, sev Jii inches deep and five in width. They ar'^;
su])poned on massive blocks of stone, placed ni line
four ibcL apart, and irnbeded firmly in smaller stone,
and aie secured to tliese blocks by iron clamps on
each side of the rail, about six niches wide, but at
right angles, and nailed to the rail and to the block
by means oi four holes drilled in each stone, and
j)lugged with wood. The iron bars are two incliea
and one-half wide, and five-eighths thick. The whols
of the road I'roia die coal miues to the landing is descending.
Oil (ho self-acting plaae, the descending
wagon will bring up an empty one. The intermediate
road is graduated from ten tu twelve inelifS do-
scent, in one hvuidred feet ; tliis being consideied the
lowest grade on which a leaded wagon will descend )
by gravity, and iheretbre the most favorabli; opg, \
that can be tlevised, when the freight, as in this ctsc,
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is all one way. I
" Doubts lia;re been expressed as to the contiiii:. \
ance of the supply of coal from this region. On this *
subject we will let Mr. White spealc, observing tliat 5
the sceptical may at any time, by personalinsp-ction,
have a full confirmation of his statements. In hia
otficial report to the company of Ibt January^ IS30,
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lie says: ' In addition to the extensive exaininatioHLJ
which took jilace previous to my last report, explc-
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rations have been made which prove w.e can uncovej; ]
and quarry our coal ui a continuoits open'nig^ about \
two miles in extent east and west, having our present \
quarrie::> about llu; centre. We have uncovered coal ;
at the summit cf tlie mouutain,. three liundi'jd ami \
twenty feet north and south, across the strata of coal,
which is of a quality similar to that in the gre;»t ijuar-
\
ry ; so that we have, bt'yond all doubts, eiior.gii coal \
that, can be iiuarried without mining, to last m pre
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