THE WEST SHORE.
370
OREOON MARBLE.
' PO test the authenticity of a marble diaoovery, the
1 proofs are very simple and easily obtained, rare
wavl.U In mniAm rtivAl HfltnLI
rinaiinii: U vitirlmiU). itkIv fracture: can beeasi
ly scratched with a knife. These qualities united oc
cur only in the three principal varieties of limestone
- in the saccaroid, like that of Larrara, tne modern
sUtuarv marble: in the foliabvl limuatone. constitut-
loathe antique statuary marble, like that of Paroa;
and In many of tho transition and carboniferous lime-
stone, sutKirdmate to the coal formation.
Supposing thiMM requirements to exist, the only
things needed to constitute a profitable marble quarry
are a large extent of homogeneous limestone and good
urilHici Tor traiiixrting tho slabs to market when
cut It is simply from these advantages combined
that none of the statuary marble quarries of the Pyr
enees, Savoy, Corsica and other places, onoe impor
tant, have ever been able to compete with the quar
rim of Carrara valley, in Italy.
The question now comes, have we any marble in
uregon of b requisite qualities in pureness and col.
or, and near enough to railroad transportation, to jus
tify the bopo of their being of value in the future?
I lie answer is as distinct and pronounood as the ques
tion. Oregon, though only superfioially explored in
mis counecuon, is already proved to be full of such
quarries, from linker and Wallowa counties in the ex.
treuie east, down aloug the mineral formation to
(haul's I'au, in the extreme south. In fact, the sides
of the intervening valleys in many places, like the
wieorauM tarrara valley, seem to be mountains of
marble, and what is better, as pure in quality and
n..i BJ now prtxiuwvi in Europe or England, ex
ceptiug a few stxcia varieties not vet
The quarrie. I am personally moat familiar with
are th,e ner the town of ,UT1( Wallowa county
To the 1 shall confine niyi(,i in ,howing
... u..,j , fcW u jn thiiCMoI
ran hold myaclf re.im.ble for the statemeuU made
The quirr.,. in ,atin are situate near the
mouth of Horneane ere,, al,,ut two and a half mile.
"!'WD' P in the
... . rnva u, allow them to be work-
tf'Z :Mun The
::r7,;"lr-a,--romthe
7. , . 1 wm . fifteen thon
andfM in length by .i, hundred tM in wil h or
iloul uv.ii n...t i, . . . "miu r
n ' . . , . UmlrtHl mdwatere.1
rm, wj 1. own, by c.li,,.,,, (lf Jo,,!, i'
raUl as the Wallowa Marl
Four different varirti,,, of ,t,
it... :. i i
one white, two grays, one red. Samples of these I
took last year to San Franoisoo, where thev we
ouchlv Dolisbed and subjected to the Beveraifc fpQfa
a 0 - VWIQ ji
acids snd fracture that could be applied. The opfo.
ion of all the leading marble men in that nit
saw the samples was uniformly the same, that they
were all the very best American marble ever exhibit,
ed in the country. In fact, I had the greatest dilfi.
culty in making them believe that they were really an
American product On being polished to its fnll .
- - -a vv
pacity, the white sample appeared at least two de
grees whiter than the best Carrara marble in thn m.
ket and equally pure in character. The' red was ad
mitted to be equal to the best Scotch and superior to
the best Tennessee red in the market: while tho
' w my
grays had no equal in the market The darW m-..
of the two, indeed, is equal to any marble ever tUn
out of the earth. The oost of developing the quarries
tnorongnly at this point would not be serious.
A variegated marble quarry is situated on tha
same oreek, about three miles above the incorrjoratwl
company. It produces two or three varieties, a emu
and a blue, both absolutely perfect This property
consists of six claims, of the usual size. Tho mM
- Mim
here shows out in solid form, without crack or crevice,
to such an extent that blocks fifteen bv twnnhr Ui
could be sawed from the ledge to.dav witW fn.
ther stripping. The vein can be traced np the moun
tain quite plainly as far as the six claims ntmA KV
from the creek.
Besides these, there is a mamificant Wank mrMft
in the district, which, when polished fully, is a good
mirror, and a vein of what is called Whit .f.ma"
The latter is valuable as forminff a nhatitnto far
granite, only much lighter and more easily worked,
both great advantages in ooatlv hniMJna. Vrnm ,.
fineness of grain it accepts as perfect a polish as the
yurW maroie, ana resembles granite in color.
The varieties mentioned ranu-e in mi nt M m
FJ.00 or 110.00 a cubio foot. There are about twelve
and one-half cubic feet in a ton, so the standard price
is 100.00 per ton for the white and red as the most
common, 112 50 for the variegated as the most pop
ular, $120.00 for th .. i
bo WO IWV. ITIU1
the exception of a small vein in England, and another
n Ireland, Belgium hut ih nnnA i $ ?.v
the world with most of its black marble. It is this
which makes it worth f 9 . m,w u i--i.j
r a ton 10 America. The Belgian product, all
marble men allow, in m Wtn. j ..
we Uregon product An Knn.i i- -.u: u
-Wo can furniah at these figures, makes marble ons
01 l"e valuable nmrWt.
of ho safest to speculate in.-rom an artkU
tmtht, by high H(im,u
f