AMONG THE COAL MINERS. 209 



afforded the necessary " let alone " treatment, and 

 the wood, soon igniting, heated the coal to a point 

 where it also could be ignited ; and as the down- 

 cast experimenter returned to rake out and throw 

 away the supposed worthless coals, he found them 

 to his surprise all aglow, and causing such intense 

 heat that his furnace was well-nigh destroyed. 

 This result of course dispelled the idea that anthra- 

 cite was an incombustible substance ; and soon 

 companies were formed to work the mines. Coal 

 was, however, brought from this region by slow 

 and wearisome modes of conveyance, such as by 

 wagons, and on mules' backs, until 1827, when an 

 imperfect track was laid to run cars down the 

 mountains by gravity, and in this originated the 

 present very remarkable " Gravity Road." 



But let us leave Mauch Chunk, and by the Le- 

 high and Susquehanna Railroad travel up the wild 

 gorges of the mountains through which the Lehigh 

 River forces its way, and when we have reached 

 the summits, we will descend into the beautiful 

 Valley of Wyoming. This broad, fertile basin, 

 with the rim of mountains bounding it upon every 

 side, is indeed a charming retreat ; and no wonder 

 the poor Indians in the early days of our history 

 were reluctant to give it up to the rapacious white 

 men. Here every inch of ground rests upon a 

 support of anthracite, for the valley and surround- 



