1921] 



EDWARDS, SULPHUR MINING ON THE GULF COAST, 



63 



The wells are drilled in the same manner and with the same ma- 

 chinery used in sinking oil wells. Each has a diameter of ten inches 

 and is cased to exclude the surface water which would otherwise fill the 

 opening. Within the ten inch casing are three lines of pipes, one 

 within the other. The outermost carries the steam downward and the 

 innermost provides a passage for the molten sulphur on its way to the 

 surface. Between these is a line which is used for the passage of com- 

 pressed air, pumped down the well to force out the sulphur. 







Fig. 35. — Tank of sulphur after blasting. Freeport, Brazoria County, 



Texas. 



As the molten sulphur comes to the surface it is conveyed in pipes to 

 a vat constructed out of rough boards where it cools and crystallizes. 

 These vats are of enormous size (figure 34) and the yellow color of the 

 sulphur makes them far the most conspicuous objects in the landscape. 

 When the sulphur has entirely cooled, the boards on the outside are re- 

 moved and the sulphur blasted down with dynamite, the result being 

 shown in figure 35. No further refining process is necessary as the 

 material is already as pure as needed and the shipping of the product 

 takes place directly from the vats by means of the loading machinery 



