REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR AND STATE GEOLOGIST 1903 139 



The local mills are furnished with gypisum rock in the winter 

 time, and the outsiders during canal navigation. The rock has 

 to be#hauled about IJ miles to the canal. The quarry is 

 operated the year round. The cost of mining is about 25c to 

 30c a ton, and the rock sells, delivered at the canal or to the 

 local mills, for 90c a ton. From four to 12 men are employed at 

 the quarry, according to the demand for gypsum. 

 ■ Immediately adjoining Mr Severance's quarry are the quarries 

 of the National Wall Plaster Co., which are in the same deposit 

 as the foregoing. The method of quarrying, however, differs in 

 some respects. The gypsum is quarried so as to cut under the 

 overhanging roek, which then falls into the place from which the 

 gypsum has been taken. This necessitates moving a greater 

 amount of rock than the method employed by Mr Severance. In 

 these quarries dynamite and Climax blasting powder are used. 

 From 12 to 20 men are employed at the quarries. In the strip- 

 pings some hydraulic limestone is found, which is sold to cement 

 manufacturers . 



The beds owned by the National Wall Plaster Co. occupy about 

 5 acres. At this company's mill, which is located on the bank 

 of the canal, about IJ miles from the quarry, the Cummer process 

 of calcining the gypsum is employed. About a year ago two 

 kettles made by Butterworth & Lowe were set up in 

 this mill. The equipment of the mill consists of one 

 Blake crusher, one calciner, one cooling bin, two kettles, 

 two Sturtevant emery mills. The capacity of the mill is 

 seventy-five tons a day. The product is used in wall 

 plaster but a large portion of it is sold to Portland cement 

 manufacturers. A large part of the product that goes to the 

 Portland cement manufacturers is not ground after passing 

 through the calciner, but is shipped as it comes from the kiln and 

 is mixed and ground with the cement. 



On the east of the National Wall Plaster Co.'s beds and south 

 of those owned by Mr Severance is located the property of the 

 Adamant Wall Plaster Co. This company owns about 19 acres 



