THE SOUTHERN PLANTER. 



purchaser of all salt manufactured near 

 Pomeroy, Ohio. For all purposes connected 

 with the curing of bacon and boef, the 

 Kanawha is worth vastly more than any 

 salt in our markets. The salt of New 

 York wells is a strong competitor in the 

 Western markets. Vast quantities of 

 money have been made in the business in 

 this county ; but, owing to the great fluc- 

 tuations of the market, the hazards of nav- 

 igation, and the cost of operation, very 

 few have left the business in as prosperous 

 condition as they entered. 



The coal wealth of Kanawha is beyond 

 all computation, in extent of mines, in 

 variety of kinds, and in favorable loca- 

 tions for mining and transportation, there 

 are no coal mines in the Union equal to 

 them. The coal fields are principally 

 owned by wealthy New York and English 

 companies who are willing to expend vast 

 sums of money in developing their re- 

 sources. The best specimens of Cannel 

 and bituminous coal are to be found upon 

 Coal and Elk rivers. Knowing the deep 

 interests which these coal companies — 

 some 16 or 20 in number, have in this sec- 

 tion, one is not therefore surprised to meet 

 on the streets of Charleston or on the 

 banks of the Kanawha the many intelli- 

 gent and fine looking men from New York 

 and England whom we have met with du- 

 ring our stay here. The salaries paid the 

 ;igents of these companies average abou^ 

 $6,000 per annum, thus securing the best 

 geological and raining talent lor the con- 

 trol of the affairs of the respective com- 

 panies. The best of coal is delivered in 

 Charleston at 5 cents the bushel. „ 



At Stockton's mines of Cannel coal — a 

 Welsh corruption of candle, so called be- 

 cause a fire made of this coal is so bright 

 as to do away with the necessity for can- 

 dles — about 20 miles above Charleston, 

 operations have been commenced for the 

 erection of a large factory for the conver- 

 sion of this coal into oil and the residuum 

 into candles. A ton of coal will make 40 

 gallons of oil at a cost of 16 cents the gal- 

 lon. The residuum, after making the oil, 

 is made into a beautiful candle of the color 

 of clear wax. The oil thus made is very 

 far superior in brilliancy and other quali- 

 ties to any material every yet used for 

 lights. J J 



HEREDITARY INFLUENCE. 



An article in a late Westminster Revievj 

 contains some facts and opinions of inter- 

 est to the farmer in general, and to the 

 breeder especially. As the entire article 

 is beyond the limits of the Rural, we re- 

 w T rite and condense it. Of course we 

 must abandon, in a great measure, the 

 language of the writer ; the ideas, how- 

 ever, we have endeavored faithfully to 

 preserve. 



That parents transmit to their offspring, 

 their own physical and mental traits, is a 

 fundamental, and very obvious law of Na- 

 ture. Otherwise the utmost confusion 

 would prevail in the animal creation. If 

 like did not beget like, all classification of 

 animals would be impossible. The ele- 

 phant might be the parent of a mouse — 

 the eagle of a butterfly. Every fact open 

 to our observation shows the universal ap- 

 plication of this law. 



Again, nothing is more obvious than 

 that offspring, frequently, in many partic- 

 ulars, do not resemble their parents. From 

 this circumstance arises those slight diffe- 

 rences which we see in families, as also 

 those greater which we may designate as 

 deformities, monsters, &c. This is true 

 of mental and moral as of physical traits. 

 It is not very common to notice a super- 

 fluity of parts — six legs where the kind 

 have but four, two heads instead of one. 

 In the same family we observe striking 

 differences in stature, aspect and disposi- 

 tion. Brothers under the same influences 

 will differ as much from each other as they 

 will from any man they may meet in the 

 street. Even in the case of twins this di- 

 versity is strongly marked. The twins 

 Rita and Christina, who were so fused 

 together as to have but two legs with two 

 heads and four arms, were quite unlike in 

 disposition. 



While, then, we admit the law of con- 

 stancy of transmission, we must also admit 

 a modifying law of variation. It has been 

 attempted to explain this by stating that it 

 is the species only, and not the individual 

 that is reproduced. But to this there is 

 one fatal objection, namel}', species can- 

 not reproduce itself, for species does not 

 exist. It is an abstract idea and not a 

 concrete fact. It is a fiction of the under- 

 standing and not an object existing in Na- 

 ture. Mature knows only individuals. To 

 a group of individuals closely resembling 



