The Underground World: A Mirror Of Life Below The Surface - free ebook by Thomas Wallace Knox

Read as playlist

The Underground World: A Mirror Of Life Below The Surface

Thomas Wallace Knox

72 chapters

24 hour read

Read as playlist

Selected Chapters

72 chapters

THE Underground World:

THE Underground World:

A MIRROR OF LIFE BELOW THE SURFACE , WITH VIVID DESCRIPTIONS OF THE HIDDEN WORKS OF NATURE AND ART. COMPRISING INCIDENTS AND ADVENTURES BEYOND THE LIGHT OF DAY. INTERESTING SKETCHES OF MINES AND MINING IN ALL PARTS OF THE WORLD—CAVES AND THEIR MYSTERIES—FAMOUS TUNNELS—DOWN IN THE DEPTHS OF THE SEA. VOLCANOES AND THEIR ERUPTIONS—PETROLEUM—UNDERGROUND LIFE OF MAN AND THE LOWER ANIMALS. SUBTERRANEAN WORKS OF THE ANCIENTS. BURIED TREASURES, ETC., ETC. PROFUSELY ILLUSTRATED. BY THOS. W. KNOX, Author

2 minute read

Read Chapter

I.

I.

BELOW THE SURFACE. In these days of fast presses, cheap books and newspapers, lightning telegraphs, and other disseminators of intelligence, there may be those who doubt the correctness of the adage which says, “One half the world does not know how the other half lives.” Human nature is inquisitive. We are constantly seeking information regarding the affairs of others, and we generally manage in some way to obtain what we seek. We store our minds with useful and useless knowledge of the manners

13 minute read

Read Chapter

II.

II.

DISCOVERY OF COAL. In the autumn of 1865, a small party connected with the survey of a telegraph route through North-eastern Asia, was landed at the mouth of the Anadyr River, near Behring’s Straits. Another party was landed in Kamchatka, and proceeded over land towards the north. They made constant inquiries about the Anadyr party, and at last learned from a band of wandering aboriginals that some white men had been left by a fire ship (steamer) near the mouth of the river, and were living in a

19 minute read

Read Chapter

III.

III.

BORINGS AND SHAFTS. Until the beginning of the present century coal mines were discovered more by accident than in any other way. The coal seams make their appearance at the surface, that is, they “crop out,” or “come to grass,” as the miners say. Coal on the surface is generally of a poor character, for the reason that it has been for many hundreds of years subject to the action of the elements; but on digging down a few feet, or a few dozen feet, the quality is found to be greatly improved. Wh

16 minute read

Read Chapter

IV.

IV.

ACCIDENTS IN SHAFTS. My first journey down the shaft of a mine had of course a novelty about it, and also partook of the sensational. It was not a coal mine into which I descended, but a copper mine. We stepped into a basket suspended by a hempen rope, and our conductor gave the signal to start. The engineer slacked away the rope somehow, and we descended rapidly. It seemed to me very much like falling out of a balloon. I never have fallen out of a balloon, and therefore cannot say positively wh

22 minute read

Read Chapter

V.

V.

SILVER MINES AND MINING. One of the most important of the precious metals is that known as silver. The ancients were familiar with it, and from very early periods it has been a common medium of exchange, and is used as such among all nations who recognize a metallic currency. It is one of the metals mentioned in the Old Testament, reference being made to it as constituting, among other things, the riches of Abraham. Abraham made a real estate transaction by purchasing the field of Ephron for fou

15 minute read

Read Chapter

VI.

VI.

SILVER MINING IN NEVADA. Probably the most remarkable silver mines of the world are those of Nevada. It is difficult to estimate, with absolute accuracy, the amount which has been taken from them. They were only recently discovered, and the story of their discovery is quite romantic. Very naturally, the gold miners of California drifted over the Sierra Nevadas, into the great Utah basin, in search of gold. During 1850, and the following years, gold discoveries were made on the eastern slopes of

18 minute read

Read Chapter

VII.

VII.

SPECULATIONS IN NEVADA MINES. Among the various mining operations, there are many in which there are tunnels, and levels, and shafts of a metaphoric as well as of a literal character. This is peculiarly the case in our great cities: copper mines on Lake Superior, gold mines in Colorado and California, silver mines in Nevada and Utah, iron mines in Pennsylvania and elsewhere, have been exploited, in many instances, much more successfully in New York and Boston than at the places where they are lo

13 minute read

Read Chapter

VIII.

VIII.

MINES AND MINING ENTERPRISES OF NORTH AFRICA. Northern Africa is a country of great mineral wealth, but it has been only slightly developed. The Moors, Berbers, Arabs, and other inhabitants of that region have never been famous for their mining industry. They have very little knowledge of geology, and understand the working of only a few metals. Most of the gold and silver which they make into filigree and other jewelry comes from Europe; in fact, they have no mines of these metals that are wort

18 minute read

Read Chapter

IX.

IX.

ADVENTURES OF DIVERS. To go under the water is pretty nearly as difficult as to go under the earth. Man is not made to live in the water, although he has been known to pass many hours there without touching land. A great many persons seem to have a dread of water in any shape. They rarely bathe, and never drink the liquid when they can obtain anything stronger. It frequently becomes necessary for men to go beneath the surface of the water, exploring the wrecks of ships, and searching for valuabl

24 minute read

Read Chapter

X.

X.

RUSSIAN MINES AND MINING. The empire of Russia covers nearly an eighth of the land surface of the globe. Her northern limit is the Arctic Ocean, and the regions of eternal ice and snow; on the south, she rests upon the Black Sea, in a region of almost tropical warmth. Tropical fruits grow in her Crimean possessions, while polar bears and reindeer wander over the frozen and barren lands of her extreme north. She has every variety of climate, and every variety of soil. Here are long ranges of loft

19 minute read

Read Chapter

XI.

XI.

A DAY IN POMPEII. On a pleasant spring morning several years ago, I started from Naples to pay a visit to the ruins of Pompeii. Our party consisted of four persons; and our first work was to engage a carriage, as we thought the carriage road would be preferable to the railway. Engaging a carriage in Naples is a tax upon the patience equal to some of the trials which were visited upon Job. I am not quite certain that Job would have remained patient after a contest with Neapolitan hackmen. Boils w

28 minute read

Read Chapter

XII.

XII.

VESUVIUS AND ITS ERUPTIONS. The eruption of Vesuvius that buried Pompeii destroyed Herculaneum at the same time. Some historians contend that the occurrences were not identical in point of time; but, after all, it makes little difference to us whether the two cities were simultaneously destroyed or not. The probability is, and it is pretty well settled, that while the ashes and stones from the crater of Vesuvius were blown upon Pompeii, the lava and mud flowed in the direction of Herculaneum, an

29 minute read

Read Chapter

XIII.

XIII.

THE CAVERNS OF NAPLES. The traveller who visits Naples has abundant opportunities for making underground explorations in the neighborhood of that city. A few of the places he can examine are of natural origin—the Blue Grotto, for example; but by far the greater part of them are artificial. A most interesting journey can be made to Pozzuoli and its immediate neighborhood. With a longing desire to see some of the underground curiosities that have made that part of Italy famous, I arranged a tour i

17 minute read

Read Chapter

XIV.

XIV.

THE EXCAVATIONS OF DR. SCHLIEMANN, AT MYCENÆ (GREECE). Dr. Heinrich Schliemann, the great excavator, of whom so much has been said of late, is a German by birth, and a man of an idealistic character. In his youth, he dreamed of the heroes of antiquity; he was a passionate student of the Trojan war, and the adventures of Odessus and Agamemnon. He loved to hear, in school, Homer recited, and afterwards, when he went through his variegated life, as ship’s boy, ship’s broker, clerk, commercial corre

21 minute read

Read Chapter

XV.

XV.

MEXICO AND ITS MINES. One of the most important of the metals is the one known as silver. All the civilized nations use it for the manufacture of coin as a circulating medium, and the consumption of the metal for this purpose alone is very great. Political economists have busied themselves with the problem of the immense annual waste from the wearing away of gold and silver, but thus far they have met with no success. For large amounts, bank notes—either of the government or otherwise—are in use

20 minute read

Read Chapter

XVI.

XVI.

CORAL REEFS AND CAVES IN THE PACIFIC. The waters of the Pacific ocean contain thousands of islands far away from the coast. Their presence is recognized, long before they become visible, by clouds directly above them in the otherwise clear sky. The land absorbs the heat of the sun, and accumulates it faster than the water; soon an ascending current of warm air is formed, carrying up moisture into the colder regions of the atmosphere, where it is condensed and forms clouds. A similar phenomenon i

24 minute read

Read Chapter

XVII.

XVII.

BURGLARS AND BURGLARIES. Labor underground may be performed for a bad, as well as for a good purpose. It may be for dishonest gain, or it may be to secure a place of concealment for stolen treasures, or for those who steal them. In the performance of this kind of labor, men will frequently display ability and enterprise sufficient to insure them a good living and ultimate independence in an honest calling. They overcome obstacles of great magnitude; constantly risk their lives and liberty, and f

18 minute read

Read Chapter

XVIII.

XVIII.

THE EARLIEST EXCAVATIONS. There is little or no reason to doubt that the earliest excavations ever made by human hands were for purposes of sepulture. The burial of the dead, or rather the disposition of their bodies, has been a necessity in all countries and all ages since the days of the Garden of Eden. Some nations have practised cremation, and there are many arguments in its favor; but with most of these nations it was the custom to gather the ashes of the dead into urns, which were buried w

19 minute read

Read Chapter

XIX.

XIX.

EXPERIENCES IN WILD LIFE. In all sparsely settled or wild countries, travellers when on journeys are frequently obliged to carry provisions for their entire trip. If they are to go back over the same route they follow in their outward course, they do not carry their provisions the whole distance, but leave them at different points, where they can find them on their return. Especially is this the case where food for the draught or riding animals must be provided. In Northern America and Asia, and

17 minute read

Read Chapter

XX.

XX.

THE GREEN VAULTS OF DRESDEN. The Green Vaults ( Grüne Gewölbe ) of Dresden, as they are called from the hue of the hangings which once covered them, are in the Zwinger, a group of buildings erected by Augustus II. as a vestibule to a new palace. They are not under ground as might be supposed from their name, and from the fact that they contain the treasures of the King of Saxony. They are vaulted apartments, eight in number, stored with rare carving, mosaics, gold and silver plate, precious ston

18 minute read

Read Chapter

XXI.

XXI.

THE CATACOMBS OF PARIS. Few persons think, while strolling through the fashionable streets of Paris, and seeking pleasure in its charming precincts, that they are wandering over a vast graveyard, and that only a thin crust of earth separates them from the burial-place of six millions of human beings. Down there lie the remains of a third as many people as the entire French capital contains. A large part of the beautiful city is undermined by vaults, and these vaults, which are the famous Catacom

28 minute read

Read Chapter

XXII.

XXII.

PETROLEUM. In various parts of the world there are springs, or natural sources, of inflammable oil. Some of these have been known for thousands of years, but most of them are of recent discovery. The oil which flows from these springs is generally known as “petroleum,” the word being of Latin origin, and signifying rock oil. The most productive oil springs are of artificial origin, and are made by boring into the earth, or rock, in certain localities. The most famous natural deposit of this subs

22 minute read

Read Chapter

XXIII.

XXIII.

WINE AND BEER CELLARS. A German resident of New York, engaged in the manufacture of beer, visited the excavations at Hallett’s Point, near the upper end of Manhattan Island, and, on viewing the large space which had been dug out of the solid rock, exclaimed, “What a capital place for storing lager beer.” Many a wine and beer manufacturer has made the same remark on visiting the Mammoth Cave, or other huge caverns. The best places for storing malt or vinous liquors are under ground, for the reaso

16 minute read

Read Chapter

XXIV.

XXIV.

THE BASTILLE. One of the most famous dungeons or prisons in the world was the Bastille of Paris. It was a state prison and citadel of the city, was built in the year 1369, and destroyed by the mob in the beginning of the revolution of 1789, or more than four centuries after its construction. It is a curious fact that no plan of the Bastille as originally constructed is in existence, neither is there any plan extant of the Bastille as it appeared at the time of its destruction. Somehow the kings

16 minute read

Read Chapter

XXV.

XXV.

DIAMONDS AND DIAMOND MINES. The hardest known mineral in the world, and at the same time the most valuable, is the diamond. It cannot be cut or scratched by any other substance. In cutting the diamond, another diamond, or the dust of one, must be used. The process of polishing these stones by rubbing two of them together was probably known in Asia a great many years ago; but it was not introduced into Europe until the middle of the fifteenth century. The diamond-cutters of Asia preserved the sec

21 minute read

Read Chapter

XXVI.

XXVI.

THE DIAMOND FIELDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. The owners of diamonds, and those who buy and sell the gems, were thrown into great consternation, a few years ago, by the announcement of the discovery of immense diamond deposits in South Africa. As usual, when rich deposits of precious stones or precious metals are known to have been found, there was a great rush for the newly-opened region. Many persons imagined they had only to land at some point on the coast of South Africa, and the first touch of the pi

19 minute read

Read Chapter

XXVII.

XXVII.

THE UNDER-WORLD OF PARIS. The demi-monde is aptly named; for, while it is so eminently worldly, the world rejects it, and in most instances assumes to be unconscious of its existence. In the French capital it is accepted as a fact, and it can hardly be any more dangerous there on that account, than it is in cities where it is ignored. The French have gained the reputation, but without any good reason, of being much more immoral than other nations. We Americans are constantly asserting this, and

30 minute read

Read Chapter

XXVIII.

XXVIII.

THE EAST RIVER BRIDGE. A bridge to connect New York and Brooklyn has long been desired, and many plans for such a structure have been made. It was finally determined to erect a suspension bridge high enough to permit the passage of ships beneath it, and stretching, in a single span, from one side to the other of the East River. Work was begun in 1870, and continued, with occasional interruptions. The bridge, by comparison with similar structures, is the longest and largest of its kind in the wor

11 minute read

Read Chapter

XXIX.

XXIX.

THE INUNDATION AT LALLE. In one of the mines on the River Loire, about thirty years ago, there was a terrible accident, caused by the sudden eruption of the water. The water came in like a torrent, and drove the miners up an inclined gallery, where there was no outlet. The people above ground rushed to their assistance; the engineers brought their plans of the mine, and determined where the enclosed men were to be found, if still alive. Workmen volunteered to go to the assistance of their comrad

15 minute read

Read Chapter

XXX.

XXX.

PERILS OF THE MINER. I was once in a mine in Colorado, when I fervently wished myself out of it. I had been there a day or two before, and found that in one of the levels I was just able to stand erect. At the visit in question I found I could not stand erect without hitting my head. I was certain that I had not grown six inches taller in the mean time, and I accordingly concluded that the roof had settled. All at once, while proceeding on my walk, I was astonished at hearing a crackling sound b

14 minute read

Read Chapter

XXXI.

XXXI.

THE MAMMOTH CAVE. Caves in all ages have been associated, not only with mystery and romance, but with sorcery and superstition of every conceivable kind. Fable and tradition have converted them into the abodes of demons and witches, and history shows that robbers and law-breakers have always made them places of refuge and shelter. Every mountainous or picturesque region I have visited has abounded in witches’ caves, robbers’ caves, murderers’ caves, and caves generally, in which supernatural rit

35 minute read

Read Chapter

XXXII.

XXXII.

INSURANCE AND ITS MYSTERIES. The system of fire and marine insurance has been in use for centuries. The Chinese claim to have invented it, as they have claimed nearly everything else; but the probabilities are, that it was of western origin. It is alluded to in the English laws about the middle of the thirteenth century. Its earliest form was in that of marine insurance; afterwards the system of fire insurance was invented. Still later came insurance against death, which has grown in recent year

17 minute read

Read Chapter

XXXIII.

XXXIII.

RAILWAY TUNNELS. Quite recently I picked up a newspaper about thirty years old, and read in it an account of the great engineering difficulties which had been overcome in the construction of the Boston and Lowell Railway. This road, twenty-five miles in length, was among the earliest constructed in America, there being less than half a dozen railway lines which are older. The account proceeded to say that the great obstacle was the deep cut through solid rock, near the city of Lowell; and I can

24 minute read

Read Chapter

XXXIV.

XXXIV.

THE MONT CENIS TUNNEL. It has been said with truth that “mountains interposed make enemies of nations.” In various parts of the world we find that mountain chains stand as barriers between different nations, and in many instances the boundaries thus formed by nature have remained unchanged for hundreds of years. On the map of Europe the most prominent mountain chain is that of the Alps, and it has stood as a separating line between nations for a long time. It is true that occasionally wars have

19 minute read

Read Chapter

XXXV.

XXXV.

THE PARISIAN SEWERS. Paris, the gayest and brightest city in the world, has an underground life surpassing that of any other metropolis. Beneath the broad streets there are many miles of sewers constructed on a plan that furnishes a complete system of drainage. The total length of the Paris sewers is now about four hundred and thirty-four thousand yards, or three hundred miles. The length of galleries to be constructed in course of time is about two thousand yards more. To organize the network o

35 minute read

Read Chapter

XXXVI.

XXXVI.

MERCURY. One of the most valuable mineral substances is the one which is known as Mercury, or Quicksilver. It has many properties peculiar to no other metal. At an ordinary temperature it is a fluid. At thirty-nine or forty degrees below zero (Fahrenheit) it becomes solid, and resembles lead. At six hundred and sixty-two degrees (Fahrenheit) it boils, and is thrown out on an invisible, transparent vapor, like steam. Before it reaches the boiling point, if it is exposed to the air at a high tempe

12 minute read

Read Chapter

XXXVII.

XXXVII.

GUANO AND THE COOLIE TRADE. The exhausting effect of agriculture, in many localities, renders it necessary to furnish the soil with enriching materials. From time immemorial, use has been made of the excrement of animals, of deposits in bogs and swamps, where vegetable matter has decayed, and of various mineral substances known to contain ingredients nutritious to growing plants. An important ingredient of nearly all manures is the substance known as ammonia, which is contained in large quantiti

21 minute read

Read Chapter

XXXVIII.

XXXVIII.

AVONDALE. In a former chapter a brief allusion was made to the terrible disaster at Avondale, Penn., where nearly three hundred lives were lost. Public attention was everywhere called to the disaster at the time of its occurrence; the daily and weekly journals were filled with details of the incidents at Avondale, and the illustrated papers vied with each other in giving pictorial representations of the horrifying scenes. To many readers the accounts of the time are doubtless still fresh in memo

16 minute read

Read Chapter

XXXIX.

XXXIX.

IRON AND IRON MINES. Of all the metals, iron is the most useful, and is found in great abundance in many parts of the globe. England, Sweden, and Russia are the most famous countries of the old world for the production of iron, and in the new world, North America has an inexhaustible supply. Along the Atlantic coast, from the New England States to the Carolinas and Georgia, there are numerous deposits of iron. On the west side of the Alleghanies there is an abundant supply. The great centre of t

10 minute read

Read Chapter

XL.

XL.

EXILES IN SIBERIA. One of the mining regions of Siberia is in the valley of the Yenesei River, and along some of its upper tributaries. The Birusa River is one of these tributaries, and many an exile has been sent there in times past, to work out the sentence allotted him. Most of the mines are known as surface washings, like the gulch mines of California, but some of the more extensive are conducted on the tunnelling principle. Tunnels are driven into the hill-sides where it is thought gold can

23 minute read

Read Chapter

XLI.

XLI.

LEAD MINES OF IOWA. On the Upper Mississippi, in the vicinity of Dubuque, Iowa, there are many lead mines, and in the vicinity of these mines the bluffs contain numerous caverns, rarely of great extent. Sometimes these caverns are in the form of a succession of chambers extending and opening into one another; and in these chambers rich deposits of ore are found. Several years ago the author visited Dubuque and the region around it, and was kindly escorted by one of the citizens, Mr. Henry W. Pet

14 minute read

Read Chapter

XLII.

XLII.

MINING IN THE BLACK HILLS. THE WONDERFUL MINE UNDER LAKE SUPERIOR. When the frontier newspapers first began publishing their exciting reports of rich gold discoveries in the Black Hills, some of their editors doubted its existence there in paying quantities. Gen. Custer had reported gold discoveries, but the scientific gentlemen accompanying his expedition had denied finding it in deposits of a remunerating richness. Doubt and uncertainty shadowed the prospect until the development of the rich c

17 minute read

Read Chapter

XLIII.

XLIII.

CALIFORNIA AND HER TERRESTRIAL TREASURES. For a few years after the discovery of gold in California, little attention was given by her inhabitants to any other pursuit than mining. But in course of time the agricultural resources of the State were developed, and California soon made herself one of the grain-supplying regions of the world. The mines do not hold such a prominent place as they did fifteen years ago, but they are still an important source of wealth to the Pacific coast, and will so

17 minute read

Read Chapter

XLIV.

XLIV.

RAPID TRANSIT IN NEW YORK. For several years the people of New York city have been agitated on the subject of rapid transit from one end of Manhattan Island to the other. In one respect, New York is unlike any other city on the globe. Nearly all its business is conducted at one end of the island on which it stands, while nearly all the residences are at the other end. Consequently, a large part of the population must be transported in the morning from the upper part of Manhattan Island to the lo

16 minute read

Read Chapter

XLV.

XLV.

THE TUNNELS, AND THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD IN LONDON. The London harbor belongs to the grandest and most interesting ones in the world. Here in vivid writing the history of the English commerce is recorded; from this point, a gigantic net of navigation is spread all over the globe. Voices from all parts of the world, of animals and men; all human races, of every color, from the deepest black to the palest white of the inhabitants on the shores of the White Sea, are met with. Merchandise is taken

17 minute read

Read Chapter

XLVI.

XLVI.

DUNGEONS. A great many people have at some time in their lives been in dungeons; some of their own accord, and others much against their wills. Those who have gone there voluntarily rarely stay long, as their visits are made out of curiosity; and curiosity in regard to dungeons is very speedily satisfied. I have been in a fair number of dungeons, but I generally made my way out of them with very little delay. They are not very agreeable places of residence; and if one of them were assigned to me

17 minute read

Read Chapter

XLVII.

XLVII.

ANIMALS UNDER GROUND. As a general thing, miners do not devote much of their time under ground to the care of pet animals. The horses and mules that are kept below are not regarded as pets, but as a part of the working force, and are required to do their whole duty. They are cared for just as well as animals of their kind in similar occupations above ground. Their stables are comfortable, and from their location the beasts can hardly be expected to suffer from cold, though they may sometimes fin

15 minute read

Read Chapter

XLVIII.

XLVIII.

OUT OF PRISON. Among the most remarkable efforts of prisoners to escape from their confinement was that of some French Communists, who were sentenced to incarceration upon their failure to establish their government in France, after the downfall of Louis Napoleon in the disaster at Sedan. The story, as told by one of them, is of the most thrilling character. We were political prisoners—three hundred of us—in the fortress of Port Louis, a part of that line of fortifications which was built by Sul

16 minute read

Read Chapter

XLIX.

XLIX.

THE GAMBLING HELLS OF GERMANY. [5] The best known and the most popular of all the fashionable and gambling watering-places in Europe are Baden-Baden, Homburg, Wiesbaden, and Ems. [5] The gambling spas of Germany, but not those of other countries, have been closed since Chapters XLIX. and L. were written; but the chapters have been left in their original form, as the present is a better tense for description than the past. The first, a town of some seven thousand inhabitants, is delightfully situ

22 minute read

Read Chapter

L.

L.

GAMING AND GAMESTERS ABROAD. For mere recreation and pleasure the foreign watering-places have great advantages over those at home. Saratoga cannot be compared to Baden any more than Long Branch to Biarritz. The promenades and promenaders beyond the sea have far more pleasantness and variety; the scenery is more picturesque, and the general comfort and satisfaction immeasurably greater. There is much less of that desire of one to outdo the other, much less feverish unrest, much less ambition and

21 minute read

Read Chapter

LI.

LI.

SUBTERRANEAN DWELLINGS. The climate of the Garden of Eden was of such a temperature, and the customs of Adam and Eve, before their famous fruit-gathering excursion, were of such a primitive character, that no dwellings were needed. It is not known that the weather ever compelled Adam and Eve to seek shelter, and they had no prying neighbors to disturb them; but, after the abandonment of the garden, it became necessary for them and their followers to have places of shelter. The first habitations

13 minute read

Read Chapter

LII.

LII.

BRIGANDAGE AS A FINE ART. Brigandage is rapidly becoming a thing of the past in most parts of Europe, thanks to the introduction of railways, and the gradual abolition of the mail coach and diligence. In France it occurs so rarely as to cause general comment whenever an instance is reported; and in Prussia and Austria one can travel, with little danger of highway robbery, from one end of the country to the other. Russia, which has few railways, has more cases of brigandage than its western neigh

10 minute read

Read Chapter

LIII.

LIII.

MINERAL RESOURCES OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND. At the International Exhibition held at Philadelphia in 1876, the Australian colonies attracted much attention by reason of their exhibits. All the products of the continent were displayed, and there was an interesting array which embraced a wide variety. Vegetable products were those from grains and grasses up to sections of trees and specimens of limbs and bark; and a fine exhibit of minerals was displayed. In the center of the space occupied by

22 minute read

Read Chapter

LIV.

LIV.

UNDERGROUND IN SAN FRANCISCO. Underground life, of a peculiar and picturesque character, can be seen in San Francisco, in the parts of the city where the Chinese most do congregate. Soon after my arrival there, two of my friends, whom I will call the Doctor and the Colonel, invited me to a nocturnal visit to the Celestials. I accepted with alacrity, and, dressed in my poorest and oldest clothes, met my friends at the appointed hour in the Alta office. Macrellish and Woodward gave us their benedi

30 minute read

Read Chapter

LV.

LV.

GOLD AND ITS USES. The most valuable metal generally known is gold, and it is likewise one of the most ancient. It is found in various parts of the globe, and is sufficiently scarce, and sufficiently hard to obtain, to make it precious. No doubt there is enough of it in the composition of this globe, if it could be easily obtained, to make it a very common metal. An Irishman once said, speaking of the gold mines of California, that there was sufficient of the precious metal there, but it was ter

19 minute read

Read Chapter

LVI.

LVI.

GOLD MINING. Underground work in gold mining does not properly begin with the surface washings. It is true the earth is torn out, and large excavations are made; but they are all done by the light of day, and where the open air circulates through them. As heretofore stated, the primitive form of gold-digging is with the pan and the rocker. After the rocker, there are several forms of sluicing, or washing away of the earth. The ordinary construction of a sluice is a long box, with a current of wa

15 minute read

Read Chapter

LVII.

LVII.

COPPER AND COPPER MINES. One of the first metals known to man was copper. It is related in Scripture that Tubal Cain was “an instructor of every artificer in brass and in iron.” In the book of Job we read that “copper is molten out of the stone.” It is recorded in Egyptian history that the Emperor Cheops worked a copper mine in Sinai. The ancient Egyptians were familiar with copper, and the Syrians, Phœnicians, and also the Greeks and Romans, used a great deal of it in the manufacture of monumen

13 minute read

Read Chapter

LVIII.

LVIII.

THE CATACOMBS OF ROME. Many cities of the old world can boast of catacombs. Those of Paris are famous in their way for the large number of skeletons which have been deposited in them. The catacombs in and near other cities have the same peculiarity, and the walls are frescoed and festooned with bones which are placed so as to form fantastic shapes, reflecting much credit upon the persons who arranged them. The catacombs of Rome are quite interesting, partly from their character and partly from t

17 minute read

Read Chapter

LIX.

LIX.

THE PARISIAN RAG-PICKERS. Everybody who has been in Paris—and who has not?—remembers the rag-pickers, or chiffonniers, as they are styled, who frequent the streets after nightfall, searching the city through for the means of subsistence. One sees them so much, and in every quarter of the French capital, that he imagines there must be several thousand of them. The entire number, however, does not exceed six hundred, one half of whom are women and children. Though rag-pickers in name, they are som

14 minute read

Read Chapter

LX.

LX.

BRIGANDAGE AND PIRACY. The invention of the steam engine, while it has done a good deal for honest labor and honest enterprise, has done just as much towards breaking up dishonest enterprises and occupations. Before steamships came into fashion, the broad ocean and its adjacent waters were in many places the cruising grounds of pirates. They had sailing vessels built very long and low, with large spars, and, in proportion to the size of their hulk, with an immense spread of canvas. In a light wi

18 minute read

Read Chapter

LXI.

LXI.

BURIED TREASURES. A nautical ballad, with which many persons are familiar, narrates the adventures of the celebrated Captain Kidd. It is composed in the autobiographical form, and its first line runs as follows:— “My name was Robert Kidd, as I sailed, as I sailed.” Evidently the distinguished pirate travelled, like many other robbers, under an alias; and it is interesting to know that his name was Robert Kidd as he sailed , for he certainly was not Robert, but William, Kidd when on shore and awa

28 minute read

Read Chapter

LXII.

LXII.

OPERATIONS AT HELLGATE. From the Atlantic Ocean there are two entrances into the harbor of New York; one by way of Sandy Hook, and the other through Long Island Sound and the East River. For a steamer coming from Liverpool, the nearest entrance is through Long Island Sound. The Sandy Hook entrance is obstructed by sand bars; the channel is tortuous, and accidents are not uncommon. The entrance to Long Island Sound is broad and easy, but between the Sound and the East River there is a very danger

20 minute read

Read Chapter

LXIII.

LXIII.

THE EARLY HISTORY OF MANKIND. The most extensively worked mineral substance at the present day is coal, yet it is the most recent of mineral discoveries. Iron, copper, tin, and nearly all the metals were dug from the earth, and used long before the value of mineral coal was known. In the earliest days of mankind, tools for various uses were made of wood, bones, or stone. The first tools were undoubtedly of wood, but the material was so perishable in its nature that no specimens from those early

11 minute read

Read Chapter

LXIV.

LXIV.

DIAMOND AND OTHER SWINDLES. The great diamond swindle of California will probably go down in history as one of the most magnificent frauds of this or any other age. There are some facts about the matter which have not yet been given to the public. When the operators first started their “plant,” they went to New York, and endeavored to enlist capitalists in that city. A friend of mine was thrown into contact with them, and from him I learned the points. They wanted half a million dollars for thei

16 minute read

Read Chapter

LXV.

LXV.

PERQUISITES. American travellers in Europe frequently express astonishment at the commission system which prevails there among all classes of people. From the moment you land on European soil till the moment you leave it, you are the subject, or rather the object, of commissioners of every possible variety. I do not refer to the parties who expect and require you to pay money for direct services, but to those who make money out of you in an indirect way. You step on the dock at Liverpool or Havr

21 minute read

Read Chapter

LXVI.

LXVI.

THE WIELICZKA SALT MINES. The Wieliczka salt mines in Galicia, Austrian Poland, are probably the largest and most productive on the globe. They are generally called the Cracow mines, though they are ten miles from the ancient capital of Poland—perhaps because Wieliczka (pronounced Vyalitchka ) is so much harder for the tongue to master. They are connected with the mines of Bohemia,—this town is some eighteen miles east of Wieliczka,—and extend over a space two miles long, and nearly one mile bro

23 minute read

Read Chapter

LXVII.

LXVII.

EXPLOSIONS IN MINES. After the shafts have been completed and the levels opened in the mines, the work may be said to be fairly under way. The seams of coal are of varied thickness. Sometimes, though rarely, there will be found a coal seam of thirty feet in depth, sometimes one of twenty, and so on down to two and three feet. A seam of three feet in thickness is considered a valuable discovery, and oftentimes the seams do not exceed twenty inches. In the deep coal seams the work is comparatively

15 minute read

Read Chapter

LXVIII.

LXVIII.

MYSTERIES OF THE GRAND JURY. It was the fortune or misfortune of the writer to be called to sit on the grand jury of the Court of General Sessions in New York, in the latter part of the year 1871. Like most of my fellow-men, I had no great fondness for jury duty, and made efforts to be released. I was politely informed that there was no escape, and that I had better do cheerfully what I could not avoid. And so I did it. I sat on that jury, or rather in a cane-seated chair in the jury-room, for f

33 minute read

Read Chapter

LXIX.

LXIX.

BORROWING AND BORROWERS. Money is the motive power of the world. In executive capacity, it is an angel or devil. By it civilization must be measured, and all accomplishment wrought. A material blessing, it is the parent, too, of such an amount of spiritual comfort as may not be reckoned. Money will buy everything but health and affection; and, through its aid, the one is protected and the other provoked. No marvel that men worship money; it is the strongest of secular deities, the firmest of sup

17 minute read

Read Chapter

LXX.

LXX.

AMONG THE DETECTIVES. There are some men who seem better fitted to live beneath the surface of the earth than in the open air. Their habits are much like those of the mole or the weasel, and sometimes they are not altogether unlike those animals in general appearance. They have the burrowing propensity of the rat and the woodchuck, and in many instances their lives are about as reputable as that of the first-mentioned animal. They seem to avoid the light of day, and to spend their lives in under

14 minute read

Read Chapter

LXXI.

LXXI.

WAR AND PRISON ADVENTURES. When I was a small boy, and fed my miniature mind with thrilling accounts of the adventures of famous men, of their incarceration in prison, and of their escapes, I had no expectation of one day sharing in experiences of a very similar character. I can understand now why I felt so much interest in the biographies of Baron Trenck, Walter Raleigh, Cervantes, Silvio Pellico, and other noted personages who had spent much of their life in confinement. I little dreamed then

25 minute read

Read Chapter