The Camden chronicle. (Camden, S.C.) 1888-1981, October 15, 1926, Image 11
WHERE ASPHALT COMES FROM.
V*" 1 . .r> \
Trinidad Furnishes Greater Portion of
World'sjiiupply.
The pavements of city streets cry
to the cloop of horses' hoofs and the
whir of automobile tires, 'Trinidad', in
tribute to the island's'asphalt deposits.
Radio and telephone wires reverberate
the refrain. Even the walls of j
houses shut out these sounds, aowell
as the cold, with the world ' famous
product of this emeriald island of the
southern Carribean." says a bulletin
from the Washington, D. C., headquarters
of " the National Geographic
Society. ? ~r T,
"The most southerly island of the
West Indies and the largest of the
British Islands in the Carribean with
the exception tying jufsTi"
few hundred feet from the Venezuela
coast. Trinidad ships yearly to the
United States more asphalt and bitumen
than all the. other countries of
the world combined. Our 80,000-tdn
importation ^from 'Trinidad, tjpwever,
if only about one-fourth of the quantity
used in the Uhtyed States. Much
of our road material is a .by-product
<>f the petroleum and coal tar industries.
*
"When Sir Walter Raleigh stopped
on the shores of Trinadad to 'pay' his
iii ^ '
? a ? ,,
yessels with from the famous 'lake',
he declared that there was' enough of
the substance for atf the vessels of
the world for centuries to come, and
even the demand modem civtlizatioit
has put upon the supply has scarcely
changed the truth of his statement.
"About a mile from the shore, near
Le Brea, the peculiar /phenomenon,
which has been variously termed an
'inferno,' a 'Stygian pool,' and 'the
fountain of Styx,' is located. Had
Dante known of it^ existence it probably
would have Berved to stimulate his
imagination to still more fantastic
flights. However, the lake, about
which ga mai^ 4nteregting stories
have been told does not deserve its
reputation. A man who contemplated
suicide in its black depths would die of
starvation before the ooze dragged
him in above his knueeB.
"The sensation produced by walking
over its surface is much like that of.
treading upon some great beast whose
flesl^gives beneath the feet?it.is soft,
blood warm, and the wrinkles over its
surface in the bliding lijfht of the sun
seems ..to rise and fall with hS3 breathing
and the water which gathers in
the- furrows suggests that the animal
is perspiring. -
"It is said that the area of the
pitch-bearing^lake. is 110 acres and no
ini H?win nii?
one knows how deep it is. There is an
utmost uncanny feature connected
with the removal of the aspalt from
aria. Kails and sleepers have been
built out into the lake and each day
the laborers dig up chunks of the
pitch, which break off with dry, bluettintllk<j
fractures and throw into
s car which runs on rails. Kach day
they make a trough along the sides of
the track with their picks and when
they return the next morning the
trough is Ailed again levtfl and solid
for them to dig up?a furrow t^at is
never finished. ^
"Like the Burning Bush, the lake
secerns never to be consumed, and like
the daughters of Danaus, who had to
catch water in * sieve, the men never
see the results of their labors. At
night a great gully runs across the
horizon and at dawn the surface is
level again.
"About every three days, however,
the pitch swallows up the rails and
the sleepers and they must be raised
and readjusted on the surface. Although
about 100,000 tons of aspalt
are being taken from the lake each
year, the little track heed never be
moved; the pitch comes to the rail-- way.
"The subtle movements of thip
queer pool have produced some
'spooky' effects?islands wander like
lonely ghosts from shore to 6hore;
'.sometimes a tree trunk sticks up out
of the surface like the arm clothed in
white pamite which bore 'Excalibur',
points its warning Anger, and again
is drawn back into the Cimmerian
depths.
"One writer has estimated that at
least 10,000,000 tons of the mixture
have been turned into asphalt by gas
during the ages in Pitch Lake, which
is known as Devils Cauldron among :
the natives. About 4,000,000 tons
have been removed and by 1920 the
surface of the lake had fallen 15 feet
below ft8 former level. Once during .
its history the viscous .fluid overflowed 'its
banks and made its way to the sea
near La Brea. Now thif world's sup-,
ply is shipped from Brighton, which
fairly reeks of its stock int trade. Asphalt
boulders, stick up out of the
sand along the shore like mysterious
| black sea worms, the pileB of the piers
, are caked with pitch, the pavements
| are of the same material, and the
| black children of the island play with
dolls whose little black faces and :
.'bodies are made of pitch,
"The island is really a beautiful
. resort, its roads are excellent, and it
is easy to reach from 'the Venezuela
| shore, its.green trees towering on the
sky line from far out at sea." On hfs
third voyage Columbus saw its three
mountain peaks, which gave it its
! name, rise out of the sea on JglyJJ, "
1498. At the foot of these hills clusters
the group of buildings which
form the capital city, PortofSpain, a
rajher nondescript modern town
which has grown up o nthe . charred
ruins of the old Spanish city.
"Though the island has been British
since 1797, it is as polyglot as Zanzibar,
negroes, mulatoes from high yellow
to gingeT, French, Sjpmiardp,
Venzueli&ns,, Chniamen, East Indians,
Tamils, "Americans and English loiter
in its strets or hang over its balco*
i? '
nies. .? -tv* -> .
Dcngero Arising From
Starvation of Spirit
> The body., hm most person* know, re *
quire* u certain ? mount of Iron for its
.Well being. When the supply of iron
bodily repair cannot go oh, and
a condition Mris In resulting tu low
ered Vitality, if not In death. ygm
There In, however, a hunger of the
mind which Is Ins* understood hut no:
leva dangerous. A little*limtighi given
to character study ledds to the conelusion
that among persons In everyday
life, itutby thmights arise from a
eorl of starvation of the spirit, and
its adjustments, Just as bodily weak -nesses
aria# from the adjustment of
(hd body to Its conditions of disrepair.
Kor Inatauce, the atruggllug author,,
who tells her friends that she cfcn sell
everything she writes for big prices?
the schoolgirl, who says ehe doesn't
core If iieople say her hair isn't curly
?curly hair Isn't In fashion anyhow?
the woman who tells her acquaintance*
.that she was Invited to a party,
and didn't accept, when she was never
Invited at all.
All these are cases of unconscious
attempt to compensate for an imitttsr
fled spirit. It la the aaiue narrowing
force which fogtera the spirit of carping
criticism.
Great people., are usually., broad-,.
minded, aud accessible, unless they
have struggled too long, going, so long
without pratao or recognition of a
merit they know they have, that their
starved spirit can never be redeemed
Into gentleness. It ia the little people
who are still afraid of themselves,
who surround themselves with form *
and cerempny, weigh their words, and
try to impress with their importance.
All ^ human belnjfs need a certain
amount of companionship, love, recognition,
and praise. (Vhen they don't
get It, or get it too late?beware. The
luu<b'Kt drivers of others are those
who have risen through the greatest
hardships, from the ranks. Altogether
.-too little importance is attached to..
tfle power of a cross Word, or a criti- ;
cal phrase iu nations, families, and?
business relationships. Even of the
Importance of cross looks, and sllenoe.
They have a great power, even U?e
power of producing criminals and in*
efficients, ^here-ls suicide of all degrees
of plcuvness, and instances
not rare of Those ^vho have been driven
to deeds of desperation by some
little Ill-considered word which capped
the climax.
Hague Law 'Atkdemy
The Hague academy of international
law has proved to be a great success.
Last year 879 students of ln-_
ternatlonul law, representing 35 na-|
t ion nil ties, among whom were
Americans, attended the course. The
greater part of them are university
men now In the diplomatic or consular
service, and this year the number ig>
expected to be larger. Twelve countries
are supportttrg, fliraTrctalty am)",
otherwise, the 'acagpmy, .which was'
founded with the collaboration of Jhe
.Carnegie endowment for- Internet Ion-.
ll'pBHWr ; Tl\e "Dutch govern inent has
created 5 scholarships of 400 guilders
each for foreigners desiring to attend
J^jromv^-^Chlcsgo- News* '
v ' 1 ^
Old Roman Fyrmhoaam
A great jRoman farm establishment,
the rural villa of a colonial gentleman
of the Third century, H|-' being unearthed
and explored .near Cologne by
the Wallraf-Rlcliartr museum. The
principal building had a length of
more than fifty yards and contained
thirty rooms. An outstanding feature
is the bath establishment, patterned
after the luxurious baths of Rome,
with elaborate water supply and drainage
systems. There Is no evidence'
that the place was abandoned becausb
of a fire; apparently the owner aim*
ply, decided to move away to ? safer
pbft4T when the barbarian tHbee beyond
the Rhine became too restless,
about the end of the Fourth century.
, Increased Use of Wireless WlrbllWt^tasistital
between Sweden
and the United States are steadily increasing
and the first year's income of
the Grlmeton station on Sweden's yregt'
coast, which communicates, direct with
New York, was twice the anticipated
amount, according to the annua) "report
.recently filed with the royal board
of telephones and telegraphs. A year'
go. this service was officially introduced
by King Gustav and President
Ooolidge with an exchange of messaged
The same station also sends
messages across Russfg and Asia to
China and Japan, and countries adjoin-^
ing Sweden use It for tlielr foreign
telegrams.
t ' 1 1 * y ----Plane
as Life-Saver
Arrangements have been made with
a nearby airdrome by the beach lifesaving
guards of SantA Sfonlca. Calif,
for airplane assistance. When a
bather ventures too far <mt to be
reached by guards in time*to save
bis ltfb," a special telephone tipe cqp*<
nectlng direct^ tWb'- Jhc dyers re^
liltH IttTl quleiriligbt above the spot,:
'tghere a'life preserver is dropped. The
procedure has quickly Justified Itself, j
! officials said, a number bf calls Itnv
tnjrbeen successfully handled already J
this summer.
T" " a l > J * .
Wild Animal "Preserve*"
Australia is sbout to follow the
example of the United States and
Canada In the farming of fur-bearing
animals. The skins of many Australian
animals, notably opossums, native
bears, kangaroos, waltabys, and
other marsupials, are in keen demand
In the fur markets of the world. The
nW fur farm Is In (he state of Tasmania.
Him sn^biemenmhaveht^n
-made for the tanning of opossums and
native bear^-|pngg^gjglAxTfjjJji
*-1? LL-^. , . -?
" Not To Employ Liquor Heads
(Columbia, Oct, 7.?Liquor-drinking
law officers will not be tolerated during
John G. Richards' term of governor.
In a statement made public today,
the governor-nominee lot it be known
thif be witt -muire every applicant
to definitely comrhit himself to total
abstinence.
"Idonot propose," "Major Richards
said, ."to appoint any one to the law
enforcement department of the government
Who takes a drink of liquor
of any kind as a leverage."
"I intend to enforce all the laws of
our sta^vigordusly^and'.with.all the
rMWn, nf w>u nnmmanit ' .
iVV"f " WriMf , . f>l>^ - , y j*.'' m I
"The "man who drinks must of necessity
make' it himself or patronize
the one who does. In either ease, he
is unfit a* a la& enforcing officer.
All applicants for these appointment!
sssSF^v;-'
I I I I I I I, I.I III I . " v.
who are seriously^ considered will'be .
asked the direct question if they are
willing to subscribe to these conditions,
and if appointed, they must
strictly adhere to them."
P S 4
. j??
Isadore Roberts, laborer, and father
of seven children,, of StanbUklge,
Quebec, on Mpnday beat his ivife to
death end then cut his own throat be- ?
ciuse tin? wife would not give him
money that she had earned.
FINAL DISCHARGE
' .
Notice is hereby given that one
month from this date, on Saturday,
November 18, 1926, 1 will make to
the Probate Court of Kershaw County '
My final return as Executor of the
estate of Mina Team, deceased, and
on the same date I will apply to the
said Court for a final discharge as
said Executor. ;
JOHN "LAW'HORN, Executor.
Camden, S. C., Oct. 9,
in 11
Jjst>\
?Ji I consecutive Tears T
A l Ml J J 1
I I For the ninth consecutive year I
I Buick has won first choice .of ) 1
I space at the National Automo- 1
V bile Shows. J
This Is Leadership! For this
. honor g|0 i annually to the
member of the National Automobile
Chamber of Commerce
with the year's largest vplume
of business. For any other car
to equal this would mean retaining
continuous leadership
until 1936?almost another
decade.
The Industtdal history of
America records no more brilliant
achievement than these
nine successive years of Buicl *
I. dominance*
APRODUCT OF GENBRAL MOTORS
' V:;i:'.V>. ... '
I LITTLE MOTOR COMPANY
T. LEE LITTLE. MANAGER. OAMDEN, S C.
. * ' '
WE WILL GIVE ABSOLUTELY FREE 2,000 LBS.
of . J. M. Villepigue A Co.'* lump coal with every
WASHINGTON HOME FURNACE
bought during this *ale
I ' - - ? . fc.: v ^ / , / * Washington
Home Furnace itself will reduce
your coal bill one-third, to bne-half.
In addition we are giving absolutely free one
ton of lump coal, consequently your coal bill this
winter wilffce very small.
IMPROVED AUt DUCT
increases heating efficiency ?3 1-3 per cent, ipakmg
Washington Home Furnace greatest fuel saver knowri:
Produces circulating moist heat?most healthful
Will heat as much as two or three stoves or five or
six grates. . 7
Heats from four to seven rooms. No. cellar to digi
Grained mahogany finish. All Cast
Iron Inner Construction.
Come in and let us explain other fuel-saving features
of the Washington Home Furnace. You will, say It is
one of the best day's work you have ever done. No
obligation.
Camden Furniture Co.
Telephone 156 Camden, S. C.
|ie#Jp2fc i? mi 1
yijr> :.*U *i--x V-V
SIMPLE ii one and
one. Just add oris
gallon of linseed oil to
one gallon of Stag scmiKste
Paint and you
V? two gallon# of the
i finest paint you can get.
\ Bright, permanent col- ,
"A ore, beautiful, lustrous
'jj finish. And you save one- t
third the coetl I
Not only that, but this
froth-mixed paint spreads -.easier and goes
further. You add the linseed oil yourself so you
know it's all fresh Unseed oil paint. Make It
any consistency.
There's a "Stag" dealer near you. See him?
or write us for literature and name of dealer.
STATR4INT
m
galknMahs.
tAmdm by HIRSHBERG PAINT COIlPANTi
BURNS & BARRETT
Camden, S. C.
-" I
Systematic Savings
?
In the long run, the gain is greater if you
do not try'to "get rich 'quick," bat system'
aticallfj save a portion of your income
and regularly deposit it in a reliable in|
stitution like this, where it will be safely
at work for you.? ?- Loan
& Savings Bank
CAPITAL $100,000.00
f 4 Per Cent ?aid on Savings Deposits
I-""^^ m
We Clean Furs and
! 1 '
I T
Some wbmen fear to hfrve fabritf coatsTwIth fur oollairtf
I cleaned. It is a fallacy of thought, however, for the
fur on a coat is carefully handled by us and its original
1 perfect conftftiorv is restored. ?
I We clean furs, too. Women in increasing numbers are
\m Bending their fur coats'and fur. neckpieces to us t9 dfrtj?
cleaned.
Furs seem to collect dust and grime more quickly
than fabrics even. Often pretty frocks are soiled bell
cause of contact with furs or fur collars.
Cool, crisp fall Mays are just ah Ad. It is foolish to
I wait to have your cleaning done when almost any
I morning now you'll* need your heavier coat.
|| Camden Dry Cleanery
I . E. N. McDowell. Mgr.
p Two Telephones?No. 17 and 566