"Another condition of value in a coal mine is a good roof. There are many rich veins of coal that have only earth or soft shale above them, and they are practically worthless because they are unworkable. We fortunately have a superb rock roof over our mine."

"But, Doctor," said Tom, "you told us the other night that coal is at the basis of modern industrial civilization. Then I suppose that those nations which have coal must be the foremost ones in industry and consequently in civilization."

"Certainly they are," said the Doctor, as the other boys gathered about to hear the talk; "and they will be more and more so as time goes on.

England has more coal than any other country in Europe and so England is by all odds the foremost industrial nation in Europe, though other nations there have the advantage of buying English coal in an open market. Ever since our modern age of industry and machinery set in--that is to say ever since Old King Coal came to his throne--England has grown greater and richer, till now she is by all odds the richest country in Europe."

"Haven't the other countries there any coal?" asked Ed.

"Yes, but comparatively little. Let me see if I can remember the figures approximately. Great Britain's coal fields cover nearly 12,000 square miles; France has only 2,000 square miles, Prussia about the same, Belgium has only 500 square miles, Austria less than 2,000; Italy none at all to speak of, and as for Spain, the Spanish indolence, which puts off everything till 'to-morrow' has prevented that country from even finding out what coal she has. Russia has vast fields and bids fair to take her place ultimately among the great coal producing and industrial nations of the earth. But as yet her coal fields are imperfectly developed and her coal production is only about one-thirty-fifth as great as that of Great Britain."

"What about the United States, Doctor?" asked Tom, who was an aggressive patriot.

"Well, we have many times more coal than all Europe combined," answered the Doctor. "Great Britain's 12,000 square miles of coal lands sink into insignificance in comparison with our 214,000 square miles of measured coal fields, our 200,000 or 300,000 square miles in the Rocky Mountain states, and our totally unguessed-at coal fields in Oregon and Washington. As four or five hundred thousand and probably more, is to twelve thousand, so is our known coal area to that which has made Great Britain the greatest industrial nation on earth next to our own. And some of the British mines are pretty nearly worked out, while we have scarcely scratched the surface of ours."

"Then this is likely to become the greatest industrial nation on earth?"

said Jack.

"It is already that," answered the Doctor. "We are selling our manufactured goods--even iron and steel products--in England to-day, almost as freely as we are selling our grain and our meat. I tell you, boys, there is nothing in this world that can happen to a man that is so good as being born an American citizen."

"Amen!" said Tom. "To employ the dialect of my friends among the mountaineers, 'them's my sentiments every time all over and clear through.'"

"All right," said Jack, "now let's get to bed."

"I suppose there's a lot more you could tell us about coal, Doctor,"

said Jim, "if there was time."

"Of course there is," the Doctor responded; "but you'll learn it all practically. For we've a great mine here, and you boys will have first choice of places in its management."

With that they all went to bed.

CHAPTER XLIII

_The Camp Venture Mining Company_

The next morning the Doctor "drew" his c.o.ke oven, which was quite cool by that time. He minutely examined the c.o.ke and called Tom to look at it. "You see," he said, "how perfectly it is fused. You see how free it is from any sort of admixture of sand or anything else. I tell you, Tom, we've got a great mine here, and it is going to make all of us comfortable for the rest of our lives. Your good mother is especially to be congratulated. This find will make her not only independent, but really rich. Now I want you to understand me, Tom. If your mother prefers to have anybody else manage this affair for her, I will instantly withdraw. At present I have no interest whatever here, and I can have none except by her consent. This mine is absolutely hers, to do with as she pleases. I want to serve her in the matter, by finding among my friends the capitalists who can make the thing 'go.' If she prefers to put the matter into other hands, I hope, Tom, you'll urge her to do so."

Tom arose, took the Doctor's hand, pressed it warmly, and said simply:

"I'm not quite an idiot, Doctor. Go on with your plans."

Somehow, although Jack was Tom's elder brother, the Doctor and indeed the whole company had learned to think of Tom as essentially the head of his family. Curiously enough his mother and the other boys themselves had learned to regard Tom in precisely the same way.

"But Doctor," said Tom, eager to divert the conversation, "why were you in such a hurry to put out the fire here that night when we first discovered the coal? Would it have burned any considerable way into the vein?"

"I can best answer you, Tom, by telling you that about fifteen or twenty miles back of Mauch Chunk, in Pennsylvania, there is a bed of coal that has been burning for about half a century. Everything that human ingenuity could do to put it out has been done, but all to no avail. The whole mountain is slowly burning away, and when one walks about on the crust he is liable at any moment to have a foot sink into the fire below. So you see why I didn't want our mine to begin its career by getting afire."

The next thing on the day's program was work upon the second truss for supporting the mine roof, and this was got into place before midday, so that the afternoon was given to vigorous digging into the coal bank.

About five o'clock the Doctor called out:

"You needn't dig any further, boys, we've got it safe enough!" Then he began singing "Old King Coal," as he hugged some specimens of the coal he had dug out of the extreme end of their little shaft to his bosom.

"Got what?" asked Tom, who watched the Doctor's antics with eager interest.

"Why, we've got what we've been looking for, coal equal to the very best that was ever mined in Virginia or West Virginia. I was sure I could not be mistaken. Now I know." And with that the Doctor danced and sang again.

"Now," he said, "you boys come here. I want to talk with you. I'm going down to the station to-morrow to see my father. I propose, if you approve the plan, to have him come up here to inspect our find. Then I'm going to get him and my brothers and their financial a.s.sociates to make a plan for capitalizing and working the mine. When their plan is made, you, Tom, and I will go to your mother and see what she thinks of it.

You see the mine belongs to her absolutely, and any interest that any of the rest of us get in it we must buy from her. But, by way of preparing for such a purchase, I'm going down to the contractor's camp to-morrow, to get my father to come up here with a mining expert and an engineer, to look at the property and make up their minds about it."

The suggestion was welcomed by the three boys concerned, and so the Doctor made his preparations for an early departure in the morning.

The distance was not over two or three miles, and, as the Doctor had no wagon road to look out for, it took him less than an hour and a half to reach his father's headquarters. Early in the afternoon a cavalcade reached the camp. It consisted of the Doctor, his father, one of his brothers, a mining expert and two engineers.

They went at once to work to inspect the mine and its roof and every thing else connected with it or in any way affecting its practical working. Finally they made their reports quietly to the elder Latrobe, and that gentleman bade them mount their mules and return to the contractor's camp.

Then he asked the Doctor to bring the Ridsdale boys into conference with him. Seated on a log, he explained the situation thus:

"Your mother has a very valuable coal mine here, in a most favorable locality. It will need capital, of course, for its development, and that I am prepared to furnish, as the representative of myself, my sons, and my other financial a.s.sociates. My proposal is this: that we capitalize the mine at $400,000; that is to say, that we organize a company with that amount of stock; that your mother shall put in the mine as $200,000, and receive stock to that amount; that I and my a.s.sociates--I will take care of that--shall put in $200,000 in cash and take the remaining stock in payment for our contribution."

"I don't see," said Tom, "but that your proposal is a just and generous one. As I understand it, my mother is to put the mine into the company, as $200,000 capital, and you gentlemen are to put in $200,000 in money to be used as working capital, in operating the mine; my mother is to own one half the shares and you gentlemen the other half."

"That is quite correct," said the elder Latrobe.

"Then I am perfectly satisfied," answered Tom. "What do you say, Jack?

What's your view, Harry?"

The two other boys had no objection to offer. Indeed the easy rolling of large figures as sweet morsels under the tongues of the financiers completely appalled them, and so the whole matter was left to Tom to settle.

That evening he went down the mountain with the elder Latrobe, leaving the Doctor and the boys to guard the mine. The next day Mr. Latrobe and Tom set off on mules for the town, fifteen miles distant, where Tom's mother lived. They arrived about noon, and Tom was eager to broach the business at once. But Mr. Latrobe objected.

"I don't want to talk to you about this business, Madam, without the presence of some legal adviser or man of business, whose advice will prevent you from making mistakes."

"Oh," answered the widow, "my Tom is here and he has a clear head."

"All the same I wish you would send for a lawyer," answered the gentleman.

"But I cannot afford it," said the lady.

"You can, Madam. Your coal property is rich enough to afford many lawyers. And besides, Tom here has money enough to his credit on our books to pay a lawyer's fee ten times over. You have no idea what a winter's work your boys have put in on the mountain. Sincerely, I do not wish to lay my proposals before you without the presence of some disinterested, professional person, who can wisely advise you as to their acceptance or rejection. I have asked Tom to come with me in order that he may tell you how rich a property you have in this coal deposit, and warn your professional adviser against concluding any arrangement with me and my a.s.sociates which does not give you an adequate recompense for the property that we ask you to put into this venture."

So the lady sent for a wise old lawyer, who, after hearing Tom's statement, earnestly advised the widow to accept the terms offered. Then Mr. Latrobe said:

"Madam, I am going to employ this gentleman, as a trusted friend of yours, to draw up our articles of incorporation and complete the legal formalities necessary to our mining company's existence. Meantime Tom and I will go back to the mine and set men at work in its development."

"What name will you give to your company?" asked the old lawyer.