UC-NRLF B M 17D bflS EARTH SCIENCE*; UBRAR- [EXECUTIVE DOCUMENT, No. 13.] REPORT OF PROFESSOR EMMQNS, ON HIS (T EG LOGICAL SURVEY F NORTH CAROLINA. M RALEIGH: SEATON GALES, PRINTER TO THE LEGISLATURE. 1852- tfi EARTH SCIENC LIBRARY [Message and Report communicated to the House of Com- mons. Transmitted to the Senate with a proposition to print 3000 copies. Ordered accordingly . To the Honorable the General Assembly of the State of North Carolina : 1 herewith transmit the Report of Prof. E. EMMONS, who was appointed, under the Act of the last Session, to make a Geological, Mineralogical, and Agricultural Survey of the State. DAVID b r . REID. KXECUTITE DEPARTMENT, ~> Raleigh, November 22d ; 1852. j REPORT. To His Excellency, DAVID S. REID, Governor of North Carolina : SIR : 1. Agreeably to the requirement of the Act of the Legislature, passed the 24th January, 1851, authorising a Geological Survey of the State, I herewith present the First Annual Report. In the discharge of this duty, I have deemed it advisable, at this time, and at this stage of the work, to confine my com- munication to two principal subjects : the Soils and Agri- culture of the Lower Counties ; and the Coal Fields of Rock- iugham. Stokes, Chatham, and Moore Counties : the two former occupying the Northern, and the latter the Central, portions of the State. I deem it, however, relevant to the subjects before me, to introduce the statement of such principles of Agriculture and Geology as may be required for the better understanding of these departments ; or which are suggested by, or flow immediately from, facts which I have observed. I hope this course will be approved of, as the subjects are beginning to excite public attention, and are probably among the most important matters to which the public attention has been turned for many years. M134G many points which have been established, of y^ars; thejtfe:arV /our of very great importance, namely : That soils must contain a sufficiency of certain inorganic dements ; that these elements are necessary to the life of the plant that no seed can be perfected without them ; and-, finally ', that they are essential to the life of the animal sub- sisting on vegetable food. It follows, from these established points, that some, at least, of the important products of life are derived from the soil ; it being possible to trace them back from the animal, through the plant, to the soil. From this, it also follows, that the true method of determining the important elements of a soil, is, to analyse the products of life as found in the plant and animal. That \Uiich is constantly found in those products, and which can be traced to no other source than the soil, must, of necessity, be regarded as the essential elements of the soil. We can arrive at no other conclusion . and furthermore, by no other method can we reach a correct conclusion. This method has been followed ; and it has resulted in (he discovery that the following substances are the essential ones which have been alluded to, namely : Phos- phoric acid, Sulphur, Potash, Soda, Lime, Magnesia, Oxyde of Iron, Silica, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Hydrogen, Carbon, Water, Ammonia, Chlorine, and small quantities of Fluorine. I might have left out of this list oxygen, hydrogen, nitro- gen, carbon, and ammonia, inasmuch as there are, it is sup- posed, other sources of supply than that of the soil. It is no!, however, fully established that, in the arrangements of nature, there is a full provision for this supply, when soils are subject- ed to high culture, and are required to produce more than five times the amount which they produce spontaneously. It is undoubtedly true, that the vegetable kingdom can sustain itself by the instrumentality of the common sources of supply ; yet, when a species of this kingdom, as Corn, for example, is required to yield its sixty bushels to the acre, we can see no provision for this result in its wild and uncultivated state. Hence, under culture, where the soil is thus heavily (axed to meet the demands of civilized life, there it fails, in process of time, to supply them, and means to supply them are called for, and even required, in order to sustain the soil undei its increased products. Those elements, then, which constitute parts of the atmosphere, as carbonic acid and ammonia, which are furnished in sufficient quantities to plants, growing spon- taneously, are not supplied, as I have already hinted, when soils are put under heavy culture 5 or, they may not be sup- plied in sufficient quantities to meet the demands of a succes- sion of crops. 3. As I shall have frequent occasion to refer to those elements of soil, generally known as inorganic elements, I propose, in this place, to speak of them ; and to state some of their properties, uses, and the sources whence they are de- rived. 1. PHOSPHORIC ACID. In its separate state, insulated from other bodies, it is an exceeding sour substance. It is solid, and resembles flakes of snow, when freshly prepared ; but, in consequence of its avidity for water, it soon becomes, in the atmosphere, a limpid fluid. Like other sour or acid bodies, it readily combines with potash, soda, lime, and many other bodies ; and forms, with them, new compounds, which are called phosphates. Hence we have phosphate of lime, which exists both as a natural substance in rocks, and in the animal kingdom in bones ; and it is mainly in this form or combination that it is known in the animal and vegetable kingdom. Animal bodies all contain more or less of phos- phate of lime, and probably it is among the most important. The bones, however, contain more of it than other parts ; and, in its absence, and when it is diminished in quantity, they are soft and flexible, and unfitted to sustain the weight of the body. The source of phosphate of lime is the mineral kingdom. Probably all the rocks contain it, sometimes in large masses ; but, usually, it seems to be diffused through them in fine particles. When they decompose and disintegrate, it is, of course, mixed with (he soil. It is more abundant in granite, greenstone, trap dykes, and volcanic products, than in othe^ rocks. This fact seems to show thai igneous rocks, the pyro- chrystalline, are the true sources of this important substance. In New York, I discovered, in 1837, a vein of it subordinate to a trap dyke, and in connexion also with the primary or the pyrochrystalline limestone all of which may be classed toge- ther as igneous products. This vein, in one place, was seven feet wide ; and hence furnished a large amount of lime for agricultural purposes. In the same section, I discovered the same substance associated with the magnetic oxyde of iron, in small clustered crystals, forming, in many places, more than one-half of the mass. In the trap dyke, this mineral phosphate is green, less hard than feldspar ; and, in the iron bed, in reddish, six-sided prisms. 1 am careful to mention these facts for this important sub- stance may exist in the pyrocrystalline rocks of North Oarolina ; and, if in quantity, would be of great value to the agricultural interests of the State. It should be sought for in rocks of igneous origin ; and especially where the magnetic ores of iron exist. In this state it occurs in the marl beds, at the bot- tom of the shell marl ; though it is also diffused through the beds, in masses of small size; ic is in dark rounded and some- times spiral masses. In this form, it is known under the name of coprolite. It is the excrement of marine animals, and coir tains rather more than 50 per cent, of phosphate of lime ; or about the same proportion as it exists in bone. These copro- lites are very valuable, and 1 have indicated the place where they abound the most. They seem to have been collected at the bottom of the shell marl, and to have been subjected to attrition by the waves of the sea. They are associated with quartz pebbles, and generally are black or brown, and almost as hard as quaitz. Coprolites are found also in the coal stratas of Rockingharn, Stokes, Chatham, and Moore. They have a similar origin to those of the marl beds but they do not exist in sufficient abundance, as 1 have seen in either formation, to warrant the expense of extracting them. Still the facts are important, and should not be forgoaen. The importance of this substance cannot be doubted, when it is known that Indian corn, wheat, rye, oats, barley, all the cereals, potatoes, and all the tubers and tap-rooted plants con- tain it ; and especially the cereals. A soil destitute of it is totally barren. 2. SULPHUR. It is a substance too well known to require a description. It is not so well known, however, that it is an important element in the vegetable and animal kingdoms. It is found in the animal tissues. Peas and clover belong to a family of plants in which it is always found. It is an element of oil of vitriol, and hence one of the elements of gypsum. A class of minerals called sulphurets also contain it. 3. POTASH. Equally well known is potash. It is a con- stituent of granite, existing in the feldspar of the rock in the proportion of 16 per cent. Owing to its presence, this mineral is subject to decomposition , and then forms kaolin; a substance employed in porcelain. Other minerals contain it. The green sand, one of the varieties of marl in the Eastern Coun- ties, owes its fertilizing properties to potash. It plays an im- portant part, both in the organic and inorganic world. It is instrumental in giving solubility to silex ; and hence prepares this substance to be taken up into the tissues of plants. In com- bination with potash, silex is taken up, and made a part of the straw of wheat, rye, and oats, and imparts that strength which is necessary to enable the plane to stand up. When deficient in silex, wheat, rye, and other grains fall, and are injured or destroyed. Potash is an expensive fertilizer, ranking, in this respect, with phosphate of lime. To this, more than any other ele- ment, ashes owe their value as fertilizers. Argilaceous soils contain it, in combination with silex ; but the combination is insoluble, and requires the addition 01 lime to free it from a portion of silica, in order to bring it into a soluble condition. 4. SODA. This alkali is more abundant than potash, and beds of nitrate of soda exist in climates where no rain falls. Its office, in plants and animals, is not very dissimilar to that of potash. The great source of it is the sea, and beds of rock salt. s 5. LIME. Lime, in some form or combination, is found in all parts of plants and animals. The bark of trees abounds in it, where it serves to protect the wood from injury ; and the testaceous covering of shell-fish, oysters, and clams, together with the integuments of crabs, and the substance of corals. In bones, it is in combination with phosphoric acid ; while, in the bark of plants, it is probably in combination with organic acids ; and, in the testaceous covering, it is combined with car- bonic acid. It is more generally diffused in the mineral world than either of the alkalies, or alkaline earths ; and still it is one of those substances which is wanting in soils, and that, too, when they exist in the vicinity of limestone rocks. Lime also exists in the bones of man, in the proportion of about twelve per cent. From its .universal diffusion in the vegetable and animal kingdoms, it is evident it is one of the important elements of the soil. Its presence in the soil, however, is not so common as might be expected from its great abundance m the mineral kingdom. We have no cal- careous soils, even upon our limestone, though there may be patches of a few yards in extent where lime is the principal substance. Much uncertainty prevails in the use of lime. I shall, however, reserve what I have to say, under this head, until I have occasion to speak of the use of marls. 6. MAGNESIA. It is often maintained that magnesia is hurtful to soils. When caustic, it does not become mild so soon as lime ; and hence is liable to absorb the water which is requiied ly plants. Yet the phosphate of magnesia is a con. stant element of the wheat, rye, and corn, as well also as in all vegetable food, [t exists in soil; is important to fertility : but is less so than lime. Its source is in the magnesian rocks, as they are termed, such as soapstone and steatite talcose slate. It is far less soluble than lime. When barrenness appears in connexion with serpentine, it is not because magnesia is injurious, but because other earths are wanting or absent. Magnesian limestones have rarely, if ever, injured vegetation in this country, though prejudices exist abroad. 7. SILICA. In flint and rock crystals, we have examples of this earth. It is harder than glass ; and, in the common form in which it is found, is insoluble. It appears, in this form, to he one of the most indifferent of all bodies. Yet it is found in such combinations that it is freely taken up by the roots of grasses, and plants of this family. It constitutes a very large proportion of the earth's crust. In soils, it varies in quantity. Its proper proportion is about 85 per cent, ; but good soils often contain less, and two 01 three per cent. more. The office which silex performs is to preserve a due amount of the coarser matter : for, when a soil is composed of impal- pable matter, it is comparatively barren ; and silex, from its excessive hardness, resists the wear and action of the elements. By being commingled with clay, it imparts porosity and loose- ness ; permits the roots to ^penetrate deeply; while, at the same time, air and moisture permeate through the mass as far us roots can find their way. The use of silex is, therefore, partly mechanical and partly physiological ; being necessary m soils to preserve porosity, and particularly necessary to the cereals to protect the straw and kernels, and give elasticity and strength to the whole plant. So abundant is this substance, however, that it is never necessary to add it to the soil, except for mechanical use ; potash and lime are often added for the purpose, of freeing it from its insoluble combinations, when the grains are special objects of culture. 8. OXIDE OF IRON. Analyses of organic bodies, prove the existence of iron in them ; and in those animals which have red blood, it is satisfactorily demonstrated that it serves to main- tain the heat of the body. In addition to this, its salutaiy ef- fects upon the human system prove, also, that it performs ^ome other office besides. It is, then, an important element, physiologically. In the soil, however, it is supposed to be concerned in developing or forming ammonia. Iron, by it- self, is rarely used as a fertilizer. The oxide, however, taken from the smith's forge, intermixed witli refuse matter collect- ing about a smith's shop, is often highly beneficial to fruit trees ; and pear trees, especially, have derived essential benefit by the application. 10 9. AMMONIA. It is known by everybody, under the name of hartshorn. In this State, however, it is not applied to plants, or to soils. It belongs both to the soil and atmosphere. Nitrogen, an element of the atmosphere and ammonia, is an essential constituent of the cereals, being one of the compo- nents of gluten, or the pasty part of flour. It is supposed that the salts of ammonia are the media, through whkh nitro- gen gains access to the grain and there are results of experi- ments which go to prove that, if it is wished to increase the wheat crop, it requires the addition of substances which will furnish ammonia that the fertilizers 1 have noticed in the foregoing paragraphs are not sufficient, or are inefficient, in the case of wheat, unless they are mingled with ammoniacal com- pounds. Phosphate of lime will greatly increase the turnip crop j yet, if applied to \vheat, when the soil is unexhausted, with a view to increase the product, it fails, unless ammonia is furnished also. Yet, on poor and exhausted lands, phos- phate of lime is known to produce surprising effects. In fiesh soils, plaster and charcoal readily absorb ammonia. WATER. This element is the great solvent of the different inorganic bodies upon which I have been speaking. Nothing can act and become beneficial to vegetation, until it is dissolv- ed in water. It is, therefore, the medium through which all the essential substances find their way into animal and vege- table tissues. The effect of much is injurious. Standing, as it frequently does upon soils, it diminishes their temperature, and maintains them in a state permanently too low to admit of the cultivation of the valuable plants. Draining lands of superfluous water is, in effect, raising their temperature several degrees. Where there is too much water, another condition* exists incompatible with that cultivation which the cereals re- quire ; the soil is too compact, and it cannot be made po- rous while in that condition . Draining, therefore, makes the soil warm and loose ; conditions essential to the growth of the most important productions. Water is indispensable, and no seed can germinate without it. Soils differ as to the force with which they retain or absorb it. 11 Silicious soils part with it readily, and absorb it slowly. Of all substances which retain water, finely divided peaty matter is the strongest ; it exceeds clay und marl. Next to peaty marl, fine marl, containing some organic matter, ranks the next. 10. CARBONIC ACID. The atmosphere is regarded as the source from which it is obtained by plants. In this combina- tion, it is always produced, and it is generated in the soil. Carbonic acid is a solvent. Water charged with k dissolves rocks. The almost insoluble phosphate of lime is thus dis- solved in water by its aid. Leaves are supposed to absorb it from the atmosphere ; and to obtain, in this way, the carbon required to build up their structure. Still, the water in the soil holds it in solution ; and it is, under those circumstances, furnished the. plant by its roots. This seems to be the channel through which carbonic acid may more naturally course through its tissues, when it is assimilated. Carbonaceous, or peaty matters, also supply it. 11. CHLORINE. Common salt is a combination of soda and this substance. The term chloride is applied to such combinations. By itself it is a poison ; in combination with soda, it is a fertilizer. Its true value, however, is not well settled. Some esteem it highly ; others do not. On wheat its effects are scarcely perceptible. It promotes the growth and yield of plums, and it may be taken up in sufficient quantity to give them a saline taste. 12. FLUORINE. li is found in combination with lime, con- stituting the mineral called fluor spar. Although it is a rare substance, yet it is found in the enamel of teeth, in bones, and in milk. It is an associate of phosphate of lime. It is never added to soils by itself ; but, as it accompanies phosphate of lime. 1 believe, in all cases, it is applied when phosphate of lime is used. * * In the foregoing pages, I have used the word clement iu a different sense from (hat in which it is employed in chemical works. Real elements, or simple bodies, are never employed as fertilizers. They must be compounded, before they are received as elements. 12 The foregoing substances are detected in the ash of plantst When plants, wood, coal, &c. dre burned, the ash tha remains is called the inorganic part of the plant. If they are burnt carefully, in a proper flame, we find that the particles composing the inorganic part preserve a reticulated structure, and often appears as woven. It seems, theiefore, to be designed to perform the part of a skeleton to the plant, and give it firmness and elasticity. Even the delicate petal of a plant has its fine woven skeleton. Two things should be observed of the inorganic part : plants differ among them- selves in the quantity they contain ; and the parts of the same plant differ also in this respect. These two facts lie at the foun- dation of an improved and refined system of agriculture. That improved system would consist in adapting the quantity of the inorganic elements to the special wants of the plant. In the present state of our knowledge, something can be done, but it must be done imperfectly. Hundreds of acres under cultivation can receive only rough and imperfect tillage. Spe- cial agriculture, that which is conducted to meet the special wants of the crop, must limit and confine the operations to small plantations. This special agriculture is, inpait, observ- ed, when the planter and farmer puts his wheat on soils best adapted to wheat ; or when his Indian corn and potatoes are cultivated on soil best adapted to them. But when the sys- tem of artificial farming is undertaken, it is necessary that more knowledge of the soil should be obtained than can be procured by simple inspection. A full knowledge of the com- position of soils is the first step towards veal improvement in the right direction. To carry the improvement to perfec- tion, -a full knowledge of the composition of plants is also necessary But plants vary much in their relations to light, and shade, heat and cold, to dry and wet soils. The condi- tions of vegetation best adapted to plants, or to crops, must receive study ; the reasons why they vary should be deter- mined. All these points require a knowledge of the economy of vegetation, or of its physiology. The range of knowledge required for the practice of a special agriculture, or where spe- 13 cial adaptations are attempted, is by no means confined to a small compass. This is not to be regarded as a discouraging feature. To progress, however, requires the utmost patience, and the great danger is, that discouragements will spring up at the slow progress which is made, and a right road will be abandoned, because it can be seen only for short distances ; the end is yet hid in mist and doubt. The organic part of a plant, is that which is consumed dur- ing combustion : the products being volatile, are all dissipated. It forms by far the greatest part of the vegetable. Its source is regarded, by Liebig, as the atmosphere. Still, the soil no doubt furnishes it, in the form of organic salts, which are known under the names of crenic and apocrenic acids in combi- nation with alkaline matters. These are derived from humus originally, plants first changing in water into peat, which, in itself, is scarcely soluble, but which becomes so, in part, by the action of lime. 4. It has been stated that certain elements are essential to a productive soil. Knowing before hand what those elements are, it seems to be plain what course our enquiries should take when directed to the improvement of any given soil. If a crop is defective in quality, and falls short of its former yield, it is evident thas there isa want of those elements which have Just been described ; the course to be taken then, is to analyze the soil, especially those patches where the failure in quantity is the greatest. If it is found deficient, in some of those ele- ments, we are put in a way to correct the evil. It is possible that this report may fall into the hands of a few who may wish to know the chemical composition of soil, really poor, as well as those which are rich. I shall proceed to give the re- sults of an analysis of several kinds of soil, in order to make my readers better acquainted with their composition, that they may be used for a comparison hereafter ; and as they are taken, from well known plantations in different parts of the State, the results may also be regarded with more interest than if se- lected from books. The planter wants to know the reason of the 'failure of his soil to produce its customary crops. But til- 14 lage must be taken into the account, as well as the season : and, indeed, all those variations in seasons, time of planting, favorable conditions of soil, &c. which are necessary to arrive at a true conclusion. If the failures belong to successive sea- sons, equally favorable to the crop, there can be no doubt they arise from a deficiency of one or more of the inorganic elements of I he soil. There may be a kind of a priori deter- mination of the cause of failures by looking back for several years, and calling to mind the kind of crops taken from it. If they have been cereal, then it is highly probable that the phosphates and potash have been deficient. If tobacco has been cultivated several successive seasons, much potash has been carried away ; or, if the potash is deficient in the soil originally, lime may take its place. It is proper to say, in this place, that a registry of crops will be found useful ; for, if the quantity removed from the soil is noted, the number of pounds removed of either potash, phosphate of lime, or lime, may be calculated. 5. I shall proceed now to give a number of analyses of soils, for the double purpose I have stated. The first class be- long to {he poorer soils, and have their representatives too com- mgn upon the Atlantic slope of this State. It would be un- just to attribute the faults of the soil entirely to culture and bad husbandry. The truth is, they have a sandy basis, and when cultivated for several years in succession, without return- ing something in the way of fertilizers, a fine marine sand is exposed, which, in some places, is so loose in its texture as to permit the vegetable matter to be blown from its surface. The first examples of soil show a deficiency in several ele- ments j and from these deficiencies others have followed, whjch affect it mechanically. The samples were taken from an elevated part of the Panola plantation at Tarboro'. The proprietors are R. Dancy and Norrleet, who are pursuing agriculture as a profession. Their success is proof that I hey are pursuing the right road. 15 SURFACE. SUBSOIL. Water, 1.13 0.92 Organic matter, 2.93 1.72 Silex, 93.70 94.40 Alumina and peroxyde of liron, 1.33 2.40 Carbonate of lime, .28 .20 Phosphate of lime, inappreciable in 100 grains, .00 .00 Magnesia, .14 .06 Soluble silica, .11 .09 Potash, .03 .04 Soda, .01 .03 The palpable deficiencies, both in the surface and subsoil, are : 1. Alumina and per oxyde of iron $ 2. Lime ; 3. Phos- phate of lime ; 4. Potash and soda ; 5. Organic matter. These deficiencies leave a great excess of fine sand. It is proper to remark, that the samples do not represent the cha- racter of the field, but simply an acre or two which overlooks it. It is a sandy knoll, and its soil is one of those extremes which are often met with. Such eminences suffer more by cultivation than the lower parts , and, hence, are liable to be- come bare, unless more care is bestowed upon their cul- tivation. The system formerly pursued, or until the plantation was purchased by its present proprietors, was the common one ; a system which, if carried out, would end in total barrenness : for that is the tendency when fields are cultivated until they fall off greatly in their products, when a period of rest is al- lowed for their restoration. The rest being the only mode by which its restoration is expected, for, if it is true that certain elements are necessary to fertility, and these exist only in the soil, and they are removed in the crops, then, rest cannot restore them, the only effect of rest is to give time for the growth of trees, whose roots penetiate deeply, and bring up from greater depths than the cultivated plants can, these inor- ganic elements, which,when assimilated and formed into leaves and other parts, either fall again to the ground in due time, 16 and give back to the earth what had heen taken from it. By this process, the inorganic matter is transferred from the depth of many feet to the surface. Hence, after years of rest, there is an appearance of renovation. But, let the cropping re-com- mence, and the result will be seen ; for it will require only half the time to exhaust the soil. It will require, in a shorter time than before, its period of rest. By this course, or this rest system, the soil loses more of its fertilizing matter, until, finally, it will be so far exhausted, that only the most obscure plants can find a foothold. To return to the consideration of the soils. Knowing their deficiency, how can they be corrected ? or what course do f he proprietors propose to renovate this field? seeing that they reject the rest system as a means to this end, being satisfied that they would only entail a barren lot to posterity. One of the means resorted to was to furnish or supply ashes. The plantation bordering upon Tan river supplied decaying logs, brush and leaves. These were burnt, and gave them about 5000 bushels, at a trifling cost. The ashes contain all those elements which have been removed in the crops in former years. It is this fact which makes ashes valuable for this pur- pose. I notice this fact, not so much that this method was resorted to. in this instance, for a special purpose ; but because, in all parts of the State, it is possible to pursue the same plan. The decaying vegetable matter on the borders oi plantations is enormous ; and while the ashes of refuse matter can be procured at a cost so trifling, it is folly to purchase bone? or guano. But the soil is deficient in organic matter. To sup- ply this, various means may be resorted to. Anything which has lime contains it, and will supply it. Straw, leaves, chips of the wood-yard, peat, or peaty soils hauled to the yards and trod by cattle, are the cheapest. To carry out a syst< m of supply, for losses of all kinds sustained upon a plantation, the most effectual means will be to give to one or two laborers the business of collecting ferilizers of all kinds. It is a labo r which the disabled and inflfrm can perform, especially if aided by a team consisting of a single mule and cart. 17 By this plan, the capital required to be expended in the purchase of guano and bones is muc^ diminished ; for in the ashes we find phosphate of lime, carbonate of lime, iron, potash, soda, and magnesia. In all these substances the soil is deficient. It will produce sassafras and high briars, because .their roots penetrate deeply, and find a store of food uncon- sumed by cultivation. But the cereals, the plants most valua- ble to man, though they might exist and produce a small crop, yet they cannot pay the planter, in its present state, the cost of tillage. The proprietors are pursuing, therefore, the most judicious and the cheapest plan to make this field again fertile. They have no marl ; but, in the ashes of useless logs and brush, they find a better material. Similar to the foregoing soil is one which I analyzed for Mr. Benjamin Brown, of Pitt County, near Greenville. Its com- position is as follows : Water, . 1.20 Organic matter, 1.30 Silex/ 94.75 Alumifta and per oxyde of iron, 1 48 Lime, 1.02 Phosphates inappreciable, .00 Magnesia, trace. Potash,, .01 Soda, .02 Soluble Silica, .05 This soil is less fertile than that of a portion of the Panola farm. Its color is a light ash, and the sand quite fine, and uniformly so over a large field . The same plan is proper for the latter as the former. I may here suggest that, along with similar means for its restoration, the cheap material of bogs and wet places, clay sand unexhausted surface soils, will meet some of the wants of the case. Their use turns however, upon the value of labor, or the cost of transportation. Of the same class is a soil obtained at Mr. Swift's, Ring- wood, near Halifax. It is an ash gray sandy soil j but th 2 18 particles are angular and sharp. I found its composition to be similar to that of the J wo preceding. Water, 1.30 Organic Matter, 1 .35 Silex, 94.15 Alumina and per oxyde of Iron, 1.80 Lime, .15 Magnesia, .01 Potash, .01 Soda, .01 So, also, I may add to the foregoing a soil taken from the plantation of Mr. Cromarty, near Elizabeth, on the Cape Fear, as it contains : Water, 1.250 Organic Matter, 1.500 Silex, 94.800 Alumina and Iron, .650 Lime, .010 Magnesia, trace. Potash, .006 Soda, .004 This soil was not tested for phosphoric acid. There is a remarkable deficiency of alumina and iron, in which the phosphoric acid, or phosphate of lime, would be found, if found at all. It is highly probable that it exists only in an extremely small per centage. Some portions of the plantation of Mr. Pope, in Halifax, and of Dr. Eppes, have the same excess of =and, and a defi- ciency of the most important elements, as may be seen by the following statement of their composition : Tope Sub-Soil. Dr. Eppas. Water, 1.26 1.39 Organic matter, 2.20 2.70 92.08 92.56 Alumina and Per Oxide, Of Iron 1.64 2.70 Garb. Lime, .08 .13 Magnesia, .86 .24 Soluble Silica, .27 ..10 Potash, .01 traces. Soda, .00 .18 The field of Dr. Eppes was in rye. There is less exhaustion in these two soils, than in some of the foregoing examples. It is evident, however, that there is a great excess of sand, and a deficiency of Alumina and Iron. Their presence is required to form a suitable basis upon which to apply soluble fertilizers. The foregoing ex- amples of soil belong, it will be conceded., to one class. There are, in all of them, both excesses of one element and defects in others. They are strictly poor soils from deficiency, and must be improved by addition of those elements which are evidently, in a measure, absent. While upon this subject, it is quite necessary to add, that, although soils of the composition, which the foregoing possess, are unsuited to the cultivation of the cereals, still another class of vegetables find in such soils sufficient nutriment. Bordering the coast of the State, the surface is undulating, and rises at intervals into rounded eminences, and sinks into slight depressions, with tolerably well defined borders or rims, forming, as a whole, a roiling surface. This border is always formed of a marine sand, which, in the driest parts, is intermixed with vegetable matter, upon the slopes and tops of the eminences^ while in the bottom of the bowl, from depressions, the vegetable matter occurs in much greater quantities, and even beds of peat are often found some two or three feet in thickness. Marine sand, however, is the basis of the soil, and when washed and dried, is often pure enough for glass. The tops of the rounded eminences are generally whitened with oys- 20 ter and clam shells, which are bleaching, and slowly disinte- grating. This light sandy soil^which, under careless cultivation, would be converted into blowing sand in a few years, yields large profits in the culture of the ground-pea. This plant, like the common pea and clover, is constiutionally adapted to this soi^ and yet the inorganic matter, which is found in the ash of the pea, is by no means inconsiderable. The plantation of Mr. JNixon is about ten miles east of Wilmington. Lt is situated immediately upon the coast, with a soil and surface I have just described. This gentleman cultivates the ground pea. The annual value of the crop rarely falls below six thousand dollars. This pea soil has ninety-five per cent, of silica, and from one and a half to two per cent, of organic matter, and less than one per cent of alumina and per oxyde of iron, and about ten hundred per cent of lime. I have not stated, 1 perceive, that beneath the sands there is a stratum of brick clay : it is sometimes within two feet of the surface, and at others ten feet. It is no doubt a layer which exerts an important influence upon the cultivation of the loose surface sands. It holds water, and hence aids in supplying water to the sands which vest upon it. The pea husbandry has to be conducted with care. It consists of an alteration of crops and a rest of one year. Thus to. the pea crop succeeds rye, oats or millet ; the latter is re- commended ; and then rest for one year. The soil should be disturbed as little as possible ; even cattle should not be al- lowed to roam and feed upon the field, inasmuch as they break up the surface sand. The roller is an admirable instru- ment for these lands. The pea is planted in hills about two and a half to 3 feet apart. One pea is sufficient for a hill. ^They are hoed sufficiently to keep out the gras?. The yield is from fifty to seventy-five bushels per acre. One hand can cultivate five acres, The ash or inorganic matter of the pea vine is large, amounting to 10.25. The amount of lime, un- combined with phosphoric acid, shows that it is a lime plant. INo doubt the comminuted shells constitute an important ele- ment in this sandy soil. The lime is of averagable quality. 21 The decomposing oyster shells on the summits and slopes furnish lime slowly to th< soil by Ihe aid of carbonic acid. In this connection, it will be instructive to exhibit the com- position of a good soil one which is adapted to a general cultivation : one which produces corn, oats, potatoes, and even wheat. I find soils of this description in many places, and have several analyses of them : I shall select from my note book the following. The first is from Mr. Swift's plan- tation, in Halifax county. Its color is brown, and it is com- posed as follows : Water, 4.50 Organic Matter, 5.20 Silex, T4.30 Alumina and per oxyde of iron, 14.00 Phosphoric acid appreciable. Carbonate of lime ; Magnesia. Potash, Soda, 98.68 If this soil is compared with the gray sandy soil of the same .plantation, the differences are too striking to escape notice. To remark upon each element: The water which is obtain- ed by drying, at 406 of fahrenheit, is the quantity which experience and observation prove to be about right. The organic matter, which is afterwards obtained by heating to redness, is an essential material, from which organic salts, soluble salts of lime, and the alkalies are formed, and which., under the forms of the so called crenates, may be introduced into the tissues of plants. It is in those forms, and in these combinations, that organic matter, at least in part, is intro- duced into the system of plants. Where organic matter is absent from a soil,. experiment proves that ripe seed fail to be produced. Silex is really the basis of all -soils, and is an indestructible and almost unchangeable substance : it becomes soluble in the presence of the alkalies, and gives strength to the stalks of the cereals. It is rarely deficient in quantity in soils proper,, for it seems to me that deposites of vegetable matter, alone, can scarcely be called soils ; still y as certain plants are produced upon such deposits, they must be ranked with soils. 6. Alumina never enters into the composition of plants or of animals, yet it is an essential element of all soils. The function it performs is that of a cement ; as it obviates or di- minishes the porosity of soils, and prevents the too speedy percolation of water through them. It is often in excess ; in many others too little, as in the first examples given of the composition of one class of soils. The function which iron performs in a soil is not well de- termined. It is, however, an element of considerable impor- tance to living bodies, and is always present in them. Bwt 7 it is supposed by some physiologists, that it is instrumental in furnishing nitrogen. It exists in two states protoxyde and deuotoxyde, and is readily changed from the latter lo the foimer state, in the presence of water and organic matter. . Water is decomposed by the first, it is supposed, and.the hydro- gen of the water is set free, which combines with nitrogen of the air and forms ammonia. There is a mutual action also, between the organic matter and the deatox} r de, by which the deuotoxyde is changed to the protoxyde. In this last change there is a step preparatory to its, change into an acid, which it combines with lime and alkalies. These chemical changes are by no means improbable: indeed, they are quite agreeable to what is known in analogous cases. Phosphate of lime is one of the most essential elements of soils. No living being, whether animal or vegetable, is desti- tute of it. Bones, muscles, nerve, brain and blood, contain it. Milk would be unsuited to the young or old if it. was not rich in it. The quantity of food is always greater than the system can take up. It becomes excrenientitious matters, and hence their value as fertilizers. 23 Lime and Magnesia are known in animal and vegetable structures. Potash is equally essential with the phosphates- Soda is undoubtedly essential also, but perhaps less so than pot- ash ; at least it is not so expensive, and can be supplied at a cheaper rate. Water is a solvent for all bodies which enter into the structure of plants. All matters must exist in solu- tion before they can be received into the structure of plants or animals. There is no growth in the absence of water. It r the planter. Notwithstanding a bountiful soil is thus made, still it should not be forgotten that it can be ex- hausted. The time, however, is so far ahead, that it seems almost needless to express our fears and caution to the pro- prietors of such lands. But yet the fertile lands of the West, which appeared to the early settlers as inexhaustible, are found now to have diminished in the burthen of their crops, and to require the application of fertilizers to bring them up to their original fertility. 9. The importance; which J have given to the elements of soils, and the emphasis with which 1 have inculcated their srveral uses, may lead my readers to infer that it is sufficient to supply them, in order to secure large returns. I am, therefore, inclined to correct any misapprehension of this kind, by sta- ting somewhat in detail, the mechanical or physical proper- ties which soils should possess, in order to insure their fertility. 1. FINE AND COARSE MATERIALS. A productive soil has usually a due admixture of coarse and fine materials. When it is all coarse, it is so porous that water passes through it too rapidly. A much larger quantity of fertilizing is required, am! a large proportion is lost. Gravels have been called hun- gi because they consume so much manure : besides, there isiiule if any opportunity for chemical action. We must not lose sight of the chemical forces. Coarse materials cannot act upon each other. 2. THE OTHER EXTREME. A very fine soil has defects al- most equally great : when impalpable, it borders upon barren- ness. The disadvantages of a fine soil are, water finds its way too slowly through it ; it intercepts the free passage of air, 37 or, in other words, it is defective in its apparatus of circula- tion, and obstructs the growth of roots. If a seed is closely compacted in clay, it may be preserved for an indefinite time. For germination, aii , moisture and heat are each necessary. In an impalpable soil, air is excluded. Manures applied to dose soils or fine compact ones, are deprived of the air they require to fit them to act as food for the plant. Taking the two extremes and comparing them together, we find the former consume manures, while the latter retain them unchanged: the first permit a rapid passage through them; the latter, the passage is obstructed aiid water is not allowed to enter. The impalpable and close soils are composed gener- ally of clay $ it is sometimes a pot clay. As a soil, it is dffi- cult to work : moreover, it is more difficult to secure the prop- er time for working it. In the Spring, it is too wet for a time, bat it is slowly drying, and in process of time it will be in the best state for working, but it soon passes from a state of wet to one in which it is too dry. If worked when wet, it is inju- red for the whole season : indeed, it may be regarded as lost for the year, if it is plowed in a stale when it is quite wet. But, if too dry, it is hard and lumpy. To cultivate such soils suc- cessfully, their constitutions must be well understood. Ordinal y clay soils may be managed by draining and the free use of lime. The forwardness in Spring of a wet ciay soil, is a gain of two weeks by draining, and .1 diminution of one-fourth of the labor in tillage, and an increase of crop equal to one-half, and a total removal of the uncertainly in the time of plowing. The use of lime breaks it up, and im- parts porosity and lets in air, moisture, and the free penetration of roots. The light colored clays are not so kind as the drab or yellow ; the white are I ess productive. The common express- ion is, they are cold, and it may be cited as one instance, \vh< re a common expression is literally correct, for colored soils absorb more heat than white ones ; their tem|>erature is absolut* !y higher. The coloring matter, which is iron, diminishes ihc cohesion of clays ; the colored ones are therefore less compact and far more productive. 38 From the foregoing remarks, it follows that the best soils aie composed of both coarse and fine materials coarse, that the air and moisture may penetrate them fine, that chemical action and solution may be promoted,, and the fertilizing mat- ter retained. Oyster and clam shells are useful, even if un- changed, by promoting and preserving porosity in the midst of finely divided matter. The principles laid down are practi- cal and easy of application, provided accurate observations are first made. 10. The mechanical properties of sand are directly oppo- site to those of clay. But I need riot add to this head as it is too well known to require additional comment. There is a practice which should be recommended in cultivating sandy soil ; it is to pass the heavy roller over them when moist. Seed sown upon the surface and then rolled, ensures its germina- tion ; if neglected, it is likely to fail. Light drifting sand may be fixed by the roller.* The comparative value of clayey and sandy soils have not been satisfactorily settled. The ex- pense of working the former is 'always greater than that of the latter, but greater crops are usually obtained. Sandy soil 3 have not stood so high as they deserve. Their easy tillage and middling crops, which may be obtained for a succession of years, pay well. They stand drouths better than clay soils, and admit of early tillage. A plantation is more valuable if it has both varieties of soil. There are'some facts, which go to show that argillaceous soils possess an affinity, if it may he so called, for ammonia, supe- rior to a sandy soil. If so, it is one reason why argillaceous soils are better adapted to wheat than sandy, though not the only reason. The fact that clay absorbs ammonia, and re- quires a strong heat to set it free, is an important agricultural fact, tn order to make the most of the absorbative power of argillaceous and other soils, fresh surfaces should be made by NOTE. The effect of the roller is confined to the surface. It does not press together the material below, which has been loosened by the plow. Soils then are not compacted by ifc j, it does not destroy the effect of the plough. 39 ploughing, harrowing, or hoeing. New and fresh stirface g are much more efficient absorbers of ammonia than those which have remained unstirred for weeks. The late Professor Eaton was in the habit of illustrating this fact, and applying it to agriculture, by inserting fresh earth beneath a receiver filled with ammonia. The absorption took place almost instantly. The application of this fact to agriculture, was macre as long ago as 1S20. One of the advantages of ploughing and hoe^ ing was attributed to the increased power of absorption of ammonia from the atmosphere, by the new surface thus made and exposed. There seems to have been a special provision for furnishing a supply of ammonia, from which nitrogenous matters in grain are derived, and although ammonia forms an incon- siderable part of the atmosphere, yet bodies of various kinus absoib it with the greatest avidity, and in such quantites that it may be detected by chemical tests. I have already rpoken of ammonia. (3.) and have there suggested that the natural supply is adequate to the natural wants of the vegetable, and that for the purpose merely of preserving and sustaining all the species of plants now upon the earth, the atmospheric sup- ply is sufficient. Even a luxuriant vegetation is sustained, and may be for an indefinite period, where herbage is mainly the product ; yet, when the large products of grain are drawn from the soil, then the natural supply is insufficient, and the farmer is obliged to resort to artificial supplies. MEANING OF THE WORD, IMPROVEMENT. COMPOSITION OF SHELL MARL, trace. Water and organic matter, 2.60 99.20 Regarding the available matter in this marl as thirty per cent., it should not be ranked with the inferior varieties though the sand amount to sixty-five per cent. 37. The marl of Fishing Creek should not be passed over unnoticed. It consists of the three varieties, the red, blue, and consolidated marl. The blue has the following composition : 69 Silex, 72.50 Phosphate of lime and oxyde of iron, 6.25 Carbonate of lime, 20.00 Organic matter and water, 1.25 100.00 This blue variety underlies, or is beneath, the red or brown variety. The latter is composed of Sand, * 62.50 Phosphate of lime, and oxyde of iron, 10.00 Carbonate of lime, 25.60 Magnesia, .11 Organic matter and water, 1.30 99.51 Both varieties are more or less consolidated, indicating a favorable composition for agricultural purposes. The parts selected for analysis contained fewer shells than the general mass. They are small bivalves, so common in Wayne, at Goldsboro', and on the Tossnot, which is really of a better kind than the varieties containing larger and less decompos- able fossils. The shelly portion contains more lime, which is derived from the shells themselves ; but less precipitate, which con- Cains phosphate of lime. This variety gives the following composition : Sand, 15.00 Phosphate of lime and oxyde of iron, 3.75 Carbonate of lime, 80.00 Organic matter, 1-25 100.00 70 The average quantity of lime is above fifty, taking the whole mass together. Intervening between the two varieties, the blue and red, there is a more consolidated portion a variety which answers to the appellation of stone marl though it differs in its fossils from that of the Trent at Newbern, as well as from that at Wilmington. It gave me the following analysis : Sad, 17.50 Phosphate of lime and oxyde of iron and alumina, 7.50 Magnesia, Carbonate of lime, 72.12 Organic matter and water, .50 97.74 This variety exceeds the bine and red in the quantity of fime ; and it appears that, as the sand diminishes and the lime is increased, there is an approach to the formation of a solid substance. The solidity and toughness, however, often depends upon a quantity of soluble silica, which, when pre- sent, forms an exceeding tough deposit, possessing many of the characteristics of a burr-stone. In this condition, the stone is unfit for agricultural purposes ; but makes a durable stone for walls and fences. It is also an excellent fire-stone, and may be used for the backs of fire-places, though it is charged largely with lime. 38. The foregoing samples of marl, derived from the game geological series,, furnish, upon the whole, a uni- formity of composition which was unexpected. It is true that at few of them contain an excess of sand, which I think due to accidental causes, and which does not belong to the depo- sit as a whole. It often happens that currents bear along sand in large quantities ; and the position which the shell- fish are occupying, may receive, at times, large supplies f 71 arenaceous matter. Sometimes, the lime has fallen to teD per cent. the sand increasing in proportion. But the aver- age proportion is thirty-three per cent. The selections for analysis were not made with a view to obtain a maximum quantity of lime in the several beds ; but rather an average. It will be seen hereafter, that the shell- marl differs materially in composition trom a formation upon which it rests, or which is geologically older, and beneath it. There is, perhaps, in this older formation, more calcareous matter than is usually credited to it. The analyses which have been made have excluded the matter composing the shells, which it often contained in great abundance. They are very frequently entire and unchanged. In the shell- marl, the fossils, when small, decompose ; and, though the matter in which they are imbedded is calcareous, still the fossils furnish, by disintegration, a large share of it, which is obtained by analysis. The general aspect of the mail, as it lies in the beds, is quite the same. The thickness is variable, exceeding, in a few localities, fifteen feet : in others, it is less than three feet. There is, I believe, but one stratum which contains those fossils which have given it the appellation of middle ter iary. I have not seen it divided into two, except the for- mation upon the Trent. THE GREEN SAND ITS COMPOSITION, ETC. 39. Beneath the shell marl and belonging to an older formation, there are deposits which are of the age of the cretaceous rocks of Europe. I have referred to this forma- tion before, and have stated that, as a fertilizer, it is superior 72 to the shell marls which I have described. Its color is green, and when examined carefully, it is found to be composed of irregular particles of sand, which, when crusted upon paper, leave a greenish mark. The deposit is made up mainly of this matter. The most characteristic masses are upon the Cape Fear river, at a place called Black Rock, and upon the river banks near Wilmington. These beds belong to the same formations as those known in New Jersey as marl, and which are highly esteemed in that State, and which deserve all the praise which has been bestowed upon it. The loss of the specimens collected for examination in the lal oratory, rendered it impossible to furnish analyses of the green sand. I shall, therefore, give two or three analyses of the Delaware marl of the same age. It is important, to know what it contains, and as there isa great uniformity of compo- sition in all the beds both in New Jersey and Delaware, and probably in those of this State, its composition will be a guide to those who wish to use the same material upon the Cape Fear or wherevei it occurs. Its composition is represented by the following analyses : Silica, 70.20 70.31 Potassa, 6.10 6. 51 Protoxide of iron, 15.25 1516 Alumina, 3.14 2.63 Water, 6.22 6.26 J. Rodgers. 100.91 J. Mansfield. Professor J. C. Booth's Memoir of the geological survey of the State of Delaware, p. 71, 1841. Another analysis, upon the same page as the foregoing, gave Silica, 49.30 Potassa, 9.16 73 Protoxyde of iron, 24.46 Alumina, 7.82 Water, 11.26 100.00 The percentage of potash in the last analysis is nearer the average of the formation than the two preceding it. It is to potash that its fertilizing effects have been attributed. Most of this substance is entirely destitute of carbonate of lime. Still, if the fossil shells were intermingled with the materiel submitted to analysis, it would give a notable quantity of carbonate of lime. When the fossils are decomposed and intermixed with green sand, carbonate of lime is then found. It will be noticed in the foregoing analysis, that phosphate of lime does not appear in the list of substances which it contains j notwithstanding this, 1 believe it will always be found. In a single specimen from Black Rock, consisting of the inside cast of a shell common to the formation, I found a remarkable amount of phosphate of lime. The substance examined differed in no respect from the general mass, being made up as usual of the grains of green sand, moulded to the inside of a cucculloea : the outside was removed This specimen contained 52 per cent, of phosphate of lime. This was, no doubt, an accidental circumstance ; by sorm cause or other animal matter had been preserved to that large amount. If this amount should be found in the casts of the shell so common in the formation, it will become an impor- tant fertilizer ; not simply from the potash, but from the pre- sence of an equally important element, phosphate of lime. 40. The green sand in Delaware frequently consists of two porlions an uppei and a lower. The lower is the one regarded as destitute of carbonate of lime. The upper is calcareous, and approaches in composition to (he shell marl of this State. 74 Thus, the upper consists of- Carbonate of lime, 18.6 Green sand, 33. Sand, 35 Clay, 14 100.6 Another analysis gave Carbonate of lime, 24.7 Green sand, 35 Sand, 31 Clay, 9 99.7 41. The foregoing furnishes the elements which may be expected in the lower deposits of the Cape Fear and Neuse. Black Rock is ten miles below Brown's landing. The green sand at this place is consolidated to the water's edge, and extends to an unknown depth beneath the water. There are ten or twelve feet above water, extending along the water's edge, against which boats may anchor. At this place, the marl is so accessible, that when the navigation of the river is practicable, boats may take in a cargo of it at a trifling expense. It is yet to be tried, and yet to be determin- ed, how far this material will admit of transportation. Should the coal oi Deep river find its way down the Cape Fear, and * boats are returning empty or with light loads, it is not at all improbable that the green sand may be used in Chatham and Moore counties as a fertilizer. This is rendered still more probable, from the fact that fertilizers are rare upon the upper waters of this river, and the lands require something of thii kind. Should phosphate of lime constitute an important ele r ment of this bed of green sand, it would bear transportation still farther, and admit of its use m the interior of the countie* bordering upon the river and its branches. 75 The strata of rock at this place consist simply of the lower mass already described, and a bed" of pebbles upon which reposes a thin bed of shell marf and sand. The green sand may be regarded as a continuous stratum, differing from the shell marl in this respect. At Mr. J. Sykes's, 9 miles be- low Black Rock, the formation appears again. 42. On the Neuse, in the vicinity of Goldsboro', a for- mation appears of considerable extent, unlike the shell marl, and unlike, also, the green sand. Its fossils do not yet declare whether it is an upper mass of green sand or the lowest divis- ion of the tertiary. Fragments of an ammonite have been obtained from it, but the exogyra and belemnite,so characteris- tic of the green sand, have escaped detection up to this time. The formation is a consolidated marl or marl stone; of a light gray and a yellowish brown. The following strata belong to a section near Col. Collier's plantation, to whom I^m greatly indebied for the interest he manifested ai well as in aiding the survey. 1. Green marly clay. 2. Marl, eleven feet, containing spine of echine, dabs' toes, &c. 3. Gray sandy clay. 4. Yellow clay intermixed with some gravel. 5. Sand. The consolidated or stone marl lies upon a hill side. It is about six feet thick. It is granular, and might be employ- ed as a building material, as well as lime for agricultural pur- poses. It is composed of Silex or sand, 39.20 Phosphate of lime and oxyde of iron, 1.60 Carbonate of lime, 55.20 Magnesia, 60 Potash, trace. Water and organic matter, 2.20 98.80 76 The good effects of this marl appeared in its use upon an exhausted patch of land : as a consequence, it gave a fine growth of clover, which came in without sowing- the seed. 43. A stone marl at Wilmington, lying immediately upon the green sand, is composed of Silex, 20.00 Phosphate of lime and oxyde of iron, 5.00 Magnesia, .42 Carbonate of lime, 72.00 Organic matter and water, 2.00 99.42 Intermixed with this consolidated marl are many fragments of coprolites, forming with it a very singular conglomerate. If it should prove extensive, it would form an excellent ferti- lizer. This specimen \\as obtained of Dr. Togno, at his ex- perimental Vineyard. Another specimen of stone marl gave the following results: Silex, 27.40 Phosphate of lime and oxyde of iron, 1 .40 Magnesia. trace. Carbonate of lime, 60.00 Water and organic matter, 11.60 100.40 44. The marl stones, the composition of which 1 have just given, require grinding to fit them for use. When fine, 1 should regard their composition superior as fertilizers to the shell marl. Careful burning in a kiln will fit them for use. In doing this, caution should be exercised not to expose them to a heat sufficient to fuse them. The greater eflect which 77 materials have upon the soil, when fine, mi^ht pay the addi- tional expense required to bring them to tne condition of a fine powder. The beds of stone marl are quite limited patches of ordinary marl, consolidated by (he calcareous mat- ter they contain. In mass, and exposed to the air, after re- moval from the quairy, they become haid ; and in that con- dition they become quite good building stone, as well as a stone capable of resisting the heat of a fire without losing carbonic acid. MODE IN WHICH MARL AND LIME PRODUCE THEIR EFFECTS. 45. As the marls which have been described in the fore- going pages exert their influence upon vegetation, in part, by the carbonate of lime contained in them, it will not be out of place to speak of the mode, or modes, by which it is supposed to operate. Many theories have been proposed to account for the action of lime upon vegetation. It is even true that some maintain that its action is scarcely to be depended upon, or that it has any action at all. A gentleman remarked, at a meeting convened for the pur- pose of discussing matters relating to agriculture, that he had tried lime upon a sandy soil, and it did no good ; and he then 78 tried It upon a clay soil, and there it did no good ; and hence believed all that had been said upon the value of lime should be received with considerable deduction from the statements. Now, it so happened that both varieties of soil had been sub- jected to analysis, and it was proved that the sandy soil was quite deficient in organic matter, and that the clay soil was rich in lime, containing some three or four per cent. Now, it is conceded that one of the conditions icquired for the exhi- bition of favorable effects of lime is. that there should be or- ganic matter ; and, in the case of a soil already rich in an element, it is also proved that further additions of that ele- ment is not followed with visible results. Here were two cases, then, which had failed for want of judgment and knowledge in selecting the kind of soil upon which to apply a remedy, and an ignorance of the condition required to se- cure activity in the remedy itself. Undoubtedly, there are many disappointments of a similar kind, where experiments are tried, while ignorant of the condition necessary for the action of the remedy, or ignorant of the kind of soil upon which the experiment was tried. I. So far as the plant is concerned, lime operates favora- bly upon vegetation by supplying an element necessary to the subsistence of the vegetable. Analysis of the ash of any plant gives an amount of lime in the state of a carbonaie not that a carbonate is the condition the lime is in when a part of the living plant. Any of the organic acids, combined with lime, become carbonates in burning. One of the uses of lime is to supply one kind of nutriment. The amount re- quired by different parts of plants varies with the part. The outside integuments are richer in lime ihaa the seed or wooJy part ; and some plants require more lime than others. It is the food of the plant : and its use, so far as the plant is con- cerned, is all its use. But, 2. Its use and effects in the soil are not so simple as has been stated with respect to the plant. As an alkaline 79 earth, having a strong affinity for all acids, it combines with them, and forms a neutral salt ; and this salt, being soluble, is taken up by the roots. We need scarcely speak of its power to decompose astringent salts the proto-sulphate of iron, formed in those soils where pyrites exist, and which, when formed, are decomposed ; and we may thus find sul- phate of lime, gypsum, instead of sulphate of iron. 3. If, in soils abounding in peaty matter, organic acids are formed, these will combine with lime, as already stated. But these acids being formed, and coming in contact with the matter of the same origin, act as preservatives ; or they are termed antiseptic bodies, which prevent putrefaction. When neutralized, they cease to be antiseptics, or preservers, and the remainder of the unchanged matter goes speedily to decay. In this way, time promotes the decay of vegetable matter, and, at the same time, the salts formed become food for plants; and the salts formed are called organic salts of lime. So far, facts and theory support each other. 4. In the laboratory, lime acts as a solvent on silica ; but it requires a high temperature. It is supposed by some that it dissolves it in the soil. But a more rational explanation is, that it decomposes silicates, consisting of silicate of alumina, potash, and soda ; by which action, it brings silicate of potash into a soluble condition, forming also one of the elements necessary to the straw of wheat. These silicates are essential to the strength of the stems of grasses and cereals when deficient, they are weak and lodge. There is, how- ever, considerable obscurity on these points The affinity of lime for other bodies is strong, and it is rational to suppose that, in the soil, its action is not unlike that I have attempted to explain. 5. Resulting from its chemical action, there are physical effects upon the soil itself. No one need be deceived as to facts. Lime spread upon a stiff, well drained soil, makes it 80 light and loose. Now, this does not result from a mechanical mixture ; it comes from a prior chemical action, and the looseness is an effect due to that. It can be in no other way than that which results from decomposition. 6. Another effect of lime upon soils, especially when in combination with organic matter, is to give to light soils an increased retentiveness of water, and an increased power to absorb water. This I have proved by direct experiment. A merely pulverized limestone will not increase this power ; but marl, which is in a state of extreme subdivision, will, when it holds in combination organic matter. Hence, one of the effects of fine marl upon a loose sandy soil, is to give it a body, or a retentiveness of water. - Marl put into a hill of growing potatoes becomes a fertilizer, while lime would de- stroy the vitality of the seed by absorbing its organic water. Marl will absorb ammonia, and thereby furnish fertilizing matter. From the foregoing views, if correct, it appears that lime acts vitally, chemically ai d physically. Vital, in being a constituent element of plants ; chemical, in its action upon silicates arid organic matter ; physical, in imparting friability to argillaceous soils, and compactness to sandy ones. 7. The effects of quick lime and marl are not identical. They have, however, a common condition of the soil which is required foi their action. I have already spoken of this condi- tion : it is the presence of organic matter. I hold that or- ganic matter is essential to the formation of an organic ?alt y both soluble and suitable to the nature of vegetating matter. It i s proved by experiment, 1 believe, that thus far, the effect of marl and a sub-caustic lime may be identical. But sub-caustic and caustic limes are capable from their superior affinities for potash and soda, to do more in the line of chemical action than marl, especially upon argillaceous soils, where it may combine with, or as it is frequently called, liberate, potash ; and it is probable that marl may exert the same influence in a feeble degree. Marl ; however, from its complex character, secures effects of a different kind. Referring to the composition of any of 81 the shell marls, it will be observed, that in addition to carbo- nate of lime, it also contains phosphate of lime. It will be observed, too, that some of the samples of marls are compara- tively poor in carbonate of lime', but still they are represented as strong fertilizers; as producing in some instances four limes the amount of corn and cotton as would have been grown without them. From these and other facts looking the same way, it is probable that the effect ol mail is .as mucn due to phosphate of lime as to the carbonate ; and it may turn out that some of the argillaceous deposits which scarcely effervesce with acids, may yield a still larger amount of the phosphates than the marls, \vhicli give the largest quantity of lime. Hence, it will be important to look farther than the marls, and furnish chemists with all the varieties of deposits which are not essentially sandy. Potash, also, even the shell marls, should not be overlooked. The beds associated with the marls proper, are various, and they open afield of research and experiment for the planter and chemist. Any of the argillaceous beds may be used in experiment. It is an important circumstance, that, although sand is predominant, in a large part of the lower country, there are beds of clay and marl at hand, which may be employed' to correct this peculiarity. 46. Some of the beds of marl, or those which are over, or beneath them, are highly pyritous, or contain sulphuret of iron. This substance, when it decomposes, under ordinary circumstances, forms an astringent salt, which is injurious to vegetation, certainly_if in large quantities. But this substance is not to be thrown away and ejected into the streams. If its decomposition is effected in the midst of marl, and especially as a compost heap, it will give the farmer gypsum, a substance really important in all kinds of soils. Marl or lime is always the corrective of the astringent salts, such as copperas, or the sulphate of iron,orthesulpnate of alumina and potash, which may be furnished by stratas intermingled with pyrites. But small doses of sulphate of iron I believe to be useful : 6 82* hence, when pyrites fs disseminated in a bed of marl, I should esteem it so much the more ; and, if found to be too strong, it is easily corrected or weakened, as it may be called, by inter- mixture of pure marl, or the pure carbonate. There is a small circu mstance worth a passing notice. The marls contain bones, as all know very well ; and the laborers are in the habit of committing them to the waters, if upon the bank of the river or stream. As they are worth at least fifty cents per bushel, it will be economy to save them.. If broken into small pieces, and dissolved with oil of vitriol, the best of fertilizers is made. When dry, one hundred pounds of bone require twenty-five pounds of acid for solution. This amount when well mixed with gypsum, or any neutral substance, to dry it and give it bulk, is sufficient for half an acre. But the bones, at present, are worth still more as objects of natural curiosity, and should be preserved for that purpose. Sulphuric acid will cost three dollars per hundred weight ; it may be procured in the larger towns for two dollars and fifty cents per hundred weight. The object, in using oil of vitriol, is to make the bones soluble, by which immediate effects follow. 47. The details relating to agriculture, which are spread out upon the foregoing pages, embrace those general facts which were observed and collected during a reconnoissance of several months. Although they may not contain all the in- formation which many, and perhaps most, of the readers of this Report desire, and have reason to expect, still, I believe the way is prepared for pursuing inquiries to better advantage than before : and which will conduce to a system of agricul- ture which shall be better adapted to the special condition of the soil, climate, productions, and labor employed in the part of the country and State under consideration. Climate is a consideration which should not be disregarded, It must always modify and change, more or less, thesystemsof husbandry. If disregarded by the agriculturists, it will be afe a cost aad sacrifice of something valuable. If the soil is dis- 83 regarded, it will be a loss in the crop; and neither can the cha- racter of the laborers, their capacities and strength, be left out of the account in making up our minds on the best systems of culture and of crops. It is of the utmost importance, to be correctly informed of the systems of culture, and the kind of crops most in use in foreign countries. But the entire system of means and ends should also be brought together m this information. When we are told, for the first time, of the great value of the turnip crop in England, it at once wakes up incentives to adopt it here. When the system of agriculture, which ispui- sued in England or Flanders, is lepresented to us, there are strong temptations to adopt it, before we know the peculiar causes which have led to its general adoption in those coun- tries. The kind of labor, the cost of labor, the intelligence and capacity of laborers, are important items of information, before we can safely decide upon the question of adoption or rejection. The culture of roots for feeding stock is carried to perfection in England, and it is a means of wealth. But whether the means would crown the end, in this country, is quite questionable. England enjoys a humid climate ; and vegetables, among which is corn, scarcely ripen at all. But, supposing it would ripen occasionally, can an uncertain crop become profitable ? If corn would ripen every season, would the turnip and root system of husbandry prevail there? and may not roots, as food, suit better in the climate of England, than in the drier and less steady climate of America? 48. I wish to inculcate and enforce the following doctrine : that every country, of sufficient extent to possess an individu- ality, favors certain productions ; and, in order to carry these productions to the highest points of perfection to which they are susceptible, it may be done at a less cost in money and labor there than anywhere else ; labor and money, laid out when circumstances are favorable, than when they are unfa- rorable. But systems, often, have certain advantages which may be adopted ; and an eclectic 33 stem, properly methodized and adapted to circumstances, may become, in every country,. 84 the bes! of systems. English husbandry, fully adopted in almost any part of our country, would fail in its ends ; but there are points in it which may be adopted anywhere, and should be everywhere. The application of mind, and the bestowment of thought, on husbandry and syslematic agriculture, is what is most wanted. That, combined with facts and a knowledge of the principles involved in husbandry, will give direction to means and expenditure of labor and money to profitable results. The pursuit of agriculture, thus conducted, places the business on a level with the professions , and secures to the individual the same standing and influence which they have, and the mental ability to cope with them in the arena where mind alone controls and governs. GEOLOGICAL POSITION AND RELATION OF THE TERTIARY BEDS GEOLOGICAL -TIME- MEANING AND ORIGIN OF THE TERMS, EOCENE, MIOCENE, ETC., AND USE OF THE WORD SYSTEM, ETC. 49. The marls have been consideied thus far as deposi- tories of those elements which only interest the agriculturist ; or as bodies containing those fertilizers, which are adapted to restore wasted lands to their original agricultural capacities. But there are other points which interest many persons j other inquiries relating to those deposits, in addition to thoso of 85 which 1 have been speaking : it is their age, their relations to each other, and to other deposits, which may be in immediate proximity, or at a distance. Enquiries of this sort bring up many questions questions which, at first sight, seem very easy to be disposed of, but which, on closer inspection, are found beset with many unexpected difficulties. However this may be, I remark, that these enquiries relating to the age of the strata, or to the system and series of rocks, and where they geologically belong, are not, in this region, easily deter- mined. Opinions upon the question I have stated, have been expiessed by the distinguished Professor Mitchell, of Chapel Hill, and by Mr. Conrad of Philadelphia, and others; and it is highly probable that these gentlemen are right in the main; but whether their views may not require a partial modification is yet to be seen. It is to be recollected that these strata of marl are scattered over an extended surface, and are disconnected with each other : they are isolated beds, lying in a belt of country, at least four hundred miles from North to South, and two hundred miles in breadth, in its widest part ; and that the slight disturbance which this belt has undergone, since the era of the green sand, is too slight to show uncom- formability. We are therefore obliged to settle the question, by reference to the fossils of the beds, and the animals now living in the Atlantic ; relying upon the determination of the ratio of the dead to the living species. 50. But, before I proceed to speak of the age of these deposits, it seems necessary to make some preliminary explanation. When we sp^ak of age in geology, the idea of time is involved, and the question might well be put, how long a time, or how many years ago is it, since these strata of marl were deposited. Time, when it enters as an element in geological reasoning, is not expressed absolutely, but relatively. Time, considered as an. element in human affairs, is both absolute and relative. It is absolute in all our calculations, because it has its units. A rot ition of the earth upon its axis is the unit; and its revo- 86 lution round the suri is three hundred and sixty-five and one- fourth of this unit. As it is the movements of stars which give us the unit, it is called sidereal time ; and all events which have transpired since man was created, is measured by this unit, obtained from the observations upon their motion. We have data, therefore, for absolute time. In the history of man, then, there are two facts not known in geological time, a unit and a starting point. Geologists have sought for a unit, but have failed. Sir Charles Lyell has counted the layers in the 'sediments of the Mississippi, and measured the suspended mud in its wa- ters, which it annually brings to the sea. Rationally, it car- ried him back forty thousand years, since they began to be formed ; but the unit was still problematical. He has counted the steps of the Niagara, as it has receded from a lower to an upper lake; but the steps are unequal. It can give us no unit in its march. Unlike the earth and planets, which ro. tate in equal time, or which revolve in great circles, and re- turn to the starting points in equal time, the geological move- ments of all kinds are unequal, and their perturbations so great that they give us no unit to measure geological revolu- tions by. For us, space too is a unit, and it gives us a meas- ure for time ; so that time is space, and space is lime bu* geology cannot convert space into time, nor time into space. 51 . But geologists have sought for units in life ; the search wa* foiled. Even man, whose life is most exalted, gives no true measure, no unit, either in his individuality, or in the sum and aggregate of his generations. Here, we can scarcely refuse to inquire, why geology gives us no unit by which t o count the years of the earth? But then the enquiry is futile : and we can only say, that it can have no final cause it can have no practical use. But the determination of relative time is of immense use it is practical. ft has a practical application to the relations of our corn fields, our iron and our marls. Time then, in geology, is only relative, as it has no unit. If we take geological movements ipward space, or horizontal space, we find these move- ments have taken unequal times ; and, in equal times, the movements have been unequal. Vertical elevations may amount to three feet in a century, and the sediments may ac- cumulate thirty feet in thickness in five centuries ; and yet, when centuries are compared, both the sediment and the ver- tical lise are unequal in equal times. The chronology, then, of. the earth, is computed relatively: time, which measures its history, is divided into unequal periods, and those periods have visible representations in the sediments of its crust. Their super- position upon one another, exhibits their relationship to the eye, and the contemporaniety is proved by (he oneness of their products, and the sameness of their representatives of a former life the remains of the dead entombed in the rock-, whose formation was in progress when they were the sole possessors of earth. 52. Taking the visible representation alluded to, as time, in i\ geological sense, our computations are made possible by breaks in the series. The}' are not, however, like the contin- ous and regular clicks of a chronometer, which divide out the time into parts of a unit ; the breaks not only separate physically the visible representations, but put to a stand- still the currents then bearing onward humbler forms of life, and their burthens of matter. The break is an upward movement, and it marks the end of a dynasty. Strange as it may seem, the earth's crust is marked by sychronous breaks, almost universal. Breaks which pursue the directions of mountain chains are sychronous; and parallel mountains are formed by sychronous breaks and elevations. After all, (here is the semblance of law in the movements and breaks, which have seared the earth's crust, and brought to an end the existing order of things. The area of sediments is changed the direction of the rivers is changed the life, as it is re- presented in species, is extinguished and changed. But, again, after the turmoil attendant upon change has passed life begins to be lit up in new abodes ; ami as each 88 break is followed by new physical relations, the life which appears is modified to fit the change. Species are, therefore, ne\v ; typical forms remain ; and the great types upon which life, and its various forms, were to be represented , are pre- served. The great scheme upon which life and its phenomena were to be displayed, has never been broken or departed from. Each break, and the new sediments which follow, indicate a new period, having its beginning in the lowest of the strata : and, as these new sediments are going on, life is still ebbing and flowing, and the individuals which are dying are en- tombed in the accumulating wastes of the older continents. The breaks,, then, mark the outgoing and the incoming of new systems. The space spanned by two breaks is one of the unequal periods in the earth's history and progress. The distinguished French Geologist computes no less than twenty- seven breaks, which have destroyed the existing and living Saurians ; each break approaching to universality in their effects. The earth's crust is a sepulchre. Its sediments, which are ten miles thick ; are full of the relics of plants and animals. 53 As we are unable then, to compute in years, when the present order ol things began, or when the lower orders of animals first appeared upon the earth, Sir Charles Lyell has proposed to express the simple relations of the past to the present, by words adapted to that purpose. Observing* for example, that the chalk beds are destitute of any species of animals and plants, which now exist, and that the succeed- ing beds contain them, he takes his starting point from the latter, and atte'mpts to express their relations to the present,, by terms of comparison. The mode of proceeding, in order to determine the comparative expression was, first to ascer- tain the whole number of species of fossils in the beds, and then ascertain how many are living in the seas of the pre- sent day. In 1830, the number of species known and des- cribed in the beds next above the chalk, was 1238. The number, since that period,, has increased to 5000 at least. 80 Of this large number, three and a half to four per cent., are living now. The small number, then, ascertained as the surviving species, which have resisted the change and revo- lutions of the globe, indicate an approach to the condi- tions which now exist upon the earth's surface, and it has been regarded therefore, as the dawn of the present. The word Eocene, which means literally the dawn, is applied to those bed?, or that formation which has preserved from three and a half to four per cent, of the species which now live. It is applied to the lower beds of the tertiary system. The beds which are typical ol this part of the system, un- derlie Paris and London, and, being basin-shaped, they have been called the Paris and London basins. The former was the field in which the celebrated Cuvier labored, whose name and labors have conferred honors upon the French nation. But time moves on; and the next step in the suc- ceeding series shows an advance ; they contain seventeen per cent, cf species or kinds, which live in our present seas. The strata containing this per centage, repose directly upon the Eocene. As the proportion of ihe dead to the living, bears still a small ratio to the living, or is a minor propor- tion still, of the dead to the living, the formation is called Miocene. The rocks which succeed and rest upon the lat- ter, are called Pliocene meaning that the proportion &[ the living is more than the dead. When the per centage of living species is thirty-five and fifty per cent , the term is qualified, and is called either "older or lower Pliocene; aiid, as the per centage still increases, in the succeeding de- posits, and rises as high as ninety- five, the portion of the series is denominated newer or upper Pleiocene. Certain beds which compose the Sub-Appenine hills, and which are very thick, and attain an elevation of fifteen hundred feet, belong to the latter. It would be interesting here, to illus- trate the slow accumulations of those beds, for the purpose of imparting a correct view of the great length of time which passed while the beds were being deposited ; but,. I can only state the fact j and then proceed to say, that ever 90 since the full dawn of the present, beds of immense thick- ness have accumulated in a slow manner, filled with marine and terrestrial animals, most of which are identical with the present. But it is found on careful exploration, that oven in these modern deposits, one or more species out of a hundred, have become extinct; and that some of the living ones have undergone a slight change ; some which are quite small now, were formerly large. Causes then still operate which produce a change in a minor degree, and which alter those characters which are the most susceptible of the influence of physical agents. Those modern deposits, which furnish evidences of slight changes, are called Post- pliocene. 54. The names, the origin, meaning and application of which I have given, are subordinate beds of the tertiary system. It has been separated from the older upon which it reposed, because all of its beds or sub divisions contain some few species which are not extinct ; the lowest or old- est furnishing (he smallest proportion, yet constant, of all the others which succeed ; the newest, the largest propor- tion; and, as succession is proved by the position of the bed, one above the other, so we may infer that there has been, or was progress also. This is shown, by facts which have not been stated, viz : the increase in number and rise in rank of the terrestrial 'animals, which only began to figure in the tertiaries. This progress is indicated by the increase of those kinds of animals whose physical constitutions ap- proximate very closely to man. 55. Notwithstanding the plausibility of the arrange, ment, and sub divisions of the tertiary beds and the eupho- ny of the terms, Eocene and Miocene, &c., applied to them respectively, it cannot fail to impress us that it is artificial and arbitrary. For this reason, probably, we find it diffi- cult to apply it to the tertiaries of the Atlantic coast. It seems to be more applicable to European tertiaries ; and, it 91 is very possible, that it is because they are better known than ours. It is' not impossible to apply the scheme to our formations, when considered by themselves; but, we do not succeed as yet in fixing the relations which our tertiaries bear to those of Europe. It is, however, a popular scheme, and has been adopted by our Geologists and writers; and hence, it will be difficult to replace it by any other, even if ( it should be founded upon characters more natural and less arbitrary. 56. In this connexion, it will not perhaps be amiss, to explain the word systemmoTQ fully than I have yet; though its geological meaning will not probably be misapplied. A geological system is a series of rocks, forming a subordinate part of the earth's crust, which were formed and consolida- ted during a period when the physical conditions were the same, or nea'rly so. As there are many systems; it is im- plied in this definition, that the earth's crust has* been sub- ject to change; and that the periods are marked, in the be- ginning and ending of these periods, by certain changes which they have undergone. We know thein-comings and out-goings of periods, by phenomena visible in the rocks ; they are tablets containing the recoids ; and it is a remark- able fact, that the records are not confine'd to physical chan- ges ; they also extend to, and embrace, those which concern the species of plants and animals of each, 57. It is agreeable to observation, that a vertical move- ment of the rocks is accompanied by a decided change in the kinds of animals and plants which had previously lived ; they becoming mostly extinct, while their successors will differ from them in kind. Now, our definition of a system, and the remarks following it, seem to make the vegetable and animal kingdoms subordinate to the physical or inor- ganic kingdom; in other words, that both are controlled by physical forces ; and that these forces beii-g modified in in- tensity, are the causes which are instrumental in destroy- 92 ing. the existing kinds ; and, also, of favoring certain, spe- cial kinds in the succeeding system ; or, th-at the latter are consequents of the antecedents referred to. The changes of species, resulting, as is supposed, from move- ments of the earth's crust, will not appear strange, when we are informed that it at once involves a changejin climate ; a change in the humidity and dryness of the atmosphere ; a change as to heat and cold ; all of which exert, upon all kinds of living matter, important effects. Life requires the presence of certain elements, as oxygen, carbon/ etc., and also, an apparatus upon which the elements act, as the lungs, stomach, etc. These must remain, in some form, whatever change takes place- But life may continue under an infin- ity of modification of apparatus, and we may suppose, that the modifications of this kind are intended to adapt species to the minor conditions of life and their fluctuations aris- ing from changes in the earth's crust. All the important and controlling elements still in force species of both king- doms live on the minor changes n'ot affecting life in the abstract, but only the form of the apparatus. Minor fluc- tuations affect only external forms of apparatus ; the differ- ent species are characterized by these modified external forms. The origin of species is consistent with changes ia% the position of the earth's crust, and its relations to water, which modify th'e condition of the atmosphere, the temper- ature of the ocean, and its depth. These conspire to modify the causes which fit the media, in which organic bodies live and move, to execute the functions of life on the best and easiest terms. * Sir Charles has proved that the temperature and humidity of any given place are modified by proximity to the ocean or to waters, and by height; and the creation of new species is required to fit them for those alterations consequent on the change in vertical height. 58. Vertical rno'/ements are indicated by breaks in the series, which for the most part run in certain directions 93 for great distances. The Appalachian chain of mountains, the Blue Ridge, are instances which show a vertical move- ment at some former period, accompanied with breaks, or fractures of the earth's crust. Both the range and fractures are parallel, and extend through many degrees of latitude. \ut many chains traverse the earth's crust; all accompanied with breaks of the strata. These pursue different direc- tions: and it seems that there is a law involved in these facts: for example : those chains which run in the same direction were elevated at the same time ; the force beneath, which produced the breaks, or whatever that form may have been,, operated simultaneously in one direction. The forces have been operative continuously, or in paroxysms. When in paroxysms, the period of activity is short, followed with long intervals of repose ; when operative continuously, the period of activity is long. The paroxysmal modify the minor conditions of life speedily; while the slow scarcely produce distinguishable effects in the historical era, and not at all in the life of man. I see no objections to the foregoing views, the subjection of species or life to physical forces and elements; for it does not imply that final causes, respecting those forces, had no reference to life. They precede life in the order of time ; but the entire machinery may have been devised, and put in operation, with the sole reference to life which was to come, and to give dignity and importance to those forces, and to the arena upon which life, and its attributes, were to be displayed. 94 BEDS AND STRATA BELONGING TO THE TER- TIARY OF THE LOWER COUNTIES. 60. The periods represented by the shell marl befas, or the fossiliferous deposits being included, and except the green sand, are : 1st. Post Pliocene; 2d. Pliocene;, 3d. Mio- cene; 4th Eocene ' r beneath which, repose the green san.js, which belong to the system known as the cretaceous, or chalk or cretaceous system. 1. POST PLIOCENES. -Under this head, I include all those beds ranging along the sea margin of the Atlantic slope. They consist of isolated beds of the recent oysters, con- taining, also,, the more common molusca of the coast ; but the most common by far, are the common oyster, (Ostrea edulis,) and common clam, (Venus rnercenaria.) They are known as oyster beds. They are usually regarded as col- lections and accumulations oi shells by the Indian tribes formerly occupying the coast. This view may be sustain- ed in some instances, but it often happens, that the-accu- mulation or beds are too extensive, and contain, withal, a mixture more accordant with that view which ascribes them to the operations of nature which regards them as bds made up of individuals which grew upon the spots where \ve now find them, and which .have suffered a vertical movement which has raised them above the level of ths- ocean. The beds occupy the more eleva f ed points, or the rounded eminences ;. which, while submerged, were the summits of low hills, below the agitations of the waves, It is needless now to dwell upon the characteristics of these beds. They are clearly, and without doubt, to be refered to the Post Pliocene ; and, though they may be regarded as possessing the characters of the present species now occupying the coast, still 5 it is not difficult to n.d in-- 95 dividuals which are very large among tbe^'common-sized ones; and there are even' beds, all the individuals of which are larger than those now living upon the coast. Near Newbern, beds of very large oysters occur, especially on the plantation of Mr. Pasteur. It is highly probable, that different beds were elevated 'at different times ; and hence those farther inland, all things being equal, are older than those immediately upo-n the beach. 61. It may, at first, appear a startling statement, that our coast is subject ta variations of level. Of the truth of this view, however, there can be no doubt; so numerous are the phenomena indicating vertical movements, that it has, at many points, become common belief. A subject of so much interest is worthy of tarther con- sideration. I spoke of a vertical movement, as if this com- prehended all the facts of the case. This is not so. The facts go to show that there are oscillations that there have been both upward and downward movements. The upward movement is proved by the existence of raised beaches of sand and shingle, and beds of oysters and clams 50 or 75 feet below low water mark. The downward move- * ment is proved by the remains of submerged forests, con- sisting mostly of the stump of the present pine which grows along the coast. This downward movement is far from being confined t-o a few miles of coast ; it affects both Sounds their entire length. The stumps are now to be seen in shore : some at high water mark ; others at low water : and more standing far in, and constantly submerged. So common are these old stumps, that the fishermen are obliged to incur a great expense in clearing off these sub- merged stumps from the bottom of both Sounds as there is. no fishing ground which is free of them. At the present, it is perhaps impossible to determine which way the Sounds are- moving. I am of opinion that there is not a uniformity in 96 this respect ; that, while parts 41137 be actually sinking, others are rising, or stationary. The street along the wa- ter's edge, in Beaufort, was laid out many years ago, and marked by cannon, set as posts, deeply in the sand. One portion of this street is constantly beneath water now, as if there had been a change of level since the street was laid out. 62. While upon the subject of change of level of the great Sounds, Albemaile and Pamlico, it will not be foreign to the subject, to notice the change which has taken plac^ in the saltness of the waters of the Sounds. This is not sup- posed to arise from a change of level a subsidence though subsiding is not to be left out of view. It is attributed mainly to the opening of new inlets, by which the ocean's waters have a freer communication with the sounds. The freshness of these waters had become such, that marine shell-fish had died out ; but since the opening of the new inlet, the waters are in the act of being peopled again with marine animals. We cannot but notice, in these facts, what has taken place in other parts of the world, and other times than our own where many alternations of fresh and salt water had occurred, each containing the fossils peculiar to that state. 63. But to return to the Post Pliocene deposits. I remark, that they do not contain the bones of extinct land quad- rupeds, such as the mastodon, elephant, horse, &c. that is, none have as yet been discovered in them, though sought for. It goes to prove that these quadrupeds had already become extinct, prior to their formation ; or, I may say, the evidence leans strongly that way, when all the facts are told. The coast oyster banks are the latest form- ations the newest : -and probably their elevation or re- clamation from the oceanic waters has been effected in times only just anterior to the historical period. 97 64. There is what may be called a deposit upon the banks of the Koanoke, which is worthy of notice, for this reason: it marks distinctly the difference of deposits, which have been made in geological time, from those made in ab- solute time. This deposit consists of fresh water shells, and contains along with them the bones oi the turtle, alligator, turkey, dog, deer, and those of man ; together with the rude utensils common to the savage state. It is a bank, one fourth of a mile long, and twelve rods wide, and raised eight feet above the adjacent plain. The part abounding in these remains, is about four feet thick. This notice of a formation is important only as illustrative of the distinction between the ancient beds and the modern, containing the bones of man, together with his implements of war. and his apparatus for cooking. It is characteristic of all deposits, the world over, which contain the remains of man. blended with the remains of animals, all of which are now living; all going to prove that man has not been nn inhabitant of the earth only for a short period; inasmuch, too, as his re- mains are found in none of the formations containing ex- tinct species f either land or marine animals. 65. The Post Pliocene beds are co-extensive with the Atlantic coast. They are naked beds; or with the slight covering of vegetable mould which rarely exceeds eighteen inches usually less I have seen large trees growing over the beds ; but, in many places, they are naked wastes as at 'Nagshead. These wastes are often exposed to the furious Northeast winds which sweep over the sands and hills, and bear them inland It will be seen, then, that a beach is not wholly raised by vertical movements effected by a subterranean force. Upon the Carolina coast, the breakers carry forward the sand ; and, when they flow up the inclined plane, the sand is spread out with great even- ness, and then left there by the receding or retiring wave. The wind, when strong, sweeps overt he dry and loose sand, and bears it still farther : when it becomes drifting sand. The coast gains more than it loses; and not only are the sands brought up, but pieces of wrecks of vessels, iron bolti, spikes, etc,; and even silver coins, from the sunken wrecks, are sometimes found. A spear or fishing tackle, which is lost overboard some 20 or 30 rods out, will be sure to be found upon the beach in two or three days. This, perhaps will not happen on all shores ; but those formed and acted upon, like those at Nagshead, favor such a result. 66. PLIOCENE. Anterior to the post pliocene, the beds which were deposited, whether in small basins, or in the form of irregular belts skirting the seashore, or in caverns, where terrestrial remains of extinct quadrupeds are found, have received the name pliocene. The pliocene admits of a sub-division; and has been designated, according to position : the oldest and inferior, as it contains a larger pro- portion of extinct species than living ones, is called older pliocene : the superior, which contains fewer extinct than living ones, is the newer pliocene. Pliocene beds are not unfrequent in North-Carolina ; but the beds which I now regard as pliocene, are not fully determined as such : as the evident intermixture of fossils of pre-existing formations, and the present uncertainty of the species now living upon the coast, renders the appli- cation of the rule of per centage uncertain : And I may go farther, and question whether it is not impracticable to draw lines of demarkation between the pliocene and the miocene strata, lor the same reasons. Following, however, the guides which have preceded me, I shall refer certain beds to boih divisions of the tertiary the pliocene and miocene without attempting, however, to show to which division of the pliocene any of the marl beds belong. 99 67. To the pliocene, I refer certain beds near Newberm -those upon the plantation of Mr. Donnell. To the miocene, I refer the beds upon the Tossnot and Little Coa- tentney Creeks, in the upper part of the valley of the Neuse, and between the Neuse and Tau rivers. In the beds upon the Tossnot and Little Contentney, I found the ear bones of whales, (cetacea,) probably true whales, of the family Balcenidoz. and their vertebrae ; and also bones of the mastodon ; and a species of Orbicula, differing from the only recent one I know. Those of Fish- ing Creek, a tributary of the Tau, may, also, be referred, perhaps, to the older pliocene; but not certainly. Those of Fishing Creek contain pectens, which are referred to the miocene by Mr. Coarad. The investigation requires to be continued. To the miojene, also, I refer the beds at Rocky Mount, Tauboro', and Goldsboro'. The bones of vertebrated ani- mals are found in all of the beds at the localities, particularly those belonging to the mastodon. We are obliged to refer the mastodon giganticum to the miocene : the tooth, or portion of one I procured at Tossnot is not the tooth of the N. Augustidens : but we have associated, with these bones, the large pectens, P. MADISONIUS, &c. The section at Tauboro' exhibits the following strata : 1. Sand, at the water's edge. 2. Clay, containing lignite. 3. The shell marl, with abundance of pectens, P. Madisonius, eight feet, contains the fossils ; and three or four feet of clay, without fossils. 4. Sand and gravel intermixed. The marl contains coprolites. Rocky Mount furnishes a similar section, with similar fossils, resting on granite. 100 Near Newbern, the beds which have been referred to as pliocene, contain fulgur canaliculatus, and fusus quadricos. tat us, (mioccne fossils,) astarte uatica, fissurella, calyptrea, pectusculus, &c. ; the large beds of the other pectens be- ing absent. The fossils of the Newbern beds, already spo- ken of, on the plajitatior of the Hon. Mr. Donnell, contain a large number of shells which 1 am unable to distinguish from those of the coast. Mr Donnell's beds are white, loose beds with crumbling shells, more or less chalky, in consequence of being above water. The opening is re- cent the bottom had not been reached. A fragment of a bone of the mastodon was found also in this place. We can scarcely avoid comparing this marl, with its accompanying fossils, with the crag of Suffolk. The re- markable display of sands, gray, red and brown, embraced in these beds, assimilate the entire formation of ihis age upon our coast to the crags of Suffolk, (England,) and the fohluns of Touraine, in France 68. The beds of marl, upon the Cape-Fear, at Eliza- beth ; at Walker's Bluff; those of Messrs. Lassai^ne, Cro- marty, and others, have also been reienul to ihe miocene period. At Elizabeth, the strata are various; consisting of sand, clay, with light sandstone, marl, &c. &c., termin- ating with colored sands, as follows : 1. Sands at the bottom of the cliff; gray and thin seams of clay, and some lignite. 2. Bluish and sandy marl, pyritous. 3. Thin btds of coprolites, pebbles mixed with shells and sand. 4. Consolidated sand, with fossils, area. 5. Marl, three or four feet thick. 6. Ferruginous sand, with diverse stratifi- cation. 7. Blue clay. 101 8. Surface sands, of various colors, twenty- five feet. 9. Between ihe clay and surface, same red conglomerate of Fayetteville. It thins out before it reaches Elizabeth, being the surface sand, which is very thick in the pine forests, and rests upon tno thin stra- tum of blue clay. It is probable that the marl rests upon the upper eocene. The changes from the sands below, the rolled pebbles and coprolites at the bottom of the marl, indicate a change, and show the propriety of separating the upper from the lower beds of the blutf or bank. The beds of Elizabeth, Bladen County, abound in teeth of placoid fishes a single tooth of chacharodon mealodon, saurian teeth, and a middle portion of thigh bone of a large saurian But, as the teeth and bones are more abundant among the rounded stone, it looks highly probable that they may have been derived from some older rock. $ 69. At Brown's Landing, the b?d of marl in the bank contains fossils of the same kind as at Elizabeth arid Wal- ker's Bluff; and also contains many individuals of the exogyra costala, a fossil regarded as characteristic of the green sand, (cretaceous.) These individuals are in a fine state of preservation some large, and others small but none of them have been rolled on a beach. Both valves are together, and the fossil is in a perfect condition. No belemnite, an almost constant associate, has as yet been lound at this olace. Notwithstanding the presence of ihe exogyra, I am disposed to regard this bed. .as well as those above, as miocene ; on the ground that these beds are de- rived from the green sund. This view is supported by the fact, that one fourth of the bed is made up of the particles of this cretaceous rock. In the same position I place the marl of Mr. McDowell, one mile from Brown's Lauding, 102 the marl of Miss Andress, where the exogyra abounds, both young and old, associated with an oliva, identical* I believe, with the one living on our coast, near the Fort at Smithville. $ 70. Whatever may be the result of inquiries respecting the age of the shell marl deposits, it is plain that the only mode by which satisfactory results can be reached, is, by a copious collection from all the beds ; and, from the coast, ot all living species. This should be undertaken ; tor the questions are involved in obscurity and doubt ; and although this course does not appear to advance the economical objects of the Survey, still, it usually turns out, that what appears, at firsU only a scientific interest, does, in the end, promote, also, the practical application of the facts discov- ered, or already known. The majority of the shell marls of North-Carolina are referred to the miocene period, by Professor Mitchell who is sustained by Mr. Conrad, of Philadelphia. Those of this subdivision of the tertiary, which are far inland, as those at Elizabeth, contain very few, if any, of the molusca of the green sand, and, perhaps, very few of the eocene; while farther below, as at Brown's Landing, the lower fossils are very common, and they appear as much at home there as any ef their associates. It is probable, then, that this oc- currence is due to the proximity of the beds to which they belong. It should be observed, that these deposits of shell marl are in banks which does not favor the view gener- ally entertained that they reposed in and upon the strata upon which they lived and died. They seem, rather, to be beds formed by the action of waves, which have piled them together in great disorder though .hey are not water worn 71 EOCENE The lowest, or oldest bed, which I am able to refer to this formation, consists of pebbles rounded by attrition. They are beds from fifteen to twenty feet 108 thick ; and, at their western outcrop, form rounded hills, as at and in the vicinity of Carthage, in Moore County. Similar beds and eminences traverse the State. In the vallies of the Koanokeand Dan rivers, they extend beyond Leaksville. They overlap the pyrocrystalline rocks, the granites, and gold slates, lying beyond the fossiliferous beds, which succeed them in the ascen< ing order. The extension, eastwaidly, towards the coast, cannot be marked or determined very satisfactorily. Thin beds of rounded pebbles are known beneath the fossiliferous beds i but nothing interesting has been elicited concerning them. The pebbles are pure quartz ; derived from the quartz veins of the gold slates. In many places, the pebbles are cemented together by iron ;-*-the coarser and finer sands are also cemented, forming a pudding stone. These cemented masses have taken various imitative forms : as tubes, balls, cups, &c. The quantity of iron investing the clay and sand is sufficiently large to pay for extracting it for working. It olten furnishes good lirnonite. The origin of tie cemented beds must be due to ferruginous springs, which have ceased to flow; but which bring up the carbonated oxyde, and flowing 1 subsequently through and over the beds, have filled the intf rstices with ferrugin- ous matter. This, adhering strongly to the stones and sand, by this means has formed, finally, a pudding stone, by cementation.* The ancient beds, which consist of rounded stones and coarse gravel, with only obscure lines of stratificaiion, are called shingle beds. They mark the beginning of a new order of things ; and, hence, are impor- tant, as a means for defining the boundaries of systems or formations. The term pudding stone has long 1 been in use j and I apply the word to cemented masses formed above water; while the term conglomerate is applied to those cemented masses, or cohering peobles, which have been formed be- neath the water. 104 Thin beds should never be regarded as similar, in their origin, to norther drift, or transported rocks, or transport- ed gravels and sand ; at least, in the mode in which mate- rials, which have the same form, at the North, have been transported. There is not a boulder or a drift bed in North-Carolina. The masses which have been moved in this and other Southern States have been by means of rivers and oceanic waves those means which exist now, and are in operation under our eyes. But, to return to the ancient shingle beaches I observe that they form the outer rim of all the ternary deposits a rim which, it is true, may be interrupted in places; but they range in a line, and cross the State to the westward of the first fell of the principal rivers which drain the Atlantic slope. 72. The beds which succeed the former, are clays and sands of a greenish color, cherty clays and marls, to- gether with interrupted beds of consolidated marl. The latter assumes the condition of a porous rock, sufficiently hard to form a building stone. It is an impure limestone carbonate of lime forms about three-fourths of the rock. Soft marl underlies the rock. The tlrckness of all the beds which I now regard as eocine, is not well determined the limestone, or upper part of it, is only five, six. and perhaps ten feet, in some places. At Col. Collier's plantation, near Goldsboro', 't is only five or six feet. The lithologicnl characters vary very much at different points; and sandy beds are replaced by cherty ones, or the cherty clays and liVnestone. At Wilmington the rock is extiemely tough and hard though porous It is highly silicious. Beneath this, is a softer portion, made up of carbonate of lime, which is in- termixed with broken and rolled cnprolites; forming a conglomerate. This portion of it is highly valuable as a fertilizer, and has been employed as such by Dr. Togno, 105 at his vineyard near Wilmington. This gentleman's en- terprise is one of great importance; and the results of his experiments will be, to throw lioht, not only on the marls as fertilizers, but upon the vine and other fruits which will bear cultivation in this State. 73. At Wilmington, the fossils consist of scutilloe royersi ; one or two species of echinodens ; teeth of the genus charcharodon sulciiens, galeocerda pristodontus* lamna elegans, &c. the latter of whish are by far the most numerous. The teeth of sharks, which are so numerous, and of which I procured many species, lie in greater num. bers at the bottom of the higher and newer deposits. They should be regarded here as characteristic only of the oldest formations in which they are found. Their hardness and form favors very much this removal from the older to the newer rocks, wherever the latter derive a por- tion of their materials from the former. 74. Some of the eocene, as well as the miocene, beds, contain numerous bones ; these are generally broken even the thickest are broken to pieces, some six or eight inches in length ; thus , the femur of a saurian, one and a half inches in diameter, was broken into three pieces the ribs of a whale into pieces about eight inches long. In these fractures, we observe the spicula of bone, still sharp, and never rounded or worn. These fragments are found embedded with delicate unbroken shells a fact which throws considerable obscurity upon the causes which have broken them ; for it does not appear, irorn any phenomena, that these beds are subjected to a disturb- ance, or to a force, since deposited in the beds in which the' now repose, which could possibly break such strong bones into such short pieces; especially when delicate shells are presented entire. And it does not appear that they have been subjected to attrition, to the action of waves or stones. 106 75. It has been generally supposed, that the bones of the whale, and mastodon, are found in the superficial cov- erings, in those beds which are of the same age with those at the North. Now, the mastodon is found in the fresh water marl of New York, and other localities ; or in beds which repose upon that stratum called drift; and which is entirely wanting here. But, in North Carolina, they are found in the miocene, or older pliocene. The species of mastodon seems to be the one which is found in New York. The question comes up, are these Southern beds of the same age with the fresh water marl beds of the North ? The latter are regarded as post pliocene. The bones of the horse and deer are also found in the same beds with the mastodon, and belong to the same age. I procured a grinder of the horse, at Greenville, in the sandy strata, just above the miocene marl. All the extinct deer and oxen, in New York, are found, also, in the fresh water marls; associated with the freshwater shells; the species of which are now living in our lakes and ponds ; and yet, the quadrupeds, in both formations one in the South, the other in the North are all entirely extinct. If it should turn out, that the mastodon in the North Carolina marls is a species, specifically different from that of the fresh water marls of the North, the case would not involve the question of comparative age of the beds in which they occur. If the species are the same, it is difficult to reconcile the fact with the present views of Geologists upon that subject ; the age of deposits as deduced from their fos- sils. 76. It is impossible to define at this time, the limits of the eocene beds It is difficult to sub-divide the formation clearly, though it appears, that, it admits of the same di- vision, as in Alabama and Mississippi the cherty portion beneath, and the consolidated marl, or the marl stone above. But this part furnishes very few fossils. There is still a 107 mass, quite sandy, similar in outward appearance to the green sand, which forms a feature, which should not be overlooked, in making the natural division of the strata* For agricultural purposes, the best beds are the marl stones ; or those immediately beneath, which are sprinkled with fragments of coprolites. When first removed from their beds, they are soft, and easily crushed. When they have been exposed to the atmosphere, and have lost their water, they become hard, and crush with difficulty. They may perhaps answer a good purpose in building and construe, lion. THE GREEN SAND AND ITS GEOLOGICAL RE- LATION. 77. A substance which is well known to every person, in the form and under the name of chalk, is a rock which has given the name to the system, of which the green sand is a member. But the chalk itself does not exist in the United States. And the system, to which the green sand belongs, has its principal representative, in the inferior or oldest deposits. While no true chalk is found in the United States, possessing the characters of the writing chalk of Europe, there are still deposits, which nearly correspond in age, wilh it. This view is supported by the numerous fossils, which certain beds contain, identical with those of the chalk of Europe, 108 This formation is very extensive in the United States. From New-Jersey, South, to Alabama, it is one of the most continuous deposits. In North-Carolina, it is concealed by the soil, except in favored positions. Upon the Cape-Fear, and its tributaries, it is probably better exposed, and more accessible, than at any point, known to me, farther North. It consists of a series of beds, mostly sandy, alternating with a few inconsiderable beds of argillaceous sand, colored with chloritine matter. There are beds along the green sandy formation, which are calcareous, and which I now class with the eocene; but which may hereafter furnish facts, which will place those calcareous beds in the creta- ceous system. These calcareous beds, however, are desti- tute of many, if not all, the characteiistic fossils of the green sand, or cretaceous system, unless the single species of ammonite should prove to be one -of them ; though, I believe it will constitute a new species. $ 78. The green sand beds are not distinguishable from the eocene, by the presenceof I he green matter, which has given it this name, as it is, also, quite common in the overlying beds. This formation is beneath the shell marl, which contains those large scollops, and generally with beds, which are composed of aggregations of shells, closely resembling those living bordering on the Atlantic. The beds, of green sand may, however, be known by the presence of a cylindrical fossil, of a yellowish color, and which is 3 inches or more in length, and tapering to a con- ical point at one end. When unbroken, it has a conical cavity at the other end. It is called by s >me a thunder bolt. Its name is belemnite It occurs upon the Cape Fear, at Sykes' landing, some distance below Black Rock, and it should be found at the latter place also. Another fossil which is very common is the exogyra costata. It is something like a thick rounded oyster shell. This is abundant at Black Rock. 109 1 do not attempt, at this time, to speak of the extent or dis- tribution of this lonnition or its thickness. But, I wish it should be known, that it is an important rock; that it is one of the best fertilizers, among the mineral manures. I have spoken of the locality at Black Rock, as easy of access, and probably, other places below may be equally so. It was, in connection with rocks of this size, that beds, rich in phosphate of lirne were discovered in England, only a few years since, which have been a source of immense profit, to the proprietors or owners. This formation extends South of Wilmington, more than twenty miles; but, generally, lies concealed beneath a thick coveringfof sand and clay, and vegetable debris At Rocky Hill, it has been known for many years Nine miles from Wilmington, upon the Railroad, the green sand is twenty feet from the surface. Where the strata of green sand are exposed, in a vertical section, the surface is worn into un- dulations ; and exhibits in consequence of the wearing ac- tion of water, which has passed over, rounded ridges, alter- nating regularly, with depressions. Several in succession occur upon Dr. Togno's plantation three miles North of Wilmington. As yet, the inferior part of this rock has not been opened in this State. It rests probably upon the granite ; but what composes the lower mass is unknown. It may yet turn out, that the mass of pebbles, which border the series of tertiary, upon the west, pass beneath the green sand, and belong to it, rather than to the eocene, where I have placed it. 110 CONCLUDING REMARKS UPON THE AGRICUL- TURE OF THE LOWER COUNTIES. While a bountiful use ol manures is one of the main instruments of success, in agriculture, there are others, which cannot be left unemployed The remainder may be comprised, under the head of tillage. Proper tillage is necessary, to prepare the way, for the action of manures. When the plow has not broken the turf, or the harrow pulverized and leveled the surface, these fertilizers are left, comparatively, inert. When the land is heavy and impervious, the roots of plants remain unsupplied with nutriment. Where the hoe is neglected, weeds will choke the corn and cotton, and consume the nutriment. Where water stands upon the surface, then, the corn, is dwarfed and yellowed by cold. Tillage, then, consists in the use of the plough, the harrow, the roller, and the hoe, and cultiva- tor. The drain comes in, to complete the work of a per- feet system of tillage. That makes the other modes effec- tual and perfect. I might dwell upon each instrument of tillage, and point out the nature and effect of each oper- ation but I choose, now, to limit my remarks, to ttoe draining of soils. Ill DRAINING. The experience of the most intelligent of the agricul- tural profession, in this country, and in Europe, is highly favorable to draining. Supported as this agricultural measure is by expsrience, and sustained by chemical and physical principles, it seems to me, that one word should be said, in recommending the practice, to farmers of North Carolina. I hive no reference here, to the swamp lands of the State, or wet lands generally ; there can be but one opinion, as to the necessity of draining such lands, anywhere. But my remarks are intended for those uplands, and mea- dows, which are always in a condition to be cultivated; those from which the farmer has taken both corn, hay and cotton, and which do not present any very remarkable ne- cessity of the measure to the eye; unless it be a preserva- tion of surface water for many days after a rain or showers. Leaving out of view the sandy lands of the Atlantic slope, it will be found that there is, in all the red soils of the State* a very strong affinity for water ; or, what is bette r ex- pressed when I say, that it holds water too long in the Spring. The effect of this fact is to delay the Spring work ; to postpone the time when it may be plowed and planted. This is an important matter; for I think I shall be, and am, in fact, sustained in the position, that a good harvest is generally dependent upon early planting. It may be called in question in the South, where long seasons are the order of the day ; but, when it is considered that all plants obey the seasons, and acquire habits from the impress of the seasons, the rule will hold good for the South as well as the North : that more may be expected from early, than late planting. The obstacle in the way is Uie condition of the soil ; it is wet, and, therefore, cold. It 112 is not so much that the genial warmth of the sun is want- ing: but this warmth has to be expended, first, in evapora- ting a superabundance of water, or in drying the surface. Now, if this water, which keeps the surface cold, is allowed to dram through the soil, and to be carried off by drains, the genial warm.h of the sun administers, at once, to the end so much wished, ike immediate warming of the soil. The principle is obvious and well settled. The application which I wish to make, is, to the lands which are regarded as tillable, and capable of producing very good returns ; but, after all, they do not give those returns which the labor expended seems to demand. I design, in these remarks, to call the attention of planters to the question of draining, and then leave the matter for their consideration. I state the object to be, to secure an early planting ; though the benefits derived are not confined to that single result. The planter may experiment upon one acre. Drain one acre well ; and then compare the con- dition of the soil of that acre, in April, with an undrained acre adjacent to it. When I speak of draining. I have no reference to open ditches ; not that they are without t eir advantages. pen ditches, upon the slopes of many plantations, woul^i be ruinous. I mean, by ditching, a three foot drain laid in tile or stone, and covered. A drain, properly laid, will not wash, or be undermined ; indeed, they will save the sur- face fr>m gullies, and those dead patches, too common in the South. 113 COAL FIELDS OF NORTH CAROLINA. $ 78. Various opinions have been expressed concerning the Coal Fields of this State. Some, whose opinions are entitled to respect, speak unfavorably of their value and importance. Others, on the contrary, entertain a high opinion of their value Parties entertaining these discord- ant opinions have not embraced them without facts which favor their own views, respectively. Hence, when it became my duly to enter upon an examination, as the Geologist of the State, from whom it was expected that the questior.s at issue would undergo a careful scrutiny, I determined, therefore, to put those questions to a strict test. It appeared to me that the first point to be established was ; that the series of rocks in which coal was known to exist, actually form, of themselves, such a succession of rocks as to entitle them to the rank of the regular coal-bearing deposits, analogous, at least, to what has been determined in other fields, where coal con- stitutes a part of the series themselves. To determine this single point, required a detailed examin- ation of all the members of the group, especially, of those deposited in the immediate proximity of the coal itself. It is, however, never expected that every member of a group will be present in all localities ; or that they will, if present, possess the same characters as to color, thickness, minera* 8 114 composition, &c. Still, certain characteristics will be found m common ; and their determination became the first subject for examination. In order that my readers may be put in the way of form- ing opinions for themselves, I propose, first, to speak of the common characteristics of a coal field ; what rocks belong to a coal field ; and what position they occupy ; and what fossils they should furnish. The coal fields of our own country are made up of the following succession of rocks : 1. Limestone, called the carboniferous lime- stone ; variable, however, and not always present. 2. Conglomerates ; made up of rounded peb- bles, interstratified, it may be, with coarse and fine sands. 3. Sandstone, of various colors and degrees of fineness- 4. Black slates ; or slates of various colors. 5. Fire clay and coal. 6. Argillaceous oxyde and carbonate of iron ; variable in quantity ; generally nodular. 7. Sandstones, and repetitions of the foregoing rocks. The thickness which the series attain is variable ; in some it exceeds 14,000 feet. 79. The position, in the general series of the coal-bearing rocks, is above what is known as Devonian, and extends upwards to those known as the Oolite recks, including the latter. They occupy a position not far from the middle of the series of sediments, or hydroplastic rocks, the water- formed or water-moulded rocks. There seemed to have been a period fitted to the production of those plants which form the coal itself. 115 Observation sustains the view now prevalent among Geol- ogists, that this middle period furnishes the best workable beds ; and that, neither below, nor above, though the sedi- ments are very thick, do they, bear coal. This conclusion, I have said, is the result of observation, extended over all the accessible portions of the earth's crust. We do not assign a cause. It is the fact , which is important. Still, the fact, itself, implies that the condition of the atmosphere, its tem- perature and humidity, favored the production of vegetables of those kinds ; and in sufficient abundance to give origin to the coal. t More than half a century has elapsed since attentien has been given to the coal-bearing rocks ; and no new country has been visited, but the subject has received attention. The time has passed by when persons who have studied the subject require to be enlightened upon the questions con cerning the coal rocks. What I wish to inculcate, is, that the position which these rocks occupy is not theoretical; but has been determined by observations, extended over a large portion of the earth's crust. The Siberian rocks, for example, are found in Ame- rica, England, and Russia ; but they furnish no coal. So it may be said of the Devonian, which is found in these and other countries ; and yet 110 coal is found in this system . 80. The thickness of all the systems of coal-bearing rocks is great. Room and space are thereby given for con- taining coal ; and time, also, for the growth of the material which is to be converted into coal. The senes.in Pennsyl- vania are several thousand feet thick. T : ie Geological position of the coal-bearing rocks of this State is another point which required attention. As it is conceded that they are not. of the age of the Pennsylvania coal rocks, we have to look about for those which we may satisfy ourselves are of the same age as those in this State, 116 and which have been proved to contain a large supply of coal. We are not left without examples in point, and which establish an important fact, that rocks newer than those referred to are coal-bearing. I allude to those of the Rich- mond coal field ; which have been shown, by Professor William B. Rodgers, to be of the age of the Lias, of an age newer than the rocks of Pennsylvania. 81. This coal-field, though by no means extensive, when compared with the older, to which allusion has been made, has been productive and profitable ; and furnishes seams which are remarkable for their thickness a seam, for example, which is no less than forty feet thick. I do not regard this great thickness as a favorable feature ; but, as an example of the accumulation of vegetable matter, in this period, which proves a geological fact of great conse- quence, the adaptednessof the climate of this period to pro- duce the material which has been changed into coal. We have, in the periods prior to the coal of the Upper Appa- lachian rocks, negative proof that the climate was not adapted to such results ; for they contain no coal. But, as we ap- proach the carboniferous system, we see signs of preparation ; plants appear, which were allied to those which characterised the coal period. These increase, till, finally, they reach the maximum,, in point of numbers, in this particular period, when we find all the necessary materials and circumstances for the formation of coal ; and it is not until we reach the rocks called carboniferous, that it is found. Which succeed the latter? or which can be proved to heve been deposited duving the subsequent periods? Again ; the coal- bearing rocks, as they occupy the same relative position, and the same relations as to time, may be supposed to contain a peculiar class of plants, and of animals. All this is true ; and it is as much expected to find certain plants and animals, in this series, as to find the sandstones 117 and slates. These facts are well known by miners, who are well informed ; and they avail themselves of the facts to guide their examinations. These facts are so constant, that capitalists do not hesitate to invest money where the characteristics of a coal-field have been determined. The Appalachian coal-fields, of which the S.ate of Penn- sylvania forms a part, are about nine hundred miles long, and about two hundred miles wide ; and yet, throughout this great extent of territory, the general characteristics are found the same. And the same may be said of the Illinois and Michigan coai-fields. 82- Now, the application of these facts to the coal-fields of Nor; h Carolina. The members composing the series, in which coal is known to exist, may be arranged as follows : 1. Conglomerate, made up of rounded pebbles of quartz, and other hard rocks; united and held together, in the condition of a rock. 2. Sandstones, of different colors, mostly red, of various degrees of fineness. 3. Slate ; black, and green, and mottled. 4. Fire-clay and coaL 5. Argillaceous oxyde and carbonate of iron, in nodules. 7. A succession of the series ; and finally ter- minating in heavy beds, and olive-colored sandstones. In the foregoing series, we find, on comparison, an agree- m nt with those of other coal-fields the conglomerate, the sa Istone, shales, fire-clay, and nodules, of argil laceous-oxyde of i.-on. All of which, when put together, render it probable th; :< the seiie? actually form a coal-field ; or a series, which are truly carboniferous, or coal-bearing rocks. 118 The members, then, which may be regarded as common and, indeed, essential, to a coal bearing series, are present in the North Carolina formation ; but, in order to give just confidence in them, 1 do not deem it necessary to prove that they are of the same age as the Richmond coal-fields. It may be, that the Richmond I eds are not of the age of the lower Oolite it muy be, that they belong to ihe Permian* or New Bed. All the fields furnish one or two fossils in common a kind of proof which is of some value, as far as it goes. The question which ! attempted to solve, in a way which may be regarded as independent of an actual exploration of the coal-seams, was decided favorably ; all the facts going to prove a distinct coal series ; though not of the age of the Pennsylvaaia coal ; but belonging to one during which coal has been abundantly produced. So, when the inquiry is taken up, in dctnil, though still pursuing a mode independent of the facts accompanying the known seams themselves, we shall corne to the same results. The slates, ihe fire-clay, iron, and the fossils, all point to the existence of coal. 83. Probably more money has been wasted in searching for coal, than any other mineral. It is no uncommon thing for foreign miners, who have just skill enough to take down a breast of ore, to induce the expenditure of capital in sink- ing shafts, in any black slate, without the least regard to the presence of coa' The consequence has been, that all the money expended in the operation has been lost. In New York, it has been one of the most common mining failures. Wherever black slate appears, it is perforated, somewhere, with a shaft in search of coal. All these explorations, in that State, have been in the Siberian system, below the coal- bearing rocks. One of the great benefits of the New York Survey, was, the determination that there was no coaljhere ; 119 and it has put a stop to the useless expenditure of money in this way. All these mistakes and errois were committed from inattention to the special and general characteristics of a coal-fi< Id. GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON THE DEEP RIVER COAL FIELD. 84. The Deep River coal field is in the form of a trough ! The inferior rocks extend farther than the superioi . They may be regarded as beginning in Granville County, in a wedge- form, or pointed mass. The northwest and wes* outcrop runs, at first, west of south ; and passes through a part of Wake, and sends up a short arm to within three miles of Chapel Hill. The direction of the outcrop has gradually changed to south, 50 west. This direction is very nearly preserved to the South Carolina line. The outcrop is about six miles west of Carthage. In this coal-field, the uplift has been made upon the north- west side. Its line of demarkation is distinct ; while, upon the southeast side, there is no outcrop. All that is in view, is, the superior rocks, still dipping southwest, their lower edges being concealed beneath a thick mass of soil. 120 The dip is slightly variable ; being, on the south side of Deep River, south 60 east. North of the river, it is south 50 east. At the easterly end, at Farmville, south 10 west. At Hornsville, south 45 west. These last were taken from the coal-slates, where a change has taken place, which is due to the position of the outer and easterly edge of the trough, as it is turning westwardly ; and where the uplifting forces have acted upon the other side, the angle of dip varies from 10, in the upper strata of the sandstone, to 25 in the inferior beds ; and may, probably, exceed 30, at some points of the outer edge, near the rocks upon which they repose. The lithological characters of the whole system furnish considerable variety. But they may be classed as conglom- erates ; sandstones, soft and hard, grey, red, and variegated, or mottled ; and green and black slates ; with certain subor- dinate beds. The coal seams of Deep River may be described, under three grand divisions, proceeding from the inferior, to the superior beds. 1. Inferior conglomerates, and sandstones. below the green and black slates. 2. Black slates, with their subordinate beds and seams. 3. ^Sandstones, soft and hard, with the free- stones, grindstone grits, and superior conglomerates. 85 The lowest arid oldest, as appears from the fore- going subdivisions, is a conglomerate. It is formed of rounded quartz pebbles, derived from the neighboring rocks, the gold slates; and contains the entire series of minerals, which they contain. The most conspicuous part of the conglomerate is quartz. This minenil is rounded by attri. lion, and occurs in oval masses, rirely spherical, standing out of the rock, in strong relief These pebbles have, in pro- 121 cess of time, become consolidated, without the aid of any cementing substance, and they are so strongly held together, that in breaking the rock, they are broken through, with- out being broken out, or loosened from their b^-ds. The origin of these pebbles is evidently in the slatei, and from the quartz seams in the slates. This rock being schistose, and largely intermixed with talc and mica, and frequently thoroughly impregnated with pyrites, is subject both to disintegration and decomposition. The quartz by these processes is set free, or disengaged from its matrix When exposed to the action of waves upon a beach, it is rounded, and while still in their beds are subjected to pres- sure which results in the formation of this interesting and curious rock. 86. The conglomerates, in their best and perfect forms, are free from soft interstratified matter, which would dimin- ish their solidity, and hence, the mass is exceedingly well adapted for grinding corn, when properly prepared. The beds are two feet, and sometimes three feet thick. The su- perior are less solid or consolidated ; the lower, in their lithological characters, are the perfect millstone grits of geol- ogists. Between the thick bedded masses, there intervenes thinner and less perfect layers, composed of finer materials. These are perishable, and are unsuited to the purposes to which the harder are applied. The colors are gray, brown, and red ; generally, the con- glomerates are gray. They have not furnished fossils, except lignite, which sometimes has been found near these lower masses ; but even this is never found, except in the softer portions. The whole thickness of the inferior conglomerates do not probably exceed sixty feet. As a whole, the mass is made up of rounded pubbles in beds of variable thickness, and separ- ated by finer and softer varieties. This mass rests immediately upon the stratified pyrocrys- talline rocks, the talcost! slates, hornblende, gneiss with their subordinate beds, and veins of quartz. They rest upon the 122 edges of the inferior and older rocks which proves, that tho inferior had been elevated more or less, prior to the deposition of this system, and sufficiently to raise up their edges upon which the conglomerates rest. 87. The sandstones succeed the conglomerates, in the ascending order. They consist of variously colored strata, red, gray, and olive. Their texture is not uniform. Exten- sive beds are made up of the softest of materials, and hence, are constantly undergoing decomposition, and frequently, it is difficult to distinguish the rock from that which has already become soil. The description of a seiies of beds will give a better idea of these sandstones, considered as parts of a great formation than I can convey by any other mode. The following sec- tion of the lower sandstone extends North, from Evans' bridge, about three miles, to its junction, \\ith the inferior rocks. 1. The inferior conglomerate is concealed by soil. 2. Sandstone which may be called a hard free- stone, dark brown. Near this mass, and to the North, the gold slates appear, which are in t erst ratified with hard green porphy- ries, alternating with fine lalcose slates. 3. Thick bedded brown sandstones, but softer than the proceeding . 4. Gray sandstones or freestones, in which some beds form the grindstone grit. 5. Hard red sandstone. 6. Soft red sandstone, forming a mass, frequent- ly called red marl, but improperly. 7. Gray and olive green sandstones. 88. The series, then, which succeed the conglomerates are made up, as 1 have already observed, of various strata, some hard, others soft. The predominant color is red, pas- 123 sing iuto brown. The gray, and (hose tinged slightly brown, are intersi ratified with the former ; but the former are the most common, and are much thicker than the latter. 89. The slates rest upon the sandstones, I have just des- cribed. These slates are thin bedded strata. They arc 'en- der and easily broken, and fall into angular fragments, but not sufficiently hard to form a flat gravel, and hence, from their composition, they are constantly becoming a soil wher- ever exposed to the weather. The beds are quite uniform in their mineral characters, and composition. They are green and black ; rarely red - but, the latter arises from a kind of bleaching, which they have undergone, by exposure to the weather. The slate may be described as consisting of 1. Green slates adjoining the sandstones. 2. Black, which frequently alternate with the green. 3. Calcareous beds, in which silica predomin- ates, or in which silica forms more than, fifty per cent. These divide the slates into two parts or divisions. 4. Thin beds of impure black limestone. The coal, fire clay, and argillaceous iron ore, belong to this division of the formation, and the whole series may be described as consisting of 1. Slates of various colors. 2. Coal seams, accompanied with its fire clay, argillaceous iron stone. 3. In proximity to the coal, an impure gray magnesia n limestone frequently occcurs, to which succeeds the upper sandstone. THE FIRE CLAY is a mass of argillaceous matter ; quite fine, of a greenish color. Near the surface, it is a clay, and easily moulded, or cut into any form ; but at the depth of 124 twenty-five or thirty feet, it is of! en hard, and more like stone : still, by exposure to the weather, it becomes soft and shows the character of the element of which it is formed. It is often traversed by roots of ancient vegetables, which gave origin to the coal. 2. IRON. The iron occur in nodules, or concretions, some of which will weigh between three and four hundred pounds. It is the common argillaceous oxyde, mixed with the carbo- nate. It does not, therefore, form a regular stratified mass ; but seems to be a constant associate of the coal-seams. 3. THE COAL SEAMS. There are fine coal seams ; the order and relation of which to the other beds is illustrated by the following section : 1. The first indications of the coal seam is by the appearance of micaceous sandstone alternating a few times with the slates. 2. Fire clay. Its greatest thickness is about ten feet. A bed of this thickness was perforated by Mr. Campbell, of Moore Co. 3. Coal seam. 4. Slaty beds, with argillaceous iron ore. It seems to be established by observation, that the fine seams of coal are quite constant. If we take an illustration from the Parmville and Horn- ville mines, the following order of deposits will be obser- ved : 1. Shaly sandstone, with fire clay. 2. Seam of coal, three feet thick. 3. Four feet sandstone. 4. One foot of coal, and fire clay beneath. 5. Shale. 125 These lower beds dip southwest, and pass beneath the seams of coal at FarmviiJe, which are upon the adjoining lot: 6. Coal, three feet thick. 7. Fifteen feet of slate. 8. Coal seam two feet. 9. Slate tea inches. 10. Coal seam four feet, and fire clay. 11. Slate of various colors with their fossils. 90. There seems to be a slight variation in the materials composing the coal slates. Thus ; The Taylor mine furnishes the following section : 1. Slate below-the coal seams. 2. Coal seam eighteen to thirty inches. 3. Slate three to five inches. 4. Coal two and a half to three feet. 5. Slate ten inches. 0. Coal four feet. 7. Fire clay, apparently succeeded by gray sandstone and Slate. 8. Soil ; the Taylor mine is three miles west of Farmville. The eighteen inch coal seam, at the Taylor mine, has been struck ; but not so exposed, as to determine its exact thickness. The lower seams at Farmville are found at the Taylor mine, which shows a persistence of these thin seams, which are better known at the extreme eastern outcrop. The seams, at the Gulf, are supposed to corres pond very nearly with those already described. At Willcox's, still farther to the southwest, the seams are not so easily recognized, as the openings are imperfectly 126 made, and were filled with water, when I visited them. The Wilcox seams, it should be observed, are non- bitumin- ous. The Murchison seams, at the outcrop, con-lain more slate ; but the seam is said to be eight or nine feet thick. The lower seams have not been sought for, at this point. The fact, that fire ciay overlies the highest coal seam, at the Taylor mine, indicates the existence of another seam above it. And, we may expect, that deeper in the basin or trough, others will be struck. Of the number of coal seams, then, the five noticed in the section, embrace all which have been as yet, brought to light. I shall take occasion, to give my views, hereafter, more fully, of the prospects of this coal field. 91. Slates overlie all the coal seams. Their thickness above them, is about three hundred and fifty feet. The coal strata lie below the midst of Ihe strata beds. The strata above the coal consist of greenish slates, with hard layers occasionally alternating with them. There is, then, taking the slates as a whole, a great sameness in their appearance and composition, and a great degree of uniformity in their thickness, at the different places, where they have been ex- plored. From this fact, it follows, that, they are not to be regarded as subordinate to the sandstone, that they are con- stituent parts of a great formation, which required an exten- ded period, for their deposition. 1 have spoken of the associated coal strata, as slates ; but, abroad, a formation possessing their characters would be denominated marly of marl slate; and the name is highly proper. When their composition and liability to decomposition is taken into the account, they are similar to marls, having lime as a constituent part of their composition In adopting the term, marl slates., we should follow the designation of the English and German authorities ; but, as coal is a constant accompaniment of the slates, it seems as well to call them coal slates. It is an important fact, which 127 should be remembered, that the coal is associated with these slates ; that, although the sandstones, above and below, are much thicker, and mineralogically, more important, still, they contain no coal ; there is no recurrence of slate beds, which can be regarded as repetitions of the one I have descri- bed. The shaly sandstones, which are mostly red, some- times green, but never black, show very conclusively, that, vegetable matter is only sparingly disseminated through the beds, and that the conditions, required for the growth of coal plants, were not repealed, during the era of these sandstones. This fact is practical, and shows in what part of the system we may expect to find coal. 92. I have refrained from speaking of certain unimpor- tant beds, which have been regarded by many as coal seams. I allude to lignite which is found in the sandstones, just above the conglomerate. It consists, merely, of trees, of the era of the sandstones which have been converted into coal ; and, in consequence of the great pressure to which they have been subjected, they have been flattened, and made to assume the form of a thin coal seam. There is no confidence to be placed in these thin seams either as seams, or as indications of seams. They are not coal blossoms ; nor beds of the least economical importance. They are instructing, as sreolngical facts. They furnish UB examples of plants growing in an interesting period of the earth's history; arid, /is historical data, which record the events which have transpired in former tunes, they are invaluable. lam thus particular in speaking, in this place, of these unimportant seams of li^aire, or wood changed into coal, still retaining its structure, for the purpose of saying that they are of no value. There is a still -nore important point, in this connection, which should be spoken o f : Ii is, that coal occupies certain positions ; and I would not allude to it again, in this place, were it not that searches and explorations are being made, 128 at the present time, for Coal in Lincoln County , a field, which, of all others in the State, presents the poorest prospect for finding the substance sought. The only rocks in which coal will ever be found, in North Carolina, are the sandstones and slate I have been speaking of. The primary slates, though they may be dark colored, and even black, do not derive their color from vegetable matter ; but from fine sulphur, diffused through the rock, and \vhich has been derived from the decomposition of sulphuret of iron. Hence, it may happen, that certain black slates may exhibit a feeble combustion upon the fire, it is no un- common thing. The fact should be more generally known in the commu- nity, that coal has been formed, exclusively, from vegetable matter ; and that coal is found subordinate to certain rocks. Any well informed American Geologist, upon hearing a statement respecting the locality of a supposed coal-bed, can decide the question at once j at least, so far as this : the probability of its existence, if the locality is in a district of known coal-bearing rocks ; and the certainty of its non-exist- ence in parts of country underlaid by rock older than the Devonian pystem. Lignite beds occur, also, in the tertiary ; and, as it. appears, when dried, like coal, it is not singulai that it should be re- garded as such. My attention has been frequently directed to these beds, on the Cape Fear River, by individuals who regarded them as coal beds of some value. The outlines of all the geological system are now toleta- bly well settled, and all that part of the United States, wh; h is underlaid with Primary, Taconic, Siberian or Devon n rocks, are totally destitute of any workable beds of co 1. 1 leave out of view, a debateable ground ; that of tl er Devonian, as the late Richard C. Taylor favored : v, that some of the lowest and oldest coal beds may U- ad in connection with that system. 129 There ure two modes of misleading men, in this mailer ; the first and most common is by the representation of Comiah and o' her European miners, who are out of woik, or who are totally ignorant of all the essential characters of a coal mine. The second, is from the representations of clairvoiy- ants. To a sensible man, it is scarcely necessary, to guard and caution him, by advice, in regard to the latter. Iu cither case, however, it is proper to ask proof; for it is a matter, which admits of proof, visible proof; at leas', so far as probabilities are concerned. There is evidence, al- ways at hand, for or against. When there is evidence for, it will be proper to investigate its claims, but when there is no evidence, as there can be .one in all the rocks older and beneath the true carboniferous, no ignorant miner nur im- postor, who pretends to look into a stone, should be allowed to swindle us. NOTE. It is difficult to determine the number of seams of coal which exist in this system of rocks. The explorations by boring require to be made, on the line of out croprf, before the number can be determined. <|ftve have already been ex- posed. But as the Wilcox veins are nearly south from ^lur- ch ison's, and upon one side of the out crop of the Horlun, Taylor and Farmville, it indicates that there are seams still above those, and near the junction of the slate with the up- per sand stone. The Murchison dips in a direction which will carry it beneath ihe Wilc.x antlnacite seams unless there is an uplift which has brought up the latter from a great depth. At the out crop, the Wilcox is also connected with layers of sand stone and lime siuue, which do not elsewhere appear. From these facts it may be reasonably inferred that the coal seams are more numerous than has usually been supposed, 9 130 QUALITY OF THE DEEP RIVER COAL. i 93. The two varieties of coal, the bituminous and semi- bituminous, passing into anthracite, are known in this coal- field. The bituminous is scarcely equalled for fineness and excellency, in this country, and it has been said b* a gentleman, who is well acquainted with Liverpool coal, that it will burn twice as long. A direct comparison has not been made, to my knowledge, but that the assertion has much truth in it, 1 have no doubt The Deep River coal is, in the first place, quite free from smut; it does not soil the ringers, but in a trifling degree. It butns freely, and forms a cake; or it undergoes a semi- fusion, and agglutinates, and forms a pariially impervious hollow cake, within which combustion goes on for a long time. When a small pile of it is made upon the ground, it may be ignited by a match and a few dry leaves or sticks. It may be ignited in the blaze of a lamp or candle. The coal is, therefore, highly combustible, easily ignited and burns with a bright feme like light wood, for a long time. It may be burnt upon wood fire. It may be burnt in the common fire-place, and it is not a little strange, that gentlemen, who have used it for many years, in a black smith's forge, should not have used it in their parlors, in- stead of green black oak. This coal is adapted to all the purposes, for which the bituminous coals are specially employed. Thus, for the manufacture of the carburetted hydrogen, for lighting streets and houses, there i* no coal superior to it. It \\ill require less expense for furrishing it ; because, it contains so little sulphur, from which sulphuretted hydrogen is formed. So, 131 also, in the grate, it will be far less offensive, for the same reason. But, as it is rich in bitumen, it will furnish a large amount of gas, and that which is, comparatively, pure. This advantage is one of great importance. It should, also, be stated, that it furnishes an excellent cake, which may be used for manufacturing purposes, and as it is left very porous, it is in a condition to absorb a large quantity of the solution of cyanide of potassium ; aad hence, is well adapted to the work of reducing the rnetals. It is scarcely necessary to add, that it is admirably adapted to steamings^ inasmuch as its flame is free and durable. For forge use, it is not surpassed by any coal in market ; and for parlor grates, it is both pleasant, economical, and free from dirt. If a chimney has a poor draft, it is liable to the objection common to all eoals of this kind, the escape of soot into the room. The qualities of the Deep River coal are of that char- acter, then, which will give it the highest place in the mar- ket. The localities which have been best explored, and where coa! of adacUeJ character has bc?e;i attained, are at Hornesville and Farmville, both in the same neighborhood. The Taylor mine, the Gulf or Horton, and the Murchison mines, all furnish a bituminous coal, which may vary in some minor points, yet is quite similar as a whole The Horton mine has been used the longest. It was known in the revolution, aud a report made to Congress, respecting it, is still extant. Had the propositions or views been carried out, which were expressed in that report, we can scarcely tell, what the results would have been, not only ujSron the population of Deep River, but ateo, upon the enterprise of the State. Lt must be aoticed. that Deep River is central, and in the interior of a country, abound- ing in iron ; that it is navigable, by aid of certain im- provements ; that it comnamunujates with the ocean, and finds a market abroad, for a surplus of the products of man u fact tires and agriculture ; that a use of the natural advantages, to a partial extent only, makes a ho.?.e market. 132 But the time had not come, for improving the resources of this district. The* are, therefore, reserved entire for the present, and they cannot be neglected longer, unless a suicidal State policy is pursued. But however fine and excellent a coal may be, it is ne- ce.^ary that it should form extensive beds, in order to have a commercial value. $ 94 The next question, then, of interest to the com- munity is, (for the community is interested as much as tlh; owners,) will it bear mining. ;md the expenditure of the necessary capital, to take it fo narket. To answer this question, it is necessary to mt view of its quantity ? In doing this, we may venture tuassiM.e, on a geological basis, that the coal seams, which outcrop from beneath the sami- si< its. xiend beneath tlum, and for what appears to th-j contrary, the slates, with their coal bets, are coextensive with I he under and overly I g MM dMones. his foiniaii< n is known to form a belt of rocks, from 12 to 14 miles wide. The line of outcrops of the slates, upon which coal has been raised, is about 20 miles Bu; the line of o tcrop of the unexplored slate, which embraces the coal, is at least 60 miles withio the .State, on a line running south ol west. We mny assume the following data, viz : that the coal beds extend from 'heir northern outcrop, three miles beneath the sandstone ; which is about one third their natural extent ; and that the line of outcrop, upon which coal is, and will be found, is thirty mile*. If the thickest sea. u of co is worked, which has a thickness of 6 feet, exclusive of a thin band of slate, it will give 'for every square yard.of surface, two square yards of coal. A square acre has 4.900 superficial yards; hence, there will be 9 : 800 c.qunre yards of co.l. in each an<, and as H square \ r ^rd of coal weighs a ton, there will be for every acre, 9,800 tons of coal. A thousand acres will give ( J,800,000 tons ol coal, or a 133 square mile, 6,272,000 tons This coal field is known to extend thirty miles, in the direction of outcrop, and to be workable, fora breadth of three miles. We may from this data, calculate how much accessible coal we may expect to find, in this quite limited field If the field covers oniy 43 .square miles, tha lowest esti-note to be taken, we may calculate its value, by the following mode : If one hundred tons of coil ar- taksn out daily, thirty thousand tons would be remove;! annually, reckoning three hundred working days to the year. I. would, at this rate, require over three hundred years, to remove the coal from a thousand acres, or, over two hundred years, to remove that which underlies a square mile, or, eight thousand six hundred years, to remove the cojl of forty three square miles. If in estimating the value of this coal field, we base our calculations upon time, they should satisfy us; or if we base them upon quantity, they will warrant the investment of capital In these calculations, ve have both time arid quantity, ai d the State, in encouraging improvements i\s well as individual", may look forward with confidence, on the permanency and safety, in investments, in thn ki d ot property. The wants of the world are with the pop- illation indeed, they keep ahead of simple increase of individuals. The quar.tity to be removed annually may ba increased, and leave the time sufficiently long, to satisfy the investment of capital; or the time may be increased, by diminishing the qu mtity, and still the annual profits of the iims!iue:it shoul i satisfy the capitalist. But while popula- tion increases at a rapi I rate, the resources of the forest tor fujl arrt di ni.ii,> ilati > i : ill rfore, there is no way in which capital can be so sat" l\ invested, as in c >al lands. If the foreg >ing calculations are correct, they justify tlia work which ins b?^n un.lert.-tk;?n (o improve thi naviga- tion of L) ep R vef. It is prud -nee, to be cautions in sciie.nes of this kin:!, but in this case, the amount of pro- perty beneath the surface or in llie rocks, upon this river, is enormous it should be dug out ; arid what it costs to do this, will be turning materials and labor into money. If the whole enterprize is begun, and carried on in a proper spirit, every nook and corner of the State, from Cnrrituck to Buncombe, will feel an invigorating ii fluence. But the calculation, as to the quantity of coal, will pro- bably far exceed, than fall short of the estimates. In the first p^ace only a part of the area is taken into the calcu- lation, and then, in assumirg the thickness f ihe principal beds, as only six feet, it may be regarded as only the mini- mum thickness. It will rather increase than diminish \ this view of the matter is supported by observation. For as the slopes have been carried along the dip, there ha* been a perceptible increase already. It is also to he con- sidered, that at the outerop, when vegetable matter forming the coal is only upon the outer vein, it should be twice that at a distance from the outcrop; for we may suppose, that, in. the middle only, of a coal basin, do we obtain the max- imum thickness. Thus, one of the coal seams in the Rich- mond basin is forty feet thick. The Deep River beds, not having been broken up, or not having suffered an urtift through the middle of its trough or basin, exhibits nowhere near the surface, an outcrop of coat, except vpon the rim, or outer edge of the basin. As we penetrate into it. we h;ive grounds which justify the view, that the seams will increase steadily in thickness, as the slope penetrates into* the basin, towards the centre and then the se h is well sustained, respecting the manner hi which successive seams of coal have been form- ed. 135 The calculations as to the quantity of coal in the Deep Hi- coal field are hased upon what is known, and without ref- erence to what we may possibly find by exploration here- after. These calculations must be regarded as satisfactory, and such as will jusiify the hopes and expectations of the owners, and those who are interested in the improvements of the day. THE SAi\ 7 DSTONES ABOVE THE SLATES. The unper division of this system of rocks is made up of a series of sandstones, which differ only slightly from those below. They are hard and red, brown and motrlejd, or variegated rocks, which are frequently separated from each other by soft greenish clays. There are to be repeti- tions of the inferior members, so fur as this composition and origin is concerned. Among the different reri and brown strata, it is very common to find those which con- tain many small irregular cavities. Probably these civi- ties contained imperfect crystals of salt, or other soluble sub- stance, which has b'en removed !>\ solution. These sandstones, like the inferior, are destitute of fnssi!s y excepting a few obscure vegetable casts, which are indeter- minable. Near and just above the coal slates, a stratum of impure limestone is filled with the posidonia mimita which disappears with the commencement of the red rocks. Among the softer la.ers oxyde of iron o. curs in small nodules. It is not in sufficient quantities to be of much ac- count. It has been employed in dying woollens, and hence has received the name of dye stone. 136 But, 10 much of the upper sandstones are concealed by soil, that even plaster might be hid within the strata. AGRICULTURAL CHARACTERS OF THE UPPER AND LOWER SANDSTONES. 95. The softer strata disintegrate, anr pass into the condition of soil. These soils are always red. but the red inclii.es more to a brown than the soils, which are formed from the gold slates, which, from the presence of sulphuret of iron, become red also. The sandstone soil is derived mainly from the argilh ceous parts of the formation, and hence it bears the characters ot an argillaceous soil, a de- gree of stifft.ess which suits the cotton and wheat plant. Its stiffness and comparative impermeability give it re- tentivem-ss : but it also holds too much water, and especial- ly where the land is flat, it is far too compact to admit of high cultivation without the aid of draining. The ele- ments of the soil are adapted to the highest and best culti- vation But as the surface water is compelled to flow over the surface, and into channels cf it* own forming.it is very liable in the end to score the soil deeply with gorges, and ravines, and thereby injure very much the plantation. These red soils, also, when cultivated to exhaustion, or even before they bec< me bare, render it extrerr.ely difficult In res- tore to the surface its lost vegetation. 'I he only mode in which it can be effected, is to cover and protect those places with straw or brush. The heat ot the sun shoul I be so lie tied, and the surface protected from washing anew by rains. Bv ptM severing in this way, these ill looking and barren spots may be removed from a plantation. 137 THICKNESS OF THE FORMATION. 96 It is difficult to obtain the data by which the thickness ot this formation can be determined. It is con-' cealed by its own debris so generally, that it is only from the subordinate parts that its thickness can be inferred Taking the subordinate beds, dip and width all into the ac- count, the whole thickness ol the formation cannot be I ss than five thousand feet. The interior mass, or that bel"W the slate, is about fifteen hundred, the slate five hundred, and perhaps six hundred, and the superior division three thousand. This last estimate is below the mark rather than ab^ve it. In forming an estimate of the thickness of this formation. I have been careful to guard agains 1 de- ception which often arises from a repetition of strain in consequence .of a sue 'ession of uplifts. In this formation the danger may be greater than in many others, as the stra- ta are concealed by soil. But the indications upon the sur- face go to prove that the strata have been disturbed only at one period. A single trap dyke traverses the entire for- mation from the South-west towards the North-east. This trap appears at numerous points along: the line, as at 'he Gulf. m;d Evans' mill, crossing the river twice, and f< r us at ach place a considerable ledge of rocks The falls :e du", Mm fore, to the trap dyke. At another plnce near Ktr- ai s' mills, in the road by Mrs. Uoberts,' the dip of ihe s:r ta is it-versed lor a short distance. But this is only l<~c; I, id does not affect the great mass of strata of which the forma- tion is composed. South ol the river, they preset ven great uniWmity of dip, as to direction, and amount, and no , rt has come to light, which indicates an instance of repetition* 138 97. Having briefly noticed nnd described the three m mbers, composing this formation, a few remarks upon the origin of the materials will be in place. The materials, conside d in their mineralogicTl charac- ters, were derived fpim two distinct sources : the common sou ce was undoubtedly the slaie of the gold series. Of the correctness of this view, there can be no doubt, as they even contain a mail quantity of gold, and the quartz retains the peculiar characteristic of that of the slates ; it is best f-en in the conglomerates, where the masses of quartz are larger than in sandstone. The color of the sandstones is due to the presence of oxyde of iron. The iron came from the same source as the sandstones. These slates are highly charged with pyrites, which have been thoroughly decomposed; the sulphur dissipated, or probably it has formed rew combinations. The oxyde of iron, being insoluble, has remained with the particles composing the rocks ; and it has formed, of itself, no combination with other bodies, unless it is wnh carbonic acid. The iron forms a superficial coa ng upon the angular grains of sands, anuri:ms and the scales and teeth of one or two fish. The p'-*i- doniu does not differ from the posidoma of the Richmond beds, except in size : it is smaller, and resembles the P. minutice of Gold fuss. This iossil is remarkable for its numbers ; every layer in portions ol ;he slate is crowded with them, and t y range from the top to the bottom. It is usually one-eighth of an inch in diameter ; The largest rar.ly ever exceed one- quarter. It is always fl it, in the slates, from pressure, and always round and plump in the thin beds of impure lime- stone. The cypris, or it may be a cytherin >, is ohnut one line in lengih and pointed at both ends, and sun- '\. li re>etnbK j s a hny -e d ; and so numerous is this minute fossil, that thick layers are made up nlmosi \- tirely of it. It is scarcely possible to touch a point with a pin. and not mutilate one. 141 The presence of the cypris indicates that the slates are a fiesh water formation they go to prove that a remark- able change tuok pi ace alter the lower sandstones were deposited that the ocean, in which the sandstones were formed, was removed a.d the basin, to which sediment hai been brought from a distant quarter, ceased to be brought to it as formerly, and from the same as they had been ; ari'' f in fine, thai what had been sea became a fresh water lake. It was not until this change from red sandy sediments to.>k | lace, that the fossils peopling the waters appeared ; and then ihey were confined to a very limited number of specks Jf, however, this small tossil is a cytherina, the change which it is suppose,! may have occuned at the close of the oceanic sandstones, \yas only in the direction of the sedi- ments ; a change which appears to have been sudden for the sandstones scarcely alterr.ate with the lower slates. They begin, as it were, at once ; but the basin or trougL w;ts stili ocear.ic. Ut saurian remains, in the formation, 1 can speak only of two species in the sandstones: one below the slates, ai.d of the crocodilian type; and one above, with long curved teetii. And, probably, three species in the slaie the teeth of one aie long, slcndtr, an J curve four inches; the teeth ot another, ol a medium length, and only slightly flatici ed, and very finely serrated on one edge ; the teeth of she other, Distinctly serrated on both edges, and agrees with figuies of the tkecodontu saurus of Owen. The latter p<-i.iLs to the Permitn age ; and Sir Charles Lyeil has observed, that tins saurian was regarded as the oidcst animal known of that type; and, irom its pre- sei ce in th-j older deposits, Mr. CKveii has shown that it militates ag iit.si the doctrines of Hie Author of the Y'esti- g > ol Creation. It ranks v\ith the highest animals of that t \ pe ; proving that rank is not determined by the periods in which animals have lived. The most remarkable saurian, 142 if saurian it is, is the species furnished with the long slen- der teeth, of which I have seen no figures resembling them in form or length. Tfcey are slightly flattened, giving an oval in a transverse section ; but their sides are not armed with serratures. The bones in the rocks above the coal, are black. The sandstone had become concretionary, and exfoliated in their coats, like those of an onion; and hence, it was im- possible, to obtain them in a good condition ; besides, the rock had, also, become exceeding hard and tough. The iossils, being in my opinion, new. throw no positive light upon the age of the rocks, in which they occur. The fish scales are quite small and smooth. Their form is rhomboidul, some acute, others obtuse. The teeth are small, slender and pointed, and seem to fork slightly, at their roots. Another fossil, which might be mistaken for a vegetable, is, undoubtedly, an appendage to a fish. The vegetables are few in number, and differ from those of the coal rocks of Pennsylvania, or the flora of the car- boniferous system. An IJquiselites, differing from E Corn- munis, is the only one of this genus 1 have seen. A lyco- podites, and other allied forms, are all I have yet found, ex- cept a naked aud rather spinous vegetable, which is unknown in the carboniferous rocks. It is a cellular crytognmwus plant. This is very common and abundant at Madison, aud one or two layers of sJate are covered with it at Evans' Mills. The roots of vegetables, in the fire clay, are thin, nar- row, ribbon-like tissues ; and have tost their vegetable structure*. Their thinness and compressibility show, how- ever, that the roots were spongy, of a loose texture, and were aquatic. The meagre list of plants and animals, then, deposited in the slates furnish only grounds for conjecture, to what age the formation belongs. My opinion* derived from all the facts and circumstances known to me, inclines me to 143 adopt the belief, that it is the upper new red sandsstone Still, if the Richmond coal basin is of the same age, as the eoal rocks of North Carolina, Geologists will be disposed to place the series along with the Oolites or Lias, a ' > Wm B. Rodgers and Sir Ch. Lyell have done on the ground, that the fossils are, in part, identical in species with those of Whitby, in Ksigland, where those rocks are well developed. Mr Lyell observes, that the sandstones containing fish, of the Connecticut river, are of an older date than the strata containing coal near Richmond. The higher antiquity of the Connecticut beds cannot be proved by direct supposition ; but the fact is presumed from the structure of the country. That structure proves them to be newer than ihe movements .o which the Alleghany chain owes its movements or flexures; and this chain in- cludes the ancient coal formations among its contorted rocks, The uriconfonitalve position of this new red with the pri- mary is often seen. He regards the sandstones of the Connecticut valley as triassic ; but. to what portion of the triassic;, which division, whether upper or lower, is not determined In Europe, the triassic is rich in fossils ; and different parts oi the series are so well characterised by fossils, that the determinations are not difficult. But here, in this country, the Connecticut valley, the New Jersey beds, tlie sandstones of the Potomac, and Fredericksburg, and North Carolina, ate illobscire. from their relations, and from the absence of characteristic fossils. 144 THE DAN RIVER COAL FIELD. 100. In Rockingham and Stokes Counties, a series of rocks have been known for a quarter of a century, as coal- bearing. These rocks are similar to those of Deep River, and consist of the same members. They lie in the sa:ne order, and have the same relations to each other, as ti,'>se ol'Cnalham and Mnre, <>r Deep liiver. While theie can he no doubt respecting the age and re- lations of the entire series, compared wish tliose of Deep River, still I have observed a fe\v peculiarities worthy ol Donee. The. Dan river coal deposits may be divided, for the convenience of description, into five parts: 1. Imperfect conglomerates and breccias. 2. Lower sandstones, including the soft and hard. 3. Coal slates, with their subordinate de- 4. Uuper sandstones; including the soft and hard kn;ds. 5. Conglomerates ; cr brecciated conglom- erates. The several parts, constituting a complete and perfect system, occupy a synclinal trough, and lie in the primary or stratified pyro crystalline tocks. Its direction is r.orih. east, and southwest. The axis may be defined by uniting Leak*?! He and Germanton by a line. This line will repre- sent the direction of the coal slates 145 The general dip of the system is to the northwest ; the angle of dip lies within 15 and 40. The dip is usually above 20. In North Carolina, the rocks extend 40 miles. The breadth is between four and seven miles. The system extends into Virginia on the north ; but how far,! am uninformed. This field, it will be observed, covers a smaller area than Deep River. It is similar, in some respects, to the Rich- mond coal fields, but is disconnected by the intervening primary rocks. If we consult a map of the United States, and mark upon the map the position of the coal- field to which refer- ence has been made, we cannot fail to notice the singular fact, that there are three small troughs, formed in synclinal dips of the primary slates^ and all lying with their axes di- rected to the southwest, or nearly parallel to the present Atlantic coast. These troughs are now disconnected, and an examination of the series, their outcrops, &c. go to show that each was formed in a trough by itself, and totally disconnected with each other. Each was formed in the bosom of its own sea, and each remarkably deep.. The area? upon which these rocks were deposited, have never suffered from denudation, or from great fracture ; but are traversed by moderately sized trap dykes- The Richmond coal beds have been disturbed more than those of Dan River, and the Dan River lie in- clined at a greater angle than Deep River, When oui examination is extended to the Hudson and Connecticut Rivers, similar rocks are found. The sandstone is accompanied with conglomerates and slates. The latter, however, are hard, and retain the impression of (he fish and fossils better: than those of the Dan or Deep River. All these beds of sandstone lie parallel to each other. They are comparatively long, but the breadth is inconsiderable. That these several isolated series represent one period,, is highly probable, though not geologically proved. 1Q 146 Four of these isolated troughs are characterised bv out- bursts of the pyroplastic rocks, or igneous. The Trap or Palisades of the Hudson ; the vast fields and mountains of trap in the Connecticut Valley, extending more than a hun- dred and fifty miles ; and the heavy trap dykes of Deep River, and the minor trap dykes of the Dim, belong to one era. They all cut throng 1 ! the sandstone and slates, and send lateral blanches of th'e once molten mass both between and upon the layers, baking and hardening those which are in contact or in proximity with them. Geologists are now very much inclined to adopt, the view- that outbursts of igneous matter, though ui distant points, but found upon and through the same formation, happen at one and the same period. Proceeding still farther North, our attention will be arrested again by a still more extensive outburst of trap in Nova Scotia. It is not satisfactorily determined whether I he traps of Nova Scotia are connected with the new red sandstones. Still, it seems to have happened at a period subsequent to the carboniferous ; and the trap lies upon, and has intruded itself into, a rock, whose mineral characters are similar to those of New Jersey, Deep River and Connecticut. But the foregoing remarks may be regarded as digressions. My object in these remarks is, to identify age by means of phenomena, and show that, when rocks possess characters in. common, and where certain phenomena are of the same kind, and are observed to be common to them also, it is an indica- tion that the rocks belong to the same period. It is remarkable, too, that all these troughs of red sandstone repose directly upon the primary rooks. The junction of sandstone with primary is very distinct at Blomidon, Nova Scotia, in the Connecticut Valley, in the Hudson River Valley, in the Richmond basin, the Dan River, and the Deep River. The most Southern troughs of red sandstone are the least disturbed, and the smallest quantity of trap ha been ejected. In Nova Scotia it has reached its maximum. The whole outburst has extended through twenty degrees of latitude. 147 Whether the foregoing facts do really prove that the rystetns are one in age, and belong to the same period or not,, may still require proof. The facts themselves are interesting. We may require many additional particulars to enable us to interpret phenomena aright, and assign to those sandstones and sl.xtes their true age. 101. The lowest mass upon the Dan River, which belongs to the sandstone series, is a conglomerate, quite im- perfect, at least, where it has fallen under my observation. At Leaksville, i have not seen the lower conglomerates ; but at Germanton, an imperfect mass, occupying the lowest place in the series, is formed of angular pins of granite, mixed with a gray and reddish sediment, in very unequal propor- tions. Its appearance might easily deceive an inattentive observer. It has an exceeding close resemblance to some varieties of granite. After a close inspection of many large rocks lying near the small creek at this place, rounded pebbles were found ; and, by still farther search, roots of trees in beds of lignite were found, also branching into the rock. This represents the fine beds of millstone on the Deep River. The mass is thin, and of little importance. Immediately above this bed of brecciated conglomerate, there is one of the finest exhibitions of an ancient forest in this country. It consists partly of roots of trees changed into lignite, arid partly of perfectly silicified trunks of trees, exceed- ing two feet in diameter. The soil in which the majority of these trees grew, is still concealed. Segments of their trunks stand out of the soft rock, inclining at an angle to the horizon, but lean in a direciion contrary to the dip of the vock. A road cuts through the strata in which the forest grew. All that remains of it are the trunks ; it was impossible to find a leaf or stem of herbage or fruit. The softer and more per- ishable parts and organs are destroyed by unknown agencies. Perhaps some fortunate blow of the hammer may bring to light the leaves and fruit. The structure of these trunks prove them to belong to the natural family of conifers, or the family to which the pi nes, spruces and hemlocks belong 148 The frees extend for half a mile or more, and no one, on seeing the number, can doubt that here grew a forest when the rocks were forming. Similar trunks have been found at Madison, and pieces of trunks occur upon Deep River, near Evans' bridge, and another forest of the same character upon Drowning Creek, in Richmond County. They occu- py the sa*me position in the series. These trunks are geolo- gically important, and may be employed to assist m identify- ing the system with any other at a distance. Numerous fragments of trunks, also, occur in all the subsequent forma- tions, especially with tertiaries, and in the superficial cutting for rail-ways. I was at a loss to account for their occurrence in positions where agencies could not be supposed to exist, competent to silicify wood. I have been satisfied that most of the scattered trunks were derived from the red sandstone formation. They have been transported by rivers, and by various agencies, which have also carried the slate rocks, and deposited them in the green sand, and the various subsequent beds of the tertiary. Their direction of transport is east- wardly. 102. In connection with the strata I have described, (the breeciated conglomerate,) there occurs no clay or argillaceous formation, which has a perfect concretionary structure. Large concentric circles are formed ; some of which are two feet in diameter. This part of the rock is extremely soft, and is nothing more, nor less, than clay of a light green color. It is rare to find a series of perfect concentric circles, and ter- minating in a nucleus of the size of a two shilling piece, as at this place. They are due to molicular movements^ which have taken place, subsequent to the time of deposition. We are obliged, from phenomena of this kind, to reckon mo- licular force, as one of the silent geological forces, which have been instrumental in effecting important changes in the earth's crust. 103. These argillaceous beds lie beneath the common sandstones of the formation, which consist of variegated and 149 gray masses of rock. They terminate with the coal shales. At Leaksvil'e, a hard silicious slate intervenes between the lower beds of sandstone and the slates. It is bluish and flinty, approaching, however, a sandstone in its composition. His at least two hundred feet thick. It also contains a few layers, which externally resemble a mixture of carbonate oxyde of iron. It was in one of these layers, I discovered the fragments of the skeleton of a saurian. The middle part of this formation of sandstone is occu- pied with a soft marly slate the coal slate of the system. It differs in no respect, from that of Deep River, bearing the same fossils, the posidonia and cypris, in equal abundance, through all the strata, of which il is cpmposed. The coal beds of Leakiville lie in these slates ; the beds in which the coal seams are exposed are two miles from the village, on ihe plantation of Mr. Wade. The coal appears in a long ridge, rising about sixty feet above the meadow, which lies in the bend of the Dan, at this place. The following section is partially exposed at Wade's coal mine 1. Shale below the coal seams. 2. Shaly micaceous sandstones, two feet. 3. Shaly coal at the outcrop, eighteen inches to two feet. 4. Micaceous shale, two feet. 5. Coal, two to three feet. 5. Shale, 110 feet. 7. Seams of a hard blue magnesian limestone, intermixed with silex, four to six feet. 8. Soft, green, bluish and black shales, filled with posidonia, sixty feet. The shales still continue covered with soil ; the thickness of the shales is not less than five hundred feet. The hard calcareous layers are separated by slate at the surface. 150 The calcareous layers lie above the coal seams, and as they extend nenrly if not entirely through the formation, they may be observed as way boards in searching for coal. The same layers appear in Madison, and contain abundance of septaria of the size of a goose egg. Dip of the co.il slates at the coal mine : N. 35 W.; anglo of dip 25; strike S. 80 VV. It is not improbable, that thb angle of dip will diminish as the seam is penetrated. 104. The section of rocks lying between Eagle Bridge and Gov. Morehead's factory, is exhibited in the following section ; though, it should be observed, that the rocks ay* concealed, at some points, between the bridge and factory. 1. Sandstones and conglomerates, concealed at the bridge 2. Flinty black slates, two hundred feet, with saurian remains. 3. Coal slates, consisting of the usual green and black slates, with the posidoniaand cypris, and a few obscure species of plants, (Ly- copcdiacaCj) fifty to six hundred feet. 4. Red and gray sandstones. 5. Conglomerates. 6. Shaly and green variegated sandstone. 7. Conglomerates, at least five hundred feet. These conglomerates are hard, and contain many angular fragments, or those which are but slightly rounded; and some of these fragments are quite similar to the flinty slate below. Tne beds resemble hard gray wackes of New York, except that the masses of rounded quartz are much larger. The superior beds of sandstone occur at the factory, and have been employed as a building stone. 106. The series of sandstones which lie between the bridge and the conglomerates, are better exposed upon Fac- tory creek, about, four miles from Madison, on the road to 151 Martins' lime kilns. The latter predominates at this local- ity. The creek has uncovered the strata, for half a mile. The section upon Factory creek is represented by the fol- lowing strata, the strike of which is S. 7U W. dip 20. 1 Soft greenish slates and shales above the coal slates. 2. Coarse sandstone with pebbles. 3. Red and brown sandstones. 4. Porous red sandstones, or sandstone with angular cavities, similar to those in other rocks, which have contained a soluble salt. 5. Green and gray hard sandstones. 6. Coarse sandstones containing rounded pel - hies. 7. Conglomerates similar to those at Gov. More- head's factory, at Leaksville. 8 Soft sandstones, like the red marls. 9. Slates with quartz veins, dipping beneath the sandstones. The thickness of the series above the coal slates, is between four and five thousand feet. At Madison, the series below the coal slates, on the East side of the Dan, at the new bridge, is represented by the following sections : 1. Gneiss dipping beneath the sandstones. 2. Soft variegated sandstones, with mien, and imperfectly bedded ; at least two hundred feet thick, east of the site of the bridge. 3. About one thousand feet of green shaly sandstone, with drab colored sandstone, interlaminated with the series ; strike N. 65 E. angle of dip 45. 4. Red sandstones, with cavities. 5. Green and dark colored coal shales. 152 106. The coal has been exposed about four i dies from Germanton, on the plantation of Mr. Mathews. The strata as exposed, are arranged in the following older. 1. Slate below. 2. Fire clay. 3. Coal, eighleen inches, 4. Slaie, one foot. o. Coal, eighteen inches. 6. Black slate, five feet. 7. Sandstone and state. The coal at the outcrop is not pure, or it contains some pyrites. Still, at a new locality on this plantation, discovered by Dr. McClenahan, at the time of our visit, the prospecU are better than at the shaft, where the coal was first taken out. The attention, which has been given to the Dan River coal field, has as yet been too inconsiderable, to develope its riches. It appears, that fro.n Leaksville to Germanton, coal s exposed at several points, besides at the extremes of the formation, leaving out of view its extension into Virginia. 107. The foregoing descriptions of several subordinate sections will convey to the reader a correct idea, (so far as description will convey.) of the conglomerates, sandstones, and slates of the Dan Ri\er coal field. From the observa- tions which I have made, I am inclined to regaid the con- glomerate as the least constant mass, and the most variable in its characters. It exists at Germanton, but is imperfectly developed ; whilst at Madison, it is replaced by a soft mass of the red sandstone. At Leaksville, and also, not far from Madison, this series contains some remarkable beds of brecciated conglomerates which are probably absent or wanting upon the Deep River. The shales or marls, appear to be the most constant mass. It preserves its thickness and all its characters unchanged, 153 and most, if not all the subordinate beds, are developed, both upon (he Dan and Deep Rivers. The fossils in variably appear wherever the slates are found ; so, also, (he impure limestones, with their concretions, are equally constant, (hough they are quite inconsiderable in mass. In the Dan River coal field, (he lower rock if fully disclosed is much thinner, and less important, than the same mass in the Deep River, in whkh,as I have already observed, the slates seem (o be equal in importance in each. The con- glomerates of Deep River are very prominent, and quite im- portant. But, if we compare the thickness of the sandstone above the slates, they seem to be thicker, and more fully developed upon ihe Dan. I am also inclined to estimate the entire thickness of the sandstone series, as greater on the Dan, thaa pon the Deep River. PRODUCTS OF THE UPPPER NEW RED SYSTEM, OR TRIAS, OF TOE DAN AND DEEP RIVERS. 108. 1. FIRE CLAY. The fire clays of the Trias arc well adapted to the manufacture of fire bricks. The clays connected *\vith coal seams have long been used for this pur pose ; and hence the name, ./fre clay. The clays being free from iron, lime, and magnesia, are highly refractory in the fire; and hence are well adapted, from their composition, for the man- ufacture of such articles as are required or designed to be subject- ed to a high heat. The seams of fire clay are, in a few in- stances, ten feet thick ; others are only two feet. They are always found in seams, subordinate to the s'ate. Some seams of fire clay do not bear coal at their outcrop. The material is very fine and even-grained ; the silex is never coarse or concretionary. The only obstacle which stands in 154 the way of mining this clay, is, that it often becomes hard in the deeper parts of the seam. It is abundant upon the Dan and Deep Rivers. It is entirely distinct from the ordinary clays of the country. It is confined to this formntion ; and is, in fact, a subordinate part of it : and is never absent, it ia said, wherever a coal seam exists : though it may occur, and coal be absent. It appears to be fine enough for the manu- facture of articles much finer than fire brick. 2. OXYDE OF IRON, OR ARGILLACEOUS CARBONATE OF IRON. The coal series appear to furnish always more or less of this variety of iron ore. It occurs, usually, in nodules, from the size of an egg up to a barrel. Generally, their form is an oval or flattened sphere. The strata are part s of the coal series, and subordinate to the formation, and are depended upon, to a great extent, for the supply of ore for iron. It s qualities, especially when manufactured with coal from the beds, is not of the first order ; but, as it is made into iron cheaply, it is valuable ore. 3. LIMESTONE. The limestone, 'which has hitherto been exposed in mining, is of an inferior quality, and only small in quantity. The layers do not exceed a foot in thickness. At the Wilcox Mine, and at an opening on the plantation of Mr. Campbell, on Deep River, layers of tolerably pure gray and granular limestone occur. The seams and thin beds of limestone lying in and divid- ing the slate, is impure from silex, and is probably magne- sian. Septana are formed in this band, which, taking the whole, and including some intervening slate, is from four to five feet thick. It may serve a good purpose in making hydraulic lime. It should be tried. It occurs at Leaksville and Madison. The Deep River band, though it occupies ap. parently the same position, seems to be more silicious than at the other places mentioned. When limestone is so scarce, the inferior kinds will pay for burning; and, as wood is cheap, there can be little risk trying the lime at some of the localities, both for agricultural purposes, and hydraulic ce- ment. 155 4. PLASTER AND SALT. The first has not been found at ail, except in some few instances, in the tertiary clays. The suit is frequently a mineral subordinate to the rocks of this series. It exists. Some of the waters issuing from these sandstones con ain a small quantity of sal', muriate of soda, or, more properly, chloiide of sodium. 1 have obtained it in small crystals, by evaporation. The question of the exist- ence of muriate of soda, in quantity, can only be settled by boring 1 . There is one fact which seems to be unfavorable to its presence in sufficient quantities to become valuable. If the indications are to be relied upon, the rocks were deposited in deep water ; and it appears (hat salt or brine springs are more commonly found in those which are formed under shal- low wafer, and where the water itself evaporates under tho sun sufficiently to ciysiall/ze out of the liquid, and occasion, ally leaves a large area uncovered with water. But, however this may be, boring is justifiable : and, as numerous places are known where water furnishes salt, the expense attending the operation will not form a serious objection to such a project. 5. FREE STONE. Dan and Deep Rivers both furnish, and may furnish, inexhaustible quantities of free stone, admirably adapted to all works of construction. The material is soft, when first removed from the beds, and hence is easily wrought into suitable forms ; it hardens by exposure to the weather, and is therefore durable ; its colors are bright, and the stone is therefore beautiful. The taste and fashions of the times give a preference to building stones of this description ; but durability has also had something to direct and settle public opinion. Chimneys \\hich have been built of these stones have stood for fifty winters and summers ; and yet (heir corners are as sharp as ever. Besides, it is not so subject to acquire mouluiness as granite. Granite, like some poor soils, encourages the growth of fungi; b)i giving them potash, or the alkalis ; and hence. 156 i building 1 , made of smoothly wrought granite, becomes dingy, especially if shaded. The expense of working free stone is much less than granite. Quarries may be opened on or neat the navigable waters. 6. GRINDSTONE. The kind of stone which is predomin- ant is a sandstone. The grain is variable, from a coarse to a very fine grit. Among the grits, that kind which is suit- able for grindstones is common. The series below the coal, as well as those above, furnish them. Among the grits, 1 have observed some very fine ones upon the south side of Deep River, not far from Mr. Campbell's. They appear to be adapted !o the purpose of grinding finer cutlery. Experi- ence, I beli v( , proves the value of these stones for the ordi nary uses of the farmer, the grinding of axes, &c. Very little attention, however, has been given to inquiry respecting the best beds. Should a market be opened, grind- stones of the best quality can be obtained. 'J heir color is both brown and gray. Their grit is very sharp, and the grade* of hardness required for different purposes may be easily sup- plied. 7. MILLSTONES. I am not sufficiently well informed, a? to what state of perfection the millstones of Deep River may be brought. They are among the best stones for grinding corn. Whether art can make them best, or as good as the French burr stones, will be better determined by those ac- quainted with the manufactory of them than myself. They are esteemed for corn, and this fact has given them creak and a market to almost any extent ; and it will increase, pro- vided means of cheap transport are provided : as they can be furnished much cheaper than French burr stone, and are equally good for some purposes. 8, SHALE. The slate of the coal series, being fragile, and easily decomposed, may be employed upon the soil, ns a fertilizer. It is composed of alumina, silex, a little lime, phosphate of lime, and some potash. 157 Those layers, which abound in the cypris, and posidonia, are richest in phosphate of lime. The composition adapts the use of it to sandy or loamy soils ; and, though I do not venture to recommend their trans- portation far, yet, on the plantations, which have a poor soil, which are adjacent to this marl, it will pay well for hauling. It should he ground and sown freely, broad cast. These slates contain many hard oval bodies, which consist of silica, lime, and phosphate of lime: the latter, in the proportion of more than one half. These long oval bodies are the excre- ments of fish, or liz irds, which swarmed in the sea, in the days during the deposit of the system. The recommendation is eno tinged on the ground, that fertilizers are expensive in that region of country vvhe-'e this formation exists; and if it should be found useful, the country through which these shales pass, can be supplied, to any extent which is desirable. It is rare, that a formation, which looks so tmpiomising on its first ar.qaintance, should turn out so rich in products, which will encourage industry and contribute so much to the advancement of wealth and prosperity. The English new red sandstone, which is certainly closely allied to this formation, supports no less than nineteen large cities. It is true, that in that country, rock salt is one of the products of the red sandstone formation, which has been dis- covered here; but there is coal, which is still betttr, and which can promote the wealth of the Dan and Deep Rivers, to a far greater extent, than salt alone. The climate, and the health of the country, too, is in its favor. The navigable waters, or thos? susceptible of being made so ; the value of the forests, in pines and oaks ; the iron ; all of which mark the Dan and Deep River, places these districts, in a position, equal to that of the country referred to, and if that can support and cherish the inhabitants of nineteen cities, certainly, this formation should give origin at least to four or five large and flourishing towns. A careful survey of our own country, and others abroad, ac- companied with an inquiry into the causes of the rise of cities 158 and towns, will probably show, that those causes are mainly geological. It will show, thru, the productsof the soil and the mine lie at the foundation of all the operations which have given rise to their establishment and subsequent prosperity. PiUsburg, in Pennsylvania, owes her origin to the iron and coal in her neighborhood. Rochester, in New York, owes her origin to the peculiar rocks there, whose constitu- tion produces the Falls upon the Genessee, at this place, and those peculiar rocks give the surrounding country a wheat soil. Upon these facts, fRoch ester has become one of the most flourishing cities in the Union ; and yet all these causes are geological. Deep River and the Dan have all these ad- vantages and more. REASONS WHY THE NEW RED SANDSTONES OF THIS COUNTRY DIFFER FiiOM THOSE OF EUROPE. 109. The new red sandstone, in England, is underlaid by limestones, or calcareous rocks, to a greater or less ex- tent. Some of them are magnesia ; and hence, in the series^ one of the members is strongly marked, and is known as the magnesia limestone. The origin and source of the materials appear to be entirely different ; and hence, the lithological character of th3 series; and new red sandstone is quite different, at least in its subordinate parts. 159 In the United States, the materials are deficient in lime and lyscer.csifc ; and on account of the presence of certain minerals t'ilhiJu: in the waters, and forming deposits, and thereby imparting a character to the whole sen, these circumstan- ces cannot fail to influence both animal and vegetable life; The sea-bottom will favor, or it will be unfriendly to the existence of certain species. To facts of this kind \ve may look for an explanation of certain modifications which are known to exist in the fossils of those rocks. The marl slates resemble those of the Permian system. In Germany, they contain copper. Here, they are entirely destitute of copper. In other respects, they aie quite simi- lar. While it cannot be proved that rocks which contain the coal of Deep and Dan Rivers are Permian ; still reasons are not wanting which favor this view : though the Rich- mond coal field is now regarded as belonging to the Oolite. I am, however, upon the whole, and on consideration of all the facts, inclined to adopt the opinion, that the whole series belongs to the upper new red sandstone. I am sure the great abundance of coal favors the view that this series should be regarded as Permian. So, also, the tooth of the Thecodontosaurus, or a saurian closely allied to it but the most abundant fossil, the posidonia minuta, (Goldf.) favors more strongly the opinion I have adopted under the existing facts. 160 MISCELLANEOUS NOTICES OF MINERAL DE- POSITS AND VEINS. IRON ORE. In Nash County, I visited a deposit of Iron which had been worked, but now abandoned. It resem- bles the bog ores ; should be classed with them ; being simply a superficial deposit, of no great depth. This, in fact, is of no value. It is one of those formations which, 1 believe, has originated from ancient mineral springs, whose waters were charged with bicarbonate of iron: or an oxyde held in solution in a carbonated water. When combinations of this character reach the surface, the car- bonic acid escapes. When the iron is no longer soluble in water, it is precipitated upon the surface. There will then be found a deposit of oxyde of iron, intermixed with clay, sand, &c. Some of these deposits may contain suffi. cient iron to become valuable ; this will not. The extent should be determined by sounding with a slender bar of iron or steel, before expenditures are made. MAGNETIC ORE, IN GUILFORD COUNTY. Magnetic ore of a fine quality, exists at Mr. C. Coffin's, ten miles from Greensboro'. It is free from sulphate of iron. It had not been examined, when I visited it, in a shaft. The surface ore presents a favorable indication of two or more veins of a fine quality. SPECULAR ORE, ON THE PLANTATION OF WM. JONES. This ore is also a fine kind of this^species ; but its extent has not been determined by actual exploration. 161 SPECULAR ORE o\ THE PLANTATION OP MR. GLASS. This location is six m ; les north of Evans's Mills. I regard this as the peroxyde, or the specular ore ; as it is un-mag- netic, and gives a red streak. It is abundant, and, being: in the vicinity of water power, it will come into use when the Deep River improvements are completed. STITH'S CUPPER MINE, IN GUIL ,FQRD. time. iBfft 111. It has been known for a very long time,iBh the auriferous pyrites consisted in part of the sulphuret of iron, and, in part, of the sulphuret of copper. In extracting the gold from the sulphurets, the latter has been neglected and allowed to rlow away in the washings. Lately, how- ever, attempts have been made, not only to save the copper of the auriferous pyrites, but to work the veins exclusively for copper. Stith's mine had been worked for its gold for many years. It was profitable ; but its owner, Mr. Fen- tress, had given up the business of working it for gold, and it was lying useless to himself, when Mr. Stith proposed working the sulphuret for copper. Two shafts had been sunk upon the vein, at a distance of 316 feet j and, for some distance from each shaft, the ore had been removed and worked for gold. The vein runs N. 30 degrees E. ; dip N. W. At the depth of almost 72 feet, the vein of pyrites is divided into two, [a flat vein, which dips about5 degrees, and a vein dipping between 60 and 70 degrees.] The flat vein consists of a gangue of quartz, arranged somewhat in columns, and the vein of sulphuret, ranging in with from 4 to 12 inches : the whole width of the quartz and copper is from 2J to 5 feet. This flat vein dips towards the steep dipping vein, and finally becomes incorporated with it, when it becomes the main and important vein of the mine. 11 162 The progress of the work becomes more and more favora- ble, and a fine vein of sulphuret of copper is likely to be disclosed, and, indeed, is so, by the present operations. The double sulphurets are changed to the single suiphurets, and it is found to yield from 32 to 40 per cent, of copper. The mine is valuable, and its success will operate favorably in producing a change in the working of the auriferous pyrites. The probability is, that many others, in which the copper has been lost, from ignorance of the value of the substance, will be worked so as to save the copper, or to work them as copper mines exclusively. LIMESTONE. 112. The great value and importance of limestone has created a demand for it, both as an article essential in con- struction, as well as in agriculture. In a very large part of North Carolina, this rock seems to be absent, and hence it has been difficult to supply lime sufficient only to meet the ordinary wants ot the community. It has been always too expensive to warrant its employment for agriculture, and much of the loss in agricultural products maybe at- tributed to the scarcity and expense of lime. Probably all the soils of this State will be benefit ted by the application, of lime. I have visited only the two well known localities of limestone in Stokes, the limestone belonging f o Mr. Mar- tin of , and Mr. Bolejaek of Germanton. These beds of limestone belong to thepyro crystalline rocks. The stratification of Mr. Martin's beds is quite obscure, while that of Mr. Bolejack's is quite distinct. Both belong to the same kind of rocks. 163 The thicknes? of both exceeds forty feet, and lie between strata of coarse talcose slates or talco-micaceous slate. Both beds make good lime. These beds may become in the hands of enterprising men both profitable to the owners and highly the useful to community . Mr. Bolejack's is located very conveniently for cheap mining, and wood being abun- dant and cheap, I have no doubt it may be furnished at 15 cents per bushel and perhaps 12J. At those prices tha far- mer can afford to use lime. The beds seem to be in range with others crossing the State from N. E. to South West. SOME OF THE GEOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SLATES OF STOKES, SI T RRY, &c. The predominant rock of these Counties is Talcose Slates with a variety which may be called talco-micaceous slate. The rock has the usual silvery lustre, and thin lamination, which is frequently undulating. The rock is generally cov- ered with soil. The ridges and mountains are sharp and narrow, and present in out line a singular and picturesque appearance. This is especially the case with the Pilot mountain. From Germanton and other points, it presents the appearance of a high isolated rounded knob, bearing upon its summit a square tower. Seen from the residence of its owner, Mr. Guillam, it becomes a sharp ridge sur- mounted by two pinnacles the eastern the greater of the two. The mountain sides are steep and precipitous. The pinnacles are bounded by perpendicular sides. The highest and most prominent one is ascended by means of ladders, and rises about 70 feet above the crest of the mountain. 164 These magnificent pinnacles have been formed by a very simple geological operation. The rocks were thrust up- wards in such a manner as to produce a decided curvature of the crest of the mountain, and so much of a curvature, as to produce a cross fracture of the strata between the pinna- cles, which are 250 yards apart. The slow operation of at. mospheric agents have done the rest These operations consisted in the disintegration of the softer slates, especial- ly along the line of parture between the pinnacles. The un- dermined strata form the debris of the mountain sides. The harder strata of the pinnacles have withstood the action of the elements, and will stand and battle them for thousands o^ years to come. The strata of the pinnacles differ from each other. Some of the strata consist of pure granular quartz, especially those which form the pinnacles. These strata, however, should not be regarded as a sandstone, but simply a very quartzose variety of talcose slate. The Pilot and other mountains of the range belong to the first and most easterly of the Blue Ridge or Alleghanies ; but unlike other ridges, they are steepest on the eastern slope. The Pi- ot mountain is one of the greatest places in North Carolina. Nature has performed a work here, which seems to have been designed to give health and pleasure to those who have become debilitated or worn down under the burning and sul- try atmosphere of the South. It is a pity, when so little is left to be done, to make the Pilot a place of great resort, nothing but a rough path way and a few ladders have yet been contributed to promote objects of so much importance. The geological structure of much of North Carolina >s char- acterized by low anticlynal and synclynal axes. Some of the synclynal are deep and form troughs in which the coal fields lie. The axes are formed by normal dips, being equal on both sides of the rounded ridge. 165 CONCLUSION. 1 hire introduced a greater amount of elementary matter perhaps, than is required in a simple Report, designed to give a statement of what has been done to carry out the plan of the survey. I have done this because many of the persons into \vh'"se hands this report will fall, wish something of the kind. Much of the elementary matter of the foregoing re- port iiris been published before, but I have proposed to make a direct application of these elements to the agriculture of the State. The State of North Carolina might be divided into two great districts, the Agricultural and Mining the former embraces those Counties which lie immediately upon the Atlantic slope, extending to the first fall of the rivers, where they enter the tertiary formation. The latter embraces all west of these falls. While the former, however, is eminent, ly agricultural, the latter is both agricultural and mining. Usually, a mining district is rough and comparatively un- productive : here, however, while mining gives, or is capa- ble of giving, magnificent return, the agricultural is equally productive with other districts. The means of living are therefore cheap, and while a portion of its citizens are en- gaged in those pursuits which neither make a blade of grass, or potatoes grow, yet their labor always secures an abun- dance of bread and meat from the very surface beneath which the mineral wealth is drawn. In pursuing the work up to the present time, I have scarcely touched upon the mining wealth of the State. The most I have attempted to do, is to to develop the value of the coal mines. The gold, copper, lead and iron mines, 1 propose t3 examine the ensuing year. It is a remarkable fact, that, while lead and zinc are com- paratively rare, gold and silver are abundant. I had occa- sion to notice a fact of like kind, in my Report of the 166 Geology of New York. In the Northern Counties of that State, iron is the great mining product ; it is accompanied with neither copper, lead, zinc or gold. I mean that it pre- ponderates over every other metal. Iron occupies an im- portant place in North Carolina ; and I may here say that the advantages for making bar iron of the best quality are very great. The ore in the first place is abundant and of an excellent quality ; and in the second place, wood for charcoal is equally abundant, and as the growth of trees is rapid, fuel will never fail if system is observed in its cutting and preservation of young timber. The resources of the forest in North Carolina are immense, notwithstanding a terrible disease has infested certain portions of it for some time past. The famous long leaf pine is a magnificent tree of the forest. It yields its turpentine and rosin in pro- fusion one of the great staples of the South ; its leaf makes an elegant hat, its cone an ornamental basket, its heart the most durable of posts, and its wood the cheerful fire and light, both of the kitchen and parlor. The great variety of Oaks and Walnut are no less important. The Tulip in beau- ty is rarely excelled, and the Magnolia among the trees of the forest is like a gigantic rose. The water power is also immense. The improvements on Deep River and Cape Fear will furnish water for sever- al Lowells. In fine, the elements of wealth and prosperity have been dealt out with a liberal hand, and its people have only to put forth their energy and enterprize. to stand with the first States in this repubiic. 167 DRIFT-DILUVIAL ACTION. 116. In the Northern Stales and Canada, the surface of the country is overspread with a coating of soil stones, gravel boulders, etc., which are foreign to spots and places upon which they now rest. These materials have been transpoit- ed from distant points, either North, or Northeast, from the spots we now find them, and, in many cases, more than one hundred miles from their parent beds. F wish merely to al- lude to this fact. It is a practical one"; for, as the surface has not been disturbed, and as the disintegrations of rocks have gone on quietly, the debris remain in place. Hence, a mass of iron ore, or of copper, gold, etc., which lies upon the sur- face and in the debris, the parent bed or vein of each, will be found below, or at most, but a short distance from the spot ; wheieas, at the North, it is common to find a mass of iron ore which is one hundred miles from its bed or vein. In the lat- ter instance, we know only the direction the mass has been transported, [n North Carolina, we may always expect to find the ore in the immediate vicinity in which it is found, except in those cases where the loose mass has been removed by aqueous causes now in operation. 168 [As I was unable to incorporate the observations and remarks of Dr. McClenahan, one of my assistants, with my own, I deem it proper to give them a separate place in the re- port. They are, as will be seen, addressed to me in the form of a letter. They were made during my absence from the field, and while engaged in the laboratory :] LETTER OF DR. McCLENAHAN. DEAR SIR : After parting with you at Goldsborough, and arri- ving on the Coal Field, I commenced the survey of the underlying sandstone, at Captain Elias Bryan's, on the, Deep River, one mile above Hay wood. The dip at that point is South, 45 degrees East, at an angle of 20 degrees : the strike South, 45 degrees West. The sandstone and con- glomerate are both properly exposed at this place, the sand- stone resting immediately on the conglomerate. I commen- ced by running South, 45 degrees West, to Womble's : thence across the Hay wood road, by Mrs. Gilmour's : thence by Mrs. Reddle's : thence due West, to Mathew Wicker's, (dis- tant from the starting point, ten miles) : thence North, 35 degrees West, crossing the river, to Watson's, on the North side of the river : thence North, 70 degrees West, to Burns' Spring : thence due West, by J. Hasley's : thence South, 50 degrees West, by Richard Dowd's : thence South, 55 de- grees West, by John Dowd's : thence South, 45 degrees West, crossing Indian Creek just above William Hays' : thence South, 50 degrees West, to Deep River, in Mrs. Street's plantation : thence South, 60 degrees West, crossing the river to the mouth of William Hancock's lane, in Moore county : thence South, 45 degrees West, to Sewel's quarry of conglomerate : thence by Davis' quarry : thence by Neil Dunlap's : thence by Allen McDaniel's : thence by Jesse Thomas', on Drowning Creek, in Montgomery county : thence South, 60 degrees West, by Calvin Rush's, on Moun- tain Creek : thence South, 45 degrees West, by David Har- 169 riss' : thence by Lucas' store : thence by John C. Cham- bers' : thence across Little River, two miles above Steel's bridge, in Richmond county : thence across Pe-Dee River, at the mouth of Brown's Creek, in Anson county . thence up the Northwest side of Brown's Creek, by the Carolina Col- lege : thence South, 60 degreed West, to the South Caiolina l -ie, in the Southeastern corner of Union county. 1 took Cross sections, at nearly all the public roads which crossed the Sandstone transversely, and found it varying: in width, from ; vjt to fourteen miles. 1 frequently got the dip where the .ie was well exposed, and it varies from 10 degrees to 60. * ^Iso made cross sections fiorn six coal pits, oul to the out p of the underlying sandstone, and found it varying from mile and three-fourths, to three miles : the greater the >, the shorter the distance. After running the line, to the South Carolina line, 1 return- til to the starting point (Capi. E. Aryan's), and commenced t* lining Northeast, across Deep and Haw Rivers, one mile Itvthwest of the town of Hay wood : thence North, 30 de- grees East, by Willam Crump's and William Bland 'a : thence bg Neill Womble's, in whose field the conglomerate is well ex posed : thence by Mrs. Amsled's, on New Hope Creek : thence across the creek, by William Clark's, Thos. Womble's, John Eland's, Causby Stone's, in whose plantation it again crosses the Creek : thence up the Northeast side of the Creek, but occasionally crossing and re-crossing, by Mooring's, by Herndon's old store> in Orange county: thence by Pratt 's store, crossing the Central Railroad half a mile Northwest of the store : thence across Eno and Flat River, in Benehan's plantation ; after which, it could be but indistinctly traced. Although this is the direction of the great body of the stone, there is, occasionally, points which run off in various direc- tions : one of the principal poin'.s which make off in this way, is one that continues up New Hope, to Morgan's creek, and up that creek to within two miles of Chapel Hill. There is a formation of sandstone on Tau River. I saw it at Thos. Miller's plantation, six or seven miles Southwest of Oxford. I had understood that coal had been found there ; 170 but, when I examined the spot, which is in the river bank, I found it to be lignite. I have samples of it in Raleigh, and also of the micaceous sandstone in which it is embedded. My attention has been frequently culled to the subject of lime, and I have been frequently told, that there was limestone on certain lands, which 1 was going to examine ; but, as yet, I have not been enabled to discover lime in sufficient quantities to render it of much value, East of Germantoa. 1 have seen small deposit es of limestone in the upper stratum of what I have called the newer red sandstone. I found it at Mr. Fow- ler's, in Chatham, near Mooring's, and on the Hillsborough road, near Brassfield's, sixteen miles from Raleigh, and itv Granville county, on the plantation of Mr. Worthara : it isi>v greater abundance at this point than at any I noticed. Mr Wortham has hauled out on his farm a considerable qunntitv of it, and informed me that the land on which he spread it j produced much better. Lime in great abundance, and of excellent quality, is found stretching across the State, from Danbury, in Stokes county, to King's Mountain, in South Carolina. I saw it at Williams' kiln, on the Yadkin, at PofT 's, ten miles above Salem, at Hoosertown, at Germanton? and at Martin's, near the Virginia line. I procured a piece near Germanton, at Mr. Bolejack's, which is an excellent marble, and receives a fine polish. The quantity of limestone at this point, appears to be inexhaustible, and of good quality ; in fact } all the lime I saw at all the kilns appeared to be of good quality. I have procured samples of the stone from all the kilns, for your inspection. This section of the State abounds in iron ore of good quality. I have specimens from several places. Magnetic iron ore of good quality is found two miles West of the Pilot Mountain, on the lands of Mr. Guillam. I examined the place and saw it scattered oveif a large surface. After examining the limestone, I commenced the survey of the coal field on the Dan River. I commenced at German - ton : the out crop of sandstone is near that place. The dip is Northwest, at an angle of 35 degrees, and the strike North- east. I was able to trace the out crop of sandstone as far a 171 Madisoa, and have procured samples of the coal and slate, at various points ; but, in consequence of high waters, I was unable to ascertain the thickness of the coal seam. The fos- s ils are of * he same kind we find on the Deep River, but the coal is anthracite. I should have continued the survey down fa Iv^k^viHe, or as far as the coal continued in the State, but Ler. crop of black shale, on the coal field, is in great &*u ; and the direction of the seams can easily be tra-, fiie end of the field to I he other, with the appropriate ATeal. abundance. I found but few points on the coal field, South of Deep River, where the shale V** easily traced. I found it on Drowning Creek, in -*uvy county, about one mile Northwest of the sand- . A ., wtah contains lignite : the dip at this point is not fcfr%v 10 degrees. I also found it at the Pe-Dee River, fcto*tation of Mrs. McCloud. ^|aing with you at Halifax, I visited the Northwes- of Edgecombe county, for the purpose of ascer- ft* truth of what I had heard of a large skeleton mbedded in Fishing Creek. I ascertained it to be ^ ttm*ti of an enormous whale, some of the vertebrae of which cifeaBiiied twenty-two inches in diameter. It had been so much mulilated, that I was deterred from attempting to disinter but a small portion of it. I learned from the gentle- man, who owns the land in which it is embedded, that the largest portion of the bones had been taken away by various persons, some of whom lived at a great distance ; and he also informed me that a large number of the bones had been washed away by the " freshets." I ascertained, by finding one or two vertebree in place, that the animal had been deposi- ted on his back, and as the water is not more than two or three feet above the vertebrae, which is just covered with marl and sand, I could readily account for the absence of all the ribs, by freshets, which swept them down the stream. This animal is lying on a bed of marl, -vhich is twelve or fifteen feet thick, and the silicious shelly limestone, which is found between the green sand and shell marl, is just above 172 the remains : above that is a bed of yellow sand and shell marl, which is about seven or eight feet thick. Mr. Knight, the gentleman who owns the lands, told me that there was a portion of the head still embedded in the bank, and but for the rise which took place in the creek, while I was there, I should have procured it. The animal lay diagonally across the creek the head in Edgecombe and the tail in Halifax, the creek being the line dividing the two counties. I picked up a good many of the bones, and requested Mr. Knight to take care of them lor me, which he promised to do, and gave me the balance, if I could procure them. I procured someo^ the marl below the remains, and some of the upper bed, wlii is above it. I also procured a specimen of the shell re t K which is between the two beds. 1 have a piece of the j; bone in Raleigh, which I got out of the water near the sp * V where Mr. Knight told me the head was embedded in the bank. After passing over the tertiary system, which continues, in the direction to Raleigh, about twenty-five miles above Nash- ville, I discovered the primary slates, talcose and micaceous, with a great many quartz veins running through them, show- ing strong indications of gold. The dip of these slates is to the South, 70 degrees East, at an angle varying from 25 de- grees 10 60 degrees ; the strike South, 20 degrees West. After passing over this formation, I came to a formation of in- ferior granite, composed chiefly of feldspar and quartz, with a very small proportion of mica. This stone readily dis- integrates when exposed to the frost, producing a coaise gra- velly soil, which is an excellent land for corn, cotton and oats. This granite gradually increases until it reaches Raleigh, where it has a sufficient amount of mica to form a very good building stone. At Raleigh, the dip of the slate is changed fron S -uheast to Northwest, at angles varying from 25 de- gree to SO degrees ; in fact, the dip near the Plumbago veins, four or '-ve miles Northwest of Raleigh, is nearly perpendicu- lar. The strike being South, 20 degrees West. I have pro- cured :.,) cimens of this graphite for your inspection, from seve : points: some ol it is of good quality, but the most 173 of it that I saw was out crop, and, therefore, was full of dirt. I think these veins of graphite, by proper manage- ment, might be made immensely valuable. I should expect to find the mineral of much better quality, after going down to water scale. The stratum of Plumbago is of good i?< rt. The unavoidable absence of the author, in the prosecution of his labors, devolved upon the publisher the duty of re- vising the proof-sheets. His want of familiarity \\ith most of the technical terms employed, renders it probable that errors exist, so for as those terms are concerned.] 14 DAY USE RETURN TO DESK FROM WHICH BORROWED EARTH SCIENCES LiBRARv This book is due on the last date stamped below, or on date to which renewed, lewed books are subject to immediate recall General Library university of California Berkeley C03HL05017 Storaqc ^