in the United States of America, 439 



To return from this slight digression to the drier subject 

 of the rock specimens from the Carolina gold district: thejf 

 are not numerous, but they suffice to show clearly the g^o^^ 

 logical character of the country. ^^* 



1. Clay slate, exactly similar to the varieties of Cornish slate, 

 provincially called killas ; having somewhat of a whitisfc 

 silvery lustre. ^ 



2. A quadrangular prism, of what Dr. Macauly called basalt: 

 it occurred in a bed over the gold veins, and, according to 



^ Dr. Macauly, some parts of the bed contained garnets.* 



" 'jf'he prism more nearly resembles phonolite, passing into 



/dlay stone; it is of a greenish brown colour, very compact, 



but yielding without difficulty to the knife: each side of 



the prism has a steatitic incrustation, which gives, it the 



"^ ^aspect of serpentine, and the same 3C^py ^t^el; but this 



-^ is merely superficial. 



3.^ <A. darker rock, more nearly resembling serpentine ; it con- 

 ' j^tains some embedded particles of quartz, and minute grains 

 * .of pyrites, which are probably auriferous, as a vein of com- 

 pact grey quartz runs through the rock, in which native 

 ^'^old is plentifully dis;^emipate|J in p^j;tici<^s^lid ,lapQig£i?, qf^ 

 , 'various forms. J.,^^;^,,^.;,^,| .yj^ h^^^^vim 



4. A magnificent specimen of splendent carbonate or iroi^ fflTO 

 white quartz, from near Salisbury, North Carolina^ j.jboqg 



5. A specimen of a vein containing quartz, iron ochre, U'ojl, 

 pyrites, and particles of native gold, with portions of 

 greenish slate and mica. g^.. ~ .. .j, 



% and 7. Iride^c^jit«o^iJf#^^et.,C§4i9^ 



sylvania. ^^--^n^u grft ![r^ riii-^ \mr. hmm -dt Mn diiw 



*^l Tne American coal formation ejctends from east tO:^;iji^^ 

 several hundred miles, and contains numerous beds of valu^ 

 able coal and ironstone : it will doubtless prove a far greater 

 acquisition to the wealth and power of the United States than 

 the discovery of gold. The coal is chiefly dry coal, yielding 

 little bitumen : the Americans call it anthracite, but it is very 

 different from the anthracite of European mineralogists, and is 

 far more valuable for domestic use or for manufactures. 



The discovery of the three important minerals, gold, iron 

 ore, and coal, in a country possessing free institutions, with a 

 cheap but effective government and an enterprising and en- 

 lightened people, presents to the reflecting mind objects for 



* 1 think that these cr3'stals were most probably analeime, a mineral 

 (jommonly foun4 in basaltic rocks, and frequently crystallised like the 



garnet. ^^'i:!:>iEhJ 



F F 4) 



