440 MJR MILNE ON THE GEOLOGY OF ROXBURGHSHIRE. 



3. The rocks to be next described are those which, for distinction sake, may 

 receive the well known term of Coal-Measures. They consist chiefly of sandstones 

 grey, white, and red ; of earthy marls green, grey, and light-brown ; of black 

 shales ; and of limestones grey, reddish-brown, lilac, and black. It is among 

 these rocks that seams of coal are occasionally found. 



It will be seen from the map, that it is on the eastern and western extremi- 

 ties of the county, that this class of rocks exists in any abundance ; though, as 

 will be afterwards explained, patches of them do occur in intermediate spots. In 

 these intermediate spots, much money has been fruitlessly expended in searching 

 for coal. Trials have also been made in other places, where there was no ap- 

 pearance whatever to justify such attempts ; as, for instance, close to Maxton 

 Manse, on the west of it, where there is nothing but old red sandstone. 



It has been stated, that the rocks now referred to appear generally to lie 

 over the red rocks already described. It should be added, that in some places 



1 have observed red rocks, of similar appearance, also lying above them. For 

 instance, in Dinlee Burn (one of the feeders of Hermitage Water in Liddes- 

 dale), a yellow coal sandstone grit may be traced within two or three feet of a 

 greywacke hill, from which it slopes or dips at an angle of about 8 or 10. Over 

 these, are strata of red sandstones and shales, very soft and friable, and not ex- 

 actly conformable with the subjacent coal-measures. But the exact line of junc- 

 tion is indiscernible. So also in Laidlehope Burn, above Winshiel-Know (in Lid- 

 desdale), the soft red rocks may be seen lying above black coal shales, and con- 

 forming with them. On the Ale also, close to Kirklands House, a yellow coal 

 sandstone may be seen at the river side, overtopped by the red rocks. 



Though, in most places, the coal-measures of Roxburghshire lie over and 

 rest upon the soft red rocks, they, in a few places, may be seen resting directly 

 on or very near greywacke. Thus, in the Black Burn (a tributary of the Jed), I 

 found the grey gritty sandstone of the coal-measures lying on the vertical edges 

 of the greywacke formation. In the Carter Burn, at Sykehead, as well as in the 

 Edgerston burn (about a mile north of the Carter toll-bar), the coal sandstones of 

 Northumberland may be seen within 100 yards of the greywacke, and exhibiting 

 a southern dip. 



That the rocks which I have designated Coal-Measures really deserve that 

 name, is evident from the fact, that they contain all the fossils which are charac- 

 teristic of that formation ; and, in some places, very valuable seams of coal, which 

 are worked. In Liddesdale, coal is now worked very extensively at Rowan 

 Burn. Four seams exist there, which are respectively in width 5^ feet, 9 feet, 6 

 feet, and 2 feet. Coal was worked, also, formerly at Byre Burn, on the Esk, about 

 two miles below Langholm, where the principal seams were two in number one 



2 feet 7 inches thick, the other 5 feet 10 inches thick. Coal was formerly worked 

 also at Lawston, on the river Liddel (where, however, the seams do not exceed 

 14 inches thick) ; and several thin seams have been proved by borings to run 



