ON THE SALT SPRINGS OF WORCESTERSHIRE. 365 



bury and Walton. There is likewise a spring of this nature 

 at Redmarley. Now most of these springs, in addition to 

 the chloride of sodium, or common salt, which is found in the 

 brine springs at Droitwich, contain certain other ingredients, 

 which they appear to imbibe by passing through the strata of 

 Lias. These ingredients are sulphate of soda and magnesia, to 

 which may likewise be added, though they exist only in small 

 quantities, sulphate of lime, and chloride of magnesium. In 

 addition to these ingredients, the Hasler water is said to contain 

 a small portion of sulphuretted hydrogen.* 



Mr. Murchison, whose talents as a distinguished geologist are 

 too well known to need any comment from me, endeavours 

 to account for the existence of the mineral waters at Cheltenham, 

 the whole of which immediate neighbourhood is Lias formation, 

 by supposing that they are all primarily derived from a great 

 subterranean storehouse of rock-salt situated very deep in the 

 earth, and that at Cheltenham the springs so saturated with salt 

 have superadded to them, by percolating through the Lias 

 strata, the sulphates of soda and magnesia and the oxide of iron, 

 which are found in those waters. He says, "These facts may 

 be accounted for under the supposition that the source of the 

 saline ingredients of those waters is the New Red Sandstone, the 

 uppermost strata of which must, from their known inclination, 

 lie at depths of several hundred feet below the town of Chelten- 

 ham. If this be the case, and that saline waters are continually 

 flowing upon the inclined surface of these beds, we can readily 

 explain why they occasionally rise to the surface ; for waters 

 collected in the New Red Sandstone, at higher levels than the 

 vale of Gloucester, would naturally ascend to their original 

 level by any cracks or open veins which might present themselves 

 in the overlying Lias. The salt water having to pass through 

 various strata of marl and clay, loaded with iron pyrites, or 

 sulphuret of iron, it is to be presumed that during this 

 passage, certain chemical changes take place, which give to the 

 waters their most valuable medicinal qualities." 



1 have before observed, that although in this county rock-salt 

 and gypsum are found in the Red Marl, this is not the only 

 geological situation in which these minerals occur. There is an 

 instance of a salt spring issuing from the coal measures in this 

 county, near Dudley. Salt springs rise in many of the coal 

 strata, and gypsum and rock-salt are found both in the upper, 

 secondary, and tertiary beds. 



I shall not attempt to describe the various situations in 

 which rock-salt is discovered, because it would be impossible 



* The water containing sulphuretted hydrogen was obtained whilst sinking a 

 shaft for coal, at the depth of twelve feet from the surface. The shaft is now filled 

 up, but close to it a well, twenty feet deep, has been sunk, and from this well saline 

 water is still obtained; but in the specimens I have procured no sulphuretted 

 hydrogen was discovered. 



