FROM PHILADELPHIA 177 



peras. But several miles down the river I had myself 

 taken to a place where an outcrop of saltpetre is 

 scraped from the cliffs, which with the addition of lye 

 is made into good saltpetre. At the beginning of the 

 war many hundred-weight of saltpetre was prepared 

 here and farther up the river. I shall have further 

 opportunity to mention the natural saltpetre of 

 America. 



At Jacob's Plains, a few miles from Wyoming, there 

 is a spring on which floats a fat, viscous scum deposit- 

 ing a yellow sediment. The water is said to have an 

 unpleasant bitter taste ; probably contains petroleum ; 

 the neighborhood of the coal-beds makes it likely. 



Down the river towards Sunbury cubical lead ore 

 has been found ; and on the western branch of the 

 Susquehannah lead occurs in still greater quantity, as 

 also alum and marcasite. 



Taking a turn to Nanticook we passed by the ruins 

 of a beginning iron-foundry. Much swamp-ore is 

 found thereabouts, which is probably what was used ; 

 besides, there is iron-stone in the neighboring mount- 

 ain. The reopening of this works will mean a con- 

 siderable gain to the region, since the distance and the 

 bad roads over which the iron needed must be fetched 

 vastly heightens the cost to the farmer. One obstacle 

 in the way of further attempts at getting out ore in 

 this region was the territorial quarrels ; hence anybody 

 who thinks he knows where there is a good spot is very 

 mysterious about it. About Wyoming there has been 

 discovered so far no lime or marble, but 15-20 miles 

 down the river, especially about Sunbury, several hills 

 are said to show lime and marble ; and likewise higher 

 up the river. 

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