i9o6] CHANCE— BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICE OF J. P. LESLEY. ix 



and in 1886 professor emeritus of that chair. During his active 

 work at the university he was for some years dean of the Towne 

 Scientific School. 



In 1869 he became editor of the United States Railroad and 

 Mining Register, retaining this position until 1873, during which 

 period he contributed to it a large number of editorials embracing 

 political as well as technical essays and discussions. 



From 1858 to 1874 he was largely engaged in geological work 

 for corporations and private individuals, which was in fact his chief 

 source of income, and without which he would have been unable to 

 attend to the affairs of this society. 



In the early sixties he overworked himself in private geological 

 surveys in the oil fields, and in 1866 was compelled to go abroad and 

 spend two years in regaining his health and strength. 



In 1874 the commissioners of the Second Geological Survey ap- 

 pointed by Governor Hartranft to inaugurate a thorough resurvey of 

 the state elected him state geologist. Putting aside a growing and 

 lucrative professional practice, he devoted his whole time and ener- 

 gies to the supervision of the field forces and to the revision and 

 editing of the reports of progress, comprising more than one hundred 

 octavo volumes, and finally to the personal preparation of a final sum- 

 mary report. 



The passage of the law inaugurating' the Second Geological Sur- 

 vey of Pennsylvania was in response to a demand for accurate knowl- 

 edge of our mineral resources, arising from the expansion of manu- 

 factures following the Civil War. At that time few of the states 

 were prosecuting such surveys and those so engaged were hampered 

 by lack of funds and scarcity of specialists trained to the work. No 

 established mode of conducting such surveys had been formulated 

 nor had any system been devised for a prompt publication of the 

 results. 



As organizer of this survey, Professor Lesley was thus con- 

 fronted with problems upon a satisfactory solution of which the 

 future of the survey surely would depend, for the appropriation made 

 by the legislature was sufficient to cover two or three years at most, 

 and unless the people were satisfied with the results there could be 

 little if any hope of further appropriations. From the inception of 



