ORIGIN OF THK PERIDOTITES OF THE 

 SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS." 



BY J. VOI^NEY IvEWIS. 



INTRODUCTORY NOTE. 



It was my privileg'e to spend the summer months of 

 1893, 1894 and a part of 1895 in mapping and studying 

 in the field that portion of the Appalachian belt of per- 

 idotites which extends across North Carolina, almost 

 parallel to its western boundary, from Virginia to 

 Georgia and western South Carolina. A number of 

 excursions were also made to other portions of the belt 

 in Georgia and Pennsylvania. The work was done in 

 the preparation of a report on "Corundum and the Ba- 

 sic Magnesian Rocks of Western North Carolina," 

 which has just appeared as Bulletin No. 11 of the State 

 Geological Survey. The Bulletin was confined to a 

 presentation of the field results; the various rock types 

 are described and the distribution and modes of occur- 

 rence of the peridotites and corundum are given in 

 some detail. 



Discussion of doubtful points, and especially of those 

 already involved in controversy, was withheld for a 

 future publication, in which the results of micro- 

 scopic study and other laboratory work on these rocks 

 would be presented, with such discussion of origin and 

 other relations as these results might justify. A por- 

 tion of this work has already been done, and some in- 

 teresting results have been attained, but they will 



*Published by pennission of the State Geolog-ist of North Caro- 

 lina, who also allows the use of some illustrations from plates pre- 

 pared for Bulletin 11 of the Survey publications, 



