358 Description of the Bare Hills. 



A little to the west of this point, the serpentine formation disappears. 

 In this neighborhood are several springs, which are evidently the 

 sources of the small stream so often mentioned. 



Several interesting minerals have been found, both in and on the 

 margin of this brook ; e. g. the beryl crystallized, and in fragments 

 of crystals without facets; masses of quartz, containing well de- 

 fined and large crystals of black tourmaline, and masses of rolled, or 

 watervvorn steatite, in which is a beautiful display of the asbestiform 

 steatite running through them. The masses of rocks and stones 

 that have been hurried downwards by the swollen current of the 

 stream, and deposited in its bed and on its banks, almost from its 

 source to the bridge, are well worthy of an examination by those 

 persons who are not familiar with formations of this kind. 



On the north side of the stream is a hill, or ridge, extending 

 to the east and terminating almost in a point, at the turnpike road, a 

 few rods north of the bridge, which is- of the same formation as those 

 already described. But as there are in it no excavations or ravines, 

 by which the minerals which it contains might be exposed to view, 

 nothing definite is known of them. 



Having pointed out the most interesting localities known upon the 

 road, and upon the hills to the west, our attention will next be directed 

 to the eastern section of the district. 



From the southern extremity of the stone bridge, we descend the 

 hill, from the road side by the foot path already mentioned, and con- 

 tinue along eastwardly at the foot of the hills. By this route, an op- 

 portunity is afforded of examining the rocks as they are presented 

 to view in the side of the hill facing the north. Arriving at the bend 

 of the hill we ascend and pass over it into the valley at U. 



This valley or ravine (for there is usually no water in it) extends 

 to the south and south west nearly half a mile, and has several late- 

 ral branches that fall into it from the hills at different points. These 

 several ravines receive the water that falls upon the neighboring hills, 

 and which passes off through the principal one to the north, where it 

 is discharged into Jones's Falls. 



The bottom of these ravines does not differ materially in appearance 

 from that of the ravines in the western sections of the district, as 

 they pass through a formation essentially the same. They are 

 nevertheless, sufficiently interesting to pay for the trouble of tracing 

 the principal ravines from their sources to their termination. The 

 granular and crystallized chromate of iron may be obtained in all 



