Miscellanies. 191 



much of it, passed yet out of the hands of the General Government, 

 and can therefore be bought by any one, who wishes to own it, at 

 $1.25 cents an acre. 



In the winter season, this coal is brought down the river to Mobile 

 from Tuscaloosa, in flat bottomed boats, and sold at the same price 

 as the Liverpool coal, or at from $1 to $1.50 cts. a barrel. The 

 strata of this rich and extensive coal bed, have an inclination of a few 

 degrees, to the south south east. 



I presume you will ere long, receive a correct geological account 

 of this extensive and interesting coal formation, from some gentle- 

 man of the Alabama University at Tuscaloosa, which is a very fa- 

 vorable point for observing it. 



s The facts which I have communicated, w 7 ere obtained from an 

 eminent lawyer of this place who had visited the region and from a 

 laboring man, who had worked the coal in a blacksmith's shop 

 which he owned in that region. He informed me, that having work- 

 ed at the coal mines in Virginia, near Richmond, he considered 

 this coal deposit the richest and as containing the best coal he had 

 ever seen. 



16. Miscellaneous facts. — The diluvial region in the lower part 

 of this state, contains numerous quarries of ferruginous sand stone, 

 often including pebbles of pure quartz of various sizes. In many 

 places, this sand stone is used for building; I have a specimen, 

 obtained from a quarry within a few miles of Mobile. At Blakely, 

 opposite to this place, are found some very interesting petrifactions, 

 of different kinds of wood, among which, are specimens of petrified 

 live oak. 



The region of country just around Mobile, is very rich in botani- 

 cal productions; many insects, are inhabitants of the swamps. This 

 is a fine field, for the student of natural history, and as yet scarcely 

 explored or cultivated at all. 



17. India Rubber Carpets. — Having some India Rubber varnish 

 left, which was prepared for another purpose, the thought occurred 

 to me, of trying it as a covering to a carpet, after the following man- 

 ner. — A piece of canvass was stretched and covered with a thin coat 

 of glue, (corn meal size will probably answer best,) over this was laid 

 a sheet or two of common brown paper, or news paper, and another 



