7 



Here also, great care and minuteness of observation is ne- 

 cessary. 



It is therefore obvious, that in the case of Mississippi at 

 least, a hasty and superficial geological and agricultural sur- 

 vey can do no good. And it is equally obvious, that if it is 

 worth while to make such a survey at all, it must be worth 

 while to have it done well. 



That it is worth while, even the results heretofore obtain- 

 ed may be claimed to have satisfactorily shown. The green 

 sand and marl beds of the north-east and middle portions o! 

 the State, the extensive deposits of lignite and of valuable 

 clays, and the numerous mineral springs which have been 

 shown to exist, will in themselves compare favorably with 

 results of geological surveys of other States. . Under the 

 natural conditions obtaining in Mississippi, the especial im- 

 portance of the natural manures just mentioned can scarce- 

 ly be overrated, when we consider what the discovery of 

 similar deposits has done towards the promotion of agricul- 

 tural interests in some of the Atlantic States. Our beds of 

 lignite or brown coal, cover a larger area perhaps, than any 

 similar deposit heretofore discovered ; and although not 

 equal in value to good bituminous coal, the time is not far 

 distant when these deposits will prove highly important to 

 many portions of the State. In numerous localities the coal 

 deposit is so near the surface as to require scarcely any oth- 

 er than quarrying operations, in order to obtain a fuel which 

 in some districts of Europe is almost exclusively used for 

 domestic and industrial purposes. And even where the bed 

 is less accessible, its enormous thickness will render the ex- 

 traction of the material profitable. There is not, perhaps, a 

 State in the Union that can vie with Mississippi in the num- 

 ber and quality of its mineral springs ; and the importance 

 to the people at large, of having these sources of health made 

 generally available by a thorough examination, is manifest. 

 On the other hand, there are regions where the water of or- 

 dinary wells is positively injurious to health. The examina- 

 tion of these waters, and determination of possible remedies 



