Geological Surveys of other States, it is frequently urged, 

 and has been promulgated even in the legislative halls, that 

 if this failure is not merely the consequence of incompetency 

 on the part of those charged with the execution of the work, 

 it "is of no use to have a Geological Survey of Mississippi ;* 

 and whereas, it had been satisfactorily shown that no min- 

 erals were to be found in the State, the survey had better be 

 abandoned at once, to save expense. 



It is my object, in submitting to you this brief report, to 

 deal with these objections, and to explain to the people at 

 large, what I have had the honor of discussing with you 

 personally, viz : the true causes of the defects and short- 

 comings complained of; and moreover, to suggest the reme- 

 dies which are plainly indicated, not only by the considera- 

 tion of the nature of the case, but also by experience in this, and 

 precedents of other States. Having but recently entered 

 upon the discharge of the duties of my office, and having 

 been greatly impeded in my progress in the field, by 

 the want of proper equipments, I should have but few facts 

 entirely new to communicate ; and since even these would 

 not be readily appreciated without entering into a lenghthy 

 discussion of previous observations, I shall not for the pres- 

 ent dwell upon them. Having, however, been previously 

 connected with the same work for sixteen months, and no 

 progress having been made during the interval, I may per- 

 haps speak with some confidence of its condition and its 

 wants ; to which it is the chief object of this communica- 

 tion to call attention. 



The Geological features of Mississippi are such as to ex- 

 clude, according to the accumulative evidence of all other 

 countries, all chances of finding within the limits of the 

 State any natural deposits of metalic minerals, with the ex- 

 ception of iron ore. The latter, although widely diffused 

 over the State, has nowhere been found in quantities suffi- 

 cient to justify the erection of furnaces ; not, at least, so long 

 as they shall have to enter into competition with those of 

 adjoining States, where in some cases inexhaustible beds of 



