GEOLOGICAL REPORT. 85 



desire for a complete and thorough education. Many of them 

 have fine buildings, and are most excellent schools. 



Churches are numerous, varying in style from the plain log 

 building to the elegant brick edifice. Many of them are most 

 tastefully located amid the beautiful scenery of this favored 

 country. 



I have thus attempted, in a somewhat hasty and imperfect 

 manner, to delineate some of the more important natural re 

 sources and advantages of the county through which the South 

 western Branch of your road has been located and partially 

 built. Great care has been taken to keep within the bounds 

 of facts well authenticated and such deductions as might be 

 legitimately drawn from those facts. It may be proper here to 

 state, that our explorations have been, of necessity, but partial, 

 and there can be no doubt that a full and careful examination 

 of this county would enable us to more than double the very 

 extensive catalogue of mineral localities already known. 



COMPANY LANDS. 



The lands of your company contain more than a fair propor 

 tion of the good soil and mineral wealth of this region. The 

 town of Granby and other localities of lead, which appear 

 equally good, and many of the best iron beds, are on the lands 

 donated to the South-western Branch. The value of your min 

 eral lands is very great, and can scarcely be realized until the 

 road is completed and the mineral raised will sell for some 

 thing near its market value in other localities. The good agri 

 cultural lands cover a vast extent of fine country ; and their 

 value, already somewhat appreciated, will be greatly increased 

 by the completion of the road. All of the poorer lands will be 

 demanded for timber and pasture ; and the day is not far dis 

 tant when those broken ridges and flint hills, which have here 

 tofore been deemed worthless, will command the highest prices 

 for the cultivation of the grape. 



Some of your mineral lands would be cheap at $1,000 per 

 acre, and $10 per acre would be a very low valuation for the 



