1886.] 



FARMERS' REGISTER 



517 



their entire substance having been removed. The 

 open, yet hard texture of the rock, made it something 

 like buhr stone, and possibly it might serve to make 

 millstones. Its great hardness will forbid its being 

 used for manure, unless first bnrnt to lime. But it is 

 rieh enough to pay well for that preparation — and its 

 open nature would make a less degree of heat requi- 

 site for the purpose. This rock well deserves the 

 trouble of searching for — and though its quantity is 

 yet no where known to be very considerable, its being 

 discovered through so extensive a region, gives new 

 grounds for the hope which we have so often express- 

 ed, that the means of using calcareous manures in 

 Virginia will be greatly and profitably extended, far be- 

 yond the limits which were formerly supposed to be 

 fixed.] 



To the Editor of the Farmers' Register. 



Prince Edward, Nov. 20th, 1835. 



I have just returned from a laborious profession- 

 al tour, and have found yours of the the 7th inst. 

 I received this with great joy, considering I could 

 not read it all, and have determined to answer it 

 forthwith, lest my evil genius, procrastination, 

 should load my conscience with an additional bur- 

 den to that which has been so long accumulating. 

 When I was returning from your house I made 

 many resolutions about writing more for the Re- 

 gister than I had done, all of which have been 

 Broken. I have, however, written a good deal; 

 but being; called off while the pieces were unfin- 

 ished, they could not stand the ordeal of my own 

 criticism, when I returned. What I write must be 

 completed at a sitting, or it commonly proves an 

 abortion. I know the Register cannot lose much 

 by these, my|short-comings; but /do. Whenever 

 I write for it, I find my eagerness for farming in- 

 creases; and I wish that all your subscribers would 

 try the effect of an occasional contribution, as 

 means of their own agricultural improvement. 



I regret that I am able to give so little informa- 

 tion in relation to the rocks sent you last spring. 

 Those from Finneywood, Mecklenburg, were 

 given me by S. C. Anderson, Esq., of this county, 

 for transmission to you and Professor Rogers. I 

 learned from Mr. Anderson that they were turned 

 up by the plough in large quantities, on a farm 

 called Finneywood, on a creek of the same name, 

 in Mecklenburg; that the soil about them had a 

 black color, and that he was much struck with the 



fromising prospects it held out for improvement, 

 was informed that most of this calcareous mate- 

 rial could easily be crumbled in the fingers, after 

 being moistened. It has been some years since 

 Mr. Anderson procured the specimens. The pet- 

 rified impressions of shells, obtained from Capt. 

 Branch'?, were found lying on the surface on a 

 high hill in the woods; and the bed to which they 

 belonged has not been found. I went to his house 

 to investigate the matter, but neither he nor his 

 sons were at home, and I could get no accurate 

 information regarding the particular locality. I 

 believe that Prof. Dame of Hampden Sydney, on 

 analysis, obtained precisely the same result with 

 yours. While at Capt. Branch's, I found a great 

 deal of clay marl, interspersed with large calca- 

 reous nodules, similar to those sent you from my 



land. This marl may be found at several places 

 in his neighborhood, and at various others through 

 the country. It is usually incumbent on, and 

 sticking to beds of stratified hornblende rock. 

 These beds of hornblende are found about the 

 streams of water, and the slopes leading to them, 

 and give character to the soil of such places by 

 disintegration. The dividing ridges between the 

 streams are usually covered by a much poorer soil, 

 interspersed with quartz rock. The beds of horn- 

 blende, however, are doubtless continuous, and 

 penetrate thjough these ridges at a great depth. 

 They may commonly be found on both sides of the 

 ridges, deposited in the same direction and pos- 

 sessing similar accompaniments. 



While on this subject, it may be proper to men- 

 tion, that the little land which I have dressed with 

 my weak clay marl, and afterwards clovered, pre- 

 sents astonishing marks of improvement, far be- 

 yond my most sanguine hopes. Before clovering 

 the fertilizing action of the marl was not so strik- 

 ing. 



The calcareous rocks on my land (specimens of 

 which were sent you,) have proved too obdurate 

 for my awkward attempts at calcination. I sup- 

 pose them to be carboniferous limestone and marl- 

 ite. There is alarge mouldered bank of them — dug 

 up many years ago — which effervesces fiercely on 

 the application of acid. I mean to spread this on 

 the adjacent lands. 



I find more gypseous clay on my land than I at 

 first supposed. I do not wish to exhaust this, un- 

 til I get more land marled, for its application. 1 

 have tried a little, and it acts finely after marling. 

 There is on the land of Col. Witson of Cumber- 

 land, about four miles from me, and near the Ap- 

 pomattox a stratum of this, which, I would sup- 

 pose, almost inexhaustible. I suspect it to be 

 the out-running of a large vein of coal. It con- 

 sists of crystals of selenite, about the size of grains 

 of corn, very closely impacted with an unctuous 

 cream-like matter in the interstices. I see so rea- 

 son why the best of plaster might not be made by 

 grinding this selenite. If necessary, the inter- 

 vening clay — very little in quantity — might be 

 washed out in a running stream. 



Besides the clay marl interspersed with calca- 

 reous nodules, I have found some devoid of these, 

 which would effervesce smartly on admixture with 

 acids. As this marl was lying adjacent to large 

 ledges of feldspar rock, I suspected that its alkali 

 might be potash. Feldspar, however, sometimes 

 contains lime. 



A sedulous investigation into matters of this 

 sort might produce important developements. 



It is not probable, that for some time to come, 

 manufactories of porcelain will be erected in our 

 state; yet it is proper that some record should be 

 made of the localities in which the materials for 

 making it may be found. Kaolin or porcelain clay 

 is very abundant in this section — but generally of 

 a coarse quality. There is, however, a body of it 

 in the ice house at Ranes' tavern, Cumberland, of 

 fine texture, and white as snow. 



W. S. MORTON. 



