IS 46.] Geological, of a trip to Carbondale. 7 



where I lodged — one of the two principal ones of the place — 

 dinner was ordinarily dispatched in fifteen minutes! Activity 

 and industry are the exclusive order of the day! 



The soil about Carbondale and in the adjacent country is poor, 

 and is considered poorer where the coal underlies it than else- 

 where. Bread stuffs are received principally from the Wyoming 

 \'alley, and salted beef, pork, &c., from the southern counties of 

 New York. The w^ater is good, and it is somewhat singular that 

 it is abundant, and gushes forth in copious springs, where the 

 coal has been excavated from beneath, though vegetation, under 

 the same circumstances, becomes obviously feebler. 



The stratification of the coal basin is nearly as follows, in the 

 descending order, commencing at the highest summits which the 

 coal underlies. 



Feet. Inches. 



Earth, loose stones &c. on surface from — Ito 300 



Clay slate, unknown thickness. - - 



Coal, 7 



Sandstone, — 80 



Coal of an inferior quality, 5 



Sandstone and slate alternating and passing into each 



other, 20 



Roof coal, of an inferior quality, 1 3 



Coal, 8 



Coal and slate intermixed, - 3 



Coal, 5 



Slate, 4 



Coal, 1 2 



Clay slate, say - 20 



Conglomerate, - 



The eight foot seam is the one which has been principally 

 worked, — though some excavations have been made in the five 

 foot one below. 



Fourteen main galleries or " headings " penetrate the coal 

 strata, with a general parallelism, in a horizontal direction; and 

 the longest extends 1| miles under ground. They are designed 



