*76 .31 A TOPOGRAPHICAL 



to be sometimes done, and more generally from that down to 12,000 

 tons per acre ; but this is to be understood of the old mine only : 

 the new mine, taken in all its practicable parts, is supposed to be 

 quite equal to the old mine in coal, and much superior to it in iron- 

 stone, as strata of good coal are asserted to have been discovered 

 lower down. 



The following is an accurate account of the strata in a mine at 

 Catch-em/s-Corner, near Bilston, in a coal-pit-field upon the estate 

 of Joseph Lane, Esq. for which we are indebted to Mr. George 

 Jones, an experienced miner and engineer. 



Depth. 

 No. Ft. In. 



1. Surface soil, gravelly loam, 1 



2. Red clay, rubbish unfit for brick, 51 



3. Sandy and gravel, 6 



4. Clunch, a friable argillaceous schistus of no use, mouldering-* 



into a dark blue earth, J 



5. Rockbinds, harder than crunch, but somewhat similar, .... 15 



Depth to the Coal, 76 3 



6. White coal, very good shop coal, 3 



7. Tow coal, best furnace coal, 2 



8. Brazils, very good furnace coal, 3 6 



9. Batt, hard useless rubbish, 2 



10. Foot coal, very good, 2 6 



1 1 . Hob and jack, rubbish with nodules of iron-stone, 10 



12. Slip coal, moderately good, 2 



13. Stone coal, good, but with stone intermixed, 3 



14. Patchels, moderately good coal, 2 



15. Sawyer coal, very good, . 2 6 



16. Slipper coal, equal to the last, 3 4 



17. Batt, a useless clayey substance, 4 



18. Humfries, good coal, with waste matter intermixed, 2 6 



Depth to the bottom of the main Coal* 1 13 1 



This is the old mine, which has been worked many years: the dif- 

 ferent coal strata are in thickness 26 feet 4 inches at this place. At Bradley 

 they are, including the brooch coal, upwards of 30 feet; and towards Tipton, 

 where the flying reed or upper coal joins the main coal, the strata of coal 

 united considerably exceed 10 yards in thickness, but it is there deeper be- 

 neath the surface of the earth. Very important discoveries have been recently 

 made beneath the main coal, and inexhaustible supplies of iron-stone have 

 been found, equal in quality to any before known, and more abundant in pro- 

 portion to its surrounding extraneous matter : different strata of useful coal 

 have been also found. 



