130] A TOPOGRAPHICAL 



their commencement, two miles south of Wolverhampton, in a 

 southern direction to Dudley Castle, being about four miles in 

 length, and one in breadth. A second remarkable feature, is ano- 

 ther range of mountains, which begin to rise from the side of Dud- 

 ley opposite to the lime-stone, and inclining to an easterly direc- 

 tion: these are a basaltic rock, proceeding from Dudley through 

 Rowley, called Rowley-hills, and, dividing into two branches, ter- 

 minate between Oldbury arid Hales Owen. There are two other 

 detached hills, on one of which stands Wednesbury Church, and the 

 other near the village of Netherton. These hills are supposed to be 

 lime-stone elevations, although lime-stone does not appear on the 

 surface. 



The range of lime-stone mountains between Dudley and Wol- 

 yerhampton, is formed of beds of lime-stone elevated to a high 

 pitch on each side, and inclining to each other so as to form an 

 oblong ridge near their tops, not unlike the roof of a house. In a 

 similar manner the coal, and its accompanying strata, lying on the 

 sides of these mountains, rise or crop-out in directions correspond- 

 ing with the neighbouring lime-stone elevation; so that, generally, 

 the nearer a pit is sunk to a lime-stone hill, the coal is found at 

 less depth. Most of the coal is got to the east of the lime-stone. 



In the same manner that the coal rises or crops-up to the sides- 

 of the great ranges of lime-stone mountains, so it also follows the 

 direction of the detached hills. In some intermediate space be- 

 tween the lime-stone range and Wednesbury on the east side, and 

 between that range and Netherton, the coal lies nearly level, and 

 from thence rises on both sides towards the respective hills, form- 

 ing what the colliers call a trough ; but though the coal follows 

 the direction of the lime-stone hills, it does not always follow the 

 direction of the surface of the ground, the ordinary rising or falling 

 of which it seems to have no correspondence with. How the 

 coal is affected with relation to the rising of the basaltic hills, has 

 not been fully ascertained, excepting that it certainly does not 

 crop-out along the skirts of these hills as it does along the lime- 

 stone range, but is to be found at the foot of them at moderate 

 depths. 



Various opinions have been formed respecting the formation and 

 -origin of coal, as well as of other minerals, and which is certainly a 

 fair subject of speculation, though probably above the reach 

 of human genius. Some consider coal as an argillaceous schistus, 

 impregnated with bitumen, which indeed may be the case with 



