90 BEPOKT— 1880. 



2^ miles distant, this is not the case ; the Pebble Beds at Hnlme Delf, 

 south of Winwick, dip south, or directly at the Dallam works. The 

 dip varies in different quarries from 4° to 8°. Taking it at 4°, and 

 the base of the trias at Winwick at 215 feet below O.D., and assuming the 

 surface of the coal-measures beneath the trias to correspond to the amount 

 of dip, the base of the trias could be carried down 1000 feet at Dallam 

 Lane Forge, or 1215 feet below O.D., and 1258 feet below the surface. 



The boring of which I gave details actually penetrated of this depth 

 880 feet, the lowest beds met with being 70 feet of soft Lower 

 Mottled Sandstone, with the millet-seed grain, occurring immediately 

 beneath (pebble-bearing) Pebble Beds, so that these soft beds evidently 

 belong to the uppermost portion of the Lower Mottled series. These we 

 have seen at Winwick reach a thickness of more than 200 feet, and at 

 Bootle boring of more than 300 feet, in the latter case without their base hav- 

 ing been reached, so that they may possibly be 350 feet thick under War- 

 rington, in which case their base will be 1230 feet beneath Dallam Lane 

 Forge, which closely agrees with the calculation of the probable position 

 of the base of the trias, based upon the observed dips at Winwick. There 

 is therefore strong evidence to believe that the coal-measures underlie 

 WaiTington at a depth of 400 yards, but at what angle and in what direc- 

 tion they dip there is no evidence to show. The highest coals of the 

 Wigan coalfield, the ' Ince Mines,' are striking nearly south, between Town 

 Green, Ashton, and Edge Green, Golborne ; and did no lault intervene, 

 their southern prolongation would pass through Newton Bridge and Great 

 Sankey, but it is repeatedly thrown back westwards by faults, with 

 westerly downthrows, so that the coal-measures between Winwick and 

 Sutton, are entirely measures lying above the Lyons Delf of St. Helens, 

 and probably in great part belong to the Upper or Manchester coalfield. 

 In the centre of this tract a colliery has been sunk at Bold Moss, cast of 

 St. Helen's Junction, for opportunities to view which, and for copies of 

 the sections passed through, I have to thank Mr. Harbottle, the managing- 

 director. Several coal-seams have been passed through, and these have 

 been supposed to be identical with the upper seams of the St. Helen's 

 field ; but after having the section drawn to scale, and compared with the 

 neighbouring collieries, I am inclined to think that these coals are on a 

 higher horizon, and probably belong to the Upper coal-measures. Pro- 

 gressing westwards the first fault with an easterly downthrow is that 

 passing through Whiston, which, with that passing Sutton Heath, throws 

 in the remarkable trough of New Red Sandstone, extending from Rainhill 

 to Eccleston Hill, which I have lately had the opportunity of examining in 

 great detail ; and it will be noted that it is in this triangle that the small 

 tract of Upper coal-measure limestone is brought by faults to the surfixce 

 at Huyton, long since described by Mr. Binney and Prof. Hull. Here we 

 have the normal south-west and north-east strike of this area, and should 

 this continue eastwards, and the limestones proved at Winwick range in 

 this direction with a south-easterly dip, the measures underlying the tiias 

 of Warrington must be very considerably above the horizon of the lime- 

 stones, and higher in the series than any coal-measures cropping to the 

 surface in Lancashire. But should the limestones of Winwick belong to 

 the same horizon as those of the Manchester coalfield, it is in the highest 

 degree probable that another 600 feet, and possibly much less, would 

 reach the Openshmv coal, or its equivalent. 



The soft ' millet-seed '-grained moulding sands of Town Green near 



