Ores of Iron, Manganese, ^-c. in Vermont: 5? 



less attractive to general readers, of intelligence, it would 

 he in a form adapted to the uses of the geological student, 

 and could hardly fail of coming into general use as a text 

 hook on the doctrine of alluvion. 



Art. VI. — Notice of Ores of Iron and Manganese, and of 

 Yellow Ochre, in Vermont; by Professor FREDEPacK 

 Hall, ni a letter to the Editor, dated, 



Middlehury College, Bee. I, 1820. 



To PROFESSOR SILLIMAN. 



I visited a few months since, the iron ore bed, and the 

 iron works, in Bennington, Vermont. The ore bed is sit- 

 uated on the south side of an arm of the green mountain. 

 It is covered by a stratum of sand, about two feet thick, con- 

 taining innumerable round, quartzose stones of various si- 

 zes, called by the inhabitants of tlie town, hard heads. The 

 ore is obtained with great facility from the bed. It is most- 

 ly brown hematite. I collected a few specimens of the 

 common argillaceous oxide of iron. It does not make 

 good bar iron. It is manufactured into kettles, stoves, car- 

 riage-boxes, &c. The ore is not rich. Mr. Traner, the 

 owner and superintendant of the works, informed me, that 

 it yields, on an average, about 33 1-3 per cent. He added, 

 that not far from two hundred and twelve tons of cast iron 

 are made annually, at his works. 



The iron ore rests on abed of unknown thickness, of the 

 oxide of manganese, which appears to belong chiefly to the 

 variety called earthy oxide of manganese. Its colour is brown^ 

 often very deep brown, inclining to black. Its texture is 

 earthy ; its lustre dull. To borax it imparts a violet co- 

 lour, verging to red. The surfaces of some specimens, 

 which I procured from this bed, are slightly mammillary. 

 It gives oxigen in abundance when heated with sulphuric 

 acid. 



The iron ore is sometimes mixed with manganese, which 

 renders it totally useless. " For," said Mr. T. " if we melt 

 it with the iron, the gas causes such an explosion, that it 

 scatters the metal in small pieces over the whole furnace." 



Vol. Ill No. 1> .9 



