4 Anthracite formation of Wilkesbarre, &c. 
Being here, without the facilities of referring to works on 
organised remains, should these specimens be recognised 
by yourself as similar to those of Europe, I should be pleased 
to obtain their scientific designation. I have therefore 
marked this set alphabetically, and have added correspond- 
ing letters to the drawings in my collection. 
The valley of Wyoming, in the centre of which Wilkes- 
barre is situated, is about eighteen miles long and from 
three to four wide. Through this, the Susquehanna river, 
which is here seven hundred feet wide, winds, occasionally 
approaching the mountain, now on one side and then on the 
other. The land rises very abruptly on each side of the 
river to the height of one thousand feet above its level, and 
keeping nearly that height, extends to the east about thirty 
miles before it again descends. On the other side of the 
river, the high table land extends to a great distance. The 
top of these mountains, or highlands, is composed of argil- 
laceous grit, coarse sand stone, (No.1,) and quartz bYeccia, 
(2,) formed of rounded quartz pebbles, from the size of a 
pea to that of a hen’s egg, imbedded in a siliceous cement, 
forming immense rocks. About eighteen miles to the east, 
occurs the variety of manganese (a) imbedded in a black 
vein of about ten inches thick, of black earthy manganese. 
The variety (3,) is scattered in detached lumps, from the 
size of a walnut to that of a man’s head, all over this moun- 
tain, though not in great quantity.in any one place. 
On reference to the map annexed, you will perceive that 
the broad black streak denotes the length, breadth, and course 
of our coal formation. ‘This extends in a 8. S. westerly 
direction, from its commencement at the upper part of the 
Lackawana river, near the Wayne county line, down the 
course of that river to its junction with the Susquehanna, 
thence along the Susquehanna, keeping chiefly the east side, 
leaving this last river about eighteen miles below this place, 
it passes in a southward course on to the head waters of 
Schuylkill river, and from thence, after its crossing three 
main branches, becomes lost, a small seam of it only ap- 
earing at Peter’s mountain, a few miles above Harrisburg. 
he only minerals in this extensive range of above one 
hundred miles in length, are micaceous iron ore, (3,) fer 
oligiste, found on the Schuylkill—specular iron ore, (4,) 
on the Lackawana, and in numerous places, owing to the 
decomposition of pyrites, bog iron ore. 
