16 Mr. Barnes^ Section of the Canaan Mountain, ^t 



appear that the height of the Hancock or as it is often call- 

 ed Pittsfield mountain may be safely estimated at one thou- 

 sand feet, and the strata seem to have fallen the whole 

 height of the mountain. This appears from the position of 

 the strata in the mountains. The lower stratum of lime- 

 stone described in the section is at the same height on both 

 sides of the Canaan mountain. It is associated with slate. 

 This Limestone part of which is silicious, is found with 

 slate on the top of Hancock Mountain. It was also ob- 

 served on the top of a mountain in Lee, fifteen miles South- 

 East of our section. These two strata thus associated on 

 the top of Hancock, and at the base of Canaan mountain, may 

 perhaps without impropriety, be considered as parts of the 

 same original bed, which has been disrupted by some migh- 

 ty force, and while the Eastern part remained firm, the West- 

 ern has settled down to its present position. The roofing 

 slate is probably primitive, but whether it is so, or not, its 

 position must have been above the white granular Limestone 

 of Pittsfield. *(y) This hmestone is on the surface, and 

 clearly a primitive rock. But the elevated table land of 

 Pittsfield, is several hundred feet higher than the low valley 

 of Lebanon, so that the strata must of necessity, eitlier have 

 been bent rapidly downwards, or broken off and fallen per* 

 pendicularly. That the strata have dropped in situ, and not 

 bent downwards, as Prof. Eaton supposes, appears from the 

 horizontal position of the great masses of mountain strata, 

 in our section, and also from the fact that the slate is found 

 at the same height, on all the circumambient hilis; and the 

 limestone at the same depth in all the circumjacent valleys, 

 and the graywack at the same elevation, upon the neighbour- 

 ing mountains. This last rock is, moreover laid bare, to a 

 great extent in that part of the mountain which lies South of 

 the High Knob. Here the whole formation is perfectly 

 open to inspection. The upper surface is horizontal. This 

 surface is composed of the upper edges termed in geology, 

 the out-goings of the strata, for it must be carefully observ- 

 ed that although the rocks are stratified and the strata iiigh- 

 ly inclined, yet the great beds or mountain masses are dis- 

 posed, above each other horizontally, and these beds o! 



*I take for granted tlie truth of the Wernerian theory, as it regards the gen 

 eral order of the super-position of l!ie rocks. See President Machire'sGeoU 

 ogy of the U. S. — Professor F'aton's (leolo^ical sections, and Professor Cleare- 

 lind's Mineralosfv. 



