Stevenson.] «>00 [Feb. 5, 



veiling rock is concealed. At the opening made by Mr. S. B. Hart, near 

 the pike, the bed exhibits the following structure : 



Shale, . ; Goal, sulphurous, 4 in.; Black clay, 1 in.; Coal, 3 ffc. 6 in.; 



Clay, 1 in.; Coal, 1 ft. 7 in.; total, 5 ft. 7 in. 



The bottom coal is very inferior, being about one-half slate, and con- 

 taining a notable proportion of pyrites. The bench next above it is a 

 good fuel, though rather soft and toward the base somewhat sulphurous. 

 It is extensively mined to supply Beverly and the adjacent country. I 

 made as careful search for other outcrops as is possible in a wild region, 

 covered with loose rocks and a dense forest. No other was found, unless 

 the bed exposed at the head of Casseday's Fork of Buckhannon River 

 be the same. This occurs near the crest of the ridge on the west slope, 

 about ten miles south from the Staunton road. It is a large bed, and is 

 most likely this coal. There is no doubt that this is the same with that 

 found on the conglomerate in Marion and Monongahela counties. If it 

 be as irregular in thickness here as in northern West Virginia and Ohio, 

 its outcrop will be traced only with great difficulty. 



Aside from the Freeport, itself reduced almost to nothing, no lime- 

 stones were seen in this group. As in the other groups, the limestones 

 disappear southward. They occur in Pennsylvania, but thin out rapidly 

 after coming into West Virginia. 



The Great Conglomerate. 



This rock forms the crest of Rich Mountain for nearly sixteen miles, 

 within the region examined. For the most part it is a coarse sandstone 

 loaded with pebbles from ^ of an inch to 2 inches in diameter. Along the 

 Staunton pike it shows some layers of slightly micaceous and very com- 

 pact sandstone near the bottom. Here it is greatly increased in thick- 

 ness. Near the northern line of the State it is barely three hundred and 

 fifty feet thick, but in Randolph county, it is not less than six hundred. 

 This expansion continues southwardly, as shown by the observations of 

 Professor Fontaine, in the New River region. On Rich Mountain it con- 

 tains no fossils, but in portions there are vast numbers of quartz crystals, 

 some of them three-fourths of an inch long, and beautifully terminated 

 at both extremities. 



On the Staunton pike, along the eastern slope of the mountain, there 

 was seen midway in the conglomerate, what appeared to be the blossom 

 of a coal-bed. As I had observed no evidence of coal in the conglomerate 

 northward from this locality, this exposure was studied with some care, 

 but nothing definite could be ascertained. Six miles farther south, on 

 the same side of the mountain, a small coal-bed occupies this place on 

 the property of Mr. Bradley. There it is three feet thick, quite soft, 

 but of excellent quality, and being almost free from sulphur, is highly 

 prized by blacksmiths. Another opening has been made on the ridge 

 near the bridle path, seven miles south ftom the Staunton pike, and a 



