310 



SCIENCE. 



[Vol. I., No. 11. 



gist in charge of the anthracite division of the 

 Second geological survey of Penns3-lvania, are 

 a verj' close approach to this theoretical perfec- 

 tion. They are devoted to the illustration of 

 the Panther Creek coal-basin, the north-eastern 

 portion of the southern anthracite field, in- 

 cluded between the Little Schuylkill River on 

 the west, and Mauch Chunk on the east. Of 

 these charts, one sheet gives the reproduction 

 of a topographical map of the basin, made by 

 Mr. R. P. Rothwell in 1869, on a scale of 1,600 

 feet to the inch, with contour-lines at vertical 

 intervals of 10 feet. Three sheets, forming 

 but one map, show the shape of the floor of 

 the mammoth coal-bed, on a scale of 800 feet 

 to the inch. This is practically an under- 

 ground map ; and in it Mr. Ashburner has 

 introduced the somewhat novel sj'stem of rep- 

 resenting the shape of a certain bed in the 

 basin hy contours, in the same manner as the 

 suiface of the ground is repi'esented in our 

 grade-cur\'e maps. These underground curves 

 are printed in red, and are drawn at .'iO-feet 

 vertical intervals ; some of the prominent sur- 

 face features, such as railroads and important 

 buildings, being printed over them in black. 



It seems a pity that Mr. Rothwell' s map 

 should not have been published on the same 

 scale, so that it might be superposed upon the 

 underground map ; thus showing, at a glance, 

 the difference between surface and under- 

 ground topograph^-. Such a map shows at 

 once the shape of the basin, and, by the rela- 

 tive closeness of contour-lines, the angle of dip 

 at any point ; and from it may be constructed 

 an actual section of the coal-basin on any given 

 line. Twelve of such sections are actuallj' 

 constructed at favorable points, and repre- 

 sented on three other charts on a scale of 400 

 feet to the inch. They are also given on the 

 same charts on a scale of 1,500 feet to the 

 inch, drawn one under the other, so as to 

 represent more graphicallj' the general shape 

 of the various folds, and the position of the 

 underlying rocks. The}' are accompanied bj' 

 a sketch-map of the whole basin on a scale of 

 2,300 feet to the inch. 



On still three other sheets are given colum- 

 nar sections, representing the thickness of the 

 coal and intervening beds at a number of diflTer- 

 ent points where they have been determined, 

 constructed on various scales, from 10 feet to 

 300 feet to the inch. One of these sheets also 

 contains a skeleton map of the basin, showing 

 the localit}- of these sections as well as of the 

 cross-sections. 



Furnished with these maps, the mine-owner 

 can tell at what distance a shaft or tunnel 



maj' reach the coal-bed from anj- given point, 

 and the inclination of such bed when reached. 

 He can determine the proximate line of the 

 bottom of the various synclinal basins along 

 which he wishes to run his galleries, and which 

 coal from the various breasts may reach by 

 gravity. 



Of the three remaining sheets of the series, 

 one gives a diagram showing, in diflferent 

 shades of color, the area of the respective coal- 

 beds, developed on a horizontal plane ; the 

 second, a skeleton map of the entire anthracite 

 region on a scale of 3 o o\ ) o a ) '^''■'^ columnar 

 sections showing the local names of the various 

 coal-beds in different parts of the region, and 

 the names of all the collieries. The third 

 sheet shows the production of anthracite coal, 

 from its earliest development to the present 

 day, both in columns of figures from different 

 districts, and in curves forming a pj'ramidal 

 diagram for the total product ; also some brief 

 historical notes. 



The sheets are 26 by 32 inches in size, and 

 are engraved by the reliable firm of Julius Bieu 

 & Co. They bear evidence of an immense 

 amount of accurate detail-work ; and the only 

 serious criticism we have to make, is the use, 

 b}- Mr. Ashburner, of the magnetic instead of 

 the true meridian. 



The practical value of such maps as these, 

 where underground developments have been 

 carried on to a sufficient extent to furnish data 

 which will make their deductions trustworthy, 

 must be evident to the most untechnical ; and 

 that it has been appreciated by the mine-own- 

 ers of the anthracite region is proved, not onl.y 

 by the practical aid thej" lent to the work by 

 furnishing all their surveys and measurements, 

 but also bj- their contributions of money to help 

 defray its expenses. They form a highl}- in- 

 structive lesson of the practical value of a 

 properly conducted geological surve}', and one 

 to which the legislators of Massachusetts and 

 Rhode Island would do well to turn a listening 

 ear ; for it is cerlainlj' a disgrace, in these en- 

 lightened times, that thej' have within the 

 borders of their states a coal-basin of which 

 less is known than of those of the wild, almost 

 uninhabited, regions of the Rocky Mountains. 



THE SMITHSONIAN PUBLICATIONS. 



Catalogue of publications of the Smithsonian institu- 

 tion, 18^6-82, with an alphabetical index of articles. 

 By W. J. Rhees. Washington, Smithsonian 

 institution, 1882. 14 + 328 p. 8°. 

 A PREFACE states in a general vfa.j what the 



institution has published, the rules for distribu- 



