OF ARKANSAS. AT 
prospect holes on township 20 north, range 17 east, and township 20 north, 
range 19 east, of the 5th principal meridian, are all that has been done in 
Marion county, near the head of Sugar-loaf creek, to prove this lead 
region. r 
The principal entry on township 20 north, range 17 west, on the lands 
of the New York company, was only carried about 8 or 10 feet into the 
hill-side, with a width of about 4feet. Judge Brickey, who superintended 
this excavation, informs me that there were taken out of this drift from 
4,500 to 5,000 pounds of lead ore; two hands obtained at the rate of about 
1,000 pounds in two days. A space of about one foot deep, and three feet 
wide, yielded from 100 to 150 pounds. This ground was, no doubt, 
sufficiently productive to pay well for working; but it must be borne in 
mind, that this drift was entirely too limited to give a just idea of how 
productive the rock might prove, by regular mining operations; since it is 
evident from all that is at present known of this lead region, that the ore 
occurs irregularly disseminated in “ pockets,” “ sheets,” “joints,” and 
crevices; the pockets being cavernous spaces of various dimensions, 
occurring only occasionally in the rock by local expansions of the crevice. 
When ore is disseminated in this manner, it is always necessary to 
prove the richness of each locality, by especial trial drifts and shafts. 
Hence, those owning mineral lands, in this part of Arkansas, would do 
well, if they wish to establish the value of their mines, and induce 
smelters to erect furnaces, without which the mining business cannot be 
carried on to any advantage, to sink shafts and run drifts a sufficient depth 
and distance to test, satisfactorily, the productiveness of their mines. 
On section 19, township 20 north, range 17 east of the 5th principal 
meridian, Armsted Hudson has sunk a few shallow pits on a hill, east of 
his house, and west 6 deg. to 8 deg. south of the New York drift. Here 
he discovered, likewise, more or less lead ore, and, on the opposite side of 
the hollow, to the west, as far as Wood’s pit, where lead ore was reached 
at 45 feet, then two and a half miles to the south-west, near Grit’s mills; 
while the Short mountain location of Mitchell and Walker, lies two and a 
half miles to the north-east. 
There appear to be two sets of lead-bearing crevices, or irregular veins, 
traversing the magnesian limestones of Marion county; one set running 
nearly north-east and south-west; the other east 6 deg. to 8 deg. north; 
but so little has yet been done, even in the way of digging ‘“ prospect 
holes,” that it is difficult, at present, to form a correct opinion on this 
subject. 
Some detached pieces of lead ore have also been discovered at the 
junction of the magnesian limestones and underlying quartzose sandstone, 
