LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. 
Hetena, Ata., July 30th, 1890. 
Dr. Evaene A. Suite, 
State Geologist. 
Str—I have the honor to transmit herewith my report 
upon the Cahaba Ooal Field of Alabama, with map. 
A few words respecting the development of the map into 
its present form may not be out of place. The first begin- 
nings of the map were made by me in 1859 or 1860, while 
in the employ of the Alabama Coal Mining Company, when 
a fairly correct map of the Montevallo basin was made and 
the outcrop of the Montevallo seam traced by means of 
transit and chain. A few years later, under the auspices of 
the Montevallo Coal Mining Company, these surveys were 
extended beyond the Montevallo, into the Dailey Creek and 
Lolley basins. After this, in the years 1867-8, the surveys 
were still further extended and details worked out as a pri- 
vate enterprise at the joint expense of Dr. I. T. Tichenor 
and myselt. 
In 1869-70 the central purt of the field, including the 
Helena, Eureka, and part of the Lolley basins, was explored 
by me for Daniel Pratt and H. F. DeBardeleben. In 1874 
for Mr. T. H. Aldrich my explorations were extended from 
the Montevallo over parts of the Dailey Creek and Lolley 
basins, and more recently over a good part of the Blocton 
and Dry Creek basins. 
In 1883, I undertook to make for the State survey, a re- 
port and map of the Cahaba field. During the period from 
1859 to 1883, we had as above described acquired some 
pretty accurate, though disconnected knowledge of different 
parts of the Cahaba field, especially of its lower part; since 
1883 our work has been to fill in the gaps and work out the 
details between these different parts of the field, to connect 
them together and to trace out from one end of the field to 
the other, the outcrops of the seams and to reveal the com- 
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