PART A. 



SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY 

 Geologic Text-Books and Books of Reference 



Geology is not, like history, a subject which can be learned 

 wholly from books. Not even an elementary knowledge of it can 

 be readily obtained without careful field study of some promi- 

 nent district. The student must, however, use books to supply 

 him with information as to the work of others who have gone 

 before, while his powers of observation and inference are being 

 trained on geologic phenomena. 



When taking up the field study of a new district, it is import- 

 ant to ascertain what is already known concerning it. An 

 attempt is made, therefore, to direct attention to the principal 

 publications on New York geology. 



The four geologic reports of Hall, Mather, Emmons and Van- 

 uxem on the districts assigned to them in the original survey 

 of the state which was begun in 1837 and concluded in 1841, are 

 now out of print, but are found in most of the public libraries of 

 New York, and can be purchased of the dealers in old books in 

 the larger cities. They contain an immense amount of valuable 

 detail and should be consulted by all persons interested in New 

 York geology. The report on the fourth district by James Hall, 

 is as valuable to-day as when it was written and comparatively 

 little has been added by later investigators in the region des- 

 cribed, except in regard to quaternary and economic geology. 



In addition to (these four quarto volumes on the geology of 

 New York, there have been many papers published in the annual 

 reports of the New York State Museum and the State 

 Geologist of New York. A multitude of papers have also been 

 published by persons not officially connected with the State 



