﻿COAL 
  MEASURES. 
  7 
  

  

  Coal 
  No. 
  7 
  is 
  well 
  developed 
  on 
  the 
  northern, 
  eastern 
  and 
  southern 
  

   borders 
  of 
  the 
  Illinois 
  coal 
  field, 
  ranging 
  in 
  thickness 
  from 
  four 
  to 
  

   seven 
  feet. 
  On 
  the 
  western 
  borders 
  of 
  the 
  field 
  it 
  is 
  usually 
  only 
  

   from 
  one 
  to 
  three 
  feet 
  thick, 
  and 
  is 
  generally 
  neglected 
  for 
  the 
  

   thicker 
  seams 
  below. 
  It 
  is 
  the 
  main 
  seam 
  at 
  Danville, 
  the 
  Upper 
  

   seam 
  of 
  workable 
  coal 
  in 
  the 
  shafts 
  in 
  La 
  Salle 
  county, 
  and 
  the 
  

   main 
  seam 
  in 
  Gallatin, 
  Saline 
  and 
  Williamson 
  counties, 
  where 
  it 
  

   sometimes 
  attains 
  a 
  maximum 
  thickness 
  of 
  eight 
  or 
  nine 
  feet. 
  In 
  

   the 
  last 
  named 
  county 
  an 
  excellent 
  coke 
  is 
  made 
  from 
  it, 
  which 
  

   finds 
  a 
  ready 
  market 
  in 
  St. 
  Louis 
  for 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  the 
  iron 
  foundries 
  

   at 
  that 
  point. 
  

  

  This 
  is 
  a 
  brief 
  resume 
  of 
  the 
  coal 
  seams 
  in 
  the 
  lower 
  Coal 
  Meas- 
  

   ures, 
  as 
  they 
  appear 
  around 
  the 
  borders 
  of 
  the 
  coal 
  field, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  

   from 
  this 
  part 
  of 
  our 
  coal 
  area 
  that 
  our 
  present 
  supply 
  of 
  coal 
  is 
  

   mainly 
  obtained. 
  The 
  shaft 
  at 
  Decatur 
  has 
  demonstrated 
  that 
  at 
  least 
  

   one 
  of 
  our 
  main 
  coals 
  has 
  retained 
  its 
  average 
  thickness 
  to 
  the 
  center 
  

   of 
  the 
  field, 
  and 
  future 
  experiments 
  with 
  the 
  drill 
  must 
  determine 
  

   whether 
  any 
  of 
  the 
  coals 
  below 
  No. 
  5 
  can 
  be 
  made 
  available, 
  when 
  

   the 
  supply 
  from 
  that 
  has 
  been 
  exhausted. 
  All 
  experiments 
  with 
  the 
  

   drill 
  in 
  the 
  central 
  and 
  southeastern 
  portions 
  of 
  the 
  State, 
  whether 
  

   undertaken 
  in 
  search 
  of 
  coal 
  or 
  for 
  any 
  other 
  purpose, 
  should 
  be 
  

   carefully 
  conducted, 
  with 
  the 
  end 
  in 
  view 
  of 
  determining, 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  

   possible, 
  the 
  extent 
  of 
  our 
  coal 
  resources 
  in 
  that 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  

   State, 
  where 
  the 
  main 
  coals, 
  if 
  present 
  at 
  all, 
  are 
  from 
  six 
  hundred 
  

   to 
  a 
  thousand 
  feet 
  or 
  more 
  below 
  the 
  surface. 
  

  

  The 
  increase 
  in 
  the 
  coal 
  products 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  from 
  1867 
  to 
  1880 
  

   was 
  about 
  400 
  per 
  cent., 
  the 
  product 
  of 
  1867 
  being 
  about 
  1,500,000 
  

   tons, 
  while 
  according 
  to 
  the 
  U. 
  S. 
  census 
  report 
  for 
  1880 
  the 
  pro- 
  

   duct 
  of 
  that 
  year 
  is 
  placed 
  at 
  6,089,514 
  tons, 
  equal 
  to 
  an 
  annual 
  

   increase 
  of 
  about 
  30 
  per 
  cent. 
  The 
  census 
  report, 
  moreover, 
  includes 
  

   only 
  such 
  mines 
  as 
  are 
  worked 
  in 
  the 
  regular 
  way, 
  while 
  there 
  is 
  a 
  

   large 
  amount 
  mined 
  annually 
  for 
  local 
  use 
  by 
  the 
  process 
  of 
  "strip- 
  

   ping" 
  on 
  the 
  outcrops 
  of 
  the 
  thinner 
  seams, 
  of 
  which 
  that 
  report 
  

   would 
  have 
  no 
  record. 
  This 
  would 
  no 
  doubt 
  swell 
  the 
  amount 
  for 
  

   1880 
  to 
  at 
  least 
  6,250,000 
  tons. 
  This 
  increase 
  of 
  our 
  coal 
  products 
  

   has 
  been 
  mainly 
  on 
  the 
  northern 
  and 
  western 
  borders 
  of 
  the 
  field, 
  

   where 
  the 
  coal 
  deposits 
  are 
  the 
  most 
  accessible, 
  and 
  the 
  facilities 
  

   for 
  market 
  are 
  better 
  than 
  in 
  other 
  portions 
  of 
  our 
  coal 
  area. 
  

  

  At 
  Olney 
  a 
  boring 
  was 
  made 
  about 
  two 
  years 
  since 
  in 
  search 
  of 
  

   artesian 
  water, 
  and 
  the 
  following 
  record 
  of 
  the 
  work 
  was 
  furnished 
  

  

  