376 COUNTY AND REGIONAL GEOLOGY. 



Material Resources. It is possible that the Nodaway 

 valley coal-bed may yet be found in Cass county, but if ever 

 discovered, it will probably be much too thin and poor for 

 profitable working, and the only hope of obtaining a supply 

 of coal, within the limits of the county, is by deep mining. 

 Should such explorations along the valley of Middle river, 

 as have been suggested, ever be made and should prove 

 successful, similar enterprises might be undertaken along the 

 valley of the Nishnabotany, in Cass county, with great 

 confidence of success. 



The stone of Cass county is of considerable value, par- 

 ticularly so, as large regions lying adjacent to it in other 

 counties are destitute of stone and must be supplied from 

 this. The exposure of Mshnabotany sandstone, at Lewis, is 

 the only one at which it has proved to be of any practical 

 value. Here considerable quantities of it have been used for 

 the construction of houses and for other purposes. For 

 ordinary dwellings, its dark-brown color gives the structure 

 a sombre and gloomy aspect, but this color would not be 

 objectionable in buildings of other styles of architecture, 

 such, for example, as a small gothic church or chapel. 



Any desired quantities of stone for common building 

 purposes and for the manufacture of lime may be had at 

 and in the vicinity of Lewis. Some of the strata there 

 will also furnish good blocks for dressing into caps and 

 sills for buildings. Large quantities of the same material 

 may be also obtained in the valley of Sixteen Mile creek. 



The soil of Cass county is of that abundant fertility which 

 characterizes the soil of the whole region, and will always 

 prove the constant and principal source of wealth to the 

 inhabitants. The western and southern portions are tole- 

 rably well supplied with fuel from the woodlands there, 

 and the growth of young forest trees is so rapid that 

 abundant future supplies may be derived from this source. 



16. POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



Boundaries and Area. With the exception of Kossuth, 



