54 GEOLOGY OF ILLINOIS. 



following is the report of a bore made for oil one mile and a half south- 

 west of the court house, commencing in a creek valley : 



Ft. In. 



No. 1. Soil, clay, etc 54 



No. 2. Sandstone 24 



No. 3. Clay ? (probably clay shale) 45 



No. 4. Sandstone 2 



No. 5. Bituminous shale (probably blue clay shale) 32 



No. 6. Sandstone 1 6 



No. 7. Bituminous shale 10 6 



No. 8. Sandstone 2 



No. 9. Bituminous shale 5 



No. 10. Sandstone 3 



No. 11. Bituminous shale 4 



No. 12. Sandstone 1 4 



No. 13. Bituminous shale, showing oily soot..- 5 



No. 14. Sandstone 13 



No. 15. Very hard limestone 24 



No. 16. Bituminous shale 8 



No. 17, Sandstone 2 



No. 13. Coal, No. 9 2 



No. 19. Limestone .' 5 



No. 20. Shale 3 



No. 21. Sandstone 2 



No. 22. Mixture of sand and limestone 8 



No. 23. "fellow shale 4 



No. 24. Sandstone 12 



No. 25. Clay shale, with pyrites 12 



No. 26. Sandstone 15 



No. 27. Bituminous shale 6 



No. 28. Sandy shale , 70 



No. 29. Sandstone 60 



No. 30. Micaceous sandstone 10 



No. 31. Coal. No. 7? 3 



No. 32. Bituminous shale ". . 12 



No. 34. Compact limestone 8 



No. 35. Bitumiuous shale 7 



No. 39. Lime and sandstone ~.. 2 



No. 40. Bitumiuous shale 5 



482 4 



It is hardly possible that the beds reported as bituminous shale in 

 this bore could be anything more than ordinary blue clay shales, and as 

 a rule I believe that but little dependence can be placed in the reported 

 sections of oil well borings made in this State. By comparing this 

 section with that made for coal it will be seen that there is a wide dis- 

 crepancy in the descriptions given of the strata passed through in each, 

 and although the oil well boring was carried down to the depth of about 

 seven hundred feet, yet no coal was reported below the three feet seam 

 found at the depth of four hundred and fifty-five feet, which probably 

 represents coal Xo. 7 or 8 of the general section. The sandstone 

 Xo. 2 of the oil well boring may be the same as Xo. 4 in the other, 

 but there is very little correspondence in the lower strata, considering 

 that the distauce between the points where the borings were made is 

 scarcely two miles in a direct line. 



