76 REPORT OF THii 



show the soundness and homogeneous character of the for- 

 mation. 



For flagging, and for window caps, sills and water tables, 

 this stone is equally adapted. When wrought, it has much the 

 appearance of the Waverly sandstone. Its color is decidedly- 

 preferable to that of the freestone, so extensively introduced 

 from Cleveland, Ohio. It contains less ferruginous matter, and 

 is less likely to stain. 



The outcrop of the shales of this group is seen in the south- 

 ern part of the State, near Adrian, in Lenawee county; near 

 Union City, and again near Cold water, in Branch county; at 

 Athens, Leroy, and Newton, in Calhoun county; at Mendon and 

 Leonidas, in St. Joseph. county; and at Bangor, in Van Buren 

 county. There is little doubt that the low argillaceous belt of 

 country between Adrian and the region west of Detroit, marks 

 the continuation of the outcrop of the same rocks. An Arte- 

 sian well bored at Detroit 1829-30, showed the existence 

 of 118 feet of plastic clay overlain by 10 feet of soil and 

 sub-soil, and underlain by 2 feet of sand and gravel rest- 

 ing on solid limestone. It has already been stated that the 

 shales were penetrated in three of the salt wells at Grand Rap- 

 ids. At the well of Hon. Lucius Lyon, the boring extended 

 214 feet into these strata, without reaching the bottom. This 

 boring passed a 2 feet band of sandrock 18 feet from the top of 

 the shales, and a 1 foot band 50 feet from the top — the arena- 

 ceous element being thus shown to be much less abundant than 

 in Huron county. The shales were penetrated 130 feet in the 

 State salt well, 3 miles west of Grand Rapids, and 59 feet in 

 Butterworth's well. 



In Branch county the shales, or more properly clays, are 

 freighted with a considerable abundance of kidney iron ore, 

 which was formerly used, to a limited extent, in the furnace at 

 Union City, but found too highly charged with sulphur to 

 answer well. 



At two localities — Leroy, in Calhoun county, and Mendon, in 

 .St. Joseph county — these argillaceous beds present the charac- 



