8 
[Assembly 
The O^JVeil Mine, about a mile and a half south of the Wilks mine, 
is an extensive bed of magnetic iron, which is mixed with a portion of 
silica, and is associated with carbonate of lime. This mine, I believe, 
is at present owned by the Hon. G» Kemble, and is extensively worked. 
The ore is hard and compact, and often contains beautiful cubic and 
octahedral crystals of magnetic iron. Some other minerals of great in- 
terest occur at this locality. 
Forshee^s Mine, is an extensive bed of iron ore in a hill of gneijs 
about half a mile from the preceding. The general direction of the 
deposit is nearly north and south. In one part, the magnetic iron 
having a compact structure, follows the direction of the strata, but this 
soon passes into a granular ore and an earthy oxide of a dark brown 
color resembling umber. The granular ore has a cavernous appearance 
as if a part had been dissolved out. I am inclined to believe that these 
varieties have been produced by the decomposition of the sulphuret of 
iron, which is still found abundantly disseminated through the lower 
strata. Delicate fibres of asbestus, also frequently run through the com- 
pact ore; and garnet, serpentine and tremolite, are found in the immedi^ 
ate vicinity of the mine.* 
The ore from this bed is highly valued by the iron masters in this part 
of the county, especially that portion of it which is granular and decom- 
posed. This last does not contain any sulphur, and is employed with^ 
out the preliminary operation of roasting. 
To the above, may be added the Rich Iron Mine, three-quarters of a 
miles from the Monroe iron works, near the summit of the highlands in 
this part of the county. This is a bed of magnetic iron, in a primitive 
rock, and is said to have been formerly worked, but is now abandoned- 
Some of the fragments of the ore arc highly magnetic, and have an oc- 
tahedral form. Other specimens are charged with iron pyrites. Which is 
continually undergoing decomposition. 
The county of Lewis undoubtedly possesses great mineral wealths 
Although my excursions were necessarily limited, I examined several 
localities of the ores of iron and lead, which, if not important in them- 
selves, seem to render it probable that valuable deposits of those me- 
tals exist in their vicinity. Iron sand is abundant on the shores of 
Moose and Black rivers, and massive magnetic iron is found in various 
* A short distance from ihis mine is a fine locality of Mica; some of the plates are of a large 
size. One of them was nearly three feet in diameter, but m consequence of its being exposed 
to the weather it was fractured in the form of rhombic and triangular plates. Dr. Horton and 
myself succeeded in obtaining a specimen about twenty-two inches in length and tolerably 
perfect. 
