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ON THE GEOLOGY OF THE BEAUFORT AND EBBW VALE 
DISTRICT OF THE SOUTH WALES COAL-FIELD. 
Bt Geoege Phillips Bevan, Esq., M.D., F.G.S. 
(Continued from page Hi.) 
In my former paper I endeavoured to describe the general appearance 
and characteristics of the limestone, millstone grit, and Pennant rocks 
of this coal-field, and shall now proceed to give a brief outline of the 
coal measures themselves and their fossil contents. As I stated before, 
the character of the coal is materially different in different parts of the 
basin ; for instance, if a line be drawn from Merthyr to the sea in a 
south-western direction, it will divide the basin into two unequal 
portions, the eastern one containing bituminous coal, and the 
western the anthracite. I do not mean to say that there is an exact 
line of demarcation between the two kinds of coal, but merely that 
such a boundary will seem to show pretty well where the two qualities 
pass into one another. Curiously enough, too, in the western or 
anthracite portion the seams are anthracitic in the northern 
bassets, while the southern outcrops of the same veins are bituminous. 
The anthracite is now in very great demand ; but, formerly, 
people would have nothing to do with it, and there was even a law 
passed to prevent its being burned in London, on account of its supposed 
noxious qualities, and the idea that it was detrimental to health. It 
differs from the bituminous coal principally in containing more carbon, 
less bituminous matter, and less ashes ; and, as a consequence, is a much 
cleaner-burning coal. We may, however, dismiss the anthracite, as 
this portion of the field is destitute of it. As wiU be seen in the section 
appended further on, there are, in this district, about thirty seams of 
coal of greater or less thickness, and as many courses or bands of iron- 
stone. Before entering, however, on the sections and their contents, it 
would be as well to describe briefly the mode of working the various 
seams. Now, in a flat country, such as in the Staffordshire coal- 
field, the coal is obtained by the sinking of a shaft or pit. 
This is the most usual way, and one which is largely practiced in South 
Wales. As the scams generally run rather closely and compactly 
