218 
Geology op North Carolina. 
be worth while to state that Magnetite, {magnetic iron ore , gray ore, black 
ore,) a granular, hard, dark to black, heavy mineral, contains, when pure, 
72.4 per cent, of iron ; Hematite, {specular iron, red hematite, red iron 
ore), 70 per cent. ; Limonite, ( brown hematite , brown iron ore, brown 
ochre, bog iron ore, dec.,) very nearly 60 per cent. ; Siderite, spathic ore, 
{carbonate of iron), 48.28 per cent. These ores are never found in a 
state of purity in workable beds, but contain various impurities, earthy or 
rocky, in different proportions, — alumina, silica, lime, magnesia, manga- 
nese, ifec. ; so that practically that is considered a good ore which yields 
40 to 50 per cent, of iron in the furnace. 
Limonite Ores of the East — The clayey, sandy and earthy accumu- 
lations of the eastern section, which have been previously described as 
Quaternary 7 , contain in many places a rough brown ore, more or less 
earthy, or sandy, either in beds 2 to 3, or 4 feet in thickness, or more 
frequently in sheets, or layers of irregularly shaped lumps or nodules. 
One of the most considerable ot these deposits occurs in the southern 
end of Hash county near the Wilson line. It is in the form of a horb 
zontal, continuous bed, of a loose, spongy texture and rusty brown color, 
except in a few points, where it becomes more compact and of a submetal- 
lic lustre. It lies on the margin of Tossnot Swamp. The thickness is 2 to 
3 feet, and its extent horizontally about 50 yards by 150. It is known as 
the Blomary Iron Mine, from the fact that iron had been made from this 
ore in a Catalan forge, a few miles south, during the war of 1812. Iron 
was also made here during the Confederate war in a furnace erected on 
the spot. Mr. W. II. Tappey, one of the proprietors, informed me that 
“ the iron made was of excellent quality, soft and very strong.” And 
there is a tradition in the neighborhood that the forge iron, previously 
referred to, was a sort of natural steel. The following is the analysis of 
what appeared to be a fair sample of the bed, selected lately : 
Silica, 15.06 
Alumina, 0.55 
Sesquioxide of Iron, 60.74 
Protoxide of Iron, 0.24 
Sulphide of Iron, 0.06 
Oxide of Manganese, 1.56 
Lime, 1.43 
Magnesia, - 1.54 
Sulphuric Acid, 0.03 
Phosphoric Acid, 0.11 
Organic Matter and Water, 15.58 
