330 
LANCASHIRE, 
tide of food in London. They are now grown in amaz¬ 
ing quantities in this county ; and many are annually ex¬ 
ported hence to Ireland. They are produced both from 
cuttings, and from the apple, or feed. The ox-noble and 
clutter potatoe are chiefly grown for the cattle ; and the 
pink-eye, with various kinds of the kidney, are ufed for 
the table. The produce of a crop of potatoes in this 
county is generally from two to three hundred bufnels 
per acre. This county boafts a peculiar breed of horned 
cattle, which forms a variety with thofe of Lincolnfliire. 
The cows are rather fmaller than thofe of the latter county, 
and are known by their wide-fpreading horns and ftraight 
backs. Befides the fea-fow 1 common to the (hores of Eng¬ 
land, fuch as duck, eafterling, teal, and plover, many 
uncommon birds are obferved on the coaft of Lancafhire: 
the fea-crow, variegated with blue and black, the puffin, 
the cormorant* the curlew, the razor-bill, the copped 
wren, the red-fhanks, the fwan, the tropic bird, the king’s 
fittier, &c. 
The mineralogical hiftory of this county has never been 
publicly developed ; and, though the internal contents are 
Angularly rich, the varied peculiarities and charafteriltics 
of thefe riches have not been made known. With Angu¬ 
lar advantages of natural and artificial navigation, the 
coals, which conftituteits moll prolific and ufeful produc¬ 
tion, are cheaply conveyed to. the various manufactories 
of Manchefter, Bolton, &e. and alfio to the coaft. Coal 
is found in immenfe beds, both on the fouthern part and 
towards the middle of the county, but chiefly in the hun¬ 
dreds of Weft-Derby and Salford, and in part of Black¬ 
burn. It is not obtained much farther north than Chor- 
ley and Colne ; but great abundance of this ufeful foil'd 
is again procured at Whitehaven, and about Newcaftle- 
upon-Tyne. At Haigh, near Wigan, a fpecies of coal is 
produced, fimilar in appearance to black marble, and of 
a very bituminous quality. It is called cannel-coal, and 
burns with a peculiar clearnefs of flame, confumes very 
rapidly, and is apt to fly in pieces in the fire ; but, if pre- 
vioufly immerfed in water, it is faid to lofe this property. 
It is of a dull black colour, breaks eafily in all directions; 
and, if broken tranfverfely, prefents a fmooth conchoidal 
furface. Towards the north and north-eaftern parts of 
the county, lime-ltone is very abundant. It is found at 
Halewood, near Liverpool, at various depths, but incon- 
flderable in quantity. In the vicinity of Leigh, and alfo 
at Ardwick, near Manchefter, is lime-ftone of fuch pecu¬ 
liar quality, as to refill the power of water; it is there¬ 
fore applied to the conftruCtion of citterns, and to mak¬ 
ing mortar for building under water. Stone of various 
denominations is produced in this county. Upon the 
common, near Lancafter, is a large quarry of excellent 
free-ftone, which bears a fine polifh, and of which that 
town, equalled by few in the kingdom for neatnefs, is 
wholly built. Flags and grey flates are found at Holland, 
near Wigan. The mountains, called Conittone and Tel- 
berthwaite fells, near Hawkfhead, afford a large quantity 
of blue flates, of which there is a confiderable export; 
they are divided into three clafles, called London, Coun¬ 
try, and Tom, flate, of which the firtt is etteemed the 
belt. Sithe-ftones are obtained at Rainford, and are well 
wrought on the fpot. Iron-ore is found in abundance 
between Ulverftone and Dalton, in LowFurnefs. In the 
north, fome copper-mines have been worked ; but they 
have not been productive. At Anglefack, near Chorley, 
is a lead-mine belonging to fir Frank Standifn, bart. it 
confifts of feveral veins, which interfeft the ttrata of the 
diftrict almoft perpendicularly, and run in various direc¬ 
tions. The matrix of thefe veins is formed of carbonat 
and fulphuret of barytes. The former, which is a very 
rare mineral, is found in the greateft abundance near the 
furface ; and, as it defcends, it becomes progrefliveiy con¬ 
taminated by the fulphuret, which, in the loweft ftrata, 
feems completely to ufurp its place. The exiftence of 
carbonat of barytes, as a produft of nature, was firtt dif- 
tinCHy afcertained by Dr. Withering ; but he feems to 
have been miftaken as to the place whe're his fpecimens were 
obtained. To James Watt, jun. efq. the public are 
indebted for a defcription of the external character of this 
fubttance, and its effects on the animal body, when taken 
internally. See the Manchefter Memoirs, vol. iii. 
The chief manufactures of this county are woollen and 
cotton cloths of various kinds, tickings, and cotton vel- 
vets, for which Manchefter is particularly famous. The 
principal rivers are the Merfey, which parts Chefhire and 
this county ; and the Ribble, which rifes in Yorkfhire, 
and enters this county at Clithero, running fouth-weft by 
Prefton into the Irifti Sea. Befides thefe there are many 
fmaller ftreams. The navigation made by his grace the duke 
of Bridgewater in this county is highly worthy of notice. 
This was begun fo lately as about twenty years ago 1 ; it bears 
veflels of fixty tons burden, and is carried over two rivers, 
the Merfey and the Irwell. The fough or adit, which 
was neceflary to be made, in order to drain the water from 
the coal-mines, is rendered navigable for boats of fix or 
feven tons burden, and forms a kind of fubterraneous ri¬ 
ver, which runs about a mile and a half under ground, 
and communicates, with the canal. This river leads to the 
head of the mines, is arched over with brick, and is juft 
wide enough for the paflage of the boats ; at the mouth 
of it are two folding doors, which are clofed as foon as 
you enter, and you then proceed by candle light, which 
cafts a livid gloom, ferving only to make darknefs vifible. 
But this difmal gloom is rendered ftill more awful by the 
folemn echo of this fubterraneous water, which returns 
various and difeordant founds. One while you are ftruck 
with the grating noife of engines, which by a curious 
contrivance let down the coals into the boats; then again 
you hear the (hock of an explofion, occafioned by the 
blowing up the hard rock, which will not yield to any 
other force than that of gunpowder; the next minute 
your ears are faluted by the fongs of merriment from ei¬ 
ther fex, who thus beguile their labours in the mine. 
You have no fooner reached the head of the works, than 
a new feene opens to your view. There you behold men 
and women almoft in the primitive date of nature, toiling 
in different capacities, by the glimmering of a dim taper, 
fome digging coal out of the bowels of the earth ; fome 
again loading it in little waggons made for the pur- 
pofe ; others drawing thofe waggons to the boats. To 
perfeift this canal, without impeding the public roads, 
bridges are built over it; and, where the earth has been 
raifed to preferve the level, arches are formed under it; 
but what principally (trikes every beholder, is a work 
raifed near Barton bridge, to convey the canal over the 
river Merfey. This is done by means of three (tone arches, 
fo fpacious and lofty as to admit veflels failing through 
them ; and indeed nothing can be more Angular and plead¬ 
ing, than to obferve large veflels in full fail under the 
aquedufft, at the fame time the duke of Bridgewater’s vef- 
fels failing over all, near fifty feet above the navigable ri¬ 
ver. By this inland navigation communication has been 
made, with the rivers Merfey, Dee, Ribble, Oufe, Trent, 
Darwent, Severn, Humber, Thame, Avon, &c. which na¬ 
vigation, including its windings, extends above five hun¬ 
dred miles in the counties of Lincoln, Nottingham, York, 
Lancafter, Weftmoreland, Chetter, Stafford, Warwick, Lei- 
cefter, Oxford, Worcefter, See. 
The landed property, which the king pofleffes in this 
county, as duke of Lancajler, is of great extent; but the re¬ 
venues arifing therefrom are but fmall. The principal 
part of this property confifts in what are generally ftyled 
the forefts of Myerfcough, Fulwood, Bleafdale, Wyerf- 
dale, and Quern, all fituated in the moft northern parts of 
the county. In thefe his majefty is intitled to the eftrays 
and the game, and the right of holding courts, &c. and 
muft be confidered as lord of the manor of all the forefts. 
The townfhip of Quernmore is fituated in the hundred of 
Lonfdale; and contains above 3000 acres of inclofed and 
wafte land. Wyerfdale, which is fimilar in fituation, con¬ 
tains more than 20,000 acres 3 the greater part is moun¬ 
tainous 
