406 WISCONSIN STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
Iowa county, and New California and Crow Branch, in Grant 
county,) is nevertheless disturbed at the west end, as it comes 
in contact with the geological break along the valley of Grant 
river, where it seems to be borne down a little out of its course 
to Beetown, but there it again takes its regular course. To¬ 
wards the east end it encounters a very heavy ridge, or eleva¬ 
tion of land coming down from the northwest of Dodgeville, 
and extending in a southwest direction through the county. 
The belt, when coming in contact with this ridge, seems to fol¬ 
low its course; and groups of mineral ranges are found along 
its flanks for ten or fifteen miles. 
The geological features of this belt are somewhat different 
from what we find in the other two. The strata are more bro¬ 
ken ; evidences of disturbance of the lower beds of the strata 
are seen in the undulations of the sandstone, and the protru¬ 
sion of the lower magnesian limestone in several places through 
the sandstone. Owing to this, there has been greater denuda¬ 
tion, consequently we have here, in many places, a large ex¬ 
posure of the blue limestone, affording a good chance to study 
the mineral bearing character of this formation along a line of 
physical disturbance. The mines at Mineral Point, Diamond 
Grove, Lost Grove, Mifflin and Crow Branch are now, and have 
been for several years past, confined mostly to this formation, 
establishing beyond doubt its mineral bearing character. To 
this I shall refer again. 
North from the third belt we commence to ascend a gentle 
elevation which culminates about the middle of town six. 
Along the south flank or near the center is another well de¬ 
fined belt, extending through a large portion of Grant county, 
the whole of Iowa, and for several miles into Dane; and the 
mines of Fennimore, Wingville, Spring Yalley, Dodgeville, 
Kidgeway, Porter’s Grove and Blue Mounds form a chain of 
mineral ranges, extending through nine ranges of townships; 
and their course is as distinctly marked as the lines of the town 
(six) in which they are found. The north side of this belt is 
said to be the extreme north side of the lead district, beyond 
which no ore has been found, and beyond which, it has been 
