380        CONTRIBUTIONS   TO   ECONOMIC  GEOLOGY,   1907,   PAET  II. 
and  western  Kane  County,  and  extends  from  the  vicinity  of  Rush  Lake 
Valley  on  the  west  to  the  Kanab  Creek  valley  on  the  east.  The  west 
end  of  the  region  lies  at  the  border  of  the  Basin  Range  and  Plateau 
provinces,  but  with  the  exception  of  the  small  Harmony  field,  the 
entire  coal  area  is  situated  in  the  Plateau  Province.  The  surface  of 
the  country  ranges  in  elevation  from  5,000  to  11,000  feet  above  sea 
level,  the  general  altitude  of  the  country  decreasing  southward  by  a 
series  of  benches  which  descend  step  like  from  the  top  of  the  highest 
plateaus.  In  the  area  under  consideration  the  prominent  escarpment 
known  as  the  Pink  Cliffs  separates  the  crest  of  the  High  Plateaus,  here 
known  as  the  Markagunt  and  Paunsagunt,  from  the  next  lower  bench; 
and  another  escarpment,  less  conspicuous,  marks  off  tins  from  the 
succeeding  platform,  the  Colob  Plateau,  which  is  terminated  by  the 
bold  escarpment  known  as  White  Cliffs.  In  the  western  part  of  the 
region,  toward  the  border  of  the  plateaus,  the  White  Cliffs  fade  away 
and  the  plateau  that  is  underlain  by  coal-bearing  rocks  rises  directly 
above  Rush  Lake  Valley.  West  of  Rush  Lake  Valley  the  Harmony 
Mountains,  outliers  of  the  Pine  Valley  Mountains,  form  the  limit  of  the 
area  under  consideration. 
The  extreme  western  portion  of  the  region  drains  into  the  Great 
Basin  and  has  no  outlet  to  the  sea;  but  the  larger  part  is  drained  by 
the  headwaters  of  the  Virgin  River  and  by  Kanab  Creek,  both  of 
which  are  tributary  to  the  Colorado.  These  streams  occupy  deep 
valleys,  some  of  them  flowing  in  canyons  more  than  a  thousand  feet 
deep,  and  the  region  is  characterized  by  some  of  the  grandest  scenery 
on  the  continent.  A  large  part  of  the  region,  consequently,  is  diffi- 
cult of  access,  and  much  of  it  is  unsuited  for  settlement;  but  the 
relatively  broad  and  low  valleys  in  the  eastern  and  western  extremi- 
ties of  the  area  examined  in  1907  are  occupied  by  prosperous  towns. 
Intensive  farming  is  successfully  practiced  in  the  valleys,  and  parts  of 
the  Colob  Plateau  are  used  as  a  summer  range  for  sheep  and  cattle. 
Snow  remains  until  summer  on  the  highlands,  which  consequently  are 
well  watered  and  support  a  forest  growth  of  pine,  fir,  aspen,  cotton- 
wood,  etc.,  so  that  there  is  a  good  supply  of  timber  for  mine  purposes. 
Cedar  City,  Kanarraville,  and  New  Harmony  are  situated  in  or  near 
Rush  Lake  Valley.  Cedar  City,  with  a  population  of  about  1,000, 
is  the  largest  town  in  the  region  and  is  33  miles  distant  from  Lund,  the 
nearest  station  on  the  San  Pedro,  Los  Angeles  and  Salt  Lake  Railroad. 
Near  the  east  end  of  the  area  are  the  towns  of  Mount  Carmel,  Order- 
ville,  and  Glendale,  situated  in  Long  Valley  at  the' head  of  Virgin 
River,  and  Upper  Kanab,  at  the  head  of  Kanab  Creek.  These  towns 
are  most  conveniently  reached  from  Marysvale,  about  90  miles  north 
of  Glendale,  at  the  terminus  of  the  San  Pete  and  Sevier  branch  of  the 
Rio  Grande  Western  Railway.     (See  PL  XXV.) 
