Martinsburg gazette. [volume] (Martinsburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1833-1855, 1834-01-09

anu tney were not under; the lmmedl
ate necessity of looking for il. In Ches
terrified and Henrico counties, whic
are nearer to the first communities o.
the Ancient Dominion, bituminous Goa
crops out on the surface very obvious
ly; these indications could hardly cs.
cape their notice, or be misunderstood
by them, as they came from a coun.
try where coal was already in domes.
tic use. But in none of the ancient
records of Virginia that have seen, is
this coal alluded to; and the reason il
had no importance in their eyes, most
probably was, that their fuel was wood.
from which they were obliged to dis.
cucumber the ground to plant their
corn.
Things which they could put to a
profitable use, we find did attract their
attention. We have the proof of this,
in the use they made, as far back as
1919, under the government Of Sir
George Yearly, of ichite and blue fos.
sa marie, for the purpose of manurng
their lands, and by the aid Of which
they obtained wheat at the rate of
thirty bushels to the acre. But gran.
lite and other stones of construction,
soapstone, porcelain clay, and other
numerous mineral substances, now
having an intrinsic value they paid no
attention to. Most probably it never
occurred to any of them, that break.
water would ever be constructed at
Cape Henlopen, for the protection of
the future navies and commerce Of
their country: much less could they
suppose that the rocks for its construc-
ton would be brought from the neigh
borhood Of Wilmington in Delaware,
and some Of them from the banks of
the Hudson river. There is not
stone in the earth, but is there for a
wise purpose, and it is our ignorance
and Incidence which make US blind to
this important truth.
1t has been acknowledged by the
most eminent writer's, that the prosper.
ity of Great Britain is mainly founded
upon her mineral riches. The substi.
tuition of human ingenuity for manual
labor, is the distinguishing character
Of modern times; but all the complex
and multifarious machinery Of her ma.
nufactories, cannot operate without
steam, nor can this be gathered with.
out fuel. The main source then, of
the wealth Of that country is coal:
without 1t the cloths, the cottons, the
iron, the cutlery, the pottery, and
hundred productive branches of art,
would cease to exist there, and with
them there immense commerce, and
their powerful navy. But thirty mil.
lions Of tons Of bituminous coal, exclu.
sive of non- bituminous or anthracite,
are annually raised there, and every
thing is prosperous: wealth increases,
great public and private undertakings
are projected and executed; and such
is the demand for every mineral SUBJ
stance that all receive an intrinsic va.
lue sufficient to enable them to sustain
even the expenses of distant trans
portation. So true is this that the
flagstones of the side walks of the City
ofLondon are brought from the north
ern parts of Scotland, and the granite
used for the construction of the new
London Bridge was imported from the
same distant country. Every quarry
then, Of mineral substances IN that Isl
and, is source of profit to its proprie-
tor, supports the families of many in
dustrious men, and assists to maintain
the great transportation interests which
conduct the mateii al to its destination;
whilst these interests, to be permanent
ly prosperous, derend again, where
navigation is out of tho question, npon
well constructed roads and canals.
Here then we perceive thenature of
the prosperity Of that industrious coun-
try, and can no longer be surprised
that Geology the science which teach
es men how to Judge from external in.
dications the probable subterranean va
lue of surfaces, should be so assidu-
ously cultivated.
Let us apply, then, my dear sir,
this useful lesson to the u. States,
and especially to the fine State of Vir-
ginia. The general complaint is, that
the arabic land is impoverished by our
cultivation, and that the old class of
wealthy proprietors, once the orna-
ments Of America, is fast disappearing.
There is no doubt much truth in this,
and it would present a antholy
perspective, if no remedy was nppa.
rent. But in relation to agricultural
management, a great effort is obvious
" now making to introduce an amell-
Grating and more systematic culture
1t has already been attended with suffi'
cient success to ensure the confidence
of the farming interest. This IS
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