Staunton spectator, and general advertiser. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 183?-1849, 1837-06-15
MISCELLANY.
FROM THE RICHMOND COMPILER.
GEOLOG OF VIRGINIA.
(NUM BEER ID

(NuM BEER III.
At the session of lS33-'34, no final aci la,
MAS had az to the recommendation Of Cove
nor Floyd. The subject was again taker ~
at the session Of 1884 IS, and a commitic,
was appointed who reported ut length, &C
companied with bill. la their report the,
give an able yet succinct view of our singu
lar mineral wealth, and OF the character o
the minerals, soils, SIC. Of the diferen, sec
iions O. the State. They say, "besides The
numerous points OF enquiry alluded to in the
above briet review of our territory, there j.
one investigation which would be applicable
10 all sections Of the Stale, and hich would
undoubtedly contribute to the general bene-
fll OF our agriculture We refer 10 q syste
matic analysis of all the important varieties
of soil within the Stale. This would he q
work of great labor, but would unquesiiona-
bly, repay the State one thousand fold -
They alluded to the great anxiety of Euro
rtan geoogists relative 10 the adoption Of
some systematic effort TO unfold the true ply
steal character oil this portion of the United
States, and 10 bring TO light the treasures
that lie hidden beneath IFS surface. They
recommended-lst, a geological reconnois-
sance of the State, with n view 10 the general
geological features OF our territory, and 10
The chemical composition al its soils, mine
rails and mineral Waterfall: detailed geo.
logical survey Of the various sections Of the
State. The first was to furnish the Legisla-
fure with the most satisfactory means OF es-
timatiny the value Of detailed survey, and
enable them to decide as 10 the utility OF
proceeding to such survey.
The committees bill met with opposition,
and was Slightly amended, but fiually passed
ou the 9th of March, vote not stated but
upon a question Of indefinite postponement,
the vote stood, ayes %, noes SO; so the ma
jrritywas no doubt large.
The bill provided. chat the Board ofPublic
Works appoint a suitable person to make a
geological reconnaissance OF the State, with
a view 10 its general geological features, che
micai COM position of its soils. minerals, and
mineral waters report OF the result Of
which was 10 be made 10 the next Legisla-
lure. together with such facts as may have
come 10 his knowledge during the progress
OF .se reconnaissance, illustrative oil any hd-
yantases likely 20 accrue from more COM
piete examination.
The Board employed Professor Rodgers
20 carry out the objects in the reconnaissance,
whose report to the session of 1885 e, dec;d-
ed il as 10 the proprieiy Of the detailed sur
vey This survey was commenced as soon
as possible by the Professor, and report OF
dis progress was made at the last session.
The Professor represented to the Legislature
the propriety ofincreasing his corpss in or
der 10 hasten the completion of the survey,
st,e results of which were so important to our
prosperity. This was done by doubling
their strength. IL is proper TO remark, that
in our pieces on the subject, we have not the
advantage Of the expose of the detailed sur
vey thus far the reconnaissance preparatory
10 This s;ep, is all we have. The las: report
contained mere outline of results Indeed
il would he as useless 10 enter into details in
the annual reports, as il would he inconve-
nient. The full and complete results will be
given ON the completion Of the survey, which
viii take five or six years. The preparato,
nv report, however, with such little matters
as we have, will answer our purpose.
In making his reconnaissance, in order TO
combine in one view the most Important
mineral formations of the State, their pre-
railiag order of SUGGESTIONS, relative inclna-
.ions. and angle in which each inclnes 10 the
horizon. Professor Rodgers constructed a
geological section or profile, from actual ob,
sergsiions made from point 70 point, IN lines
transverse 10 the general ranges oil The strata
The general line of observation for This pur
pose, extended from Hampton Roads TO the
mouth Of the Guyandstte. No one line OF
obserys alton was particularly adhered TO
but numerous local profles, all having reler>
ence 70 Inc general line just named, were
CONSTRUCTED, forming an entire profile which
accompanied the report. Other miner belts
also traverse 10 the general ranges Of strata,
xvare lamiped-one extending in u general
direction from tho White Sulphur Springs,
f.y Covington snd Lexington, to Bucking-
lam Court House. A second from Column
i,ia nv Charlottesville, Turks and Rhodes
Gan and Harrisonburg, 10 the North Noun
tain and third, embracing portion OF the
Potomac. Several other routes were exrlor
al, conforming more to the bearing or di-
rectisn of the strata one extending in ge-
neral direction from Halifax, on The Roam
oke. to the lower falls Of the Potomac, near
Iy coincident with the western boundary oil
nhs tide water or tertiary section Of the Stale:
another embracing longitudinal direction
of the Valley oil Virginia, from the Potomac
10 James River, in general view. Other
aines embracing 80 or so miles on either Of
ahe general routes were examined.
General Geological Division. Of The State.
Undes this head, Professor Rogers, for
the purpose Of exhibiting in one view each
group OF analogous formations, divides the
whole State into FIVE principal regions, which
he treats in geographical rather than geolo'
gical manner FIRST describing as nearly as
possible their limits, and then defining gen
orally the geological features by which they
may be distinguished.
The first Of these is styled the Territory
1fdTJ region, embracing nearly all thai
norton Of the State included between lis
eastern boundary, the Chesapeake and At
aanlic, and a hypothetical line interesting
the principal rivers at their lowest falls, com.
snonly known as head Of tide-wqter. VaTi-