Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1857-09-18
COAL IN THE UNITED
STATES.

iron ana copper Wi1hlu IiS territory OF |
the United States, and wish now briefly
to refer to the supplies of fossiliferous
fuel. The miniature map accompanying
is too small to represent all the coal
fields minutely, were there sufficient
knowledge extant to make it practicable
to compile such; but ii is believed to be |
a correct general representation of the
coal fields of our country. The fields in
the British Provinces, from which are
derived the Pictou Goals sold in our At
lantic ports, are not attempted to be re-
presented with any precision.
At a general glance, the whole tri-
angular basin enclosed between the Al
leghanies on the east, the great plains of
the Far West and the high lands of Up
per Canada on the north, is one vast coal
field. On closer inspection this may be
divided into two, the great Pennsylvania
field, covering almost the whole Of that
State and stretching down to the center
Of Alabama, and the Illinois coal field,
which. with more or less interruption,
extends from near the northern portion
of Michigan into the northern portion of
Arkansas. The immense partiallJ-ex
plored regions of the West have reveal
ed coal at several points which, in the
absence of anything more definite we
have denoted by very strong black patch
es F; but since the preparation of this
map. a study of the surveys for the Pa
cifc Railroad has brought to our knowl
edge the existence of coal at many addi
tional points, one of which is at or near
the northernmost bend in the Missouri
Nearly all the coal under the immense
area blackened is bituminous coal. Anth-
racite, most used in Eastern cities, comes
from number of small fields lying out
of the main field on the east, as shown
by several slight patches near Philadel-
phia. There is what is termed by geo.
Iogists the Rhode Island coal field, ex-
tending as represented, in Massachusetts;
but although science shows the substance
theuce procured To bo actually ooal, Il
possesses one important defeat-it will
not burn.
We cannot attempt, in brief space,
to explain the causes which are suppos-
ed to have produced the great deposits OF
valuable fuel which we find beneath the
earth's surface, further than to remark
that it is demonstrated to be wood, pre-
served from decay by an air tight cover,
ing of earth, which has been converted
into its present condition by the action O
time, pressure, or heat, or all of them com
bined. The eastern outskirts of the
Pennsylvania field has been more full,
roasted, or coked, and reduced to anth
racite, while the Rhode Island field ha
been so intensely burned as to reduce
almost or quite to cinder.
The coal which is revealed in tn
: great Rocky Mountain region, although
it may furnish liberal supplies at som
l points for hundreds of years, it cannc
possibly belong to any such great bed
as those in the settled portions Of tn
States. The area of the coal beds pre-
: per is estimated by Prof Rogers at 200
d 900 square miles. This is believed
J be far greater than the area of all til
Il coal fields Of Europe, and somewhs
; larger than those of the whole of Europ'
t Asia and Aria. 1t is useless to attemI
! to calculate how long this supply of Goa
q will last, as the consumption is increa
g ing every year with the increse of steal
n power; but the fields of anthracite alon
q could supply the world for very lon
s. period before it would be necessary
ie touch upon the margins of the grei
II fields. Great Britain has far near'
D prospect of exhausting her supply, "
m now mine only 100000 tuns annual
le Great Britain mines (and burns or senC
to abroad) 65,0OO,000 tuns each year.
re the consumption continues to increase
It. its present rate, the fields now most worl
IN ed in Great Britain will be exhausted
a. about 300 years, and her whole supp
SIS in about 1000 years more.
I'd Layers Of coal vary in thickness fro
le little exceeding that Of sheet of pap
nd up to fourteen feet or more in thickne;
re The coal fields here represented gener'
tie ly include thick valuable layers, and t
tn greater part contains considerat
he number of strata of coal, several Of viii
nd are workable, with common earth a
IL rock between them.
r. The number Of strata decrease we
ward. According to a late paper
Nv Prof. Rogers, the number Of coal sea.
to in Nova Scotia is about fifty, though OF
he five of them are Of workable thickne