New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1857-08-22
by the Barometer, and . proposed medication Of
Iaplaee's Constant.

NJ R,ssAY addressed the Section " On the Gen.
ersl Plan and Mode Of Conducting the Geological
&" Survey of Great Britain" lie would, he said, give
but a plain and upvanished accouDtof this matter.
The origin of the survey was private enterprIe oy
the late c.e brated Sir Henry de Ia Becbe, 10 WHICH,
knowing the importance Of examining the geology OF
Great Britain, be undertook TINS matter al MS own
expense He began at Landsend, IN C0rn"an, y.
acrnunt Of the great importance Of the mines OF mat
section. After carrying on bis EXAMINATIONS III 80 IN:
tme small amount of assistance was granieo nm
by the Ordnance Department, and mus a' ieosSn =.
6nisbed Devon and Cornwall. Proceeding thence !"
the coal fields Of South Wales the Importance OF ne
work led the Ordnance Department to ail2w INN
few assistants and the next step was snali aPP,.
pration from the Government. Al tnls . , r w
Nr Logan now Sir William Logan, OF the Cahada
Survey at Swansea. Mr.. Logan, having SIons
taste for geology had, an amateur made ma vi
the coal felds Of that region, after Elk years ioo,
upon which he had depicted every oed WIN W. and
III lie 0ucrop the faults or heaps IN the ao
the ike This result of his Fix years LABOR MI Logan
nresented TO the Survey, another year OF his time
in addition. =, . r A., oxh
became more appreciated, Sir Henry de Ia beche
s.k.d and obtained annually larger appropriation,
until now ii has reached the sum OF to;UVV pc.
.ppum. Sir Henry was 10 the habit OF seeking OUT
Young men, who though still quite unknown, e1nib,
tied The proper evidence of being fitted for geological
pursuits These men he would send out TO examine
district and ticking the results Of their observations,
would reduce them to order, with proper corrections.
N
Amounted for Ireland and Prof. Ramsay himself
for Great Britain. These two gentlemen were
deputed to conduct the field operations, SIR Henry de
la Beche remaining the general director. soon are
This the Parliament houses were burnt aud coInmls
sion IN examine building materials appointed, OF
which De la Beche was a member. FROM al paris I
England Scotland and Ireland, cubes, SIX inches 10
size of all sorts Of building stones In the nlted Meg.
dom were collected and with them minerals aud
ores--a travelling commission, to examine ancient
buildings and collect specimens OF their materials
In ~ il manner an extensive collection of minerals,
buildDg stones, fossils, and the like, was brought
toeether. and Sir Henry pettoned for the use OF
SD oil building for their reception Ihs was the
entering wedge. The next year he needed cases Tor
their display, which were granted, and, finally, tue
Musuem Of Practical Geology, in Jermyn street, Lon
don was the result This grand building is three sto-
res high and contains, beside the halls and rooms
appropriated to the museum, theater for lectures
This building is entirely OF British matenals.stone,
marble, brck serpentne and others, presenting an
astonishing picture of the richness OF the British quar-
res Sir Henry did not stop here, but laboIed with
success for the establishment of School OF Mines
The lectures before this school are given in the thea
tire above mentioned, by professors OF evil engineer
ing, geology natural history, mineralogy, mining,
ply sizes mechanics, drawing, and upon all subjects
which can be Of to the geologist and miner From
this institution have already proceeded several young
men, who have already attracted notice. three OF
Prof. Ramsays pupils received public appointments
last year.
Prof. Ramsay, as Director Of the Sarvey of Great
who have been in the work from eight to sixteen years
eight assistant biologists, young men just beginning
their labors these field ofcers and two FOSSIL col
ector. 49,
The young upon going into the field are hrst set
to work upon the secondary strata, and after sufficient
experience, pass to the Palaozoic.
In ireland the system is essentially the same, but
owing TO the smaller extent of the island and its more
simple geology the nunbe of ASSISTANTS Is only eight,
all field officers Beside the persons mentioned there
are at the Museum in Jermyn street, two paeontoo-
gists who cone into the field only when their skill is
necessary to determine doubtful points.
The maps upon the Biologists work are the Ord
nance Typographical Maps of Great Britain on scale
of inch to the mile. The great amount OF work to
be done may be inferred from the fact that upon
small one, depicting tract OF sountry but few
miles in extent there eighty geological lines, de-
termned where the mountains rise OOJ To 600 feet
in height, and SO steep in places that the chsinmen
refused to climb, by actually walking alsng them to
determine their direction ard extent. Again this labor
may be further exemplifed by the index to the coors
used upon the maps already made and covering but
part Of Great Britain, which 1875 in number.
After the maps finished horizontal sections are
made and all true scale, being both horizontally
and vertically six inches to mile. The true nclina-
tens Of the strata and their thickness are thus exactly
given In case of the coal beds, they carried out
upon the maps to line 900 feet below the surface Vi
the sea, for the benefit of miners.
Vertical sections of the coal measures are made upon
scale of 10 feet to the nchwhich except in case OF
very important geological phenomena, are the only
We rite al sections. go
In the north of England, Scotland and Ireland the
new maps are upon scale of inches to the mile
Three counties of Scotland have been surveyed ana
lines given upon the maps one Mt the level Oh
the sea- and others at successive intervals oil 20 ieet
SO that these maps relieve the geoOgii of the neces
sity Of taking levels.
From the British survey biologists have been sent
out into other parts of the world, as into India, Aus
trslia. Trinidad and the Cape Of Good Hope.
The English style Of SURVEYS of course impossible
in a ew aud very extensive country; but when good
typographical maps sha be completed, no better sys-
TEN can be easily devised. In England the interest in
this matter has no become general and extended
that it would be impossible TO stop it, How great Is
this interest shown from the fact that O sheets OF
the maps are annually sold and the number Is con-
stsnty essing to such degree that IL Is nAruy
possible TO color them fast enough To supply the de-
nsnd and this not of the economical maps alone, but
those Of purely scientific interest. The Govern nent
has reached the point OF granting the survey al that
is aske6-gves it all the men that can be prohably
employed The maps already extend to % sheets and
represent 600 square miles of surface there are 40
sections and 20 vertical sections OF the coal measures
year or two after Sir Henry de Is Beche had sue
ceeded in perecng this system In It's details he died,
and Sir Roderick MuIclscn was apPomtedto MS place
as general director.
Prof LrsLEY said that he believed that the only
survey on this side of the Atlantic conducted on the
basis of typographical survey was that OF Ma'sa-
chusetts. He thought Massachusetts stood alone 10
the United States in that.
Prof HITcHcocK said that he was sorry to say that
Massachusetts, could not stand at all; the geological
survey was finished before the Typographical survey
was friSbed.
Prof SWALLOW said that who worked WITHOUT
Typographical surveys ard with very little assistance,
could hardly sympathize with the luxury OF this mag
nifcent apparatus. .
Prof. LESLEY sad that when, in 1885, Mr. Whelp.
ley left the survey Of the anthracite coalbeds IN his
hands, he eft with him elaborate maps on when ne
had traced beds Of coal the very manner described
by Mr. Ramsay.
Prof HALL saiG that we had not often the means OF
and they could not be until topography was united
With geology. States must be surveyed and resur
viewed again nd again until this dnra A cara.