The star of the north. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1849-1866, 1857-06-24

the West, whilst such great advantages are
al their doors, we are at a loss 10 conjecture
BOSTON SOCIETY OF NATURAL HIS
TORY.
Reported for the Boston Trausller Jy the Record.
| ing SecretLry.
THg PRESIDENT IN THE CHAIR-Professor
Agassiz opened lhe meeting by some highly
interesting remarks upon q new family Of
fishes and their habits. .t,a. ,.
! DR.. Chas T. Jackson gave a brief descrip'
| ton OF the bituminous coal formation of Elk
county, Pennsylvania, which he had been
engaged in exploring during the month OF
June last. He observed that the great btu
minous coal basin or trough extends from
the northwestern border of Pennsylvania,
! 10 Tuscaloosa, Alabama, as indicated on Mr.
Jules Marcou's Geological map of the Uni
ted States.
The northern portion of this basin is Of
! great economical value OH accoun, Of its be-
! ing the nearest to Lake Erie, ono of the
creates, markets for Goals, which are requir-
ed Tor navigation on all the great Lakes. and
| for the furnaces and Gas wo.ss, as well as
domestic use for fuel, on both the United
States and Canada sides Of these lakes. He
remarked that statistics showed larger
amou nj of tonnage on the lakes than exists
on The Atlantic coast Of this country, and
| that steam navigation would certainly great
" increase npnu The lakes where Goals could
bs obtained at a reasonable cost, as will soon
be the case when the western portion oi the
Sudbury and Erie Railroad, now under con-
tract, is completed, which would be done in
| the course Of two years.
Sluce the recent explorations were made
into the extensive coal formation of Elk CO.,
! Pa. the Directors Of this important Railroad
! have ordered The road to be laid amid these
coal fields and the consequence OF this move
men, viii soon be felt in the augmented val
ur of the coal lands.
The PARTICULAR region explored by Dr.
Jackson is known as the Ridsway Land
aud Coal Companies property, some e7,'
900 acres of land, all situated in the coal
region. Five or six beds Of coal undere
this soil, and they generally dip only from
two to five degrees from the horizon, and are
from two TO six feet in thickness. Most ot
the large beds are undisturhed, and only the
small ones are here aud there denuded by
valleys OF excavation.
The deep rav;nes, or runs, expose some
Of the out crops of the larger beds on the
southeast sides of the hills. On the month
ives, they are still deeply covered with rocks,
the saudstoues and hiiuminous shales.
: Each of these coal beds is ove'laid with a
sra,um of s or 10 inches Of slaiy camel coal,
and they a!l rest on fire. c'sys. Iron ores,
namely carbonate of iron and brown hTmat'
i've, abound, the former in the fire clays and
the latter IN the supe erncumbenl shaes. Bat
few fossil plauls are Iound in these shaes,
and only the scales, fiGs, and tails OF fishes
in The slA,y camel coal, which appears 10
have teeu fine aqueous sediment Of water
lodged vegetable mailer.
A bed of buif.colored limestone occnrs
berea,h the principal bed Of coal, and is
nine or len teet thick. This limestone con-
,s;as small iussi bivslve shells, not YET
named
the Ridaway land Thus contains coal, iron
ores, limestone and sandstone, with All abun-
dance Of ella, suitable lor fi:e-ptoof bricks
All the facilities Tor the reduction ot iron ex'
lists on the spot, aud soon the neans ol trans
po-,a,ion OF The GOALS and metal TO matse
win be supplied The country is elevated
abonl 1000 above feet above the sea, and /:
! IN latitude 4i25 NJ, aud long, 40 w.
Washington, and is remarkably healthy.
The following analysis OF the Goals, itor
, ore and limestone have been made by pr
jackson, since his return 10 Boston. Speci
men from the 6 feet bed:
80 a