The Feliciana Democrat., 1858-05-08
! Ole sfelitiana lenlotrat.
THE COAL FORMATION IN NORTH
LOUISIANA.

This formation has recently been partially
traced and examined, and some interesting facts
i'm regard to it have been communicated to us
As far as ascertained, its eastern extremity is
in the high lands bordering upon the Ouachlta
and Black Rivers. To the north it is found
reaching to within thirty miles of the State
line and in its southern and western extension
is seen in the hills near Natclitoches and not
far from the Sabine river cast of Sabinctown
The field is exceedingly broken, and APP
pears to be made up of series of dis.
iointed or separate deposits. 1t is found eX-
posed in the ravnes and cropping ont from the
hills in the parishes Of Caldwell, Wnn, Jack
son, Rapides, Bienville, Nachitochcs and Sa-
bine. Above and below Columbia only one
seam, between twenty and thirty inches thick,
is foun9 On the Duggcmonia and Bayou
Saline and at other points, there is one of over
four feet to the westward and at Lake Bis
tenean there are two one above the other and
some fifteen feet or more apart, each not less
than from thirty to thirty-siX inches and
some distance south Of Minden u seam of up
wards of SIX feet in thickness, tits said. was
passed through in digging we'll In the high
bluff on Red river, at Grand Ecore, there are
seams varying from one or two inches to ten
or twelve. Aud there is no sufficient reason
for believing that at greater depths beds Of
larger extent may not be found.
The coal belongs to the tertiary period and
may be classed as camel Ignite. When first
taken from the ground most of it il black and
some is quite ustrous After exposure to the
weather it changes its color, more or less and
also becomes for the most part exceedingly
pliable, and breaks with handling.
1t is stratifed horizontally, and irrcgularly
racked at right-angles with the line Of stratiii-
cation, so that, when dug from the mine it
comes up in angular blocks When block
is broken the cross fracture is conchoidal.
It's chemical combination is by no means
uniform each bed affords different proper
tion of constituents, and in several the process
of formation from logs of wood into dense,
black coal was distinctly traced The medium
specific gravity is under so, and it is doubt.
full whether any Of it will afford Of carbon
over 40 per cent, and Of water less than l5
per cent. All Of it, however, yields oil to n
greater or less extent, and some Of it in as
high proportion as fifty six gallons to two
thousand pounds Of coal and for the pur-
pose of extracting this material, and where
the seams are Of good, workable thickness, it
has very high value, and offers strong in
ducemcnts for the investment of capital. But,
for fuel, it cannot be regarded as Of much
worth at the present time, particularly if 1t
has to be transported any distance it con
tans too little carbon too much moisture, and
is too friablc.
The supposition has been that this lorma-
tion is identical with that of southern Arkan-
sas, but different conclusion will be arrived
at if Goals from the two fields be compared
their physical structure, color and destiny diff
fer That in Arkansas is the brown coal pro-
per that in this State is more solid and com
pact, is darker, and has pretty close resem-
blance to some of the camel Goals Each,
though, may be put to like uses with like re.
suits.
AS a class of carbonaceous fossils, these
Goals undoubtedly stand sui geners, when
compared with those of the Ohio valley, Penn
sylvania and Virginia They belong to an
entirely different age and it is confidently
asserted that any attempt to dlScovera btu
minous or anthracite coal in Louisiana, must
prove unsuccessful.