The Union and journal. [volume] (Biddeford, Me.) 1858-1882, 1868-08-07
@isfellaueons.
Hr,ffss for tAs Union asd Journal.
Notes on the Geology Of Nesc England.
By y. .. fRrE, n. D.

<'SssS W sSS Se~s~bS ~ ~'sN AS"b'"''''
BIN. =. rnrs, =. D.
The Geology Of New England Is very
peculiar. With the exception Of the small
coal basin in Massachusetts, and Rhode
Island, and the narrow belt Of sandstone in
the Connecticut valley, its rock formations
belong TO the Silurian and Devonian lorna.
tons. Persons accustomed to read the re
ports Of DR.. Jackson on the Geology OF
Maine, viii there find our GRANTEES and va.
rious schists laid down as the lowest rocks
on the globe. They were then called Pri.
mary rocks, because they were supposed to
be formed before vegetable aud animal life
were created. But subsequent invesIiga-
tons have brought out the fact that granite
and i,s allied rocks were to be found in all
the geological formations, and that they
have been changed in their situation by the
action Of the internal heat Of the earth,
while beneath the winters Of the ocean. We
frequently find the sandstones Of the valley
Of the Connecticut river changed in this
manner into Mica states. Chalk is changed
into limestone by trapdykes Of melted mat.
ter running through them. Coal is changed
into cinders, and clay states into jasper
To this change the term meian'orphised is
applied.
Now let us see how the rocks Of Saco and
Biddeiord are situated. Originally they
were sedmentnry matter, formed in hori.
zontal position beneath the waters Of the
ocean, where they were acted upon by the
internal heat OF the earth from below, and
from the pressure Of the walters Of the
ocean above them. This changed their
character from mere sediment into hard
crystal limo rocks Of different kinds
Where clay largely abounded ID formed
mica aud clay slstes; if flnagnesia was pres
cut il formed talcose and chloriiic slates and
serpentine. lf fossils ever existed in these
sediments, they would generally bc entirely
oblitera,-d by the process OF capitalization
through which they would pas. In some
places In New England these changes have
no, entirely destroyed the fossils. as at Wa.
terville or the kennebcc river, and Parlin
Pond near Moosehead Lake, and in Brain-
tree, Mass, where huge trilohiies are found
in hard slate Of the Potsdam period. Al
Owls Head, OIL Lake MemphreInagog. and
among the lmcslones Of Vermont, these
fossils are occasionally found. From the
eastern part Of Maine to the Hudson river
on the west, the rocks are nearly all Of the
Silurian or Devonian age.
From Watcrville 10 Maine to Brain,rcc 10
Massachusetts,, no fossils have been found.
Geologists from abroad are ustonished to sec
80 large an extent OF territory so completely
metamorpho~ed, The whole Of Kennebec,
Sagudahock, Knox, Cumberland, Oxford
and York counties in Maine, the whole Of
New Hampshire, including the entire White
Mountain region, has been thus changed.
lf tho most casual observer will keep in
mind these facts, he can more readily com.
prehcud the manner in which the rocks In
this vicinity were formed. First, as scdi.
menis beneath the waters Of tho ocean,
where they were metamorphosed by the
folding up Of the whole region, by which
they became liled up from their originally
horizontal position, as we now see them,
after which melted matter passed up from
the interior portions Of the earth filed the
rocks, where il coated md formed the nu
merous trapdykes everywhere to be seen
Probably $4,000 square miles Of New En-.
gland were formed ia this manner under
the same special influences
II will be borne in mind that during the
Silurian Period the Atlantic coast was the
seat Of volcanic fires, which utterly ceased
aiier the I'riassic Period. The las, evidence
VIC have Of its action was in the Connecticut
>vallsy, by which ML Tom and MI. Holyoke
were raised. II We hear in mind the iact
that volcanoes are most numerous OH the
sea coasts oil over the globe, and the sea
coast OF New England was no exception in
early geological times, We have ready So
luton to the TACT that the rocks OF our sen
coast arc moro highly ,netanorph"sed on
tho sea coast than in the interior Of the con-
tincnt.
lhave thus briefly described the position
Of our rocks. that the non professional Stu-
dent might understand their relation TO the
other great formations OIL our continent
A person unaccustomed to investigations
Of this kind, will be slow TO believe that the
granite Of Kennebunk was originally sed.
inent, which has been slowly transformed
into stra,i6ed rock. lfhc should visit the
limestone bed at lewiston Falls, he would
zee numerous powerful trnpdykcs passing
through them and forming an exceedingly
hard Crystalline limestone, Il is hanl even
for The geologis, to believe that this rock may
have been formed out Of tho remains Of
shells. and metamorphosed into tabular
limestone. A broad field Of legitimate en-.
quiry is open to us at our very doors, which
the student Of nature will not fail to invcs-
iigaie, and if word Of encouragement
were needed, he win find that the more he
studies nature The more he will find to learn
respecting her ten thousand varied opera.
tiona The thin scum Of golden orc will
soon widen into broad and richer vein Of
inexhsusible wealth. .'- -. ,s...-
Gov. Seymour. In July, 1869, deprecated the
draft riots Of New York, not because they we're
sa ostragsoas rssistasee to law, but because
thev disturbed the quiet of the city Of New