The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1874-04-09
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nas'rop Counsy coal.


Eiitors Dsmooafie esai>,.., No..
Hall and Horne Of the reolooicsl -nrvc,,
have recently made q partial exeuinat,on ~
some Of the coal beds Of Bastrop county
These brown Goals are all ii the older ter.
hary or eocene Of the geOloeists. their orr.
gin being much more recent than the Goals
Of the regular carboniierous period. Bv
some these tertiary Goals (lignites as thev
are often termed) are considered of little
use, yet experience teaches that some ef
them are equal IN value, rs fuels, 20 the COM
mon bituminous Goals Of the regular carbon
ferrous period. IT'S thus with some Of the
Bastrop Goals. Mr. Edwin Goodman. who
lives three miles from BastFop, on the west
side OF the Colorado river, furnished cot.
ton factory Of the town of Bastrop with
Goals during the period of six month, to pro-
pei an engine Of sixty horse power. The
coal thus used gave entire satisfaction, being
considered cheaper and better than wood.
From some cause unknown to rs this fac
tory has ceased 70 operate. Certainly, Il
was not for the want OF good fuel. Mr..
Goodman has made large use OF the coal
for fuel In his house. The following is a
section Of the coal beds AZ AIr. Goedman's
Descending: l. Surface soil, two TO three
feet. 2. Sand with coneretionarv iron stone
and numerous thin strata of clay, forty-ive
loet- .. Derk, cnmuact clax. six inches
4. Coal, ten feet 3. Blue clay, thirty 1ect
8, Hard sandstone six to twelve inches.
q, Coal, eighteen to twenty feet
The coal used for the factory and other
purposes was taken from No 4 of the sec
tion, but she lower bed win probably prove
10 be the best and most profitable. on ac-
count of its greater age and extent. 1t
also has hard sandstone for roof, very
important item in reducing the expense of
obtaining il. The upper bed, No. 4, to be
worked, needs frequent propping 70 support
the roof.
The following section is from the Brice
& Lyman place: 1. Surface soil, three To
four feet. 2. Clay, ten feet. g. Hard red
a half feet. 3. Blue clay, fire clay, } forty
feet. 9. Hard compact greyish sandrock.
one foot z. Coal, i've feet s. Clay, blu
ish, fifty feet. 3. Coal, into the bed of
which, at the depth Of ten feet the auger
broke aud the work was discontinued. This-
lower bed isprobably Of the same NC as the
lower bed at Goodman's, and may be twenty
or more feet thick.
From the above it will be seen that the
coal beds numbers four and seven, have
good roofs, an Important point in mining for
coal. -
2 These beds Of coal are all in nearly a hor-
izontal position, showing little disturbance
since their deposition. They were origi-
nally large bodies Of vegetable matter, ac-
cumulated in swamps or shallow basins
along the borders Of the old tertiary sea.
Our critacious rocks had previously been
raised from the bed Of the old ocean.
The Bastrop coal beds viii prove to be OF
immense value to the State. We have only
given a partial account Of them, for from
one you may learn the remainder.
} A boring for coal is now being mnde near
McDade, on the railroad, where, II IL IS
found, it win save in transportation; but it
should be remembered that coal does not ex.
tend under the whole surface Of Bastrop
county. The beds are only of limited ex-
tent, yet they are surely extensive enough
for the wants Of the neighboring cities and
towns of Texas for the next hundred years
The examinations already made prove this.
h. ssss aal 5. B. BUCKLEY,
5df State Geologist