South Branch intelligencer. [volume] (Romney, Va. [W. Va.]) 1830-1896, 1875-09-03
The State University.


gents of the above University, by DIR.
Martin, upon the subject of his removal
from his position as President of the
Institution, as well as on the removal
of other members of the faculty. 1t
seems from this letter that the Board
has seen fit to commit this act Of slaugh-
ter, for certain reasons not given, bat
we presume. OF course they appeared to
the Board itself, good and sufficient to
justify its action.
To q locker on, there is evidently
cause for fearing that the manner in
which this was done, will result in in
jury to the Institution, for first,-it must
create confusion. The next session will
soon commence now. and there will be
no new faculty appointed until the very
day FOR the opening of the University.
This, itself, viii be productive of GER
tain amount of harm, since it must tend
to lessen the patronage, and for this rea.
son, we think that it would have been
better 10 have taken more time and act
ed with more deliberation. Certainly
proper notice should have been given
the displaced officials, so they might
have provided other positions for them.
selves, and this was demanded by JUS
tice. Second, this sudden and whole
sale removal will serve to start cry
that it was guided, to great extent, by
partisan motives. True, when the Rad.
icals were in power in this State, they
endeavored TO place this institution un.
der a government of the most ultra Rad.
ical stripe, and when the Democrats
succeeded them they, naturally enough,
felt the inslination to go TO the other
extreme. Now while it is equally true,
in our opinion, that if any political ideas
are TO be inculcated in the youthful
mind they should be those of the right
complexion, still State University
should never be made partisan insti.
tuition. Its first object should be for the
instruction of all, and therefore the COM
petence of the instructor should be re-
garded before his political sentiments
are discussed; and because the Radical
party set n bad example, that afforded
no reason why the Democrats should
have followed it.
We suppose, of course, though, that
in taking this step, the Board Of Regents
have acted for what they believe to be
the best interests of the State, and we
hope that their action in the end may
be justified We throw out the above
suggestions, rs worthy of consideration,
so that they may be careful to do moth
ing which may be detrimental either to
them as 4 Board, or to the Safe
But regarding DIR. Martins letter, we
cannot but think it was not only writ
ten in n fit Of ill temper; but he conde-
and unworthy in themselves. Such q
sentence as this for instance THE
snarling of few low ours, whose men,
dacity is only exceeded by their malig.
nifty, ut the heels of the University. has
had very little effect. Such creatures
are unhappily found in every communi-
ty and have no in luence where they are
known lis certainly not what we have
reason to expect from dignified, rover
end college president. Since such snar-
lers have mo influence" it was going far
out Of the way to notice them so emphat.
ically. We are confident that the only
tendency of such letter will be more
complete justification of the Board of
Regents, than they might otherwise
have received Wheeling Register.
The Coal FIELDS OF WEST VIRGINIA.
AT the meeting Of the Association for
the Advancement Of Science, at Detroit.
Mich, few days ago, Prof. +. b. An.
drews, of the Ohio Geological Corps,
read paper on "A Comparison Between
the Ohio and West Va. Sides of the Al.
leghany Coal field" The object Of the
paper was to show that there is an enor-
nous thickness ofooal measures in West
Virginia on the Kanawha, Guyandotte.
&C., while on the Ohio side of the syn.
clinal axis ofthe field they are relatively
thin. The professor took the Pittsburgh
seam OF coal as n basis of measure.
ment, and while the distance from this
seam to the bottom of the productive
coal series in Ohio and Western Penn.
sylyania is from 500 to 900 feet, on the
Kanawha and New rivers the distance is
300 feet.
The remarkably fine group Of Goals
on Elk river, on the Kanawha be.
tween Charleston and Kanawha falls.
on Coal river on the Guyandotte. on
Twelve Pole, and on the Tug and Louisa
forks of Big Sandy river is in geological
position below the base Of the Ohio mea.
surcs, and there is another group POO
feet thick, lying still lower in the strait.
graphical columns. These deep Goals in
West Virginia were found in deepge
synclinal through which probably ex.
tended TO the southwest through Tenn.
and in this direction connected with the
ocean. It's extension TO the northeast
through the anthracite coal.felds of
Pennsylvania has not yet been ascer.
tanned. When the great Western Vir.
ginia basin was filed, the water in the
general snbsidcncc came over the broad
plateau Of the Ohio Wayerly and the
corresponding formation in Western
Pennsylvania, and the coal series grew
upward 20 the Pittsburgh coal seam, and
still above this for 1,2UO or !. 800 feet.
7 The differences in the Theological char.
. Of - ~ br l.