Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1882-11-24
1antaster ;Amteilige,lrcr.
A Dllatory Commission.

A Dllatory Commission.
The people Of Chester county hear
that the report Of the state geological
concerning the geology Of
their county is in press, and they are
surprised because they have not seen any
Of the state geologists going over their
county to examine its mineral character.
They have heard for number of years
past that there was a state geological
commission in existence, but they have
had no knowledge of it from observation.
They have supposed that their time
would como some day ,and have patiently
waited for 1t, only to find that no par
ticular examination of their county was
intended, but that report was to be
prepared upon it from old data and
statements picked up from different per-
sons in the county, who have given its
mineral geology their study.
The people of Chester county are not
much worse off than their neighbors.
We know of no thorough geological eN-
animation being made Of any Of tie
counties in this section of the state, and
complaints are numerous from nearly
all the counties that the work Of the
commission is scanlalously superficial.
Several years ago Lancaster county en-
joyed the presence of Professor Pelsifer
Frazer for one summer, who located
himself in different portions of it and
took hasty velicular and pedestrian
tours through it, recording what he OBJ
served by the way side. Then he made
. report in the course Of a year or two,
and probably it was as good a report as
his means of observation enabled him to
give. But his work was inno way enti
tied to he considered rs q proper seolog
ical examination of the county.
Where tie fault is we do not know,
but certainly the work Of the state geo
logical commission of Pennsylvania is
not what it ought to be. Tie appropri
alton may he too small, and the workme,l
may be too few, or they may only be
lazy and incenpetent. What we de
know is that We are not getting proper
geological survey of Pennsylvania or re,
ports that are worth what they are cost.
inxs It seems as though the commission,
*ssAifanged to he permanent institu
tion, and that it is not the design to give
us too much or too full information al
ct once, but reserve enough to make the
eoNniGaipa q standlg necessity. B,
the time It's membersxet through the
state once, 50 loAg period will have
elapsed that it will need to be gone over
afresh. Thepresent superficial examina
tion is possibly intended merely as al
appetizer to the great geological feas
that will be spread for us the next tims
the commission attacks the state
geology. But we would prefer t.
soc the work done thoroughly at once
If there is nothing in the geology OF th,
state that needs thorough examination
We have no need of Il geological com
mission. We have been under the i'm
preston that it was desirable to hay,
every foot of the state carefully exam
ined that We might know just what it
geological condition and mineral wealth
is. This need is not satisfied by th'
hasty travel through It of a single geoIo
gist, as Lancaster county was viewed, O
by the collected reports Of resident min
eralogists, as in Chester county. Evi
IDENTIFY the state geological commissio,
needs to be re-organized or abolished. ],
is doing too little good work to he kept
alive in it's present state.