The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1886-12-16
rrxAseEoLoGICALLY.

To the Statesman: |
Jay Gould, when young, was county
surveyor of Ulster county, Sew YORK. anu
made Typographical map OF the counS!
In this study he was enabled to carry the
mountain and valley system OF that anu
adioining counties in his mind, and by
developing this force for long series OF
wears. the mind eventually took IN the
physical features of every county anu
state on the continent, and When III tne
exchange, this map, in relief: was all 1ne
time before his mind, whereas other rali.
road spectators, to tell the Vaiue Vi
shares, must examine map to get theT
data. The old railroad engineer carries
theodolite in his mind and measures all
the grades. tunnels and cuts to be MADE
by riding through the country. 1t Is so
with the physical geographer-the COAL
IRON, lead, copper and other mineral hhos'
with all their physical features, as knobs,
hills, mountains, ridges and drainage
stand before the mind, and from STUDY
of these facts the vein system may be
seen mentally. In 1873 I crossed the Rio
Grande at Eagle Pass and went west 600
miles. In going from Eagle Pass TO the
Sabinas and Alamo river, sixty miles, and
from there to the Santa Rosa mountain
range, sixty miles, felt assured from the
mesas or table mounds, that marked the
physical features of the country, that
these mounds we're in the centre OF
coal basins, as | had seen the Illinois coal
basins marked in their centre by similarly
formed table lands. Since that time the
coal has been found along the Sablnas
river, and deduction confirmed that
there are two coal basins, each fifty miles
wide between Eagle Pass and the Santa
Rosa mountain range and an anthracite
basin carrying a six foot vein that
follows the mountain, and this Rio Grande
coal basin, from the physical features OF
the country about Fort Clarke, must ex'
tend east of this river fully 100 miles,
The area of coal-bearing rocks in Texas
will include many million acres, ana
around these fields, where granetoid rocks
are exposed, are fields of lead, copper, Sill
YER and gold. Between the Rio Pecos and
Ell Paso the same range of porphyry rocks
are seen as in the silver fields in the Santa
Rosa mountains, Mexico, and this belt
continues through Texas to New Mexico
From having crossed Texas in 1878, l
should estimate that the mining industry
of Texas, when it comes to be developed,
will be equal with her grazing and agrl-
cultural industry; and the way to bring
this latent wealth forward is to have a
practical geological survey made of the
state. Each county should be shown in
geological map, and cross vertical geolo-
gical sections made across the state and
under all the lines of railroad, showing
the strata and vein system of the mineral
field crossed. l was told, years ago, by
mining men that the Rogers brothers geo.
logical survey of Pennsylvania had been
the sub-structure of the mining industry
of that state, where 10000 miners worked
in one county, land worth half million dol
lars year to the state. The Legislature
should make an appropriation sufficient
to carry this survey forward. Texas is
big state, an area within her borders suf
ticient for an empire, and her physica
features and strata should be gagged by
one who has studied the elements of geo.
logy from observing mines and mining
countries in large way, as Gould COM
menced his Topographic survey of Ulster
county, N. Y, about 1855.
IVAN CLEvE PHILLIPS,
Geologist.