Local History: Chapter II - Part II: Ores, Minerals, and Geology: Bean's 1884 History of Montgomery Co, PA Contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Susan Walters USGENWEB NOTICE: Printing this file by non-commercial individuals and libraries is encouraged, as long as all notices and submitter information is included. Any other use, including copying files to other sites requires permission from the submitters PRIOR to uploading to any other sites. We encourage links to the state and county table of contents. บบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบ BEAN'S HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA บบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบบ 22 (cont.) CHAPTER II - PART II SOILS.- Soil is formed by the decomposition and erosion of the underlying rocky strata. It is always mixed more or less with vegetable mould and decomposing woody fibre which have resulted from the crops. When rocks under the soil are exposed, so that air, as well as moisture, has free access to them, they become changed, and begin to decompose and crumble to sand or clayey earth, and begin to form soil. Gneiss and mica-schist are very durable rocks, and yet much of the gneiss and mica-schist has undergone alteration so that in some localities it has rotted down and decomposed so as to form soil of earth or gravel to the depth of one hundred feet, and in the tropical regions soils of much greater depth have been formed by the wearing away of rocky masses. It must not be supposed that this erosion is the work of a few years; centuries rather have elapsed before these rocky masses have been worn down and decomposed. Granite is an enduring rock, and granite hills, it might be supposed, would last forever, and yet when the oxygen and moisture commence their work, and the heat of summer and the frost of winter lend a helping hand, the erosion begins, and the hillsides and plains below derive their soil from the constituents of the granite. Sandstone rock, in which the grains; are cemented together by clay or some other binding material, also gradually wears away, and the grains of sand do their part in forming soils. The enormous beds and cliffs of limestone also suffer erosion and form a soil unsurpassed for fertility. Limestone is readily worn away by water containing free carbonic acid gas, in which limestone is slightly soluble; pure water has no action on limestone, but when rain-water derives carbonic acid gas from the atmosphere and other sources, then its action on limestone begins, and it will begin its dissolution, however slow it may be. It must not be supposed that air and moisture are the only agents at work on the rocks to form soils. Frost and ice are actively engaged year after year in splitting and breaking up rocks. When the crevices in a rock become filled with water and the water freezes, the tendency is to split the rock into fragments which in course of time form soil; porous rocks, such as sandstones, loose shales and schists, which readily absorb water, are often broken apart when the water con so that fresh surfaces are exposed to weathering. Heat also in a quiet way does its work in forming soil, -it hastens any chemical change which the rock may undergo, tending to its decomposition. During the day the rocks are exposed to the rays of the sun and become heated and expand; towards evening when it becomes cool they contract, and this alternate expansion and contraction has a tendency to loosen the grams of rock, and often splits off an outer layer when the rock has become weathered and softened. All of the above agencies are active in forming soils; the action may be slow, yet it is none the less sure. Thus we see how soils are formed, and how they derive their mineral constituents from the rocks. The vegetable matter of soils is derived from the decay of plant life which the soil has nourished. On the Western prairies the grass grows luxuriantly and then rots, and the next spring a new crop grows. This growth and decay has been going on for years, and every year furnishes the soil a supply of vegetable matter, until in many places the soil is twenty feet deep and of great richness and fertility. The vegetable matter in roil generally colors it black, which is due to the carbon it contains. The soil of the prairies is of a dark color. The Eastern soils which are cultivated yearly are being exhausted of vegetable mould, and its place is supplied by barnyard manure. Why are some soils fertile and others barren? All grains and vegetables require for their growth certain mineral elements in the soil; when these elements are absent the plants cannot grow, but will wither and die; but when the oil contains an abundance of these substances, and in a soluble form so that the plants can feed on them, then the soil is fertile and will yield abundant crops. What mineral constitutional of soils are necessary toplants? All plants cultivated as food require for their healthy growth the alkalies, potash and ammonia, and the alkaline earths, lime and magnesia, each in a certain proportion. In addition to these, cereals or grains cannot attain a healthy growth unless silica is present in a soluble form suitable for assimilation. But of all the elements furnished to plants by the soil, and offering nourishment of the richest kind, phosphate of lime and the alkaline phosphates generally are the most important. A field in which phosphate of lime or the alkaline phosphates form no part of the soil is totally incapable of raising grains, peas, or beans. Wheat especially cannot flourish without phosphates the soil. We find these phosphates in the kernels of wheat and in the hulls surrounding the kernels. Nearly all vegetables contain phosphates to a greater or less degree, and scarcely any plants are wholly without them; and those parts of plants which experience has taught us are the most nutritious contain the largest proportion of phosphates; for example, seeds, grain, and especially the varieties of breadcorn, peas, beans, and lentils. And if we incinerate these and analyze the ashes we can dissolve the alkaline phosphates with water, and there will remain in the ashes the insoluble phosphates of lime and magnesia which are essential to the plant. The phosphates are as necessary to man as to the plants, and a deficiency of them in the 23 blood is accompanied always with some form of debility or nervous prostratin. They are much used in medicine. If we analyze the ashes of blood we will find phosphate of soda and potash present, and also the insoluble phosphates of lime and magnesia, the very salts we find in wheat, etc. Hence we are brought to the conclusion that no seed suitable to become food for man or animals can be formed in any plant without the presence and co-operation of the phosphates, and man derives his supply of this nourishing element from plants he uses for food. The cereals require the alkalies, potash and ammonia, and in addition the silicates of potash and soda; these silicates are derived from the rock which in a fine state of subdivision forms the soil. When the rock decomposes it yields these silicates of potash and soda, which are soluble in water and which are taken up by the plant. Some soils contain silicates which are decomposed so easily that in every two years enough silicate or potash is set free to furnished nourishment for the leaves and straw of a crop of wheat. In Hungary there are extensive districts where wheat and tobacco are grown alternately on the same soil for centuries, and both of these plants rob the soil of immense quantities of potash, tobacco particularly; about twenty-five per cent. of the ashes of tobacco are composed of potash. But districts like this are the exception. In Virginia the tobacco-growing soils are exhausted, because tobacco cannot grow in a soil unless there is a plentiful supply of potash, and all the potash of these soils has been withdrawn. Silica, so necessary to wheat, is not required by potatoes or turnips, since these crops do not abstract a particle of silica. From what source does the soil derive its supply of potash for the nourishment of plant-life? and what rocks contain potash? The soil derives its supply of potash from minerals, such as feldspars and micas principally, and from many other silicates. The rocks containing potash are granite, gneiss, syenite, mica-schist, trap rock, mica-slate, and many others. In fact, nearly all micaceous and feldspathic rocks contain this important element. The feldspars contain potash, soda, and lime, combined with alumina and silicic acid. There are several varieties of feldspar, -orthoclase, in which potash predominates; albite, in which soda predominates; anorthite, having abase of lime; and oligoclase and Labradorite, having bases of soda and lime. The above bases are always combined with silica and alumina, and form what are known as silicates. The variety known as orthoclase contains often as high as fifteen per cent. of potash; a pure orthoclase will yield silica, 64.20; alumina, 18.40; potash, 16.95. Thus we see that these feldspars contain the very elements that the crops feed on; but these elements are in an insoluble form, and are bound up in combination in such a form that the plant cannot feed on them unless they are decomposed and rendered soluble in water. On long exposure to air, moisture, and these rocks become rotten and crumble and decompose; silicate of potash is formed, which the rain-water dissolves, and the roots of the plants absorb as food. Silicate of alumina is also formed which will not dissolve, and forms the familiar substance known as clay. The feldspars have a pearly lustre, are scratched by quartz, and cleave very readily; this property distinguishes them from quartz. The other mineral mentioned as containing potash is mica. There are several varieties of mica, and in composition they are silicates of alumina and potash; sometimes part of the alumina is replaced by magnesia iron, or soda Certain rocks, such as granite, gneiss, syenite, etc., have been mentioned as containing potash. This becomes evident when we consider that granite and gneiss are composed of quartz, feldspar, and mica; syenite, of quartz, feldspar, and hornblende; and mica-schist is composed of quartz, mica and a small proportion of feldspar. These rocks contain the very minerals that are necessary to form good soil. The soil derives its supply of phosphates from the rocks also. The Philadelphia and the Montgomery County granites and mica-schists contain from one tenth to four-tenths per cent. of phosphoric acid. The syenites, gneisses, trap rocks, and even the new red sandstone contain small quantities of phosphates. In order to get a correct understanding of the soils of Montgomery County we must study the rocks that underlie the soil and from which the soil has been formed; we must know whether the minerals composing the rock are such as contain plant-food. From this study we can get a most intelligent idea of the fertility of a soil. Montgomery County has a great variety of rocky strata and hence a variety of coils. The limestone soils are generally the most fertile and productive. More wheat to the acre is raised on the limestone soils than on any other, and corn seems to attain a greater size. Many of the sandstone soils are productive, but this is probably due to the fact that they often contain feldspar and sometimes mica. These rocks often contain little white specks, which seem to be loose and crumbling, and are decomposed feldspar. When the soil is made up of pure sand it is not fertile, as the plants cannot live on silica alone. When the underlying rock is red shale the soil does not amount to much, and small crops are raised. Quite a number of the townships abound with this red shale, which often contains as high as seven per cent of iron. A red shale along the Stony Creek, which I analyzed, yielded seven percent of iron. The red color of this shale is due to the oxide of iron it contains. When superphosphate is applied to a red shale soil, or one containing much oxide of iron, a great deal of the phosphoric acid is wasted; it combines with the iron, forming phosphate of iron, which is insoluble and not readily decomposed, so that it is of no use to the plant. The red shale generally accompanies the sandstone, and 24 the red soils are often derived from shale, although sometimes from sandstone. It must not be inferred that the soils in the sandstone district are not fertile, as they generally yield good crops. Some townships contain four different kinds of soil. The following is a list of townships and the beds of rock that underlie them. The rocky strata mentioned first is the most abundant, and the others are mentioned according to the extent of the deposit in the township. The townships not mentioned below are included in the sandstone district. Lower Merion - Mica-schist, garnet-schist, syenite and granitic rocks. Upper Merion. - Limestone, sandstone, and slates. Springfield. - Limestone, mica-schist and gneisses, Syenite and granitic rocks, and sandstone. Cheltenham. -Garnet- and mica-schist, syenite and granitic rocks, and sandstone. Abington - Mica- and garnet-schist, syenite and granitic rocks, sandstone and limestone. Moreland. -Syenite and granitic rocks, sandstone and mica-schist. Plymouth. -Limestone and new red sandstone. White Marsh -Limestone, sandstone, syenite and grantic rocks, mica-schist. Upper Dublin. --Sandstone, limestone, syenite , granitic rocks. Horsham. -Red sandstone. Gwynedd. -Red sandstone and shale. Whitpain. -Red sandstone. Lower Providence. -Red sandstone. Norriton. -Red sandstone. Worcester -Red sandstone. CLAY AND KAOLIN DEPOSITS. -The composition of kaolin is a hydrous silicate of alumina. It contains forty-five per cent. of silica, forty per cent. of alumina, and fifteen per cent. of water; when pure it is as infusible as sand. It is very plastic, and can be kneaded into almost any shape when mixed with water. It is seldom found pure; it generally contain feldspar, mica, oxide of iron, or calcite, and any on, of these impurities will make the clay melt. The best kinds of clay contain scarcely any of these substances which tend to make the clay less refractory. The tests for a good refractory clay are: It must not effervesce when moistened with acid, as this show the presence of carbonates which make it fusible;it must not contain more than two per cent. of iron; it must be as free as possible from feldspar, which contains potash and makes it fusible. As a rule, the less alkali you find the more refractory the clay, and six-tenths of one per cent. of potash is the maximum amount allowed in a good refractory fire-clay. The best way, however, to test a fire-clay is to make a brick of it, and put it in a shaft-furnace supplied with a blast and fed with anthracite coal. In a furnace like this steel will melt. After the brick has been in the furnace about one hour take it out and examine it; if it has melted or crumbled or fused much on the edges it is not the kind of clay suitable for making fire-bricks. After a successful test of this kind an analysis is not necessary. The clay-beds of Montgomery County are found in the limestone belt, generally in the vicinity of the mica-slates and schists, and it is in these deposits of clay that we find the, extensive deposits of brown hematite ore. The principal clay-beds are found in Upper Merion, Plymouth, White Marsh, and Springfield townships. The clay in all of these townships is found in the limestone. There seems to be a depression in the limestone, which may have been the former bed of a stream, and the clay is found resting on the limestone and filling up this depression or bed. Most of the clay, however, has been derived from the mica-slates and schists, and the beds are parallel to the limestone, and occupy the position of those rocks from which they have been derived. These are the old clays, while the clay which is found occupying the depressions of the limestone and is not parallel to it is said to be a more recent clay. The most important bed of kaolin now worked in Montgomery County is found at Lynch's Kaolin Pit, situated in Plymouth township, on the Ridge pike, about two and a half miles from the borough of Conshohocken. This pit was opened in 1877, and Mr. Lynch informs me that over seven thousand tons of kaolin and clay have been mined; the average yield at present is about fifteen hundred tons per year. This deposit is of local importance, as it supplies clay for the terra cotta works at Spring Mill, owned by Mr. Morehead, and also the works owned by Mr. Scharff. At these works terra-cotta pipes of all sizes are made. Various clay ornaments and chimneys are manufactured here. There arc several different kinds of clay at this pit: First a beautiful white kaolin which is free from iron and is quite coherent; this variety is used for making pottery and also for lining blast-furnaces and puddling-inmaces, where it has to stand a very high temperature without melting. This kaolin contains exceedingly minute scales of mica, which are scarcely visible to the eye. The next clay is the red clay used in the manufacture of terra-cotta and also for lining and fixing puddling-furnaces. This clay contains a little oxide of iron. The next variety is a blue clay, and is known as the new clay, and makes most excellent fire-bricks. It is more coherent and plastic than any of the others. Formerly the clay used for making the large cylindrical pots in which glass is melted was imported from Germany, but recently this blue clay was tried, and served the purpose very well, standing the high temperature without crumbling or fused, This clay is now used by J. M. Albertson & Sons at the Star Glass-Works, Norristown. The extent of this deposit is not known; the bed is about seventy feet in thickness and extends over the entire field. The clay is shipped to Philadelphia, Norristown, Pottstown, and Conshohocken. Near the clay is found a bed of fine white sand. LIMESTONE VALLEY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY. --The great limestone belt of Montgomery County, which has furnished such immense quantities of marble an lime, commences in Abington township, about a mile and a half north of Abington; at this point, it is quite a narrow belt, but it widens as it extends westward, entering the northern corner of Cheltenham township, and becoming a broad belt of limestone as it extends through White Marsh, Plymouth, and Upper Merion townships. In Montgomery County it extends as far south as Conshohocken and Spring Mill, and it extends to within a short distance of the towns of Barren Hill and Edge Hill. It extends along the Schuylkill River from Conshohocken to Norristown and crossed the river, extending into Chester County, and forming the beautiful Chester Valley. But this limestone belt does not end here, it passes entirely through Chester County, and extends into Lancaster County as far as the south of the Big Beaver Creek. The total length of this immense limestone belt from near Abington, Montgomery Co., its eastern extremity, to the Big Beaver Creek, in Lancaster County, its western extremity, is fifty-eight miles. The widest portion of the belt is three miles, while the average width of limestone is two and a half miles. In Chester County, at Downingtown, the belt is not so wide, being only three-fourths of a mile in width. The greatest width of the limestone in Lancaster County is not much more than half a mile. The general structure of this first main belt of limestone is that of a long slender basin or synclinal trough, the southern side of which is much steeper than the northern, from the neighborhood of the Gulf Mills, a little west of the Schuylkill, to its western end this oblique symmetry prevails with scarcely any interruption. The strata of the north side of the valley, or from the synclinal axis northward, dip at an average inclination of about 45ƒ southward, or more strictly S 20ƒ E. But this inclination is not constant east of the Schuylkill River. There are two well-defined synclinal basins, flanked by the Potsdam sandstone. West of the river a synclinal basin extends to the northwestward between Bridgeport and Hendersonville Station, and is also flanked on both sides by the Potsdam sandstone. The south side of the limestone belt between Spring Mill and its eastern extremity is bounded by the Potsdam sandstone. But from Spring Mill west to the Chester County line the South Valley Hill quartzose mica-schists form the remainder of the southern boundary in Montgomery County. The limestone belt is bounded on the north by the Potsdam sandstone and by the new red sandstone. Folds of Potsdam sandstone extend in a diagonal direction across the main belt of limestone- at Oreland, Cold Point, and Henderson. Here we find the Potsdam sandstone extending into the limestone. According to Professor Rogers, "The southern steeply upturned outcrop has been more metamorphosed by heat than the northern, and this alteration is greater when they are in a nearly vertical position or inverted. It is chiefly within these limits that the blue and yellow limestone has been altered by beat and changed into crystalline and granular marble of different colors. Nearly all the marble-quarries opened are included within this steeply upturned or overturned outcrop. It is likewise along this convulsed and metamorphosed side of the trough that nearly all of the largest, deepest and richest deposits of brown hematite have been met with." The color of the limestone varies in different localities, -pale grayish-blue, white, pale strawyellow, and bluish-white. The marble is of various colors, -white, black-, and often mottled. The thickness of the limestone belt is not known. Professor Hall says, "The probability is that it is not far from two thousand feet thick, but it may be much less." I have noticed that from Potts' Landing to Conshohocken the prevailing color of the limestone is blue, and from Potts' to Norristown we have a variety of colors, -gray, white, yellow, and blue. Gray is the prevailing color. Between these two points there are two small veins of mica-schist which are very narrow. The limestone directly in contact with these I have found has been, metamorphosed into a white marble. The color of limestone is, generally due to organic matter which they contain, although, not always; the black marbles are colored by graphite or carbonacous matter; the yellow or brown limestones generally contain iron as oxide or carbonate. Very often in the same quarry will be found severaI veins, each vein having a different color. The limestones of Montgomery County are highly magnesium; many Vein, contain enough carbonate of magnesia to form what is known as, dolomite. Dolomite contains about 45 pe rcent. of carbonate, of magnesia and 55 per cent. of carbonate of lime when pure, although the percentage of lime and magnesia may be less and still be dolomite. Dolomites are harder and tougher than limestone, and usually present a finer grain; a true dolomite will not effervesce with acetic hydrochloric acid in the cold, while limestone, composed of carbonate of lime only, will effervesce, at once with either of these acids. The hardness of limestone is about 2, while that of dolomite is about 3.5. The more magnesia carbonate enters into combination with carbonate of lime the more the nature changes; it will not effervesce so freely. From an examination of a large number of limestones from quarries in the county, I find that the more carbonate of magnesia, enters into their composition the less readily will they effervesce with hydrochloric acid in the cold; and when the percentage of carbonate of magnesia is small they will effervesce quite freely with hydrochloric acid. This might be an approximate method of determining whether a limestone be highly magnesian. Most of the county limestones are highly magnesian, containing from 10 to 3.5 per cent. of carboriate of magnesia, although many veins contain very little, if any, magnesia, and are mostly carbonate 26 of lime. The limestones of Port Kennedy are highly magnesian, containing as high as 42 per cent. carbonate of magnesia. Another sample yielded 38.40 per cent. of carbonate of magnesia. The first sample might be called a dolomite. The limestone near Conshohocken does not contain so much carbonate of magnesia. A sample from O'Brien's quarry yielded 17 per cent. carbonate of magnesia. The limestones from Norristown to Potts' Landing along the river are highly silicious, at least some veins are more so than in the vicinity of Conshohocken. No rule, however, can be laid down about this, for very often in the same quarry one vein will contain 3 per cent. of silica and, the next vein 9 per cent. of Silica. The variation is so great that it is a source of much trouble and in convenience when the limestone is used as a flux in the blast-furnace. When so used it is advantageous to secure limestone as free from silica as possible, because the object of the limestone is to combine with the silica and clay in the iron ore and form a slag, and if the limestone used contain a high percentage of Silica it will necessitate the use of art extra amount of limestone. Marble is simply limestone which is changed in structure and rendered crystalline and granular; by this metamorphosis the organic matter of the limestone is burnt out and it becomes white, and changed from a morphous to a crystilline form. If limestone be broken into small pieces and examined under the microscope the fragments will be found to be of irregular shape, and are not crystalline; but when marble is examined it will be found to consist of a mass of crystals or grains, very often like loaf-sugar. Marble and limestone are both carbonate of lime, but marble generally has less of foreign impurities, such as silica, iron, and alumina. Nearly all the marble-quarries hitherto opened in Montgomery County are included within or near the southern edge of the limestone belt. The largest marble-quarries in Montgomery County are at Marble Hall. Marble was first quarried at this place one hundred years ago, and immense quantities have been shipped all over the country. It has furnished Philadelphia with a considerable quantity for building and architectural purposes. The quarry is about four hundred feet long and nearly three hundred feet in depth. The beautiful white marble used to build the great monument at Washington was obtained from this quarry. It came from a vein about five feet in thickness near the bottom of the quarry. The present owner of these quarries is Mr. Daniel 0. Hitner. This quarry is especially interesting, as it contains the only layer of statuary marble found in the county. It was found at a depth of one hundred and twenty feet, and is only six inches wide. It is of a yellowish-white color. Nearly all marble dealers import the fine white statuary marble used for headstones, etc., from Italy. This marble is very fine grained and white, and can be readily cut and carved into ornamental figures. Our Montgomery County marble is too coarse-grained for this fine work. In the vicinity of Spring Mill there is a marble-quarry, next in position to the westward. This is owned by Mr. Channing Potts, and has been worked for many years, and has furnished an immense amount of marble. White, blue, and mottled marble have been mined from this quarry. The next quarry to the westward where marble is obtained is west of the Schuylkill, near Henderson Station, in Upper Merion township. This quarry is now worked by Daniel 0. Hitner, and was opened about 1869. It is now in active operation, and is being extended. Both the gray and the blue varieties of marble are mined here. About two hundred yards from this quarry, on the opposite side of the road, there is Henderson's quarry. This is the next marble-quarry in order to the westward. It was opened about the year 1808. There are three kinds of marble mined here, --the blue and the gray varieties and a very interesting bed of black marble. This black marble occupies the south side of the quarry, and is susceptible of a very fine polish. It is very coarse-grained and crystalline. On analysis I found the black color is due to graphite. When the marble is dissolved in muriatic acid these small specks of graphite can be readily seen. The amount of silica present in this marble is very small. It is quite pure, and when burned in a kiln turns white, the graphite being burned out. The black marble of the limestone belt seems to be confined to this quarry and vicinity, where graphite is found. At the beginning of the belt in Abington township the lime-stone is very slaty and highly silicious, and where the surface has decomposed it looks like a white sand. As you proceed westward this is no longer noticed. Between the Schuylkill River and the eastern end of the limestone belt a great many limestone-quarries have been opened and are in active operation, supplying an excellent quality of lime for building purposes. These quarries are located principally in Plymouth, White Marsh, and Springfield townships, and are owned by L. K. Graver & Co., George Corson & Brother, George Hagy & Brother, Daniel Williams, Joseph Smith, Thomas Phipps, C. A. Cox, Frank Ramsey, David Marple, Charles Marple and D. M. Leedom. About one mile north from Conshohocken there is O'Brien's limestone and marble quarry. It was opened about fifty years ago, and is within a short distance of the stone-quarry. This limestone does not contain as much magnesia as many others. Mr. Fulton says the stone seldom contains under seventy per cent. of carbonate of lime. The silica varies from three to nine per cent., and the phosphorus generally runs below .01. On analysis the stone yields: Carbonate of lime 75 00 = Lime, 42.00. Carbonate of magnesia 17.00 = Magnesia, 8.09. Ferric oxide and alumina 3.00 Phosphorus ......... .01 Silicic acid. 5.00 Sulphur Trace. _______ 100.01 27 This stone has been used as a flux in the blast furnaces of Conshohocken and vicinity. At Norristown is Magee's quarry, situated between a small belt of Potsdam sandstone and the new red sandstone. This is the end of the limestone belt east of the Schuylkill. At Swedesburg are the most extensive quarries and limekilns in Montgomery County. William Rambo owns them. They have been operated for many years, and the stone is highly magnesian. Thomas Rambo and Nathan Rambo own valuable quarries nearby McInnes' limestone-quarry, near by. McInnes' limestone-quarry, near Bridgeport, is highly magnesian, and yields three varieties of stone. Derr's marble-quarries, near the Chester County line, furnished the marble of the Norristown court-house. They are extensively worked. The following analyses of Montgomery County lime-stones were kindly furnished by the Pottstown Iron Company and the Phoenix Iron Company: PICTURE OF LIME-STONE ANALYSES APPEARS HERE. The county limestone contain so much magnesia that at Ambler Station chemical-works manufacture Epsom salts and all other magnesia compounds from our county limestone. TRAP ROCK AND TRAP DIKES OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY. -Trap is an igneous rock that came to the surface in a melted state through a fissure or opening from a place where the rock was liquid. When the opening becomes filled with the rock it is called a dike; these dikes vary in width from a few inches to many feet, or they may form immense masses of rock, like the Palisades along the Hudson River. Sometimes the trap, when cooling from a molten state, has assumed a columnar structure instead of being in sharp, irregular masses. The Giant's Causeway, Ireland, and Fingal's Cave, island of Staffa, are examples of trap rock crystallizing in columns. Very often, when the fissures became full of liquid rock, it would overflow, and the rock would run out over the surface of the adjoining country; this accounts for the many boulders of trap rock that are found some distance from the trap dike of Montgomery County. Trap dikes are of various lengths; sometimes they extend across the country for; several miles in a straight line, and very often the dikes are curved. Trap is commonly known under the name of mundock: this term is applied to it at several localities throughout the county. In appearance it is a dark colored rock, quite heavy, and exceedingly tough and difficult to break, and when broken splits into pieces of an irregular shape, very often rounded and curved. It may be broken by a hammer or by another piece of trap; ordinary rock will not break it. It is composed of two minerals, feldspar and augite. The feldspar is the variety known as Labradorite, which is the lime and soda feldspar. Augite is a mineral resembling hornblende, and in composition is a silicate of lime, magnesia, iron, and alumina; it is of a black color. A great many lavas from volcanoes, and many other igneous rocks, although not of the same structure as trap, are similar in composition. Trap is a rock that weathers very slowly; the elements seem to have but little action on it, yet many of the trap boulder of the county are coated with a brown covering about one-sixteenth of an inch thickness, which it has taken many years' exposure to form. The brown color of this coating is probably due to oxide of iron. When this coating is broken off and a fresh fracture surface exposed, it is found to be granular and rather brilliant in appearance. Montgomery County has a trap dike running through the limestone belt for several miles. This extensive trap dike commences in Springfield Township at Flourtown, in the limestone belt and extends westward in a straight line through White Marsh Township it follows the southern end of the limestone belt through to Conshohocken, where it crosses the river, and can be seen in its bed. It outcrops again in West Conshohocken below the stone-quarries, and extends through Upper Merion Township, where it can be traced without, interruption to the Chester County line, being a short distance above the Gulf Creek. From the Chester County line to the Schuylkill at West Conshohocken there is no difficulty whatever in finding excellent exposures of trap, especially along the river at West Conshohocken, where there is an abutment of trap and numerous weathered boulders along the railroad. Between Conshohocken and Marble Hall the dike can be traced easily. It passes directly through Conshohocken, and crosses five of the county roads before it reach Marble Hall; between these two points there are many loose boulders of this rock. From Marble Hall is the Wissahickon Creek the dike cannot be seen, as it discovered with a deposit of clay; but there is a fine exposure on the Wissahickon Creek, where it cuts through the dike, and the creek is turned from its course at one point by contact with the dike. From Flourtown to Marble Hall the trap runs through limestone and clay; from Marble Hall to Conshohocken it is found between the southern portion of the limestone belt and the mica-slates; from Conshohocken through Mechanicsville to the Chester County line it extends through the mica-slates of the South Valley Hill. The dike crosses the Bethlehem turnpike near the meeting-house. It also crossed the Perkiomen turnpike and the Norristown or Ridge turnpike. This dike does not end in Chester County, but extends on into Delaware County, ending near a road leading from the Lancaster turnpike to the King of Prussia village. This is the largest trap dike in the county. Where it crosses the Perkiomen turnpike, between Marble Hall and Barren Hill, this dike is thirty feet in width. Numerous bowlders and exposures of trap are found between Camp Hill and Jarrettown, and those probably mark the continuation of the dike. According to the most recent survey, "there are exposures of trap in several localities northeast of Flourtown, but it has not been traced continuously." During the summer of 1883 I found almost a continuous line of trap bowlders and exposures between Jarrettown and Camp Hill, which is about one and a quarter miles from Flourtown. The school-house at Jarrettown, Upper Dublin township, is situated on what is known as Mundock Ridge. Trap rocks are scattered around in great abundance on this ridge. They are of various sizes, from quite small blocks up to large bowlders which are three and four feet in thickness. On the road through the ridge which leads to Camp Hill, especially in the Woods near the school-house, there are many bowlders of immense size. In many places between Jarrettown and Camp Hill the fields are enclosed by walls which are made of trap bowlders of irregular size. Some of these blocks are weathered, but most of them have fresh black surfaces exposed, and are not browned by the weather. Between these two points trap bowlders are found along the road. Sometimes for a short distance no blocks are found; for instance, at the north base of Camp Hill, and for a short distance beyond, we find no bowlders; but on the south side of the hill, where this road joins the road leading to Edge Hill, I found several large trap rocks. These exposures do not end at Jarrettown, but are found farther or along the road leading to Horshamville. I have since been informed that trap exposures are found at Horshamville, which is about two and a half miles northeast of Jarrettown. All of these exposures between Flourtown and Horshamville indicate that the dike, after leaving the limestone, enters the new red sandstone, and probably extends in a northeasterly direction as far as Horshamville, and it may be that the dike does not end here. Future investigation will prove whether the course indicated after the dike leaves Flourtown is the true one, but I believe that it is. The length of the trap dike from Flourtown to Mechanicsville is about eight miles, and if it be true that the dike continues as far as Horshamville, the entire length would be about fifteen miles. There are several smaller dikes in the county, but none of these compare in size to the dike of the limestone belt. In Marlborough township near Sumneytown there is a small trap dike. In Pottsgrove township a short distance from, Pottstown is the natural curiosity known as the "Ringing Rocks." These rocks are widely known throughout the county, and are visited frequently by curiosity seekers. Some of the rocks are small, while many are the size of a hogshead or larger. These bowlders are scattered around the surface for a considerable area; some are weathered, and many have fresh surfaces exposed. When these rocks are struck with a hammer or a piece of metal they give forth a musical sound. Different tones are produced by striking different rocks; the sound seems to vary with the size of the rock. Hence the name Ringing Rocks. These rocks are sonorous, and when they are struck with a piece of metal the rock is set in vibration, and these vibrations, are communicated to the air, and sound waves are formed. These rocks are trap rocks of the same kind as those which form the large dike. The popular idea is that this locality is the only one where these Ringing Rocks will produce sound. But any of the trap bowlders, no matter where found, they rest on a good foundation (for example, another piece of trap), will produce musical tones. Those near Jarrettown give good tones when struck with a hammer. There are two or three small trap dikes near Pottstown, which extend through the new red sandstone, and the bowlders belonging to one of these dikes comprise the Ringing Rocks. There are several varieties of trap rock; those of the county are known under the name of dolerite. This rock is defined as a granular mixture of a bluish-black or gray color, having a density of about 3, and containing Labradorite and augite, and sometimes a small amount of magnetic iron ore. This rock is studied sometimes under the microscope. In order to do this the rock is ground on an emery-wheel until a thin slice is obtained, and when this thin section of rock is examined under the microscope the minerals composing the rock can be seen and identified. The augite occurs often in crystals of a bright black color, and the magnetic iron occurs in the form of irregular grains or crystals, arranged sometimes in regular rows or disposed in files. The Labradorite is also found in crystals. A sample of trap rock found near the "Bird-in Hand" tavern, on the road from Gulf Mills to Bryn Mawr, which is near the end of the dike, was analyzed by F. A. Genth, Jr., of the University of Pennsylvania, who found: Percent Loss by Ignition 2.15 Silicic Acid 51.56 Titanic Acid 1.63 Phosphoric Acid 0.13 Alumina 17.38 Ferric Oxide 6.57 Ferrous Oxide 3.85 Magnesium 3.42 Lime 10.19 Lithia trace Soda 2.19 Potash 1.46 ______ 100.53 29 This analysis gives a good idea of the general composition of trap. SERPENTINE AND SOAPSTONE DEPOSITS. -Serpentine is a mineral which does not crystallize, but occurs massive in large rocks or beds. The rock is usually some shade of green, and is quite soft, being readily cut by a knife. It makes a very ornamental building stone, and many public buildings and handsome private residences are built of this rock. Serpentine is a magnesian rock; in composition it is a combination of silicate and hydrate of magnesia, containing from forty to forty-four percent of silica, thirty-three to forty-three per cent. of magnesia, ten to fifteen per cent. of water, one to ten per cent. of ferrous and ferric oxides, and from one to six per cent. of alumina, and sometimes a little chromium or nickel oxide. This rock is susceptible of a high polish, and presents a most beautiful appearance when finely polished. One peculiarity of serpentine is it yields up nothing nourishing or sustaining to plant life or vegetation, and nothing except moss and lichens seem to flourish on its surface. Near West Chester are the Serpentine Barrens, so called on account of their unproductiveness; these barrens are in the main composed of serpentine. In our own county in Lower Merion and Springfield townships, where the serpentine beds are found, we notice loose blocks of serpentine of enormous dimensions, and these are covered only by lichens and cryptogamous plants, which are low forms of vegetation. Nothing else seems to flourish on these rocks. In New Caledonia and among the Alps the natives apply the name Dead Mountains to hills of serpentine, because they can raise but little on them, and the are almost devoid of vegetation. Precious serpentine is of a rich oil-green color, and is much used for inlaid work. Verd antique is a clouded serpentine, used for ornamental purposes and tables. Soapstane. -Soapstone is also a magnesian rock, which contains about sixty-two per cent. of silica thirty-two to thirty-three per cent. of magnesia, and about five per cent. of water. It has a very soapy or greasy feel, hence the name soapstone. It is of various colors; white, green, and gray of various shades are the most common. It is very soft, and can be readily cut or carved. Soapstone is also known under the name of steatite. There is a mineral of a green color which separates into scales like mica and which occurs in soapstone; this mineral is called talc. It is of the same composition as soapstone, and is exceedingly soft; its hardness is 1, being the first member of the scale of hardness. Soapstone occurs associated with serpentine; very often it is found in the same belt or bed. Many serpentine beds in this State contain soapstone, and most always we find talc associated with serpentine. The deposits of serpentine in Montgomery County have yielded an abundance of soapstone and many specimens of talc. There are two extensive belts of serpentine in Montgomery County. The longest belt commences on the Northern brow of Chestnut Hill, between the two turnpikes, and extends westward across the Wissahickon Creek. It passes through Springfield township; there is an exposure just north of Manatawna. This belt crosses the Schuylkill River between Lafayette and Princeton Stations. It extends through Lower Merion township to Bryn Mawr, which is at the county line. This deposit is a straight line of outcrop of steatite or serpentine from Chestnut Hill to Bryn Mawr. Along the eastern and central parts of its course the southern side of the belt consists chiefly of a talcose steatite, the northern side containing much serpentine in lumps dispersed through the steatite, but towards the western side this separation seems to disappear. The serpentine belt is plainly seen from Chestnut Hill to Wissahickon Creek, where enormous blocks cover the surface of the bed. Near the Schuylkill the large blocks of serpentine and soapstone are again seen, and they choke the bed of the ravine next North of the soapstone-quarry. On the west side of the Schuylkill this serpentine and steatite rock is still visible in large blocks a little above the soapstone of that bank of the river. Near Merion Square the exposure improvement, the surface being strewn with large masses. These rocks may be distinguished from others by the enormous size of the loose blocks, and by the coating of lichens and masses which flourish on them. The rock is visible in the Pennsylvania Railroad cut south of Bryn Mawr. It is not certain whether this belt from Chestnut Hill to Bryn Mawr is continuous; if this be proved, then the entire length of this serpentine belt would be six miles. It is found entirely within the mica-scist belt of rocks. The next serpentine belt is found near the Schuylkill River, about one-third of a mile north of Lafayette; it extends east to the brook which flows into the Schuylkill at Lafayette. This belt begins in White Marsh township, and extends westward across the Schuylkill, through Lower Merion township, to the Gulf road about one third of a mile north of Bryn Mawr. This deposit occurs along the northern edge of the mica-schists, and runs almost parallel to the first belt described; they are only about a mile apart. It is not known whether this belt is continuous, but if it be continuous the length of it would be about four miles. Another outcrop of serpentine is found south of Gulf Mills, within half a mile from Morgan's Corner. This deposit is found between the slates of the South Valley Hill and the syenite. This exposure has only a length of a few hundred feet, but it is at, least three hundred feet wide. It is thought to belong to the belt of serpentines which extend through Delaware County and part of Chester County. The serpentine belt of Bryn Mawr, after leaving Lower Merion township, extends through Delaware County in a curve towards the city of Chester, on the Delaware River. About a mile east of Roxborough, 30 near the mouth of Creshiem Creek, there is, a small bed of serpentine, which seems to be confined to this locality only, as it has not been observed anywhere else in the neighborhood. There is a quarry near the Schuylkill River, and an abandoned quarry near Merion Square. The soapstone quarry at Lafayette is owned by Mr. Prince. A great variety of minerals is found here. The soapstone is very soft, and is readily quarried in blocks, which are used for fire stones in furnaces, and for jambs for fireplaces; it will stand a high temperature. There is a mineral found in soapstone called pyrophylite, which when heated will curl like a worm, and sometimes crack the stone. Before marble came into use in the county for door-steps soapstone was used, but was too soft. MESOZOIC, OR NEW RED SANDSTONE. -The familiar red sandstone rocks cover the northern and central portions of the county. They extend from Trenton to Norristown and Valley Forge, and the sandstone and red shale can be traced along the Schuylkill River from Norristown to Pottstown. All that portion of the county north of the limestone belt and North of the Potsdam sandstone and syenite is covered with new red sandstone and shale. The mesozoic formation is composed of reddish-brown shale, sandstone, and in some localities of conglomerate. The shales and sandstones are generally of red color, which is due to the red oxide of iron which they contain. There are quite a variety of sandstones in the county belonging to this formation. In some localities we find sandstone mixed with much clay. Else where is found rock composed mostly of grains of sand, scarcely any clay or oxide of iron with it. At Norristown, Bridgeport, and other localities is found white sandstone, containing feldspar and mica, with not enough oxide of iron to color it red; it make; an excellent building stone, The red sandstone is more abundant than those which contain feldspar. At Morgan's Mills and Fort Washington conglomerate is found. A ride over the Stony Creek Railroad from Norristown to Lansdale will show an unusually shaly district, mentioned under soils. The rocks of the red sandstone formation are supposed to have been deposited in an inland sea which once covered this region, in the same way that gravel, said, and mud are now forming rocks. This was the age of reptiles, and their footprints are preserved to this day. Immense frog-like creatures and bird-like reptiles, whose remains were. found in this rock at the Phonenixville tunnel (see Fossils, etc.), are supposed to have flourished during this age. Trap dikes traverse this formation, and occasionally small veins of coal and lignite are found. Red soils result from the rocks of this formation. The copper deposits at Shannonville and Upper Salford are found in the new red sandstone. POTSDAM SANDSTONE. -Professor Rogers called this rock the primal sandstone; it is often called the Edge Hill rock. It received the name Potsdam from its great developement at Potsdam, N. Y. The principal exposures of this rock in the county are found flank in the limestone valley on the north, between Valley Forge and the eastern extremity of the limestone basin east of Fitzwatertown. It encircles the eastern end of the limestone belt, and extends westward as a Darrow belt south of the limestone to Spring Mill. At Henderson's Station, Bridgeport, Hickorytown, Cold Point, and Oreland folds of this sandstone are found penetrating the limestone. The historic hills, of Valley Forge are Potsdam sandstone. The formation is well developed at Edge Hill, Rubicam Station, and Willow Grove; near the latter place there is a picturesque spot known as "The Rocks." They are cliffs of hard conglomerate with pebbles of blue quartz. This is supposed to represent the beach of an ancient sea, and the pebbles are among the first ever made. This Cambrian sea contained no fishes, but only the lowest forms of animal life. Any organic remains or fossils which may have belonged to this formation are either obliterated or so flattened that they cannot be recognized. One fossil found in abundance near Willow Grove is the Scolithus linearis (see Fossils). The Potsdam sandstone does not much resemble the new red sandstone; it is more slaty, and readily broken up into layers, and contains scales of mica, which sometimes make it flexible. It is generally made up of a fine-grained quartz, and contains fine of mica, which give it a slaty structure. It is generally of a white or gray color, although some times red. Occasional beds of conglomerate are met with. Very often this sandstone contains ripple marks due to water; from this fact it is supposed that this sandstone was formed at the edge of an ancient sea. BRYN MAWR GRAVEL. --Upon the tops of some of the high hills north of Philadelphia, near Chestnut Hill and Bryn Mawr, there are curious patches of an ancient gravel, which has been studied by Professor H. 0. Lewis, who names it the "Bryn Mawr Gravel." It is found at elevations of from three hundred and twenty-five to four hundred and fifty feet above the Schuylkill. It is supposed that these deposits of gravel are the remains of an ancient ocean beach and the remnants of a once continuous formation, and that erosion has swept away everything except these few isolated patches. The gravel consists of rounded or sharp pebbles of quartzite or grains of sand cemented by iron. Sometimes the gravel is covered with a brownish-black iron glaze. The pebbles are very hard. At Bryn Mawr the gravel is seen in the railroad cut below the station. It is about four hundred and thirty feet hundred nine mile, distance from the river. The gravel is ten feet deep, and rests upon the gneiss-rock, which is decomposed. Near Chest Hill on the City Line road, at its highest elevation, four hundred and twenty-five feet above the river, there is another deposit of gravel and conglomerate, 31 with numerous sharp fragments of quartzite. A similar gravel is found on some of the high hills of New Jersey and Delaware, and it continues through the Southern States in the same relative position. Professor Lewis assigns it to the tertiary age. It is the oldest surface formation in Pennsylvania. SOUTH VALLEY HILL MICA-SCHISTS AND SLATES. --These rocks form a ridge which flanks the Chester Valley limestone on the south, hence the name. In Montgomery County these slates are found in the southern part of Upper Merion township. They cross the Schuylkill at Conshohocken, and extend into White Marsh township. Near the Gulf Mills the hill divides into two spurs. This is the rock of the Conshohocken stone-quarries, which is always in demand for bridge-building and heavy masonry. This rock is a quartzose mica-schist, and contains seven per cent. or more of oxide of iron. It is slaty in appearance, and generally of a grayish tint and silky lustre. The deposits of clay in the county are found in the vicinity of the slates, and it is supposed that some of the clay-beds are derived from the decomposition of the mica in the slates. This seems probable, as beds of fine white sand sometimes accompany the clay ; this sand is the quartz of the schists and slates. The deposits of iron ore in the county are found near the, mica-slates in the clay. It is thought that some of the brown hematite ores are derived from the slates, as they contain over seven per cent. of oxide of iron, and when they decompose and form clay the oxide of iron is deposited. The rocks of this formation rest on the limestone, and are of more recent age, according to Professor Hall, who assigns them to Hudson River age. SYENITE AND GRANITIC ROCKS (LAURENTIAN). --The hard crystalline rocks of this group in Montgomery County extend from Moreland township, at the Bucks County line, westward across the Schuylkill River to the Delaware County line. In Moreland and Upper Dublin townships the new red sandstone forms the northern boundary. Between Chestnut Hill and the Delaware County line the mica-schists form the southern boundary, and from the Schuylkill to the Delaware County line the limestone and mica-schists of the South Valley Hill form the northern boundary. East of the Schuylkill the Potsdam forms the northern boundary to the vicinity of Willow Grove. These syenite rocks are exceedingly tough and hard, and but little acted on by the weather. Hills of softer rock were in the course of time worn down to the surface, but the syenite ridges remain as monuments of the past. The hills known as Spring Hill Heights are syenite. The cuts exposed by the Pennsylvania Railroad in passing through the Schuylkill Valley offer an excellent opportunity for studying the syenite belt from Spring Mill to the serpentine rock. It was the hardest rock along the line to cut through. The Schuylkill River between West Conshohocken and Spring Mill is turned from its course by the resistance offered by the hard syenite rocks. It is the oldest rock in Montgomery County, and contains no fossils. Syenite is composed of quartz, feldspar, and hornblende. It is composed of the same minerals as granite, only it contains hornblende instead of mica. It makes an excellent building stone. The quartz in this belt of syenite is characteristic, as it is of bluish tint. It is sometimes difficult to determine whether the other rocks of this belt are granites or granitic gneisses. The feldspar is both pinkish and white, and certain bands of this rock contain so much feldspar as to have a structure like porphyry. PHILADELPHIA, MANAYUNK, AND CHESTNUT HILL MICA-SCHISTS AND GNEISSES. --The rocks exposed along the Schuylkill River from its mouth to a short distance above Lafayette Station on the Norristown Branch of the Reading Railroad have been divided into three groups by Professor Hall: First, the Philadelphia group; second, the Manayunk group; and third, the Chestnut Hill group. The Philadelphia group underlies the other two, and the Chestnut Hill group is the highest. These rocks extend eastward as far as Trenton, and westward into Delaware County. These Schuylkill rocks are not visible in New Jersey, as they sink beneath the surface; but they come to the surface again on Staten Island and in New York. According to Professor Lesley, these three groups of rock are between ten thousand and twenty thousand feet in thickness. They are known as the azoic rocks, and are the oldest rocks of which we have any knowledge; most of the other have been formed from them, as they are the foundation rocks of the old continents. They were formed when the lowest forms of animal life were introduced on our globe, and were the, beds of the old oceans. Any trace of animal life that may have existed in these rocks has become obliterated by the heat and pressure to which they were subjected. Many of the minerals of the county are found in these formations. These rocks are micaschists and. gneisses. Gneiss, like granite, is composed of quartz, feldspar, and mica; but the gneiss is arranged in parallel layers, while granite is not. Mica-schist is a crystalline assemblage of mica and quartz, and sometimes feldspar, arranged in layers. The Philadelphia group extends from the Delaware River on the south to the vicinity of Falls of Schuylkill. The rocks of this group are different variety of gneisses and mica-schists. The Manayunk group extends from the vicinity of the Falls of Schuylkill to a point half-way between Manayunk and Lafayette Station; it is exposed along the Schuylkill. The rocks of this belt are schists and gneisses, and are very much weathered, the feldspar especially is often white and chalky in appearance from decom- position; this is noticeable at Wissahickon Station. The Chestnut Hill group extends from the vicinity of Chestnut Hill to the county line at Bryn Mawr. Along the Schuylkill the rocks are exposed from a point between Manayunk and Lafayette to the syenite formation. The schists and gneisses of this group contain an abundance of garnets. It is in this group that serpentine and soapstone occur. The division of these Schuylkill rocks into groups is somewhat geographical and is not definite. It is often difficult to determine whether the rock is a gneiss or schist. EARLY ACCOUNTS OF LIME. [By J. William Buck] --Among the extensive manufactures of Montgomery County can be mentioned lime, the history of which we are not aware of having been attempted by any other writer. The quantity now used for agricultural, building, and manufacturing purposes has become immense. The annual production here is 1875 was estimated at fully two millions of bushels, and has probably reached now to nearly one-third more. The census of 1840 gave the value of lime manufacture in this county at $236,162, and for Plymouth township, $45,218; White Marsh, $51,458; Upper Dublin, $20,275; Upper Merion, $74,772; and in Abington township, $11,800. In 1858 the writer personally visited seventy-five lime kilns in the township of Plymouth, said to contain the average capacity of fifteen hundred bushels each. This would alone make by one burning considerably over one hundred thousand bushels, and the number of kilns there has since been increased. The earliest mention we have been enabled to find of limestone, and of lime being made therefrom to be used for building purposes, is in a letter written by Robert Turner, of Philadelphia, dated 3d of 6th month, 1685, addressed to William Penn in England, from which we learn that "Samuel Carpenter is our limeburner on his wharf. Brave limestone found here, as the workmen say, being proved." The next mention found is in another letter to Penn, written by Nicholas More, dated "Green Spring, the 13th of September, 1686," wherein he states that `Madam Farmer has found out as good limestone on the Schuylkill as any in the world, and is building with it; she offers to sell ten thousand bushels at sixpence the bushel upon her plantation, where there are several considerable hills, and near to your Manor of Springfield." The aforesaid was evidently the wife of Jasper Farmer, who had arrived here in November 1685, and had taken up in the present White Marsh township a tract of five thousand acres of land, but died soon thereafter. His son, Edward Farmer, subsequently became the owner of about three-fourths of this purchase. For building purposes the Swedes and other early settlers first used lime prepared from oyster shells, of which we find mention made by several writers. Thomas Budd, in his account of Pennsylvania, printed in 1685, says," We make lime of oyster shells, which by the sea and bay-side are so plentiful that we may load ships with them." He further informs us that there is no limestone "as we yet know of," by Wm. J. Buck from which we are led to infer that Samuel Carpenter and Madam Farmer, as has been mentioned, must have been among the earliest to convert limestone into lime. Even prior to the summer of 1685 considerable building had been done in Philadelphia and its vicinity, which required no small amount of the article as prepared from oyster shells. William Penn, in a letter to the Marquis of Halifax, dated 9th of 12th month, 1683, mentions that "about one hundred and fifty very tolerable houses for wooden ones" had been erected in Philadelphia. In his "Further Account of Pennsylvania," written in December, 1685, he states that the number bad been increased to three hundred and fifty-seven houses, "divers of them large, well built, with good cellars, three stories, and some with balconies." He also mentions in the same of "divers brickeries going on, and some brick houses going up." Robert Turner, in a letter from Philadelphia, 3d of 6th month, 1685, states that "we are now laying the foundation of a plain brick meeting-house, sixty by forty feet," and that "Pastorius, the German Friend, with his people, are preparing to make brick next year." These statements show the necessity of lime, for which purpose no inconsiderable quantities must have been required, and that the discovery of limestone so near the city created at once a demand from its superior quality, ranking, as, has since been proven, among the best found in the country. John Goodson wrote from Philadelphia, 24th of 6th mouth, 1690, "that six carters have teams daily employed to carry and fetch timber, bricks, stone, and lime for building, which goeth on to admiration. We have rocks of limestone, where many hundreds, yea thousands of bushels of lime are made in one year for this town." John Holme, one of the judges of the Philadelphia County Court, in his poem on "The Flourishing State of Pennsylvania," written in 1696, mentions therein that a few years previously lime had been burned from oyster shells, but since a "great store" of limestone bad been discovered in the ground, from which "now is made good stone lime," which was not only superior but cheaper than the former article. He had arrived here from England in 1686, and died in 1701. At a meeting of the Provincial Council, held May 19,1698, a road was ordered to be laid out from White Marsh, for the purpose of hauling lime from the kilns there to the city, and to meet the Plymouth road near Cresheim, or the upper part of Germantown. In 1703, Nicholas Saul and others, at "Sandy Run," in the "Manor of Springfield," petition that they had formerly received the grant of a road from the limekilns to Philadelphia on the Germantown road, which the court now ordered should be speedily opened. This is evidently the, road proposed by the Council aforesaid, and the present highway leading from the village of White Marsh through Chestnut Hill. In 1713 the road was opened from the aforesaid 33 kilns to Skippack, over which also considerable lime was hauled. The Plymouth highway was laid out as "a cart road" in the spring of 1687. This is the road leading from Plymouth to Philadelphia, and now known as the Germantown and Perkiomen turn pike, which was laid on its bed and finished in 1804. It is likely that this was the first road opened for the transportation of lime to the city. What is now known as the Limekiln road was laid out from Germantown to Upper Dublin in 1693, and probably also first opened for the purpose of obtaining lime from the vicinity of the present Fitzwatertown. The road from the latter place to Abington meeting-house was con firmed in 1724, and opened the following year. From the petition it is ascertained that Thomas Fitzwater carried on there the business of lime-burning in 1705. Gabriel Thomas, who arrived here in 1683, in his account of Pennsylvania, published at London in 1698, mentions that here "there is also very good limestone in great abundance plenty and cheap, of great use in buildings, also in manuring lands." The Manor of Mount Joy, containing seven thousand eight hundred acres, was granted by Penn to his daughter Letitia the 24th of 8th month, 1701. This tract was partly situated in Upper Merion, and we have the authority of Oldmixon's "British Empire in American," published in 1708, that it abounded in lime stone, which had been made use of for some time. Edward Farmer, whose settlement in White Marsh was known in 1708 as "Farmer's Town," supplied lime at various times from there for the buildings at Springettsbury, erected by Thomas and Richard Penn, between the years 1732 to the time of his death, in 1745. Francis Rawle, who had settled in Plymouth about 1685, in his "Ways and Means," printed by S. Keimer, of Philadelphia, in 1725, and written the previous year, states on page 54 that of "limestone we have great plenty, of which stone lime is made, which gives the opportunity to the inhabitants to build good stone and brick houses in town and country." The lime used in building the State-House, from 1729 to 1735, was hauled from the kilns of Ryner Tyson, in Abington township, fourteen miles north of the city. Those kilns and quarries have ever since been in the family, and the business of lime burning is still carried on by the descendants. The county commissioners in March, 1804, invite proposals for "hauling by the bushel a quantity of lime from Plymouth to Pottstown sufficient to complete the bridge" over the Manatawny, a distance of about twenty-three miles. In 1810, if not earlier, the lime burners of the county formed themselves into an association, of which Alexander Crawford was president and John Fitzwater secretary, meeting for several years, in January, at the house of Philip Sellers, White Marsh. In February, 1824, they met at the house of Andrew Hart, Plymouth. The members at this time were George Tippen, Samuel Davis, John Shepherd, Daniel Fisher, Benjamin Marple, Eleazer Michener, Enoch Marple, John Hellings, George Egbert, George Lare, Henry Johnson, Abraham Marple, William Sands, Joseph Harmer, and Daniel Davis. It appears they soon after dissolved, their proceedings being deemed unlawful, but we presume no more so than any other combination of a similar character. Among their objects was to fix the price of lime and the wood they either purchased or received in exchange. On so a great a business as the production of lime it is to be regretted that there are so few statistics. It would be interesting to possess a list of the several manufacturers, the number of kilns operated, and the amount respectively made. The quantity sent off by water must be considerable, especially to the States of New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland, as also by railroad to adjoining counties, Philadelphia and other places, for building, manufacturing, and agricultural purposes. The townships of Montgomery that possess limestone are Abington, Upper Dublin, Springfield, White Marsh, Plymouth, and Upper Merion. The limestone surface here may probably comprise about fifteen square miles. Plymouth no doubt, is now the greatest producer; next Upper Merion, followed by White Marsh and Upper Dublin. Norristown, Swedesburg, and Port Kennedy are extensive shipping-points of this material. The lime of Montgomery County for all building purposes possesses a high reputation, and is regarded among the very best produced. END Chapter II.