Geological Notes of Ireland (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1876 edition. Excerpt: ...very fine grain of yellowish white colour, are worked near the summit of Glenfarm Mountain; there are also several quarries in this county. In Roscommon it is to be seen in isolated hills, and forms the long range of Slieve Bawn, the summit of which is capped by irregular masses of it, looking like huge boulders. It is also quarried in several parts of this county as flags, which, from the evenness of their beds, are highly valuable as local material. Mayo contains many valuable quarries of red sandstone, which is easily wrought and most durable stone. In Leinster there exists even less of this material than in Connaught. In Westmeath, near Moate and Ballymahon, it appears in isolated protuberant masses. In Kildare, in a few of the hills, as Lyons and Grange Hill. In the King's County the Slieve Bloom Mountains are surrounded by it, and in these quarries excellent flags are raised from 7 ft. to 8 ft. square. At old Leighlin-bridge, in Carlow, there are the well-known quarries of argillaceous sandstone flags occupying a bed of 200 ft. in thickness. Isolated masses of sandstone are found in Longford; and a considerable space at both sides of the Shannon is occupied by it, extending into the adjoining counties of Roscommon and Leitrim. It occurs in Wexford in greater abundance than in any other county in Leinster, a great portion of its coast-line, forming bold and abrupt precipices, is formed by it. In the inner haven of Wexford it is easily distinguished by its deep red colour. In Munster, the entire range of the Roscrea and Devil's Bit Mountains, in Tipperary, are sandstone in mass, overlaid by conglomerate. So also are the Galtees. The lower range of Slieve-na-muck produces excellent flags of large dimensions, and extensively used for local...