THE BRITISH ISLES. GREAT COAL AND IRON. REAT BRITAIN, though she is one of the smallest states or kingdoms of all Europe, is nevertheless the richest and most powerful; and this is mainly owing to her geographical position, and to the great number and variety of industries which are carried on within so small a space. Nature has been very bountiful to England, for externally she is surrounded on all sides by seas, which not only protect her from invasion by foreign armies, but afford her every facility for, the shipping that carries her commerce to all parts of the world: while within, she possesses noble rivers to fertilize her lands, and give water-power for her trades and manufactures. Her mountains and hills are full of valuable rocks and building stones; while underneath her soil are the greatest treasures of all, beds of coal and iron, not to speak of tin, copper, and lead, in almost inexhaustible quantities. No country, except America, can at all approach England in the vastness of these underground riches, and it is owing to them that her people have become the greatest manufacturing people in the B world; for no country can be truly great, unless i contain coal and iron, which are in reality mor valuable than gold, silver, or precious stones. The coal-fields or basins of Great Britain ar eighteen in number. The longest worked and mos important, is 1. That of Northumberland, situated in that county as well as in Durham. The coals are of three kinds house coal, steam coals for engines and manufacturing purposes, and gas coal; and they are shipped a Newcastle-on-Tyne, Sunderland on the Wear, Blyth and Seaham on the coast, and Hartlepool on the northern shore of the estuary of the Tees. 2. The Yorkshire basin is also very large, and extends not only over a great portion of the West Riding and South Yorkshire, but also into Derby shire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire. These coals are much used in the busy Yorkshire manu facturing districts, and are sent up in great quantities by rail to London. 3. The South Wales basin is very extensive, spreading over the counties of Monmouth, Glamorgan, Brecon, Caermarthen and Pembroke. Besides steam coal, for which South Wales is famous, there are also stone coals or anthracite, which are the only coals used for malting and brewing. These are sent by rail to Burton-on-Trent; but the shipping ports for the other coals are Newport, Cardiff and Swansea. 4. The Staffordshire coal-field, which occupies extensive portions of the counties of Stafford and Worcester, is not so large as these others; but contains very rich and valuable beds of coal, which are |