THE great bituminous coal-field of the United States, called the Appalachian, commences near the northern line of Pennsylvania; and, in this portion of the State, in Bradford, Lycoming, and Tioga counties, it is represented by several isolated basins, separated from each other by the conglomerate or still lower strata forming the summits. Toward the south, bounded on the east by the main Alleghany ridge, the coal measures spread over the surface, including the whole central and southwestern part of the State, the southwestern part of Ohio, the eastern parts of Kentucky and Tennessee, and the western portions of Virginia. The formation terminates in Northern Alabama, but appears again as far south as Tuscaloosa. Including the outlying anthracite basins further to the east, the whole area has been estimated at 65,000 square miles. Another coal-field of almost equal extent occupies the greater part of Illinois, the western portion of Indiana, and a small district in the northwestern part of Kentucky. It is separated by only a narrow tract, occupied by lower strata, from the great coal-field of Southern Iowa and Northern Missouri.

The area of coal lands in the United States is nearly three-fourths of all the coal-producing land in Europe and America; yet the amount of coal annually mined in this country is only about one-tenth of the total amount produced on the two continents. The whole coal-field of Europe is less extensive than that of Illinois and Indiana; England and Ireland have less coal than the State of Ohio, about one-fourth that of Pennsylvania; and yet England produces three times as much coal annually as is mined in Pennsylvania.

Rondout, New York, situated on the Hudson River, 90 miles north of New York City, is one of the principal outlets for coal in the country. It is at the eastern terminus of the Delaware anal Hudson Canal, and here is to be found the scene illustrated by our artist on this page. There are no less that eight hundred canal boats engaged in bringing coal from the Pennsylvania mines by this canal to Rondout, and they annually carry over 1,000,000 of tons to this point for the New York and Boston markets. The canal is 108 miles in length, and passes through some of the most picturesque country in New York State.

Our other illustration shows a coal-miner at work in the mine.