Section IV., 1893. I SI ] Trans. Roy. Soo. Canada 
 
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 By E. J. Chapman, Th.D. 
 
 (Presented May 2."i, I SOP..) 
 
 The crystalline rocks of the more western portion of North Hastings in Ontario are 
 traversed, it has long betm known, by a series of gold-bearing quartzose veins in which 
 the gold is intimately associated with arsenical pyrites ; but the occurrence of workable 
 auriferous veins in the adjacent eastern portion of the county of Peterborough does not 
 appear to have been hitherto described in any publication. A brief reference to these 
 deposits in our 'Transactions' may not be considered therefore out of place. 
 
 These two series of auriferous deposits, although occurring only a few miles apart, 
 offer some marked points of difference, evidently indicating distinct systems of formation. 
 At the same time they show in the peculiar character of their gold certain points of 
 alhnity. 
 
 The veins of North Hastings occur chiefly in the townships of Marmora and Madoc, 
 and especially in the district immediately west of the granitic or syenitic range known as 
 the Huckleberry Hills. They run in a course not far removed from north and south, and 
 consist of several roughly parallel veins in which auriferous mispickel is disseminated, in 
 some places very thickly, through a quartz gangue. They are commonly regarded as 
 " bedded veins," running parallel with the stratification or foliation of the country rock ; 
 but this, as I have found in the case of the gold-bearing veins of Belmont, is probably not 
 absolutely correct, although appearing to be so as a general rule. These veins dip west- 
 erly with the inclosing rock at an average inclination (in Marmora) of between 40 and 60 
 degrees. The country rock, which consists of ordinary gneissoid strata, belongs either to 
 the higher portion of the Laurentian or to the succeeding Huronian series — the veins 
 being probably of the latter age. About half way between the Huckleberry Hills and 
 the village of Marmora the crystalline beds are overlaid by practically horizontal strata of 
 Black River or Trenton limestone. Eight or ten miles northwest of these veins, or about 
 four miles west of the village of Marmora, the crystalline strata again occupy the surface, 
 but their strike is here for the greater part roughly east and west. They are traversed by 
 quite a number of quartz veins running mostly in the same general direction. These 
 differ essentially from the Marmora veins by the total absence of arsenical minerals in 
 their gangue. The gold is carried essentially by ordinary pyrites ; but a small amount 
 of copper pyrites, and in places some specks of galena are occasionally seen. Mispiokt^l, 
 the real ore of the Marmora veins, appears in this district to be completely absent. 
 
 Although these auriferous veins are indicated over a considerable area, they have only 
 been worked as yet in the township of Belmont, lot 20, con. 1, where the "Crawford or 
 Belmont gold mine" is situated. On this lot the ground presents several ridges or high 
 
S2 . K. J. CHAPMAN, BKJi.MoNT (loLD VEINS, ETC. 
 
 kuolls with intervening spaces, produced by denudation, of low and more or less swampy 
 ground. Along the rocky kuolls sm'eral quartz veins carryinu' auriferous pyrites are 
 dearly traceable across at least the more eastern portion of the lot. On the more northern 
 of these veins three or four trial pits Jiave been opened, and a shaft has been sunk verti- 
 cally to a depth (at this date) of 122 feet. The upper part of this vein is decomposed into 
 earthy oxidized matter which pans richly throughout the course of the vein. A sample 
 taken, without selection, from one of the pits gave me by fire assay no less than 4 oz. 13 
 dwt. 8 grs. of gold per ton of 2,000 lbs. of ore, equivalent in value to $94. Another sample 
 of solid vein-stuff (quartz and pyrites), taken personally from the bottom of the shaft, 
 yielded $16 per ton ; and other samples from different places gave from five to twenty-four 
 dollars. The shaft shows this northern vein to dip at an angle of about 80° towards the 
 south, the dip being rather steeper than that of the inclosing rock — so that a very charac- 
 teristic chloritic schist which forms the foot wall at the surface becomes the hanging wall 
 on descending. The thickness of the vein, at its outcrop, varies from about two to three 
 or four feet. It then increases considerably ; but suddenly at a depth of about 50 feet it 
 becomes choked or pinched to less than a foot in width. In this pinched condition it con- 
 tinues for about twenty feet, and then again opens out, until at the present depth of the 
 shaft (122 feet) it shows a width of at least six feet with good promise of increase. 
 
 At the time of my visit to the mine one mill only was in operation. In this tlic 
 broken ore was ground by balls, and about ten tons per day were being put through ; but 
 a more powerful mill with cone crushers on the Crawford principle, in which from fifteen 
 to twenty tons per day would be treated, was in course of erection. At this period (May, 
 1893,) all the stuff put through the mill consisted of surface croppings mixed with 
 weathered rock and soil, and of the vein-stuff taken from the upper part of the shaft, with 
 much wall-rock where the vein had narrowed, but the monthly " cleanings up " gave an 
 average of ten dollars per ton ; and several handsome ingots were exhibited in ocular 
 attestation of the value of the ore mine. The ore was used in an unroasted state ; and, 
 judging from the low yield of the tailings, the mill appeared to be giving good results. 
 
 Although the Belmont ore is so different in composition from the Marmora gold-bear- 
 ing arsenical ore, the gold in each presents a remarkable similarity of character, inasmuch 
 as it carries a very low amount of silver, and thus comes out with full yellow colour on 
 the cupel. The silver, in the gold of both localities, varies from a mere trace to some- 
 thing under 4 per cent, the fineness of the gold being thus between 23 aiid 24 carats.