IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) '^s 4" 1.0 1.1 us £f b& 12.0 u |25 ■ 22 |L8 1 '-'' Si4 i^ V ^ 6" ► ^ji Photografte Sciences Corporation 23 WIST MAIN STRin WIBSTM.N.Y. MStO (716)673-4303 ^^ CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHIVI/ICIViH Collection de microfiches. Canadian Institute for Historicai IVIicroreproduction. / Inatltut Canadian da microraproduction. hiatorlqua. T«ehnieal and Bibliographic Notas/Notea tachnlquat at bibliographiquas Tha Instituta haa attamptad to obtain tha baat original copy availabia for filming. Faaturaa of thia copy which may ba bibliographieally uniqua. which may altar any of tha imagaa in tha raproduction, or which may aignificantly changa tha uaual mathod of filming, ara chackad balow. QCoiourad covara/ Couvartura da coulaur I I Covara damagad/ D D n n n Couvartura andommagAa Covara rastorad and/or laminatad/ Couvartura raataurta at/ou pailiculia r~| Covar titia miaaing/ La titra da couvartura manqua I I Colourad map«/ Cartaa gtegraphiquaa an coulaur Colourad Init (i.a. othar than blua or black)/ Encra da coulaur (i.a. autra qua blaua ou noira) I I Colourad plataa and/or illuatrationa/ Planchaa at/ou illuatrationa an coulaur Bound with othar material/ Rail* avac d'autraa documanta Tight binding mfay cauaa ahadowa or diatortion along intarior margin/ La r« liura sarria paut cauaar da I'ombra ou da la diatortion la long da la marga IntAriaura Blank laavaa addad during raatoration may appaar within tha taxt. Whanavar poaaibla. thaaa hava baan omittad from filming/ II aa paut qua cartainaa pagaa blanchaa ajouttea lora d'una raatauration apparaiaaant dana la taxta, mala, loraqua cala Atait poaaibla. caa pagaa n'ont paa 6x6 fiimiaa. Additional commanta:/ Commantairat supplimantairaa; L'Inatitut a microfilmi la maillaur axamplaira qu'il lui a it6 poaaibla da aa procurar. Laa details da cat axamplaira qui aont paut-Atra uniquaa du point da vua bibliographiqua, qui pauvant modifier una imaga raproduita, ou qui pauvant axigar una modification dana la n.Athoda normala da filmaga aont indiqu6a ci-daaaoua. r~| Colourad pagaa/ Pagaa da coulaur Pagaa damagad/ Pagas andommagiaa Pagaa raatorad and/or laminatad/ Pagaa raataurtea at/ou palliculAaa Pagaa diacolourad, atainad or foxad/ Pagaa dicolorias. tachatias ou piquiaa Pagaa datachad/ Pagaa ditachies Showthrough/ Tranaparanca Quality of print variaa/ Qualiti inAgala da I'impraasion Includaa auppiamantary material/ Comprand du material auppi^mantaira Only edition available/ Seule Mition diaponible D Pagaa wholly or partially obscured by errata slips, tissues, etc.. have been refilmed to ensure the best possible image/ Les pages totalement ou partieliement obscurcies par un feuillet d'errata, une pelure, etc., ont M filmftes A nouveau da fapon A obtanir la meilleure image possible. Thia item is filmed at tha reduction ratio chackad below/ Ce document est filmA au taux da reduction indiqui ci-daaaoua. 10X 14X 18X 22X 26X 30X 1 y 12X lex aox 24X 28X 32X Th« copy filmMi h«r« hM bamt rtproduetd thanks to ttM ganarotity of: L'axamplaira fiim4 fut raproduit grica i la gin4rositA da: Ntw Brumwick MLSMim Saint John Tha imagas appaaring hara ara tha boat quality poaaibia considaring tha condition and lagibiiity of tha original copy and in icaaping with tha filming contract spacif ieationa. Original copiaa in printad papar covara ara flimad baginning with tha front covar and anding on tha last paga with a printad or lllustratad impraa- sion, or tha back covar wlian appropriata. Ail othar original copiaa ara flimad baginning on tha first paga with a printad or llluatratad impraa- sion, and anding on tlia iaat paga with a printad or llluatratad impraasion. Tha Iaat racordad frama on aaeh mleroHeha sImII contain ttia symbol ^^ (moaning "CON- TINUED"), or tha symbol V (moaning "END"), whiehavar appliaa. New Bnintwick Musaum Saint John Laa imagaa suh/antaa ont 4tA raproduitas avac la plua grand soin, compta tanu da la condition at da la nattat* da l'axamplaira fiimA, at an eonf ormiti avac laa conditiona du contrat da filmaga. I.aa axamplairaa originaux dont la couvartura mn papiar aat imprimte sont fiimte sn commandant par la pramiar plat at an tarminant soit par la damlAra paga qui comporta una amprainta d'impraaaion ou dliiuatration, soit par la sacond plat, salon la eaa. Toua laa autras axamplairaa originaux sont fiimia an commandant par la pramlAra paga qui comporta una amprainta d'imprassion ou dlilustratlon at an tarminant par la darnlAra paga qui comporta una talla amprainta. Un das symboiss suhrants apparattra sur la damlAra imaga da chaqua microflcha. salon la caa: la symbola -^ signifia "A 8UIVRE". la symboia y signifia "FIN". Maps, platas, charts, ate. may ba flimad at diffarant raduction ratioa. Thoaa too larga to ba antiraiy included in ona axpoaura ara flimad baginning in tha uppar laft hand oomar, iaft to right and top to bottom, aa many framaa aa raquirad. Tha following diagrama iliuatrata tha mathod: l.aa cartas, piancliaa, tablaaux, ate, pauvant ftra filmte A das taux da reduction diff Grants. Lorsqua la documant ast trap grand pour Atra raproduit an un saui clicliA, II aat filmA i partir da i'angia supAriaur gaucha, da gauclia A droita, at da haut an baa, an pranant la nombra d'Imagaa nAcaaaaira. Las diagrammas suivants lliuatrant la mAthoda. 32X 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 8 6 , «^'-.„ -j^i. .X/ \ -•>• \ ^\ -J V -f>: \ \ \ \ \ \ N \ \ \ \ N 4i; 4. %.y. I FOURTH IIKPORT ,1*' , / +ii]!jkjliittJil!!, •) *i\ r;ii. (n- Tin: PiioviNci-: CI' N E W - H R 1 ' X S \V I C K, 4BRtii%.7i fa:§xi:is, r. G.!$. PKOVINriAL (.Ft>r,«U,I>l', Ac. MUNfH iV lir.Mv\ I )!t I I.. M M.)vri---i'..-.I.i. IK-I'i. ^ (;EOLO(aCAL SURVEY % \ % •\ \ ■ \ \ \ s s. "i S \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ V \ \ \ \ \ \ \ V \ \ \ \ \ \ v \ \ \ N V N \ ^ \ V \ V \ \ N > <» \ \ \ \ \ V % \ t 1?. r- -^ ■1- ir :_ OF THE .(* PROVINCE ''«P XVt I m y EW -B-B TT N S WJ^tJi , -, <-^"7- ' BY # &• ABRAHARE GESIVER, F. «. S. PROVINCIAL GEOLOGIST, &c. * SAINT JOHN: VRINTKD BY HENKY CHUBB, MARKET-SqUAUE. 1842. *\v «^, ''T^P' '"»■ ft ■* # :% \* v^.r 'W'- ^M-f. m-^ m 'S ■"'*f^'->?.i^(W*»r^™: -.- ;j/«= 9 ■ff;; .~4*^»si- #«» 1 P r i, ,- fvil^' , ^*' m Wt -m. ♦ ,.. t ■, •' ■l: "^ ■ *',.'!' % REPORT. 1-1 **^ TO HIS EXCELLENCY ^m WILLIAM MACBEAN GEORGE COLEBIIOOKE, K. H. Lieuiencmt Governor and Cemmander in Chief of the Province of New-Mrunswick, ^c. 8fc. ^r. k ■■i ■ \ .n li m r.il it ■'-f May it please Your Excellency,— t m In the discbarge of the duties I have been called upon to perforiB, in making a Geological Survey of the Province, and in following the instructions I have from time to time received, directing me in the exploration of the mineral and other natural productions of the country; I beg leave to lay before Your Excellency, the Fourth Report on the Geologi- cal Survey of the Province; accompanied with a collection of all the valuable minerals, which have been discovered du- ring the past season, in that division of the country where my labours have been applied. In order to meet Your Excellency's views, so far as my abilities would allow, I have also directed my attention to the agricultural character of the districts explored ; and to the development of those natural resources, which'the Pro- vince is founJ. so abundantly to contain. The features of uncleared lands have been examined, and an inquiry has been made into the advantages they offer for settlement. W «-■ i ■m i OEOLOOICAL REPORT. In the performance of these important duties, tlie assist-^ ancc of my son hat been required ; and, in many instances. Members of the House of Assembly, Magistrates and others, have kindly given their aid. It becomes me to express my obligations to the Honorable Charles Simonos, Speaker of the House of Assembly, and to the Honorable J. S. Saunders, Surveyor General, for assistance, and such general information as the exploration required. A Geological Map of New-Brunswick, will be, with this Report, laid before Your Excellency : the labour of the past season being added to that which was before completed. A work which had been commenced on the Economical Geology and Agriculture of the Province, is also advancing ; and the analysis of the different classes of soils has been con- tinued. It has been found impossible, in the present Report, to give much more than the topographical part of the subject. The remains of animals and plants, discovered in the rocks, are too numerous, and frequently too complex in their cha- racters, to admit df accurate description, immediately after they have been found. Many of the fossil remains discovered in the Province, have been submitted to the examination of distinguished persons in England and the United States, by whose aid, I hope, at some future time, to be able to assign to each of them, their proper place in the great scale of na- ture. A few of them are very rare, if not entirely new. A considerable acquisition has also been made to the collection of mineral substances belonging to the Province. My labours have exceeded those of any former season in these pursuits, and much remains to be performed, when suf- ficient time shall be afforded to enable me to discharge the less important part of my duty. It must be pleasing to every person who is interested in the welfare of New-Brunswick, to know, that the Province contains abundantly, in her agricultural and mineral re- sources, the first principles of wealth, greatness, and inde- pendence. To me it is highly gratifying to observe, that the geolo- gical reconnoissance of New-Brunswick is gradually advan- cing the interest of the Province; and if the present Report shall mfet the expectations of Your Excellency, my highest ambition in geological pursuits will be fully gratified. :*•' "^ j^if '■ ..ii',» m- " > i | | | i ! Ai.« ■^- P ! •»' ii;trodvctiOx\. .? ^ * Geologv, as a science, has been eulogised b}' a distinguished philosopher, as being next to astronomy, in the grandeur and sublimity of its objects, and the harmony it displays of the stupendous works of the Creator. There is no study more important and delightful to man, than that which inquires into the history, and examines the materials of the earth upon which he lives. "" This science looks back into remote periods of time, and reveals what was the early condition of this planet. It examines the mutations daily going forward upon the earth, by which its features are changed, and it becomes adapted to the increase of population and the wants of the human race. It also looks forward to the future, and seeks to view the final results of operations in the consummation of that vast design, which, although incomprehensible to man him- self, forms a part of the plan revealed hi the works of the Creator. But besides the grandeur of the subjects embraced by this science, it discovers where the great mineral deposits of the earth are situated, and thus contributes to supply the wants and necessities of the human race. So rapid have been the advances of Geology during the last twenty years, and so great have been the advantages de- rived from the science, that now every civilized country is engaged in exploring the rocky strata of the earth, in search of their valuable minerals ; and as the eye of the astronomer wanders among the planets, so the geologist, wrapt in won- der and delight, explores the deep chasms and lofty pinnacles of the earth ; not only contributing to the great fund of use- ful knowledge, but also enriching by his discoveries the country where his labour is devoted. m I, 6 GEOLOGICAL REPORT. ft I! It is geology that informs the mi^cr where the treasures of the earth are to be sought for, and where iron, copper, lead, and ores of other useful metals, are deposited. It points out to him where coal, that invaluable gift to man, is to be found. This valuable mineral not only administers to man's immediate wants, but also supports manufactures and commerce. Almost all the different kinds of soil upon the earth, have had their origin in the solid rocks. The agri- culturist therefore derives ^reat advantage from geology, as it makes him acquainted with the ground he cultivates, and directs him to situations where water, nature's purest beve- rage, lies concealed in subterraneous reservoirs. Many of the most beautiful edifices are crumbling to the ground, from the ignorance of their builders, in regard to the nature and composition of the materials employed in tlieir erection. In the construction of roads, railways, docks, &c. some knowledge of this science is indispensable. A striking illustration of the benefits resulting from geological knowledge, is afforded in what is well known ia England as the *^ Sulphur Question." For a long period, all the sulphur employed in the manufactories of the United Kingdom, was imported from Sicily. His Sicilian Majesty, in order to increase his revenue, fixed a high export duty upon the article ; and finally made a contract to supply the whole sulphurous products of his kingdom to a company of French merchants; whereby a monopoly was established, which, in its consequences, was extremely injurious to the manufacturing industry of Great Britain. This monopoly was broken up by th« interference of Parliament. His *' Volcanic Mojesty," as he has been styled in the House of Commons, then thought fit to impose a duty of no less than i€4> lOs. per ton on the ore, a sum exceeding one third part of the market price of the article ; and thus the English manufacturer was compelled to bear a heavy burden, and Parliament itself was perplexed with an evil there was little hopes of removing. In this dilemma, geology and minera- logy removed the difficulty. A vast quantity of iron pyrites, or sulphuret of iron, was discovered at Wicklow in Ireland. By the application of science the mine has been opened, the sulphur extracted from the ore, and tlie nation relieved from foreign imposition. It is stated in the Mining Journal, a most useful London paper, that " new shafts have been sunk, engines erected, and work undertaken, with the sole purpose of raising sulphur ores, and protecting the nuinufacturer by rendering an article superior in quality, and at a price which # agri- INTHODUCTION. would enable him to furnish it to the consumer at least one third less than it has been for some years past." On the breaking up of th/i monopoly, 60,000 tons of imported ore were thrown upon the hands of the Sicilian agents. The duty has been reduced to £1 15s. per ton, and the Sicilian King cannot now find a market for the productions of his Tolcanoes. The ancient Greeks claimed the first discovery of the manufacture of iron ; but it appears that the Persians were acquainted with this art as early as any other nation. There is no record of the time when the mines of Caradoch were first worked ; and it is remarkable that the Persians, up to the present day, manufacture iron at less expense, and by a process far more simple^ than any other people. The ore is broken and placed in a small furnace, with alter* nate layers of charcoal ; the blast is then applied, and the metal finally sinks to the bottom of the furnace, from whence it is taken and immediately hammered into bars. The blacksmith manu&ctures the ore as often as it is required by him ; and one smith with two assistants will make one hun* dred weight of excellent iron in a day. I am confident that a similar process might be introduced successfully in the manufacture of iron in New-Brunswick ; where charcoal can be obtained from the wild forests, at a trifling expense. The iron ore of Woodstock seems peculiarly adapted to this cheap mode of smelting; and it is not materially different from the Persian ore. There is, however, an advantage af* forded in the County of Carleton, for the manufacture of iron and steel, scarcely to be found in any part of Europe. The vast unbroken forests of wood, capable of affording charcoal, will supply a sufKcient quantity of fuel, for the smelting of this ore, for many years to come ; and after the present forests have disappeared, the ore might be transport* ed to Oagetown, where it is evident bituminous coal can be obtained. Up to the beginning of the seventeenth century, the ma-* nufacture of iron and other metals, was performed by char- coal. Smelting by coal or coke has been but slowly intro- duced; and the removing of smelting furnaces, from the sites of ancient forests, to coal districts, in England, has arisen altogether from the scarcity of charcoal, and for the purpose of preserving the wood of the country. It has been remarked, by a talented writer, that the de- gree of civilization, attained by any nation, might be ascer- tained by the quantity of iron employed. It is difficult to '.^ f m i ■». I f 8 GEOLOGICAL REPORT. f 'i : foresee any limits to the use of this valuable metal. The great improvements which have been made in the methods of smelting, and working iron, within a few past years, heve not only rendered the metal cheaper, but also extended its appli- cation. It is now beginning to take the place of other metals, and is employed instead of wood. It is coming into use for building ships, houses, stores. Sec, and, what is more re- markable, it is converted into ropes. The invention of rail-roads, and the extension of steam, have also greatly increased the demand for iron. About a century ago, tlie forests of Great Britain were nearly all consumed; and necessity introduced pit coal, instead of charcoal, in the smelting and manufacture of this metal. In 1788, the production of the iron mines in England, MJi sixty- eight thousand tons per annum : at the present time it ex- ceeds one million of tons. With this brief view it may be seen, how important the immense beds of iron in New- Brunswick, will be to the safety and prosperity of the Pro- vince. The deposit of iron ore at Woodstock is capable of supplying the whole of North America for many centuries. Who can doubt that the advantages offered at that place, for the establishment of extensive iron works, are equal to any in the world ? — and, evidently, the time is approaching, when they will attract the attention of persons of capital. It may be said, that at this place, within the compass of a few miles, and with the flicilities of access by water, are the best kinds of ore and fuel. Miners arc not required to obtain this iron, and the expense of carriage would be trilling. These considerations are left with those, who may feel dis- posed to reflect upon the subject. The working of this ore could scarcely be viewed as an uncertain speculation ; and it will ultimately yield, by judicious management, extensive profits. In France, wood, both in a dried and in a green state, is employed in smelling iron. The substitution of green and dried wood for charcoal, in the process of refining iron, has effected a considerable saving of fuel. In sonic instances the wood is mixed with charcoal or coke. The use of wood is adapted to blast furnaces, and is found to answer all the purposes of charcoal. By reason of the richness of thot variety of iron ore called hematite^ it cannot always be worked profitably in the furnace by itself. This remork applies when coal or coke is used for fuel ; but, by employing charcoal, this and other dif- ficulties arc not present. This arises from the circumstance INTRODUCTION. f leve not that cliarcoal gives out its carbon sooner, and posstsses more of it than either coal or coke. It is probable that the hematite of Woodstock contains a sufficient quantity of the slate forming the matrix of the ore, to protect the fusible part of it from the blast. The slates near it are calcareous, and limestone for a flux is not far distant. It is now rendered certain that the Province contains many minerals which might be worked profitably if they were better known ; and no opportunity should be lost in testing their qualities, and bringing them to the notice of mining and manufacturing capitalists in Great Britain. The average value of the annual productions of the mines in Great Britain is no less than ^£20,000,000 sterling. j£8,000,000 of this sum is produced from iron ; j£0,000,000 from coal, and j§3,000,000 from other minerals. The mi- neral produce of Cornwall and Devon nione, for a single year, amounts to j£], 340, 000. In the above estimates the coal is valued at the mouth of the pits. Besides the iron, it will be seen that New-Brunswick possesses one of the most extensive coal fields in the world, the supplies of which have been hitherto unknown and disre- garded. To these might be added many other minerals, described in the present and former reporto, with substances of great utility in the arts and agriculture. The Geological Survey of the Province was commenced for the purpose of discovering and bringing these resources into operation ; and its great utility is appearing more and more obvious. The work is now advanced towards its final completion, which will require only the labour of two more seasons. •'■•.■■-« '*1|: v. :l I :t:! ron ore Whoever carefully examines the structure of the earth, will soon discover that the rocks forming its framework are divided into distinct natural groups, or classes. The rocks are not, as might appear upon an imperfect survey of them, scattered over the globe in wild confusion ; but they are de- posited in immense formations, as they have been called by geologists; and each of these formations has characteristic features, whereby it can be distinguished from the others. These characteristics exist in the chemical and mechanical properties of each variety, and more especially in the dif- ferent classes of animals and plants ; the remains of which m ■p GEOLOGICAL REPORT. ' '1- are tkm^d in them» and are often numerously distributed throughout their strata. Geology is therefore in itself a science admitting of a high degree of perfection. All tlie objects it recognises are capable of being submitted to that beautiful degree of order and harmony, wnich is so manifest in all the works of nature. It is tlie study of that great system of wonders the earth it- self presents, and whicn, next to astronomy, exhibits those unerring laws that govern the whole universe. Viewed at mere chemical or mechanical deposits, the rocks display a beauty and harmony of arrangement truly wonderful ; and although the fractured condition of the surface of the globe, at many places, shews the effects of terrific earthquakes, and the outpouring of lava from volcanoes is every where mani- fest ; still, even in these operations, the causes may be seen, and the order of the whole system remains undisturbed. Although these violent operations have evidently been active, from the earliest date in the earth's history, all the different kinds of rocks, from the lowest ever discovered, up to such as are now forming on the surface, have been arranged in distinct classes, having been produced under different cir- cumstances, they exhibit, in their composition and structure, the clearest evidences of the different conditions of such parts of the globe where they are found, and the changes wliich have taken place in the earth's physical features during the lapse of vast periods of time. The results of these changes have a degree of uniformity, at once the most strik- ing and obvious ; and whatever the climate may be where they are now seen, they offer one unvarying and almost end- less system of inquiry. Baron Humboldt, in referring to this harmony, remarks, that " when travelling to distant countries, the first feeling that strikes the mind is change. The temperature becomes warmer or colder ; the aspect of the country and vegetation itself assume a different charac- ter ; and, by and by, the very stars themselves become alter- ed ; but while change thus pervades every thing, if we look beneath our feet, our old acquaintances, the rocks, are still with us. The granite and tne coal are found in precisely the same situations in the hills of Scotland, as in the Andes, the Alps, or the mountain ranges of Australia." There appear to have been two grand causes to which the production of all the rocks may be assigned, namely, heat and water. The rocks produced by the former are un- stratified, and, for the greater part, they are readily distin- guished by their crystalline structure, and other characters •**, . j^.. INTRODUCTION. 11 resulting from the once molten ;te of the minerals entering into their composition. The it cics produced by the opera- tions of water acting upon prefiouslv arranged materials, differ from those of igneous origin. They are always spread out in layers, or strata, and may be considered as mechanical deposits. Rocks are, therefore, separated into two great classes, the stratified and the unstratified, or the igneous and the aqueons. Rocks are also divided Into groups, according to their situation, one upon another, and the relative age they have, compared with each other. It is obvious that the upper- most strata have been deposited since the lower were formed; and, therefore, in the whole series of the strata, from tbe lowest depths up to the surface, a register has been kept of vast periods of time, which have elapsed since the lower deposits first began to be formed. The strata, there- fore, afford a chronological table of geological events, not nnaptly compared to the alphabet, each letter representing a formation or series of strata, peculiar in itself, and the periods of time necessary for such formations to accu- mulate. The letters of the alphabet may be consitlered the re- presentatives of each formation, and the periods of time em- bracing the history of each group. Perhaps there is not any one place in the whole world, where h\[ these formations ex- ist, or can be seen. In some situations a greater number of these is present than in others; and there are vast tracts of country where the newer, or more recent groups, are alto- gether absent. But it is one of the most admirable facts in the science of geology, that when any member, or number of members, of the whole system is absent, the next in succes- sion above is found reposing upon the next in succession below; and thus the most perfect order and harmony are preserved throughout the whole series. If all the members represented between the letters D and Z nrc absent, D will be found reposing on Z, and this order is never reversed. The older geologists separated all the rocks into three great classes, and applied names to them in reference to time. The lowest deposits they called primitive, from the supposi- tion that they were first formed. Another class they deno- minated transition, from the supposition that at the time its members were forming, the earth was passing from a chaotic to an habitable state. Above these are the secondory rocks, and the tertiary group of the moderns. These terms are still used in the science, and allhough the older geologists ( 1 U ! m I'^i Iv! i * I. ir 12 GEOLOGICAL REPORT. ;# i H •9*i, i'l I believed that some of the rock« now known to be of the age of the secondary and tertiary groups, were of primary origin, these distinctions are still round very useful. The primary rocks, such as granite, gneiss, &c. possess more of a crystal- line structure; and may be distinguished by the purity of their minerals, and a greater degree of hardness. Siliceous and argilUiceous earths form the chief parts of thehr consti- tuents, and in them neither the remains of animals nor or- f^anized bodies have been discovered. The transition rocks requently have a resemblance to the primary ; but the mi- nerals entering into their composition are far less perfect in crystallization, and appear to have been acted upon by me- chanical operations, such as attrition in water, previous to their consolidation. In these the remains of animals and plants first begin to appear. In the secondary formations the mechanical operations of water upon the fragments of the rocks, and in the produc- tion of strata, become more manifest. In their structure they are earthy. They are less compact than any of the older deposits, and in them the relics of organized beings are abundant. The tertiary deposits are remarkable in their near ap- proach to beds of clay, marl, and sand, now collecting upon the earth ; and the animals and plants found in their strata begin to approximate to living species. Beds of clay, sand, pebbles, &c. are called diluvial, from havinir been supposed to be the results of floods of water, which swept over the earth, and the effects of glaciers, the former existence of which has been made to appear, by Professor Agassiz, Mr. Lyell, Dr. Buckland, and others, who are now engaged in this interesting inquiry. , Alluvial deposits are those now forming by operations ever active upon the earth, through the agency ot seas, rivers, and floods of water. In New-brunswick, each of these classes of rocks is ex- tensively developed ; and although some of the members of them, such as the chalk, and other deposits bearing local names in Europe, are absent ; still the general order of su- perposition is preserved. : • Of the primary rocks of the Province, there is an exten- sive, elevate(l, and somewhat broken district, extending from the Schoodic, in a north-east direction, to Shcpody Moun- tain in Westmorland. Another tract of primory icountry, embraces the Chiputnecticook Lakes, and, crossing ihe Saint John, extends towards the sources of the Mirnniiclii. ■4aMih«tfMuidB-»<.k- — • — ijak.. -^S?t' ■the age origin, »rimary :rysta\' irity of p'liceous consti- |nor or- rocks the mi- rfect in Iby nie- fious to lis and ap- INTRODUCTION. The transition, secondary, and tertiary groups also oc- cupy different parts of the Province ; the two former con- taining coal, iron, and other valuable minerals. From these facts it may be seen how much time and labour are required to explore the boundaries and surfaces of these formations; especially in districts where the soil is covered with unbroken forests. Oiis of the advantages to be gained by the geological exploration is the opportunity it affords of making the natu- ral resources of the country better known abroad. Until very lately, little was known in Great Britain of the true value of this part of the British Empire; and New Bruns- wick has been considered, by many persons, as a colony of no importance, except for the valuable timber she produces. Her excellent soil, mineral productions, and her great natu- ral advantages, in regard to inland navigation, have been overlooked ; and, therefore, it is by no means surprising, that immigration to iier shores should have been retarded, while other countries less favourable to British customs and manners — less congenial to the inhabitants of a northern climate, and with fewer advantages for the surplus popula- tion of either England, Ireland, or Scotland, receive thou- sands of our countrymen yearly. The ngricullure of the Bri- tish Provinces languishes from the lack of labour thus di- verted from their shores. That New-Brunswick is well adapted for all the differ- ent classes of emigrants is evident. All the new settlements in the Province are in a flourishing condition ; and there are numerous instances of persons who landed in the country but a few years ago, without either friends or money, who have, by their industry, become afi^luent. In order to pro- mote immigration, the resources and advantages of the country must be made known ; so that the mind of the emigrant shall be directed towards them, before he takes leave of his native land. There is scarcely any quarter of the globe where British capital and science are not employed in mining pursuits. The sums of money expended in South America, in this branch of industry, are enormous. Neither the burning sands of the tropics, nor mountains of polar ice, limit the bounds of British enterprise. If it be enquired why foreign countries have received so many advantages from this source, while the British North American Provinces have been ne- nlectctl, it will be seen, ihnt in the former, the objects of ! Bti I '4 I nil ■ ii .H- > liiWMt4l.i.»^i »* GEOLOGICAL REPORT. weoltli have been mode known, while in the Colonies' the dis- covery of similar objects has been neglected. In all new countries, the progress of raining is slow. This arises from the want of capital and the practical science And skill required in all the operations connected with such pursuits. It is, therefore, necessary to direct the attention of individuals abroad, to these resources, that they may be opened and rendered useful to the Province. There is no .science except chemistry more capable of introducing improvements in agriculture than geology ; as it includes within its range the true history of all soils, and the substances by which they may be improved. All the differ- ent kinds of soils have had their origin in the solid rocks, which by the operations of the atmosphere, water, frost, &c. have been disintegrated and reduced to that pulverised con- dition, whereby they are rendered capable of producing plants. Geology, as connected with mineralogy and chemis- try, discovers the constituent elements of every kind of soil and the substances whereby it may be made fertile. In re- ference to this part of the subject, I beg to introduce a letter from Joseph Walton, Esquire, of Saint Andrews, a most respectable and intelligent farmer. Dr. a. Gesxer: Saint Andrexott June \Oth, 194' I. Dear Sir. — la compliance with your request, I herewith give you a brief statement of the eflfeet of tbr application of the Marl, found by you on my farm in the fall of t. o year 1933. I opened a pit of the Marl and hauled eighty car; loads on hay land, which remained in small heaps during winter, aad was spread in the sprins, then ploughed, and sowed with oats: it produced a fine crop, f sowed a piece adjoining without marl, and the differ- ence in the two crops was very great. I ploughed the stubble ground in the fall, and planted potatoes the following spring : th« difference, iu appearance, of the two crops, to my disappointment, was this season greatly in favour of the piece without marl — the vines being much larger and more thrifty; but I was agreeably sur- prised on digging the potatoes, to find that the small vines on the marled piece produced one third more potatoes than the others, and of much larger size. In the fall of 1839 I put ninety loads of marl on one acre of potatoe ground, which I spread in the spring, and sowed with oats and grass seed ; the produce was nearly double that of an acre ad- joining; and this spring the ditference in the grass is visible, as far MS it can bo seen — the one piece being covered with sorrel and white weed, and the other with beautiful clover and herds' grass. I may here observe, that the soil on which the foregoing pariiaf «TperimeDts have been made, is dry and gravelly. Wm^ * INTRODUCTION. 15 the dii- I fiod the marl extendi up the valley about half a mile fruia where you found it, and from thence to the salt water, nearly a mile, and along a descent of a' 't two hundred feet. 1 have also found many kinds of shells, di^erent from those now to be found on the lea shores^ which is a subject of speculation for geologists. Your obedient servant, JOSEPH WALTON. , In pursuing the geological exploration of New-Bruns- vick, I have carefully collected all the important varieties of loiU ; an account of them will be published when the econo- mical geology of the Province is brought under considera- tion. Much labour has been devoted to the discovery of lime, marl, peat, &c. and it is satisfactory, that since the com- mencement of the survey, those substances have attracted the attention of farmers, who are beginning to employ them in the cultivation of their lands. Ihe marl and lime found in the Counties of Charlotte and Saint John, will in time be ex- tensively used in agriculture to fertilize the soil. Until a very recent period, it was doubted by many whether peat could be found in this country. It is now known to be abundant, and is finding its way into use, as a manure ; and in numerous instances it has proved very beneficial to the in- terests of the farmer. The geological reconnoissance has also ascertained the agricultural character of large districts, which before were almost unknown. • That knowledge of this kind is calculat- ed to promote the best interests of the Province, must be evi- dent. It has heretofore been such, as clearly proves, that New- Brunswick possesses the elements of prosperity ; and offers to industrious emigrants every encouragement they could hope for in a new country. It is evident that any unfavourable change in the duties on colonial timber would greatly embarrass the princi- pal trade of New-Brunswick. This trade must also decline from the scarcity of timber, and the increased expense of con- veying it to harbours where it can be shipped. The Pro- vince, therefore, will soon have to depend upon her agricul- ture, mines, and fisheries, for the support of her commerce. Extensive public improvements are everywhere required. These will bring the natural resources of the country into operation, and introduce manufactures, for which New- Brunswick, on account of her iron and coal, is not inferior to any part of the world. In the prosecution of u geological survey of a new coun- try, many useful facts may be discovered, which have no re- 1 } I \ t ', >i| '' ifl »'3e " '■ — - ■i3K M l m l 1^1., -*u>i 1G GEOLOGICAL REPOKT. t lation to geology itself. In complying with my instructions, it has been deemed proper to introduce into the present re- port some topographical and other matter, not relating strictly to the mineral deposits of the Province ; and if the accounts of the exploration of certain districts should as- sume the features of a narrative, an apology is offered in the nature of the country, and the circumstances connected with its examination. During the past year, the granite of the river has been extensively worked and employed in the durable buildings erected at Saint John ; another lease for coal has been ob- tained from the Government, and others are applied for. It is not, however, to be supposed, that all these enterprising pursuits will be successful. Some of them, it is to be feareo, have been commenced for purposes of speculation ; and others may fail from causes common to all such undertakings. But although these discouragements may retard the general good for a time, the natural productions of the Province will ulti< roately relieve her from all embarrassments, and render her one of the most important Colonies of the British Empire. m ';* S)#^ ','•1 .Jt^ * „ . -^ - ll IIM] ■■lit 1 .■;, . > J , -II ' ■ ; ■■■' ' >i 1 .-.. u » i. iii PART I. :h ■r. ^■* f w'-i ; .; ." * i«!l On a former occasion a section of country had been ex- plored, from the entrance of the Magaguadavic River to the St. John, to meet a line previously followed orer the Great Coal Field of New- Brunswick to the Straits of Northumber- land. It was desirable that a similar line should be examin- ed still farther westward, in order to intersect the principal formations or strata in the Counties of Charlotte and York, extending to Fredericton ; and also, to examine the rocks along the Cheputnecticook River and lakes, to Woodstock. * The latter line has been supposed by some persons to be thtt boundary between the State of Maine and New-Brunswick, but the Saint Croix or Scoodic of the Indians, mentioned in the treaty between Great Britain and the United States, to- gether with its lakes, is farther to the westward. By the explorations of these sections, the survey of the County of Charlotte was completed ; and the examination of the south-eastern side of the Province was brought to a close. The granitic and sienitic rocks of Oak Bay, on the St. Croix, are met on their north sides by extensive deposits of greywacke and slate ; which, after crossing the St. Croix, ex- tend into the County of Charlotte, and in an easterly di- rection to the Iliver Saint John, in Queen's County. These extensive stratified deposits I'epose upon the sides of the granitic and trappean mountains, which run nearly parallel to the coast, and form a chain running in a north-east direc- tion from Chamcook, at Saint Andrews, to Bull Moose Hill, in the Parish of Springfield. c * 1 . !'J •A f ■ 'a 4 i i ■ -*-^^Rl,.«--j»»^ i^...^.^-p.. .j^^....^...j^.. ■■. iimm- -.. ,||.— . ^--| ^, 18 CKOLOGICAI. REPORT. t At the rocks arid minerals of this chain have been al> ready described in former Reports, attention was directed to those situated to the northward. Each of these different classes of rocks iias been laid down on the Geological Map of the Province, now in course of preparation, as accurately as the circumstances would admit of, but the difficulties at- tending the discovery of their true lines of contact, are fre- quently too great to be overcome ; especially in the forest, where, besides the common detrital accumulations of the surface, there is a thick layer of decayed trees and other vegetable productions. jj^,' GREYWACKE AND SLATE. # It appears quite evident that the strata of grey wacke and slate, about to be described, were deposited prior to the ele- vation of the granitic, sienitic and trappean masses upon which they rest. They are fractured in all directions by dikes and extensive elevations of those rocks. These dikes are most numerous upon the lines that may be said to sepa- rate the two different classes of rocks one from the other, and are less frequent at distances more remote from them ; their inclining positions from each mountain mass and their fractur- ed condition, in situations where tiiey are observed in contact * with the eruptive classes, shew the disturbance they have suf- fered since they were first collected. Nor are the evidences of the heat that attended the eruption of the volcanic rocks, less manifest; for, wherever the strata are found meeting ihe sienitic, trap, &c. the changes made upon them, and re- ferable to heat, are very apparent. It appears that long after the strata already mentioned were formed, and probably were spread over a broad level surface, the hills of granite, sienite and trap were forced through them, and torrents oi' melted mineral matter overflowed the surface ; and thus the bold scenery of these Alpine ridges received its peculiar features of grandeur and beauty; while the slates, &c. remained oc- cupying the more low and level areas. The strata forming the schistose groups differ much in their mineral characters. Some of them are very argillace- ous, and resemble the shales of the coal measures, except in their greater degree of induration — others are arenaceous, and frequently pass into conglomerate. To the former the term argillaceous slate has been applied, and the latter is cal- led greywacke. But these rocks pass insensibly into each GKEYWACKK AND SLATE. It li III ctlicr, niul hence we Imve that variety called greywacke slate. I was unable to ascertain \\\\\c\\ of these divisions of the strata occupies tlie lowest situation in the scale of superposition ; but, as they repose upon granite and rocks of that class, they may be ranked with the strata called primary, so far as thay have not been found to contain any organic remains. The only fossils found in these strata appear in situa- tions remote from the igneous rocks already mentioned, or in the upper layers of the group. They consist of a few im- ))ressions of tcrebraiulat and plants analagousto those of the coal period. Although this group of arenaceous and argilla- ceous rocks has a general resemblance to the greywacke and slate formations of Europe, it would perhaps be generali^ing too far^ to affirm that they belong to the same classes and are of the same age. From the almost entire absence of organic remains, and the situation of the rocks themselves, I am in- clined to believe that they may be properly classed with the Cambrian System of Professor Sedgcwick, or the transition rocks of the older geologists. Graphite or plumbago occurs at several places, inter- stratified with these rocks ; and frequently the strata are glaz- ed with this mineral. There are also indications of anthra- cite, although no workable stratum of that variety of coal has yet been discovered. If it be admitted that these minerals are of vegetable origin, then the greywacke and sh\te wili be ranked among the transition strata. Ft was only at a few places where the dip of these strata could be ascertained, on account of the loose soil and debris every where present. Their general inclination, however, appears to be to the north west, at angles from 60° to 80"'. The planes of stratification in every instance aj)pear to be parallel to the lamina. The numerous seams running through the rocks are not parallel, and they appear to have been the result of forces applied from beneath. Although there is occasionally some variation in the course of these deposits, their general direction is from the south-west to the north-cast. Both the greywacke and slate arc penetrated by nun)er- ous veins of white quart/, whicli are sometimes associated with chlorite ; and the presence of the oxides of iron, is known by the rusty appearance of these niinerol>i and the rocks in which they are contained. Iron pyrites is common in these rocks. At CornickV'? Mills there is a consideriible vein of the pyrites, and this mineral is disseminated in small quantities both in the slate and greywacke, where it gives the rocks a ferruginous oppcHr- 'I' m i<} I'i m .% ^- jtm. 20 GEOLOGICAL REPORT. ancc/ The pyrites is found crystalized in cubes and octa- hedrons, and by its peculiar metallic lustre, has been mistaken by the inhabitants for a far more valuable ore. Among the veins ofouartz, beautiful transparent crystals of that mineial are found, and are very improperly called ** diamonds." I have already adverted to the graphite on lands belong- ing to Mr. William Porter, and at other places northward of Saint Stephens. This mineral also appears at the " Rolling Dam," on the Digdeguash ; but, wherever it has been disco- vered, the admixture of alumina, renders it unfit for crayons or pencils in its native state. It is, however, capable of being manufactured so as to render it useful for its ordinary pur- poses. At several localities on the Digdeguash, and in the ra- vines adjacent to this stream, there is an abundance of alum slate. This rock will be known by being covered with an efflorescence having the peculiar astringent taste of copperas. A much more advantageous situation for the manufacture of copperas and olum was discovered, notwithstanding, at the entrance of the Musquash harbour. The grey wacke will often afford excellent building stone and sometimes flagging, but the slate in general is not well adapted for roofing, being much fractured or unclenvcable, in situations where the quality of the rock isotherw'iciavour- able. The soil on the former rocks is silicious or sandy. The decomposition of the slate affords a tcnuvjiuus clay. The greywacke ond slate, occupy a very extensive area in the Counties of Charlotte and York. The southern side of these groups of rocks, reaches from the Scoodic Lakes across the St. Croix River, and through the Parishes of St. Stephens, St. Davids and St. Patricks. In the latter parish, they diverge to the northward, and finaUy form a nar- row belt that extends to the Piskehagan River, in a north-east direction, to the St. John, at Kemble's Manor. The north- ern side of the tract of greywacke and slate was found to extend from the State of Maine, ocross the southern ex- tremity of the Cheputnecticook Lakes and Loon Lake, to the Saint John, below the Pokiok. The north-easternmost part of the whole area is widely forked, and the Great Coal Field of New Brunswick, after crossing the main Saint John River, reaches in a south-west direction several miles west- ward of the Oromocto Lake. A reference to the geological map, to be published hereafter, will shew the situations of the rocks under consideration, so far as it has been |)0ssil)le to ascertain their boundaries. -*- — -ir- CIlEYWAtKE AND gLATE. 21 In crossing the country between St. Andrews and Fre> derictoni these rocks were found to reach in a northerly di- rection, to nc. the place where the road from Fredericton crosses the Magaguadavic, near Brockaway's. They are there met by the sandstones and coniflomerates of the Coal Field. At the head of Oak Bay, and in the Parishes'of St. Ste- phens, St. Davids and St. Patricks, the soil possesses many Peculiarities in common with the argillaceous slate beneath, n general it is a plastic clay and very retentive of moiiiture ; except, when it is mixed with sand and gravel, of which there are numerous deposits. In general this argillaceous soil is very fertile and well adapted for grass. In the above Pa- rishes, agriculture is advancing at more than an ordinary rate, and the new settlements opening in all directions, with the fine farms which have been made in the forest in the course of a few years, are highly creditable to the inhabitants and the Province iu general, f he soil on the greywaeke is sandy and in go-.ieral less productive than that which has been de- rived from the slate. By mixing these soils tlieir fertility would be increase'.]. Proceeding iii the direction of the road, now nearly com- pleted between ijt. Andrews and Fredericton, the slate is seen stretched along the flanks of Chamcook, anil the high- lands 1 mining parallel to the coast. The strata arc frequent- ly plumbaginous, and are broken tliroiigli by numerous dikes of trap rock, proceeding in all directions from the sienitic and trappean hills southward. Boulders of granite are scattered ovtr the surface; these have evidently been transported from the northward : tliey are similar in mineral composition to granite observed in silu in that direction. On the farm of Mr. Ephraim Turner, there is a singu- lar mineral spring, the water of which contains the hydrous peroxide of iron. This spring is situated on the side of a ra- vine, and the forest around it has recently been cleared by the proprietor. The water issuing from the rocks beneath, be- ing loaded with mineral matter, has thrown up a conical mound around the mouth of the spring ; and a large quan- tity of the hydrate of iron, which now appears in beds of red and yellow ochre. The water is highly ferruginous, and has been applied, successfully, in the cure of cutaneous dis- eases. Its peculiarities arise from the presence of the pe- roxide of iron, and sulphuieted hydrogen. Red, yellow, and tirown ochres might be manufactured at this place ; the native ore would, in general, only reqtiire grinding and 1 ii^ I.' 2-2 GEOLOGICAL UKPOIIT. washing; and the brown variuties of the ochre, would be inade red by calcination. The spring affprds an annual de- posit of the ochres, and the quantity already collected would supply a manufactory of paint many years. It had been reported that there were indications of coal at a place called the " Rolling Dam," on the Digdeguash River; but upon the examination of the rocks in this district, it M'as found, that the substance supposed to be coal, was graphite, or plumbago. If any coal shoulu ever be found in this quarter, it will be of the anthracite kind, as the rocks here are much older than those containing bituminous coal. From the Warwig to Brockaway's farm, on the Maga- guadavic, the distance is about twenty miles; and the few inhabitants are settled on the roads communicating with Saint Stephens and Saint Andrews. Along the tributaries of the Digdeguash, and between them and the Magagua- davic, there are some ridges of excellent land ; among these are Floom Ridge, and Little Floom Ridge. Between these elevations, and along the lower grounds, there are consider- able tracts unfit for agriculture. The best lands are covered with a heavy growth of beech, birch, and maple, mixed with hemlock. The swamps abound in large cedars, and black and while ash. The intervales produce majestic elms, and sometimes sugar maple. Formerly there were fine groves of pine in this quarter, but all the best trees h^ve been re- moved by tlie lumbermen, or destroyed by fires, which have swept over the soil, and left the stately forest, a blackened and decayed assemblage of leafless trees. Near the Magaguadavic Lakes, there arc also some fine tracts of excellent soil ; but no settler has yet made his ap- pearance upon them ; and the ground of future cultivation and rural industry, still remains a dark and dreary wilder- ness. The lakes, and the streams connected with them, abound in excellent trout, and other kinds of fish ; and if the shores of the largest lake were inhabited, they would afford some very delightful scenery. The house of Mr. Bartimeus Brockaway, is the only resting place to the traveller, as he passes through the wil- derness between the Rolling Dam and the Harvey Settle- ment. It is built upon a terrace, produced by the bursting of a lake. This terrace, with others, will be noticctl here- after. The soil — tlie sediment of a foimer lake — is a fiii3 light loam, ami very feilile. It is cicvatcil about ten feet f.l)ove the level of the intervale, aloii;^ ihc river, and was lor- n;crly covcrctl with a heavy giowlh ol" pine, 'ilie liiglur GREYWACKE AND SLATE. 53 grounils are gravelly, and cuiitaiii numerous granitic boul" ders. The terrace is about four miles long, and one mile broad ; the place where the barrier of the lake once gave way, is atill to be seen, at the lower part of a beautiful val- ley, farther down the stream. A high bank of sand and gravel, on each side of the present stream, shews the clearest evidences of having been broken through, prior to which period, the river took its rise at this spot ; and all the inter- vale above was beneath the water. The remains of fresh water shells, of existing species, were found in the soil, that, long since the time of their existence, had produced the largest pines. On the Magaguadavic River, the dams of the industrious beaver still remain ; although the animals themselves have long since been destroyed by the Indian hunters. The erection of these dams across the mouths of the smaller streams, has produced tracts of grass land, commonly called beaver meadow; and the ancient labours of these creatures, have therefore contributed to the advantages offered to the new settler, in procuring fodder for his cattle. I' i! » ■ ;• i^dtk. ,^ mm %* *;. ■ ,,. ', U-- "•■^' GOAL FIELD, SOUTH OF THE SAINT JOHN. After crossing the Mngagimdavic stream, about a mile northward of Brockavray's, 1 found the slate formation met by a lofty hill of conglomerate, that extends around the south side of the Oromocto Lake. Crossing the lake, the sand- stones and shales of the coal field were observed ; and there is an outcropping of the coal, ten miles above Hartt's mills, ,on the Oromocto River. By these examinations it was found that the rocks of the coal field, in this quarter, extend far- ther westward than was before anticipated. The conglom- erate, interstratified with sandstone, continues, in a north- erly direction, to Fredericton ; but, after leaving Mr. Nes- bit's fi\rm at the Harvey settlement, it is less elevated than it is farther southward. Many of the hills on the northeast side of the Magaguadavic, have but a scanty soil, but, nearer the above settlement, the soil is thick, fertile, and well cover- ed with timber, the principal growth being maple, beech, birch and hemlock of large size. Leaving Fredericton in the direction of Hartt's Mills, tht road passes through the pretty village of New Maryland. The sandstones and conglomerates of the coal field are here situated beneath a fertile covering of new red sandstone. The junction of the two rocks may he seen at the bridge on the farm of Mr. Charters. The red strata arc thin, soft, and sometimes very argillaceous; being readily distinguished from the grey micaceous rocks beneath. This belt of red rock is about a mile wide; its length could not be ascertain- ed correctly. COAL Finr.D. «5 iscertaui- T!ie red landstons also appears along the RusIiAgonis, uhct'c the surface is occupied with a red diluvial soil, fre- quently of considerable thickness. There are a number of fine settlements along the banks of this stream, and much of the intervale is of an excellent quality ; having been derived chiefly from the red mar?y rock above mentioned. The tei- races on this river are not overflown by the highest freshets of spring, and they are, therefore, called "high intervale." One of these terraces may be seen on the farm of John Pea- body, Esquire, and is elevated eight feet above the highest level of stream. At the mouth of the llushagonis, there is a sunken tract of a thousand acres ; it apneav.H to have been n lake, which is now fast filling up, and will| in the course of a few years, be capable of producing grass. Another terrace appears on the south branch of the Oromocto, in the Parish of Biissfleld. The beautiful settlement here is upon the bed of an ancient lake. The lake has been drained by natural causes, and the soil which had been deposileil from the water IS extremely fertile. The farms are situated upon a level plain, and surrounded by high lands, which adtl much to the admirable features of this remarkable villuge. It is not a little surprising that even in these remote places, persons are deceived by the boasted virtues of the "mmeral " or "divin- ing rod," and pages might be written on their golden dreams and constant disappointments. The time wantonly thrown away in digging for money, might be profitobly employed, and those who believe that the first udmbitunts ot New- Brunswick buried their money in the earfli ; or, if they did so, wandered far into the interior to deposit their wealth, would do well to seek some employment move certr4in of re- ward, than to search for riciies where they can never be ob- tained. Between the sources of the Nerepls and Bluck C'reek (a tributary of the Oromocto,) there are several suudl tracts of red soil, derived from the soft and yieltling rock beneath. These tracts are limited in extent ; and beds, which at their thickest parts do not exceed ten feet in depth, thin off until the strata entirely disappear. At many places, a thin cover- ing of red soil, is the only indication of the presence of the new red sandstone. The strata in general are sdCt and elaty, and alternately composed of arenaceous atitl argilla- ceous matter. They are seen advantageously between Mr, Darby Gillon's and the Oromocto. At ilie entrance of the Oromocto, the coarse dark grey sandstones of the coal field are covered with the red soil, and L) I''*. ^6 ■« GEOLOGICAL KEPORT. a fine diluvial sand. At the village, this deposit was the uncient burying-place of the Indians. In opening a new road, several skeletons, axes, knives, kettles, beads, wampum, &c. were exposed. Through the politeness of H. T. Parte- low. Esquire, I have obtained a number of these interesting relics, which throw light upon the history and customs of the ancient inhabitants of the country. The bodies dug up were carefully wrapped in garments made of beaver-skins; that still exhibit much ingenuity, and superior workman- ship. The head of each individual was placed in a copper kettle, and the whole body surrounded by a strong wrap- ping of birch bark. The mixture of French beads with those made of shells, some of the axes, and the copper ket> ties, are evidences that the French had visited the country previous to the interment of these bodies. ,■ ' , On the west side of this river there is a steep embank- ment, immediately on the border of the intervale. There can be no doubt that the river, now hulf a mile distant, once swept along the base of this steep bed of sand ; but as the soil is diluvial in every part of it, the origin of the apparently recent collection of sand, must be attributed to remote causes ; or those which produced the level ground upon which Fredericton is built. The conglomerates and sandstones of the coal field also appear in the liigher grounds, of the vicinity of Fredericton. In many situations, they are but scantily covered with soil. Although it is far from being improbable, that coal might be procured at the very capital of the Province, the rocks them- selves offer but few evidences of its existence near the sur- face; it is only at considerable depths that it might be ex- pected to occur, and therefore the expense of the operations required to discover its strata, is an obstacle few will be ready to encounter at the present time. In all these sandstones and conglomerates, the remains of plants belonging to the coal period are numerous ; and although they do not offer so great a variety, and are less perfect than the fossil plants of the northern counties, inter- esting specimens may be often procured, where the rocks have been exposed in constructing new roads, or where quar- ries have been opened. The impressions of the leaves of stigmaria, ferns, and other vegetables possessing tropical characters, with fragments of the Iru'^ks o^ coniferous plants, are the best guides in determining the boundaries of these rock*; as they are present in every part of the great carboni- ferous district. .v^. »*■■.- COAL FIELD. fi7 emains ; nnd re less inter- rocks The soil produced bv the disintegration of these rocks, is light and sand}r : but from the general distribution of de- trital beds of sand and pebbles, in this district, there are few instances where the rocks beneath have contributed to the production of the soil immediately above them ; and which, from being composed of mixed mineral matter, is rendered fertile, under a proper mode of cultivation. The beautiful level plain upon which Fredericton is built, consists of beds of sand, gravel, and clay, distinctly stratified throughout. From the situation of this open flat, it might be supposed that the level area, on the margin of the river, was produced by those causes to which the diluvial terraces owe their origin : but it is evident that the above beds of sand and gravel arc diluvial, and the operations that were active in their formation, have now ceased to exist. Similar deposits were observed along the whole valley of the Saint John, where the beanty of the scenery is often greatly increased by the level tracts extending from the river to the flanks of the hills. The beds or strata of sand ond gravel, frequently contain considerable quantities of the peroxides of iron nnd manganese. The workmen in sinking a well for the Honorable Neville Parker, at Fredericton, passed through a deposit of oclireous sand, capable of nfFording a good pig- ment. Near Government House, the peroxides of iron and manganese have collected in such a manner as to cement the beds of pebbles, and form a conglomerate, having a high me- tallic lustre. Water highly charged with these minerals, per- colates through sand until the interstices become filled ; and thus the sand is converted into sandstone and the pebbles into conglomerate. As the oxides of iron form the chief cement for the older sandstones, the process by whitli ihcy were consoli- dated, may, in some degree, be seen going forward at the local- ity above mentioned. Many of the sanilstoncs aireaily noticed, will afford excellent grindstones, frt'cslones and flagging; and quarries of these U'?crnl malprials, might b<: opened with- in a short distance of Fredericton. Tiie rocks ol the Coal Field extend about five miles above flir (own, \vl1er3 thev .'iro obscured by detritus, and liiiall} iiicl h\ tnfVwatKf nii'•} J- EXPLORATIOII OF THC SCHOODIC AND CHEPUTNECTICOOK RIVERS ' ' AND LAKES. i .i Having examined all the country situated between Fre* dericton and the Bay of Fundy, and that part of the Coal Field discovered south of the Saint John, it was doomed ne- cessary to explore the whole line of country froni the «?nlrance of the Schoodic, in the County of Charlotte, to th>j monu- ment ; and from thence to Woodstock, along the line which has been supposed to separate the Province from the State of Maine. The strata between the monument and WoodstocV; are intersected by the Saint John, and therefore a better op- portunity is afforded for their examination along the sides of the river, than can be found by pursuing a line through the forest. As the shores of the Schoodic above Saint Stephens, the Cheputnecticook River and Lakes — with Eel River and its Lakes, are uninhabited, the only facilities for geological op- erations are offered along their margins ; and as the tributa- ries entering into them, are numerous and extensive, I was enabled to examine the general features of a large tract of country. An accurate survey of the boundaries of each for- mation, and the examination of the minerals contained in them, cannot bo made in tht; present wilderness state of the coun- try, and unaccompanied by n geographical survey. The limits of the dillcrciit divisions of rocks, notwithslunding, m mssatKB^SHmm SCHOODIC AND CUErLTNECTlCOOK. have been at many places ascertainedt and laid dowii on the geological map of the Province. But there are situations where the rocks are covered with detritus, a dense growth of trees, or submerged beneath the lakes, bogs and meadows of th« wilderness, so as to render a knowledge ofthe lines where they meet uncertain. It is only on the sides of tl)e lakes, rivers and ravines, whei'e the strata are exposed ; and even in such situa- tions, they are frequently concealed to great distances. Ke^ mote from the streams, a rock in situ can scarcely be found over an area of many miles in extent. Under all these dis- advantageous circumstances, I have laid down each formation as correctly as the opportunities afforded would allow ; leaving it for future explorers, to correct any errors that may exist, when the country becomes cleared, and greater facilities are offered for geological inquiries. Having procured three expert Indians with canoes, and being accompanied by my son and Mr. Charles Ketchum, a volunteer — with a sufficient quantity of provisions and the re> quisites for encampment, a portage of twelve miles was made from Saint Stephens to the Upper Schoodic, or Grand Falls. These Falls are situated directly below the bifurcation ofthe river, where one branch, called the Schoodic or Saint Croix, comes in from the westward, and another called the Cheput- nccticook descends from the northward. The rocks along this porlage are chiefly varieties of the greywacke and slate, already described. The strata vary in their courses from N. E. to N. N. E. being highly inclined. About five miles from Saint Stephens, we crossed a narrow ridge of sienite, which extends some distance in an east and west direction, and crosses the Saint Croix between the " Upper Mills" and the Falls. This rock is composed of hornblende and feldspar, and frequently resembles granite. At the above places, and in the neighbourhood of Saint Stephens, it is remarkably ferruginous, being impregnoted with the oxides of iron. These oxides appear to have been produced by the decompo- sition of pyrites contained in the rock, where it is exposed to the operations of the atmosphere and moisture. The sur- face of this syenite is almost sterile, and it produces only a ftew stunted alders and white birch. The slate, from being more readily acted upon by meteoric agents, affords a fine argilla- ceous soil, well ndiipted for potatoes and different kinds of grain. It may not be injproper to remark here, that the princi- pal rivpr emptying into Passamaquoddy Bay, ai;d knoWn lui- •ier tho name ofthe Saint Croix, was colled by the aborigine!* 1 1 •«t. so GKOI.OGfCAL REPORT. \\y i ii p i ■ , of the country, Schoodeag or Sckoodtc, a word signifjring, iii their language, low and swampy ground. This name was, and still is, given to the most westerly branch of that river, which drains a large tract of low and sunken land. The river and lakes of the westernmost branch still bear the name of the Schoodic or Saint Croix ; and the inhabitants on both sides of the reputed boundary line, call this stream the main river; but that branch of the Saint Croix that descends from the northward is called the Cheputnecticook. As the western branch has always been called the Schoodic, or main S-'int Croix, it is evident that the starting point in deciding the (jueslion of the American boundary in this quarter, should be taken from the westernmost source of this river ; nor can there be any doubt that this was the place of departure re- ferred to in the treaty of 1783. Having encamped just above the Grand Falls, we had an opportunity of examining the branches of the river, where they diverge, and the rocks over which they pass. The Foils are separated into the "upper" and "lower": be- tween them the water passes over an inclined plane, produc- ing thereby a dangerous rapid. At the lower fall, the water descends ten feel in the distance of two hundred yards. On the east side of the river, a dam has been erected, to deepen the stream so as to allow rafts of timber to pass, in the sum- mer season. About half a mile above this place is the upper fall. The water here passes through a narrow gorge, and descends perpendicularly about twelve feet. A dike of trap rock intersects the strata of slate at this place ; and has prob- ably been the cause of the sudden change in the level of the river's bed. All the waters of the Schoodic and Cheputnecti- cook rivers, descending from large lakes in the interior, rush over these falls, and along the rapid between them, with in- credible fury : large pieces of tin:ber and logs seventy feet in length are frequently })oised high above the water and instant- ly plunged into the foaming pool beneath. Large trees are frequently broken in several pieces, in passing the gorge, and the sound prochucd by the violent concussion of the logs against the rocks, and each other, is like that of artillery at a distance. 'I'he nater of the liver, from being confined be- tween the cliil's, on each side, and in a contracted chauHe!, rushes forward with great violence, until it is thrown into the more tran(|uil part of the stream ; where the surface of the ri- ver is concealed beneath beautiful whvcs of white foam. At the time ni our visit to this place, the rivers f!bf)vc the falls were blockpd up wit!) an iininrii-- M'Mnlity n s-^^ *^ ^1^^ SCIIOODIC VXD CHrPUTXECTICOOK. 51 logs and squared limber, which huil beuti driven down the streum.s by a party of **htream drivers," forty in number. Some of these men had beey four months engaged in their laborious and dangerous employment ; and their manner of urging the enormous pieces of pine over the rapids, is alike credit- able to their conrnge, patience, and hardihood. Still push- ing the rafts of timber downward, and moving with the cur- rent, that daily transports the bark that covers their move- able camps — stung by the unceasing industry of swartns of insects, both day and night, these men possess more patience under their hardships and sufferings, than those of any other class in the country. Half a dozen of them will frequently navigate the stream, astride a log of timVjer, which they pad- dle along, with their legs in the water, with considerable swiftness ; and they will force the light skiff up u perpendi- cular fall of three feet; where the roaring of the water is truly deafening, and where there is constant danger of being plunged into some whirlpool, or dashed against the rocks. — Although they are frequently rendered giddy by the revolv- ing motion of the eddies, they fix the pole upon the bottom, and move away against the foaming torrent, or cross the stream upon the slippery blocks of pine. Such is the power of habit, that these men view the forest as theii home, and the river as their resting place ; constantly exposed to the inclemency of the weather, and the water of the rivers, they appear contented, and seem to regret when the labour of the season is ended. In situations where the water !■; more tran- quil, a singular spectacle is sometimes presented ; eaeh of the drivers mounfs a log, or piece of timber, and with their pikes in hand, nr.ove slowly along like a floating regiment, imtil some fall or rapid warns them to reimbark. Not unfrequent- ly a rapid becomes blocked up with timber, in such (juanti- ties that it refuses to pass. — This is called a "jaii)." The clearing away of these "jams" is the most dangerous part of the stream-driver's employment, and occasionally several men are thrown down a rapid or fall into the boiliiig pool beneath. The quantity of limber in one of these "drives" i.< enormous ; and their progress along the rivers where the timber becomes entangled aiiu)i)g the rocks, is therefore slow; especially, when the summer is advanced, and the volume of water is consequently diminished. In order to deepen the water, "wing dams" have been constructed on the sides of the most troublesome rapids. The depth and velocity of the water being thus increased, the floating limber passes -at -r — 3'i CEOLOCICAI. REPORT. f \ ■■■ along more rendily ; but these dami greatly iiripeJo the pas- sage of canoes in ascending the streams. The hardy lumberman having passttl the winter amidst the deep snows of the wilderness, felling and collecting the lofty t.-ees of the forest, retreats to the river as the summer advances; and having escaped the fro»t of the colder months, seeks the datsgers of the fall and rapid, bringing with him those vast suppliea of timber by which the trade with the mo- ther country has been supported. Like the employment of the sailor, the work of the Jnmberman is peculiar. He re- quires much practice and experience; and it may be safely asserteil, that should any change take place in the Timber Duties, unfavourable to the British North American Colo- nies, thousands of men will be thrown out of employment, who have as little disposition to engage in Agriculture, as those who have been employed as sailors or fishermen. This description has been given as being connected with the topo- graphy of the district under consideration, and in compliance with those instructions by which I have been governed in the performance of my doty. ' Immediately above the upper fall, there are two small islands, situated at the confluence of the Schoodic and Che- putnecticook rivers. The average breadth of each of these streams, at this place, is sixty yards ; and on the 23d day :f June, the water was eight feet deep, with a current of seven miles an hour, at the spot where the measurement was made. Two miles farther up the Clieputnecticook branch, there is another dangerous rapid, called the Cheputnecticook Falls. •—This rapid was found to be filled with timber, and we were compelled to make a portage with our canoes and bnggnge half a mile. : Along this part of the river there ore considerable quantities of low intervale, bearing a species of grass called "blue joint." This wild grass aflbrds excellent fodder for cattle, ond is very useful to the seltler on wild lands. The uplands have been covered with fine groves of pine ; but these have been removed, and all the best timber has been trans- ported to St. Stephens and St. Andrews. Greywacke and slate were observed at a number of situations. The strata run north-east and south-west, and the dip is north-west, at angles cf 60, 70 and 80 degrees. The greywacke frequently contains veins of quartz and chlorite : with these minerals there is also sulphuret of iron, in amorphous masses and in crystals. • ' Our next encampment was near the mouth of the Ca- noes River, a branch of the main stream, extending to the ■*■■'. ^^. m SCHOODIC AND CMEPUTNEC TKOOK. « i the pag' r amidst ting the summer months, itli him the mo- rment of He re- oe safelv Timber n Colo- loyment, Iture, as ;n. This he topo- npliance id in the to small nd Che- oF these d day :f >r sevea IS made, there is k Falls, we were >ftggage iderable s called der for The ut these trans- ke and ata run t angles on tains here is :ry9tals. he Ca- lo the north-cast. From this place to the Liltlo Chcputnecticook Falls, the river presents a series of rapids, separated by (jiiict ponds of deep water. We here met another party of "stream-drivers," who were floating several thousands of tons cf timber along the troubled stream. A barrel of flour had been allowed to remain a short distance up the river by the party ; and at the moment of our arrival a large bear was seen eating its contents, having torn the hoops from the bar- rel, and removed the head. Before we were within gunshot, bruin retreated into a thick cedar swamp, and escaped the fire of our rifles. About ten miles above the Canoes Stream, the river passes through a narrow fissure in the slate, and over another dike of trap rock, forming the Little Cheputnecticook Fall^; this way the site of our next encampment. The river here falls perpendicularly about ten feet ; just above the cataract is a small but very beautiful little island, which completes the resemblance, in miniature, of this fall, to tlie magnificent cataract of Niagara. For the information of those who may hereafter take this route, it is proper to state, that the port- age, at this fall, is on the cast side of the river, and the path has been well beaten by the Indians, who passed this way to their hunting grounds, long before the country was visited by Europeans. About six miles farther up the stream, the river expands into a lake, surrounded by a tract of low ground, called " Porter's Meadows." From these meadows to the first Cheputnecticook Lake, the distance is about eight miles. Four miles are occupied by rapitis ; the most dangerous of these are the " Elbow Rips," at the foot of the lower lake. Our canoes were pushed up, over an evenly in- clined plane, two miles long; where all our strength and skill were required, to overcome the swiftness of the current. After much labour and difficulty, the light barks were urgetl upward over the last rapid ; and wo paddled along the surface of the lake, where the water is quiet, and its gloomy stillness is strongly contrasted with the roaring of the river below. The Chcputnecticook is an exceeding rapid river. T\w distance from the month of the Schoodic to ihe first lake, is nearly seventy miles, along the courses of the stream. Above the Canoes River, the sides and bed of the Cheputnecticook become rocky, and the granitic boulders, of large dimen- sions, scattered over the surface, obstruct the passage of the water in its descent. It is evident that all these boulders have been trans- norted from the north, as thcv luc idciilical in their couipo- 11: ;Ji Si tiEOI.OoICAL Ri:i'OUT. pusitioii wiiii the rocks of tlic mountains ^urroundinj^ the hikes. They are all roundeil, or water-worn ; and, frecjuent- ly, upon their sides, the deep grooves and scratches, pro- duced by friction against each other, or the rocks over which they passed, remain distinctly visible. These boulders, and tiie causes of their transportation, will be again referred to. All the rocks, from the syenite of Saint Stephens to the lower extremity of the lakes, consist of varieties of grey- wacke and slate. At the outlet of the lake, these rocks arc met by the granite ; and the physical features of the country arc immediately changed. Instead of the low undulated sur- Ihce of the stratified rocks, the country becomes elevated and mountainous ; and lofty hills appear in every quarter. In- stead of the fmc argillacious and productive soil of the slates, the surface is spread over with immense boulders; or broken by cliffs and precipices, so as to render it, at many places, nnfit for agriculture. The boundaries of the granite, where it meets the slate and greywacke, may be traced by the eye, as it wanders over the unmhabited forests ; and the bold and mountainous aspect of the country, from these lakes in a north-east direction to the Saint John, are suflicient indica- tions of the rocks beneath. The lands between the above ri- ver and the Digdeguash, are, for the greater part, of a good quality ; they do not attain any considerable degree of eleva- tion, and the surface is suflicicntly furrowed to secure the necessary drainage from the numerous springs and rivulets, that flow in every direction. The timber consists of pine, hemlock, birch, and maple : the lower grounds abound in cedar and aldcr,and sometimes in " blue-joint" and other kinds of wild hay. Extensive settlements might be made in this part of the Province, and the success of those who have already conmienced to open the sides of this great forest, offer the best encouragement to persons who may be disposed to fol- low their example. The Cheputnccticook Lakes arc about forty-five miles in length ; their breadth is very irregular, being not more than a quarter of a mile at some places, and ten miles nt others. They i)resent a series of narrow straits and wide bays, with deep inlets and creeks. The general course of the chain is about north-west : on the northern side of the lakes, there are a great number of deep and narrow bays and coves. — Some of these bays are seven miles in length ; and all of them run in a directiojj nearly parallel to the main lake. The south-west side is also remarkably indented. From these circumstances, and the numerous islands and narrow passa- Jf** sciioonir and ( nEPiTNErricooK. 3 ng tlic s, pro- r which It's, and •cd to. i to the r grey- cks are country ted sur- ted and ;r. In- e slates, • broken places, e, where the eye, Dold and dies in a t indica- above ri- ;' a good of eleva- curc the rivulets, of pine, )ound in ier kinds e in this ho have St, offer d to fol- miles in lore than It others, lys, with chain is !S, there Icoves.- — of them te. Tlie >m these Iw passa- ffcs, the navigation of this beautiful sheet of water is rendered very intricate, anil we were sometimes much perplexed to niiil the passage from one part of the lake to another. Notwithstanding the water is generally deep, and capa- ble of bciufT navigated by vessels of considerable size, vast white granitic borlders rise above the surface, or may be seen at various depths beneath the transparent water. The shores are also lined with these boulders, which, at many jilaces, form natural wharves, with twenty and even thirty I'cct of water around their perpendicular sides. The hills in general slope gradually down to the shore, where the blocks of white granite appear like solid masonry, and exhibit a de- if.V*«- i-v»*t.44B •SmSS % GEOLOGICAL REl'OUT. i V\ (I t- i P > l! ! ! the only interruption to the cotnmunication by wnter, into Passama{|Uoddy Bay, will be the falls on the rivers, aiul three miles of land l>etween the North Cheputnecticook and Eel River Lakes. By cutting throiigh a portage of ninety- six rods, between the Second and Urand Cheputnecticook Lakes, a crooked and broken channel may be avoided, and this route may be greatly improved. Tliere is, therefore, an almost uninterrupted chain of lake and river, along the above line, and liom thence to the Saint Lawrence, along the River Saint Francis, or 7a/at/i, northward of Lake Temiscouata. This was one of the ancient Indian routes from Pasgamaqnoddy to Quebec. Extensive tracts of land in the wilderness explored, between Saint Andrews and the Saint John, are of good quality, ; and the numerous small lakes and streams, emptying into the larger rivers, will afford the channels of communication, before good roads can be constructed through the^ forests. By ascending an arm of the lower Cheputnecticook Lake, called the " Palfry," the lakes at the head of that stream may be entered ; from thence the distance is only three miles into »he Shogamoc, empty- ing into the Saint John, or West River of Magaguadavic, or Ixjon Lake, a large sheet of water open to the sea, by the Magaguadavic River. Canoes or light boats can pass readily from the City of Saint Jcrlui to the Oromocto Lakes ; from thence, the distance into the Magaguadavic is only three miles; the befuremeutioned course may then be fol- lowed into the Cheputnecticook, which is separated from the Baskahegan, a branch of the Penobscot, by a distance of only three miles. This was also a line of the old Indian hunters, many centuries ago. But it is unnecessary to enter u{x>n all the channels, which nature has opened, through this part of the Prov'nce ; they form, however, a consider- able part of the natural wealth of the country, and will be found, as the population increases, of great advantage to the inhabitants. The southern side of the granitic district beforemen- tioned, extends from the reputed American boundary, across the lower part of the first Cheputntcticook Lake; and from thence, by the lower extremity of Loon Lake, in a north-east direction, to the River Saint John; its northern side crosses Monument Brook, and the lower Eel River Lake. The termination of the range, in a north-east direction, has not yet been explored. On the north side of this granitic and primary ridge, there is an expanded tract of greywacke and slate, wliicli ijb. ««M ^JL •l.- .-d^. -iT^l Lt^t*^: t i £_yi; THE I'OKIOK. 41 has been followed northward to the Meduxnakeag, nnd is known to occupy a large oren, between Woodstock and the Grand Falls. The characters of the greywacke, in this quarter, do not difter materially tVoni those of the rocks of Charlotte County ; but the slate, in general, is more calca- reous than any other found in the Province. It will be seen by reference to the geological map, that this ridge of granite extends in north-east and south-west directions, or along a Jine parallel with the course of the strata. It forms an anti- clinal ridge, against which, the stratified deposits lean ; evi- dently, having been forced through them subsequently to the period of their formation. The granite crosses the main river ot the mouths of the Shoganioc, Pokiok, and Nackawick ; where its mountainous •character may be observed in ascending to Woodstock. The Pokiok, having passed over a high and broken iedge of primary rocks, tumbles into the Saint John through a deep chasm in the granite. This chasm is twenty-five feet wide, about seventy teet deep, and a furlong in length. The river falls over a perpendicular ledge, and bounds through the dark channel, from step to step, until it is lost in the more quiet water of the main river, which passes along, un- ruffled by its noisy and troubled tributary. This chasm has no doubt been opened by an earthquake, or some other ter- restrial disturbance ; the depressions and protuberances on its sides, are such as prove, that they have been separated from each other, and have not been produced by the action of water, in wearing out the channel. Similar chasms and fissures are seen in every part of the granite district, where the rocks have been rent asunder, by the most powerful causes, and operations that have long since ceased to exist. The granite is of two kinds — in one of these the feldspar is of a light red colour, and the crystals are large. The gra- nite further westward is coarse grained, with white feldspar, and, so far as piesent discoveries extend, contains but i'ew minerals. At the Mcductic Point, and on the farm of Mr. Peter W\itson, a vein of iron pyrites is foiiiul in the greywacke at the foot of the hill; it varies from an inch to a foot in thick- ness, and the pyrites in small masses is disseminated through the rocks. Some specimens, taken from this place, were found to contain the sulphurct of copper ; but, no vein of that mineral has yet been discovered, of any practical importance. The rocks of the Coal Field meet and overlie the grey- wacke, already mentioned, about half-way between Frederic- F I I '1 i 42 GEOLOGICAL REPORT. L^' 1 ton and the mouth of the Keswick. The former rocks con- sist chiefly of a coarse sandstone of a grey colour, and occa- sionally a conglomerate containing pebbles of quartz^ trap, iiienite, &c. The course of the strata is from the south-west to the north-east, and the dip is from 60° to 80°. Near Brower's Inn, and a short distance above the mouth of the Keswick, on the opposite side of the river, there is a narrow belt of rocks, belonging to the New Red Sandstone group ; it is about a mile in length, and runs north-east and south-west. A continuation of this belt is seen on the north side of the river, below the entrance of the Keswick Stream. The strata consist of argillaceous sand- stone, with marly and ochreous clay, from one to four feet in thickness. The rocks are of deep red, claret, and choco- late colours, and are associated with thin strata of grey sand- stone and conglomerate. The soil covering these rocks is of a deep red, or crimson colour, and it is, therefore, readily distinguished from any other in that quarter. RED PAINT. ^ '. From the peculiar red appearance of the ochreous beds, and the presence of the peroxide of iron, I was induced to suppose that they would afford pigment ; and, upon trial, my expectations were fully gratified. The best layers for ochre will be known by their deep colours and the fine state of their materials, which, by being washed from the particles of sand, and finely pulverised, will afford a good and dura- ble paint. It has been successfully tried in imitations of oak, mahogany, and other kinds of wood, and will be found a valuable native paint. The following is an analysis of a specimen of medium quality : — Silex.. 58.20 Peroxide of Iron 20.00 Alumina «•••.••*•• •••.. 4.20 Carb. of Lime 1.00 \i..: .-.'r- 100.00 The silex exists in a state of minute division ; and I have no doubt that the pigment may be found, free from any gritty -Mv LIMESTONE. tH particles, requiring but little preparation, except grinding and washing, before it is applied. LIMESTONE. Inlerstratified with the above deposits, there is a lime- stone, generally of a light red colour. At one situation, near the base of a high hill, this limestone was found to con- tain a small quantity of magnesia, which would render it unfit for agricultural purposes ; at other situations, the mag- nesia is absent, and good lime may be obtained. At present almost all the lime used in the upper settlements of tlie Saint John, is conveyed from the kilns of Indian Town, and Grand Bay. The above deposit of calcareous rock, is therefore a fortunate circumstance for the inhabitants between Gage- town and Woodstock ; and it is capable, under proper management, of supplying all the inhabitants along that part of the river. M bm iv;. ^'11 tiave no ... .■!. i. 1 !' v/r^ WO»DI»TOCK. :» ■' l. Near the nioutli of the Mediixnakeag, the greywacke is met by clay slate, as it extends in a wide formation from Houlton towards the north>east. How far this formation reaches northward, I have not been able to ascertain by ex- amination, but I have been informed that it continues unin- terruptedly to Lake Temiscouala, and at several localities will afford good roofing slate. The strata, in their general course, run E. N. E. and W. S. W.— They dip W. N. W. from the granite, at high angles. The planes of cleavage are not always parallel to the strata, and frequently the rock is in a semi-crystalised state, falling down, when exposed to the weather, in small columnar and needle-shaped fragments. As the whole surface is covered with a thick soil, few oppor- tunities are afforded for the inspection of the strata. The rock, however, is quite different in its structure and mineral composition, froi ^ any of the slates farther eastward. The strata are frequently much contorted, and appear to have been twisted before they were consolidated. There are also instances where they have been fractured, and the disjointed parts forced away from each other at right angles, in the manner of faults. The rock in general is a fine clay slate, containing occasionally a considerable quantity of mica. In some instances there is a sufficient quantity of silicious matter present, to constitute greywacke slate; but the most peculiar circumstance, in its mineral composition, is the presence of lime, which sometimes exists in sufficient quantities to afford a pure limestone. At Ivey's farm, about six miles from Richmond corner, the limestone has been found sufficiently pure for agricultural purposes ; and a small kiln has been put in operation. I observed that attempts had WOODSTOCK. IRON ORE. 4S been made at severnl other places to calcine tlie rock, but the lime it contains is insuiticient to allow it to slake, alter it has been burned. It is from the prcsenc ^ lime that the soil in this district is so fertile ; and the composition of the slate is such, that as soon as it is disintegrated, it forms a productive soil. In a work I have commenced on the Agri- culture of the Province, the soils have been classed with re- ference to the rocks from which they have been derived ; and nowhere is the propriety of such a plan rendered more ob- vious, than in the County of Carleton, where the rocks, and the soil upon them, are identical in their composition. IRON ORE. The slate sometimes contains veins of quartz ; but more frequently there are narrow seams of the carbonate of lime. No iron pyrites was observed, and the soil is generally free from those salts and compounds of iron and sulphur, that would injure its fertility. About two and a half miles from Woodstock, and near the main road leading through Jackson Town, there is a very extensive and valuable bed of iron ore, on land belonging to Colonel Ketchum. This ore is interstratified with the slate, and, like the strata on each side, extends from W. S. W. to N. N. E., in layers nearly perpendicular. This deposit of iron had been supposed to exist in one stratum, but upon examination, I found it to be laid in three separate beds.-— Measuring across the outcropping and the strata, it appears at the surrace in the following manner : — Clay Slate. Ore 28 feet, Slate 250 do. Ore 15 do. Slate 100 do. Ore 27 doi Clay Slate. Total thickness of ore, 70 feet. ' t' '' " ■ " ■ " The above is the most accurale measurement I could obtain, under the obstacles presented by the detritus, and a luxuriant growth of trees, and other herbage upon the sur- face. These beds of iron can be traced to the distance of half a mile; they doubtless extend to a great distance, and Mm * 40 GEOLOGICAL REPOHT mny hcreat'tcr be found crossing the Saint John. The ore itself is distinctly stratified, and conforms to the position of the strata of slate ; and the difference of quality m different beds, is not such as will materially affect its properties for working in the furnace. The ore is a compact red, or redish brown nematite ; or the hydrous peroxide of iron. Wherever it is exposed to the atmosphere, its colour becomes changed to black, or dark blue ; from whicli fact, it has been supposed to contain a considerable quantity of manganese ; but these colours are deceptive, and arise altogether from the opera- tions of the atmosphere, moisture, &c. By descending a tew inches into its solid masses, the true characters of the mineral may be readily observed. The analysis of a specimen from the middle of the bed gave— Peroxide of Iron.... 78.40 Silica ,.. 1.20 -♦ Alumina 5.80 •— Water 12.60 Peroxide of Manganese... a trace. 98.00 'i The structure of this ore is frequently fibrous, and it appears as if it had been imperiectly crystalized. It is easily reduced in the furnace, and will produce from forty to fifty per cent, of excellent iron. From the situation and extent of the beds, no expense will be required to open a mine, and so great is the quantit\' of ore, that it would supply America with iron thousands ofyears. A beautiful variety of hematite was found near the most northerly bed ; it is of a bright red colour, breaks with a conchoidal fracture, and is very sonor- ous; it will not, however, yield so large a quantity of iron as the kind already mentioned. The discovery of this great deposit of iron in the Couny of Carleton was claimed as late as 1836, but it is well known that specimens of the ore had been sent abroad and examined as early as 1820 ; and its ex- istence was known to the first inhabitants of Woodstock. The slate on each side of the ore is of a brick red colour, and very ferruginous; but the ore itself is quite distinct from its matrix. From the great abundance of wood in this dis- trict, and the occurrence of limestone, every advantage is of- fered for the manufacture of iron. Up to the beginning of the seventeenth century, the smelting of iron and all the meialb was performed by charcoal ; smelting by coal or coke ._.S«tt- ^m. WOODSTOCK, --IRON OHE. 47 was introduced in consequence of the scarcity of wood, in countries where it was formerly abundant. lor this reason, smelting furnaces in Europe were removed from the sites of ancient forests to the coal districts ; but in reference to the iron ore under consideration, as it exists in the native forest, there will be an abundant supply of fuel for the purposes of its manufacture for many years to come. It is very evident that all the strata of slate were produced by the agency of water, which collected their argillaceous materials and spread them out in broad layers of tine sediment; these, by great pressure and time, have become consolidated, and are now seen in solid rocks with their strata uplifted. The iron ,ore was probably once a ferruginous mud, or it may have been a deposit of the hydrate of iron, similar to the collections of bog iron ore, now forming on the surface of the earth. The hematite of Nova Scotia abounds in the remains and casts of marine shells, the most certain evidences of its having been formed at the bottom of some shallow estuary of the sea. In the slates and ore of Woodstock, I have not yet discovered the remains of testacea, although they mny yet be found. The iron of the County of Carleton forms an important part of the natural wealth of the Province. Situated in a very fertile district, near the State of Maine, where it has a communication with New-Brunswick by the Houlton road, and within a short distance of the Saint John where it is navigable for steamboats, it is of great value and importance to the Province. Hereafter, should a communication by railroad be opened between Saint Stephens and Woodstock, or by water along the Cheputnecticook River and Lakes, a new channel of transportation would be offered. Again, the extensive demand for iron in the upper part of the Province, where the rivers and lakes, bordering on the high road to Canada, arc open for water communication, places this de- posit of iron in a very important light: especially as in this quarter the nature of the country is such, that the time can- not be far distant when a general improvement will be made of its natural advantages. This part of the Province is also destined to become of considerable national value, on account of its being situated near the American frontier, and the bor- der of that immense tract which unites New-Brunswick and Canada. And although the Slate of Maine has within a few years past offered to claim the upper part of the Saint John, and its lakes and tributaries, it can scarcely be supposed that the British Government will ever yield to a demand sounrea- ♦ill ';!i t:| •i. i 49 CEOLOCK'AL REPORT. f H f 1 !♦ soimble, ami likewise so very dangerous to the best intereikts and safety of u flourishing and loyal Colony. From Park's Hill, the Houlton road, and the higher gronnds in the neighbourhood of Jackson Town, the summit of Mnrs Hill, and u chain of high Innds running in the diFec- tion of Mount Ktaadn, are distinctly visible ; and evidently form a part of the " high lands" referred to in the treaty, as forming a natural and reasonable boundary between the Pro- vince and the United States. The soil on the slate is of a superior quality, and wherever it is cultivated, it aflbrds ex- cellent crops ; this arises, in a considerable degree, from the greater quantity of lime entering into its composition tlian is contained in tne soils which have had their origin in the arenaceous rocks. In general it is of a light brown colour, very tenacious when wet, but light and friable in a dry state. In consequence of the lime in the argillaceous strata, the rocks, when they are disintegrated, supply a debris which be- comes immediately fertile ; and the lime, silcx and cluy, ap- pear to exist in such proportions, that little improvement of them can be made by art, until the soil becomes impoverish- ed by long culture. Notonlv is the difference in the appear- ance and character of the soil on the slate obvious to the com- mon observer, but by a careful examination, I have found the increased strength and productiveness of the soils in this quarter to arise almost altogether from the presence of lime, and in situations where the lime is absent, the fertility of fields has been invariably found to be less than where it is present. This hint may be of some advantage to farmers who cultivate silicious or clayey soils, to which lime should be ap- plied ; especially in situations where the calcareous reck can be obtained at a moderate expense. It has lung been known that lime is necessary to the production of wheat, and it is on this account that the argillo-calcareous soils of Carleton are so well adapted for raising that kind of grain. The fertile covering of the argillaceous slntCvS, already mentioned, resem- bles the recent alluvium of the Saint John, great quantities of which have been conveyed down the stream from those rocks by the river. It may be said that all the alluvial deposits along the St. John, which are sufficiently elevated to admit of cultivation, are productive, bnt none of them are equal in fertility to those at Woodstock and other parts of Carleton. The latter have been produced altogether by the river currents acting upon the rocks, and the numerous small streams conveying WOOUSTOCK. 49 mt iiitereiits the fine sediment froni the cnlcareous sirntn. This peculiar iight brown calcnreous soil is also tbiuul in the intervales and along the banks of the Saint Juliii, nnd at levels much abovu the How of the highest freshets; but it will be seen hereafter that this majestic stream has been lowered — it has left its ancient bed at many places, and worn for itself a lower and deeper channel. The characters of all rivers aregreotly influenced by the nature of the rocks over which they pass ; an illustration of this fact is very clearly exhibited by the Saint John, which intersects, in its course, rocks of different degrees of hardness, and such as arc unequally acted upon by its currents. Near the mouth of the Saint John, the river passes through unyielding masses of trap rock, sienite and lime- stone ; and although it is by no means certain that this river has made its exit through its present narrow channel for any long period of time, its passage is deep and narrow. At Grand Bay, where the river makes its way through deep beds of gravel and coarse sandstone, it becomes expanded ; at the Long Reach the hardness of the trap rock nnd granite, on each side, has compelled the river to move along a deej) narrow channel. The more yielding strata of sandstone ol' the coal field, between Fredericton and the head of the Long Reach, has allowed the stream to enlarge itself, and make room for Islands. In passing through the greywacke above, the stream again becomes contracted, and the granite of the Pokiok and Meductic shew their effects in the narrow- ness of the channel and rapidity of the water. Tliese causes have added greatly to the beauty and variety of the scenery, which is now alternately bold and tame, according to the nature of the rocks forming the country around. The scenery between Fredericton and Woodstock, is much bolder than it is near Gagetown, and the banks of the stream frequently rise with beauty and grandeur from its sides. Although there are many fine farms situated along the flanks of the hills, the surface bears the aspect of a new country. At Woodstock the landscape is much improved ; and the beautiful and luxuriant fields, situated upon the an- cient bed of the stream, and rising in parallel steps from the river, give a new and very interesting feature to the scenery. The meadows are ornamented with fine native trees, and the majestic Saint John rolls along towards the ocean, bearing downward the pine of the forest, beneath which the abori- ginal tribes chased the moose and carriboo, now fast disap- pearing before the introduction of the axe and the plough. G i m^ It 50 GEOLOGICAL RKPORT. That this part of the Province is destined to become a l^rcat agricultural and manufacturing district, can scarcely be doubted ; and the facility of obtaining lands in the Pro- vince, offers every encouragement to the inhabitants of the country, and immigrants, to settle them. Still farther west, an immense tract of excellent land remains in its native wil- derness state ; and thousands of the surplus population of the mother country would find comfortable homes, where, at present, the forest is unbroken and the rivers arc unex- plored. It is possible for steam-boats, properly constructed, to ascend the river as far as the Grand Falls, seventy-five miles above Woodstock. Independent of such a communication, the great improvements made in the roads within the last four years, have produced a most favourable change in the whole of the upper country. It is to be hoped, that, in a short time, the communication with Quebec will be com. pleted, and intercourse with Canada, thereby increased. Extensive settlements are opening in the County of Carleton, and the villages on tlic Houlton road, and bordering on Jackson Town, are in a very flourishing condition. Wood- stock, from being a frontier town, will always be a place of importance to the Government, and the natural resources of the country around will secure its prosperity. I 'iil il>' ■if NORTHAMPTON, SOUTHAMPTON, QUEENS- BURY, AND DOUGLAS. The rocks were examined between Woodstock and the mouth of the Nashwaak, opposite Fredericton : the several formations of granite, greywacke, slate, and sandstone, al- ready described, cross the Saint John, in following their courses to the north-east. The several points at which they terminate, still remain to be explored. The soil upon the greywacke of Northampton, is generally good. Nothing of any practical importance was found in the rocks of this Pa- rish. Iron pyrites sometimes occurs in small <|uantities. The strata in general run E, N. E. and dip W. N. W. * MM* MINERAL SPRINGS. 51 High beds of diluvial sand and gravel are common. In one of tliese deposits at the Mednctic, a number of ancient Indian graves were opened, in making a new road. Several curi- ous kinds of tools made of stone were found, and have been carefully preserved. There is a tradition that a great battle was once fought at this place between two of the aboriginal tribes, and the graves are said to be those of the Indians who fell in the conflict. The granite meets the greywacke about two miles west- ward of Parent's Inn. The soil here is light and sandy, and frequently filled with boulders. It is nevertheless very pro- ductive, and well adapted to the culture of Indian corn. In the Caverhill Settlement there are some excellent farms, and good crops are raised wherever attention is paid to agriculture. On the west side of the Keswick, there is a high ridijc of land known by the name of the Keswick Ridge : the granite was also found to continue to this place. It is deep- ly covered by beds of diluvial matter and an excellent soil. This ridge is now the site of a very extensive and flourishing settlement. The Mactaquack River is also stretched along the north-east side of a ridge of greywacke. The country here becomes more mountainous, and to the north there are hills of considerable altitude. From the farm of Mr. Sher- don there is a very extensive view. Mount Prospect, Peak- ed Mountain, and Oak Mountain, in the neighbourhood of the Mi-gaguadavic, are seen to advantage. The high and uninhabited country at the sources of the Pekagamic River is also distinctly visible. I MINERAL SPRINGS. There tire two very interesting mineral springs in the Keswick settlement. The most important of these is situat- ed on the farm of Mr. Humphrey Sisson, about six miles from the mouUi of the river. It breaks out at the foot of u hill of delrital sand and gravel, and near the margin of a swamp. At the time of my visit, it was venting about a gal- lon and a half per minute. The odour of sulphureted hy- drogen was perceived at soiiic distance from the spring, and the peroxide of iron collects silong the bottom and sides of the water-course leading from it. The inhabilaiits have al- ready discovered the water to be medicinal, and they employ' it in the cure ol" cutaneous and other diseases. It has a fer- ruginous taste, and when taken in any considerable quantity, ifj 52 GEOLOGICAL REPORT. % ,1 it excites nausea and exhibits cathartic propertiesf. The fol«' lowing is the most correct analysis of the water I have been able to make, for it is liable to undergo some change during its transportation, unless it is secured from the air. In one pint of 'water — Carbonic acid — cubic inches 1.0 Sulphurcted hydrogen — do. do. 4 3.0 Sulphate of lime — grains 1.2 Sulphate of magnesia, a trace. Sulphate of soda — grains ^ .11.5 Peroxide of iron — grains 2.8 The water reddens the infusion of litmus and with the nitrate of silver throws down a brown precipitate. The tinc- ture of galls gives a dark purple colour ; the sulphates of soda and magnesia arc readily detected by the common tests. A similar spring will be found not far from the mills on the above river. The medicinal properties of these waters have been in some degree already ascertained ; and when it is considered that they flow in e. beautiful and healthy part of the country where every comfort might be obtained for invalids, it is evi- dent that the time cannot be far distant when they will be- come places of fashionable resort. Were these springs situ- ated in many parts of Europe, they would soon procure for- tunes for their proprietors ; nor can it be doubted that when they arc better known, and their virtues are more duly ap- preciated, even in their present situation they will be valuable. The Keswick river runs through a deep valley to the distance of twelve miles — the length of the settlement. At its exit into the Saint John, there are several large and very beautiful islands, ornamented with native trees, and forming some of the finest meadows in the Province. One of these islands, the property of the Hon. Colonel Shore, is remark- able for its fertility and beauty. The soil in the valley of the Keswick is generally sandy. The stream itself passes through rich alluvium. About one mile below the mouth of the above river, new red sandstone appears again, and reposes on the grey- wackc ; it extends towards the north-east, in a belt about a mile wide. The strata are of a deep red, or chocolate colour, and do not differ very materially from those near Brower's farm, on the opposite side of the Saint John. Four miles .^ * Clarke's hill. # 53 below the Keswick, there is an elevated ninss of trup, called Clarke's Hili. The rock is very hard, and on the surface it is broken in angular pieces. This hill of trap is contempora- neous with a similar one on the road to Stanley. On the Royal Road this rock is elevated into a cliff from a hundred to a hundred and fifty feet in height, with a slope of debris piled along its base. The trap consists of the amorphous and amygdaloidal varieties ; which sometimes contain veins and nodules of calcareous spar and i»ngnetic oxide of iron. I did not, however, discover any of the zeolites so common in the trap rocks of Nova-Scotia. These elevated trappean ridges afford all the usual evidences of having been foiceil upwards through the sandstones, since they were deposited, and which were thereby changed in the inclination of their strata. #' m-' M > I SI 1 #■ .-^■«K TERRACES. a"* J I have heretofore deferred entering u})on the subject of terraces, until my observations should be more extended, ami embrace the li'cts collected from the principal rivers ot the Province; for a iiasty and imperfect exaniination of any phenomenon must often be followed by incorrect opinions. It is not intende(^ to shew, on the present occasion, by what means valleys in general have been formed, or how far they have been produced by the uplifting of the strata, or the action of water in wearing them out. Of themselves, the valleys of New-Brunswick would afford an interesting sub- ject. But those peculiar embankments seen on the rivers of .'.lis Province, require a little consideration. On the banks of these rivers, we frequently find in ascending from the mar- gin of the water, several parallel steps, which rise abruptly from one level surface to iKiother in succession. Most fre- quently these steps are composed of diluvial matter, or that which is collected by the ortlinary operations of water. It is certain that in all those places where these steps or terraces appear, the bed of the stream has been lowered, or the sur- face, formerly covered with water, has been drained. I will first endeavour to give some illustration of this subject, by referring to the terraces themselves, and afterwards enquire into those causes from which they have resulted. 'Vhe effects of change of level in the bed of the St. John, are well displayed at the ferry four miles below Woodstock. In travelling here from the river to the higher grounds, we ascend by successive steps, and sec the ancient shores of the stream rise in regular ortler by a series of steep embankments, as rcpicscnied by the following wood ctit. '■^ - TEUllACES. Terraces near the loxvcr Ferry at Woodstock, CIIOSS SECTION. 55 m subject of iilctl, mul 's ot the 1 of any pinions, asion, by r how far a, or the ves, the ting sub- rivers of le banks the niar- abruptly VIost frc- or that r. It is terraces the sur- Iwill iject, by enquire >t. John, 0(1 stock, nds, we IS of the knients, '^S!P''^"^\. "V jT— a. The River. b. F'irst Terrace, twenty-two feet above tlic river level ; distance across, lifty yardp c. Second i erracc, twenty-eight lect above river level ; distance across, forty yards. d. Third Terrace, forty-eight feet above river level. The first and second terraces are composed altogether of alluvium, which contains the remains of fluviatile shells; the most certain evidences of its having been collected by the river, during the present order of nature. The third terrace, r/, is composed of diluvial gravel, sand and pebbles, which once formed the shore of the Saint John at this place ; but from which the water has retreated by successive steps. Near the mouth of the Maduxnakeag the ancient bed of the river is now dry, and bears excellent crops of grain, po- tatoes and grass. The following section of these terraces was taken farther eastward, where the still more a.icient bed of the strcH..! has been deserted. CROSS SECTION. a ■"^.^V . ^ a. liivcr. b. First Tiles ; these, however, are but small in their dimensions, compared with the p€ at bogs of Ireland. The peat bogs of New-Bruns- wick are capable of affording (under the peculiar circumstan- ces by which peat may be changed into a substance of a bitu- minous character,) a vast quantity of coal and whether the carboniferous strata, now found in the coal district, were de- rived from snhagneous plants or trees, it appears quite obvi- ous that many bo^s, now upon the surface of the earth, are gradually advancing to that condition^ wherein they will af> lord solid fuel, and may contribute to supply future genera- tions with the means of producing heat, equal to those of the present period. The importance of the immense, but almost unexplored deposits of coal in the Province, must be obvious to all who reflect upon the subject. Being situated upon the Gulph of Saint Lawrence, they are sufficient to supply Canada, and all the demanrls of the extensive coasts of the Gulph. They are also capable of sustaining manufactories, rail-road com- munication, and steam navigation, to an extent scarcely to be contemplated in the present day. When the wood, now abundant upon the surface, has disappeared^, these deposits arc equal to the domestic fuel that will then be required, and they will also support a trade with other parts of the world. When the anticipated canal to open a communication between the Bay of Fundy and the Saint Lawrence, shall be completed, the exportation of coal from this quarter to the American seaports, will be rendered easy. The actual com- pletion of the above work, is of the first importance to the British American Colonies, and as coal possesses the power of raising and transporting itself, it may be seen how import- ant a part the Province is calculated to take in the commerce of America. These views urge themselves more forcibly upon the mind, when it is considered that the Western States of the Republic do not possess this valuable mineral ; and at tliose places wliere it does occur in the Western Territory, it is deposited far froni the free chaontsls of navigation, Aid COAL FIELD. 69 remote from those towns where it is most required. At pre- sent, nhnost all the coal consumed on the shores of the Saint Lawrence is imported from Great Britain, and carried for ballast in exchange for timber. But the importation of an article which is abundant in the Province, in exchange for our exports, can never promote the best interests of the coun- try, and this kind of trade has a tendency to check all enter- prise in a Colony, which Providence has endowed with am- ple resources. ^ ,«>• „, ; ,a m st^i'sJ-fet^rn,, (?:..> ;■■.>■ » w PHYSICAL FEATURES OF THE GREAT COAL HELD OF NEW-BRUNSWICK. .>'i IJ ()i' ■ . . ! It It has been ulready remarked that on% of the peculiar featureK of the Gieat Coal Field, is its small degree of eleva- tion above the level of the sea. This character pervades the whole coast from Cape Tormentine to Bathurst, and will be recollected by all who have visited the Counties of Kent and Northumberland. The elevation alonj; the coast does notoftcn even exce.d twelve feet ; and to the distance of thirty miles in the interior, it is not more than twenty feet. The northern portions of the Counties of Sunbury, Queen's, Westmore- land, the whole of the County of Kent and northern part of the County of Northumberland, appear like a vast level plain which was formerly covered with pine, spruce, and scattered groves of beech, birch and maple : among these the fires have made dreadful ravages, and in many places the green forest has been reduced to a wild and leafless waste. There still remain, notwithstanding, in some situations remote from the navigable streams, large quantitiesof excellent timber, which escaped the devouring element when it swept over the bosom of this part of the country. This broad level area may be estimated at five thousand s(juare miles, where not a rock in situ was observed, except such as belong to the carboni- ferous system. The coal has been found at numerous locali- ties, and ill situations where it can be worked to advantage. From the vieldinf; nature of the sandstones and shales of the Coal Fickl, the sea has v.mde great inroads upon the ttMM COAL FIELD. 71 shore, mid the coast is lined with vast shoals of sand and jiljingle, raised above the ocean by the fury of its waves. T!ie sand is very readily moved, and when the shoals are not covered by beds of oysters or muscles, they are liable to ciM :.ge their situations during heavy gales. One of these iit:oais reaches along the coast some distance from the shore, and extends from the entrance of Richibucto harbour to Cape Tormentine, a distance of sixty miles. Fortunately, there is a sufficient depth of water on its surface to allow ships to pass in safety. Near the shore, there are banks of snnd of smaller dimensions, many of which are dry at low water. From the low and level nature of the country, the sea flows far up the rivers, and navigation is therefore greatly extended. The streams themselves are not broken by falls and rapids, so common on the rivers descending into the Bay of Fundy ; they, therefore, allow rafts, boats and canoes to pass in safety. The harbours at the mouths of the rivers are safe during gules from every point of the compass. The scenery of every part of the country under consideration, as might be expected from its even and almost unbroken sur- face, is remarkably tame ; and it is only where the rivers sud- denly change their directions, or where their banks can be seen for some distance, that they offer any very agveeable prospect to the eye of the traveller. The soil in general is sandy, easily cultivated, and pro- ductive; and in all the instances observed, where due atten- tion had been given to agriculture, the earth had yielded abundantly to the labour of the farmer. Certain tracts are remarkably fertile, and produce a number of crops in succes- sion without the aid of manure. PEAT. In all the lower grounds where the drainage of the sur- face has been prevented, and the water is confined in shal- low basins, the sphagneous plants have taken root, and pro- duced peat bogs, varying in size from a few rods to several square miles. In other instances, lakes have been filled up by those plants which first spread themselves over the sur- face of the water, and finally, by their growth and decay, fill the lakes with peat. Previous to the destruction of the bea- ver, by the Indians and Acadians, by building dams across the small streams, these animals formed numerous lakes and 7t GEOLOGICAL REPORT. '^i; ^ ponds. The sites of many of these collections of water have since been filled with peat ; while the ancient dams of the beaver slill remain across tljeir outlets. Sections of these bogs are sometimes made by the water during freshets, and also by the inroads of the sea along the coast, whereby they shew the changes that have taken place in the character of their vegetation. Jt is sometimes very curious to observe the different kind of plants, which, in these collections, have suc- ceeded each other in their growth. The bottom of the peat basins is almost always lined with a white sand — upon this the decayed vegetable matter reposes. A few fjet above the lower stratum of peat, there is a fallen and entangled layer of trees, (spruce and cedar) ; the trees are succeeded by a few feet ol peat, and then a layer of trees appears again. In one of these bogs three strata of fallen trees were observed. Besides these, there are frequently layers of wild flags, rushes and cranberry vines. The surface is occasionally covered with a stunted growth of spruce and cedar ; but most fre- quently the varieties of mosses are the predominant vege- tables. These circumstances are readily explained. Alter the peat rises in the bog to a certain height, the surface be- comes too dry to allow it to grow, especially in dry seasons. The bog, therefore, remains stationary until the spruce and cedar spring up : these, by increasing the weight on the top of the bog, press the peat downwards, and, by preventing the escape of water by evaporation, again render it sufficiently moist for the production of sphagneous plants, which soon spring up and destroy the trees; they consequently fall, and in their turn become buried. In those instances where sand, gravel and clay have, from time to time, been washed over the peat, the bogs have a striking resemblance to a coal basin, many of which have no doubt been filled by operations some- what similar ; and thus the peat of former periods in the earth's history has been made to contribute to the strength and wealth of nations, and the comfort and happiness of mankind. The peat, abundant in almost every part of the Province, is capable of supplying excellent manure, if it be properly managed i;* composts. Along the coasts it may be mixed with calcined oyster shells, marine plants, and the alluvium of ponds and creeks. In the interior, where those materials cannot be cheaply procured, the compost may be made of peal, barn manure, straw, and the marly red and yellow clay, frequently observed in moist grounds. vege- Atter 'ater have ns of the of these liets, and reby they aracter of )serve the have suc- ' the peat u^jon this ;et above entangled ucceeded irs again, observed. rs, rushes covered tnost fre- int irface be- ' seasons. >ruce and n the top nting the ifficiently lich soon fall, and ere sand, led over ml basin, ns some- > in the trength aess of rt of the if it be maybe and the •e those may be red and ''. '^* ,.,,.; J '-/ / , « . ^ 1 I • 11 J '• '^ 'ROCKS AND xMINERALS : ;' «*' ii (I. 1 ». ..' .< •' ; i.c >) OF THK COAL FIELD. ,.: i 1 ■i. Before I enter upon the Kical details connected with the exploration of the Great Coal Field of New-JBrunswick, it may be necessary to take a general view of the characters of its rocks, and the minerals contained in them ; referring, at the same time, to its mining capabilities, and the encou- ragement it offers for agriculture — a branch of industry to which geology affords much aid. The boundaries of the Coal Field having been given, we may now proceed to the examination of the strata, and the characters by which they may be distinguished. Almost the whole surface of the rocks is covered with detritus^ consisting of beds of sand, gravel, boulders, &c. It is only on the coasts, sides of rivers, and lesser streams, that a view of the rocks can be ob- tained; and, therefore, the field of geological investigation is considerably limited. i . .;. . The rocks formini): the verv extensive district under consideration, consist of ,-.j ^. Conglomerate, Sandstones, Shales, Clay-ironstone, Coal, and 1 rap. J 1« GEOLOGICAL REPORT. The whole of those dificrcnt kinds of rocks, inchiding the coal, the trap excepted, n;-e stratified or placed in regu- lar layers one upon another; and they alternate one with another, without any apparent regularity. The strata also differ materially in their thickness, which varies from a few inches to ten teet. The shale in general occurs in thin strata, and sometimes embraces layors of ferruginous clay, contain- ing nodules of clay-ironstone. The thickness of the coal strata cannot be so readily ascertained, as only the upper or thinnest beds have been exposed : such as have been found on the surface, arc from six inches to two feet and a half in thickness. The strata along the coast and remote from the ridge before-mentioned, are nearly horizontal. It is true that a small degree of inclination may be observed in them at many situations, but the dip is in dificrent directions ; and, admitting that the strata were formed by the operations of water, their inclination is not greater than it would ^c under natural circumstances. Along the elevated grounds sepa- rating the rivers flowing into the Gulph, from those empty- ing into the Saint John, the dip is much greater, and indi- cations are ofl'ercd in proof of the rocks ha\ ing been disturbed and lifted upwards since they were first deposited. This horizontal position of the rocks l)elonging to the carbonifer- ous series, is rather peculiar to this district ; for, in Nova- Scotia and in the County of Westmoreland, they are inclin- ed from 25° to 50° from the horizon. Wherever the strata arc exposed to the weather, they are much fractured. The most solid masses of sandstones are, by the expansion of water in freezings split into thia lamina, parallel to the planes of stratification ; but after the rock has been cut and harden- ed by the heat of the sun, it generally resists all changes of temperature and frost. The sandstones in general are of a dark grey colour, and when first taken from the quarry they are readily cut : they are composed of grains of silicious sand, firmly cemented by an argillaceous paste ami the oxides of iron. In general these rocks are very micaceous, and, there- fore, the soil produced by their disintegration, by containing particles of the brilliant mica, has been supposed by persons unacquainted with the subject, to contain a portion of silver. Many strata will afford superior freestones for architectural purposes, and others are used for grindstones, whetstones, &c. ; bu.they do not equal the grits of Chignecto Bay and Westmoreland for the latter objects. The shales are far less compact, being composed of clay in an indurated state. They are very soft and yielding, and when exposed to the »ste ■■li COAL FIELD. fO nir, soon crumble down into a tenacious clay. Excellent fire clay may be obtained immediately beneath each coal stratum. In every instance where the coal was seen, it was observed to be situated between strata ol' shale, and reposing upon fire clay. The presence of clay at those situations where the coal strata appear, seems to have been a necessary condition for its preservation, or it may have been the soil that bore those numerous plants now found changed into enduring beds of fuel. Another class of strata contains a large quantity of the peroxide of iron; the rock is argillaceous, and embraces no- dules of clay-ironstone. In breaking these nodules it is not uncommon to find crystals of galena and the delicate remains of leaves; strata of this kind have not been found numerous; they were observed on the shores of the Grand Lake, Salmon River, Miramichi and Tedlsh. The coal, so far as it has been discovered, is altogether of the bituminous kind. The strata have only been examin- ed at the surface, where, as might be expected, the coal is often impure : it, nevertheless, burns freely, and appears to be of an excellent quality. The strata of conglomerates are associated with the sand- stones, often passing into them insensibly. This rock is com- ))osed of rounded pebbles from the size of musket ball to ft four-pound cannon shot, firmly cemented togetl^^r : the peb- bles are of quartz, granite, trap, the older slates, &c. — and with these there sometimes appear copper and Iio i pyrites. Another rock found among the strata of the coal series, is trap. Almost the first appearance of this rock in the coal field, was seen on the Royal Road, and at the portage be- tween Boiestown and the Nashwaak. It occurs in large pro- truding masses, evidently having been forced upwards through the strata long after they were deposited. The minerals con- tained in the strata of the carboniferous series, besides the coal and iron, are few and unimportant ; the sulphuret of iron appears frequently, and copper pyrites rarely; carbonate of lime and sulphate of barytes also' occur in small veins. Springs occasionally break out, containing the oxides of iron and sulphureted hydrogen ; some of these have been already described. A careful examination of the sandstones, shales, and fer- ruginous deposits of the coal field, will convince the inquirer that each of these deposits has been the result of the agency of water acting upon materials previously rendered solid. When we view the sand, pebbles, silt, and mud, widely n CKOLOCICAL nKPORT spread along the shore, and in the large basins adjoining the sea, we see, in an impertuct degree, the original condition of the now solid strata. Were the beds of gravel and shingle, now acted upon by the waters of the Gulph and its numer- ous tributary streams, rendered solid, they could scarcely be distinguished, in their lithological characters, from the sand- stones and conglomerates already described. There would be a diflerence arising from the more modern character of the motter contained in the latter beds ; but the same mine- rals would be present, and the mechanical arrangement of the layers would be similar. As the present collections of sand and pebbles have resulted from the breaking up of the rocks along the shores and on the surface ; in the same manner the collections of argillaceous mud, in the estuaries or other ba- sins, undisturbed by currents, would produce slate clay or shale ; and where this mud was highly ferruginous, the clay- ironstone might be expected. But the whole must have been derived from a pre-existing collection of mineral mat- ter. If we search for the rocks similar to those from which even the pebbles of conglomerate have been taken, they can- not now be found nearer than the isthmus between the Kiver Saint Lawrence and the Gulph, an average distance of one hundred and fifty miles. But the strata formed by the consolidation of the sand and shingle of the present shore, and its estuaries would con- tain the remains of shell-fish and other creatures common on the coast ; even the works of art and industry would be seen with other records of the history of the customs and manners of the people who inhabit the land. In the solid strata of the coast we do indeed find innumerable records of animal and vegetable life, the most certain evidences of a fertile soil, and a warm and salubrious climate, in which there flourished a luxuriant growth of vegetables, with numerous animals be- longing to the sea and land : but there is no record whatever of the existence of man, not even the print of his hand nor the mark of his foot. It was at this remote perioil in the his- tory of the rocks, that the coal and iron Mere stored up for his use, and the necessary provision was made for him before he became an inhabitant of the earth. It has been already remarked, that along the whole coast forming the north-east side of the coal-field, there are numerous peat bogs. Many of these bogs are elevated only a few feet above the level of the sea ; and the waves are sometimes seen breaking upon them. Near the entrance of the Miramichi, and at the mouths of other rivers, large ii i i l B i Ui. ■m^ ^mn rOAI. FJKLI). 77 tracts of pent have been siibincr^ed beneath the sen ; in con- secjuence of a depression of the shore, since the present order of nature was estnblishecK I'eat has been found, changed into a species of coal re- sembrmjr lignite ; and lignite sometimes passes into true coal. That peat i.s capable of being converted into coal, is, I be- lieve, admitted by many geologists and chemists of the pre- sent day. Having cnileavoured to oft'er a concise explanation of the manner in which the arenaceous and argillaceous strata were formed, we may for a moment look at the consequences that would be likely to result, from the submersion of these peat bogs, beneaUi the waters of the Gulph ; where they are soon covered by successive layers of mud, sand and cal- careous deposits, containing marine shells. Under these cir- cumstances, it is evident that the sand would be converted into sandstone, the mud into shale or slate clay, and the ac- cumulations of the shells of oysters anil other testacen, with their exuviaj, into fossiliferous limestone. The peat n)ight be changed into coal ; and the drift trees, comujon in each of these deposits, would correspond, in some degree, with those now found in a fossil state in the solid strata. All these circumstances correspond so nearly with those wliich it is certain mu«t have taken place in the coal Held, that it is exceedingly diflicnlt to remove from the mind their identity. The operations going forward at the present time, are, per- haps, very inferior in magnitude to those which were active in the formation of the great coal-licid ; but their evidences are not less faithful on this account, and their testimony is such that they not only afibrd evidence of the vegetable ori- gin of coal, but the manner in which it was deposited. The peat bogs now buried beneath the waters of the Gulph of St. Lawrence, may hereafter be elevated above the sea, and afford the elements of wealth and happiness to fu- ture generations of the human race; and the deposits of bog iron ore, would afibrd the clay-ironstone, common in almost all coal-fields. The fossils contained in these strata, would not agree, in their characters, with those found in lower and older deposits; but the change in the character of the ani- mal and vegetable kingdoms, would be no greater than that appearing in the formations j)rece(ling them. There are ma- ny reasons for believing that deposits of coal liave taken place, lioni large collections of drift wood ; such as are seen in the mouth of the Mississippi, and other large rivers: but it also appears obvious thai coal has been produced from plants 78 GEOLOGICAL REPORT. thftt flourished upon the very sites whcie it is now found ; and that successive strata have resulted from successive sub- mergence and elevation of the tracts where the coal is now discovered. My object, in making these remarks, is not to speculate with uncertain data, but to present the facts as they occur, referring only to their most probable results. FOSSILS OF THE COAL FIELD. In every part of the Coal Field, the sandstones, shales, and conglomerates contain the remains and impressions of plants. Many of these were of great size, and must have flour- ished in a climate most congenial to their growth. Frequent- ly only their impressions can be seen ; and these, where the rock has been recently broken, are exhibited in great splen- dour and beauty. In ordinary cases, every vestige of the leaves themselves has disappeared ; but sometimes they are seen in thin paper-like lamina- of coal, occupying the spacct where their impressions are made. The tbssil trees arc of different kinds, and occur under different citcumstances ; all of them lie prostrate in, and between the strata, so far as they have yet been observed. In some instances they have been changed into coal ; in others this cliange has been partial ; and parts of the trunks of trees are composed of sandstone, iron pyrites, sulphate of barytes, and other minerals. Large stems are found composed altogether of sandstone, apparent- ly run in a mould like that of the iron founder — being per- fect casts of their originals. In these costs, every remnant of the vegetable texture of the wood has disappeared, but their models are correct representations of their primitive features. Again, we find the original bark changed into coal, while the whole of the internal parts of the tree is now composed of sandstone. In both of these last instances, the sandstones,'now representing the trunks of the trees, contain fossil branches of the same and other plants. Leaves and other parts of vegetables are l'rc(|uently seen in these solid casts, lying in alt directions, and often changed into coal. There cannot bo much doubt that in these instances, the decay of the ))lant, after it was buried in the sand, resulted in a hollow mould or open space, corresponding with the trunk. Into this mould, broken fragments of other plants were lodged, until the cavity Mas filled, and the curious fact of fossils within fossils was the result. There arc many instances where the trees appear to have been dividtJ I vir'hwise, and fossils rcscm- ,..-*f»' -run^-Mwy grn g g pr *" COAL FIELD. 79 ■II bling split billets of wood occur, one side of each piece being circular, while the other sid« is undefined and continuous with the surrounding rock. Similar results would arise from the fossil ization of separate portions of the bark. The bark of the white birch and other trees of the Province, will re- main in its original position many years after the woody parts have been decayed and removed. When such trees are de- cayed and covered by alluvium or sand, the bark is like a long tube, which is readily filled with surrounding matter, through fractured parts of the surface. Large stems occur among the fossils, in which the ligneous fibre remains perfect and distinct ; these are composed of a singular combination of coal, sandstone, sulphuret of iron, sulphate of barytes, and sometimes of calcareous spar: they resemble rotten ash, and split lengthwise very readily. Whatever may have been the nature oi other fossil plants, this variety was evidently a hard wood, and solid throughout, like the oak or ash, to which the fossil has a strong resemblance. The narrow open seams between the annular rings, or what resembles them, are often filled with crystals of sulphate of barytes or carbonate of lime.. There is still another variety of large fossil trees, in which the whole of the trunk has been changed into a compact lig- nite ; the original bark now appears in coal, and when remov- ed from the fossil the surface of the tree resembles pealed oak. Probably this also was a solid tree. Calamites and smaller plants, with fragments of their stems and leaves, are scatter- ed through the strata in all directions ; being contained in the solid masses of rock and between the layers. The stems and fiagments of these plants, when observed by the inhabitants, are supposed by them to be petrifactions of trees now grow- ing in the country, and from their resemblance to decayed 'ma- ple, beech, birch and pine, it is not surprising that such an opinion should be entertained. The plants found in the rocks of the coal field, arc all, without any exception, very different in their characters from those of the present period. Tiieir general features are those of tropical productions; and they evidently flourished in a hot climate. By comparing them with vegetables grow- ing under the line, the similarity is obvious ; a winter of North America, as the climate is now fixed, would have de- stroyed them altogether. Nor can there be any doubt, that since those plants flourished, a great change has taken place in the temperature of the earth and atmosphere of this quar- ter of the globe. WJ N |Ht ' r » lH#H. mmtm»mmimm^ 80 GEOLOGKAL RE POUT. 1 ■flVii- PLANTS OF THK COAL FIELD. A most interesting branch of geological inquiry is found in the stutly of the fossil flora of the ancient world ; nr)tl a number of eminent naturalists have been from time to time engaged iii this peculiar study ; which has already resulted in the most interesting discoveries, and has greatly advanced the science. It is only by comparison that J shall attempt to describe any of the plants belonging to the Coal Field of New Bruns- wick; as nil my elforfs to tlirow any new light upon the subject, would be unavailing, compared with those of persons who have devoted their time and talents to the study of this branch of geology. Messrs. Lindley and Hutton, M. Ad. Brongniart, and others, have described a genus of fossil tree, called lepidndcndron. One of these trees is figured in Buckland's Geology, vol. IL plate 55. The Icpidodendra appear to have been abundant plants of the coal period; and they grew to an enormous size. There is one described in the " Fossil Flora" of Great Britain, .that occurred in the Jarrow Coal Field, which measured nearly forty feet in height, with a base of thirteen and a half feet. 'I'hc sepa- ration of the leafstalks from the stems, has left scars running spirally around them. They appear to have been arborescent plants, and arc not rivr.Mcd in beauty by any now growing upon the earth. Large truiiks and fragments of the Icpido- dendra may be seen in the coal-tields of New Brunswick ; but the best specimens could only be procured by opening mines. Among these large fossil plants, are those called, by M. Ad. Brongniart, sigilLtriu^ from the peculiar impressions seen on their surfaces. They occur in long fluted masses, marked with impressions in the most regular manner: these marks are the scars lelt by the leafstalks when they fell off. The trunks of these trees were of great size. One of them, seen in the shaly sandstone of the Kichibucto, measureil two feet four inches in diameter ; and, from the dimensions of the fragments observed in other parts of the coal field, they were a lofty race of plants. At the South .loggins, in the County of Cumberland, Nova Scotia, the trunk of an enor- nious tree of this variety was seen a few years ago forming cu angle perpendicular to the strata ; but all those observed in Kew Brtniswick a'-e nearly horizontal. Besides these, there are large trunks and stems of plants that bear some rcsem- ^*r COAL FiriLD. 81 lELU. I inquiry is found ;nt world ; nntl a roni time to time ; already resulted gieatly'advanced ttempt to describe •Id of New Bruns- ;w light upon the h those of persons the study of this 1 Hutton, M. Ad. a genus of fossil ; trees is figured in The Icpidodendra ic coal period ; and is one described in jut occurred in the [early fortv feet m If feet, the sepa- ls left scars runumg e been arborescent ly any now growing lents of the Upido- cw Brunswick ; but [l by opening mines, those called, by M. ecidiar impressions ong Hutcd masses, luhir manner : these when they fell oil. ,izc. One of them, iucto, measured two the dimensions ot the coal field, they iith .Toggins, in the ; trunk of an enor- dars ago forming en |l those observed ni Jesides these, there t bear some resem- blance to tlie fir tribes ; to wliat species tjjcy should be at- tached is not yet satisfactorily deternnned. Among the smaller plants, are those resembling ferns and equisetums, and the shale, situated both above and below the coal, contains the remains of a liunily of j)lants, called, by Lindley and Hutton, stigmaria. It has been remarked, by Mr. W. E. Logan, that, in South Wales, these plants are found almost exclusively in the underclay of beds of coal.* — This fact has been observed in the coal-fields of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. When taken together, all the fossils of the coal period agree with those of Cireat Britain ; two species of the fern tribe were, however, found near Bathurst, which are different IVoni any I have seen figured of European species. From the appearance of these vegetable remains, it would seem that many of them, previous to their becoming fossilized, were in a decayed state. The wood of the pine family and others, when it is rotten, breaks into cubical mas- ses, like coal ; many of the fossils have the same property, and the small fissures between each mass are frequently filled with iron, and rai-ely with copper pyrites, sulphate of barytes and other minerals. The living ash, beech, elm and maple, when they become decayed, exhibit the fibrous structure of the plants, and cleave in a longitudinal direction, Amono the fossil plants, we find those that possess the same sh ucturc : and, therefore, it is probable that they were somewhat like tjjem in their living state. It must not, however, be supposed, that all these plants were in a decayed state, at the time of their iossili/at'-m ; the perfection of fern and other leaves, shew that they, an '^J^ ^ 4^^ %%^^ v^.^^ p Ss '/ # % 90 GEOLOGICAL REPORT. Steep cliff eighty feet high, nnd forty feet above the level of the stream ; it is contained between strata of bituminous shale. Thick strata of coarse grey sandstone meet the sliule above and below ; the shales, including the coal, being about thirty feet in thickness. The upper part of the cliff and its base along the river, are shaded by a lofly growth of hem- lock, spruce and pine. The coal is about two feet in thick- ness, and of an excellent quality. It is probable that there is another stratum of coal near the base of the cliff, but the debris and rubbish skirting the front of the bold escarpment, rendered our labours to discover the second stratum unsuc- cessful. The strata dip north-west 10° ; this is also the ge- neral dip of all tlie beds in this quarter. The coal appearing farther up the stream and at Big Brook, is evidently continu- ous from this cliff. From the small degree of inclination in the strata, it is probable that only the most supei ficial bed of coal has been discovered. By sinking a shaft near the head of the navigation, it is probable that the coal might be found at an inconsiderable depth below the surface ; thence it could be shipped down the Richibucto. Immediately at the base of the steep precipice before- mentioned, there is a mineral spring issuing from beneath the coal. This stream sends forth a strong eflluvium ri'sul- phureted hydrogen ; and its peculiar odour is perceptible to the distance of several hundred yards. Bubbles of gas are constantly rising to the surface, and from the application of a lighted match some of them took fire and burned for a few moments with a pale blue flame. The water has a nauseous and sulphurous taste ; and when taken, even in moderate quantities, it produces purging. It has been found useful in the cure of certain cutaneous diseases, and is still the resort of wild animals. The following is the medium result of several trials made in its analysis : In one pint Carbonic acid — cubic inches 0.7 Sulphureted hydrogen — cubic inches 2.5 Sulph. of soda — grains 3.5 Peroxide of iron — grains 2.0 Silicia — grains 0.5 It is evident that this spring possesses medicinal properties of considerable power; but its secluded situation will render it almost useless, until the country around shall be inhabited. . :i TOrOGRAPlIICAr, DETAILS. 91 The casts and remains of plants appear in considerable numbers in the sandstones of the Richibucto. About a mile and a half above the town of Liverpool, on the west side of die river, and on the Indian grant, they are common. These fossils have been mistaken by the inhabitants for petri- fied pine and maple, and other kinds of recent wood ; but they are all the productions of a much warmer climate than any in North America at the present period, and unlike any of the plants growing in New-Brunswick. The strata fre- quently contain globular masses of sandstone and ironstone as large as cannon balls ; these are sometimes liberated from the rock by the action of the water and frost. They consist of successive layers formed around a central nucleus, and were probably produced by the rolling along of hardened masses over the sand and mud, of which the strata were ori- ginally formed. BOG IRON ORE. My attention was directed, by the Hon. John W. Wel- don, to a deposit of bog iron ore, situnted about half a mile westward of the town of Liverpool. The bog has been par- tially opened in making a new road, and a small quantity of the ore has been exposed. This variety of iron ore exists in many of the low swampy grounds in this part of the Province, and might be employed in the manufacture of cast iron ; its quantity is constantly increasing from being transported from the soil by water flowing over the surface. It has been already stated that an extensive bar of sand has been thrown up along this coast. At the mouth of the Richibucto, there is a bar across the river, about five miles in length. It has been cut through, by the current, at its mem channel, and also by a small passage on the eastern side of the harbour. This bar will average fifty rods in width, and its central portion is attached to a beautiful island covered with roil pine. The sand is first thrown up to high water mark by the waves, it is then blown into mounds by the wind, and frequently resembles the out-works of fortifications. -1^, I* 1 KOUCniBOUGUASIS. M This is a small river between the Richibucto and Kon- chibouguac, wliici), conlniry to the incaning of the Indian **"^s^BIBil^^-«^*'^^P*' '*i^"^*W #' ' .JU— " i L . U^rJ^^,., 92 GEOLOGICAL REPORT. name it has received, is smaller than the former stream. The river passes along a channel worn out of the sandstone. Small seams of coal also appear on this stream. Tlio soil is more light and sandy here than it is farther eastward ; it iS) nevertheless, capable of being successfully cultivated. KOUCHIBOUGUAC. Northward of the before-mentioned river about fifteen miles, is the Kouchibouguac. Like the Ilichibucto, tiiese streams open into harbours formed by sand bars at their mouths. The surface of the country is more uneven here, than in the neighbourhood of the Kichibucto. Excellent freestones and grindstones may be quarried along the sides of these streams. The rock is a compact grey micaceous sandstone, containing, in many places, the fossils of the coal field in great abundance. The remains of some of these plants will be seen near the bridge and mills on the main road leading to Miramichi. There are but few good farms in this direction. As lumbering has heretofore been the principal employment of the inhabitants, the capabilities of the soil are scarcely known. The same rocks prevail along the whole shore to Poiit Escuminac, where a large area of land is scarcely elevated above the level of the sea. It was not deemed necessary to explore these rivers to their sources, as the country through which they pass is composed altogether of rocks belonging to the same class, and contains only the minerals already noticed. Coal and iron are the only important minerals in the County of Kent ; these, with the soil, are su'" 'ent to give profitable employment to a large population, . pendent of timber and the fisheries. COUNTY OF NORTHUMBERLAND. Between the beforementioned rivers and the Miramichi there are several small streams. The largest of these are Bay des Vents, Black and Nepan Rivers ; tliese streams also pass along channels worn out of the sandstone bv the O))crations of their waters. In some places they arc skirted with narrow belts of intervale and tracts of productive red soil : there arc, however, patches of white and yellow sand, covered with laurel and peat. In approaching Miramichi :7»-. TOPOGRAPHICAL DKTAILS. 93 from the southward, the soil becomes more argillnccous, and often resembles alluvium. Eastward of the Nepan River, a few scattered boulders begin to appear, and near Chatham they are quite numerous ; they are of granite, syenite, and trap, and identical with those rocks where they are found in situ on the north sice of the Gulph of Saint Lawrence, whence they have evidently been transported ; but, whether by ice, or by water under a former condition of the country, it is difficult to decide. There are many good farms in this quarter, but large tracts, capable of affording a due reward to industry;, are unoccupied ; the settlements being confined to the sea shores and the banks of the rivers. Northumberland is one of the largest Counties of the Province, and, when considered in reference to its soil, minerals, fisheries, and timber, it is a district of much im- portance to New Brunswick. The Miramichi, a large and beautiful river, passes directly through this County; while its branches, extending in all directions, uftbrd great facili- ties of transportation from the interior. This river is nearly two hundred miles in length. Having descended with con- siderable rapidity from its principal sources, it becomes na- vigable for large vessels ; and finally opens into a spacious bay. The banks of the river are settled to the distance of a hundred miles ; the mouths of the principal branches are also thinly inhabited; but, remote from the streams, the country is in its original wilderness state, and tliousands of acres of land, capable of cultivation, are covered by dense forests. Upon the main river and many of its branches there are some excellent intervales ; even these, in many situations, remain uncleared. From fifteen to twenty miles above the mouth of the river there are three towns, with a number of handsome villages adjoining. Chatham, New- castle, and Douglas Town, are places of great trade in timber, ships, and fish, and the country has improved rapid- ly, notwithstanding a most calamitous fire that destroyed two of its towns and a number of villages only a few years ago. Large sums of money have been expended in the erection of steam and water-mills, for the manufacture of lumber; and a spirit of enterprize has prevailed that is unri- valled in any part of America. Agriculture and mining have, however, been almost altogether neglected, and it is only of late that any advances have been made in those im- portant branches of industry. These few hints :nc thrown out for the information of persons abroad, into whose hands this Report may fall ; and although they may not be con- ."f .tj: • 1 il 1)1- GKOLOCilCAJ, KEPOIIT. I'! 'I 11 r siiloied to be of a geologiCiil nature, llicy form an important outline of the inquiry under consideration. The whole of the shore, from Point Escuminac to the town of Chatham, is composed of the sandstones and con- •rlomcrates of tfie coal field. The rocks are elevated but a few feet above high water mark, and the fine settlements along the shore are almost level with the waters of the Gulph. The islands of Miramichi Day are composed chiefly of sand, which has been thrown up by the waves and cur- rents. The most remarkable features of this part of the Coun- ty are the evidences of a depression of the coast having taken place, within a comparatively recent period. In the vicinity of Bay des Vents, and Lower Bay des Vents, extensive peat bogs are seen at low water, reaching outwards under the sea, being buried beneath its waves. I examined this peat carefully, and found it to be of super-marine growth ; how lar these bogs extend beneath the Bay, and have been covered by beds of sand and gravel, cannot be readily ascertained ; there is reason to believe, however, that an extensive area of low land has been submerged, and the higher portions of it arc now scarcely above the tide level. Tliese facts appear more extraordinary when compared with those which shew that the coast near Bathurst has been elevated; but they arc the result of geological changes and catastrophes, to which the earth has been subject ever since it was created, and be- came a revolving mass in the heavens. Between Newcastle and Black lliver, on both sides of the main stream, the sandstones appear in cliffs from fifteen to thirty feet in height; and the strata are nearly horizontal. The uj)per layers of the rock having been acted upon by the frost, are much fractured, and frequently split into thin la- mina. Near the water level they have suffered less, and they often appear in broad compact masses, capable of af- fording good freestones of large dimension. The water is constantly wearing away the yielding rock, and singular grottos, with deep notches, have beoti worn out along the level of the Bay. Excellent freestones may be procured from these strnta. The new Bank at Newcastle, and a number of buildings at Chatham and Douglas Town are built of these rocks. The freestones are readily quarried and cut ; and buildings composed of them have a venerable European appearance. Messrs. Gilmour and Rankin and the lion. Joseph Cunard have employed them in the erec- tion of their excellent mills. These freestones form a valu- I TOPOGRAPHICAL liETAILS. 9.5 ortant to the I con- but a mients of the chiefly tl cur- Coun- r taken k^icinity ve peat ler the lis peat I ; how covered taincd ; area of ns of it appear h shew hey are which and be- sides of n fifteen rizontal. [1 by the thin la- jss, and c of af- water is singular ong the )rocured ', and a own are quarried en er able kin and the crec- i a valu- able part of the natural resources of the County ; thev are abundant, and may be transported at a low rale. The brown and yellow varieties of this rock should not be em- ployed in architecture, as they will not resist the weather : the compact grey kinds are very durable. Interstratified with these sandstones, soft shale, and fire chy, sometimes occur at the bases of the cliffs. In all these the fossil plants belonging to the coal period are common. Large trees have been changed into coal, lig.iite, iron pyrites, and sandstone. These trees are situated parallel to the strata, and sometimes form an irregular layer between them. Most frequently they extend in an east and west direction, and by being more readily acted upon than the sandstone itselfi they have been worn out, and deep holes are left in the cliffs. Very often the whole tree has been changed into sandstone, except the bark, which, being converted into coal, encircles the fossil, as it did when both were in a living state. Ferns and coniferous plants are numerous ; but none of the cactacea were observed. Wherever these fossils are found, the rock is of a brownish red colour, from the presence of the peroxide of iron. About five miles below Chatham, there is every indica- tion of the existence of workable beds of coal : a small but perfect stratum of the bituminous mineral appears in the cliff, and on the property of Mr. Willison ; fine specimens of coal were found here, and accompany this Report. The abundance of fossils, the presence of shale and fire-clay, al- ways accompanying coal in these Provinces, and every other condition of the rocks, render it almost certain that coal may be obtained here at no great depth from the surface. Near the mouth of the Nepan River, a conglomerate composed of small pebbles was observed reposing upon the sandstone. This conglomerate contains pebbles of the sulphurets of iron and copper. The casts of plants and their leaves are also seen here. The rocks in this quarter are covered with beds of sand, gravel, and sometimes clay, to the depth often feet, and erratic boulders are found upon the surface. The strata in general are horizontal; but there are instances where they are singularly contorted. The following is a re- presentation of curved strata on the Miramichi. n u (k • f inter- vildness. uality of isideredy not have esources Lnown to hilo Bri- luth-west Ice down another I on the be rivers, kures and tly ascer- parts as re are in- Should jintry was , an apol-* veiling on Id greatet ridge of the rocks a great quantity of iron ore had been discovered upon tlie portage road ; out it is probable that the ponderous trap has been mistaken for iron, of which I could find no indications at that place. The soil in the neighbourhood of Boiestown is light and sandy ; upon the trap rock it is greatly improved, and has supported a lofty growth of beech, birch and maple. * * NASHWAAK. The Kashwtak take8 its rise near one of the sources of the south-west bfinch of the Miramichi, and after having passed through ii extensive grant of land belonging to the New-BrunswicktLand Company, it empties into the Saint John, opposite l^dericton. This river runs through a fine tract of intervald^nd the number of terraces upon its banks are evidences 0^0 changes of level the stream has, from time to time, uirrgone. These terraces have been noticed in another partf this report. All the lower part of this river passes thvgh the sandstones and shales of the coal field ; these ro( are seen on both sides of the beautiful val- ley, and often e abruptly from its sides. In these sand- stones and sh s, the remains of plants are abundant, and may be seen ive cliiTs, or the strata broken up in making the roads, "l^rds the sources of the Peniac, Little River and NewcastPreek, there is a large tract of good tillage land, with so/intervale. This uninhabited district is also -within the cipeld, and the coal is firequently seen in the beds of thepams. Freestones and grindstones are also abundant in s quarter, and are known to be of an excel- lent quality Exten from the County cf Northumberland in a south-west ction to within ten miles of the Saint John, a tract of lanJntaining five hundred and fifty thousand acres, has been ^d, by Royal Charter, to the New- Brunswick Land Cony* This tract crosses the south-west Mirami- chi, Taxepshwaak, Keswick, and Mactaquack Rivers. Its most sf fly part is situated upon the primary rocks of the ranpcribed in the first part of this report, and the whole of if tern side is upon the coal field. The soil in general isl* and there are considerable areas of a supe- » rior qualip^otwithstanding the Company have been un- able to sepis immense tract to the extent they have de- sired, thejtion for a colony of emigrants has been judici- ously chtjand is capable of being mudo a fine agricultur- .L '*»•<•■,? * 100 GEOLOGICAL REPOaT. al district- The foundations of two small towns have been laid. Stanley on the Nashwaak, and Campbelltown on the Mil-am icbi, are beginning to flourish. Ronds have been opened in all directiont, and every encouragement is ofTered th^ industrious settler, who, from the above improvements, will find but few dilTiculties to encounter in establishing him- self upon the soil. The coal crops out on the Tay Creek and Nashwoak, and if properly opened and worked, would lay the founda- tion of extensive manufactories. It might also be transport- ed to Saint John and be employed in the steam boats on the main river, where at present foreign fuel is chieflv used. The whole of this extensive establishment is under the con- trol of Lieutenant Colonel Havne, the Company's Agent, the kindnesf and urbanity of wnom will be gratifying to all who may avail themselves of the advantages these lands ofier for successful cultivation. I regret that I have been unable, during the past season, to make a particular examination of the whole of this part of the County of York : it will, how- ever, claim my earliest attention. During my exploration in the northern counties of the Province, an excursion was made to Bathurst. By the aid of Thomas M. Deblois and William Stephens, Esquires, Doctor Bishop, and other gentlemen of that place, many in- teresting facts were collected in regard to the geology ot the County of Gloucester. This County and Rcstigoucnc, how- ever, remain unexplored. A visit was made to the mining establishment of an En- glish company ot Bathurst, conducted by Mr. Stevens, a most enterprising individual. The first efforts of the com- pany were directed to the mining of copper ore, veins of which are evidently contained in the slates of Tete-a-gouche River. At present the raining of mangoncsc is carried to some extent, and powerful machinery h&j been erected with sufRcient water-power, which will be directed to cleaning the ore, and other operations. The mine of manganese is situ- ated eight miles from the town of Bathurst. The ore occurs iu veins and disseminated masses in clay-slate. Fifty tons were ready to be shipped at the time of my visit. The sterl- ing price of tlie ore is stated to be j£10 per ton. This is evidently a mining district, find one of great im- portance to the country. I have .niso analysed two kinds of marl found in the County of Gloucester. Th«}y are supe- rior in (juality, and will soon be applied to agricultural pur- poses. .-.♦...-<•#-. -»' ** '*t W* i *» * have been own on the have been It is offered provementSy ishing him- Nashwaak, the ibunda- e transport- 3oats on the hiefly used, ler the con- ny's Agent, lying to all e lands ofler been unable, amination of it will, how- unties of the By the aid IS, Esquires, cc, many in- lology ot the rouche, how- entofanEn- ■. Stevens, a of the com- >rc, veins of ete-a-gouche is carried to erected with cleaning the anese is situ- he ore occurs Fifty tons Thestcrl- % of great im- > two kinds of cy are supCf icultural pur- ^ TOPOGRAPHICAL DETAILS. 101 In concluding the present work, it may not ho unne- cessary to vjAiark, that the country explored during the past season had never before been examined, in regard to its min- eral wealth ; and frequently where valuable ores had been supposed by some of the inhabitants to exist, those substances were found to be worthless in an economical point of view. In several in stances the proprietors of lands have been urgent for me to spend much time and labour, where, from the na- ture of the rocks, it could not be expected tl:at any thing of value could be discovered. The excellent ore of manganese now worked by the Gloucester Mining Association, when first discovered, was supposed to be antimony ; and other instances might be mentioned where similar mistakes have occurred. It is also to be regretted that attempts have recently been made in the Province to secure leases of mines, for the sole objects of speculation, and not for their actual working; but such things are common to all new discoveries, and can only be removed by time and experience. It will, nevertheless, be seen from what has been already performed, that New-Brunswick not only possesses a fertile soil, but is abundantly stored with valuable minerals, and those elements that are capable of elevating the character of the country, and of supplying the means of strength and greatness. The Province also affords a wide field of research to the scientific inquirer, and abounds in the evidences of those great changes geology contemplates. In every quarter the wisdom and goodness of the Creator, in providing for the wants of man, may be seen, and the beauty and harmony of His works arc displayed to every unprejudiced eye. ^ ^ I have the honor to be, »^ '. •»« Your Excellency's most obedient And very humble Servant, 4 ■> ^» f 4g » » ABRAHAM GESNER, * ^ Provincial Geologist. .» ■'. Suinc JoIiHy N. /?., Isi January^ 1812. ^ . ♦, M •- #t -*..»»« , ,ai^,.4ii»-, m # J-