428 THE CANADIAN NATURALIST. [Vol. tII. 



lode, where the rock is almost perpendicular. Xothiug unusual 

 occurred until a distance of some 80 or 90 feet was made, and 

 then the frozen territory was reached, and it has continued for 

 over 200 feet. There arc no indications of a thaw, summer or 

 winter; the whole frozen territory is surrounded by hard mas- 

 sive rock ; and the lode itself is as hard and solid as the rock. 

 The miners being unable to excavate the frozen material by pick 

 or drill to get out the ore (for it is a rich lode, running argen- 

 tiferous galena from 5 to 1200 ounces to the ton), found the 

 only way was to kindle a large wood fire at night against the 

 back end of the tunnel, and thus thaw the frozen material, and 

 in the morning take out the disintegrated ore. This has been 

 the mode of mining for more than two years. The tunnel is 

 over 200 feet deep, and there is no diminution of the frost; it 

 seems to be rather increasing. There is, so far as we can see, 

 no opening or channel through which the frost could possibly 

 have reached such a depth from the surface. There are other 

 mines in the vicinity in a like frozen state. 



From what we know of the depth to which frost usually pene- 

 trates into the earth, it does not appear probable that it could 

 have reached the depth of 200 feet through the solid rock in the 

 Stevens Mine, nor even through the crevice matter of the lode, 

 which, as we have stated, is as hard as the rock itself. The 

 idea, then, of the frost reaching such a depth from the out- 

 side being utterly untenable, I can do no other way than fall 

 back upon the glacial era of the Quaternary. Evidences of the 

 glacial period are found all over the Rocky Mountains. Just 

 above the Stevens Mine there are the remains of a moraine 

 nearly a mile long and half a mile wide. The debris of this 

 moraine consists of small square and angular stones, clearly 

 showing that they have not come from any great distance ; and 

 just over the range, on the Pacific slope, there are the remains 

 of the largest moraine I have ever seen, consisting of feldspathic 

 boulders of immense size. I conclude, therefore, that it was 

 during that period of intense cold that the frost penetrated so 

 far down into these rocks ; and that it has been there ever since, 

 and bids fair to remain for a lon^r time to come. — Ayyier. Jour. 

 Science, 



Deep Borings. — The deepest boring on record is that exe- 

 cuted by the Prussian Government engineers at Spereuberg, 



