a 
, APR. 4, 1923 WOODRING: GEOLOGY OF HAITI 125 
It is believed that there were earlier periods of folding at the end 
of Cretaceous time and at the end of Eocene time, but the folds can 
hardly be disentangled from the more extensive folds at the end of 
Miocene time, as they usually have the same trend. 
_ No extensive overthrust sheets such as characterize the Alpine 
folds in so many parts of the Tertiary equatorial geosyncline were 
discovered, although there are many high-angle thrust faults along 
which the horizontal movement has not been very great. 
In the mobile central part of the Republic and in the Northwest 
Peninsula the distribution of the emerged Pleistocene coral reefs is 
directly related to the folds produced at the end of Miocene time. 
The coral reefs, or coralliferous limestones, are at the greatest altitude 
on the crests of the anticlines, clearly showing that the arching of the 
rocks continued during Pleistocene time. These movements probably 
are going on even at the present time. 
The tectonic features, like the geographic features which they 
control, are arranged in ares convex northward and southward. Most 
of the ares trend northwestward, but an arc in the Northwest Peninsula 
bends southwestward and at the western end of the Southern Peninsula 
ares branch out in sheaf-like fashion. 
Troughs like the Central Plain, Artibonite Valley and Cul-de-Sac 
Plain, which clearly are deep synclines bounded in part by high-angle 
thrust faults, are similar to the much larger submerged troughs of 
the West Indies, like the Bartlett Deep. It has been suggested that 
the submerged troughs are similar tectonic features.’ The submerged 
troughs have heretofore been interpreted as down faulted blocks 
bounded by normal faults. | 
Earthquakes.—The Republic, like other parts of the Tertiary equa- 
torial geosyncline, hasnumerousearthquakes. Disastrous earthquakes 
have at times almost or completely destroyed Port-au-Prince, Cap- 
Haitien, and other cities. Father Scherer, Director of the Observa- 
toire Météorologique du Séminaire-Collége St.-Martial, years ago 
ably showed the relation between the earthquakes and the known 
tectonic features. This relation and the bearing of the earthquakes 
on methods of building construction are discussed in the final report. 
8 See Wooding, W. P., Tectonic features of the Republic of Haiti and their being on 
the geologic history of the West Indies: Abstract, Journ. Washington Acad. Sci. (in 
press). 
