the pictou coal field — poole. 273 



Permian. 



While Sir W.Dawson is understood to be still unwillino- to call 

 Permian the strata which stretch westward up the coast from 

 Mericromish, and from the straits of Northumberland inland to 

 the Cobequids and the hill country of Pictou, the term is con- 

 venient for reference to the district in question and to distinguish 

 the horizon of strata indubitably above the New Glasgow con- 

 glomerate from groups and formations noAv^ supposed to be en- 

 tirely below ; and in that sense the term Permian is here used. 



New Glasgoiu Conglomerate. — About Alma to the northw^est 

 of the coal field lies a great expanse of coarse red conglomerate 

 dipping eastward at a slight inclination. It extends northward 

 on the west side of the Middle river with the same general 

 character of dip and strike it makes Green Hill and neighbour- 

 ing elevations, and is found repeated to the westward and along 

 the northern flanks of the Cobequids. Its outcrop also extends 

 in the other direction under the town of New Glasgow— hence its 

 name — and over Fraser's mountain to the waters of the gulf at 

 Merigomish. At Alma the deposit is again repeated by a fault 

 on the east side of the Middle river, and extends up from 

 Granton wath the same gentle dip to the eastward until it reaches 

 w^ithin half a mile of Alma bridge, where the inclination 

 changes to N. 23^ E. 5' to 25°, and it appears to be abruptly 

 cut off. When next seen close below the bridge it dips heavily 

 in an opposite direction, and the continuous exposure up stream 

 from this point given by Mr. Hartley^^^ in Section III shows some 

 1372 feet of strata dipping due south 74° to 54° and abutting 

 agaiiist a patch of altered rocks elsewhere spoken of as Devonian. 

 This patch of old rock is evidently brought to the surface by a 

 fault apparently coursing parallel to the strike of the strata N. 

 84 E. and presumably cut off from the great mass of conglomerate 

 with a light easterly dip by a north and south fault crossing 

 near the mouth of Browm's brook. The patch of Devonian has 

 a width of only 14 chains, to the southw^ard it is overlaid by the 



(1) Report of Progress, 1869, page 64. 



Dr. Honevnian speaks of the New Glasgow conglomerate as of the Lower Carboniferous sys- 

 tem Trans. 1879, p. 193. 



