VI — Deep Mining in Nova Scotia — By W. H. Prest. 



(Ruul 14th Maij, 1894.) 



This is a subject fraught with deep interest to the mining men- 

 of Nova Scotia, a subject touched upon, theorized upon, or sHghted,. 

 but never, so far as my opportunities for knowing go, ex- 

 amined from a thoroughly geological standpoint. Comparisons 

 with other mining countries have been made, which have so far 

 brought forth no definite conclusion, because the different geologi- 

 cal conditions connected with the origin of each have not been 

 taken into account. 



Having waited for several years for the published opinion of 

 some older and more experienced miner and geologist, I at last 

 venture to give my views on the subject. They are the results 

 of several seasons of geological survey work, as well as a previous 

 practical experience in gol'.l mining. 



It has been a stock argument in the dispute " Deep versus 

 shallow mining," that as deep mining is prosecuted successfully 

 in other countries, it is reasonable to suppose that the same result' 

 would follow here. This method of argument should now be out 

 of date. The point is, not that the inference is wrong, but that 

 it should be based upon a different set of facts. 



The old method of drawing conclusions in Nova Scotian 

 lithology from arguments based on the study of foreign geologi- 

 cal conditions is only leading us farther and farther from the- 

 true method of investigation. We must not forget that the 

 geological conditions under which foreign mines came into being 

 are usually different from the conditions pre-existing here — a con- 

 sideration which renders useless the direct comparisons very often 

 made. In order to arrive at any safe conclusions regarding the 

 depth to which our pay streaks run, it is necessary to thoroughly 

 understand the peculiarities of our auriferous rocks, their origin, 

 and the different stages of world building in which they have 

 aided. The geological history of each formation, and also of each 



(420) 



