i 



^ Geolo gy and Miner als 



into the Lofa (Little Cape Mount) River, and each pan returned 

 from six to twelve colours of " moderately heavy gold." In 

 this region he found the river sands distinctly auriferous, but 

 could find no trace of gold in the quartz reefs. 



It is thought that gold might be obtained by dredging the 

 bottom of the rivers. It has been suggested that it would be 

 wiser for prospectors to select those quartz veins with a likely 

 ' gossan " and to crush several pounds of this quartz on the 

 spot, and search for gold either by panning or dry vanning. 

 What discourages all work of this kind at present is the 

 difficulties of locomotion, and especially transport of any heavy 

 machinery. 



It was at one time rumoured that there were indications 

 of coal in Liberia. Apparently the only support to this theory 

 was the digging up of large fragments of charcoal — charred wood 

 — which after some forest fire or clearing of a plantation had 

 been buried and had in the course of time assumed a rather 

 coal-like appearance. There is nothing as yet discovered in the 

 rocks of the country to lend any strength to the supposition 

 that Liberia contains coal ; but in several places there are in- 

 dications of the possible existence of mineral oil, and as some 

 form of petroleum has been discovered in the very similar region 

 of the Cameroons it is not impossible that it may be brought 

 to light in the rock formations of Liberia. 



There are indications of slow subsidence taking place along 

 the Liberian coast. No traces have yet been found of any 

 volcanic activity of a later date than the Primary epoch. It is 

 possible that the whole of this coast between Cape Verde and 

 Cape Palmas is the African end of the bridge which intermittently 

 connected West Africa with Northern South America down to 

 as late a period as the end of the Eocene (early Tertiary) ; 

 a bridge by which the ancestors of the American monkeys, 



519 



