lo MINING. 



pally in the provinces of Echigo and Totomi, but is not sufficient 

 in quantity to supply the constantly increasing home consumption. 

 The chief petroleum district of both provinces lies on the west of a 

 line drawn from the point of Omage-saki on the coast of Totomi 

 to Niigata. The production of Totomi is concentrated around 

 Sugegawa, but the little city of Sagara is the principal place of the 

 district. Here in 1877 (according to Lyman) 50 wells yielded in 

 all 1,200 barrels of oil, which is superior in lightness and in bright- 

 ness of colour to that of Echigo. For Echigo, our map gives 

 Fukawasa and Oarata, mentioned in Table B, as the central points 

 of production. In 1876 there were not less that 522 oil wells 

 in this district, the deepest measuring 732', or 222 meters. None 

 of them, however, yielded particularly profitable quantities. The 

 entire production was estimated by Lyman at 9,500 barrels, worth 

 31,650 yen ; but this amount has increased considerably since then, 

 as is seen by the figures given in Table B, pp. 298, 299, as the 

 production of these places. 



Sulphur, Jap. Iwo or Yuwo. This is found as a glossy product 

 of sublimation often covering the crater walls and crevices and 

 clefts of active or extinct volcanoes ; but by far the greatest amount 

 of sulphur is formed by decomposition of the sulphuretted hydrogen 

 of the solfataras. As these volcanic manifestations are very wide- 

 spread in Japan, the frequent occurrence of sulphur is not sur- 

 prising. Sometimes the suffix " Iwo " in the name of a mountain 

 or an island indicates its presence there. 



Satsuma was formerly, says Kaempfer, the principal sulphur 

 producer. The little island Iwo-shima, to the south, also furnishes 

 sulphur. It is obtained at Iwo-dake and Yadake in Hida, from 

 Shirane-san on the boundary between Kotsuke and Shinano. 

 When Pumpelly visited Yezo in 1864, he ascended Iwaounobori 

 from Iwanai on the south-western coast. He saw several solfataras 

 and their efi"ects, and states that the monthly production of sulphur 

 of the mountain was 6,400 pounds, and the total for the year, 38,400 

 kilogrammes, or 38*4 tons. Our table indicates two other places 

 in Hokkaido, however, as the most important sulphur producers, 

 viz., Tonebetsu in Kitami, and Tofutsu on the not far distant 

 island of Kunashir. 



Salt, Jap. Shiwo or Shio, up to this time has not been found as 

 rock-salt or in applicable salt springs,^ but is extracted exclusively 



^ When one considers the great number of hot springs scattered over the 

 whole of Japan, the dearth of salt springs is particularly surprising. The only- 

 exception worth noting appears to be Oshio in Aidzu (Iwashiro). This place 

 which I passed on the 4th of October, 1874, on the way from Wakamatsu to 

 Yonezawa, lies 6 ri from the former in the bason of an old volcanic mountain ring, 

 whose principal rock seems to be grey Andesite. By crossing over a small stream 

 was reached, on whose right bank, to the right of the road, are two wann springs 

 close together. I tested the temperature at 39° and 38° C, and found that 

 each one flowed at the rate of i sho (about 1*8 liter) every four or five seconds. 

 The water is weak in salt and rich in iron. A great amount of carbonic acid 



