2o8 Report of the Brown-Harvard Expedition. 



ing a ''Labrador trend" which meets the "Appalachian 

 trend" nearly at right angles in the vicinity of Belie Isle. 

 The Archaean plateau would seem, then, to be rather defi- 

 nitely rimmed for a distance of seven hundred miles on this 

 northeast coast by the axis of the old mountain system. It 

 is probable that the average direction of the present coast- 

 line and of the adjacent continental shelf has thus been 

 roughly determined by a principal and fundamental line of 

 mountain-folding. 



So ancient is this orographic system that most of its 

 height has long since been lost. Only in the belt stretching 

 one hundred and fifty miles from the Johannisberg at 

 Hebron to the cliffs of Cape Chidley is there a strong re- 

 minder in the existing relief of the Pre-Cambrian alpine 

 chain. Orographically, though not structurally, this belt is 

 a distinct unit and may be differentiated as the "Torngat" 

 Range. The need of a special name for the range is evident 

 to one who sees the great contrast between its lofty, rugged, 

 oftentimes serrate topography, and that of the lower, 

 monotonously rolling, hummocky plateau to the south. I 

 have, therefore, adopted, with a slight modification of spell- 

 ing (therein following the early missionaries, Kohlmeister 

 and Kmoch), the name which Weiz gave to a part of the 

 range. 



A collection of the more typical rocks of the crystalline 

 complex was made. Not the least interesting addition to 

 this petrographical booty was the gabbro from which the 

 famous iridescent feldspar "labradorite" was first obtained 

 nearly a century ago. So far as I am aware, the beautiful 

 specimens which may be seen in all the principal museums 

 ♦ of the world have, without exception, been obtained from 



