TF 
. 
Miscellaneous Intelligence. 143 
as the other kinds, is called by the Chinese Che-tan. Che means a 
stone, but tan is the name they give to wood-charcoal. Therefore, ac- 
cording to the genius of the Chinese language, this compound word 
signifies a substance resembling or having the common properties of 
stone and charcoal. There can be little difficulty here in recognizing 
the variety of coal which in our day has been denominated anthracite, 
a compound word of similar meaning 
_ The Chinese glance coal forms a sieguchable exception to the waine 
vorable conclusion prevailing against Oriental coal ; and, according to 
more recent authority than those we before cited, ialioioras to rank at 
the head of the list, in respect to its purity as a coke, although in 
specific gravity it does not come up to the character of the Pennsylvania 
or Welsh fuel ; neither has it the spongy texture which contributes much 
to the glowing combustion of the latter. 
So late as 1840, a Russian officer described the coal formations of 
the interior, as occupying the western mountain range of China, in 
such abundance that a space of half a league cannot be traversed with- 
out meeting with rich strata... The art of mining is yet in its infancy 
among the Chinese; notwithstanding which, coal is thought to be at a 
moderate price in the capital. Anthracite occurs in the western range 
of mountains at about a day’s journey, or thirty miles only, from Pekin. 
The coal formation is largely developed, in which thick beds of coal 
occur. They appear to be of various qualities. Some of this al, 
occurring in shale beds; is singularly decomposed, and its particles 
have so little cohesion, that they are almost reduced to a state of pow- 
der, _ Beneath these ¢oal shales are beds of ferruginou’s sandstone, and _ 
those occur another series; consisting of much richer seams of 
the coal which was brought down to the coast, from the Pekin country, 
to the Gulf of Pe-tchee-lee, was anthracite, partaking of the character 
of plumbago or. graphite. Coal, apparently of the brown coal species, 
exists extensively in the direction of Canton; while all the coals seen 
on the Yang-tse-kiang river, south of Nankin, resembled cannel coal. 
Nearer to Canton it possessed the comparatively modern character of 
the brown coal. It was abundantly offered for sale in the different 
Cities through which Lord Amberst’s embassy passed, between the 
lake Po-yang-how and Canton, and the boats were largely supplied with 
it. lta sci cinanai by means of pits, like wells; and we infer that, 
