SINO-MONGOLIAN FRONTIER 



Referring to his various analyses he says : " All 

 these analysis of coal from P.T.C. (P'ing-ting Chou) 

 show a coal of high quality. Richthofen calls it 

 equal to the best Pennsylvanian anthracite." 



As one travels up the valley from Yang-ts'uen 

 one passes places where the Pao Ching Mining 

 Company ^ has sunk shafts, and is mining com- 

 paratively small quantities of coal. Along the 

 line where cuttings have been made one can see 

 thick seams of coal actually exposed. 



Continuing in a direction a little south of west, it 

 is noticed that the strata, now comprised of alter- 

 nate beds of sandstone and shale, and varying in 

 colour from a dark purplish brown to olive green 

 and yellow ochre, still dip to the west. Steadily 

 ascending, the railway line next passes through 

 the Red Beds, which are red shales and sandstones 

 forming the upper layers of the Shansi formation. 

 Finally come the thick loess deposits of the Shou- 

 yang Hsien district, just before reaching which town, 

 the highest point on the line, marking the divide 

 between the Fen-Ho and the P'u-t'o Ho, is crossed 

 (about 3,000 ft. altitude). From here a descent 



^ This company was formed by the gentry of the province 

 to exploit the mineral resources (chiefly coal and iron) after 

 the redemption of the mining rights from the Pekin Syndicate, 

 by the payment, it is said, of Tls. 2,250,000. The concession was 

 first obtained by the Pekin Syndicate in 1898, and was finally 

 relinquished in 1907. Since that time the Chinese have 

 really done very little to develop these vast mineral re- 

 sources. 



257 S 



