Mineralogy and Geology of apart of Nova Scotia. 213 



the rival theories of Werner and Hutton, that just conclu- 

 sions can be formed, of the geological nature of this country, 

 and the relation which the rocks of aqueous deposition, bear 

 to those of igneous origin. 



The clay slate, forming the banks of Bear River, near its 

 mouth, contains beds of iron pyrites, of a compact, amor- 

 phous character, vvell suited to the manufacture of copperas. 

 In fact, where this mineral is freely exposed to air and moist- 

 ure, the sulphate of iron forms spontaneously, and covers 

 this rock with an efflorescent incrustation. The hepatic va- 

 riety also occurs with it, and extending through the rock to 

 some distance from the river, exhales in sultry weather, an 

 odor, which cannot fail to apprize the inhabitants of its ex- 

 istence. This variety is converted by decomposition, into a 

 brown, friable, oxide of iron, which in some places, forms a 

 stratum more than a foot thick, and has lately been employ- 

 ed with advantage as a flux, in smelting the ore from Nictau 

 and Clement's. No measures have as yet been resorted to 

 for converting the pyrites into copperas, as an article of com- 

 merce, but we trust that the facilities here afforded for its 

 manufacture, will ere long engage the attention of some en- 

 terprising inhabitant. 



About four miles from Bear River, in the vicinity of a 

 place called " the Joggins," the clay slate of the North 

 Mountains, is intersected by another dike of porphyry, which 

 is here presented, forming the sides of a deep recess or val- 

 ley, but a few yards from the main road to Digby. It enters the 

 strata nearly at the same angle with the dike, before men- 

 tioned, on Nictau Mountain ; and like that, its actual connex- 

 ion with the neighboring slate, being entirely hidden from 

 observation, we were unable to determine its extent, or its 

 more approximate relations to that rock. The base of this 

 porphyry, is usually a greyish black trap, of a fine grained 

 texture and compact. The imbedded granular concretions 

 of felspar of a pure white color, are very numerous. Though 

 for the most part, no regularity of forms is discernible in 

 them. Sometimes, distinct parallelograms of white felspar 

 may be observed. The rock is thus rendered more distinctly 

 porphyritic than that of Nictau. Small concretions of brass 

 yellow pyrites, are also disseminated through it. We would 

 not attempt to discuss minutely the origin of the dikes which 

 thus intersect, and entirely disconnect the strata of clay slate, 

 for the same theory, applied to all other dikes of similar 



