Mineralogy and Geology of a part of Nova Scotia. 213 



The quartz rock, to which we have attributed this barren- 

 ness of the soil, is composed, as its name indicates, of sih- 

 ceous matter or quartz, which is sometimes fine granular, 

 but more frequently compact. It sometimes is white, and 

 the grains are transparent ; but it generally has a greyish, or 

 bluish tint, arising apparently, from an admixture with the 

 neighboring clay slate, with which it is doubtless coeval. It 

 frequently passes into flinty or siliceous slate, and is some- 

 times so intimately blended with the argillite, into which it 

 passes, that the eye cannot distinguish, where the one begins, 

 and the other terminates, so finely are their parts intermixed 

 and combined. The layers of the siliceous slate, are alvvays 

 separated by a thin folium of argillaceous slate, while the 

 quartz rock is exceedingly compact and possesses no strati- 

 fied appearance. The latter contains less argillaceous mat- 

 ter in its composition. It breaks with a splintery and some- 

 times conchoidal fracture, and never separates into layers 

 like the slate. This rock does not contain any minerals 

 worthy of note ; grains of pyrites, and a few crystals of quartz 

 being the only minerals observed. 



The quartz rock is represented on the map, as constituting 

 strata of great dimensions. This is not strictly true to na- 

 ture, for it alternates so frequently, as to render it impossible 

 to give an exact view of its arrangement, but the proportion 

 of this rock to the slate is correctly shewn by thus collecting' 

 the numerous narrow beds of this rock, into a few larger di- 

 visions. 



One of these beds runs fifteen miles north of Hahfax ; two 

 cross Bedford Basin, and the fourth forms a part of the 

 Point, south of the city of Halifax, and the peninsula inclu- 

 ded between Margaret's Bay and Halifax harbour, where it 

 presents itself to the ocean, and opposes an unyielding bar- 

 rier against its mighty waves. 



The traveller, proceeding from the United States to Hali- 

 fax, who is desirous of examining the principal rock forma- 

 tions of Nova Scotia, described in this essay, can easily ar- 

 range his route, so as to examine the structure of the country. 

 If he goes by the way of St. Johns, (N. B.) and takes the 

 steamboat to Annapolis, he may examine to advantage, the 

 greenstone trap rocks of the North Mountains, and the clay 

 slate of the South Mountains, in his journey along the val- 

 ley of the Annapolis River, in which he will travel be ween 

 the two ranges to Windsor, and then traverse the country 



