62 NOTES ox MINERAL Fl'ELS OF CANADA. ELLS. 



plains and in the valleys scattered through the sea of mountains 

 in British Columbia, as well as along the Pacific coast, our 

 knowledge even forty years ago was exceedingly limited. 



The object of the ])n'«'iir ])i\\)vv is to direct attention to the 

 large siipplies of this fuel which arc found in all parts of the 

 Dominion, and which are suitable tor the general ion of light, 

 heat and power. The substances available for this purpose 

 include, in addition to the several varieties of coal which ra'ngo 

 from anthracite to the newest lignite, such minerals as anthrax- 

 olite, albertit^, oil-shale, petroleum, natural gas aiid peat. 



Cual, etc. 



The coals of the Atlantic provinces have been mined for 

 nearly or (|uite a century. They belong to the Carboniferous 

 period, and in ])oint of age contrast strongly with the immense 

 deposits found o'li the great western plains, along the eastern 

 slopes of the Kocky Mountains, and further west on the Paciiic 

 coast, which belong in part to (^retaceous and in ])art to Tertiary 

 rocks. 



The eastern deposits have been described in numerous 

 reports and papers, l)oth in governme'rital and scientiiic i)ub- 

 licatious. The principal areas, considered from the economic 

 Btandpoint, are in Xova Scotia, where at least four well-defined 

 coal-basins occur. Of these the most (easterly, known as the 

 Sydney area, is divided into sev(;ral ])ortio'ns, in \vliich a number 

 of seams are found, aggregating probably imt far from fift}' 

 feet of coal. This l)asin ]irobably represents the western margi'a 

 of a great Carbon ifeivtus area which extends bent'ath the i'nter- 

 vening broad strait which se])arates Cape Breton from jSTew- 

 foiindland, since in the south-western ])art of the latter ])rovince 

 a well-defined coal basin also o<'curs. The seams of the Sydney 

 basin exte^nd seaward, and have been worked for many years 

 l)eneatli the water, the extension in this direction forming a 

 c«»al area of great economic importance. 



