COAL REGIONS OF FORMOSA. 161 



the arrival of the store-ship " Supply." We went in the afternoon to the rocky, precipitous 

 island of Kelung, three miles out from the hay. It appears, singularly enough, to he a mass of 

 sienite, stuck up like the sharp end of a wedge through these formations of sandstone and coal. 



Thursday, 20. — Captain Ahhot being desirous of seeing the coal bed at e,f, g, I went with 

 him, intending to search for the mines back of h. We started at earliest dawn, and I asked 

 Captain A. to proceed at once to 1c, and to put me ashore with two seamen as guards, and an 

 interpreter. When there., a native, caught by the offer of some cotton cloth which I held out to 

 him, agreed to conduct me to the mines, but was forbidden by the other villagers, and, per- 

 sisting, brought upon himself a storm of angry words, with which they pursued us to the edge 

 of the village, and as much further as they could he heard. But he talked as loud as they, and 

 stalked on, leading the way along a valley, and then up a ravine that struck upward towards 

 the top of a high isolated mountain on the east. We had proceeded little more than half a mile 

 from the village, when we came to the mines, (I,) a distance which their lying tongues had 

 magnified to 10 or 12 miles. 



Entering, we proceeded by a tunnel 40 feet long, and then struck the coal seam, the drift 

 thence continuing 400 feet, with 20 inches in thickness of coal ; the strike E.N.E., and dip N. 

 60°. Beyond this, the dip changed to 40° northward, and the seam grew thicker. Its thick- 

 ness was 3 feet at the end of the drift, which was altogether TOO feet in length. The roof in 

 this mine was firm and good ; hut the coal is not so good as at the other mines. It is rather 

 dull, somewhat earthy, and is mixed with sulphuret of iron ; the higher inclination of its dip 

 will also be a difficulty in working this seam. Yet the mining here has been carried much 

 further in than at any other place visited in this region of country. 



Descending once more, we quitted the ravine, and crossed the valley ; and now, at about a 

 quarter of a mile from the village, came to another mine, (pi.) It lies W. J S., a quarter of a 

 mile from the former one, (I,) and may be a continuation of the same seam ; but the coal is 

 much better in quality. The strike is W, ^ S., and the dip 1ST.N.W. 10° ; the roof good and 

 firm. The drift extends in about 300 feet. It would be an easy matter to construct a railroad 

 from this mine to the village, as it lies only a few feet above the valley debouching at that place. 



After finishing our explorations here, we returned across the country to Kelung, a distance 

 of about seven miles. The whole region lying between the two places, hilly and broken, is 

 probably filled with coal. Along the streams, the natives, in order to make terraces for rice 

 fields, have had to dig down along the steep hill-sides, and at n we came to coal cropping out in 

 one of these escarpments. It was mixed with earthy matter, but the fragments were good, 

 pure coal, and the seam appeared to be worth following up. Here and there we saw other 

 indications off the path, but the day was dreadfully hot, and my guards could scarcely drag 

 themselves along. We were all right glad when we got from the stifling air of the tortuous 

 ravines along which our pathway had led, and found ourselves once more in a boat enjoying 

 the breezes of the bay of Kelung. 



Purser Allison left Captain Abbot's boat at the mines, (e, /, g,) and also crossed through the 

 interior to Kelung. 



Friday, 21. — The "Supply" was seen early in the morning making for the harbor, and I 

 went ashore, at Captain Abbot's request, to procure native boats or junks to bring the coal from 

 e,f, g. The captains of the junks expressed a willingness to do so, but then drew back, and 

 said that they could not without permission from the Hip-toy. So I went to see this officer, 

 determined now to have action instead of words. He said, " Yes, we could have the junks." 

 21s 



