﻿1861.] 



HECTOE ROCKY MOUNTAINS, ETC. 



435 



From the sandy shales associated with the lignite, I forward frag- 

 ments of Yew-like fronds, just the same as those I got in the shales. 

 At the Rocky Mountain House, and in the collection sent home by 

 H.M.S. "Plumper," all the specimens from Nanaimo are of this plant. 

 Those from Eurrard's Inlet are in a different stone, are reticulate 

 leaves, and were also found along with beds of coal ; but there seem 

 to be no specimens of the Yew frond from that locality*. 



From Nanaimo Mr. Bauerinan has also sent home a plant that 

 looks much like a portion of a monocotyledonous leaf. 



At Bellinghani Bay, sections taken by Mr. Pemberton show that 

 the lignite occurs in a large quantity at that place. Lieut. Trow- 

 bridge in describing the strata there says, they are 2000 feet thick, 

 and include, in all, 110 feet of the lignite -coal. His sections are pro- 

 bably, however, all of the same group of strata, taken at different 

 points in the strike, which gives rise to this apparently enormous 

 thickness. 



The analysis of the coal from Bellingham Bay, which is generally 

 considered inferior to that of JSTanaimo, is given in the Pac. Rail. 

 Report, vol. vi. p. 65, as follows : — 



Carbon 47-63 



Bitumen 50-22 



Ash 2-15 



100-00 



This coal has been sold in San Francisco market at from $18 to 

 822 per ton (75s. to 91s. 6c?. sterling). 



Lignite-coal has also been worked for the same market from Coose 

 Bay, and has the following composition : — 



Carbon 46-54 



Gaseous matter 50-27 



Ash 3-19 



100-00 



Conrad states that shells from this locality are of Miocene age. 



At Benicia, above San Francisco, coal also occurs, and was 

 wrought for some time, but the clip was too steep. 



In Newbury's Report on the geology of this part of California, I 

 have not seen any notice of where this Benicia lignite occurs in his. 

 sections ; but between Benicia and the sea he describes 3000 feet of 

 strata, the lowest beds being of sandstone and shales resting on, and 

 penetrated by, serpentine and trap (the same which are so highly 

 charged with ores of copper and mercury further to the south). 

 These are followed by green and brown shales, coarse soft sandstone, 

 fine sandstone and shales, with Pecten, Natica, Mactra, and Tellina, 

 and these by conglomerates and tufas, the whole lying at an angle of 

 30°. Towards Benicia are thin-bedded clays with Sharks' teeth. Up 

 Feather River, a tributary of the Sacramento River, at Chico Creek, 



* Dr. Hooter has specimens from Disco Island, in the arctic regions, where a 

 Yew frond and angiospermous leaves are associated in the same hand-specimen. 



