134 Canadian Record of Science. 



to have consisted of an elevated nucleus of older rocks, 

 perhaps with interior lakes, while around it stretched a 

 great level expanse of bogs and lagoons now in great part 

 submerged. There might thus be a very marked distinc- 

 tion between the hills, thinly covered perhaps with Ferns 

 and Pines, with clear fresh-water lakes, and the vast swamps 

 densely clothed with Sigillaria?, Lepidodendra, Calamites 

 and Cordaites, and with dark bodies of impure water full of 

 vegetable matter. The faunaj of these districts might be 

 equally different. We know little as yet of the upland 

 fauna; but may hope for more discoveries in this direction, 

 especially in countries like Nova Scotia and Cape Breton, 

 where there were elevated districts in the midst of the 

 areas of coal accumulation. (See Appendix on p. 167.) 



The Eecent Exploration of the Labrador Peninsula, 

 by Mr. Albert P. Low, B. A. Sc. of the Geolo- 

 gical Survey of Canada. 



In a most interesting paper entitled — "On some of the 

 larger unexplored Eegions of Canada," read before the 

 Ottawa Field Naturalists' Club four years ago, Dr. (x. M. 

 Dawson made the somewhat startling statement, that while 

 the entire area of the Dominion is computed at 3,470,257 

 square miles, at least 954,000 square miles, or between one 

 quarter and one third of the whole, exclusive of the Arctic 

 Islands lying to the north of the continent, is for all prac- 

 tical purposes entirely unknown. While a large portion 

 of the unexplored area lies to the north of the limit of 

 profitable agriculture, considerable regions situated to the 

 south of the limit, still await examination. Large districts 

 again, in which no farmer will ever voluntarily settle, may 

 afford timber which the world will be glad to get when the 

 white pine of our nearer forests shall become more nearly 

 exhausted, while with respect to mineral resources, it is 

 probable that in the grand aggregate the value of those 

 which exist in the unexplored regions will be found, area 

 for area, to be equal to those of the known regions, com- 



