18 THE CAPE NOME GOLD DISTRICT 



ponds, and is traversed by the Snake, Nome, and Cripple rivers and 

 otlier smaller streams which carry out the drainage from the moun- 

 tains. 



Along the north edge of the tundra, at the beginning of the moun- 

 tains, the topograph}' is low and rounding, with the floors of the 

 main valley's rather flat and from one to three miles in width. Seven 

 miles north of Nome, crude gravel terraces, seemingh' marine, were 

 observed to the height of about 1,50(J feet. These seem to mark suc- 

 cessive stages of land elevation still going on. 



Further northward, 20 or 30 miles from the beach, tlie mountains 

 become more rugged and rise, in some instances, into seemingl}' perma- 

 nent snow-]ieaks, but probably nowhere exceed 3,000 feet in elevation. 



The nearest harbors for deejj-sea or ocean vessels are Port Clarence, 

 60 miles northwest of Nome, and Golofnin Bay, the same distance 

 northeast. It is not unlikely that one or both of these harbors will 

 be connected with the Nome district by rail should the district prove 

 as rich as present prospects indicate. Port Safet3% a small harbor to 

 the east of Cape Nome, will admit vessels not drawing over eight feet 

 of water, but is not ade(]uate for the accommodation of deepsea-going 

 vessels. In front of Nome the sea is so shallow that the larger vessels 

 cannot approach the shore, but are obliged to discharge their cargoes 

 by means of boats and lighters, a method which is very precarious 

 on account of the combers and breakers that usually sweej) the coast. 



The mountains thus far examined are composed of mica-schists 

 and limestone, alternating in lavers and beds Avith each other. They 

 are thin or medium bedded rocks, and strike and trend northeastward 

 and southwestward and dip southeastw'ard at an angle of about 45°. 

 The limestone is bluish gray and comparatively finegrained and more 

 or less well metamorphosed, often becoming a crystalline marble. 

 The mica-schist is sometimes slaty, but it also sliows considerable 

 metamorpliic action and is garnetiferous. Locally the rocks are some- 

 times folded and traversed b}' (piartz veins, and veinlets, of l)()th quartz 

 and calcite, with also some iron and copper pyrites. Pyrites are also 

 disseminated sporadically in the schists. The quartz veins and vein- 

 lets traversing the rocks are supposed to be the source of the gold. 

 Far back in the mountains granite is said to occur, but may be repre- 

 sented merely by granitoid dikes, some })ebbles of which occur in the 

 beach gravels. 



The tundra is composed of apparentl}' marine gravels, derived 

 from the rocks in the mountains, and is almost exclusivel}' mica- 



