— 185 — 
The ash in No. Illis practically all carbonate of lime which dissol- 
ves in Hydrochloric acid, leaving nearly pure coke, the lime having been 
deposited by infiltration from the adjacent limy beds. 
The coke occurs in pockets of the limestone, and dark shales, these 
latter containing remains of Stereosternum tumidum and other fossils. 
A specimen of the oxydized petrolewin (or Albertite?) from near 
Lages was submitted to Dr. Chifford Richardson, the eminent Diretor 
of the New York Testing Laboratory, and expert authority upon 
bitumens. He returned the following analysis with the opinion that 
the substance is closely related to Albertite : 
Bitumen soluble in CS? . . . 1... we 5.8 
Organic matter insoluble. . . . . . 1... 77.6 
Inorganic or mineral matter. . . . 2. . 2. « « 16.6 
100,00 
Bitumen soluble in 88°naphta. . . . . . « . Trace 
Bitumen yields on ignition : 
Fixed Carbon. . . . . 6 1. 8 © © © we ee 49.00 
Volatile hydrocarbons. . . 2. . + «© «© « «© « 51.00 
100.00 
Bitumen soluble in carbon tetrachloride. . , . . 0.30 
This great petroliferous shale is a fine key rock to the geologic 
horizons since although it varies much in its outward or weathered 
phases, and also in its petrographic character in the different geographic 
provinces, yet it always holds petroleum compounds in some form, 
and its unoxidized color is generally b/ack. 
After long exposure to the elements, the bituminous matter is 
usually leached out and the black color is replaced by another almost as 
characteristic ; namely, a lavander or pale sky-bluish tint. 
This color is frequently very conspicuous along the roads and in 
railway cuttings where long oxidation has decolorized these shales. 
In northern Parana, north from Tibagy, and from there northward 
through the state of S. Paulo, these shales become limy, the dark 
beds being interstratified with thin layers of fairly pure limestone, 
in which the remains of Stereosternum tumidum, the teeth of Laby- 
rinthodont reptiles, as well as fossil shells, occur, at many localities, 
such as Limeira, Conchas, near Avare, and many others in Sao Paulo. 
These beds contain Limestone on Rio Tibagy, 12 kilometers north- 
2k 
5569 
