90 B GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF CANADA. 



the mountains in this vicinity are not very high, and do not show any 

 permanent snow, the sides of the valleys, now forming arms of the 



Houston lcem sea, are everywhere scored and grooved. The eastern end of this 



channel. channel lies nearly east and west, while that which opens to the Pacific 



lies south-west and north-east. At the angle formed by these two the 

 arm forming Rose Harbour runs north-westward, ending among some 

 of the higher summits. Here the Sedmond River enters, and the rocks 

 at its mouth are found to be glaciated from west to east. The ice has 

 then turned at nearly a right angle following Rose Harbour, and a 

 portion at least of the stream, again changing its direction to east, 

 passed on to the open sea at the outer points of the channel. The 

 sides of the channel opening westward to the Pacific are similarly 

 scored. Many of the boulders on the beaches are evidently glaciated, 

 and as they lie in some places rudely packed together, seem to have 

 been little disturbed since they were deposited there. There is 

 apparently a total absence of clay or sand deposits due to the glacial 

 period on this part of the island. The shores are abrupt and the water 

 deep. 



In Carpenter Bay, next north of Houston Stewart on the east coast, 

 and in many parts of Skin cuttle Inlet, similar traces of the passage of 

 ice from the highlands to the sea are again found. They are not con- 

 fined to the narrower channels, but may be traced also in the wide 

 eastern opening of Skincuttle Inlet. 



Extent of local In the inlets near Laskeek it was observed that while the marks of 

 very heavy glaciation were found in their upper reaches, the rocks 

 near their seaward terminations had been lightly shaped onl}^, in most 

 places still retaining the irregular forms due to old sub-aerial weather- 

 ing or to the sea, though rounded off at the corners, tops and sides by 

 the passage of ice.- This would show that the glaciers did not for a 

 very long period continue to push out beyond the mouths of these 

 inlets, and enables us to form some estimate of the extent to which 

 other parts of the island were buried in ice. In Cumshewa Inlet 

 glacial grooving was found as far out as Tillage Island, near its mouth. 

 North of Cumshewa Inlet (Lat. 53°) the character of the coast 

 changes. It becomes low, is sometimes shoal, and is no more backed 

 by steep mountain slopes. With little excej)tion the shore continues 

 to preserve this character to the north-west point of the island. The 

 fiat beaches between Cumshewa and Skidegate are thickly strewn with 

 boulders, some of which are of great size. 



Glaciation of In Skidegate Inlet or Channel there is a great spread of sandstone 



Skidegate & , . ,■.-,„ , . -it 



Channel. and shales of the coal-bearing series, which from their easily decom- 



posed character are not suited to preserve glacial traces, but these 

 were nevertheless observed in a few places, and where the channel 



