78 COGGIN BROWN: MINES & MINKKAI, ItKsurHCKK <>K YI'NNAN 



of 1 903-04. Deprat visited the mines in 1900-1 and reported 



that conditions had not changed in the meantime (])e., p. 239). 

 Lantenois gives the following analysis of the coal : — 



Locality. 



Moisture. 



Volatile 



matter. 



Ash. 



Authority. 



Hsiao-pa 



0-90 



14-30 



24-25 



Lantenois. 



Pai-ching is a small village about five miles north of Hsin-hsing 



Chou (lat. 24°20': long. 102 c 35'). Near the 

 ching. SpeC S village a coal-seam occurs in a series of shales 



overlain by limestone. An insignificant amount 

 of prospecting has been carried on about the outcrop and has 

 revealed a thin seam of altered coal with an apparent thickness of 

 1 foot 3 inches. The interest of this occurrence lies in the fact 

 that it may represent the southern extension of the coal-seams found 

 at Eurl-kai, 18-20 miles away to the north as the crow flies. 

 Lantenois has given the following assays (La., pp. 390-395) : 



Locality. 



Moisture 



Volatile 



matter. 



i 



Ash. 



Authority, 



Pai-ching (1) 

 Pai-ching (2) 



I -00 

 1-75 



20-60 



17-00 



20-75 

 38-00 



Lantenois. 



At the extreme south-eastern corner of Lake Yang-tsung, Deprat 



Other occurrences. re P orts a coal occurrence in certain red Mosco- 



vian sandstones which are lower down in the 

 succession than the coal-bearing rocks already described. The coal 

 is mined by the Chinese and has a high percentage of ash. It is 

 interbedded with bands of shale and carries an unusual amount 

 of pyrites. This coal is almost completely useless and can only 

 be used in lime burning. A similar occurrence is recorded between 

 Sin-kai and Cheng-ch"iang, and here, if anything, the coal is of worse 

 quality than the preceding. A number of the same kind of seams 

 are situated in the mountains bordering the western side of Lake 

 Cheng-ch'iang. They possess no interest and were not described 

 (l)e., p. 24.H. 



It seems certain that the impure coals of this particular horizon 

 will never be of any economic importance for there is little chance 

 of their improving in depth. 



