86 



Bulletin 35 



Page 113 



in quantity may possibly lead to the opening up of a new 

 branch of productive industry in the island. 



The quantity of rocks in this island yielding asphaltic and 

 bituminous substances which may hereafter be valuable for 

 the production of illuminating and other oils by distillation is 

 very great. Tertiary coal was discovered and worked in 

 Couva many years ago. The site of the beds is marked on 

 the geological map, and they probably extend with more or 

 less interruption all across the island to the north of the 

 Tamana and Montserrat ranges. I append hereto an extract 

 from a report on the Couva coal by Mr. Wall, Director of 

 the Geological Survey. 



The late discoveries added to my own observations make 

 it seem probable that the Nariva series of the Government 

 geologists, is the equivalent on the south side of the central 

 range of the Caroni carbonaceous series on the north ; and if 

 this be correct, we may expect to find a series of coal beds 

 extending from the Guaracara valley on the west to the 

 Nariva swamp on the east. In support of this view I may 

 state that the section made by the Geological Survey of the 

 country between Sanfernando and Montserrat bears out the 

 theory of the contemporaneity of the so-called Nariva series 

 with the Miocene (Caroni) series. 



Extract from a Report by G. P. Wall, F.G.S., Director of 

 the Geological Survey, on the Mineral Fields of the Couva 

 District, dated 11 Trinidad, 1st May, 1857." 



The deposits of mineral fuel in the district of Couva, con- 

 sist of carbonaceous beds of a character intermediate between 

 lignite and coal. A practical trial of the economic value of 

 this substance was made by Mr. Maurice Rostant, who was 



