COAL  DEPOSITS  BETWEEN  SILVER  PEAK  AND  CANDELARIA, 
ESMERALDA  COUNTY,  NEV. 
By  J.  E.  Spurr. 
The  occurrence  of  coal  within  the  desert  region  of  Nevada,  even  if 
it  is  not  of  superior  quality,  is  of  great  interest  on  account  of  the 
scarcity  and  high  price  of  all  fuel  and  other  means  of  securing 
machine  power  here. 
Location. — At  the  north  end  of  the  Silver  Peak  Range,  in  Esmeralda 
County,  just  south  of  the  road  between  Silver  Peak  and  Candelaria, 
coal  beds  occur  in  Tertiary  sandstones,  shales,  and  volcanic  tuffs  that 
contain  fresh-water  shells  and  Tertiary  plants. 
Geological  conditions.  —These  sediments  abut  abruptly  on  the  south, 
only  a  short  distance  from  the  road,  against  a  massive  cliff  or  scarp 
of  rhyolite,  itself  also  probably  of  Tertiary  ag-e.  Between  the  rhyolite 
on  the  south  and  the  sediments  on  the  north  there  is  probabty  a  very 
heavy  fault  running  in  an  east-west  direction.  The  coal-bearing 
beds  dip  to  the  northeast  at  comparatively  slight  angles,  but  the  dip 
increases  as  the  fault  is  neared,  and  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the 
fault  the  beds  acquire  a  reversed  dip  and  constitute  a  local  anti- 
cline running  parallel  to  the  line  of  displacement.  The  beds  on  the 
south  limb  of  this  fold  sometimes  have  considerable  dip.  This  phe- 
nomenon seems  to  be  due  to  the  dragging  down  of  the  strata  along  the 
fault.  It  is  believed  that  the  downthrow  has  occurred  on  the  south  side, 
and  that  the  present  greater  height  of  the  rhyolite  on  the  south  is  due 
to  its  superior  hardness,  the  soft  sandstones  and  shales  having  been 
worn  away  relatively  more  rapidly.  In  support  of  this  belief  the 
downdragging  of  the  beds  near  the  fault  just  described  may  be  appealed 
to,  together  with  the  fact  that  several  minor  faults  near  the  main  fault 
were  found  to  have  a  downthrow  to  the  south.  Also  it  seems  prob- 
Bull.  225—04 19  289 
