THE RECORDS OF GOLD-WASHING. 37
glomerate formation the gold is caught in the brown sandstone bottom over which the conglomerate lies.
In
the glacial drifts extensive claims have been worked and large
quantities of gold have been obtained. These deposits are interesting,
inasmuch as they derive their gold, in all probability, from the slates
of which the glacial dritts are composed.
The
black-sand beaches are composed of crystals of magnetic iron ore, which
are found disseminated through the chloride schist. The gold which is
associated with the sand is supposed to have been derived from the
Maitai slates, brought down in immense quantities by glaciers. This
district includes the gold-fields of Waka-marina, Queen Charlotte
Sound, and VVairau valley.
Extensive
sluicing is going on at present in Waka-marina district. The ground is
spotted and the gold is distributed unevenly. The Queen Charlotte Sound
field is a quartz-mining district. The Wairau valley is an alluvial
deposit, and is a comparatively new district. Gold occurs in almost all
the gullies on the north bank of the Wairau River. The gullies are all
very narrow. Some of the claims have proved very rich.
Canada.—In
Canada gold is derived from the degradation of the upper Silurian and
Devonian rocks. The Geological Commission, as early as 1852, determined
the existence of auriferous alluvions extending over an area of more
than ten thousand square miles. The principal deposits explored have
been in the province of Quebec and in Nova Scotia. As notable may be
mentioned the workings along the Chaudiere River and its tributaries,
the Du Loup and the Gilbert. Extensive deposits occur also to the
southeast of the Notre Dame Mountains.
Small
local deposits of high value have been worked, giving rise to great
expectations, but as a whole the results have been unsatisfactory.
British Columbia.—-In British Columbia gold was
