-146-

Placer Deposits

Search for placer deposits has met with most encourage-
mont in the ebstern part of the Platcau belt, though some work
was done on Fox ercek south of Bulkley lake. . In general there is
very little hope for the areas near the railway west of Prince
George. Practically all placer deposits are found on or near the
bedrock from which the gold has been dorived, or they occur at
higher levels near such a sourec. Glacicrs have swept away many
placer deposits and distributed the gold so widely that in the
main it cannot be recovered economically even though concentrated
by 2 river cutting through the drift. Undoubtedly the glaciers
have carried much gold into the district from Omineca and Cariboo
mountains, thus accounting for its presence in many streams. Near
Cariboo mountains the gold is sufficiently abundant in places to
be worked profitably, but farther way is probably too widely
scattered. There is no evidence that deposits with a source
within the district are likely to occur; in any case they would
probably be so deeply buried under drift and possibly also lava

as to make discovery most unlikely and working conditions

extromely difficult.

Other Mineral Deposits

Coal occurs in the Tertiary rocks southeast of Fraser
lake, north of Engen, and, as already neeae at Driftwood creek
in the Babine belt, and is also reported on the north side of
Babine lake near the cast end. Other coal deposits may be
expeoted in the Tertiary sediments. The coal is of inferior
quality, being lignitic; and could be used only locally. The
best deposits known, seemeNeer lake, though up to 12 feet in
thickness, are so intermixed with volcanic ash and shale as to
reduce greatly the chance of finding a good seam. At Engen

1 ann. Rept. Minister of Mines, B.C., IZ ee dO >
oN