so that flakes of the metal may be found along the seashore. In many places, too, green patches indicate that nuggets or flakes of copper have recently fallen out from their matrix.
“The copper-bearing rock also contains crystalline quartz some of which forms beautiful amethystine veins, of which some specimens were taken. There is here some further evidence of coastal elevation in the occurrence of saucer-shaped lines of water-worn debris at from twenty to forty feet above the present level of high tides.
“The question whether it would ever pay to work the native copper of these regions remains for the consideration of experts. I have always understood that native copper occurring in small flakes or nuggets and sparsely distributed, is of but little practical value, and that copper can only, as a rule, be successfully worked from ores that are rich and easy of access. Much depends doubtless on its abundance and regularity of distribution. This island, Barry island, or Iglor-yu-ullig, is several miles in length, and perhaps three or four miles across. The island to the south-southeast, Kun-nu-yuk, is still larger, besides which there is an island to the southwest which has given much copper, and there are copper-yielding islands to the north. The copper-bearing formation holds good everywhere except on the summit cappings of the islands.”
Later Mr. Hanbury examined a part of Lewis island also in Bathurst inlet. He relates in his book:—“At the northwest point of Lewis island, Bathurst inlet, we stopped to smoke. The formation of rock being similar to that on Barry island we commenced to search for copper, which proved to be plentiful. First of all only a few flakes could be found, but the longer we searched the more plentiful did the copper become. Finally
It Got Too Common
and we resumed our journey. The metal occurred in flakes and small chunks; the former were wedged in the rock always vertically. The rock was easily knocked to pieces by a light tap with the axe, the cleavage being both vertical and horizontal. Between two and three pounds of this native copper were picked up in the course of half or three-quarters of an hour, while we rested. The metal appeared to be very persistent in its occurrence in the partly decomposed basalt of which all the islands we passed that day consisted. The flakes of copper seemed to be always vertical when in their rock matrix. The rocks of this island, where they are not disintegrated, are well smoothed by glacial action, and the striæ are numerous and distinctly trend south and southeast.”
Writing of a more northerly point on Lewis island, also visited, Mr. Hanbury (p. 266) writes:—“Although we did not find so much copper here, the green marks on the rocks were more numerous, but we did not spend an hour altogether in the search. One of our Eskimos knew of a large mass of copper on the southwest shore of the island, which he stated to be as much as five feet in length and three inches thick. It protruded from the rocks under the water, it was said, but there was too much ice for us to find the copper. A piece of quartz with copper ore and native copper was picked up on the seashore. Another specimen of the copper-bearing rock here is a decomposed basalt, fine grained, and vesicular.”
Ascending Kendall river on his way to the headwaters of the Dease, whence he descended to Great Bear lake, Mr. Hanbury relates:—“We had the good luck to meet the Eskimos from the Arctic coast, who resort to this river to obtain wood for their sleighs. These natives had never set eyes on a white man before, and had no articles of civilization whatever. They were all dressed in deerskins, and armed with long bows, arrows and spears,
Beaten Out of Native Copper.
The use of tobacco was quite unknown to them, and firearms they had only heard about. They gave me a good deal of information about their country and the copper deposits along the Arctic coast, and I obtained from them several copper implements, such as dags, spear and arrow-heads, needles, etc., all beaten out of native copper, giving them in exchange knives, files and needles, which last appeared to have by far the most value in their eyes,”