Chapter XIII: Part I

THE GEOLOGY OF THE COUNTRY TRAVERSED BY THE CHEN-T’AI RAILWAY: WESTERN
CHIHLI AND EASTERN SHANSI

This section of country contains one of the most extensive and important coalfields in China, and therefore deserves closer attention than the writer has been able to give it. The following notes have been gathered during several journeys by rail between Shih-chia-chuang and T’ai-yüan Fu, so that the conclusions drawn therefrom can only be considered as tentative and not final. It is hoped, however, that they will be of value, as this district has not been too thoroughly explored or described.

Richthofen traversed this area before any railway was even contemplated, and described the coalfields and iron-mines in glowing terms. Subsequently his descriptions were revised and annotated by the late Rev. Herbert Dixon, of Shansi, for the Pekin Syndicate. Further investigations and reports were made for the Syndicate by their engineer, Mr. J. G. H. Glass. Nevertheless there yet remains much to be done in the geology of the district, as the last two explorers confined their attentions chiefly to its mineral resources.

The journey should be very instructive to any one wishing to study the geology of Shansi, for, owing to the general westerly dip of the strata, one passes through the whole series of the sedimentary rocks, from the Hu-t’o series (pre-Cambrian limestones, etc.), through the Sinian system (Cambro-Ordovician limestones, etc.), through the entire Shansi formation (shale and sandstone coal measures and overlying red sandstones of the Red Beds) to the Huang-t’u formation (loess and other quaternary deposits).

On leaving Shih-chiah-chuang, the junction of the Chên-T’ai and Pe-Han Railways, one soon passes from the great alluvial plains of Chihli into rugged mountains, which are composed of the dark massive siliceous limestone belonging to the Hu-t’o or Nan-k’ou series.[10]

The slopes facing the plain (i.e. eastward) are in the form of a steep and rugged escarpment, formed, possibly, by extensive erosions, but more probably by a fault running roughly north and south, with the downthrow on the east. This theory may be supported by the fact that the strata, which are very marked, dip to the west at varying angles. Slight folding is also noticeable.

After passing westward through the Hu-t’o series for a short distance, one encounters typical Sinian limestones, which are next replaced by sandstones of the Shansi coal measures. Here, at a point just before Ching-hsing Hsien is reached, a good quality of bituminous coal is extensively mined by the Ching Hsing Mining Company.

Immediately west of Ching-hsing Hsien, massive limestone mountains are again encountered, suggesting the existence of another fault, especially as the eastern slopes again present rugged escarpments, and the strata still dip to the west. As far as could be judged from the train, this limestone extends all the way to the P’ing-ting Chou district. This does not agree exactly with Richthofen’s map, which gives alternating outcrops of limestone and coal measures, but it must be remembered that the railway line follows the valley bottoms, deep down in the strata, so that one cannot observe from it the outcrops at higher altitudes in the mountains, while Richthofen, travelling by road, actually crossed several high ridges, and therefore was able to observe the topmost outcrops.

Just before reaching Yang-ts’uen, the station for P’ing-ting Chou, one comes to the end of the limestone, and encounters once more the famous Shansi formation, with its extensive beds of coal and iron.

My friend, Professor E. T. Nyström, formerly of the Shansi Imperial University, has dealt very fully and ably in his book, _The Coal and Mineral Resources of Shansi Province, China_, with the coal of this district, besides that of nearly all the other known sources in the province. I might just mention that the coal is of a very good quality, and that iron ore is very abundant and easily worked, though at present little is being done to develop any industries connected with these valuable mineral resources.

Professor Nyström in his book gives amongst others the following analysis of the anthracite coal of this district:—

Moisture 0·46 per cent.
Volatile Hydrocarbons 6·12 „
Fixed Carbon 85·80 „
Ash 7·62 „
Sulphur 0·89 „

Referring to his various analyses he says: “All these analysis of coal from P.T.C. (P’ing-ting Chou) show a coal of high quality. Richthofen calls it equal to the best Pennsylvanian anthracite.”

As one travels up the valley from Yang-ts’uen one passes places where the Pao Ching Mining Company[11] has sunk shafts, and is mining comparatively small quantities of coal. Along the line where cuttings have been made one can see thick seams of coal actually exposed.

Continuing in a direction a little south of west, it is noticed that the strata, now comprised of alternate beds of sandstone and shale, and varying in colour from a dark purplish brown to olive green and yellow ochre, still dip to the west. Steadily ascending, the railway line next passes through the Red Beds, which are red shales and sandstones forming the upper layers of the Shansi formation. Finally come the thick loess deposits of the Shou-yang Hsien district, just before reaching which town, the highest point on the line, marking the divide between the Fên-Ho and the P’u-t’o Ho, is crossed (about 3,000 ft. altitude). From here a descent is made through thick beds of red sandstone (Red Beds), the strata of which dip still to the west. Just before Pei-ho-liu is reached, the red sandstone gives place to grey sandstone of a similar nature. Passing through this, the line comes out upon the alluvial plain of T’ai-yüan at Yü-tzŭ Hsien, and turning northward, terminates twenty miles further at T’ai-yüan Fu itself. From the train as it makes this last stretch can be seen the Lung-wang Shan, lying to the east. These mountains are composed of a massive outcrop of the Shansi coal-bearing series, and though I have not actually determined such to be the case, are doubtless formed by a large anticlinal fold, as they rise to a greater altitude than the Red Beds at Shou-yang Hsien. Anthracite coal is mined here at an altitude of fully 3,000 feet. This seems to mark the western boundary of the anthracite beds, for in the mountains immediately west of the plain bituminous coal only is mined.