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WEST INDIES
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 CONTENTS.

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INTRODUCTION, by w endell p. w oodring ................................ . 23
Arrangements for the reconnaissance ................................ . 23
Field work • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 24
Office work ......... . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 24
Acknowledgments • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 26
PART I. GEOGRAPHY, by John S. Brown and Wendell P. Woodring ...... . 28
Physical geography ...... . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••••• 28
General relations .... . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••• • • 28
Surface features ..... . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . . . .. . ~
30
General character ......... . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••• .
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Geographic provinces • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 31
Drainage • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 32
General features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 32
Drainage slopes and principal streams ...................... . 33
Peculiar drainage features .................................. . 34
Lakes • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••• 35
Drainage of Gonave and Tortue islands ..................... . 35
R.elation of drainage to structure ........................... . 35
Climate • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 36
Source of data. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 36
Temperature • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 36
Precipitation • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 43
Relative humidity •••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 55
Winds • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 56
Vegetation • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 57
Types of vegetation • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 57
Forests • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 57
Occurrence and general appearance ..................... . 57
Kinds of trees • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 57
Associated vegetation • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 59 •

Notes on local areas. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 59

Xerophytic vegetation • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 62
Extent and general features ............................ . 62
Kinds of plants ............ . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 62
Savannas • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 63
, Halophytic vegetation ••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 64
Vegetation of the shore line ................................ . 64
Economic geography • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 65
Population • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 65
Total population ........ . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 65
Principal cities and towns .................................. . 66
Comparison of urban and rural population .................. . 67
Density of population • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• 67
Geographic factors influencing distribution of population ..... 68
Agriculture • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 69
General features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 69
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 4 CONTENTS.

PAGE.
PART I. GEOGRAPHY, by John S. Brown and Wendell P. Woodring-
Continued.
Economic geography Continued.
Agriculture Continued.
Chief export crops of the colony and of the Republic. . . . . . . . . . 70
Tobacco and indigo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Sugar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Coffee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Cotton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Cacao • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 74
Honey .............................. .-. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Crops grown for domestic consumption.... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Live stock and poultry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Methods of farming and future of agriculture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Commerce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
General features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Exports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
•
Principal articles of colonial export ..................... . 77
Trend of changes in exports ............................ . 78
Imports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Principal countries trading with the R epublic of Haiti. . . . . . . . 80
Manufactures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Transportation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Highways and trails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Railroads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Telegraph and t elephone systems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
PART II. GEOLOGY, by Wendell P. Woodring, John S. Brown, and Wilbur
S. Burbank ................................................... . 84
R econnaissance geologic map ....................................... . 84
Sedimentary rocks, by Wendell P. Woodring and John S. Brown ...... . 84
Paleozoic ( ?) metamorphic rocks ............................... . 84
Cretaceous system ............................................ . 85
I Lower Cretaceous series .................................... . 86
Description by regions ................................ . 86
Massif du Nord ................................... . 86
Plaisance Valley .............................. . 86
Les Trois Rivieres between Gros-Morne and Pilate 88
Near Dondon ................................ . 88
Near Cerca-la-Source ......................... . 89
Morn.e du Cap ............................... . 90
~!Jontagnes Noires ................................ . 92
Southern P eninsula ............................... . 92
Arrondissement of Jacmel ..................... . 92
Near Petit-Goave ............................ . 92
Arrondissement of Aquin ...................... . 92 •

Arrondissement of Cayes ...................... . 93

Arrondissement of Tiburon .................... . 93
Upper Cretaceous series ................................... . 93
D escription by regions ............... ·................. . 93
Massif du Nord ................................... . 93
Near the Citadelle of Christophe ............... . 93
Near La Tannerie ............................. . 94
Morne Grand-Gille ........................... . 95
 REPUBLIC OF HAITI
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS
Luc THEARD CoMMANnEnA. L. PAnsoNs,c.E.c., u.s.N.
Secretary of State for Public Works Engin eer in Chief

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI

WENDEI.1. P. WoonRING, Geologist in Charge •

GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI

BY
•

WENDELL P. WOODRING, JOHN S. BROWN

AND WILBUR S. BURBANK
•

PROPERTY OF
D -\

PORT-AU-PRINCE ~ ~0
1924

~<;;..s'\
•
 CONTENTS. 5
• PAGE•

p ART II. GEOLOGY,by Wendell P. Woodring, John S. Brown, and Wilbur

S. Burbank Continued.
Sedimentary rocks, by Wendell P. Woodring and John S. Brown-
Continued.
Cretaceous system Continued.
Upper Cretaceous series Continued.
Description by regions Continued.
Montagne.s de Terre-Neuve ....................... . 95
Massif de la Selle ................................. . 95
Massif de la Hotte ................................ . 96
Fossils ............................................... . 97
Tertiary system .............................................. . 98
•
Eocene series ............................................. . 99
Middle Eocene ....................................... . 99
Plaisance limestone ............................... . 99
Name .............................. · . · · · · · · · · · 99
Areal distribution ............................. . 99
-
Stratigraphic relations ........................ . 102
Lithology .................................... . 102 •

Thickness .................................... . 103

Structure ..................................... . 103
Fossils .·...................................... . 103
Upper Eocene ........................................ . 108
General features .................................. . 108
Areal distribution ............................. . 108
Stratigraphic relations ......................... . 108
•
Lithology .................................... . 108
Thickness .................................... . 109
Structure ..................................... . 110
Description by regions ............................ . 110
Massif du Nord ............................... . 110
M orne du Cap ........................... . 110
Near Dondon ............................. . 111
Arrondissement of Borgne ................. . 112
Northwest P eninsula .......................... . 112
Bombardopolis Plateau ................... . 112
l\iI ontagnes de Jean Rabel .................. . 113
Montagnes de Terre-N euve ................ . l.13
Valley of Riviere d' Ennery .................... . 122
Montagnes Noires ............................ . 123
•

Northwestern part ........................ . 123

Southeastern part ......................... . 126
Chaine des Mateux ............................ . 126
Montagnes du Trou d'Eau ..................... . 128
M assif de la Selle .............................. . 129
Massif de la Hotte ............................ . 132
Gonave Island ................................ . 138
Fossils ........................................... . 139
0 ligocene series ........................................... . 145
Lower Oligocene ..................................... . 145
Middle Oligocene ..................................... . 146
Description by regions .............................. . 146
•
Massif du Nord ............................... . 146
•
 •

¢ee .So-cb ""ttimort {Preas

BALTIMORB, KD., U. S. A.

·/
 6 CONTENTS.

PAGE.
PART II. GEOLOGY, by Wendell P. Woodring, John S. Brown, and Wilbur
S. Burbank Continued.
Sedimentary rocks, by Wendell P. Woodring and John S. Brown-
•
Continued .
Tertiary system Continued.
Oligocene series Continued.
Middle Oligocene Continued.
Description by regions-Continued.
Northwest Peninsula .......................... . 147
Trois Rivieres Valley ...................... . 147
•
Montagnes de Jean Rabel .................. . 147
Montagnes de Terre-N euve ................ . 147
Montagnes Noires ............................ . 148
Chaine des Mateux ............................. . 148
Montagnes du Trou d'Eau ..................... . 148
Near J acm el .................................. . 148
Fossils ........................................... . 149
Upp er Oligocene ...................................... . 151
Description by regions ............................ . 151
Tortue Island ................................. . 151
Arrondissement of Borgne ..................... . 151
Trois Rivieres ·Valley ......................... . 151
Borders of the Central Plain .................... . 152
•
Cbaine des Mateux ............................. . 153
Montagnes du Trou d'Eau ..................... . 153 •

Fossils ........................................... . 154

. .
M iocene series ............................................ . 157
General features ...................................... . 157
Areal distribution ................................. . 157
Stratigraphic relations ............................. . 157
Lithology ........................................ . 158
Thickness ........................................ . 158
Structure ......................................... . 158
Description by regions .................. ·.............. . 158
Jea.n Rabel Valley ................................ . 158
Trois Rivieres Valley .............................. . 159
Near Mole St.-N icolas .............................. . 160
Arbre Plain ....................................... . 160
F os:3ils ...••.•.•..•..•...••....•.........•..•.• 161
Central Plain .....................................
. . 161
Artibonite group .............................. . 161
Madame Joie formation ................... . 162
Fossils ............................... . 163
Thomonde formation and Maissade tongue .. 165
Southeastern part ..................... . 165
Northwestern part .................... . 168
Fossils, Thomonde formation .......... . 173
Fossils, Maissade tongue .............. . 191
Las Cahobas formation ................... . 196
Fo~ils of Las Cahobas formation ...... . 200
Fossils of Artibonite group ................. . 205
Artibonite Valley and Chaine des Mateux ........... . 206
Artibonite Valley ............................. . 206
 '

CONTENTS. 7
PAGE.
PART II. GEOLOGY, by Wendell P. Woodring, John S. Brown, and Wilbur
S. Burbank Continued.
Sedimentary rocks, by Wendell P. Woodring and John S. Brown-
Continued.
Tertiary system Continued.
Miocene series Continued.
Description by regions Continued.
Artibonite Valley and Chaine des Mateux Continued.
Chaine des Mateux near St.-Marc ............... . 210
Momes des Guepes ........................ . 210
South of St.-Marc ......................... . 212
Valley of St.-Marc ........................ . 212
Southwest slope of Chaille des Mateux .......... . 213
Fossils ....................................... . 214
Southern edge of the Cul-de-Sac Plain .............. . 219
General feat.urea ............................... . 219
Vicinity of Port-au-Prince and Petionville ...... . 220
Fossils ....................................... . 221
North coast of the Southern Peninsula .............. . 223
Morne-a-Bateau .............................. . 223
L'Acul ....................................... . 224
Grand-Goave ................................. . 224
.. Ta pion du Petit-Goave ........................ . 224
Near Baraderes ............................... . 225
Fossils ....................................... . 225
Commune of Jeremie .............................. . 226
Grande Riviere and Bras-a-Droit ............... . 226
South of Les Roseaux .......................... . 227
FossjJs ....................................... . 227
Between Port-Salut and Port-a-Piment ............. . 228
Asile Valley ...................................... . 228
Fossils ....................................... . 231
Camp Perrin ..................................... . 232
Fossils ....................................... . 236
Cayes Plain ...................................... . 237 •

. B' ossi ls ....••••••.•••.•...•....•..••.•....•..•. 237

Gonave Island .................................... . 237
FossiJs ....................................... . 238
Pliocene series ............................................ . 239
Marine deposits ....................................... . 239
Valley of Riviere Gauche ......................... . 239
" 240
Tapion du Petit-Goave ............................ .
N onmarine deposits .................................. . 240
Central Plain ..................................... . 241
Hinche formation ............................. . 241
Fossils ..............................••................ 241
Quaternary system ............................................ . 243
General features .......................................... . 243
Marine deposits .......................................... . 243
Stratigraphic relations ................................ . 244
Lithology and local details ............................. . 244
Thickness ............................................ . 247
Structure ............................................. . 247
Fossils ............................................... . 247
8 CONTENTS.
I PAGE.

PART II. GEOLOGY, by Wendell P. Woodring, John S. Brown, and Wilbur

•

S. Burbank Continued. ·
Sedimentary rocks, by Wendell P. Woodring and John S. Brown-
Continued.
Quaternary system Continued.
N onmarine deposits ....................................... . 255
Fossils ............................................... . 256
Extinct Quaternary mammals and birds .................... . 257
Igneous rocks, by Wilbur S. Burbank ............................... . 260
General distribution .......................................... . 260
Outline of the igneous geology ................................. . 262
Northern region .............................................. . 265
Extrusive rocks ........................................... . 265
General features and distribution ....................... . 265
Age of eruptions ....................................... . 266
Order of eruption ..................................... . 267
Earlier basaltic rocks .................................. . 268
Distribution and structural relations ................ . 268
Petrograpliy ..................................... . 270
Olivine-free basalts ..............·............. . 270
Hypersthene basalt ........................... . 271
Other basaltic rocks............................. . 271
Alteration and metamorphism ..................... . 272
Andesites and dacites .................................. . 272
Distribution and structural relations ................ . 272
Petrography and chemical composition .............. . 274
Pyroxene (augite-hypersthene) andesites ........ . 274
.
Hypersthene andesites ........................ . 277
Augite-hypersthene-hornblende andesites ...... . 277
Hornblende-augite andesites ......... ......... . 277
Hornblende andesites ......................... . 278
Hornblende-mica andesites or dacites ........... . 278
Pyroxene ( augite-hypersthene) dacites ......... . 278
Hornblende-augite dacites .................... . 279
.
Hornblende-mica dacites ...................... . 279
Relations of the various types ...................... . 279
Alteration and metamorphism ...................... . 280
Later basaltic rocks .................................... . 280
Distribution and structurai relations ................ . 280
P etrogra phy ...................................... . 281
General features .............................. . 281
Ess.exite ...................................... . 282
Analcite andesites and ana.lcite-olivine andesites .. 283
Amygdaloidal basalts ......................... . 284
Zeolitized olivine basalts and diabases .......... . 284
Olivine diabase .............................. . 285
•

Alteration ........................................ . 285

Relations of the various types ...................... . 286
Age of the lavas ................................... . 286
Intrusive rocks ........................................... . 286
General features and distribution ....................... . 286
Earlier basic intrusives ................................ . 287
Distribution and structural relations ................ . 287
 •

CONTENTS. 9
PAGID.

PART II. GEOLOGY, by W endell P. Woodring, John S. Brown, and Wilbur

S. Burbank· Continued.
Igneous rocks, by Wilbur S. Burba.Dk Continued.
Northern regionr--Continued.
Intrusive rocks Continued.
Earlier basic intrusives Continued.
P etrography ...................................... . 287
Metadiabase ................................. · 288
Augite peridotite ............................. . 288
Earlier quartz diorite group ............................ . 289
Distribution and structural i·elations ................ . 289
Petrography and chemical composition of the normal
quartz diorite ................................. . 290
~- . .
in or var1at1 ons ................................. . 293
Quartz diorite ................................ . 293
Ophitic quartz diorite ......................... . 294
Daci te porphyries ............................ . 294
Kaolinized porphyry .......................... . 294
Quart z diorit e porphyries ...................... . 294
Dike rocks and veins .............................. . 295
General f eatures .............................. . 295
Alteration and metamorphism ...................... . 296
•
W eathering ...................................... . 297
Age of intrusion ......... . ........................ . 299
Dacite porphyry of the Montagnes Noires ....... . ....... . 299
Distribution and structural relati ons ................ . 299
P etrography ...................................... . 300
Correlation and age of the porphyry ................ . 301
Later quartz diorite group of the Montagnes de T erre-
N eu ve ....................................... . 301
Distribut ion and structural relations ......... . ...... . 301
P etrog1·aphy and chemical composit ion .............. . 302
Quartz diorite ................................ . 302
Granodiorite ................................. . 303
D acite porphyries ........................... . . 305
Dike rocks ......................... . ......... . 305
Aplites and pegmat ites ....................... . . . 306
R elations of the various types ....................... . .. . 306
M etamorphic rocks entirely or in part of igneous origin ...... . 306
Distribution and general features ....................... . 306
Amphibolites and hornblende schists .................... . 308
Talc schist ........................................... . 309
Chloritic schists ...................................... . 309
Summary of the relations of t he extrusive and intrusive seri es. 310
Central region ................................................ . 312
General features and distribution of igneous rocks ........... . 312
Pre-Tertiary or lower Eocene basaltic rocks ..... . .......... . . 312
P etrogra phy .......................................... . 312
Hypersthene basalts .. . ........................ . .. . 312
Tuff ............................................. . 314
•
N ephelite basalts .. . ............ . ........ . .............. . . . . 314
Distribution and struct ural relations .................. . . . 314
Near Saut d'Eau .. . ........................·....... . 314
N ear Thomazeau • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••••• • ••••• 315
•
 10 CONTENTS.

PAGE.
PART II. by Wendell P. Woodring, John S. Brown, and Wilbur
GEOLOGY,
S. Burbank Continued.
Igneous rocks, by Wilbur S. Burbank Continued.
Central region Continued. •
•
N ephelite basalts-Continued.
Petrography and chemical composition ................. . 315
N ephelite basalt ................................... . 315
Hai.iynite-nephelite basalt .......... .................. . 317
Zeolitized nephelite basalt ......................... . 317
M elilite-nepheli te basalt ..... ....................... . 318
Relations and origin of the lavas ....................... . 318
Age of the eruptions .................................... . 318
Miocene (?) basaltic rocks ................................ . 319
General features and structural relations ................ . 319
Petrography .......................................... . 319
Age and relations of the lavas .......................... . 319
Southern region .............................................. . 320
General features .......................................... . 320
Late Cretaceous basaltic rocks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320
Distribution and structural relations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320
Massif
, de la Selle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320
•
Etang de Miragoane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321
Vicinity of Asile Valley. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321
Vicinity of Aquin and St.-Louis du Sud. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Western part of peninsula. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Sources Chaudes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Petrography and chemical composition .......• ~ • . . . . . . . . . 323
Basalts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Albitized or spilitic basalts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326
Diabase porphyries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326
Basic augite andesi tes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 7
Alteration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327
• Origin of the lavas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 328
Age of the lavas. ....................................... 329
Andesites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329
Distribution, structural relations, and age. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329
Petrography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329
Hypersthene andesites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329
Hornblende andesites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330
Post-Eocene ( ?) basaltic rocks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330
T ectonics, by Wendell P. Woodring. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331
General features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331
Tectonic histozy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332
Bearing of tectonics on geologic histozy of West Indies . . . . . . . . . . . 337
Earthquakes, by Wendell P. Woodring. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338
Records available . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338
Disastrous earthquakes from 1551 to 1908. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339
Earthquakes from 1909 to 1922. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343
Conclusions regarding frequency of shocks in different parts of
the Republic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346
Precautions against damage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348
Summazy of geologic histozy, by Wendell P. Woodring............... 350
 CONTENTS. 11
PAGE.
PART III. GEOMORPHOLOGY, by Wendell P. Woodring, John S. Brown, and
Wilbur S. Burbank ........................................ . • • •• 354
Tortue Island • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 354
General relations • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 354
Land features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 354
Upland forms • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 354
Shore features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 355
Sublittoral features •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 355
North Plain • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••• 356
Extent and general features ..................................... . 356
Land features ••••••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 356
Undissected alluvial p1ain • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 356
Dissected plain • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 356
Low hills ................................................. . 357
Rock platform • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 357
Shore features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 358
Sublittoral features ............................................. 358
Massif du Nord • • • • • •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 359
Name and extent • • • ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 359
General features ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 359
Land features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 360
Eastern part ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 360
Central part • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••••••••••••••• 361
Western part • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 362
Morne du Cap ............................................ . 363
Drainage • • • • • • • • •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 363
Shore features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••••••• 364
Sub littoral features •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 365
Northwest Peninsula .............................................. . 366
Extent and general features .................................... . 366
Land features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 367
Subp~ovinces •• • •• •• •••• •• •• • •••• • •••• •• •• • ••• •• • ••• ••• •• • • 367
Trois Rivieres Valley .................................. . 367
Montagnes de Terre-Neuve ............................ . 367
Montagnes du N ord-ouest ............................. . 368
Bombardopolis Plateau • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 369
General features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 369
Emerged coastal terraces • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 371
Arbre Plain • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 375
Jean Rabel Valley ..................................... . 376
Shore features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 376
Sublittoral features • • • • • • • • • • • ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 377
Central Plain • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 377
Name and extent •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 377
Surface features ••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 378
N. orthwestem part ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 378
Southeastern part ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 379
Drainage • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 381
Montagnes Noires • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••••••••••• 382
Name and extent • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••• 382
•
General features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 383
Surface features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 383
Northwestern part • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••••••••••••••••••••• 383
 •

•
•

12 CONTENTS.
PAGm.
PART III. GEOMORPHOLOGY, by Wendell P. Woodring, John S. Brown, and •
Wilbur S. Burbank Continued.
Montagnes Noires-Continued.
Surface features Continued.
Southeastern part • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 384
• Drainage ••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••• 384
Artibonite Plain and Artibonite Valley ............................. . 385
Name and general features .................................... . 385
Land features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 385
Artibonite Plain • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • 385
Artibonite Valley • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••• 385
Drainage • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• 388
Shore features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• •
388
Suqlittoral features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 389
Montagn~ du Trou d'Eau ......................................... . 389
Name and extent .............................................. . 389
Surface features ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 389
Eastern part • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ' ................ . 389
Western part •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • • • • •• 390
Drainage • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 391
Chaine des Mateux .. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 391
Name and extent. •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 391
General features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 391
Land features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 391
Chaille des Mateux proper ................................. . 391
Mornes de St.-Marc ....................................... . 392
Arcahaie Plain • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••••• 393
Drainage • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••••••••••••••••••• 394
Shore features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 394
Sublittoral features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 395
Cul-de-Sac Plain • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 395
Name and extent .............................................. . 395
General features ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 395
Land features .. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 395
Outline and dominant elements. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• 395
Shore features ... • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••••••••••••• 397
Sublittoral features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••••••••• 397
Massif de Ia Selle .................................................. . 398
Name and extent. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 398
General features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 399
Land features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 399
Mountains •••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 399
North slope • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 399
Interior • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 400
Eastern part, including Montagne de la Selle ........ . 400
Western part • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 401
South slope • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••••••• 402
Plains • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 403
Leogane Plain .. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 403
Drainage • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 403
Shore and sublittoral features. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• 404
North coast • • • • • • ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • 404
Shore features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• 404
Sublittoral features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 404:

• •

•
 •

CONTENTS. 13
PAGE.
PART III. GEOMORPHOLOGY, by Wendell P. Woodring, John S. Brown, and
Wilbur S. Burbank Continued. •
Massif de la Selle Continued.
Shore and sublittoral featuresN--Continued.
South coast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404
Shore features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404
Sublittoral features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406
Massif de la Hotte ................................................ . 406
•
Name and extent ............ . ................................. . 406
General features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406
Land features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407
Eastern part . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407
North slope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407
•
Interior • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• 408
Asile Valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 408
South slope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 409
Western part . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 O
North slope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 410
Interior; Montagnes de la Hotte. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 411
South slope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412
Cayes Plain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412
•
Port-Salut Peninsula . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412
Drainage • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 413
Shore features ............................................ . 413
North coast ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 413
West coast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414
South coast • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••••••••••••••••••••••• 415
Sublittoral features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416
North coast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416
West coast • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 416
South coast • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 417
Gonave Island .................................................... . 418
General relations • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••••••••••••••••• 418
Land f ea.tures • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 418
Southeast half ............................................ . 418
Ridge along south coast ................................ . 418
Mapoux Plain ........................................ . 419
Interior di~ected plateau .............................. . 420
Dissected plateau along north coast .................... . 420
Northwest half ........................................... . 421
•
Drainage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. .. . . .
. . . . .. . . . . . .. . . . . .
~ 421
Shore features ............................................ . 421
Sublittoral features • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••••••••• 422
PART IV. MINERAL RESOURCES, by Wilbur S. Burbank, John S. Brown, and
Wendell P. Woodring . . . . . . . . . . . .............................. . 423
Metals • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 423
Introduction and summary by metals ........................... . 423
Mineral deposits of the Terre-Neuve district, by Wilbur S. Burbank
and John S. Brown .................................... . 425
Introduction • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 425
Location and access • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 425
Geology • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 428
General features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 428
Sedimentary rocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 429
 •

14 CONTENTS.

PAGE.
PART IV. MINERAL RESOURCES, by Wilbur S. Burbank, John S. Brown, and
Wendell P. Woodring Continued.
M etals-Continued.
• •

Mineral deposits of the Terre-N euve district, by Wilbur S. Burbank

and John S. Brown Continued.
Geology Continued.
Igneous rocks ....................•..................... 429
General features and age ........................... . 429
Volcanic rocks .................................... . 430
Pyroxene andesites ............................ . 430
Hornblende dacites and andesites ............... . 430
Basaltic rocks ................................ . 430
Mode of occurrence ............................ . 431
Intrusive rocks .................................... . 431
Quartz diorite and granodiorite ................. . 431
Dacite porphyries ............................. . 431
Structure ............................................. . 432
Folds ............................................ . 432
Faults and fissures ................................. . 432
Relations of structural features ..................... . 433
History of mining development ............................ . 433
General character and extent of deposits .................... . 435
Contact metamorphic deposits ............................. . 436
General f ea tures ...................................... . 436
Features of the m etamorphism ......................... . 437
Mineral composition of the tactite .................. . 437
Metamorphism of igneous rocks . ................... . 439
Alteration of intrusive porpyhries ..... . ............ . 439
Alt eration of limestone to marble .................. . 440
Origin and features of the mineralizing solutions ......... . 440
Distribution and structural features ..................... . 441
Principal prospects ................................... . 443
Possibilities of finding new deposits .................... . 446
Tenor of ores ......................................... . 446
Cost of labor and transportation ........................ . 448
Conclusions .......................................... . 448
Vein deposits ............................................ . . 450
General feat ures and distribution ....................... . 450
Veins near Rocher ..................................... . 450
Character and distribution ......................... . 450
Prospects ........................................ . 451
Tenor ............................................ . 452
Mineralogy .................... . .................. . 453
Enrichment ..................................... , . 454
Alteration of wall rocks ...................... .. ..... . 455
Veins near R a vine Jeanty .............................. . 455
Character and distribution ......................... . 455
Prospect-s ......................................... . 456
Tenor ............................................ . 456
Mineralogy .......... . ............................ . 457
Alteration of the country rock ...................... . 457
Veins at Dolan ........................................ . 457
Character and distribution ........................ . 457
Prospects ......................................... . 458
•
Character and origin of mineralization .............. . 458
 •

CONTENTS. 15
PAGE.
PART IV. MINERAL RESOURCES, by Wilbur S. Burbank, John S. Brown, and
Wendell P. Woodring Continued.
Metals Continued.
Mineral deposits of the Terre-Neuve district, by Wilbur S. Burbank
and John S. Brown Continued.
Vein deposits Oontinued.
Veins east of Terre-Neuve village. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 458
General conclusions as to veins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 459
Copper-bearing veins in pre-Tertiary rocks, by Wilbur S. Burbank
•
and John S. Brown. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 459
General features and origin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 460
Enrichment of primary veins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 460
Tenor of veins and general conditions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461
General distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461
Copper veins near Grande-Riviere du Nord. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 462
Location and
•
access . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 462
Geology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463
History of development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463
Veins at habitation Zepiny. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 464
Veins in Section Cormiers. . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 464
General conclusions as to copper-bearing veins. . . . . . . . . . . . 465
Other localities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 466
Section Las Lomas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 466
Plaisance and vicinity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467
Limonade and vicinity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467
Jean Rabel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 7
Iron deposits at Morne Beckly, by Wilbur S. Burbank and John S.
Brown ............................................... . 468
Geography and geology ................................... . 468
Character and occurrence of ore ............................ . 468
..
0 ngin ................................................... . 469
Economic value ........................................... . 470
Deposits of manganese, by Wilbur S. Bu1·bank and John S. Brown .. 470
Manganese deposits in the Commune of Gros-Marne ...•..... 470
Geography and general geology ........................ . 470
Character and extent of faulting ........................ . 471
Mineralogy .......................................... . 471
Origin of the deposits ................................. . 473
Conclusions as to character of veins .................... . 474
Manganese deposits in the Commune of Jacmel near Coteaux .. 475
Residual concentrations of iron and manganese, by Wilbur S. Bur-
bank and John S. Brown ............................... . 477
General features .......................................... . 477
Iron and manganese on the North Plain ..................... . 477
Iron and manganese near Paul ............................. . 478
Iron in the Southern Peninsula, by John S. Brown ........... . 479
Residual deposits on basaltic rocks ..................... . 479
Residual deR.osits on limestone ......................... . 479
Nonmetals, by John S. Brown and Wendell P. Woodring ............. . 480
. •t~ • • • • • • • • . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • . • • • • • • • • • • •
L lgill 480
Lignite near Ma!ssade .................................... . 481
Lignite near Camp Perrin ................................. . 483
Relative heating value ..................................... . 485

•
 • ;;a-

16 CONTENTS.
PAGE.
PART IV. MINERAL RESOURCES, by Wilbllr S. Burbank, John S. Brown, and
Wendell P. Woodring Continued.
Nonmetals, by John S. Brown and Wendell P. Woodring Continued.
Oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488
Possible oil resources of the Central Plain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488
Stratigraphy of the Miocene rocks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488
Structure of the Central Plain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488
N 01·thwestern part . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488
Southwest limb of syncline. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488
Fond Bleu dome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488
Northeast limb of syncline. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 489
Plunging anticline between Maissade and
Pignon ... ·............................ . 489
Southeastern part .. ................................ . 489
Southwest limb of syncline ..................... . 489
West side ................................ . 489
Thomonde anticline .................. .
• 490
Chamouscadille anticline .............. . 490
Ayaye anticline ....................... . 491
South side ................................ . 491
Belladere anticline .................. ~ .. 491
Northeast limb of syncline ..................... . 492
Structural terrace near Thomassique ........ . 492
Possible source of oil ........................... , ...... . 492
Reservoirs ........................................... . 492
Structt1re as affecting accumulation of oil ............... . 492
Relations to fields near by ............................. . 493
Conclusions as to the pos.sibilities of finding oil .......... . 493
Possible oil in other regions ................................ . 494
Road material ................................................ . 494
Present state of road building .............................. . 494
Tests of samples of road material ........................... . 495
Summary of available material ............................. . 497
Building stone ................................................ . 498
•
Rock for concrete . ............................................ . 500
Lime ···········································A·············· 500
Material for cement ........................................... . 501
Clay for bricks ...........................................-.... . 503
Sand ......................................................... . 507
Salt .......................................................... . 509
Guano ....................................................... . 510
p ART v. wATER RESOURCES, by John s. Brown ........................... . 513
Introd ucti on . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....................... . 513 •

Surface and ground water supply ................................... . 514

Cul-de-Sac Plain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... 514
•
Importance ............................................... . 514
Surface features .......................................... . 515
Streams and springs ...................................... . . 515
. t'I on ..................................... ! • • • • • • • • • • •
I rnga 517
Ground water ............................................ . 518
Geologic features affecting ground water ................ . 518
Wells and pumping plants ............................. . 519
Wells of the Haytian-American Sugar Co............ . 519
Non-flowing well at Peyrard ....................... . 520
 CONTENTS • 17
•
PAGE.
PART V. WATER RESOURCES, by John S. Brown Continued. ·
Surface and ground water supply Continued.
Cul-de-Sac ·p1ain Continued.
Ground water Continued.
Wells and pumping plants Continued.
Flowing well near La Moriniere .................... . 520
Flowing well at La Moriniere ........... ........... . 520
Pumping plant at La Moriniere .................... . 521
•
Pumping plant at Dessources . ...................... . 521
Flowing wells at Dessources ........................ . 523
Pumping plant at Vaudreuil ....................... . 524
Pumping plant at Drouillard ..................•..... 524
Abandoned well at '' Hasco '' mill ................... . 524
Abandoned well at '' Hasco '' residences ............. . 525
Value of springs ....... ................................ . 525
Conclusions as to ground water in the Cul-de-Sac Plain ... 526
Arcahaie Plain ................................................ . 527
Leogan e Plain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..................... . 528
Cayes Plain .................................................. . 529
Art~ibonite Plain .............................................. . 530
Surface features .......................................... . 530
Irrigation and flood control ................................ . 531
Ground water ............................................ . 532
Artibonite Valley .......... ·...................................., 533
Central Plain ................................................. . . 534
Arbre Plain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..... . 535
Trois Rivieres Valley and Jean Rabel Valley .................... . 536
North Plain .................................................. . 537
Surface f eatu res .......................................... . 537
Streams .................................................. . 537
Utilization of water and flood control ....................... . 537
Ground water ............................................ . 538
Mountains and highlands ....................................... . 539
•
Gona ve Island ......................... : ..................... . 540
Tortu e Island . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...................... . 541 •

Quality of water ................................................... . 542

General features .............................................. . 542
Streams, fresh lakes, and common springs ....................... . 542
Wells . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...... . 544
Salt lakes ..................................................... . 545
Min eral springs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • • . . . • • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 547
Graphic comparison of analyses ....•......•.••••................ 547
Springs ........................................................... . 550
General features and classification ............................. . 550
Springs emerging from solution channels in limestone ............ . 551
Con tact springs ............................................... . 551·
Artesian springs .............................................. . 552
Springs in fractures in impervious rocks ......................... . 553
Unusual types of springs ....................................... . 553
Salty springs contaminated by sea. water .................... . 553
Sulphur springs (Sources Puantes) ................... : . ..... . 554:
Warm 8})rings .............. .............................. . 557
Sources Chaudes or Eaux Boynes ....................... . 558
Sources Chaudes de Los Pozos ......................... . 562
2
•

•
18 CONTENTS.
•

PAGE.

PART V. WATER RESOURCES, by John S. Brown Continued.

Surface and ground water supply Continued.
Springs Continued.
Unusual types of springs Continued.
Warm sp1·ings of the Southern P eninsula .... : .......... . 564
Sources Chaudes de Dame-Marie or de Jeremie ..... . 565
Public water supplies .............................................. . 566
Port-au1Prince ............................................... . 566
Purpose of investigation ................................... . 566
Sources and distributing system ............................ . 567
Yield of springs ........................................... . 569
Geologic features and their relation to water supply ........... . 570
Notes on indi vidual springs ................................ . 571
. . . 571
Source D iqu1n1 ............................. > • • • • • • • • • • •
Source Chaudeau ..................................... . 571
Source Barron ........................................ . 572
Source Le Clerc ....................................... . 572
Source Turgeau ...................................... . 572
Source Plaisance ...................................... . 572
Source Cerisier ....................................... . 573
Source Carron ........................................ . 573
Source Millet ......................................... . 573
Source Bon Ami, Source d'Argent, and nearby springs ..... 573
Other springs ......................................... . 574
Well water ............................................... . 574
Quality of water and treatment for hardness ................ . 575
Surface water ............................................ . 576
Conclusions as to Port-au-Prince supply ............•......... 577
C a p-H a1••t'ien .................................................. . 577
Purpose of investigation ................................... . 577
Principal features of present supply ........................ . 578
Geologic features and their relation to water supply .......... . 580
Rock formations .................•........•............ 580
Groups distinguished .............................. . 580
Igneous rocks .................................... . 580
Impure limestone and chert probably of Cretaceous age 581
Upper Eocene limestone ............................ . 581
R ecent alluvium .................................. . 581
Circulation of ground water .........................•....... 582
Notes on present . sources of supply ......................... .
582
Source Cinq Carreaux .............................•.....
•
583
Source d 'Aubry ....................................... . 583
Source Jean .......................................... . 583
Sources Ti penne and Source Georges ................... . 583
Sources du Buisson and nearby springs .................. . 583
Source Bois de Chene ......•.....•...................... 584
Source Belair ..................•....................... 584
Source Mansuy ......................................... 584
Additional springs available ............................ . 584
Well water ......................•.•....................... 585
Wells in the city ...................•.................... 585
·Possible yield of wells near the city ..................... . 587
Wells on the North Plain ......................... ~ .... . 587
 •

CONTENTS. •
' 19
PA.GE.
P ART V. WATER RESOURCES, by John S. Brown Continued.
Public wat er su pplies Cont inued.
Cap-Ha!tien Continued.
Surface water ............................................. . 589
Conclusions as to Cap-Hai'.t ien supply ....................... . 589
Notes on water supply of some other towns and villages ......... . 590
P ort-de-Paix ......................................... . 590
Mole St.-Nicolas .......... . ........................... . 590
Baie de Henne ....................................... . 590
Anse Rouge .......................................... . 591
.. 591
G ona1ves ............................................. .
St.-Marc ............................................. . 592
L eogane ........................................... . ... . 592
P ,eStel ................. . .............................. . 592
, . 592
J erem1e .............................................. .
Les Cay es ............................ . ............... . 593
J acme! ............................................... . 593
Salt rou ............................................... . 593
Grand-Gosier ......................................... . 593
Notes on wat er p ower and dam sites ................................ . 593
N orlheastern part . . ....................... . ................... . 593
Plaisance Valley .............................................. . 594
Rivi ere Artibonite and tributaries .............................. . 594
Riviere Coupe a l'lnde ......................................... . 594
Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac ................................. . 594
Grande Riviere de Leogane .................................... . 595
..,
G ran d e R 1v1ere d e J'ere'm1·e ................................... . 595
BIBLIOGRAPHY, by w endell p. w oodring ................................. . 596
APPENDIX I. Some new Eocene Foraminifera of the genus Dictyoconus, by
Wend ell P. Woodring ............................................. . 608
APPENDIX II. Some new middle Eocene and lower Miocene mollusks, by
Wendell P . Woodring and Wendell C. Mansfield ..................... . 611

ILLUSTRATIONS.

PLAT E. PAGE.

I.Geologic sket ch map of the Republic of Haiti .............. In pocket.

II.Geologic m ap of the T erre-Neuve region .•................ In pocket.
III. M ap showing itinerary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • • • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
IV. A, A mapou tree in M eme Valley southeast of T erre-Neuve; B,
Xerophytic vegetation in the Artibonite Plain southeast of
Grande-Saline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
V. A, Bay ahonde thicket in the Cul-de-Sac Plain n ear Pont Beu-
det; B, Thicket of Cercidium praecox, a palo verde, about 5
kilometers northeast of Gonaives on the trail to Terre-Neuve. 62
VI. A, Savane La Cidra, about 10 kilometers southwest of St.-Michel
de l'Atalaye; B, Salt bush, characteristic of alkalin~ soil, in
the Artibonite Plain n ear Grande-Saline ; C, Halophytic , vege-
t ation on the nort h coast of Gonav e Island west of E troit.... 64
VII. A, Small mill for crushing sugar cane; B, Method of drying corn. 74
 •

20 ILLUSTRATIONS.

PI~ATE. PAGE.
VIII . .A, Cretaceous ( ?) calcareous argillite on Le Trois Rivieres be-
tween Gros-Mome and Pilate; B, Pillow lava and limestone
of supposed upper Cretaceous age on the north side of the
Asile Valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
IX. Characteristic Foraminifera of the Plaisance limestone (middle
Eocene) .................................... , . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
X. Some characteristic mollusks of the Plaisance limestone (middle
Eocene) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
• XI. A, Upper Eocene limestone near La Pierre; B, Conglomerate at
base of upper Eocene limestone as exposed in Moulin near
the trail from Gros-Morne to Terre-Neuve.................. - 108
XII. A, Typical exposure of thin-bedded upper Eocene lim~stone in
the western part of the valley of Riviere d'Ennery; B, Thin-
bedded limestone of supposed upper Eocene age on the
Grande Riviere dtt Cul-de-Sac; C, Chalky upper Eocene
limestone containing bands and nodules of chert exposed in
sea cliff near Saltrou. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
XIII. Some characteristic upper Eocene Foraminifera. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
XIV. A, Thomonde formation on Riviere Bonde on the northeast
side of the Central Plain; B, Las Cahobas formation near Las
Cahobas on the south side of the Central Plain ; C, Miocene
mar1 near La Chapelle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
XV. Some characteristic mollusks of the Thomonde formation...... 176
XVI. Some characteristic mollusks of the Ma!ssade tongue and of the
Artibonite group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . 192
XVII. A, Pitted Quaternary limestone (roche ..a-ravet) exposed in fifth
emerged sea cliff on th~ trail from Petit Paradis to Baie de
Henne; B, Pleistocene conglomerate on the roaq leading up
to Fort Nati onale, Port-au-Prince. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
XVIII. A, Thrust fault in railroad cut south of Morne Deux Mamelles,
northeast of Gonaives; B, Bedded volcanic debris on Savane
Madame Michaud, southwest of Saut d'Eau. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280
XIX. A, Quartz diorite from Marne Madeleine, south of Les Perches;
B, Porphyritic quartz diorite from Mome Madeleine, south
of Les Perches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290
XX. A, Dacite porphyry from Savane La Cidra, Montagnes Noires;
B, Granodiorite from Meme Valley, Commun~ of Terre-
N euve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296
XXI. A, Photomicrograph of quartz diorite from Mome Madeleine,
south of Les Perches; B, Photomicrograph of dacite porphyry
· from Sa vane La Cidra, Montagnes Noires.................. 300
XXII. A, Photomicrograph of granodiorite from Meme Valley, Com-
mune of Terre-N euve; B, Photomicrograph of glassy pyroxene
andesite with perlitic texture from south slope of Morne Du-
muraille, Commune of Terre-N euve. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304
XXIII. A, Photomicrograph of basalt from the Massif de la Selle, north
of Riviere GoS5eline; B, Photomicrograph of nephelite basalt
from the vicinity of Maneville .................... ~. . . . . . . . 316
XXIV. Tectonic trends of the Republic of Haiti. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332
XXV. A, Supposed fault scarp south-southwest of Cerca-la-Source; B,
· Fault scarp on the east side of the Gona1ves Plain. . . . . . . . . . 334
XXVI. A, Asymmet.rical anticline of Miocene m~rl and limestone at
Savanette on - Riviere Fer-a-Clreval·; B, Minor b'igh-angle
thrust fault in limestone of supposed upper Eocene age on
the Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336
 ILLUSTRATIONS. 21
PLATE. PAGE.
LXVII. Geographic provinces of the Republic of Haiti. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 354
XXVIII. Emerged coastal terraces. A, East end of Tortue Island as seen
from the channel to the south; B, Northeast end of Mole
St.-Nicolas Bay; C, Cap St.-Nicolas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372
XX:IX. A, Accordant crests of strike ridges formed by conglomerates of
the Las Caho bas f 01·mation on the south side of the Central
Plain; B, Stream terraces in the Central Plain, as seen - looking
southeastward along the trail from Hinche to Thomonde. . . . . 380
XXX. A, Gravel-covered terrace in the A1i.ibonite Valley near Savane-
a-Roche; B, Lowland of Miocene marl and ridge of Miooene
coralliferous limestone near La Chapelle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386
XX.XI. Bathymetric map of Port-au-Prince Bay. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398
XX.XII. A, View of the Citronniers Valley looking northward from a
locality a few kilometers north of the crest of the mountains
along the trail from Jacmel to Leogane; B, Jagged limestone
ridge on the north side of the Mapoux Plain, Gonave Island. . 402
XX.XIII. Ore from contact-metamorphic deposits, Roche Glisse, Meme
Valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . -. .-. . . . . . . . . 43 B
XXXIV. A, Ore from contact-metamo1·phic deposits, Roche Glisse,
Meme Valley; B, Secondary copper ore from enriched vein
at Rocher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 448
XX.XV. A, Secondary copper ore from enriched vein at Rocher; B,
Secondary copper ore from partly oxidized vein at Rocher. . . 454
XX.XVI. Geologic sketch map of the Central Plain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488
XX.XVII. A, Southwestward-dipping beds on the northeast side of the
Central Plain near Thomassique; B, Main entrance to
Citadelle of Christophe. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 492
XX.XVIII. A, Clay pits at brick factory near I' Arcahaie; B, Drying shed
and kiln at brick factory near l'Arcahaie; C, Pits for evapo-
rating sea water to obtain salt near Grande-Saline. . . . . . . . . . 506
XX.XIX. Topographic map of the Cul-de-Sac Plain........ . . . . . . . . . . . . . 516
XL. A, Flowing well near La Moriniere in the Cul-de-Sac Plain; B,
Large salt spring emerging from limestone of supposed upper
Eocene age on the beach near Miragoane; C, Outlet of the
Sources Puantes at the northwest corner of the Cul-de-Sac
Plain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 520
FIGURE 1. Map showing trend of geographic .features of the West Indies.. 29
2. Curves showing monthly mean temperature for different stations 41
3. Curves showing monthly mean rainfall for different stations... 51
4. Generalized section showing fault zone at contact of argillite
and volcanic rocks, as exposed in roadside ditch at Plaisance. 87
5. Section across the Chaine des Mateux. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
6. Generalized section of rocks exposed on Riviere Gosseline..... 129
7. Section across the northwest part of the Massif de I~ !_Iotte. . . . 137
8. Section across the southeast part of Gonave Island........... 138
9. Diagrammatic section of foothills at Marne Madame Joie..... 162
10. Diagram showing lateral change in litl1ology of the Miocene
rocks of the Central Plain and the transgressive overlap of the
Thomonde formation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
11. Diagram showing stratigraphic relations of the Ma.lssade tongue
of the Thomonde formation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
12. Soetfi~ Gf- 1v.lto.cen~,~t>.eps, ?n1 ~~e south side of the Artibonite
".:o*W:,~ · Valley near La Chapelle, as ·expdseli Lon Riviere Delean. . . . . . 207
. 13. Section f Miocene beds in the upper Artibonite Valley....... 208
LIBRARY
BRYANT FOUNDATION
WEST
•
INDIES
•
CENTER
22 ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAG•~.

F1ounE 14. Section aero~ the Momes des Guepes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211

15. Composite generalized section of Miocene beds along the south
side of the Cul-de-Sac Plain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
16. Sketch map of the lignite area n ear Camp P errin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
17. Section of Miocene lignite-bearing beds exposed on La Ravine
du Sud . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
18. Generalized sections showing the relations of the igneous and
sedimentary rocks in the Massif du Nord.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311
19. Section across the Montagnes du Trou d 'Eau and the Mon-
tagnes Noires from Maneville to Las Cahobas.............. 313
20. Generalized sections across the Southern Peninsula showing t.he
relations of the basaltic lavas and sedimentary rocks........ 322
21. Section across the Cul-de-Sac trough and adjoining mountains. 335
22. Graph showing the number of earthquakes recorded at different
stations from 1909 to 1922. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343
23. Subaqueous profiles off the north coast. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
24. Subaqueous profile off Pointe La Pierre near Gonaives. . . . . . . . 377
25. Subaqueous profiles off the west and south coasts of the
Southern Peninsula . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 417
26. Sketch map of the Terre-Neuve district showing the roads and
principal trails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 426
27. Generalized sections showing the relations of the rocks in the
Terre-Neuve district . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 442
28. Section across Meme Valley showing the contact metamorphic
deposits ........................................._. . . . . . . . 444
29. Geologic sketch map of the vicinity of Grande-Riviere du Nord
showing the location of the larger copper prospects. . . . . . . . . . 462
30. Sections showing the manganese deposits in the Commune of
Gros-Morne . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 71
31. Graph showing the heating value of Ma1ssade and Camp Perrin
lignite as compared with other coals and wood.............. 486
32. Graphic representation of analyses of some waters of the Re-
public . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 548
33. Graphic representation of analyses of some waters of the Re- 549
public .................................................. .
34. Sketch map of the Sources Chaudes or Eaux Boynes. . . . . . . . . . 559
35. Sketch map of the Sources Chaudes de los Pozos.............. 563
36. Sketch map showing the water supply of Port-au-Prince and its
relation to the geology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 568
37. Sketch map showing the water supply of Cap-Ha!tien and its
relation to the geology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 579

•
 •

GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

By WENDELL P. WooDRING, JOHNS. BROWN, and WILBUR S. BURBANK•

INTRODUCTION.

By WENDELL P. WOODRING.

ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE RECONNAISSANCE.

On March 24, 1917, Hon. Frank L. Polk, Acting Secretary of State of
the United States, addressed a letter to Hon. Franklin K. Lane, Secretary
of the Interior, calling attention to Article I of the treaty of September 16,
1915, between the United States and the Republic of Haiti, which provides
that the Government of the United States will by its good offices aid the
Haitian Government in the proper and efficient development of its agri-
cultural, mineral, and commercial resources, and inquired whether it
would be practicable for the United States Geological Survey to make a
geological reconnaissance of the Republic of Haiti. In reply the Secretary
of the Interior stated that the Geological Survey would cooperate by fur-
nishing the scientific personnel, but that it had no authority \1nder which
any part of the appropriations made by Congress for its maintenance could
be expended outside the territorial limits of the United States. In later
correspondence estimates of the expenditures necessary for a geological
reconnaissance were submitted by the Secretary of the Interior.
In the summer of 1919 plans for the reconnaissance submitted by the
Director of the United States Geological Survey were approved by the
Secretary of State for Public Works oi the Republic of Haiti and by
Hon. John A. Mcllhenny, Financial Adviser to the Haitian Government,
and Commander E. R. Gayler, C. E. C., U. S. N., Engineer in Chief of the
Department of Public Works.
In the meantime field work had been begun for a geological reconnais-
sance of the Dominican Republic under the supervision of the United
States Geological Survey. Dr. T. W. Vaughan, of the United States Geo-
logical Survey, who was in charge of the work in the Dominican Republic,
made an inspection trip from Ouanaminthe to Port-au-Prince and return
in order to make more effective plans for the field work in the Republic of
Haiti.
The appropriation for the reconnaissance was made by the Council of
State. The field work was delayed until the fall of 1920 in order that all
28

• •
•
24 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

the information contained in the complete report on the geology of the

Dominican Republic might be used to the greatest advantage. The :fi~al
arrangements for the work were made with Commander A. L. Parsons,
C. E. C., U. S. N., who succeeded Commander Gayler as Engineer in Chief.
•

FIELD WORK.
Messrs. John S. Brown, Wilbur S. Burbank, Frank G. Evans, jr., and I
arrived in Port-au-Prince on October 1, 1920. We spent the succeeding
six and a half months in the field and sailed from Port-au-Prince on April
15, 1921. During most of the time we spent in the field we worked in two
parties, traveling by automobile, on horseback, a.n d on foot along the routes
shown in Plate III and mapping the geology as we traveled, thus making
a reconnaissance survey of almost the entire Republic, including Gonave
and Tortue islands. General geologic work was done by all the members
of the expedition, but Mr. Brown gave particular attention to the under-
ground-water resources and to the field relations of the mineral deposits
and igneous rocks, Mr. Burbank examined the mineral deposits and the
igneous rocks, and I studied the stratigraphy and stratigraphic paleon-
tology and the lignite and oil resources.
A detailed reconnaissance of several regions was made in order to ascer-
tain the extent of the mineral deposits and the possibility of utilizing the
underground-water resources. We had no adequate base map. The triangu-
lation, which was under the supervision of Mr. Glenn S. Smith, of the
United States Geological Survey, designed to provide a base for a topo-
graphic survey of the Republic, bad not progressed far enough to per1nit
us to utilize the results. We used the charts of the Hydrographic Office of
the United States Navy for mapping regions near the coast, and we used
also the maps of M. L. Gentil Tippenhauer, of Port-au-Prince, which
•
cover some parts ·of the Republic. In other regions we were forced to rely
on rough notebook sketches, in which distances were estimated only by the
time consumed in traveling. Unless otherwise stated, altitudes are based
on aneroid readings.
While we were in the field }Ir. Brown prepared and submitted reports
on the public water supply of Port-au-Prince and of Cap-Ha!tien. We
also prepared a report suggesting improvements in the water supply of
some towns and villages, particularly those that now depend on salty water
for their principal supply. These preliminary reports have been amplified
and included in this volume.
•

OFFICE WORK. •

As soon as we returned to Washington we began to write the text of this

report, to examine the collections, and to prepare maps and other illustra-
tions. The original agreement provided that the collections should be de-
posited in the United States National Museum, but that if a national
 INTRODUCTION. 25

muse11m should be established at Port-au-Prince a duplicate set would be

sent there.
The extensive collections of fossils were examined by the following
paleontologists: Corals, Dr. T. W. Vaughan, of the United States Geologi-
cal Survey; Crinoidea, Dr. Frank Springer, of the United States National
Museum; Echini, Dr. R. T. Ja.ckson, of Peterborough, New Hampshire;
Bryozoa, Dr. R. S. Bassler, of the United States National Museum; Cre-
taceous Mollusca, Dr. T. W. Stanton, of the United States Geological Sur-
vey; Cirripedia, Dr. H. A. Pilsbry, of the Philadelphia Aca.d emy of
Natural Sciences; decapod Crustacea, Dr. Mary J. Rath bun, of the United
States National Museum; :fish, Prof. T. D. A. Cockerell, of the University
of Colorado; birds, Dr. Alexander Wetmore, of the Biological Survey,
United States Department of Agriculture; mammals, Mr. G. S. }liller, j1'.,
of the United States National Museum; plants, Prof. E. vV. Berry, of
Johns Hopkins University. I undertook the examination of the larger
Foraminifera, and in collaborat.i on with Mr. W. C. Mansfield, of the
United States Geological Survey, the examination of the Tertiary and
Quaternary Mollusca and Brachiopoda. The smaller Foraminifera and
several collections of ostracods and calcareous algae have not been ex-
amined.
Chemical analyses of igneous rocks were made by Dr. H. S. Washington,
of the Carnegie Institution of Washington. Samples of ore and of raw
material for cement were anal)·zed in the chemical laboratory of the
United States Geological Survey under the direction of Mr. George
Steiger, chief chemist. Otl1er samples of ore were analyzed and assayed b)"
Ledoux & Co., of New York. Mr. E. V. Shannon, of the United States
National lv[useum, analyzed a sample of kaolinite. Samples of lignite were
ana.lyzed at the Pittsburgh Laboratory of the United States Bureau of
Mines. Samples of rock and other road material, and samples of sand
and gravel for making concrete 'vere tested by the Bureau of Public
Roads, United States Department of Agriculture. Samples of clay for
making brick were tested at the ceramic station of the United States
Bureau of Mines at Columbus, Ohio. Analyses of guano were made by the
United States Department of Agriculture. Analyses of samples of water
were made in the water-resou-rces laboratory of the Geological Survey
under the direction of Mr. W. D. Collins.
A preliminary account oi the possible oil resources of the Central Plain
was published in July, 1922. A brief summary of the results of the recon·
naissance was published in the Journal of the Washington Academy of
•
Sciences in April, 1923. These and other papers describing collections
obtained during the reconnaissance or setting forth some of its results
are listed below :
BERRY, E.W., Tertiary fossil plants from the Republic of Haiti: U. S. Nat. Mlts.
Proc., vol. 62, art. 14, 10 pp., 1 pl , 2 text figs., 1922.
26 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

COCKERELL, T. D. A., A fossil cichlid fish from the R epublic of H aiti: U. S. Nat.
Mus. Proc., vol. 63, art. 7, 2 pp., 1 pl., 1923.
MILLER, G. S., JR., Remains of mammals f1·om caves in the Republic of Haiti:
Smithsonian Misc. Coll., vol. 74, No. 3, 8 pp., 1922.
PILSBRY, H. A., Miocene Cirripedia from the R epublic of Haiti: U. S. Nat. Mus.
Proc. (Awaiting publication.)
RATHBUN, M. J., Fossil crabs from the R epublic of Haiti: U. S. Nat. Mus.
Proc., vol. 63, art. 9, 6 pp., 2 pis., 1923.
SPRINGER, FRANK, A new Tertiary crinoid in the W est Indies: U. S. Nat. Mus.
Proc. (Awaiting publication.)
WETMORE, ALEXANDER, R emains of birds from caves in tl1e R epublic of Haiti:
Smithsonian Misc. Coll., vol. 74, No. 4, 4 pp., 2 text figs., 1922.
WoooRING, W. P ., Middle Eocene Foram.inif era of the genus Dictyoconus from
the Republic of Haiti: Washington Acad. Sci. Jour., vol. 12, pp. 244-247, 1922.
- - Stratigraphy, structure, and possible oil r esources of the Miocene rocks
. of the Central Plain: Republic of Haiti G eol. Survey, 19 pp., m ap, 1922.
- - Tectonic features of the R epublic of Haiti and their b earing on the
geologic history of the West Indies (abstract): Washington Acad. Sci. Jour.
(Awaiting publication.)
- - An outline of the results of a geological r econnaissance of the R epublic
of Haiti: Washington Acad. Sci. Jour., vol. 13, pp. 117-129, 1923.
- - Tertiary mollusks of the genus Orthaulax from the R epublic of Haiti,
Porto Rico, and Cuba: U. S. Nat. Mus. Proc.: vol. 64, art. 1, 12 pp.,
2 pls., 1923.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.
In the field work and in the preparation of the report we have had the
unfailing support and encouragement of Commander Parsons, under
whose direction the work was done. The field work and most of the office
work was done under the supervision of Dr. T. W. Vaughan while he was
chief of the sections of Coastal Plains investigations and of West Indian
Geological Surveys of the United States Geological Survey. Doctor
Vaughan has reviewed the entire r eport, and we have thus had the ad·
vantage of his wide knowledge of the geology of the West Indies and
regions near by. We wish to record our deep appreciation of the services
of Rev. J. Scherer, Directeur de l'Observatoire Meteorologique du Semi-
naire-College St.-Martial. In an unassuming way and almost without the
knowledge of the general scientific world he has for years been collecting
and publishing invaluable meteorological and seismological data. The
matter on climate and earthquakes in this report could not have been
written without M. Scherer's records. We have used with great advantage
the published geologic maps of M. L. Gentil Tippenhauer, of Port-au-
Prince. Only those who have traversed the rugged mountains of the
Republic can appreciate the labor that these maps represent. Mr. E. L.
McNair, in charge of the triangulation party, and the engineers of tl1e
Department of Public Works cooperated with us in every way. Mr. R. A.
Conard, engineer of the Haytian-American Sugar Co., furnished logs of
wells in the Cul-de-Sac Plain and other information concerning them.
Mr. Frank G. Evans, jr., one of the members of the party, gave valuable
 INTRODUCTION. 27

help in traversing the country and in making geologic examinations.

Dr. W. F. Jones, of the MassaC;husetts Institute of Technology, gave us
the advantage of the results of his work in the Republic in 1918. Many
others aided us in different ways. We often enjoyed the hospitality of the
parish priests and of the officers and men of the United States Marine
Corps and of the Gendarmerie d'Haiti. Everywhere we were received with
unfailing cordiality, and we will long remember our pleasant experiences.
Several geologists of the United States Geological Survey have re-
viewed parts of this report. Mr. E. S . Larsen, jr., reviewed the descrip-
tions of the igneous rocks; Mr. H. G. Ferguson and Mr. D. F. Hewett
the descriptions of the mineral deposits; and Mr. N. C. Grover, Mr. 0. E.
Meinzer, and Mr. W. D. Collins the matter on the wai:er resources.
The titles of the illustrations were edited by Mr. F. E. 1Yiatthes, of the
United States Geological Survey. The text was translated into French
by Mr. M. C. Delporte, and the translation was edited by ~1r. J. J. de
Gryse. The illustrations were drafi:ed by Mr. Lewis B. Pusey, of the
United States Geological Survey.

•
•

..
 '

PART I. GEOGRAPHY.
-·----
By JOHN S. BROWN and W ENDELL P. WooDRING •
•

PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY. •

GENERAL RELATIONS .
•

The most striking thing in the morphology of the West Indies is the
arrangement of its geographic features in arcs. Most of the arcs are
convex northward, but in Haiti and in islands farther east some of them
are convex southward. These arcs, which are seen in the trend of tl1e •

islands, of the mountain range8 on the islands, and of the ridges and
troughs in the submerged areas, are shown in Figure 1, a map based on
one rece11tly published by Professor Taber,li to whom we are indebted for
its use.
•
The island of Haiti, the largest of the West Indian islands except Cuba,
is between Cuba and Porto Rico. It lies between. parallels 17° 39' and
20° north latitude, and meridians 68° 20' and 74° 30' west of Greenwich.
The Atlantic Ocean borders it on the north and the Caribbean Sea on
the south. It is separated from Cuba by the Windward Passage and
from Porto Rico by the Mona Passage. The submerged platform in the
Mona Passage is relatively shallow, the maxim11m depth of water in the
central part being but 260 fathoms ( 47 5 meters). The Bartlett Deep, the
most remarkable of the deep troughs of the West Indies, extends into the
Windward Passage, where the floor of the sea pl11nges southwestward
from a depth of 893 fathoms (1,633 meters) to 1,737 fathoms (3,177
meters). A submerged ridge extends westward :from the southern penin-
sula of the Republic of Haiti beyond the eastern end of a similar ridge
tha.t extends westward from Jamaica. These two ridges are separated by
a trough having a maximum depth of 1,573 fathoms (2,817 meters).
Between the island of Haiti and the Bahama Banks is an unnamed
trough having a maximum depth of 2,388 :fathoms ( 4,367 meters).
South of the island lies the deep basin of the Caribbean Sea.
The Republic of Haiti occupies approximately the western third of the
island and the Dominican Republic the eastern two-thirds. The maximum
length of the Republic of Haiti is about 295 kilometers, and its width
near the Dominican border is about 183 kilometers. The area of the
1 Taber, Stephen, The great fault troughs of the Antilles: Jour. Geology, vol. 30, pp. 89-
114, pl. 1, fig. 6, 1922.
28
 •
•

GEOGRAPHY. 29

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 30 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Republic, including Tortue Island, Gonave Island, Grande Cayemite, and

Ile A Vache, is about 27, 700 square kilometers, according to planimeter •

measurements of a map compiled by the Service des Leves Topographique.

The precise area of the Republic is not known, as the boundary between
the two Republics has not been definitely fixed. The two prominent west-
ward-extending peninsulas, the northwest peninsula and the southern
peninsula:, embrace an extensive body of water in which lies Gonave Island .
•

SURFACE FEATURES.

GENERAL CHARACTER.

Haiti is very mountainous. Towering mountains are visible from tl1e

sea in front of any of the open ports of the Republic, and at many ports
steep mountain slopes extend down to the coast. The traveler who is
a.c customed to wide plains can scarcely believe that a population so large
as that of the Republic can live in a co11ntry so rugged, yet the exports
from which the Republic largely derives its revenue consist principally
of agricultural products. The ruggedness of the mountains is even more
impressive to one who travels along the trails that extend into the heart
of all the mountains. The mountain slopes at moderate altitudes yield
immense crops of coffee, which forms the leading article of export. The
mountain slopes at all altitudes are cultivated in small gardens, which
yield the vegetables and fruits that are sold at inn11merable market places,
which form the most characteristic feature of the commercial and social
life of the ru,ral districts. Large areas of the plains that flank the moun-
tains in some parts of the Republic are semiarid. The rural population
is concentrated in the fertile mountain valleys and in the parts of t11e
plains that through natural hea,·y rainfall or the application of water by
irrigation yield sugar cane, cotton, and other crops.
Although a large part of the Republic is mountainous, extensive plains
flank the mountains at some places along the coast or extend like wedges
into the mountainous regions. Many of the mountains consist of beds of
limestone, and steep slopes that are scarred by high cliffs form the most
characteristic ieature of these mountains. These cliffs appear to be abnor-
mal features; they were probably not formed by the usual processes of
subaerial erosion. They are confined almost entirely to regions where the
limestone is massive, regardless of its age. The base of the cliffs is deter-
mined by the outcrop of strata of thin-bedded limestone or other kinds of
rocks. The cliffs have apparently been formed by the l1ndermining and
subsequent stoping of blocks of massive limestone by ground water, which
has penetrated the rock and perc~olated along the contact with the 11nder-
lying beds. The contrast between the surface features produced by the
erosion of massive and of thin-hedded limestone is clearly shown on the
north and south slopes of Mont Puilboreau, the limestone range between
 GEOGRAPHY. 31

Ennery and Plaisance. The massive limestone on the north slope is

scarred by cliffs that attain a height of several hl1ndred meters. On the
south slope, where the limestone is thin-bedded, the dissection is more
intricate and there are no cliffs.

GEOGRAPHIC PROVINCES.
.
The following geographic provinces are recognized in this report. The
boundaries between these provinces are shown approximately on Plate
XXVII, page 354.
Tortue Island. Montagnes du Trou d'Eau.
North Plain. Chaine des Mateux.
Massif du Nord. Cul-de-Sac Plain.
Northwest Peninsula. Massif de la Selle.
Central Plain. Massif de la Hotte.
Montagnes Noires. Gonave Island.
Artibonite Plain and Valley.
As the topographic features of these provinces are deterrnined by t he
pl1ysical and structural features of their surface rocks and by their geo-
logic history they are fully described in Part III, which follows the text
describing the stratigraphic and structural geology and the geologic his-
tory. The surface features are briefly s11mmarized here in order to furnisl1
the geographic setting for the description of the geology.
Tortue Island is an imperfectly dissected plateau, the margins of wl1ich
are modified by late emergence.
The North Plain extends along the north coast from Acul Bay east-
ward to the Dominican border. Between Acul Bay and Cap-Ha1tien the
plain is shut off from the sea by Morne du Cap, an outlier of the 1viassif
du Nord.
The Massif du Nord, which is the northwestern prolongation of the
Cordillera Central of the Dominican Republic, extends from the .
Domini-
can border northwestward to the deep trough of the valleys of Riviere
]a Quinte and Les Trois Rivieres north of Gros-Morne.. The Massif du
Nord forms the western part of the arc that extends across the island. The •
entjre massif is mountainous and very rugged.
The Northwest Peninsula embraces the entire peninsula west of the
valleys of Riviere la Quinte and Les Trois Rivieres. This region contains
a variety of surface features, including mountains, lowlands, and an ex-
tensive plateau, as follo\vs: Montagnes de Terre-Neuve, }tlontagnes du
Nord-ouest, Arbre Plain, Jean Ra.bel Valley, Bombardopolis Plateau. The
Montagnes du Nord-ouest and the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve form a
short arc that is convex northward. The most striking features of the
peninsula are the magnificent emerged terraces that border the oute1·
margins of the Bombardopolis Plateau.
The Central Plain, which is the only extensive interior plain in the
Republic, extends from the Dominican border northwestward to St.-

•
 •
32 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Michel de l'Atalaye as a wedge between the Massif du Nord and the ~Ion­
tagnes Noires. It is the northwestward prolongation of the San Juan
Valley of the Dominican Republic.
The Montagnes Noires form a mountain system that is the northwestern
prolongation of the northern part of the Sierra de N eiba of the Dominican
Republic. At its northwest end it merges into the Massif du Nord forming
a short arc that is convex southward.
The Artibonite Plain is a wedge extending southeastward between the
Montagnes Noires and the ChaSne des Mateux together witl1 tl1e Mon- •

tagnes du Trou d' Eau. The apex of the wedge is near the Dominican
border, where the Montagnes Noires join the Montagnes du Trou d'Eau.
The southeastern part of the Artibonite Plain, to which the name Arti-
bonite Valley is applied, has a greater variety of surface features than the •

northwestern part the plain proper. Morne Grammont is an isolated

outlier of t~e Montagnes Noires in the plain southeast of Gona!ves.
The Chaine des Mateux and its southeastward prolongation, the Mon-
tagnes du Trou d'Eau, extend southeastward from St.-Marc to the Domin-
ican border as an arc that is convex southwa.r d and for10 the prolongation
of the southern part of the Sierra de Neiba of the Dominican Republic.
The Cul-de-Sac Plain is part of a remarkable depression that extends
across tl1e island from Port-au-Prince Bay to N eiba Bay. The Dominican
part of the depression is called the Hoya de Enriquillo. The plain is
bounded on the north by the Montagnes du Trou d'Eau and on the south
by tbe Massif de la, Selle. It contains the largest inland body of water in
the Republic, the Etang Saumatre, which has no outlet.
The Massif de la Selle, which is named from Mont la Selle, the highest
peak in the Republic, is the northwestward prolongation of the Sierra de
Bahoruco of the Dominican Republic. It extends westward to the gap
in the mountains along a line between Jacmel and Grand-Goave and in-
cludes a large coastal plain, the Leogane pla.in .
The Massif de la Hotte embraces the entire southern peninsula west of
a line between Jacmel and Grand-Goave, where it merges into the Massjf
de la Selle. This region includes a large coastal plain, the Cayes Plain, and
several interior lowlands, the largest of which is the Asile Valley. The
remainder of the region consists of rugged mountains. The ~Iassif de la
Selle and the Massif de la Hotte form an arc convex northward.
Gonave Island is the largest outlying island belonging to the Republic.
The southeastern half of the island is more rugged and has a greater
variety of surface features than the northwestern half.

DRAINAGE.
GENERAL FEATURES.

The Republic of Haiti has a great many small streams. Most of them
have short courses, and many of them flow directly down steep mountain
 •

GEOGRAPHY. 33

sides. All streams that contain water during m ost of the year in any part
of their courses are called rivieres, but this term does not have the signifi-
cance of size commonly attached to it in other col1ntries. Considerably
more than 100 such streams enter the sea along the coast of the Republic.
1
Not more than a third of these, however, are large streams, and of these
Riviere Artibonite is the largest.
Most of the streams are swift, shallow, and full of rapids, especially in
the mountains, and the water is usually clear except during or immediately
after rains. Riviere Artibonite, however, contains no rapids in it.s lower
course, possibly as far up as La Chapelle, and near the sea it becomes
rather sluggish. In this region it is also somewhat turbid all the time.
Riviere de l'Estere is tidal for several kilometers above its mouth, and
a few other streams are tidal for as much as a kilometer or a little more.
In colonial days large barges were towed up Riviere Artibonite as far a.s
Petite-Riviere de l' Artibonite. The other streams are navigable only for
canoes or very small boats and generally not more than a few kilometers
above their mouths.

DRAIN AGE SLOPES AND PRINCIPAL STREAMS.

The streams of the Republic may be placed in four groups according

to their outlet and general direction of flow. The groups and their princi-
pal members are as follows:
1. Streams flowing into the Atlantic Ocean: Riviere Massacre, Grande
Riviere du Nord, Riviere du Limbe, Les Trois Rivieres, Riviere de Jean
Rabel.
2. Streams flowing westward into the Gona!ves Gulf : Riviere de
l'Estere, Riviere Artibonite, Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac.
3. Streams flowing northward into the Gona1ves Gulf : Grande Riviere
de Leogane or Riviere Momance, Grande Riviere de Nippes, Riviere des
Baraderes, Grande Riviere de Jeremie or Riviere de la Grande Anse.
4. Streams flowing southward into the c ·a ribbean Sea: Riviere de
I'Acul, La Ravine du Sud, and Riviere de l'Ilet on the Cayes Plain, Riviere
de Cavaillon, Grande Riviere de J acmel, Riviere de Fesle, and Riviere
Pedernales.
The folio.w ing list gives the approximate lengths of the principal
streams, all minor sinuosities being omitted. No tributaries of Riviere
Artibonite except Riviere Guayamouc are included. The figures are based
on measurements made on two or three maps and data published by Tip-
penhauer and others. Though admittedly inaccurate the relative order of
lengths is probably correct.
1
Dant~s Fortunat, in his Nouvelle G~ographie de l'lle d'Haiti, pp. 249-2~0, Paris, 1888,
gives a list of forty-three principal rivers of the Republic, of which eight are tributaries
of Rlvl~re Artibonite.
3
34 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Approximate length of principal streams.

Kilometers.
1
Artibonite to headwaters in Dominican R epublic • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 236
Artibonite to farthest headwaters on Riviere Tenebres near
Carice 1 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 262
Guayamouc, from Bouyaha to headwaters of Riviere Doree near
Marmelade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
. R ..,
Le s T roIS 1v1eres . .......................................... . 96
Grande Riviere du Nord. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Estere . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
72
Grande Riviere des Nippes and Riviere Serpent. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Grande Riviere de Leogane or Momance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
.. ,
R 1v1ere M assacre ........................................... . 55
G rand e . . ' d e J,erem1e
R i vi ere , . .................................. . 50
Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Riviere Artibonite is by far the largest of these streams and has the
only extensive and complex drainage system. In the Republic of Haiti it
drains an area of about 7,800 square kilometers, approximately three-
tenths of the whole country, and in addition about 1,800 square kilometers
1
of Dominican territory. Its principal tributary, Riviere Guayamouc,
drains about 2,675 square kilometers, all in the Republic of Haiti, and is
probably the co11ntry's second largest stream.
I ies Trois Rivieres undoubtedly is next in order of size, but the others
can not easily be placed without more accurate maps and streamflow data.
Grande Riviere de Nippes, Riviere de Cavaillon, Grand Riviere de
Jeremie, Grand Riviere du Nord, and Grand Riviere de Leogane are the
largest streams except the tributaries of the Artibonite.

PECULIAR DRAINAGE FEATURES.

Certain areas have peculiar drainage, due to geologic or climatic condi-·

tions. Underground drainage in limestone is one of the commonest of
these peculiar features. In areas of 11ndergro11nd drainage the surface
water disappears into sink boles or caves in limestone and there are no
surface streams. The best example of such an area is on the northern
slope of the southern peninsula from Baraderes to Jeremie. This region
is full of sink holes that have no outlets and contains few surface streams.
Some of the surface streams disappear into limestone caverns; others,
such as Riviere Salee, west of Baraderes, appear suddenly from caverns.
Areas of sink-hole dra.inage are common in regions where limestone is the
surface rock, but most of them are not very large. Lost streams of the
desert type, which disappear by evaporation or by infiltration into allu-
vium, are rather common jn some areas. Usually they originate on moun-
1 Tippenhauer and others have given the length of the Artlbonite as 320 kilometers.
This length must include many minor sinuosities, which in the lower course are very
numerous.
2 Areas measured by planlmeter on Thomasset map. Although the map is not very
accurate, the errors probably very nearly compensate one another.
 GEOGRAPHY. 35

tain slopes, where rainfall is abundant, and disappear at or near the arid
lowlands. Riviere du l\1ole, at l'lole St.-Nicolas, which disappears 2 kilo-
meters from the sea, is a good example. Other examples are Riviere
Blanche, which disappears on the Cul-de-Sac Plain, and, to some extent
at J13ast, Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac. These streams flow through to
the sea, however, in time of flood. Some streams of this type are inter-
rupted streams. They :flo·w perennially in certain stretches where the
structure of the rock b,r ings the water to the surface and disappear in other
stretches where the gravel fill is deep. Riviere Colombier at Terre-Neuve
is a good example. \

LAKES.

The Republic of Haiti contains a considerable number of small lakes,

most of which occupy sink holes in limestone. Some of them are perma..
nent; others are ephemeral. There are also a few small lakes of, the
desert-playa type, particularly on the Arbre Plain. Perhaps the Etang
Bois-Neuf, south ,of St.-Marc, also is of this type. There are two rather
large lakes, the , Etang Saumatre, at the eastern end of the Cul-de-Sac
Plain, and the Etang de Miragoane. The area , of the Etang Sa11matre is
about 180 square kilometers and
,
that of the Etang de Miragoane perhaps
25 square kilometers. The Etang de Mirago~ne overflows to the sea, but
1

the Etang Sa11matre has no outlet. West of Etang Saumatre is a shallow

lake called Trou cru·man, which occasionally overflows to the sea.

DRAINAGE OF GoN.AVE AND ToRTUE ISLANDS.

Gonave and Tortue islands are characterized generally by ltnderground

drainage in limestone. A few subterranean streams break out as springs
and flow for short distances, but no perennjal surface streams reach the
sea.
RELATION OF DRAINAGE TO STRUCTURE.

The adjustment of the drainage to the structure of the rocks is dis-

cussed in Part III separately for each of the geographic provinces.
Riviere Artibonite and Les Trois Rivieres are the only streams that
traverse more than one geographic province, except many smaller streams
that rise in mountains and flow into the larger plains. The Guayamouc
and Artibonite drainage is closely adjusted to the structure in its upper
and lower part.s, but the middle part, between Las Cahobas and Mire..
balais, is unrelated to the structure. Riviere Guayamouc flows southeast-
ward in a plunging synclinal trough, and Riviere Artibonite below Mire..
balais flows northwestward in a similar trough. The diversion of Riviere
Artibonite across the Montagnes Noires is discussed on pages 381-382.
Les .T rois Rivieres flows along the strike of the rocks from its headwaters
1
Areas measured by planimeter trom Thomasset map. The measurement gives 29
square kilometers for Etang. de Miragoa.ne, but this probably is too great.
 36 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

to Pilate and then cuts obliquely across the strike. At Gros-1.ilorne it

enters a downfaulted trough and follows this trough northward to the sea.
Detailed descriptions of the drainage with regard to water supply and
power development are given on pages 513-595.

CLIMATE.

SOURCE OF DATA.

Nearly all the data regarding climate are taken from the bulletins of
1
the Observatoire Meteorologique du Seminaire-College St. Martial, which
have been published sem.iannually for the period from July, 1909, to the
end of 1916, and annually since that time. The data contained in the
bulletins were collected under the supervision of J. Scherer, Directeur de
l'Observatoire. Records of rainfall and temperature at many stations ex-
tend back a few years prior to 1909 but are summed up in the Bulletin
Semestriel for July to December of that year. Records at Port-au-Prince
covering a much longer period of observation also are summarized in dif-
2
ferent issues of the bulletin. Data from 1'foreau de Saint-Mery that are
definite enough to be of value are used to a small extent to supplement
those taken from the bulletins.

TEMPERATURE•

.All parts of the Republic have a warm and notably equable tempera.t ure.
8
Frost, snow, and ice probably do not form anywhere in the Republic, even
at the highest altitudes, although the temperatures on the high mountain
ranges are appreciably less than those at lower altitudes.
Most of the stations at which temperature observations have been made
are at low altitudes on plains, in valleys, or near the sea. The records made
represent the conditions under which the greater part of the population
of the Republic lives, but they do not give an entirely correct idea of the
purely physical aspect of the climate. Only one station, Furey, is located
at a really high altitude, and the records from this station, though incom-
plete, are sufficient to show a considerably lower temperature than that
•
prevailing on the lowlands. The following tables give the mean monthly
temperatures at a number of well-distributed stations over the period for
which records are available. The averages of the monthly means for the
years of record available also are given.
Imprimerie Nationale, Port-au-Prince. The bulletin for 1919, published in 1920, was
l
the most recent one used in compiling the tables. The bulletins for 1920 and 1921 have
been published in the meantime.
2 Moreau de Saint-M~ry, L. E., Description topograpbique, physique, clvile, et polittque

de la partie fran~aise de l'isle Saint-Domingue, 2 vols., Philadelphia, 1797-98.

8 Moreau de Salnt-M~ry (vol. 2, p. 505) states that in the Canton of Fond Jean-Noi!l,

northwest of Sal-Trou, near the crest ot Montagne de la Selle, '' one experiences a sensa-
tion ot coldness and sometimes one even sees a kind of frost.'' His statement is so
qualified as to be rather doubtful, considering the lack ot confirmatory evidence .

•
•
 GEOGRAPHY. 37

Monthly mean temperature at places in Haiti.

[Degrees Centigrade.]•
Cap-Hai'.tien; altitude, 15 meters.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

1908 • • ••• • •••• • • •• •••• •••• • ••• 27.1 • ••• • •• • 25.0 22 .5 21.5
1910 .• 20.7 21.8 21. 9 23.3 24.7 25.8 25 .~ 26.3 25.2 26.8 24.2 22.5
1911 . • 22.6 22.4 22.7 24.6 25.1 27.0 27.6 27.7 27.8 26.4 26.9 24.2 •

191! •• 24.8 24.6 25.5 25.8 26.4 27.3 27.2 27.5 27.9 27.1 25.8 24.9
1918 • • 23.8 23.8 24.9 23.9 24.4 26 .8 26.0 •••• • ••• • ••• 25.1 24.4
1914 •• 23.2 23.6 23.4 25.2 26.1 26.5 26.8 26 .5 27.0 26.5 24.8 24.3
1915 • • 23.7 21.5 22 .5 22.8 •••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• •• •• • ••• • •••
1916 •• ••• • • •• • •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • • •• • •• • • ••• • •••

Kean. 23.1 22.9 23.5 24.3 25.3 26.5 26.8 27.0 27.0 26.2 24.9 23.9

• All means are obtained by adding the maximum and minimum and dividing by two.

Ba.yeux; altitude, 10 meters.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

1909 •• •••• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• 27.6 27.1 26.8 25.0 24.0 22.1
1910 •• 21.6 22.2 22.4 23.8 26.2 26 .3 26.8 26.8 26.3 25.8 24.8 25.2
1911 • • 22.5 22.6 22.6 24.2 25.1 26.3 26.8 •••• 27 .0 26.3 25.8 23.9
1912 • • • ••• ••• • •••• • • •• • • •• • • •• • • •• •••• • ••• ••• • • ••• • •••
1918 •• 23.0 25.6 23.9 23.0 24.1 25.4 26.l 26.3 26.0 25.4 24.2 23. 4
1914: •• 23.0 28.2 23.1 25 .0 25.9 26.3 ••• • •••• •• •• • •• • • ••• • •••
1915 • • •••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• • •• • 27.4 27.4 27.1 26.9 24.9 23. 6
1916 • • 22.4 22.3 22.3 25.1 25.4 26.8 26.5 27.0 26.6 25.7 24:.5 22.5

Mean. 22.5 23.2 22.9 24.2 25.1 26.2 26.9 26.9 26. 6 25.8 24:.7 22 . 4

-
Port-de-Palx; •ltitude 25 meters.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

1909 • • •••• • ••• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• 26.8 26.2 26 .0 26.4 24.5 22.7
1910 • • 20.9 21.8 22.7 23.9 25.1 26.6 26.2 26.S 26.6 26.1 • ••• 23.7
1911 • • 21 .6 22.3 22.2 24.3 24.9 26.5 26.9 27.8 27.2 •••• •••• ••••
1912 •• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • • • • • ••• •••• •• • • •••• • • •• •••• • •••
191941 • 21.6 22.3 21.9 24.2 25.5 26.2 26.8 26.5 26.6 25.7 24.2 22. 6

Kean . 21. 4 22.1 22.3 24.1 25.2 26. 4 26.7 26.6 26.6 26.1 24.3 23.0
•

° Furnished by M. Abbeg, Port-de-Paix.

•
 38 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Monthly mean temperature at places in Haiti Continued.

Gonai:ves; altitude, S meters.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

1911 •••• •• •• 25.5 26.8 26.6 28.2 28.7 28.7 •••• 28.0 27.4 25.6
••
1912 •• 25.7 26.0 27.6 27.3 27.6 •••• •••• •••• 28.2 27.6 27.4 26.4
1913 •• 26.0 25.4 26.7 25.8 27.1 27.3 27.6 27 .2 26.8 26.9 26.2 25.2
1914 •• 24.5 •••• 26 .1 27.3 28.1 28.4 29.3 29.2 28.8 28.1 26.9 26.9
•
1915 •• 26.6 25.4 26 .9 26.8 28.3 28.5 • •• • • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • •••
1916 •• 25.7 25.2 25.6 . 27.2 28.0 •••• •••• •••• 28.0 27.3 26-6 24.4

Mean. 25.7 25.4 26.4 26.9 27.6 28.l 28.5 28.4 27.9 27.6 26.6 26. 7

Gantier; altitude, 117 meters.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.
' •

1909 • • •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • • •• • ••• 27.2 26.7 26.7 26.5 23.6 22.0
1910 •• 22.9 23.7 23.4 2.5.1 26.4 27.5 27 . 2 27 .4: 26.6 26.5 26.4 23.9
1911 • • 23.7 24.1 24.6 25.5 26.5 26.7 27.8 28.l 27.8 26.9 26.4 24.1
1912 • • 24.4. 25.6 26 .8 27.0 29.0 28.2 28.8 28.8 21 .1 26.1 26.9 26.4
1913 •• 24.4 25.6 26.9 25 .8 26.8 27.6 28.1 27 .9 27.5 27.4 26.4: 26.2
1914: •• 24.0 24.6 25.2 27.4 28.2 28.0 28.0 28.6 28.2 27.8 25.9 25.9
1915 • • 24.6 25.2 25.5 26 .2 27.1 27.9 28 .5 28.5 28.6 28.6 27.0 25.7
1916 • • • ••• •••• •••• 26. 9 27.1 27.5 27.6 27.5 27.3 26.9 25.4 23.8

Mean . 24.0 24.8 25.4 26.S 27.3 27.6 27.9 27.9 27.5 27.1 26.0 24.6

Port-au-Prince; altitude, 37 meters.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. .Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec•
. • •

\ .
1909 • • • ••• •••• •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• 28.9 28 .0 27.2 27.3 24.8 23.7
1910 •• 24.5 25.2 24.7 26.0 26.6 28.0 28.3 28 .2 27.5 26.6 26.1 25.5
1911 • • 25.4 25.3 2.5.5 26.9 26.3 28.4 29.2 28.7 28.2 26.6 26.4 26.o
1912 •• 26.l 26.1 26 .9 26.7 27.5 28.4 28.8 28.2 27 .5 26.9 27.1 26.4
1918 •• 26.2 26.3 27.1 25.6 26.l 27. 9 28.2 28.3 27.4 26.8 26 .0 25.4
191j •• 25.2 25.9 26.4 26.4 27.8 28.1 29.6 28.9 28 . 4: 27. 6 26.1 26 .2
1915 .. 26.5 26.0 27.0 26.2 28 .2 28.8 29.2 28.8 28 .2 28 .1 27.2 26 .6
1916 •• 26.3 26.1 ?J8.5 27.2 27.6 27.9 27.7 28.6 27.9 26.8 26.0 24.7

Mean • 25.7 25.8 26.3 26. 4 27.2 28.2 28.8 28.5 27.8 27.1 26.2 26. 6
•

.
 •

GEOGRAPHY. 39

}.{onthly mean temperature at pkzces in Haiti Continued.

P6tionville; altitude, 400 meters .
.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

-
1900 • • •••• ••• • •••• • •• • • •• • • ••• 27.0 26.1 25.6 25.4 22 .4 21.6
1910 • • 21.6 22.5 22.8 24 .0 24.6 26.6 26.0 26.3 2fj. 6 24.8 24. l 22.7
1911 •• 22.3 23.2 23.8 24.7 24.3 25.8 26.6 26.6 25.8 24.9 24 .2 23.0
1912 •• 23.8 23.9 24.3 24.6 25.4 24.8 26.3 26.2 26. 0 25.1 24.6 23 .7
1913 •• •••• •••• •••• • • •• •••• • ••• 26.0 26.1 25 .0 24 .2 23 .8 22.6
191, • • 22.5 23.3 23 .9 25.2 25.7 25.7 27.3 26.9 26.6 25. 9 25.l 24.3
1915 •• 24.2 23.3 25.1 24.0 26.1 26.4 27 .2 26.7 26.3 26.2 25.3 24.9
1916 •• 24.3 24.0 24.0 24.8 25.5 25.8 25.6 25.9 25.9 24.0 23.5 22.4

Kean. 23.1 23.4 24.0 24.5 25.3 25.7 26.5 26.a 26.0 25.1 24.1 23.1 •

Les Cayes; altitude, 7 meters.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

1909 •• •••• •••• • •• • •••• • ••• • ••• 27.4 26.7 25.5 26.0 25.5 24-8
1910 •• 24.0 23.8 23.7 24.4 25.4 26.7 26.7 26 .9 26.8 26.3 26.2 25.0
1911 •• 24.8 24.0 ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• •••• 27.9 28.2 27.2 26.6 25.9
1912 •• 26.0 . 25.2 25.7 ?,5.5 26.5 ••• • •••• •••• 27.1 27.1 26.8 25.8
1913 •• 24.6 24.5 25.4 24.8 25.8 26.8 26 .3 26.7 26.6 26.5 26.1 25.0
191, •• 24 .3 . 24. 7 25.0 25.7 26.7 27.5 27.2 27.1 27.0 26.9 26.0 26.9
1915 •• 24.8 24 .8 25 .5 25.6 26.6 27.3 26.9 27.0 26.9 27.1 26.7 26.8
1916 •• 24.8 24.7 24.6 25.3 26.4 26.8 26.9 26.7 26. 7 25.7 25 .6 2,6.l

Kean. 24.7 24.7 25 .0 25.2 26.2 27.0 26.9 27.0 26 .8 26.6 26.2 25.8

Furey; altitude, 1,640 meters.

Year. Aug. Days of record. Sept. Days of record. Dec. -Jan. Days of record.

1906.••• 19.9 ••• • •• •• •• • • ••• •• •••• •• 20 .3 1-12 •••• • • • •• ••• •• • • • • •• •

190'1•••• 19.6 •••• •• ••••••• •• •• • • • • • • 19.5 1-15 17 .9 Dec. 1-31.
1908 .••• 19.7 • ••• • • •••••••••••• • •• •• 19.3 1-16 • ••• ••••••••• • •••••••
1909 •••• 19.0 •• •• ••••• • • • • ••• ••• • •• • 18.9 1-15 •••• •• ••• •••••••••• ••
1910••.• 19.2 ••• •• • •• ••• •• ••••••••• • 19.8 1-16 •••• •• •• • •• • ••• • • • •••
1911 •••. 19.7 • • • ••• •• ••• • •• • •• • • • • • • 19.8 1-14 • •• • • ••• • ••••••••••••
1912 ..•. 19.2 3-31 . .................. 19.0 1-18 17.4 Dec. 24-Jan. 4.
191.3 ..•• 18.4 • ••• • •• • • •• •• •• ••• • •• •• 18.8 1-17 17.5 Dec. 24-Jan. 4.
191• .•.• 19.4 • •• •• • •• • • • • • • ••••• •• •• 19.6 1-14 17.3 Dec. 23-Jan. 3.
1915 •••• 19.6 1-11, 17-31 . ............ 19.6 1-16 18.0 Dec. 28-Jan. 7.
1916.••• 19.7 1-13 16·29, 81 ....• •... 19.3 1-13 • ••• ••• •• ••• ••• ••••• •
1917 •••• 18.6 ••
'
••• • ••• • • • • • • ••• • • ••• 18.3 1-15 • ••• • ••••••••••••••••

Mean... 19.3 •••• • • • • •• • • • •• • • •• • • • • 19.8 •••• 17.6 • ••••••••••••••••

•
•
 •

42 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

to be about 9° 0. The mean daily difference in degrees Centigrade be- •

tween maximum and minimum temperatures at Port-au-Prince by months

based on readings taken hourly from 1888 to 1910 is as follows: J anu-
ary, 10.7; February, 11.3; March, 11.1; April, 10.6; May, 9.8; June,
10.5; July, 11.4; August, 11.3; September, 10.3; October, 9.6; Novem-
ber, 9.5; December, 10.1.
The variations appear to have some relation to rainfall, as they are
smallest in the months of May, October, and November. May and October
have heavy precipitation, but November has only an average amount.
The variations are greatest in February, July, and August. July is the
driest s11mmer month and February is a dry winter month.
At Port-au-Prince the minimum daily temperature, based on monthly
observations over a period of 16 years, occurs at 6 a. m. from November
to March, inclusive, and at 5 a. m. from April to October. The daily
maximum occurs at 1 p. m. from November to April, inclusiv.e, and occurs
sometimes at 12 and sometimes at 1 p. m. during the rest of the year.
For 1909 to 1916, inclusive, the maximum temperature recorded at
Port-au-Prince was 37.8° C., on August 2, 1914. The minimum at Po1·t-
au-Prince was 15.2° C., on February 4, 1910. A minim11m of 12.2° was
recorded at Petionville on February 3, 1910, evidently an effect of the
same cold wave. The lowest recorded temperature elsewhere, except at
Furey, is 13° C. at Port-de-Paix on February 20, 1911, and March 9,
1911. At Furey the maximum temperature recorded in the incomplete
records available is 27.2° C. on September 6, 1906, and the minimum is
10.8° C. on January 2, 1913. Moreau de Saint-Mery states that in colo-
nial days maximum temperatures of 40° 0. (converted from Reaumur
scale) were recorded at Le Trou, Port-au-Prince, and on the Plaine du
Port-a-Piment (called Arbre Plain in this report) and that minimum
temperatures of 5° C. in the parish of Dondon and 7° C. in the Canton of
Nouvelle-Touraine (near Furey) had been observed. These figures prob-
ably give a fair idea of the range of maximum and minim11m tempera-
tures throughout the Republic.
In the lowlands the high temperatures of s11mmer are rather oppressive,
particularly to persons not acclimated to the tropics, and the directness
and intensity of the s11n's rays add to the discomfort. It is often danger- ·
ous to exercise strenuously in the midday heat. Fortunately the nights
generally are cool enough to permit refreshing sleep, although this is by
no means always true in summer. At altitudes of 900 meters or more
above sea level the winter nights seem chilly to persons accustomed to
the lowlands, and at altitudes of 1,500 meters or more even the perma-
nent inhabitants at times suffer considerably from cold. Some extra
clothing is necessary for travelers in the mo11ntains, and a camp fire is
occasionally very pleasant. A sudden drop of several degrees in tempera-
•
ture often accompa.nies storms and causes 11npleasant coldness even in the
lowland plains .

•
 GEOGRAPHY. 43

p RECIPITATION. •
-
The precipitation in the Republic, which comes chiefly as rain, is
notably lacking in the 11niformity and equability that characterize the
temperature. The amount of precipitation varies greatly both with the
seasons and at different localities. For the local irregularities the sur-
face features are mainly responsible. The country is exceedingly moun-
tainous, and the high ranges cause condensation of the moisture carried
by the winds so that the rainfall is great on the windward side and very
small on the leeward side, only a short distance away. Within the Repub-
lic there are all gradations in climate from very hum.i d to semiarid and
even to arid, and these gradations are characteristic not of large and
homogeneous regions but of small and scattered districts. The effect of
differences in the annual precipitation is most apparent on the vegetation
and the agricultural development at different localities. In some places,
such as the Arbre Plain, the vegetation is all of arid types, particularly
cacti, and agriculture is almost impossible without irrigation. In other
places, such as the valley of Dondon, there is a 111xuriant natural for.est,
and crops flourish without irrigation. },!any mountain ranges, such as
the Montagnes la Hotte, are well watered and heavily forested.
One feature of the rainfall, however, is very constant over all the Re-
public, and that is its concentration into two well-defined wet or rainy
seasons, one in the spring, the other in the fall. The following tables of
rainfall by months at the most important observation stations not only
show this feature of the rainfall but give in some detail the available
rainfall records for a considerable n11mber of years at stations where
observations have been made over a sufficient interval of time to be of
considerable value for use as engineering data. The wr·iter has found it
impossible to make some monthly mea.ns based on Scherer's yearly records
agree with the means published by him. Some of the discrepancies are
due to his use of data that had not appeared in the yearly records; others
appear to be due to typographical errors in the bulletins. Most of the
discrepancies are not large enoug·h to be of much significance.
The second table, which contains the stations arranged in alphabetical
order, gives only monthly means of rainfall and the number of years of
observation at all stations where any records whatever have been kept for
more than a year. This table gives a rough indication of the probable
rainfall at a considerable number of stations that were maintained for
only a short time and places the data for other stations in alphabetical
order for more ready reference.
A final table gives the total yearly rainfall at all stations where the
records cover sufficient time to make the means of real value, usually at
least seven years. An appendix to this table gives records of annual rain-
fall in colonial days at a number of places, as published by Moreau de
Saint-Mery. These records, although probably not so reliable as those
 •

44 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

published by the Observatoire Meterologique, are valuable because tl1ey

give an indication of the approximate amo11nt of rainfall at some impor-
tant places for which no recent records are availa.ble and because they
indjcate that the climate has pot., as is sometimes suggested, changed
radically in l1istorical times. The long record at Leogane gives a result
no·t much different from that of the recent observations. That at Le Trou
corresponds closely with Cap-Ha1tien and Limonade, as would be expected.
\

Rain/all in millimeters by months.

Cap-Rai'.tien.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

1906-
~ 128.9 84.9 56.0 27.3 133.7 129.6 45.1 46.2 68.3 216.7 187.7 132.2
19()94
.. 20.7 209.5 295.2 293.8 753.0 159.5
1909 • • •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • •••
1910 •• 324.8 40.4 459.6 18.3 7.0 55.9 39.2 46.9 98.6 293.0 146.B 9~1.6

1911 .. 76.8 38.8 15.6 82.0 224.3 8.4 13.8 31.7 97.6 419 .9 67.1 678 .8
1912 • • 1g.q .6 90.1 5.6 86.4 94.5 9.2 17.7 21.4 23.3 370.3 626.6 14.1
1913 • • 3.9 1.6 38.3 304.8 191.9 10.9 0.6 42.2 80.2 98.7 223.6 157.7
191, .. 133.9 100.6 152.8 46.3 82.2 64:.6 17.5 0.0 46.0 301.6 367.4 102.4
1915 • • 111.9 426.8 237.1 140.9 •••• •••• 15.3 13 .0 144.1 220.l 373.6 133.5
1916 • • 112.S 244.0 42.5 2.0 143.7 24.4 121.5 23.7 87.5 145.6 •••• 1.0
1917 • • 10.0 70.0 11.0 149.5 197.0 186.1 o.o 14.0 67.0 127.0 278.4 878.0
1918 • • • • • • • ••• •• •• • • •• • ••• • ••• 117.0 •• • • 58.0 169.0 •••• 55.0
1919 • • 152.5 72.6 •••• 117.S 278.9 • • • • •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• ••••

Mean • 123.5 109.7 98.9 77.1 145 .4 79 .8 88.4 45.1 92.5 237.6 299.~ ~0.6

for January to June in this line show mean rainfall, 1906-1909; figures for July to
a. Figures
December show mean rainfall, 1906-1908.

· Port-de-Paix.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov . Dec.
.
~

1907- ~
112.4 115.1 36.9 21.8 64.9 83.9 47.0 100.2 244.5 100.8 129.5 181.5
1909°'
•
1909 .• •••• ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• •••• 161.0 186.5 261.0 811.4: 638.0 39.0
1910 ••582.1 67.0 103.0 32.5 68.0 114.0 66.0 185.0 173.0 297.5 • ••• 640.0
1911 •• 133.3 35.0 18.5 100.6 151.0 65.0 34.0 57.0 111.0 •••• • ••• 372.5
1912 •• •••• 124.0 16.0 52.0 36.3 52.0 40.5 102.5 09.0 258.0 666.0 105.0
1913 •• 175.0 27.0 18.0 247.0 86.5 27.0 39.0 66.0 75.0 79.0 182.0 45.0
1914 •• 106.0 67.0 113.0 88.0 30.0 59.0 14.0 15.5 76.6 13.0 111.0 12.0
1916 •• 50.0 104.2 45.0 83.0 46.0 10'2.5 91.5 84.0 269.0 46.0 130.0 64 .0
1916 •• 160.~ 95.0 39.5 86.0 69 .0 120.7 36.5 106.5 48.5 129.5 287.0 23.0
1917 •• 80.0 110.5 28. 0 95.5 107.5 278.0 67.0 131.0 112.0 47.0 180.5 106.5
1918 •• 19.5 70.0 29.5 87.6 42.5 74.0 ]3.0 69.0 79.5 75.5 113.0 97.0
1919 •• 90.5 83.0 42.5 81.0 114.0 37.5 6.0 30.0 112.0 93.0 15.0 62.0

Mean . 14:8.6 82.9 43.3 71.6 71.9 90.9 50.2 95.5 146.6 129.8 234.7 140.7

, • Fii'\ll'ea for January to June in this line show mean rainfall, 1907-1909; figures for July to
December show mean rainfall, 1007·1008.
 GEOGRAPHY. 45

Rain/all in millimeters by months-Continued.

MOle St.-Nicolas •
•

Year . Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

•
1905· > 49.9 27.0 50.3 3.1 65.9 13.7 33.0 13.7 120.6 100.5 25.8 83.2
19094
•
1909 • • •• •• • • • • • • • • •••• •••• • ••• 23.0 175.3 217.6 128.1 196.7 21.0
1910 • • 125.5 17.2 24.5 21.6 o.o 79.9 48.8 33.0 44.6 89.8 22.4 134.4
1911 • • 83.6 o.o 3.4 o.o 103.6 0.0 0.0 • •• • 5.0 16.5 0.0 6.0
1912 • • 127.1 183.0 •••• ••• • •••• • ••• • • • • • ••• •••• 93.7 110.2 o.o
1913 • • 0.1 102.0 o.o 59.0 26.8 20.0 11.0 6.9 51.8 0.6 157.2 8.2
1914 • • 91.2 32.1 32.7 93.0 86.2 36.3 41.6 •••• • • •• •••• ••• • ••••

1915 • • 17.7 77.2 29.5 23.9 44.4 53.3 24.2 41.3 29.6 14.8 13.6 0.4
1916 •• 0.0 8.2 14.3 13.5 23.8 '38.4 19.6 88.9 14.6 8. 76 123.0 0.0
1917 • • 1.9 11.1 0.0 105.9 49.6 24.9 16.9 68.7 40.7 29.7 169.8 85.4
1918 •. • ••• 11.3 3.3 32.5 23.5 17.0 2'J.7 0.0 51.4 252.2 5.5 13.3
1919 • • 4.8 o.o 1.9 0.0 149.0 8.4 24.7 1.7 5.2 2.2 46.l 58. 4

Hean • 46.5 32.4 25.8 26.1 59.7 24.8 26.0 39.2 72.5 79.8 67.7 32.9

° Figures
for January to June in this line show mean rainfall, 1905-1909; figures for July to
December show mean rainfall, 1905-1908.
Gonaives.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov . Dec.

..
1903-
~ 7.8 5.7 9.7 24.4 84.9 88.3 81.7 35.9 101.2 54 .9 19.9 6.6
1909 11
•
1909 • • • •• • •• • • ••• • • ••• •••• •••• 91.0 202.5 •••• • •• • • ••• ••••
1910 .. 28.0 o.o 50.0 5.0 39.2 182.8 96.5 77.9 64.4 119.4 o.o 66.9
1911 •• o.o o.o 0.0 21.7 141.2 101.7 33.8 55.3 52.7 32.4 24.0 76.4
1912 .. 6.0 60.4 44.5 4.1 64.7 83.5 109.4 68.4 31.2 69.3 11.5 o.o
1913 •• 0.0 1.8 13.7 50.1 22 .5 92.3 23.2 66.7 130.5 21.4 10.7 o. (j
1914 .. 18.3 14.8 54.7 72.3 41.0 52.5 30.8 55.0 62.8 4.5 142.2 6.1
1915 •• 18.0 23.3 8.8 10.6 7.1 146.1 • •• • • • • • • •• • •••• • • • • 18.0
1916 .. 0.0 30.3 0.0 12.2 115.1 148.6 50.0 88.0 175.6 67.0 46.4 o.o
1917 •• 0.0 0.0 3.8 56.0 107.6 132.6 37.6 42.5 17.4 8.5 1.1 4.3
1918 .. 0.0 27.0 3.7 8.0 70.9 71.1 56.6 7.6 163.6 45.5 0.0 0.0
1919 •• 2.1 0.0 22.4 o.o 95.8 86.5 55.9 o.o 95.2 o.o o.o 2.5
Mean . 7.3 11.6 15.8 24.2 76.4 100.9 68.2 58.l 93.8 47.0 23.4 12.7

•Figures for January to June and September to December in this line show mean rainfall, 1903-
1909; figures for July and August show mean rainfall, 1903-1908.

- . St.-Marc.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov . Dec.
•

1905-.
1909" > 7.9 20.4 18.6 60.7 180.4 145.2 124.8 134.8 176.5 149.6 21.3 2.6
1909 ••.
• ••• • • • • •••• • ••• •••• •••• 145.7 165.7 189.0 91.7 89.6 0.0
1910 .. 54.0 50.2 0.0 o.o 86.2 177.1 119.9 18.5 76.9 1~ . 9 0.0 23 .2
1911 •• o.o 0.0 0.0 28.8 180.9 128.2 96.4 173.8 143.6 72.1 38.6 33.1
1D12 •• 5.5 21.0 18.0 11.3 45.2 180.8 179.0 • •• • • • • • • ••• •••• ••••
1919 .. o.o 0.0 7.3 3.4 131.9 82.5 157.8 69.9 68.2 92.2 12.7 21.9
Mean . 11.0 19.3 13.1 38.5 144.0 143.8 133.1 120.8 148.0 120.4 28.8 11.0

•F·
lgUres for January to June in this line show mean rainfall, 1905-1909; figures for July to
December show mean rainfall, 1905-1908.

I
 46 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Rainfall in millimeters by months Continued.

St.-Michel de l' Atalaye.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May . June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

1908-
.
~ 21.6 13.5 46.3 68.7 186.8 208.6 212.0 46.7 233.4 131.l 101.1 46.0
1909°
.. 26.6 72 .9 65.9 109.9 73.2 176.0 125.0 100.0 75.4 126.0
1910 • • 30.0 0.0
1911 • • 17.3 0.0 7.0 68 .0 388.0 176.3 49.0 158.0 98 .0 107.6 17.0 65.0
1912 •• 0.0 12.4 78.0 so.o 119.0 182.0 68.9 143.2 179.4 196.0 48.0 0.6
1913 •• 0.0 0.0 56.0 59.0 114.0 121.0 • ••• . •••• 160.0 110.0 25.0 8.0
1914 • • 18.6 7.0 41.0 169.0 62.0 20.0 ••• • ••• • 118.5 142.4 72,4 29.0
1915 •• 2.2 21.3 4.3 23.9 227.1 592.2 210.0 60.1 26.6 70.6 12.0 0.0
1916 •. o.o 6.0 16.0 33.0 163.5 827.6 ••• • • ••• 180.2 131.8 140.2 0.0
1917 •• 0.0 2.6 o.o 131.1 176.4 139.l 48.0 •••• 105.7 162.7 90.7 45.0
1918 • • 5.0 2.0 68.0 103.0 115.4 120.0 208.8 127.2 109.1 J27. 7 12.0 13.3
1919 •. 15.1 0.0 21.0 62.2 272.1 175.6 104.4 • ••• 137.2 55.0 24.5 8.6

Mean . 10.9 6.5 34.2 73.3 171.4: 198.4 119.1 163.7 143.6 118.5 75.3 S-.l.3

aFigures for January to June in this line show mean rainfall, 1908-1909 ; figures for July to
December show rainfall, 1908.
Mirebalais.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

-
1907-..
~ 3.7 47.2 83.9 169.3 277.4 189.4 22'2.7 220.7 298.2 169.9 35. 0 6.0
1909•
1909 • •
~

•••• •• • • ••• • ••• • •••• •••• 121.5 ... .. ..... 248. 2 173. 0 42.0
1910 •• 20.0 0.0 85.0 32.0 293.7 325.0 169.0 396.4 348.2 150.0 79.0 207.0
1911 •• 43.5 2.0 34.5 105.5 242.5 192.5 399.9 403.S 281.0 163.0 118.0 24.0
1912 •• 8.0 16.0 119.0 212. 0 304 .0 243.0 351.0 289.0 343.0 264.0 118.0 6.0
1913 •• 35.0 25.0 81.0 203.0 277.0 199.0 291.0 635.0 525.0 156.0 17.0 119.0
1914 •• 20.0 38 .0 125 .0 86.0 472.0 426.0 201.0 S88.0 · 554.0 673 .0 405.0 144.0
•
1915 •• 0.0 2.0 0.0 182.0 509.0 627.0 596.0 456.0 434.0 446 .0 100.0 95 .o
1916 .. 36.0 287 .0 161.0 333.0 746.0 791.0 436.0 385.0 597.0 789.0 492 .0 1.7

Mean . 17.4 51.2 84.7 166.1 867.6 327.2 301.0 361.5 397.7 322.9 157.2 65.1

°Figures for January to June and August and September in this line show mean rainfall, 1907-
1909; figures for July and October t o December show mean rainfall, 1907-1908.

Thomazea.u.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

1905- ..
~ 16.8 31.9 41.6 107.5 154.8 32.4 42.5 82.5 160.1 150.6 42.7 8.7
1909 41

1909 • • - •••• • •• • • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• 10.0 105.0 119.4 87.6 199.1 o.o
1910 .• 6.0 o.o 37.6 87.6 58.5 85.8 88.8 70.1 161.5 62.5 71.0 63.0
1911 •• 0.0 14.5 27.8 78.9 124.0 21.0 27.0 3.0 92.0 136.8 128.0 o.o
1912 • • o.o 89.1 62.8 114.1 133.5 50.0 83.3 1.24.0 160.7 109.0 4.0 o.o
1913 • • 0.0 0.0 o.o 96 .8 105.8 7.0 96.0 45.0 69.2 155.1 33.3 17.0
1914 .. 14.8 87.8 5.5 45 .0 161 .0 120.0 29.0 56.5 66.0 180.0 160.0 20.8
1915 • • 14.0 35.0 10.5 35.7 151.5 234.5 280.8 164.0 109.6 • ••• •••• • •••
1916 • • •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• 36.4 • ••• 153.6 143.3 150.0 o.o
1917 • • 0.0 17.3 7.0 148.5 198.1 145.1 62.4 44.8 75.5 129.9 78.4 15.6
1918 • • 0.0 17.6 120.2 55.3 281.9 49.7 51.0 58.1 131.0 144.9 99.0 o.o
1919 •• 0.0 o.o 10.2 147.5 21.2 42.2 35.2 82.2 140.9 108.4 0.0 27.5
Mean . 8.5 22.9 34.9 96.2 144.S 65.5 64.7 73.7 12.5.3 132.8 81.0 12.8

Figures for January to June in this line show mean rainfall, 1905-1909; figures for July to
a
December show mean rainfall. 1905-1908.
 •
•
•
GEOGRAPHY • 47

Rai,nfall in millimeters by months Continued.

Port-au-Prince.
Year. j Jan. I Feb. j Mar. I Apr. I May. IJune. I July, J .Aug. I Sept. j Oct. ' Nov. I Dec
1863 •• •••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• 83.0 128.0 257.0 92.0 18.0
1864 •• 1.0 124.0 111.0 212.0 261.0 59.0 109.0 223.0 164.0 171.0 61 .0 45.0
1866 •• 20 .0 13.0 78.0 193.0 451.0 75.0 103.0 129.0 298. 0 151.0 158.0 28.0
1866 •• 57.0 75.0 149.0 862.0 226.0 146.0 150.0 125.0 131 .0 110.0 125.0 66 .0
1867 •• 51.0 27.0 23 .0 199.0 328.0 177.0 54.0 189.0 53.0 127.0 63.0 ,1.0
1868 •• 1.0 143.0 87.0 10'2.0 817.0 52.0 43.0 129.0 282. 0 118.0 118.0 43.0
• 1869 •• 27.0 141.0 109.0 123.0 326.0 139.0 97 .0 265 .0 ~6'1.0 151.0 29.0 6.0
1888 •. 12.0 36.0 93.0 108.5 •••• • •• • 34.0 113.0 29.0 62.0 88.0 o.o
1884 •• •••• 59.5 81.9 88.0 275 .5 140.9 27.2 139.6 129.4 111.0 44.8 43. 7
1885 .. 42.5 58.0 37.1 23.0 92 .0 58.1 67.5 S9.8 154.6 127.6 19.7 57.6
1886 .. 161.8 73.3 60.6 185.8 204.7 144.9 72.5 223.5 113.5 51.5 ••• • • •••
1887 .• • • • • ••• • •••• • ••• 453.8 50.8 77.5 210. 4 191.0 173.0 74 .1 0.8
1888 •. 5.1 11.6 37.3 100.4 179.6 113.0 43.7 85.1 87.6 127.8 165.1 124.7
1889 .. 12.9 21.2 56.5 2'22.3 464 .6 99.2 32.3 108.9 225.9 203.1 4.2 20.1
1890 .. 48 .8 78 .4 127.5 83.5 119. 4 71.2 86.1 106.0 233.5 119.9 94.7 62.0
1891 •• 27.6 116.3 24.7 169. 7 332.0 148.6 26.0 198.3 176.3 151.6 124.0 5.4:
1892 .• 34.0 26.0 21.9 171.2 169.1 103.4 106.6 145.7 61.6 161 .0 50.9 24.o
1893 •• 80.7 52.4 41.9 111.4 302.7 67.2 146.2 217.5 209 .7 181.0 4.5 22.1
1894 •• 5.5 6.6 128.5 220.0 212.8 78.6 1.8 72 .9 296.9 146.3 24.6 68.7
1895 .. S.8 62.9 93.4 136.2 209.3 66.6 121.3 173.5 216.3 107.8 114.1 20.0
1896 •. 46.3 26.1 36.2 145.2 170.6 105.5 '4.8 206.8 158. 4 196.8 9.7 80.3
1897 •• 0.4 6.2 109.9 160.7 423.? 37.0 35. 4 105.8 245 .2 72.9 44.7 6.8
•
1898 .. 15.1 67 .2 48 .7 82.0 80'2.3 144.4 97 .1 156.3 148.8 112.9 61 .6 161.2
1899 .• 59.7 13.7 67.2 238.4 204.2 215.4 88.0 81.4 244.0 870.9 18.6 45.2
1900 •. 69.8 8.0 7.6 191.5 209.] 74.1 36.6 99.2 231 .6 79.6 121.9 11. 4
1901 •• 45.2 7.6 77.0 90.2 289.0 133.2 81.5 71.3 130.0 262.5 44 .5 17.9
190'2 .• 20.6 230.9 37.4 222.7 489.6 87.6 3.5 100.2 171 .8 228.0 47 .4 42 .0
1903 .. 7.8 o.o 106.8 169.0 116.0 100.6 72.5 110.9 156.5 140.6 209.6 9.7
1904 .. 44.2 42. 4 314.7 254.6 195.8 10.8 61.3 71.1 188.6 253 .6 64.7 41.4
1905 .• 72.7 79.3 96.1 69.8 233.3 123.1 43.3 168.8 211.7 309. 4 126.6 0.1
1906 .• 44.5 135.1 124.4 153.6 252.9 96.l 48.2 194.5 224 .9 287.1 60.3 62.0
1907 •• 13.5 85.9 74.9 92 .8 249 .0 22.9 43 .0 108.0 119.1 137.9 81.7 0.5
1908 •• 8.2 276.2 160.7 119.8 168.5 4.5 .S 63.9 186.8 104.8 165.7 23.6 24. 6
1909 •• 83.2 31.8 143.0 249.5 112.9 163.8 82 .8 127.0 872.2 103.8 246.9 40.8
1910 •. 24.9 1.9 198.0 246.6 159.7 68 .9 55.0 135.8 456.6 115.6 69.8 80.2
1911 •• 1.8 20 .S 136.6 166.9 258.8 78.7 74.1 67.1 98.4 353.4 120.4 28.2
1912 •• 1.5 30.5 136.5 267.7 219.0 64.8 85.2 218.S 237.6 161.3 29.0 86.8
1913 •• 20.4 17.5 67.5 281.0 185.2 94.6 71.2 103.4 182.1 142.6 165.8 9.f
1914 •• 76.7 18.2 130.8 130.9 138.1 184.7 83.2 248.4 119.2 131.4 189.4 60. 0
1915 •• 89.4 23.9 15.5 71.4 200.7 113.1 104.8 271.5 60.0 199.0 85.8 8.2
1916 •• 12.1 42.9 127.8 187.0 242.7 346.6 90.7 61.9 216.0 300.9 SOS.I 1.0
1917 •. 1.6 40.2 104.6 188.4 277.2 139.3 120.S 160.1 241.6 182.8 51.7 37.2
1918 •• 5.8 30.9 199.4 132.9 317.8 128.0 11.S 77.3 224.9 280.3 69.7 o.o
1919 •• 24.5 61.9 55.3 99.6 156.3 68.4 95.3 27.4 133.1 M.8 58.8 18 .2
Kean . 82.2 57.9 93.8 162.4 249.8 105.5 69.5 139.4 184.7 169.6 85.7 35.0

Jacmel.
Year. j Jan.
I Feb.
I Mar. I Apr. I May . j June. I July. Aug. j Sept. I Oct. I Nov I Dec.
1906- .
~ 85.4 88.4- 90.4 118.3 187.4. 136.8 77.7 64.8 167.9 98.8 88.8 9. ts
1909•
1909 -•• •••• •• •• • ••• •••• • ••• • •• • 54.9 165.5 152. , 159.6 245.2 7.2
1910 .• 49.4 1.0 215.0 117.7 123.9 67.9 46.9 130.6 115.3 139.5 16.7 69.0
• 1911 •• 12.2 41.8 134.1 208.6 249.4 8. 4 46.4 48. 6 00.2 151.6 50.3 7.9
1912 •• 40 .7 117.5 19.3 142.3 213.0 '3.6 127.4 174.6 40.8 170.1 162.2 16.2
1913 •• 4.4 30.6 15.4 242.5 194.3 Sl.1 75.0 86.7 64.7 79.0 203 .6 45.9
191• •• 90.3 6.3 53.5 181.4 2'24.2 34.8 27 .5 143.7 10'2.0 56.5 83.0 17.6
1916 •• 33.6 57.2 19.9 81.6 372.2 59.6 97.4 127.7 91.7 55.6 27.5 112.0
1918 •• 10.8 35.6 99.3 65.6 267 .8 137.0 56.3 327.3 117.6 .o<).5 110.4 o.o
1917 •• 0.0 39.9 57.4 141.2 629.5 155.1 90.6 174.9 110.5 199.9 37.0 43.8
1918 6.5 16.6 134.7 196.8 310.8 120.5 94.6
•• 83.9 72.5 162.1 15.9 89. 7
1919 .. 79.5 1.7 141.3 138.8 139.3 162.5 114.2 111.1 118.0 32.4 21.2 61.3
Mean . .
33.5
- 50.1 89.4 140.8 238. 9 97.7 76.0 126.0 113.2 135.9 78.1 80.6
•January to June= 1906·1909; July to December = 1906-1908.
 48 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Rainfall in millimeters by months Continued.

Les Cayes.

Year. Jan. Feb. ~far. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

1006- -
1909 4
.. 64.4 135.7 86.4 189.8 297.5 211.7 75.1 132.6 238.0 813.l 199.3 60.9
.. 46.6 242.3 602.0 432.6 300.2 15.3
1909 •• •••• • • • • •••• •••• ••• • • •••
1910 •• 40.3 122.1 94.9 1-57 .3 314.0 64.6 106.2 208. 8 238.4 213 .6 21.5 83.5
1911 •• 25.0 30.0 65.2 136.8 920.0 81.3 18.5 122.2 279.0 423.8 204.1 117.0
• 1912 •. 179.1 68.2 132.9 246.0 320.l 67.7 103.2 342.2 92.0 317.8 80.4 65.5
1918 •• 86.5 65.5 212.0 150.0 104.0 27.0 87.5 62.5 156.2 110.9 60.8 50.0
1914 .. 60.0 37.2 25.4 271.6 144.7 61.1 21.7 154.5 206.0 85.2 180.4 13.5
1915 •• 86.0 11.2 12.0 140.0 160.8 106.9 166.0 843.0 257.6 44.2 33.8 59. 7
1916 .. 33.7 82.0 72.1 255.0 428.0 225.0 195.0 291.9 71.5 794.0 583.8 30.0
1917 •• 16.5 17.8 65.5 142.5 228.3 76.7 132.2 526.8 458.3 1046.5 315.2 482.4
1918 .. 350.3 162.4 120.0 210.0 464.0 265.5 451.5 276.4 193. 0 578.6 223.7 289.2

Mean . 83.5 86.9 87.4 189.9 328.8 140.2 119.4 228.3 251.() 383.6 199.4 106.8

"January t o June = 1906·1909; July to December = 1906-1908.

•

J6r6mie.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar.

. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

•
1906- -
... 71.l 100.7 70.6 64.5 113.7 • ••• 81.9 67.4 147.1 58.7 69.8 17.8
1909 11
•
1909 • • •••• •••• • • •• •• •• •• •• • ••• 30.3 257.8 78.6 84.0 214.7 12.0
1910 •• 96.9 1.7 202.1 3j.1 96.5 60.5 36.0 117.7 13.8 70.7 161.3 130.0
1911 .. •••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• •••• 91.l 15.0 53.1 48.8 103.8 172 .7
1912 •• 253.4 207.5 26.3 76.6 20'2.6 69 .4 89.6 54.6 219.2 144.2 103.8 181.2
1913 • • 22.3 1.0 94.7 160.1 168.6 99 . 9 105 .0 41.3 78.9 143.4 38.8 71..2
1914 • • 81.1 32.7 93.4 180. 0 233.5 73.8 90.9 115.5 114.9 134.0 174.6 5.3
1915 •• 75.0 178.1 63.7 73.7 131.2 102.3 45.9 120.6 76.6 37.8 218. 0 68-4
1916 •• 6.6 221.0 89.9 176.8 214.9 273.2 45.3 147.7 55.8 253.6 120.9 o.o
1917 • • 50.8 67.4 •a.4 126.6 218.7 319.1 •••• • •• • 256.8 • ••• •• • • • •• •
1918 • • 44.7 140.7 44.4 178.1 96.1 125.1 126.2 95.9 108.9 232.4 153.3 l:i .4
1919 • • 312.8 75.0 80.7 152.8 855.9 48.9 239.8 198.6 •••• •••• •••• •• • •

Mean . 93.7 100.1 70.8 109.0 166.8 180.2 88. 1 105.1 115.2 110.4 124.9 58.8

0 January to May= 1906-1909; July to December= 1906-1~.

Moron.

Year. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

1910 • • •••• •• • • •• •• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• 205.9 532.5 193.8 539.5
1911 •• 76.7 75.4 18.6 112.0 537.6 81.1 74.2 76.1 75.9 132.5 68.3 291.3
1912 • • 265.2 78.6 84.9 112.6 233.0 263.4 •••• •••• •••• 118.l 132.5 39.3
1913 • • 22.6 0.1 78.2 276.5 818.8 100.0 164.1 176.8 843.7 134.3 369.1 87.4
1914 •• 100.3 20.5 184.4 2'll.6 231.3 ~00.4 150.5 180.0 12,.8 306.7 366.9 158.5
1915 •• 89.4 183.3 84.0 93.4 123.3 146.3 163.1 260.0 270.0 246.7 205.0 76.0
1916 •• 63.9 42.8 128.7 171.S 169.8 251.5 163.3 210.0 207.3 840.8 191.8 2.7
1917 •• 23.9 41.8 9.6 270.3 470 .6 306.5 145 .9 184.0 258.0 269.0 441.1 93.8
1918 •• 6.2 54.8 166.S 483.2 824.0 l~.6 122.5 163.1 S26.5 405.3 255.0 27.0
1919 • • 107.8 24.0 86.7 ~01.2 820.0 125.8 ••• • •••• •••• •••• • ••• ••••

Mean • 82.8 57.9 82.4 215.8 30'2.5 178.7 140.5 178.6 225.9 276.2 247.1 146.2
 M eon month.l11 rain/all, in millimeters, compil.ed /rom all available recMda .

.,.. Station. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept.
•
Oct. Nov. Dec• Years of record.
.•
-
-
.
Abricots (lee) ..•••.••..••..•....••. 24.2 22.6 58.9 49.8 105.l 47.4 47.9 21.0 59.0 40.0 87.0 55.5 1and2
Anse-A-Veau •••••••.•••••.•••.••.... 36.9 50.1 56.4 130.0 161.7 130.2 108.6 113.2 114.8 91.3 60.9 33.9 9-11
.Arcahaie (l') •• • • ••••••••••• • • ••• • • 16.8 28.9 34.6 70.1 129.8 64.0 66.6 82.0 109.9 105.3 64.8 21.1 13 •
Bahon •....•••...... ...........•.... 34.5 14.7 51.9 51.6 144.0 160.4 116.3 141.1 165.5 214.3 109.6 70.0 8 and 9
Bain et ..................... ' ...... . 46.7 39.6 96.8 240.6 231.8 110.0 120.3 112.9 167.0 153.5 91.2 35.3 13
Bassin-Bleu • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 34.9 33.0 18.9 49.4 123.7 128. 7 83.3 117.2 118.1 111.3 106.0 61.6 8-10
Bayeux .............•............... 176.3 117.5 110.6 193.7 206.1 110.4 46.9 94.2 143.8 217.4 401.5 291 .8 17 and 18
Borgne (le) ...••...•....... . .... . .. 172.2 112.2 81.8 181.2 115.2 99.8 47.9 50.2 91.7 196.9 387.9 185.2 8
Cap-Haitien •....................... 123.5 109.7 98.8 77.1 145.4 79.8 88.5 45.1 92. 5 237.7 298.3 230.7 12 and 13
Cayea (les) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 83.5 86.9 87.4 189.9 828.8 140.2 119.4 228.3 251.0 383 .6 199.4 106.8 13
Cbardonnieres . ........ . ............ 19.3 66.4 75.4 119.8 76.1 48.6 49.1 94.4 136.1 173.2 89.3 27.8 9
Dondon • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • .• • 61.7 40.9 64.6 106.7 165.5 116.2 101.5 100.9 134.3 168.1 174.7 139.0 9 and 10
Fond·V errettes •.................... 30.9 38.2 55.2 146 .0 206.1 155.1 74.8 135.1 192.6 180.4 137.7 24.4 12
Gan tier • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 16.3 20.5 41.8 123.7 149.4 51.0 33.2 66.7 116.7 145.2 61 .2 26.7 21 0
Gonaives ......•... ................. 7.3 11.6 15.8 24 .2 76.4 100.9 63.2 68.1 93.8 47.0 23.4 12.7 17 ~
Grande-Riviere du Nord ........... 86.5 64.5 78.9 92.1 204.6 g.q.o 67.9 lll.0 171.4 178.9 206.4 167.2 8 and 9 0
Hinche ......•....•..... . ........... 24.0 3.0 8.0 88.0 177.0 237.7 149.0 75.0 263.3 68.0 47.5 13.5 2 and S ~
"'d
J acmel •. .•...•••.................•• 83.5 50.l 89.4 140.8 233.9 97.7 76.0 126.0 113.2 135.9 78.1 80.6 14
J eremie .. ................... . ...... 93.7 ]02.1 70.8 109.0 166.8 130.2 105.1 115.2 110.4 124.9 ~
88.1 58.8 12 and 13 ~
Leogane .•....••........... . ........ 20.6 52.1 92.2 137.0 153.6 116.9 84.7 140.2 187.8 91.9 63.2 56.5 7 and 8 •
Limonade •• •••••••••••••••••••••••• 31.2 70.l 66.3 136.7 86. 0 54.9 . 26.8 72.8 104.2 177.9 229 .6 79.9 ~and 6
~~~~~ ......••...•..............••• 0.0 82.5 157.3 69 .5 382.2 270.8 98.5 103.2 112.6 254.5 69.6 o.o 1
M'iragoane ... ..••........... . ....• ••
A
SS.5 40.0 64.1 109.8 205.6 107.4 155.2 134.3 203.7 165.6 68.1 49.1 10 and 11
Mirebalais ••••••••••••••••••••• •••• 17.4 51.2 84.7 166.1 867.6 327.2 801.0 361.5 397.7 322.9 157.2 65.1 10
M:Ole St.-Nicolas ... .......•.....••• 46.5 82.4 25.8 26.1 59.7 24.8 26.0 39.2 72.5 79.8 67.7 32.9 14 and 15
Moron •.......•............ .......•• 82.8 57.9 82.4 215.8 302.5 178.7 140.5 178.6 225.9 276.2 247 .1 146.2 7.g
Petionville ......•... .....•........• 28.9 40.2 92.2 183.2 220.6 111.5 77.7 120.4 19'2.6 162.3 71.8 26.1 20 and 21
Petit-Goave ••••• ••••••••••••••••••• 15.9 42.6 49.1 129.4 222.9 137.9 107.5 136.6 139.5 86 .9 63.4 28.1 18 and 1•
Pilate ........ .•.................•.. 58.6 63.7 74.1 168.2 261.7 169.1 123.7 170.7 172.2 171 .3 235.3 72.8 7
Port-au-Prince (St. -Martial) •••••• 28.9 58.l 95 .6 168.7 249.4 106.2 74.7 138.7 192.6 177.9 89.7 35.6 38
Port-au-Prince (Lalue) • • • • • • • • • • • • 26.2 53.6 122.9 177.2 201.2 119.2 71.4 137.5 200.1 181.1 108.4 38.8 13
Port-au· Prince (Ferme-Ecole Thor) . 46.8 38.2 34.9 157.6 99.0 51. 4 107.5 23.2 132.8 91.2 109.8 11.7 1
Port-de-Paix ••••........•......•••• 143.6 82.9 43.3 n.5 71.9 90.9 50.2 95.5 146.6 129.3 234.7 140.6 13
St.-:Marc • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 11.0 19.2 13.1 138.5 144.9 143.8 133.1 120.9 140.8 • 107.6 27.3 9.9 8 and 9
St.-Michel de l'Atalaye ••••••••• ••• 10.9 6.5 83.6 76.1 172.2 215.5 119.0 163.7 144.8 118.5 76.S 31.4 12
Thomazeau •••...........•..•.....•• 8.7 22.9 34.9 96.4 142.8 65.5 64.5 73.9 124.6 132.7 80.9 12.9 14 and 15
Tiburon ........• ........•••........ 42.9 17.1 58. 4 122.7 62.6 7.1 34.1 49.9 114.0 98.7 100.6 25.1 5-7
~
~
50 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Mean annual rain/all.

Place. Millimeters. Place. Millimeters.

Anse-A-Veau .................. . 1,061. 7 L€ogane ......................... . 1,153.5

Arcahaie (l') •••....•..•...... . 793.9 Limon_
ade ....................... . 1,136.4
~~ll<>Il ................ ... . .... . 1,273.4 Miragoane ...................... . 1,329.0
Bainet ........................ . 1,445.2 Mirebalais ...................... . 2,659.4
Bassin-Bleu ................... . 986.1 MOle St.-Nicolas ...•..•......... 542.4
Bayeux ....................... . 2,109.2 Moron .......................... . 2,124.8
Borgne (le) •.•................ 1,728.2 Petionville ...................... . 1,326.8
Cap-Hartien .................. . 1,584.4 Petit-Goave ..................... . 1,159. 7
Cayes (les) ...•.....•.....••..• 2,107 .6 Pilate ........................ · .. . 1,741.3
Ohardonnieres •........•....•.. 682.0 Port-au-Prince (St.-Martial) .... 1,416.1
Dondon ....................... . 1,974.1 Port-au-Prince (Lalue) •••.•..... 1,437 .6
Fond-Verrettes ............... . 1,238.8 Port-de-Paix .................... . 1,282. 7
Gantier ....................... . 852.8 St. -Marc ........................ . 910.1
Gonaives ..................... . 524.0 St.-Michel de l'Atalaye ...•......• 1,167.2
Grande-Riviere du Nord •...... 1,429.4 Thomazeau ...................... . 859.7
Jacmel ........................ . 1,205.6 Tiburon ......................... . 733.2
Jeremie ....................... . 1,266.8

Colonial records of annual rainfall according to Moreau de Saint-Mery.

Place. Millimeters.• Years of record.

Bombardopolis ......................................... . 783 12

Oro ix -des-Bouquets ..................................... . 861 2
Fort-Libem ............................................ . 1,510 Several
Leogane ................................................ · 1,350 20
Le Trou ............................................... · · 1,478 4
Montagnes de Plymouth (Southeast of Jeremie) ..•••.. 4,485 1
Port-au-Prince ......................................... . F.87 1
Port-Margot ................................ ............ . S,804. 2
St.-Louis (du Sud) ..................................... . 2,295 6

•Converted from feet on assumption that 1 foot equals 324 millimeters.

The seasonal distribution of rainfall is much more readily apparent in

the curves shown in Figure 3 than in the tables. These curves, which
cover 13 stations that probably are fairly representative of rainfall at
low altitudes over the whole Republic, show that the spring rains gen-
erally last through April, May, and Ji1ne and reach their maxim11m
intensity usually in May. The fall rains come at a more variable date at
different stations, ranging from August to December, and the average
maximum is reached in the months of October and Nove,mber. December
to February, inclusive, are the d11 winter months, and July is almost
1

always the driest summer month. The fall rainy seaBon is generally longer
than the spring rainy season, and the winter dry season is longer than
the summer dry season. .
Unfortunately none of the stations for which records are available are
at altitudes that represent the conditions on the higher mountain ranges.
Fond-Verrettes, which is about 810 meters above sea level, is the highest
 GEOGRAPHY. 51

>
z
- -.
- ' •

-· -. ,,-

~~-+-~-+---f' -.-------+---+----t--+--~~~·~+-____,_
..... ' --.---- - t
-
• , ' r - 7-- --1
•• • ~ • ~~---1
' ,,.· .- ·.. ''-·
l - - - - + - - - + - - - - 4....
,· - -#-1 ,r--~l---+---f---1-----,~
...
• •... ~~ -~"'-t
•
I
•
.: ~ P~~~ -ld '·~ ":- 11. , ~ ·.. • - ..

I I 'I. ~' -..- •_ ..... ~ .,

I • - -.. t. •- •• . • - '
I
~~:t:~=t=~·===!t·~-t=~·~·::t====t::::;;;.t.
1-- •• - - .. -·
I ,,.- ....

' '
la. •
.~·

..............
J
~.---+---i~,-+-~r--'I,
...
•

'
'

'
-. -.•• ....

•
o..____________.____.______________......______________________

-H<,
r
' ..
"-.
•
Cf) 300 ,-' •
lJ I

a: ".
L
•
•

••., •
I- r'

•
I
• ., '
~ "", • ' I
.. l

I2.oo •
-- • I
- •
•

-..I • •
•
• ~ •• .· - .Ji/11
, r •
• ,• ,, '=ft~~
..::,...
I I

• .. .. .• ~
.•
-L
..I ,, ••
.... • ---- ~.,
.•
.•
•••
•• •

•••
,~

~
•

100 -·
"-·
:

. I
- I

- ·- •• ~ --
-~---
• ~
~ ... I

- .-
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~

- _...-...-.-
~ •
'1 ~ •
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r'

- - ...
-;m .•
- ... " ..
..... , ....
"'•'"'

_jll
.-
•••

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'. • ·- •••
0
.. ;li-
I

.. .., .,•

'~
'• ~
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•
..,,-.
• ..
I I
• .,
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~
•
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•

~ -( -.. •
~ ~ ti".) 0 0

U>300
lJ
a: -" -
t- •
- •
7-
I
--
;l&J ••
•
I

" ..,
.. ~.,.--·
I •
• • \.
l: 200 "·.•
• "
-.J -zl.• ... "'
~ ~
-·
I I
~
" .... ~ I.
'
l
.J
-I:
• ~
i(' • •
I .•
,
...
~

~ .. 1 ~ •• - •• .. g '
....
....
100 - ... •
-. •. •• ,, •
-· ~-
- • :ii
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- -- ••
•
••• , .......
~

FI ~
..·..,.,.. . -
.• .........
~-·
•• .•
.• • .,... ~ •
~-
.

0
FIGURE 3. Curves showing monthly mean rainfall for different stations.
 •

52 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

station given in the tables. It has only a moderate yearly precipitation.

Petionville, at an altitude of 400 meters above sea level, has a slightly
lower precipitation than Port-au-Prince, only "I kilometers distant and
near sea level. The heaviest precipitation, 2,659.4 millimeters, is at Mire-
balais, a.n inland station only 100 meters above sea level. The lowest
recorded precipitation, 524 millimeters, is at Gona1ves, which is only 3
meters above sea level. Other stations of very heavy annual precipitation,
such as Les Cayes and Bayeux, are on the coast practically at sea level.
The figures do not seem to signify any clear relation between altitude and
amount of precipitation. The types of vegetation suggest that the most
arid areas are the lowlands, such as the. Artibonite Pla.i n, Arbre Plain,
and Cul-de-Sac Plain, but their aridity may be due in part to difference in
temperature rather than to deficiency in rainfall.
The following table gives the available records for Furey, the only sta-
tion that stands at a really high altitude (1,540 meters), and the records
for Port-au-Prince during the same periods.

Comparative rainfall in millimeters at Port-au-Prince and Furey.

Date. Furey. Port-au-Prince.

July 81 to Sept. 12, 1906 .•.......•...................••• 246.3 250.2

July 27 to Sept. 15, 1907 .•.•............................ 271.2 149.2
July 28 to Sept. 16, 1908 ...•............•.........•.. . .. 303.2 216.9
Aug. 1 to Sept. 15, 1909 ..•................•.....•...... 645.2 282.2
Aug. 1 to Sept. 16, 1910 .•...•...•....•...••......•.•..• 412.0 385.7
July 27 to Sept. 14, 1911 •.....•..•.••..•..•••.••••...... 298.7 162.5
Aug. 3 to Sept. 18, 1912 .••••..•......•................. 363.8 278.8
July 29 to Sept. 17, 1913 ........... . ..... . .............. . 374.4 184.8
July 23 to Sept. 14, 1914 .......•..........••...• . .•...•. 224.4 343.2
July 21 to Sept. 16, 1915 ..•.•............ . .............. 532.0 301.0
July 28 to Sept. 13, 1916..•................... . ......... 438.8 100.5
July 26 to Sept. 15, 1917 ..••...........•................ 381.4 384.2

Total ...•............ . .............................. 4,481.4 8,040. 7

Dec. 1-31, 1907' ........••....••.••...••...•.•.•....•. . ••.• 17.3 0.5

Dec. 24, 1912 to Jan. 4, 1913 •••••..•..••••••..••....•..••• 0.0 4.6
Dec. 24, 1913 to Jan. 4, 1914 .••••....•.••....•..••.•...••• 0.0 0.0
Dec. 23, 1914 to Jan. 3, 1915 •......••....••..•••••....•... 5., 1.7
Dec. 28, 19J5 to Jan. 3, 1916..•...........•••••••••...... 4.6 1.4

Total •• e •• e e e e •• e e I e e •• e •• e I •• e e e •• • e • e • e • e e e • e e e e • I 27.3 8.2

These figures seem to indicate that the rainfall at Furey is nearly 50

per cent greater than that at Port-au-Prince, but it is not known whether
the rainy seasons at the two places are synchronous and the results there-
fore can not be regarded as conclusive. Moreau de Saint-Mery states
repeatedly that there is greater precipitation in the mountains than in
the plains. Valliere, he says, is much wetter than Fort-Liberte. He esti-
mates the yearly rainfall in the mountains back of Le Trou at an average
 GEOGRAPHY. 53
•

of 2,320 millimeters, about 60 per cent greater than that at Le Trou. H is

figures for Bombardopolis give a particularly valuable comparison with
Mole St.-Nicolas, indicating nearly 50 per cent greater precipitation on
the plateau near Bombardopolis. In general, it seems that the precipita-
tion on the mountains may average 50 per cent more than that in the
lowlands.
The controlling feature of the rainfall of the Republic of Haiti is the
influence of its many mo11ntain ranges on the moisture-bearing trade
winds in t he paths of which it lies. The general direction of these trade
winds in the West Indian region is northeasterly, but over the Republic
of Haiti they appear to incline somewhat more to the east. These winds,
when they strike the high ridge of the Massif du Nord from Ouanaminthe
to Port-de-Paix, deposit the greater part of their moisture on the north-
eastern slope of these mountains and the adjacent North Plain. Thus
dried and rarefied they pass down the southwestern slope of these mo11n-
tains and across the Central Plain and the Gona!ves Plain, and this region
becomes increasingly arid as its altitude decreases.
These winds appear to come so nearly from the east that the whole of
the Northwest Peninsula is in their lee and consequently that area is
much more arid than its exposed position would suggest. Only on the
northern slopes of its highest ranges is there enough rain to support forest
growth and to raise crops without irrigation. The entire bordering low-
land and much of the western plateau are arid or semiarid.
The winds that have crossed the Massif du Nord or the contiguous
heights of the Dominican Republic and the Central Plain, sweep on across
the Montagnes Noires, the Chaille des Mateux, and their connecting
ranges. The summits of these mo11ntains are at some places high enough
to cause considerable further condensation and to vroduce rainfall to sup..
port forests and garden crops. But the leeward lowlands, the lower Arti-
bonite Plain and the Cul-de-Sac Plain, are arid or semiarid, and culti-
vation is there impossible without irrigation. The upper part of the Arti-
bonite Valley appears to be so narrow that it shares the precipitation con-
densed by it.a surrounding mountains, and Mirebalais therefore has the
highest rainfall of any station on record.
The Massif de la Selle, although it contains the highest peak of the
Republic, does not appear to have the most ab11ndant rainfall, because the
winds have been robbed of so large a share of their moisture before reach-
ing it. As compared with the Cul-de-Sac P lain and the south coast,
however, it receives relatively high precipitation.
West of the Massif de la Selle the Southern P eninsula seems to receive
more and more rain as it projects farther and farther beyond the shelter
of the northern and eastern parts of the island of Haiti, and in the latitude
of Jeremie it is one of the best-watered parts of the Republic. Here, as
elsewhere, the north coast gets more rain than the south coast, much of
 54 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

which is in fact rather arid with the one peculiar 'exception of Les Cayes.
Perhaps the anomalously high rainfall at Les Cayes may be explained in
part by the fact that although it is on the lee side of the main body of the
peninsula it is also on the windward side of the mountainous projection
that terminate.s in the Po1·t-Salut Peninsula.
The precipitation comes in rainstorms of two very different types.
The period from October to March is the season of '' nords '' slow and
steady rains of long duration borne by northeasterly winds. These rains
may last from several hours to as much as two or three days. Few of
these. rainsto11ns yield a very large quantity of water. They are particu-
. larly characteristic of the north coast from Port-de-Paix eastward and
in the western part of the Southern Peninsula. They raise the winter
rainfall at Cap-Haitien, Bayeux, Le Borgne, Port-de-Paix, Grande-
Riviere du Nord, Jer·emie, and Moron above that of the other stations.
The other type of rainstorm prevails in summer and is doubtless due to
the northward migra.t ion of the equatorial storm belt at this season. ~1ost
of the rain in the drier parts of the Republic falls in violent storms of
short duration, many of them accompanied by high wind, th11nder, and
lightning. Late in the summer many such storms, especially those on
the south coast, become destructive hurricanes, causing great damage.
Occasionally the country is swept by violent hurricanes, usually accom-
panied by heavy rain, which cause tidal waves that do great damage to
1
shipping and to buildings on the water front. Especially destructive hur-
ricanes occurred in August, 1909, and in August, 1915.
The long periods of unbroken drought at certain stations directly affect
the population. At Mole St.-Nicolas, St.-Michel de l' Atalaye, and J acmel
two consecutive months of no rainfall have been recorded, and at Gonaives,
St.-Marc, and Thomazeau three consecutive months. A very great part
of the rain at these stations comes in heavy storms. During the year 1919
at all the stations of observation 38 per cent of the total ra.inf all by
· months fell in single storms, although several rainy days usually were
recorded each month. The int.ensity of r ains ·is briefly summed up by
1
Scherer as follows:
Nos pluies sont relativement courtes. La plupart durent mains d'une heure.
une pluie de deux heures parait deja longue. Rarement elles depassent quatre
heures. Une pluie de 12 heures ou de 24 heures est regardee comme extraordi-
naire. Elle suppose une perturbation atmospherique. D'ailleurs ce ne sont pas
les longues pluies qui fournissent beaucoup d'eau au pluviometre. Generalement
les courtes pluies sont aussi les plus intenses.

This characterization of the storms of the Republic corresponds with

a further statement by Scherer in the same article: '' Chez nous les pluies
sont plutot locales que regionales.''
1 Scherer, J., Observatoire M~t~orologique du S~minaire- Coll~ge St. Martial Bull. Ann.,
1919, p. 99, 1920.
 GEOGRAPHY. 55

The hours of rain or the time of day at which rain is most likely to fall ,
1
has also been determined by Scherer, whose conclusions, based on records
tabulated at many stations, are summarized as follows:
Avant d'examiner quelques tableaux en particulier, indiquons les points princi-
pa11x sur lesquels doit porter la lecture. Ces points sont le minimum et le maxi-
mum de frequence et l' amplitude, c'est-a-dire l'ecart entre les valeurs extremes.
Au bas de chaque tableau on consultera d'abord les totaux. On pourra constater
vers les 9 h. ou 10 h. du matin un minimum de frequence, commun presque a tout
le pays. Les maxima indiques dans les tableaux surviennent dans l'apres-midi, a
des heures differentes selon ]es stations, les uns plus repproches de midi, les autres
du coucher du soleil selon la region. D'autres stations, comme les Cayes et
Jeremie. ont une phase double: deux minima et deux maxima nettement marques.
Si l'on compare les resultats mensuels d'11ne meme station, on constate d ' une
part 11n leger deplacement pour le minimum du matin et d' autre part pour le
maximum une avance vers midi ou un recul vers minuit, suivant les saisons. En
certains pays il pleut a peu pres aux memes heures toute l'annee; en d'autres, des
pluies tardives semblent coincider avec l'affaiblissement du regime pluvieux
annuel.

Hail, usually accompanying summer thunderstorms, is fairly common

in the Republic, and many hailstorms are noted in the bulletins of the
Observatoire Meteorologique. They seem to have been very comm.o n at
St.-Micbel de l'Atalaye. }.1oreau de Saint-11ery speaks of hailstones ''as
big as the fist'' which fell at Fort-Liberte on Ji1ne 17, 1785, and as large
as pigeons' eggs at Boucassin May 30, 1786. Such hailstorms do much
damage to growing crops.

RELATIVE HUMIDITY.

The relative humidity appears to va.r y within wide limits. It is very

different for di'fferent localities a.t the same time, and for the same lo-
cality at different times of the day, although the monthly means vary
but little from year to year. Tl1e humidity is rarely so great anywhere as
to cause great physical discomfort. It is probably less than in many tropi-
cal regions, so that the warm climate is more endurable. Observations of
relative h11midity at Port-au-Prince covering many years give the follow-
ing monthly means: January, 65; February, 63; March, 64; April, 69;
May, 73; J11ne 68; July, 64; August, 68; September, 73; October, 75;
November, 72; December, 68.
These figures show a marked correspondence of high humidity with the
rainy seasons and of lower humidity with the dry seasons.
The daily fluctuation of relative h11midity at Port-au-Prince usually
covers a range of 30, the minim11m being about 50 at midday and the
maximum about 80 sometime between midnight and 4 a. m. The follow-
ing table of hourly means for the year 1910, is characteristic of the daily
range of humidity at this station:
1
Idem., p. 100.
 56 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF H.AITI.

H ourl11 mean humidit11 at Port-au-Prince, Haiti, in 1910.

1 a. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 82.9 9a. m . . . . . . . : . . . . 63.5 5 p. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 65.9
2 a. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 83.3 10a. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 56.8 6 p. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 71.3
3 a. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 83.6 11a. m. . .......... 52.0 7 p. m ............ 75.7
4 a. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 83.4 12m. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50.6 8 p. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 78.2
5 a. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 832 1p. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 52.8 9 p. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 79.8
6 a. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 82.7 2 p. m. . .......... 56.9 10 p. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 81.5
7 a. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 79.4 3 p. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 60.4 11 p. m ............ 82.2
8a.m ............ 71.3 4 p. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 62.9 12 p. m. . . . . . . . . . . . 82.4

The average for this year, 71.8, is someY\ hat higher than the general
1

yearly average, which is about 68.5.

The only other station for which records of observations are published
is Furey, and these records like the records of temperature, are incom-
plete. For the midsummer period, including August and parts of July
and September, the mean, based on observations at 7 a. m., 1 p. m., and
9 p. m., is 80, and for the Christmas or New Year period the mean is
78. These figures show that the h11mjdity at Furey is considerably higher
than that at Port-au-Prince. Humi'd ity above 90 appears to be common
at Furey, and the climate there would be very uncomfortable if the tem-
perature were higher.
WINDS.

As the Republic lies in the belt of northeast trade winds its prevailing
I
winds are from the northeast or east. Along the northern coa.st they blow
very nearly from the east, probably because they are deflected in. that
direction by the configuration of the land. The same deflection may occur
in Cul-de-Sac Plain.• These winds are steadiest and most unvarying in
direction in winter. In summer, as the equatorial belt moves northward,
they are often replaced by local and variable storm winds.
The trade winds are locally much modified and obscured by the daily
land and sea breezes of the coast. Few parts of the Republic except, per-
haps, the Central Plain, are far enough from the sea to be beyond their
influence. For this reason very strong and persistent winds from one
direction, such as cause the accumulation of wind-bloWh sand and produce
marked asymmetry in the growth of vegetation, are uncommon in the
Republic. In general the sea breezes blow at right angles to the coast and
the land breezes blow directly out to sea, but each shows a strong tendency
to veer somewhat to the east, probably in conformity with the prevailing
direction of the trade winds. Thus on the south coast the land breezes
usually come from the northeast and sea breezes from the southeast.
The land and sea breezes do much to mitigate the tropical heat. When
the sea breeze fails for a day in summer, as it does occasionally at Port-
au-Prince and elsewhere, the heat is very oppressive. Moreau de Saint-
Mery says that at Croix-des-Bouquets the sea breeze has failed for as much
as three weeks consecutively. On the coast the breezes generally are very
regular and determine the hours of sailing of small vessels engaged in
fishing and coastwise traffic.

•
 GEOGRAPHY. 57

VEGET-~TION.

TYPES OF VEGETATION.

Although the Republic is a tropical country it includes only a few small

areas where the vegetation presents the aspect of an impenetrable tropi-
cal rain forest, the aspect that is so commonly visualized by one thinking
of a tropical region. Differences in rainfall, soil, and altitude cause the
vegetation to change constantly within remarkably short distances. The
indigenous flora is very rich in species and has been little studied. 1"'he
observations recorded here are intended only to give an impression of the
general features of the vegetatio11, of the relation of the vegetation to the
geology and the climate, and of the possible value of the fores ts. Most
of the area of the Republic is covered by two contrasted types of vegehl.-
tion the mesophytic type, which is developed where rainfall is normal
or abundant and which includes most of the forests, and the xeroph) tic 1

or desert type which prevails in areas of slight rainfall. There are in addi-
tion small but significant areas of halophytic and of shoreline vegetation.

FORESTS.

OCCURRENCE AND GENERAL .APPEARANCE.

The forests of the Republic are generally, though not uniformly, con-
fined to the mo11ntainous areas. .i..~S the northeast slopes of tl1e mountain
ranges receive much more rainfall than the southwest slopes, they are
mo1·e heavily wooded and bear forests at much lower altitudes. Every-
where, however, the forest growth becomes thinner and more stunted
toward the base of the mo11ntains. The forests visible from the sea are
therefore generally rather scrubby in appearance and do not give a fair
impression of the co11ntry as a whole. Probably none of the forest.s any-
where fairly represents the beauty and the extent of those that existed
before the discovery of the island. During the days of the French colony
large areas were cleared to make room fo,r plantations of coffee, cacao,
and other crops, and such clearing, frequently assisted by fire, has been
co11tinued to some extent ever since. Valuable wood in accessible locali-
ties has been exploited commercially during and since colonial days.
Finally, the cutting of firewood and the burning of charcoal, the o·n ly
natural fuels available, cause a continued and enormous wastage. It is
therefore not surprising that virgin forests, if they occur at all, are found
only in the most remote and inac·cessible localities.

KINDS OF TREES.

The writers are familiar with the names of only a few of the more
common and conspicuous trees. The native oak (bois de chene), the
tavernon, and the sandbox tree ( sablier) are among the larger and more
handsome forest trees. The silk cotton tree ( arbre a coton) reaches a
58 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF H.AITI.

large size. Large areas in the Southern Peninsula contain a tree that
resembles the American walnut. Most of the forest.s at moderately high
altitudes contain large trees of the vV.e st Indian cedar ( acajou senti).
Pines are found on some of the mountain tops and under exceptional
conditions on the plains.. The royal palm. (palmier royal), with it.s great
green head surmou.n ting a clean slender trunk from 10 to 18 meters high,
is one of the most graceful trees of the Republic. It grows at moderate 01·
low altitudes where the soil retajns moisture fairly well. Fan palms
(palmiers a eventail) are confined to low altitudes, usually on calcareous
soils. Both the base of the fronds of palms ( tache) and the fronds are
used as 1·oofing material. The coconut palm ( cocotier), which is very
common at low altitudes, is generally a cultivated tree. The calabash tree
( calebassier) bears on it.s trunk great green :fruits resembling gourds,
which are much used for water vessels and bowls. The largest tree in the
Republic is the mapou, which at some places attains a diameter of nearly
3 meters. (See Pl. IV, A.) It grows singly at moderate or low altitudes
w11ere the climate and soil are not excessively dry. At many localities,
especially where the rainfall is not excessive, leguminous trees and shrubs
are numerous. The coral bean tree (bois immortel) i's used to make living
fences. The trumpet tree (bois trompette) is grown as an ornamental
tree aro11nd houses, especially in the Southern Peninsula.
Many of the native fruit trees are common in the forests. Among them
are the alligator pear ( avocatier), sour sop ( corossolier), sapote ( sapotil-
lier), mammee tree (abricotier), sweet sop (pomme cannelle or cachi-
man cannelle), custard apple ( cachiman creme and cachiman coeur-de-
boeu:f), star apple ( caimitier), and the native cherry ( cerisier). Several
fruit trees from other tropical countries have also spread over the island
and many of them grow wild in the forests. Among them are the orange
(orange), lime (citron), grape-fruit ( shaddock), bread-fruit ( arbre-A-
pain), mulberry ( murier), guava (goyavier), and mango ( manguier).
The mango grows singly or in clusters spaced at ample intervals. It.a
wide, ro11nded tops bear an jmpenetrable canopy of dark-green leaves,
making itt one of the best and most handsome shade trees of the country.
The Republic contains valuable cabinet woods, especially mahogany
( acajou), but the supply of mahogany has now been so greatly depleted
that only a small production from isolated and more or less carefully
gt1arded trees is possible. Some mahogany is used locally and some is
exported. Other valuable cabinet woods are the manchineel (mancencil-
lier), satinwood, rose wood (bois rose), cinnamon wood (bois cannelle),
yellow acoma ( acoma jaune), a kind of ebony ( ebene), and gris-gris. Lig-
n1un vitae (gayac), a very hard wood that is in special demand :for making
tools and parts of machines, is exported in large quantities when trade
conditions are favorable. Dyewoods, especially logwood ( campeche), have
been exported on a large scale. Logwood is not indigenous but was intro-

•
BSPUBLIC OF HAITI PLATE IV
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

,
A. l\fAPOU TREID IN MEME VALLEY NEAR
'J~ RR Il E -N ElT,.,. E .

B. XEROPHYTIC VEGETATION IN THE ARTIBONITE PLAIN SOUTHEAST

OF GRANDE-SALINE.
Principally cac t 11 and ba~·ab ond e .

•
•
 GEOGRAPHY. 59

duced in colonial days and has spread rapidly over the Republic, where
it grows best in dry, calcareous soils. Brazil wood (bresillet), fustic
( fustet), and sassairas are other dyewoods.

ASSOCIATED VEGETATION.

Associated with the forest trees at high altitudes (above 1,000 meters)
there are many ferns ( f ougeres), tree ferns ( f ougeres arborescentes), and
a great variety of 11n derbrush. The tree ferns and begonias are especially
characteristic of areas of volcanic rocks at high altitudes. At lower alti-
tudes bamboo (bambous) and heliconias (bananier marron) are found
in moist ground along streams. Bamboo grows in dense clusters to a
height of 20 meters and a diameter of 10 or 15 centimeters. The hollow
stalks are cut in lengths of abo·u t 2 meters, the ends are plugged up, and
the hollow pipe thus m·ade is used for carrying water. Bamboo has been
introduced from the orient, but there are several similar indigenous
plants. The trees at all altitudes contain a large number of epiphytic
bromeliads and orchids. A great variety o·f lianas (lianes) festoon the
trees at all altitudes. Some oI the striking lianas are the barrel liana
(liane a barrique)' which is used in making barrel hoops, the water liana
(liane-a-l'eau),
.
which yields potable water, the snuffbox sea bean (liane
coeur-de-St. Thomas), and ox-eye sea bean (liane a cacone or yeux de
bourrique). The seeds of the snuffbox sea bean and ox-eye bean are
the most common West Indian seeds that are carried by the Gulf Stream
to the shores O·f northeastern Europe.
Low down on the mountain slop·es the forests are replaced by xerophy-
tic plants and grasses. On the northeastern slope of the Massif du Nord
and in the northwestern part of the Southern Peninsula trees and shrubs
that are elsewhere found at high altitudes extend down to unusually low
altitudes.
NOTES ON LOCAL AREAS.

The uncultivated land in the Massif du Nord is generally rather heavily

forested on the crest and well down on the northeastern slope. The south-
western slope, facing the Central Plain, and the lowlands of Gona1ves
are invaded by xeropbytic vegetation. The crest of the limestone ridge
northeast of the Central Plain is covered with thick, scrubby forest, but
north of Cerca-la-Source the vegetation changes abruptly to an open pine
forest with short brown grass and little underbrush except in ravines.
This vegetation gives way to dense forests with much underbrush and no
pines along the crest of the divide between Lamielle and Mont Orgap.ise,
perhaps owing to a difference in precipitatio·n, as there is no apparent
difference in soil. In the vicinity of Mont Organise, however, there is
open pine forest, and scattered pines extend down into the edge of the
North Plain at an altitude of 100 meters above sea level, the lowest alti-
60 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

tude at which they were seen anywhere. Here they are confined to ravines.
Pines are common as far to the west as Dondon, but in all this region they
are confined to areas of igneous or metamorphic rock. The valleys of
Grande Riviere du Nord, Dondon, and those to the west contain magnifi-
cent sandbox ( sablier) and mapou trees, most of them in waste corners
and along fence rows, for the land is culti'vated.
Only the s11mmits of ranges and some of the mo11ntain valleys in the
Northwest Peninsula are much forested. The tavernon, mapou, and
mango are conspicuous trees in the valleys. There is a small stand of
particularly large trees in the valley west of Te·r re-N euve. Pines grow
only on the crest of a range just north of the Sources Chaudes. The other
trees are said to include many valuable species. Mahogany appears to be
restricted mainlJT co the lower mountain slopes. There are many isolated
trees in the Commune of Gros-Morne but they could not be extensively
exploited. The Bombardopolis Plateau contains large areas of very dense
forest, apparently new growth, and a great deal of lignum vitae (gayac),
which, however, is kept down by constant cutting, for it is the chief article
of export at Mole St.-Nicholas.
The limestone ridges of the Montagnes Noires are generally thickly
timbered, but large and perfect trees are confined to small areas. At
places forests extend into the Central Plain. The trough at the foot of
the mountains on the southwest and south margins of the plain supports
•

a heavy forest, as does also the depression southeast of Riviere Canot,

just northwest of Ma1ssade. A peculiar feature of the Central Plain is
the occurrence of pines along certain ridges about its edge and in the
interior between Ma1ssade and Pignon. These ridges mark the outcrop
of folded beds of coarse sandy rock that appears to furnish a soil espe-
cially suited to the pines.
The sides of the Chaine des Mateux bear only scrubby brush, and most
of its crest is a grassy or bushy savanna. Guavas are thick and attain
almost the dignity of trees. Northeast of Couyau and elsewhere there are
considerable areas that have a thin stand of pines, which grow in tall
guinea grass. Farther southeast the conditions are much the same, and
there is little forest. Grands-Bois, or Cornillon, gets its name from the
forests which once existed there. Moreau de Saint-Mery states that the
1
forests were cut down in colonial days to make room for co:ffee. Several
years ago pines and other trees from this region
, were cut into lumber at
a sawn1ill at Glore, on the northern shore of Etang Saumatre, but the mill
has burned down. There is now only a thin stand of pines in this region.
The pines of the ChaSne des Mateux and Grands-Bois grow on limestone,
and are virtually confined to altitudes of 1,000 meters or more above sea
level.
1 Op. clt. , vol. 2, pp. 294 et seq.
 •

GEOGRAPHY. 61

The higher uncultivated parts of the Massif de la Selle are generally

forested. The lower slopes contain merely brush. Along the Dominican
border, south of Fond-Verrettes (also called Mission), scattered pines •

grow on a limestone terrane from an altitude of about 1,000 meters up

to 1,400 meters above sea level, where they give way to a dense tropical
rain forest. Above 1,600 meters, however, an open pine forest in a thick
stand is fo11nd again. This pine forest extends up to the very peak of
}.font La Selle. On the south slope, from 1,500 meters down to 1,000
meters, the belt of the tropical rain forest is strongly developed and grades
into xerophytic vegetation lower down, near the south coast. Similar
conditions are found at corresponding altitudes farther west. Near Furey
there is a large area of depleted pine for est, some of it on limestone but
most of it on basaltic rock. The s11mmit of the divide between Jacmel
and Port-au-Prince, at an altitude of about 1,300 meters above sea level,
supports a dense tropical rain forest. The limestone lo,wer down on the
north side of the mountains contains many trees but no r eal forest.
The mo11ntains of the Massif de la Hotte, particularly the Montagnes
de la Hotte and their northern slopes, in some places even down to the
coast, bear heavy forests that probably contain valuable species. 'l,he vici-
nity of Baraderes Bay was one of the most famous lumbering regions of
colonial days, but the virgin forests of the present day are confined to the
interio·r , and roads would have to be made to exploit them. There are
practicable routes up the valleys of the Grande Rivi.ere de Jeremie, the
Riviere de Tiburon, the Riviere des Baraderes and the Grande Riviere
de Nippes. The route up the Grande Riviere de Nippes would tap the
rich agricultural land of the Asile Valley. This area probably offers the
best opportunity for the development of the lumber resources of the Re-
public, and it is at least worthy of a survey by a qualified forester.
Gonave Island contains no extensive forests. Large isolated mahogany
trees are fo11nd in the interior of the island. All the upland is covered
with thick shrubbery except areas that were cleared and have grown up
in guinea grass. The inclosed lowland called the Plaine des Mapo11x gets
its name from some large mapou trees.
The forests of Tortue Island were famous in colonial days and were
then extensively exploited. }.foreau de Saint-Mery states that nearly all
the valuable species of the colony grew there, among them mahogany,
1
gayac, and bois-marie or dame-marie. At present the eastern end of the
island is partly cleared, and large areas in it are abandoned to guinea
grass. The western third and most of the northern slope are forested.
During a brief visit to the region near Vallee our party saw some gris-gris
but no mahogany. A few years ago a Belgian company attempted to
exploit the timber on this island by building a narrow-ga,ge railway north·
. ward from Vallee. The grade was established, a little track was laid, and
• Op. cit., vol. 1, p. 740.
62 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

two locomotives were installed, but they are now idle, and no timber
appears ever to have been cut by the company.
Logwood has been exploited with more success in recent years than any
other forest product. At Grande-Riviere du Nord a plant for the extrac-
tion of dye liquids was operated for several years. It burned down but
has now been replaced. This plant is supplied mainly from groves of log-
wood on the north side of the Central Plain near St.-Raphael and Pignon.
At Port-de-Paix a remarkable aerial tramway has been constructed to
convey logwood a distance of about 18 kilometers from Bassin-Bleu to the
coast. The supply is drawn from the slopes of the valley of Les Trois
Rivieres but is said to be very much depleted. Good groves of logwood
were seen in the valley of the Artibonite southeast of La Chapelle. There
is much logwood along the south coast, and it is exported in considerable
quantity from Miragoane.
Figures showing the export value of different forest products are given
under the heading '' Commerce '' (p. 79).
•
XEROPHYTIC VEGETATION •

EXTENT AND GENERAL FEATURES.

The xerophytic vegetation of the Republic is typical of its plains, par-

ticularly the arid plains in the lee of the mountain ranges, such as the
Cul-de-Sac, Artibonite, and Arbre plains. The vegetation at some places
on these plains is of an extremely arid type. The xerophytes usually ex-
tend some distance up the mountain slopes, especially the southwestward-
facing slopes, where they even approach the crests of high ranges, as at
Ennery. They include innumerable spiny plants, among which cacti are
prominent and at some places dominant. The general asp€ct of these
arid plains is sterile and forbidding, and their great extent, particularly
over the more acce~ible parts of the Republic, is 11npleasantly surprising
to travelers who see the co11ntry for the first time.

KINDS OF PLANTS.

The cacti are the dominant plants in extremely arid regions. There are
n11m.erous kinds of cacti, many of which seem to be similar to species
fo11nd on the mainland of North America. Arborescent fonns are won-
derfully developed and some of them attain a height of 6 or 10 meters
and have trunks more than 30 centimeters in diameter. Cacti are espe·
cially typical of the northwestern part of the Cul-de-Sac Plain, the lower
Artibonite Plain, and the vicinity of the Arbre Plain (Pl. IV, B). Cer-
tain kinds of cacti, particularly opuntias ( raquettes), are widespread and
are not confined to the typically arid regions. Coll1mnar cereus is used
for hedges at many localities outside the zones of xerophytic vegetation.
Op11ntias, associated with pine forests, are reported from Mont la Selle,
the highest peak in the Republic.
RllPUBLIC OF HAITI PL.ATE V
GEOLOGI CAL SUR\'EY

.tl. BAYAHO~DE '£ITI CI~ET IX TlIE CUL-DE-SAC rr, ..\J~ NEAR PO~T BEUDET.

•
•

• •

n. THICKET OF OE RCIDIUM PRAE CO_Y (A PAT.10 ' "ERDE ) ABOU T ;:> I~ILO­
~IE'l'ERS NORTITEAST OF GO:\'.<\ Iv~ ES OX TIIE r1~ RA l TJ 'l~O 'l' ERI{ I·~ - XE UVl.: .

•
 •

•
 GEOGRAPHY. • 63

Cacti are not by any means the only plants of the xerophytic regions.
Where the soil is fertile and retains moisture well large areas of the plain
are forested with a thick tangle of bayahonde, a scrubby leguminous tree
resembling the American mesquite (Pl. V, A). This wood is h.a rd and
takes a good polish. The trunks of some of these trees reach a diameter
of 0.6 meter, but they are knotty and gnarled. The bayahonde is used
a great deal for fuel, some of it as charcoal. It is interesting to note that
a small palo verde, a tree that has not been previously reported from the
Republic, was fol1nd on the desert plain north of Gonfilves, on the trail
to Terre--Neuve. }tlr. Paul C. Standley, of the United States National
Museum, reports that it is probably Oercidium praecox, the Mexican spe-
cies. (See Pl. V, B.) Acacias, yuccas, and agaves, of different kinds, as
well as palmetros, grow on the mountain slopes. Many palmettos rise
somewhat abo.ve the other trees and are spaced at intervals so regular
that they give the landscape the aspect of a weird orchard. Palmettos are
characteristic of transition zones between the xerophytic and mesophytic
vegetation. Certain species furnish material for baskets, and the aloes
furnish fibers for rope, two articles that are manufactured and used
locally in great quantities. Many of the trees and shrubs in the xerophytic
zones are covered with masses of Tilloodsia and other bromeliads, as
well as with other epiphytic plants. Agaves are at many places used as
hedges.
SAv.ANN.AS.
Grassy savannas are numerous and at places extensive. Some of them,
particularly those on the plains, a.re natural prairies;· others, especially
those in the mo11nta.ins, occupy land that was cleared for agriculture and
abandoned. Most of the cleared areas are covered with guinea grass, but
the natural savannas are covered with native grasses. The grass in the
more hi1mid areas is often 0.5 to 1 meter tall, but throughout most of
the year it is rather dry and brown, especially on the natural savannas.
Where stock raising is feasible it is often eaten down.
The savannas of the plains are most extensive on the North Plain and
the Central Plain. On the North Plain there is a belt of savanna 4 or 5 •

kilometers wide at the base of the mountains from Les Perches to Ouana-
minthe. The savanna is very flat except where it is dissected by narrow,
steep-sided ravines. In the ravines there is a healthy forest growth, includ-
ing pines, but else·where there is scarcely anything but grass. At its north-
ern border the savanna grades into a lowland covered with xerophytic
shrubs, probably because rainfall is less abundant at this distance fr~m
the mountains.
The northwest part of t.h e Central Plain is a flat, grassy savanna, in
which there are a few ravines that contain a growth of shrubs and small
trees which causes them to stand out as sinuous green lines in the general
expanse of brown gra"8s. Southeast of this large savanna the plain is more

•
 64 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

dissected and consequently more wooded. The interstream areas are

grassy, but are invaded by a shrub resembling greasewood. In this region
there are a few areas of pine and other for est trees. (See p. 60.)
Smaller savannas of this general type are seen in the Artibonite Valley
near Mirebalais and farther down the valley, as well as in the uper pa.r t
of the Cayes Plain.
Savannas of a second type, which occupy areas once forested, are found
in the Massif du Nord, particularly in the Chaine des Mate11x and its
connected ranges to the east. They are found also in the Massif de la
Selle, and on Tortue and Gonave islands. They generally occupy fairly
flat or rolling uplands, not the steep and rugged mountain sides. The
grassy savannas are associated with a thin stand of pines. (See pp. 59-60.)
A third type of savanna is fo11nd in areas of volcanic rock, particula1~ly
in the southern two-thirds of the Republic. These areas, especially the
areas of basalt, where the rainfall is not very great, are covered with short
brown grass (Pl. VI, A) and present a strong contrast to the adjacent
areas of limestone, which are densely wooded, although all the forests do
•
not contain large trees. Contrasra of this kind are very common througl1-
out the Southern Peninsula and near Saut d'Eau, on the north slope of
the Chaine des Matel1x.
A similar contrast may be observed between areas of the rather impervi-
ous chalky limestone and areas of the more massive and porous limestone.
The areas of chalky limestone support only low shrubs and flowering
plants and a growth of short grass resembling that of the areas of vol-
canic rock. The areas of massive limestone are forested or are covered
with tall guinea grass. This contrast was noted at places on the mo11ntains
north of Ennery, on Gonave Island, and on the so,u th slope of the South-
ern Peninsula, in the region between Jacmel and Cotes-de-Fer, where the
chalky limestones are extensively exposed.
•

HALOPHYTIC VEGETATION.

On the lower Artibonite Plain, where the soil is poorly drained and
very alkaline, there is an extensive area of halophytic vegetation, in
which a variety of salt bush is particularly ab11ndant. (See Pl. VI, B.)
There are regions of similar vegetation near the sea at the west end
of the Cul-de-Sac Plain and at the outer edge of many other smaller
coastal plains. Plate VI, 0, sho,ws the halophytic vegetation on a mucl
flat behind a lagoon
, and mangrove thicket on the north coast of Gonave
Island west of Etroit. In all these areas the halophytes are replaced by
xerophytes farther back from the shore.

VEGETATION OF THE SHORE LINE.

Extensive mangrove thickets are conspicuous along the shore line of

the low coastal plains, especially in the North, Artibonite, and Cul-de-Sac
•
REPUBLI C OF JTATTI
GEOLOGf CAL S t..: 11 \ .WY PLATE VI

A. SA i;T A:\TF, r...\. CIDRA , ABOLT 10 KI T,,O:\IE'l'ERS SOUTII" rEST OF

~ 'l' . -11 I C II I~ I" I> l~ L' 1\ 'f ALA YI<~ .
111 Hc)n1 e 1):1rts of t l1r I? ept1bl ic g rass-co \·<'recl tl\Ta nnas a r c ch a r t1cte ri st ic <>f a r e~1 s
tloo r ec1 ,,·i tl1 \' Olcnnic i· oc l~ s .

• •

B. SAI"'l, J{l TS II JN 'l ' II E ARTIBONl'l' E J>LAIN N JijA lt G RA~DE - S AT.1IN E .

Ch a r acte ris ti c of al kal in e so il .

0. HALOPIIYTIC "\7 EGETATION ON THE NORTH COAST OF GONAVE

ISLAND WE ST OF E TROIT.
In the backg1·ou11<l, between the sea and a lagoon, is a man grove thicket.
•

•
 ;

GEOGRAPHY. 65

plains. The thickets are composed of several kinds of mangroves (mang-

liers or paletuviers), which are called red mangrove ( manglier rouge or
manglier chandelle), gray mangrove ( manglier gris), and black mangrove
(manglier noir) . These trees supply firewood and tan bark.
Among the plants and trees that are conspicuous on beaches where
there are no mangrove thickets are seaside grape ( raisinier bord-de-mer),
seaside potato (patate bord-de-mer), and manchineel tree ( mancenillier),
which has a poisonous fruit .

ECONOMIC GEOGRAPHY.
POPULATION.
TOTAL POPULATION.

The favorable cljmate and the productive soil of t.h e island have
brought to it a dense population throughout most of its known history,
which begins with its discovery by Columbus in 1492. At tha,t time the
number of aboriginal Indi'ans in the whole island was estimated at from
1,000,000 to 2,000,000, the lower estimate probably being more nearly
correct. Under Spanish rule, within a few decades after the island was
discovered, this population was practically a.n nihilated by war and slavery
and was replaced gradually by African negroes, who were imported in
great numbers in the eighteentlt century, particularly by the French, who
had taken possession of the western part of the island the part that now
1
constitutes the Republic of Haiti. Moreau de Saint-Mery, the most
trustworthy historian of the colonial period, estimates the total pop,u -
lation of the French colony in 1788, near the close of the colonial era,
at 520,000, of whom 40,000 were white, 28,000 were ''people of color''
(''gens de couleur ''), and tl1e remaining 452,000 were black. This popu-
lation inhabited an area smaller than that of the present Republic, as the
Central Plain and adjacent mountain slopes were then Spanish territory.
No reliable census of the Republic has ever been taken. War and famine
and the exodus of the whites reduced the population considerably in the
2
years during and immediately following the Revolution. Tippenhauer
regards Humboldt's estimate of 375,000 people in 1802 BB reliable and
considers conservatively some later estimates. Even the best estimates,
which are probably those made by the clergy for church use, he regards as
generally rather large. · The clergy estimated the population in 1876 at
960,000 and in 1887 at 1,017,000, which Tippenhauer would reduce to
800,000 in 1880 and 900,000 in 1888. The latest eccl esiastical estimate
in 1905 was 1,425,000, and more r ecent estimates range from 1,500,000 to
2,500,000. The former figure probably is more nearly correct.
1
Op. ctt., vol. 1, p. ~.
'Tippenhauer, L. G., Die Insel Haiti, pp. 420 et seq., Leipzig, 1893.
5
66 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

PRINCIPAL CITIES .AND TOWNS.

Port-au-Prince, the capital, which is by far the largest city of the Re-
public, had a few years ago a population that was conservatively esti-
mated at 100,000. Very recently the population has grown so rapidly that
it is now estimated by some oi its inhabitants as h:igh as 200,000, but
1
perhaps 125,000 is a safer figure. Fortunat placed the population in
1888 at 60,000, probably including all the commune, which, however,
would not greatly increase the total for the city. The capital has not
always been the largest city of the Republic, for in colonial days it was
greatly overshadowed by Cap-Frangais ( Cap-Ha1tien) . The population of
Port-au-Prince in 1789, according to Moreau de Saint-Mery, wa.s about
6,200, to which he adds a transient population of 3,200 sailors and sol-
diers. Cap-Frangais was about twice as large.
Cap-Ha1tien, called Cap-Frangais in colonial days and Cap-Henri dur-
ing the reign of Christophe, had 12,151 inhabitants according to the
official census of 1788. Moreau de Saint-Mery thought this figure too low
and estimated the resident population at 15,000 and the transients (sol-
diers and sailors) at 3,550. At all eventiS the Cap was the largest and
busiest city of the colony. At present it is not a great deal larger than
:lt was then, for a census taken in December, 1918, is said to have shown
2
14,000 people. Conard, however, thought the population wa.s nearer
20,000. Fort11nat gives 29,000 for the whole comm11ne in 1888, but this
appears to be rather high for the city proper.
I,es Cayes, frequently called Aux Cayes in English literature, was the
third largest city of the colony and probably still retains that position.
In 1789, according to Moreau de Saint-Mery, it had 4,550 permanent and
1,100 transient inhabitants. The figure given by Fortunat for 1888 and
still published in recent encyclopedias is 25,000, but this represents the
population of the whole commune and includes many residents of the
Cayes Plain. The population of the city proper probably is not over
15,000.
Conservative estimates of the population of other larger cities of the
Republic are : Gona1ves, 12,000; St. Marc, 10,000; J acmel, 10,000; Port-
de-Paix, 7,500, and Jeremie, 7,500. All these cities are busy open ports.
Among the other ports that have a population ranging from 500 up to a
few thousand are Petit-Goave, Miragoane, Anse-a-Veau, Dame-1Iarie,
Aquin, St.-Louis du Sud, l' Arcaha.ie, Mole St.-Nicolas, and Fort-Liberte.
Among the inland towns whose population ranges probably from 5,000
down to about 1,000 are Mirebalais, Croix-des-Bouquets, Petite-Riviere
de l'Artibonite, Grande-Riviere du Nord, Leogane, Gros-Morne, Hinche,
St.-Michel de l'Atalaye, Las Cahobas, and J ean Rabel.
1 Fortunat, Dant~s, Nouvelle g~ographie de l'tle d'Haitl, p. 349, Port-au-Prince and
Paris, 1888.
2 Conard, R. A., RePort on water supply of Cap-Haitlen to Engineer in Chief of Re-

public 01. Haiti, April 2, 1919.

 GEOGRAPHY. 67

COMP.A.RISON OF URBAN AND RURAL POPULATION.

The estimated population of the larger cities as given above is s11m-

marized as follows :
Port-au-Prince ... · · · · · · · · · · 125,000 J acmel ........ ............ . 10,000
Cap-Haitien . .. · · · · · · · · · · · · · 20,000 Port-de-Paix ....... ....... . 7,500
Les Cayes ...... · · · · · · · · · · · · 15,000 Jeremie • • • • • • • • • • ••••• ••••• 7,500 '

Gonaives ..... · · · · · · · · · · · · · · 12,000

St.~Marc ....... · · · · · · · · · · · · 10,000 207,000

Probably the people who live in other towns having a population of

more than 1,000 would increase the total urban population to about
225,000, possibly even to 250,000. If the total population is ·1,500,000
the percentage of city dwellers is about 15 to 17, figures which show that
the population of the Republic is essentially rural and that agriculture
is the chief industry.
Although the population is so largely rural and depends for its living
mainly on the soil, much of it is concentrated in small villages and rural
comm11nities of a hundred people or less rather than in detached houses
occupied by one family. Whenever possible the Haitians live in little
communities, some of them consisting of only three or four families, and
as each of these communities has a distinctive name, an almost infinite
number of place names appear on the maps and in the literature.

DENSITY OF POPULATION. •

The area of the R epublic is about 27, 700 square kilometers. This figure
includes the islands of Tortue, Gonave, and Vache, which belong to the
Republic and are closely related to the main island geographically. If
the total population is estimated as 1,500,000 or a little more the average
density of population is about 55 to the sq1iare kilometer, but if the city
population is omitted the average density for the rural regions is about
45 to the square kilometer. The rural populatiio n is, however, very 11 n-
evenly distributed, and large areas that have unfavorable climate, soil, or
surface features are virtually unsettled. The whole of Tortue Island,
for example, is sparsely inhabited. Gonave Island has a small population,
probably considerably less than 10,000, which is concentrated in little
coastal villages and O·n smal~ bodies of good agricultural land in the
eastern half of the island. Ile-a-Vache and Grande Cayemite Island also
have a relatively thin agricultural population.
The density of population in fertile, thickly settled parts of the Repub-
lic is undoubtedly double the figure given, or at least 100 to the square
kilometer. The average density of population per square kilometer in
France in 1910 was 78, in Germany 124, in Great Britain 154, and in the
United States 12.
68 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

GEOGRAPHIC FEATURES INFLUENCING DISTRIBUTION OF POPULATION.

There is a very natural concentration of the population on the long,

crooked coast. All the larger cities are ports, which depend in great
measure upon foreign commerce. Many smaller towns on the coast are not
open to foreign trade, but they have extensive coastwise commerce, par-
ticularly as feeders for the larger ports. The almost impassable moun..
tains and the general lack of roads greatly increase the volume of ocean
t1~avel and transportation. Moreover, many of the alluvial plains that con-
stitute the bulk of the agricultural land border the shore and favor the
concentration of population nea-1' the sea. Fishing also is an industry that
provides both occupation and sustenance for a large number of the inhabi-
tant.s of the coast. Some long st1. et ches of coast, however, are 11napproach-
able even by small boats and are unfit for cultivation, and are therefore
very thinly inha.bi ted.
Over the strictly agricultural regions the density of population is
closely proportioned to the productivity of the land in articles of food
and in the few staple export crops coffee, cotton, sugar, and cacao.
""t\.lthough the forests at times supply a large part of the exports they are
worked for the most part by labor drawn temporarily from near-by towns
or agricultural regions.
The productivity of any part of the land depends on the surface fea-
tures, the climate, and the soil. Closely related to the surface features
is accessibility to markets. Some small areas that have good soil and
favorable climate are isolated by so many nearly impassable mountain
ranges that they are not thickly settled or carefully tilled. Such areas
are found on the heights of the Massif de la Selle and the 1Yiassif de la
Hotte. l\fany other areas, e.specially places on the mountain sides, are so
steep, rocky, and unapproachable tha.t they are left in forest and senre
only as pasture for cattle, goats, and hogs. Good examples are the rugged
slopes of the Morne du Cap and of the :Montagnes Noires.
In both mountain and p1ain the climate, especially the rainfall, greatly
influences the productivity of the land. Large areas that stand in the lee
of mountain ranges and that are thus cut off from the life-giving east or
northeast rains are arid and sterile. Without irrigation they can support
only a scanty population. Among these barren areas are the Arbre Plain,
the lower part of the Artibonite Plain, much of the Central Plain, and
many small plains of the south coast. The upper part of the Artibonite
Plain, the Arcahaie Plain, the Cul-de-Sac Plain, and other areas are saved
only by irrigation. The lower southwest slopes of the high mountain
ranges generally are not susceptible of r eclamation.
Not the least essential requirement for successful agriculture is a good
soil, for only where the soil is deep enough and fertile enough to produce
crops year after year can a dense population be developed and maintained.
The composition and texture of the soil is closely related to the areal

•
 GEOGRAPHY. 69

geology and is more fully discussed in Part II. The soils of the Republic
may be classified briefly as alluvial soils, soils residual from limestone,
and soils residual from igneous rock. The alluvial soils cover the surface
of most of the larger plains and many similar but smaller valleys and
plains. Although they constit11te probably less than 30 per cent of the
total area they support perhaps more than 50 per cent of its population.
The greater productivity of these plains is due not entirely to the natu1·e
of their soil but in part to their smooth surface and their superior ac-
cessibility.
The limestone that covers so large a part of the Republic yields on
weathering a red clayey soil which is very fertile and which for some
crops is superior to the alluvial soils. Areas in which the surface is
smooth enough to permit the retention and cultivation of this soil are
well cultivated and thickly settled. Many small bodies of sucl1 land are
scattered through the mountains, especially on the summits of tl1e ranges.
Examples are the Bombardopolis Plateau, the crest of the Chaine des
Mateux, the mountains of Dame-Marie and Jeremie, and the interior
plateaus of Gonave Island.
The soils derived from igneous rocks are generally thin and poor and
support only a scanty population. Some of the granjtoid rocks of the north-
eastern part of the Republic, such as those at Valliere and the volcanic
rocks of Plaisance and Terre-N0uve are an exception to the rule. These
rocks yield a fairly deep and fertile soil, which with sufficient rainfall
is highly productive, and the areas so favored are well settled .
•

AGRICULTURE .
•

GENERAL FEATURES.

Agriculture has been the basic and dominant industry under both the
colony and the Republic. About 80 per cent of the people (see p. 67)
live in the rural districts and get their living from the soil. In this
description the leading agricultural and live-stock products are divided
into two distinct classes those grown for export and those grown for
local consumption. The first class includes coffee, cotton, cacao, sugar,
honey, and hides and skins. The second class includes live stock and a
•

great number of grains, vegetables, and fruits. As any discussion of the

present state of agriculture inevitably leads to comparisons with that in
the French colony, which was in its day t he most productive and pros-
perous region in the New World, a brief review of the state of agriculture
in colonial times is given with the description of its present state. Most
of the information regarding colonial agriculture other than statistics of
exports is taken from the work of Moreau de Saint-Mery, to wl1ich refer-
ence will be made by volume and page wherever direct credit seems to be
necessary.
70 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

CHIEF EXPORT CROPS OF THE COLONY AND OF THE REPUBLIC.

TOBACCO AND INDIGO.

Tobacco and indigo, two crops that are no longer of great value, occu-
pied a prominent place among the colonial exports. Tobacco, the crop
1
.first grown, was cultivated by the buccaneers on Tortue Island. It was
the leading crop 11n til the cultivation of indigo was begun. According to
2
Moreau de Saint-Mery, the colony owed its first real prosperity to indigo.
Although wild indjgo (indigo marron) grows in the Republic, the intro-
duced variety (indigo franc) seems to have been preferred wherever it
would grow. In certain soils, however, only the wild indigo would thrive.
In the early part of the ei'g hteenth century indigo was the leading export
crop, but later it yielded its rank in turn to sugar, coffee, and cotton, and
at the end of the colonial period it occupied the fourth p1ace. It was still
the leading crop in a few areas, such as Jean l{abel and parts of the
Artibonite Plain, where the lancl was too low, hot, and dry for coffee anu
could not be irrigated to raise sugar cane. The quantity of indigo and the
leading ports from whi'ch it was exported in 1791 are shown in the table
on page 78. More than a third of the total was produced in St.-Marc,
although Cap-Ha.ltien, Port-au-Prince, and Les Cayes exported consider-
able quantities. Probably this supply was drawn from a much larger
area than that immediately around the smaller ports, which owing to their
commanding situations, were the principal ports of major divisions of
the colony. One of the chief disadvantages of the culture of indigo seems
to have been that it impoverished the soil rapidly and ceased to flourish.
Its cultivation has been abandoned since colonial days, and the general
use of synthetic indigo will probably prevent any considerable revival.
Tobacco culture was dead at the end of the colonial days, and although
the plant seems to succeed well, all later attempts to revive its cultivation
have been short-lived, and the Republic now imports nearly all the to-
bacco it cons11mes. ·
SUGAR.

Sugar cane was introduced into Spanish Santo Domingo soon after
the island was discovered, but it appears to have been first cultivated in
8
the French colony on the Leogane Plain in 1680. It proved to be the
most lucrative crop of the colony, and its cultivation spread rapidly to
all areas where the conditions were at all favorable for it. The most
famous plantations of the colony were in the North Plain, especially near
Limonade and Quartier Morin and in the near-by valley of Limbe. Water
1
Labat, Voyage du P~re Labat aux Isles de l' Am~rique, vol. 5, pp. 63-64, La Haye,
1724.
1 Idem, vol. 1, p. 24.
1 Idem, vol. 2, p. 450.
 •

GEOGRAPHY. 71

power was used extensively to turn the cane mills, but irrigation seems t o
have been relatively little practiced, as the natural rainfall generally suf-
ficed t o produce good crops. In the west and south, however, on the
Artibonite Plain, Cul-de-Sac P lain, and even the Cayes Plain, irrigation
generally was imperative. It was for the extension of sugar culture in these
areas that the French built the remarkable systems of irrigation works
that still form the basis of the irrigation that is now practiced in the
Republic. These works are more f ully described in Part V .
The necessity for thorough tilling and preparation of the land and gen·
erally for irrigation also, as well as for a high temperature, has always
restricted the raising of sugar cane to the alluvial plains and valleys,
where the land is fairly smooth and free from stones. It was on the four •

larger plains North Plain, Cul-de-Sac Plain, Leogane Plain and Arti-
bonite Plain that the great bulk of colonial sugar was raised, and it is
on these and the Central Plain that any large modern sugar indust1·y
must be developed. Nevertheless the industry in colonial days extended
to nearly every small alluvial plain or narrow valley where the conditions
were favorable or could be adapted to the growth of sugar cane. On the
Leogane Plain long-continued cropping is said to have depleted the soil
1
so much that fertilization was necessary.
Sugar refining was highly developed in colonial days, and nearly half
the quantity exported in 1791 was refined. The table on page 78 shows that
the value of the sugar exported \Vas more than 50 per cent of the value of
total exports in 1791. Political as well as geographical conditions made
Port-au-Prince, Cap-Ha1tien, and L es Cayes the leading ports. N orma.lly
Cap-Ha1tien probably surpassed Port-au-Prince, but its exports in 1791
were greatly curtailed by revolutionary disturbances.
Sugar cane has always been grown to supply the domestic demand. Un-
refined brown sugar (rapadou), is an article of food, and raw sugar cane
is highly prized. A considerable quantity of sugar cane is used in making
liquors, particularly rum. Plate VII, A shows a small cane mill of the type
that is common throughout the ~epublic. Since 1915 an effort has been
made to develop the sugar industry on a large scale, and an American com-
pany has established a big plant at Port-au-Prince and laid out extensive
plantations on the Cul-de-Sac Plain. The sugar exported in 1921 and
1922 (see table, p. 79) was principally the output of this company.

COFFEE.
2
Coffee was introduced from Martinique by the Jesuits and was first
grown successfully at Dondon, where the first establishment for its prepa-
ration was installed in 1738. Its culture spread with amazing rapidity,
1
Moreau de Salnt-M~ry, op. cit., vol. 2, p. 450.
1
Idem, vol. 1, p. 164.
 72 •
GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI .

for it was found to be especially adapted to the mountainous regions,

where sugar cane could not be raised and where indigo had given only
desultory success. Forests were cut down everywhere and coffee planta-
tions took their place. They were still being extended rapidly at the time
of the Revolution. It was estimated in 1908 that the total area of coffee
1
plantations in the Republic was more than 500 square kilometers.
Coffee is grown successfully between la.t itudes 25 ° N. and 25 ° S. It
thrives best between 300 and 1,500 meters above sea level, although under
exceptional conditi0ns it is grown commercially at lower altitudes. In
the neighboring island of Porto Rico the best coffee is said to grow on
2
soils derived from igneous rocks, but although soils derived from igneous
• rocks produce excellent coffee in the Republic of Haiti they are probably
no better ada.p ted to its cultivation than some of the ocherous soils derived
from limestone. Deep soil is necessary, for the plant has a long vertical
tap root, but loose stones are not objectionable if the soil does.
not dry
out too rapidly. Excellent plantations are fo11nd on steep and stony
slopes. A fairly hca vy rainfall is necessary, but some dry weather also is
required. Deep, well-drained soils that sl1pport a good gro,vth of natural
forest are generally suitable for coff Pe. Some shade is required, and
3
several kinds of forest trees are used to obtain it.
Coffee generally grows better on north slopes, mainly, no doubt, because
they receive more rai11 but partly, perhaps, because they are sheltered from
tl1e excessive heat of the sun. Nearly all the north slope of the }fassif
du Nord produced excellent coffee in colonial days, that of Le Horgne
being especially famous. Coffee was the chief crop of the Montagnes
Noires, of G1~ands-Bois, and of practically all tl1e mountainous area of the
Southern Peninsula. The coffee of Grands-Bois was perhaps the most
famous in the colon3r!
Coffee is cultivated now in much the same way that it was forn1erly.
The plant grows virtually wild at many places. The chief producing
areas are about the same as tl1ose of the colony. The coffee of St.-~farc is
particularly esteemed in the French market. Plaisance and Petit-Goave
are well-known producing areas.
The value of the coffee exported in 1791 constituted about one-fourth
of the total value of the exports. In recent years the value of coffee has
constituted about two-thirds of the total value of exports. The quantity
exported annually varies greatly, as is shown by the following table:

1 Internat. Bur. Am. Republics Bull., Dec., 1908, p. 1095.

2 McClelland, T. B., Indlcaciones acerca de la slembra de co.f~ en Puerto Illco, Estac16n

Experimental Agrfcola de Puerto Rico ci1·c. No. 15, Mayagiiez, Oct., 1914.
a Fauch~re, A., Culture pratique du cafeier et p1·epa.ration du cafe, p. 28, Par·is, 1908.
,. Moreau de Saint-M~r·y, op. cit., vol. 2, p. 293.
 •

GEOGRAPHY. 73

1
Pounds of coffee exported annually in 1901-1905, 1909, and 1910.
1901 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56,372,192 1905 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38,306,055
1902 .. ................... 64,950,274 1909 ............ . ........ 41,634,470
1903 .. ................... 51,446,193 1910 ...................... 79,023,168
1904 ····················· 81,617,568

The Report of the Receiver of Customs for 1920 truly says that'' coffee
is the principal crop of Haiti, the staple on which her people in the main
depend for exi'stence, and the export tax thereon is the largest single
source of revenue to the state.''
COTTON.

Cotton is indigenous to the West Indies, and in the island of Haiti it

grows as a perennial shrub, attaining a height of 3 to 5 meters. It
grows wild but when desired for market is generally cultivated in a crude
way. I t thrives best if replanted every few years. The native plant seemB
to have supplied practically all the cotton exported by both the colony and
2
the Republic. Moreau de Saint-Mery records an attempt to introduce, at
St.-Louis du Sud, an improved variety, which however, does not appear
to 11ave become extensively cultivated. The cotton plant requires some
rain in the early period of its gro\vth but will endure much drought later.
It appears to grow best on calcareous soils and at low altitudes. I t is the
leading crop of certain lowland areas, such as the Arbre Plain, parts of
the Artibonite Plain, and Cul-de-Sac Plain, where irrigation is impracti-
cable and the climate is too hot and dry for coffee. In colonial days it
was exported chiefly from St.-~1arc and Port-au-Prince. (See table,
p. 78.)
Cotton is now generally cultivated in about the same way and to the
same extent as in colonial days. The quantity exported varies greatly, as
the price fluctuates, depending upon the quantity picked rather than upon •

the quantity grown, which usually exceeds that marketed. When prices
are 11igh cotton is marketed in great quantities, but when prices are low
it may nearly disappear from the market. An American company recently
attempted to introduce cotton-growing on a large scale in the Central
Plain. An impro'\red American cotton was introd-qced, but it failed to
mature properly during the first season, and further experiments have
been checked temporarily by a great drop in price. Cotton raising, how-
ever, appears to offer much promise of success when its details have been
thoroughly worked out. Similar difficulties were encountered and sur-
mounted in introducing the cultivation of sea-island cotton into the
British West Indies.a
1
Figures from Rapports de la Chambre des Comptes, in Le Moniteur. For 1901-2 see
No. 27, p. 205, 1905 ; for 1903 see No. 42, p. 327, 1905 ; t.or 1904-5 see combined No. 1 6
and 17, p. 101, 1910 ; and for 1909-10 see No. 34, p. 243, 1912.
1
Op. cit., vol. 2, p. 648.
1
See publications of Imperial Dept. Agriculture for the West Indies.
 74 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

CACAO.

The cacao tree is another indigenous plant. Its v.a lue was recognized
early in colonial days, but it never attained the importance of coffee. It
ranked fifth, however, in the order of value of colonial exports in 1~·91,
or sixth if syrup, a by-product of the sugar industry, is considered. The
• principal area of production in colonial days, as now, was the west end
of the Southern Peninsula, in the comm11nes of Dame-Marie and Jeremie.
Here cacao in great measure takes the place of coffee, growing in large
forests or orchards on the gentler slopes of the limestone mountains.
Early in the colonial period St.-Michel de Fonds-des-Negres was famous
for its cacao.
Cacao grows between latitudes of 20° N. and 20° S., and thrives best at
altitudes less than 800 meters above sea level, in deep, well-watered, but
well-drained soil . •It requires close shade and thorough protection from
strong winds. Banana trees, rubber trees, bois irnmortelle, and other trees
are used for shade and windbreaks. More rain is required for cacao than
for coffee. These exacting conditions therefore restrict the range of the
1
cacao tree considerably more than that of the coffee tree.

HONEY.

Although honey is only a minor export, it appears regularly among the

list of exports of the Republic. Bee culture was introduced in colonial
days but does not seem to have attained much success. Now, however, it
is a recognized industry, probably capable of considerable extension.
Haitian honey is of excellent quality and probably could with little effort
obtain a wider market.

CROPS GROWN FOR DOMESTIC CONSUMPTION.

Many grains, vegetables, and fruits, both cultivated and wild, form a
part of the dietary of the people but seldom find their way outside the
country. The principal grains are corn ( ma1s), petit-mil, and rice ( riz) .
Corn is cultivated successfully on the gentler mountain slopes up to alti-
tudes of 900 to 1,200 meters where there is enough moisture. Also, al-
though the climate is rather too bot, much of it is raised in some of the low-
lands, especially the Artibonite Pla,i n. The ears are small but good, the
commonest corn being yellow. Most of the crop is ground into meal and
used for food, although a little is fed to stock. The high prices offered in
1917, 1918, and 1919 caused the export of a considerable quantity, most of
1
which went to Cuba, but its export is very unusual. Ears of corn in the
1 See article ''Cacao'' in International Bur. Am. Republics Bull., Sept., 1908, English
section, pp. 471-482.
2 See report of Consul John B. Terres of Port-au-Prince, in Supplement to Commerce

Reports, Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, Washington, November 9, 1918.

•
REI•£J.BLIC OF HAITl
G~<JLOGI CAT.1 S UR\"E Y PLA'rE VII

A. SMALL MILL FOR CRUSHING SUGAR CANE.

B. ~IBTHOD OF DRYING CORX.

•
 GEOGRAPHY. 75

husk tied together and h11ng up in great bunches on trees or poles for
protection from animals form a conspicuous feature of the corn-raising
areas. (See Pl. VII, B.)
Petit-mil js one of the nonsaccharine sorghums, probably a variety of
durra. It is raised extensively on the valleys and plains. The grain is
used for food and the fodder is fed to stock. Considerable rice is raised
locally, and more is imported to supply the great demand for the national
dish rice and beans. Beans and peas of several varieties are raised for
domestic cons11mption. The c ·ongo pea (pois congo) from Africa is one
of the most esteemed varieties.
A very important food plant is manioc, commonly called cassava, from
the roots of which cassava bread is made. In some localities it is the staple
food. Yams and sweet potatoes (patate) are among the most widely
cultivated and used vegetables. Of the fruits, perhaps the commonest
are the plantain (banan), banana (figue banan), orange (orange), alli-
gator pear ( avocat), mango (mango), pineapple ( anana), and coconut
(coco). The plantain, picked green and cooked, forms a staple like bread
at many places. Many less common fruits are highly prized in season,
such as the grapefruit ( shaddock), breadfruit ( arbre-a-pain), grape
(raisin), mulberry ( mure), cherry (cerise), apricot ( abricot), corrosol,
cayemjte, and sapotille. Fruits of temperate climates can be raised on
some of the high mo11ntains. Blackberries ( mures sauvagoo) and straw-
berries ( fraises) grow at Furey.
Nearly all these fruits and vegetables are raised in small gardens on
little individual plots of land. They are characteristic of the mountains
rather than of the plains, which are more often devoted to cotton, sugar
cane, grains, and grass. Some localities are known throughout the Repub-
lic for the excellence of certain fruits or vegetables that they produce, and
the local trade in these commodities is a rather large industry. No at- •

tempt has been made to standardize products, such as fruits, and raise a
marketable article of uniformly superior quality. This neglect appears
to be most 11nfort11nate, for the country can produce oranges, bananas,
pineapples, and other frui't s that could compete successfully in any mar-
ket with fruit raised elsewhere, and the geographical location of Haiti is
more favorable than that of several fruit-growing countries of tropical
America.
LrvE S·.rocK AND PouLTRY.
The live stock of the Republic includes mainly horses, mules, donkeys,
cattle, goats, sheep, and hogs, all originally imported from Europe. They
are raised entirely for local use, excep,t that their hides and skins are
exported. Stock raising is the principal industry in areas where the soil
and climate are unsuited for intensive agriculture. The savannas of the
North Plain, Central Plain, Artibonite Valley and Cayes Plain, and of
certain mountain lands are devoted mainly to raising horses and cattle.
76 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI •
...

The horses, which are small but hardy, are used for riding and to a small
extent for driving. Mules are used for riding and for packing heavy loads,
as they are stronger and tougher than the horses. Donkeys, however, are
the real burden bearers; nearly all the produce that is carried over the
mountain trails is borne b,y them. Cattle are raised chiefly for meat and
hides, ra.r ely for milk. Oxen are used for drawing loads in the plains.
Short-haired goats of many colors are perha.ps the commonest domestic
animals. They are valued chiefly for their meat and skins, although they
also yield most of the milk produced in the country. They are especially
adapted to browsing rugged mo11ntain sides that are 11nfit for cultivation
and inaccessible to other pasture animals. Sheep are raised in only a few
places. The wool is not of very good quality. Hogs are nearly as common
as goats. They for age everywhere, living on seeds of trees and on fruits,
vegetation, and waste. They are of a lean, rangy type, but their meat is
highly esteemed.
Chickens, turkeys, and guineas are the commonest fowls and are raised
nearly everywhere, both for eggs and meat. Wild guineas a.n d wild pigeons
are common at some places, particularly in the Central Plain.
All the domestic animals and the poultry could be greatly improved by
careful breeding and selection.

METHODS OF F .ARMING AND FUTURE OF AGRICULTURE.

As has already been intimated, the methods of farming are rather

crude, nearly all the work being done by hand. Doubtless much of it must
always be perfor1ned in this wa.y, for much of the land is rough and
stony and is divided into small plots. On the plains, however, traction
plowing and cultivation has been introduced successfully in recent years
and can be greatly extended. Any great increase in the production of
export crops is inextricably bound up with the problem of conserving
and distributing water for irrigation. (See Part V.) Much can be
done also, however, by improving and standardizing farm products and
fruits and by perfecting methods of marketing. These improve~ents are
greatly to be desired, for agriculture is and undoubtedly must continue
to be the country's mainstay and support.

COMMERCE.
GENERAL FEATURES.

Foreign commerce has remained much the same under the Republic
as it was in colonial days. The raw products of the plantation and forest
constitute the great bulk of the e~ports; manufactured goods, particularly
textiles and prepared foodstuffs, comprise the greater part of the imports.
The value of the exports has generally exceeded that of the imports.
These features are brought out in the following table, which gives tl1e
 GEOGRAPHY.
•
77

official records of foreign trade for several years at different periods dur-
ing and since colonial days. In recent years, however, the ratio of imports
to exports has been unusually high.

Value in United States currency of imports, exports, and total foreign trade of
the colony and of the R epublic of Haiti at difjerent periods.

Year.• Imports. Exports. Total foreign trade.

• •
1788. • •• • ••• •• •• • • • • • • • • • $20,590,572 • •••••••• ••• ••• •••
1791. • • •••• ••••• •• • • •• • •• •• •• ••••• $40,060,'627 • •••• ••••
1889 ° •• • • ••• ••• ••• • • •• • •• ••••••••• ••••••••• $26,188,569
1890 ° • • • •• • •• ••• •• •••• • •• 10,060,979 14,166,789 24,226,758
1891 ° •••• ••• •• •• • •• • •• ••• 8,823,776 14,340,234 23,164,010
1903. ••• •• • •• •• • • • ••• • •• • 8,966,388 8 ,926,939 12,893,327
1918. •• •••••• • •••• •• • • ••• 9,876,555 17,285,485 28,499,075
1917 f • ••• •• •• • • • • • • •• • •• • 8 ,606,086 7,220,290 15,826,376
•
1918, ••••• ••• • •• • •••• • ••• 10,180,693 6,276,321 16,457,014
1919 f ••••••••• •• ••••• •• • • 17,117,608 21,460,045 38,577,653
1920 f •• •• •••• ••• ••• •• •• • • 27,398,411 18,990,032 46,388,443
l~l f •• • ••• • ••• • • • • • • •••• 11,957,205 4,953,570 16,910,775
1922 f •• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 12,350,271 10, 712,21011 23,062,487

•The fiscal year under both the Republic and the colony has extended from October 1 to September
30, and this is the period cov·ered. The figures for 1920, for instance, cover the period October I,
1919, to September 30, 1920.
•From Edwards, Bryan, Historical survey of the French colony in the island of Santo Domingo,
pp. 199, 206, London, 1797. Edwards compiled his data from colonial records during a protracted
visit to Oap-Hartien. The livre tournois is valued at $0.20.
°From Handbook of Haiti, Bureau of the American Republics, Bull. 62, pp. 76, 77, Washington,
1892.
•Le Moniteur, No. 42, p. S27, 1905.
•From International Encyclopedia, Article Haiti.
f Based on annual reports of Administration of Customs, Haitian Customs Receivership, Wash-
ington, D. C.
'See note at bottom of p. 79.
E XPORTS.

PRINCIPAL ARTICLES OF COLONIAL EXPORT.

At the end of the colonial period the four great staple exports of the
colony, named in the order of th eir importance, were sugar, coffee, cotton,
and indigo. Forest products and hides and skins occupied a leading place
among the minor articles of export. Tobacco was once a staple, and indigo
was formerly the leading product, but these were forced to yield to sugar
and coffee, the production of which had grown to overwhelming propor-
tions. In colonial days sugar manufacture had been developed to a high
degree, and almost half the quantity exported was refined.
The following table shows the export value of the four great staples
during the year 1 791 and the relative rank of the ports of origin. The
figures for 1791 are said to be 25 to 30 per cent less than those for the
few years immediately preceding on acco11nt of disturbances growing out
of the Revolution. Ordinarily considerably more sugar was exported from
Cap-Ha1tien than from Port-au-Prince, and the poor showing of Cap-
Haitien is due to the early outbreak there of revolutionary movements.
78 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Quantity in French pounds a and value in United States currency of exports o/

jour leading products in 1791.b

Sugar. Coffee.

Port-au-Prince ....•.•.....•..•....... 61,441,142 Cap-Haitien •.......••...•....•....•.... 29,367,382

Cap-Haitien • . . . . • • . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . • • .
45,482,041 Port-au-Prince .....•............•..... 14,584,023
Les Cayes . . . • . . . . . • • . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . .
23,360,052 St.-Marc . . . . . . . • • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . 5,521,237
Fort-Liberte .•.....................•. 10,249,158 J eremie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . 4,453,331.
St. -Marc . . • . . . . . . • . . . . . • . . . • • . . • . . . . •
10,238,639 J a cmeI . . • . . . . • • . . . . • • • . . • • . • . • . . • . . . . . • 4,357,'no
Leogane .......•.....................• 9,181,520 Fort-Liberte . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . • . . . . . . • • . . • 2,321,610
Port-de-Paix ..........•.............. 1,298,300 Les Cayes . . . . . . • . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,843,403
Petit-Goave .....•.................•.. 1,074,103 Port-de-Paix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . 1,829,75'
. . .
J er em1e ..•......•.....•..•.......••.• 496,249 Leogane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,786,48'
Tiburon .........••............•...... 841,650 Petit-Goa ve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,395,690
MOle St.-Nieolas ...........•..•.....• 128,180 Tiburon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 305,740
Jacmel .............•............•...• 116,176 MOle St.-Nicolas . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . 294,550
St. -Louis du Sud •.•. . ..........•...• 11,600 St.-Louis du Sud . . . . . . • . . . • . . . . . • . . . . . . 90,706

To'ta.l .......••...•........•..•..•• 163,405,220 To"ta.l . . . . . . . . . • • . • . . • • . . . . . . • . . . . • • . 63,151,180

Approximate value in United States Approximate ,-alue in United States
currency 0 ••••••••••••••••••••••••• $23,432,470 currency o • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • • $10,378,150

Cotton. Indigo.
I

St. -Marc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8,008,163 St. -Marc ...........•................. . . 357,630

Port-au-Prince . . . . • • . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . 1,370,021 Cap-Haitien ..•..•....•.......•...•.•... 195,099
Les Cay es . . . . . . . . . • . • . . . • . . • . . . • . . . . . 720,770 Port-au-Prince ....••...•.•..••...•..... 176,918
Jacmel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • • . . . . . . . . . . . . 613,019 Les Cayes ............................. . 105,456
J eremie . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189,194 Port-de-Paix ...............•.........•. 61,472
Leogane • . . . . . . . . • • . • • . • • . . . . • . . • • . • • • 154,<>84. Leogane ...•....••••...•.•..•...•......• 12,520
Otl1er ports . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • • . . 230,875 Other pom ........ . .................. . 21,021

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,~,126 Total . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . • . . . . • 930,016

Approximate value in United States Approximate value in United States
currency 0 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • $3,514,450 curren cy 0 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • $2,175,024

aTo obtain equivalent values in pounds a voirdupois add about 8 per cent.
1> Data reca st from Edwards, Bryan, Hist orical survey of the French colony in the island of Santo
Domingo, pp. 198, 199, London, 1797.
c Computed on basis $0.20 for the value of the livr e turnois. The actual value was a trifle less.

TREND OF CHANGES IN EXPORTS.

For some time during a.nd after the Revolution the exports decreased
greatly, but they have gradually grown up again, though with some modi-
fications, to something like their former volume. Coffee has replaced sugar
as the leading staple exported. Sugar almost disappeared from the list of
exports until very recent years, when an attempt was made to revive the
industry. Naturally indigo has completely disappeared as an export.
Cotton, though it has had many vicissitudes, has nearly retained its
former standing. When prices are high it appears in great quantities;
when they are low, its output shrinks to small proportions. Cacao has
retained an important place; so also have dyewoods and lignum vitae,
hides and skins, and generally honey. Other articles, like castor beans and
corn, appear and disappear sporadically. In general coffee, cotton, forest
 GEOGRAPHY. 79

products, and hides and skins are staples. Their volume and relative
value can be judged from the following tab}es :
Principal products exported from Haiti in 1921 and 1922.a •

Oct. 1, 1920, to Oct. 1, 1921, to

Material.
Sept. SO, 1921. Sept. 30, 1922.

French pounds. b Freneh pounds. b

~ee (about 8 per cent is triage) •.•...•.•....•. 45,689,687 58,425,614
(Jc»t'ton •••••••••••.•.••••••.•..•.•.•••..••..•..•••.. 3,987,430 8,567,058
(Je:Jit"t;on seed • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • • • • • •• ••• 8,014,774 16,568,649
(Jc)ttonseed oil ............ · · · ........•..........•• 611,012 212, 714
c::Jlic!&O •• • • • • , • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 2,355,319 4,396,620
I.ogwood ......•••••.....• · ....•••...•.•. •.••......• 74,893,411 59,960,876
~()()c) f?~I'~~'t. •••••••••••••••• •••••••••••••••••• •••••••• • 1,280,596
Bides ..•...... ... • .. · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · .. · .... · . · · · • · 40,729 26,951
Gm.t skins ....................................... . 207,340 184,937
S'ugar ••••. •••• ..•••....••.•.•..•••.•.••••.••••••••• 10,511,004 20,597,925
Boney .•.• •. •.. · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · .• · · · · . · · · · · .. •. · · · · · 890,684 1,445,580
Llgrlum vitae ................... ...•......•••.....• 6,537,006 4,141,500
~tor beans .............................. ....... . 146,461 25,044:
O>rn •...•.. ... •.......•....••...............•..•.•• • •••••••• 372,632
Orange peel ..•.................................... 226,060 568,249
l'ertiliz'er ......•........ .••.................•..•... 1,907,888 •• •• •• •• •

•From report of Administration of Haitian Customs, Haitian Customs Receiverships, fiscal period
ending Sept. 30, 1922.
•To convert into English pounds add 8 per cent.

Value in United States currency of products exported from Haiti, 1917 to 1922.a

Oct.1,1916, Oct.1,1917, Oct.1,1918, Oct.1,1919, Oct.1,1920, Oct. 1 , 1921,

Material. to Sept. 30, t o Sept. 30, to Sept. 30, to Sept. 30, to Sept. 30, to Sept. 30,
1917. 1918. 1919. 1920. 1921. 1922.l>
..

Coffee •••• . •• . . . . • . . . • . . . . $4,620,554 $3,147,282 $16,407,234 ~11,007,296 $2,912,575 $7,487,312

Cotton (including cotton
seed and cottonseed oil ) . 485,199 850,274 2,005,374 2,463,631 475,425 1,647,205
Logwood (including extract
and roots) ....... ...... . 780,768 319,364 640,149 2,868,411 744,311 506,953
~~() ................... . 489,695 430,348 648,396 606,801 94,487 274,124
Sugar (raw) .............• 2 69 506,960 897,197 457,166 537,475
Bides and skins . ..•...•..•• 291,621 162,144 519,952 354,448 76,738 65,125
Boney ••••.•.•••••...•.•.• 191,096 174,089 260,566 131,235 28,883 62,076
Castor beans •.....••..••.. 49,541 336,707 231,454 100,512 S,724 674
Lignum vitae ••.•••• ••.••. 107,113 36,386 70,825 114,923 62,013 26,257
Sisal •.....••••...•.....•.. 14,322 15,552 36,406 25,490 116 535
Shells (tortoise) .....•• ... 1,562 657 20,326 28,809 7,621 13,310
Fertil'izer ....... ......... . 955 6,308 13,222 19,477 7,949 • • •••••••
Beeswax •..•...........•.• 23,4.36 10,942 17,673 5,614 2,814 977
Orange peel .•••.•••.••.... • ••• • ••• • • •• • •••• • 3,414 25,019 7,411 20,130
Mahogany ••.. ...•......... 13,800 11,274 4,436 15,289 7,120 586
Co!-'n ••.•.•••••...•••..•••• 53,517 681,390 12,417 • • ••• •• •• • • ••••••• 5,660
Old copper ••• ..........••• 3,248 2,33?. 4,627 12,789 859 2,20'2
Iron ore .................. . • ••• ••••• • •••••• •• ••••••••• 1,800 •• • •• ••• • • •• ••••••
All other articl es ......•... 93,861 92,202 56,714 311,891 66,858 161,809

Total ..... ........... . ~,220,290 $6,276,321 $21,460,045 $18,990,032 $4,953,570 $10,712,210"

Perce11tage shipped to U. S. 54.39 80.83 44.49 62.15 82 . 38 13.44

•Annual r eports of Administration of Customs, Haitian Customs R eceivership, Washington, D. C.

b Value of exports for 1922 include the export tax. Figures for previous years do not include the
export tax. In 1922 the export tax was $2,015,598, ot which $1,752,768 was on coffee .

•
 •

80 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

IMPORTS •
.
·The imports at the present time probably do not differ greatly in gen
eral features from those of earlier or even colonial days. By far the larg
single items are cotton cloth, flour, and soap. Recent years have seen a
growing demand for machinery. The values of the materials imported
during the last six fiscal years are shown in the following table :
Value in United States currency of products imported into Haiti, 1917 to 192!.•

Oct.1,1916, Oct.1,1917, Oct.1,1918, Oct.1,1919, Oct.1,1920, Oct. 1, 1921.,

Material. to Sept. 30, to Sept. 30, to Sept. 30, to Sept. 30, to Sept. 30, to Sept. 30,
1917. 1918. 1919. 1920. 1921. 1922.

Cloth and fiber products

(about 90 per cent cotton
cloth) • • . • . . • • • • •• • • • . . • $2,876,617 $3,627,186 $5,252,192 $9,852,533 $2,272,493 $3,670,189
Foodstuffs (about 40 per
cent flour) ....•.....•.•• 2,540,958 1,694,332 5,964,608 8,607,240 3,654,480 3,849,591
Soap . . ................... . 494,263 926,836 839,780 972,924 615,530 639,014
Iron and steel manufactures 121,165 844,812 731,228 957,505 805,365 427,895
Tobacco ................. . 229,189 255,825 381,884 626,251 698,725 454,715
Petroleum products ...•.. 175,410 282,960 397,915 454,576 327,477 315,675
Liquor, beer, and other
beverages .. . ...........• 167,614 142,384 129,213 505,107 285,402 251,016
Machinery (agricultural,
automobiles, vehicles) .. 65,216 99,759 197,345 277,083 90,837 106,158
Lumber and manufactures
(wood products) •..••..• 151,841 205,960 186,062 341,657 169,231 181,873
Leather goods ••.•.•.•...•. 108,924 159,267 94,976 290,176 126,772 120,310
Chemicals and drugs ...•.. 88,960 53,562 107,063 236,766 157,969 155,022
Cement ................. . 46,765 71,267 82,546 149,833 103,345 56,701
All ~other products ........• 1,539,164 1,816,544 2,752,798 4,126,760 2,649,579 2,122,112
---
Total • . . • . . . . . .•• . . . . • $8,606,086 $10,180,693 $17,117,608 $27,398,411 $11,957,205 $12,350,271
Percentage of imports from
u. s. . .................. . 86.39 9'2. 48 93.12 83.12 79.82 83.87

0 Annual reports of Administration of Customs, Haitian Customs Receivership, Washington, D. C.

PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES TRADING WITH THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI •

•
France has always consumed the greater pa.r t of the output of Haitian
coffee. This feature and the inherited kinship of language and political
thought have caused the Republic of Haiti to depend upon France for
certain special classes of products, such as books and the more fashionable
clothing materials and works of art. There is a small amount of trade
with the surrounding West Indian Islands, dependent on transient local
conditions. For instance, in 1917 and 1918 a la.rge quantity of corn
( ma!ze), which is seldom exported from the Republic, was shipped to
the neighboring Republic of Cuba.
During the last century the commerce of the Republic with the United
States grew gradually to large proportions, and during the World War,
in 1917 and 1918, it was almost exclusively with the United States. Since
then, however, there has been a gradual readjustment. The preceding

•
 GEOGRAPHY. 81

tables show that about 84 per cent of the imports in 1922 came from the
United States and that about 13 per cent of the exports were sent to the
United States.
MANUFACTURES.
The manufacturing industries are small and not complexly organized.
Basketry, rope, and simple household articles, such as chairs and straw
mats, are made by hand in large quantities for domestic use. Small wood-
tuming shops that produce chiefly curios for tourist trade are common.
Small cabinet shops produce cabinet work of real excellence, especially
in mahogany. A plant for the extraction of dye liquor from logwood was
snccessfully operated at Grande-Riviere du Nord for a few years. It
burned down but was rebuilt and is now in operation. One company
manufactures cigarettes at Port-au-Prince. The capital also has the only
considerable ice factory in the Republic, but ice is made at small plants
in other cities. Plants for cleaning and preparing coffee for market, known
as'' usines a cafe,'' are common, and some of them are rather large. Con-
siderable cotton is ginned in plants in several of the larger cities, and
some cotton-seed oil is made. The largest of these plants is in St.-Marc.
Crude plants for making unrefined brown sugar (see Pl. VII, A) are com-
mon but are of small capacity. The'' Rasco'' sugar mill, owned and oper-
ated by the Haytian-American Sugar Co. at Port-au-Prince, is a large and
modem plant, which is said to be capable of grinding 250,000 tons of
cane annually, but it has not yet been operated to its full capacity.
Several small brick plants supply virtually all the domestic demand for
bricks. (See pp. 503-507.) 1fost of the domestic supply of salt comes from
several evaporating works. (See pp. 509-510.)
TRANSPORTATION.
As most of the area of the Republic is exceedingly mo11ntainous inland
transportation is very difficult. All the larger cities are on the coast,
where the bulk of the freight can be handled by water. Throughout the
periods of both the colony and the Republic the coastwise traffic and pas-
senger service in small sailing vessels has been great. These small vesseI·s
bring in large quantities of goods to the larger cities for sale or export.
HIGHWAYS AND TRAILS.
In colonial days oxcarts and carriages were used on all the la.r ger plains,
where roads were easily made, but intercommunication was very diffi-
cult. After much trouble and labor a vehicle road from Cap-Ha1tien to
Port-au-Prince was opened in 1787, and vehicular traffic between Port-
1
au-Prince and Les Cayes was virtually unknown. All parts of the colony
were reached by horseback, however. As early as 1700, according to
2
Labat, it was possible to travel from Cap-Frangais t.o Leogane by way of
the Central Plain.
1
Moreau de Salnt-M~ry, op. cit., vol. 1, pp. 104, 662, et seq.
2
Labat. op. cit., vol. 5, pp. 134-135.
6
 82 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Since 1915 the roads have been improved as far as funds would permit,
and at present (1923) there are 960 kilometers of highway under con-
tinuous maintenance and passable for vehicles, including au ton \obiles,
at nearly all seasons. During the height of the rainy season there are two
regions, one in the Plain of St.-Michel and the ot.h er between Miragoane
•
and Aquin, where traffic is difficult because the soil is alluvial .
The improvements most needed on the highways are bridges. There are
not more than six steel highway bridges i'n the co11ntry, and many of the
small rivers become dangerous or impassable after rains. Ferries are used
to cross some of the largest streams, but fords are generally used and traffic
must wait until floods subside. Work has been started (1923) on bridges
for the larger streams and construction has been begun on a road from
Las C1ahobas to Hinche and a road from Las Cahobas to Belladere, on the
Dominican border. This road to the border will make it possible to travel
from Port-au-Prince to Santo Domingo City by automobile in twelve
hours, whereas it now takes three days by W·ay of Cap-Ha1tien, Ouana-
minthe, and Santiago.
Inn11merable horse trails and footpaths lead from the mai.n roads to
almost every nook and cranny of the mountains. Over these rough and
difficult trails and paths an enormous amount of coffee, vegetables, and
foodstuffs are carried to the markets on the backs of burros or on the
heads of market women. Although more and better trunkline highways
are needed on the plains to reach areas that are not now accessible to
wheeled traffic, large quantities of the country's products will necessarily
continue to be tra.nsported by primitive methods over unimproved trails.
The following table shows the distances between the principal towns
along the main highways.

Distances between towns in Haiti, in kilometers.

Port-au-Prince St.-Marc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
St.-Marc Gonaives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Gonalves Ennezy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Ennery Plaisance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Plaisance Limbe ........................................... . 21
L 1m . a1..t.I en ........................................ .
. b e' C ap-H 26
Port-au-Prince Cap-Haitien ................................. . 275
Cap-Ha.ltien Ouanaminthe .................................. . 71
Port-au-Prince Leogane .................................... . 32
Leogane Petit-Goave ....................................... . 39
Petit-Goave Miragoane .................... . ................ . 22
.
M rragoane A A .
qu1n .......................................... . 47
Aquin Aux Cayes .......................................... . 61
Port-au-Prince Aux Cayes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Port-au-Prince Pont-Beudet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Pont-Beudet--Mirebalais . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Mirebalais Las Cahobas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Port-au-Prince Las Cahobas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
 GEOGRAPHY. 83

RAILROADS.

The Republic has 259.5 kilometers of narrow-gage railroads, which are

operated in several disconnected l1ni ts by two companies.
The following table sho"rs the distance between the ter1ni nal stations
of the di:fieren t sectors:

Distances in kilometers between terminal stations of railroads.

Compagnie N ationale des Chemins de Fer d'Ha1ti:
Port-au-Prince St.-Marc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Gonaives Ennery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Cap-Haiti en Bah on . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

177
Compagnie des Chemins de Fer de Ia Plaine du Cul-de-Sac:
Port-au-Prince Maneville . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42.7
Port-au-Prince Leogane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34.5
Street railways in Port-au-Prince . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3

82.5

The Compagnie N atronale des Chemins de Fer d'Ha1ti hopes to com-

bine its 11nits into one line connecting Port-au-Prince and Cap-Ha1tien
by way o,f Mirebalais, Las Cahobas, Hinche, and Bahon. The railroads of
the Republic are greatly hampered by the lack of large business or agri-
cultural enterprises to furnish patronage and by the lack of any large
vol11me of passenger traffic. Labor is so cheap that transportation by
animals competes with transportation by rail.
• •

TELEGRAPH AND TELEPHONE SYSTEMS.

The telegraph and telephone systems of the Republic are operated by

the Government. There are 39 telegraph offices which handle foreign as
well as local messages. The city of Port-au-Prince has a modern auto-
matic telephone exchange with a capacity for 300 subscribers, which is
now being increased to 500. Small exchanges are maintained in several
· other cities. The volume of the telegraph and telephone business in the
Republic has doubled during the last two years.

•
 •

PART II. GEOLOGY .

•

By WENDELL P. WOODRING, JOHNS. BROWN, and WILBUR S. BURBANK.

RECONNAISSANCE GEOLOGIC MAP.

The reconnaissance geologic map (Pl. I, in pocket) is accurate to the
published scale only along the routes traversed during the reconnaissance
shown on Pla.te III (p. 24). In compiling it the maps published by
Mr. L. Gentil Tippenhauer (see bibliography, p. 603) have been freely
used. Regions distant from the routes traversed were mapped principally
by long-range observations supplemented by Tippenhauer's maps.
The base map was compiled by the Service des Leves Topographiques
under the supervision of Mr. Glenn S. Smith, chief of the Division of
West Indian Surveys of the Topographic Branch of the United States
Geologic Survey. The delineation of almost the entire shore line, of the
features near the shore line, and of the course of Riviere Artibonite from
its mouth to Mirebalais is based on aerial photographs controlled by tri-
angulation, work done under the direction of Mr. E. L. McNair, of the
United States Geological Survey. The location of towns and other fea-
tures in the interior is based on all available published and 11npublished
information supplemented by personal observations. The topographic
• surveys were suspended in the winter of 1921-22 from lack of funds .

SEDIMENTARY ROCKS.
By WENDELL P. Woona1No and JoHN S. BaowN.
PALEOZOIC (?) METAMORPffiC ROCKS.
Sedimenta.ry rocks are exposed at the surface over fully four-fifths of
the Republic. Their age ranges from probably Paleozoic to Recent.
Metamorphic rocks, probably of Paleozoic age, occur as float on the
North Plain and on the Leogane Plain and are fo11nd in place on Tortue
Island. Quartz schist and mica schist were found as float on the North
Plain east of Limonade. Although no bedrock exposures of the schist
were seen the fragments fo11nd presumably represent a metamorphic
basement on whiclt the old basaltic rocks lie. These schists are much
more metamorphosed than any of the old volcanic rocks or Cretaceous
sediments and are therefore considered Paleozoic or early :1Iesozoic.
A specimen of garnetiferous quartz-mica schist that was found as floa,t
on the plain a little east of Le Trou shows the highest degree of metamor-
phism seen in any rock collected in the Republic. This rock is greenish
gray to dark gray, fine grained, and distinctly schistose. It is spotted
84
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 85

with pinkish to reddish-brown patches of garnet. In thin section the rock

is seen to be composed essentially of quartz, chlorite, biotite, magnetite,
and garnet. The quartz comprises about 70 to 75 per cent of the volume
and has a characteristic mortar structure, produced by granulation of the
borders of the grains. The chlorite and brown biotite comprise 15 to 20
per cent of the rock and together with the finely crushed quartz occupy
the spaces between the larger grains of quartz. Considerable magnetite
and some ro11nded patches of garnet are scattered through the rock. The
garnet has a slight reddish tinge and apparently has replaced the chlorite,
mica, and quartz between the larger grains of quartz. The rock may have
been formed by the metamorphism of an jmpure sandstone. It shows
evidence of intense dynamic and thermal metamorphism of a character
not observed as the result of deformation caused by intrusions of igneous
rock in Cretaceous and later times.
Exposures of these older rocks were fo11nd on Tortue Island beneath
limestone that is probably of upper Oligocene age. There the metamorphic
rocks consist principally of much sheared limestones that have been com-
pletely recrystallized and in some places partly replaced by chlorite, epi-
dote, and quartz. The limestone is exposed in a sea cliff a short distance
east of the landing at La Vallee, on the south coast. It is a hard bluish-
gray rock and contains a network of seams of calcite. About 150 meters
east of the landing greenish limestone containing chlorite and stringers
of quartz crops out in a sea cliff. Bluish schistose limestone underlies this
rock. The beds are contorted and wrinkled. The schistosity planes in
general strike N . 80° W. and dip 20° NE. Similar rocks crop out in the
huge amphitheater inland from La Vallee, where the cover of upper
Oligocene limestone has been stripped by erosion, but along trails their
exposures are weathered. Float of a granitic rock, which presumably
intrudes the schistose limestone, was seen on the trail to Source Lavier.
Schistose rocks were also seen northwest of Pointe des Oisea11x, where the
trail from La Vallee descends to the coast. The schistose limestone re-
sembles similar rock on the south slope of Samana Peninsula, Domini-
1
can Republic.
No exposures of schists consjdered to be older than Cretaceous were
found in the southern part of the Republic, but float consisting of mica
and quartz schists like those from the northern part of the Republic was
seen on the western part of the Leogane Pla.i n. This material probably
comes from an unexplored part of the mountains south or southwest of
the plain.
CRETACEOUS SYSTEM.
Rocks that can be positively identified from fossil evidence as Creta- •

ceous are confined to the Upper Cretaceous series. They consist princi-
pally of limestone and were found in only a few small patches in the
1
A geological reconnaissance of the Dominican Republic: Dominican Rep. Geol. Sur-
vey Mem., vol. 1, pp. 53, 83, 182-183, 1921.
•
 •

•
86 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

arrondissements of Cap-Ha1tien and Grande-Riviere du Nord. Detailed

examination of the Republic doubtless would disclose other similar
patches, but the area covered by such rocks is probably very small.
I
Rocks that are tentatively referred to the Lower Cretaceous system on
stratigraphic, structural, or lithologic grounds 11nderlie rather large areas,
chiefly in the Massif du Nord. Lithologically most of these rocks in the
northern part of the Republic are grouped under the term argillite,
although at places they show wide variation from this type. Rocks in
the southern part of the Republic that are considered of the same age on
indefinite grounds generally consist of metamorphosed limestone. It is
not at all certain that all these rocks called Lower Cretaceous are of the
same age. All of them are older than Tertiary, but some may be even older
than Cretaceous.
The Upper Cretaceous rocks probably rest lm.comformably on the rocks
of supposed Lower Cretaceous age, but the actual contact was not ex-
amined. They contain small pebbles of the older igneous rocks. The
Lower Cretaceous rocks in the northern part of the Republic appear to
have been deposited on a basement· composed mainly of volcanic rocks,
of which they contain recognizable pebbles at some places. The relations
of the argillite and volcanic rocks are considered elsewhere. (Seep. 273.)
The fossils show that the Upper Cretaceous rocks are marine. (See
list, p. 98.) The lithology and the absence of marine fossils in much of
the Lower Cretaceous series of the northern part of the Republic indicate
that they are marginal deposits, laid down in part on flood plains. These
rocks are nearly everywhere thinly and evenly bedded, and in many
places they show mud cracks and contain fragments of lignite. Some
impure limestones, calcareous sandstones, and argillites in this series
contain small Foraminifera, indicating that they were deposited in shal-
low marine waters. Most if not all of the ljmestone of supposed Lower
Cretaceous age in the southern part of the Republic is marine.
Both series of Cretaceous rocks doubtl~ were once much more exten-
sive, but erosion prior to upper Eocene time removed the greater part
of them. The solubility of the limestones facilitated their rapid removal.
The argillite, even though now in some places much indurated, is not
ordinarily very hard and generally remains only where it has been pre-
served in the troughs of faulted or folded areas.
Detailed descriptions of the Cretaceous rocks as observed at different
localities are given below.

LOWER CRETACEOUS SERIES.

DESCRIPTION BY REGIONS.
MASSIF DU NORD.

Plaisance Valley. That part of the valley of Les Trois Rivieres above
•
Pilate is known as Plaisance Valley. All this rolling valley between t.he
bordering mountains seems to be underlain by argillite. On the north bank
•
•
 •
SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 87

of Les Trois Ri' ieres at the bridge near Plaisance an excellent exposure
shows a thickness of about 40 meters of beds that strike north and dip
400 E. The beds are 2 to 5 centimeters in thickness and very regular.
They consist of indurated dark-brown fine-grained sandstone or sandy
slaty shale. Many of the weathered blocks contain peculiar ridges that
suggest fossils, but that are apparently fillings of mud cracks.
About 300 meters southwest of the bridge on the road to Ennery brown
to gray beds resembling those just described but more clayey and con-
taining no visible sand g:ains are exposed in a roadside cut. An analysis
of a sample of material from this exposure is given on page 502, under the
discussion of possible raw mat.erials for cement. Silica in the moisture-
free sample forms about 56 per cent and calci11m and magnesi11m car-
bonates only about 17 per cent of the total.
A number of other exposures of this series are found along the road
farther southeast. The rocks differ chiefly in color, which varies from
ashy gray to deep purple. At all the exposures the beds are steeply tilted.
S.O NE
~ Jv k<

Argilit,e ~bre et cal.ca.ire B.oc~e~ volcEU?iques

creta.cee meta:rno . iqa.e· .. 1oeta.nlorph1~es
·ere es j~as-~ique5 ( ?)

FIGURE 4. Generalized section showing fault zone at contact of argillite

and volcanic rocks as exposed in roadside ditch at Plaisance.

Rather different rocks, probably of the same series, are exposed at the
foot of Mont Puilboreau in a roadside cut about 100 meters long. The
thickness of beds exposed is apparently 60 to 75 meters. The beds dip
steeply to the southwest, into the mountain. They consist in part of dark-
gray metamorphosed cherty limestone, which is partly crystalline. Inter-
bedded with the limestone is at least an equal amo11nt of shale, indurated
and at places slaty and showing ridges due to hardened fillings of mud
cracks. The contact of these rocks with the igneous rocks to the south
is probably marked by a fault.
At the north side of Plaisance Valley, just at the north edge of the town
of Plaisance, the contact of the rocks of the valley with the volcanic rocks
of Plaisance Mountain is well exposed in a ditch beside the road. The
rocks exposed are purple argillite, metamorphic cherty limestone (which
is partly changed to marble and which ranges in color from brown to
white), and reddish volcanic rock. The three rocks are intermixed along
a zone of step faults as shown in Figure 4.
 •

88 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Similar argilli te and other elastic rocks are exposed in the Plaisance
Valley between Plaisance and Pilate. They consist principally of dark
chocolate-brown thin-bedded argillite and thicker beds of harder sand-
stone. The argillite breaks into small blocks that have conchoidal sur-
faces. The general strike of these beds is northwest and they dip to the
northeast and southwest at various angles.
Les
. Trois Rivieres bet·ween Gros-Morne and Pilate. Farther west the
same series of rocks is exposed on Les Trois Rivieres along the trail from
Gros-1\forne to Pilate. They crop out on both banks of the river above
the second crossing toward Pilate. Their outcrop is a narrow northwest-
wa.rd-trending band between volcanic rocks on the west and middle Eocene
limest.one (Plaisance limestone) on the east. At this place the rocks con-
sist of dark thin-bedded calcareous argillite. About 200 meters above the
second crossing, on the right bank, a bed of limestone changed to white
marble containing greenish streaks is interbedded with the argillite. At
most of the exposures the beds stril{e northwestwa.rd and dip steeply
southwestward. An exposure on tlie left bank about 1 kilometer above
the second crossing shows that the beds are crumpled. (See Pl. VIII, A.)
The contacts with both the volcanic rocks and the limestone are probably
along faults.
•
N ear Dondon. Argillite and other rocks of the same series probably
underlie nearly all the mountain-walled valley at Dondon, but over most
of its area they are covered by alluvium. Good exposures are found in
the trail between Dondon and Grande-Riviere du Nord at the north end of
the valley, about 3 kilometers north of Dondon. The rock consists partly
of brown or purple calcareous argillite and partly of similar but wl1iter
•
rock, in fairly thin beds. Interbedded in the fine-grained argillite are one
or two conglomeratic beds, about half a met er thick, which contain
cobbles of igneous rock, some as much as 25 centimeters in diameter. The
matrix of these beds consists in part of angular fragments of dacitic lava,
quartz, and p1agioclase in a calcareous cement containing a few small
undetermined Foraminifera. Smaller lenses of sandy material not more
than a few centimeters in thickness contain angular fragments of plagio-
clase, quartz, and volcanic rocks in an impure calcareous matrix contain-
ing numerous small undetermined Foraminifera.
Between tl1is place and Carrefour Menard, the nearest station on the
railway between Cap-Ha!tien and Grande-Riviere du Nord, there are
numerous exposures of the argillite along the trail that follows a deep
ravine leading down to the Grande Riviere du Nord. Most of the rock
is thin-bedded fine-grained brown sandstone, which contains ab11ndant
fragments of lignitized wood. Some of the rock grades into impure lime-
stone, which is brown and partly recrystallized. At some places it is a
coarse conglomerate, composed of fragments of the underlying igneous
rocks that are exposed at some places in the ravine. The rock everywhere
is complexly folded and has been considerably metamorphosed.
 \

Rl!lJ, URLI C OF HAITI PLATE VIII

o•:ol~OG I CA.L "SUR\'EY

(?) '
CALCAREOUS ARGILLITE O~ LES TROIS Rl,"Il!iRES
BI~ T""EEN GROS -~IORNE AND llJLAr.rE.

R. PJr,r,ow TJA\TA AND Ll)IERTO~E OF RUPPOSED UPPER C'RETAC'EOrs

.\Gl<J ON TIIE XOJ{TII • IDE OF ""l'I-Il~ A lf_.,E , ..Af_,IJI~ Y.
 SEDI~IENTARY ROCKS. 89

N ortbwest of this locality, on the trail leading from Milot tkl Chris-
tophe's Citadelle, on the northeru;t slope of the ridge called Bonnet-a-
l'Eveque, exposures of purple argillite are common between altitudes of
300 and 650 meters above sea le,Tel. The rock is intricately folded and
at places has a slaty cleavage.
Near Cerca-larSource. The largest area of Lower Cretaceous argillite
is in the ea.stern part of the Massif du Nord, embracing the southern part
of the arrondissement of Valliere. This area is probably continuous under
the cover of Tertiary limestones with the area near Dondon and with that
in Plaisance Valley. Near the Dominican border the area covered by these
rocks is about 11 kilometers wide, but the width is less towa,r d the north-
west. I ts length is about GO kilometers.
These rocks are well exposed in bluffs on the right bank of R1 viere
l'Ocean 100 meters below the crossing of the trail from Thomassique to
Cerca-la-Source. At thjs place they consist of thin-bedded variegated
argillite and thicker beds of greenish sandy material. The colors of the
argillite are somber shades of chocolate-brown, olive-green, purple and
brick-red. The argillite weathers into small blocks that have conchoidal
surfaces. In the bluffs the beds have slumped, but ledges in the stream
show that they strike northwestward and dip 40°-80° NE. or SW. or even
stand vertically.
The greenish sandy beds consist of angular to subangular grains and
crystals of plagioclase, grains of quartz, and flakes of brown mica. Grains
of magnetite, a few prisms of apatite, and a very few grains of epidote and
zircon are present. The brown mica is partly altered to greenish mica-
ceous and chloritic material, which has partly replaced the plagioclase and
quartz, giving the sandstone its greenish color and acting as a cement.
The plagioclase is also pa1·tly replaced by calcite, sericite, or brownish
products of the alteration of the mica. There is abundant calcite in the
rock, but owing to al tera ti on and recrystallization it is impossible to
determine whetl1er this mineral was an original constituent oi the sand-
stone.
The brown shaly rock carries small fragments of plagioclase and quartz
in a matrix of finer material containing an iron-stained calcareous and
chloritic cement. The shale contains thin seams of coarser gritty material.
T he argillite lies at the surface northeastward from Cerca-la-Source to
the foot of the north slope of the ridge south of Lamielle, where the llnder-
lying pyroxene andesite crops out. The soil formed by the argillite is very
thin, and the rock is well exposed at many places along the trail. On
weathered surfaces it is c1ark brown or dark gray, and contains angular
to subangular fragments of quartz and a few fragments of altered pla-
gioclase, as well as flakes of white mica and grains of magnetite. The
cement is largely calcareous, but there is considerable secondary chloritic
material. Beds of gray calcareous sandstone, which weather brownish,
contain angular to subangular fragments of quartz, a few fragments of
90 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

plagioclase largely altered to sericite or kaolinite, and a few grains of

m.a gnetite. The grains are embedded in a calcareous matrix, which con..
stitutes a large part of the rock.
Some of the rock has an incipient cleavage almost at right angles to the
bedding. The beds undoubtedly are intricately crumpled, BB in the shal-
low exposures along the trail they dip northeastward and soutl1westward
at steep angles, the direction of dip changing within short distances. On
the south slope of the first ridge northeast of Cerca-la-Source a network
of branching quartz veins about 10 meters wide cuts the argillite. The
white quartz debris from the veins makes a conspicuous band that is
visible on the next two spurs to the northwest. In this dista.nce the veins
are offset twice by faults.
Morne du Cap. In the Morne du Cap near Cap-Ha1tien there are
n11merous small patches of a formation which, although rather different
from anything else in the Republic, apparently should oo classed with
the Lower Cretaceous rocks. This formation consists mainly of very dark
chert and of brown or yellow indurated mudstone and siltstone, consider-
ably more metamorphosed than the Eocene rocks. Moreover, it is over-
lain unconformably by upper Eocene limestone. It probably r ests uncon-
formably on a basement of igneous rocks that are mainly of volcanic
origin. This formation in its relation to the water supply of Cap-Ha1tien
is described on page 581.
The formation is typically developed at the shore and in bluffy slopes
just above the shore near Carenage, the most northerly section of the
city, and on Morne Calvaire, perhaps 200 meters to the southwest. I t
consists partly of brown or yellow siltstone, claystone, or fine sandstone,
partly of dense black or blue chert, all in generally rather thin beds that
average perhaps 8 to 15 centimeters in thickn03s. The chert at some
places forms solid beds or constitutes a whole series of beds several meters
in thickness, but at other places it forms nodules or concretionary masses.
The claystones at places appear to grade into very impure limestone. The
whole formation is much shattered and breaks into minute polygonal
blocks, which at many places form a talus over weathered slopes. Such
material is successfully used as top dressing for roads in the city. (See
p. 497.)
Thin sections show that some of the chert probably is in part of radio-
larian origin, as Radiolaria can be recognized. It also contains some Fora-
minifera, but the rock is so greatly metamorphosed that the proportion
of the two kinds of organisms is not easily detennjnable. In many fea-
tures the rock resembles some of the Franciscan chert of California.
Beds of coarser, distinctly detrital material and even of coarse con-
glomerate appear at places, the conglomerate probably being near the
base of the formation. At Carenage the bluffs of blue chert above the
shore are underlain by sandstone and conglomerate, which crop out on

•
 \
SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 91

the beach. This conglomeratic material contains much-weathered frag-

ments of dark igneous rocks and also rounded masses of chert, apparently
concretionary. Farther northeast the conglomerate appears to be under-
lain by much-weathered greenish volcanic rock. The following section was
measured in a ravine about 200 meters north of the end of the street in
Carenage. The beds strike N. 10° E . and dip 30° NW.

Section of Lower Cretaceous beds near C ap-Ha?tien .

•
Meters.
•Thin beds of yellowish sandstone and interbedded chert. . . . . . . . . . 41
Same as above, but thicker beds, cherty nodules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Thick beds of blue chert. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Soft gray sandstone containing a bed of blue chert about 25
centimeters thick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Greenish weathered igneous rock. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Beach.
•

Thickness of Cretaceous beds exposed. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

On either side of the east gate to Morne Calvaire there is a bluff, 5 to

10 meters in height and nearly 100 meters in total length, in which the
formation is well exposed. The rocks are chiefly cherty beds and brown silt-
stone. The siltstone has blue-black or brown iron stains on fractured sur-
faces. In this exposure there is one peculiar bed about 2.5 meters thick,
apparently a fine conglomerate composed mainly of fragments of greenish •

igneous rock but partly of small pebbles of chert resembling the llnder-
lying cherts. However, the conglomerate appears to be perfectly inter-
bedded in the series, and whether it denotes an 11nconformity is doubtful.
Other exposures of a similar bed of conglomerate were noted at several
places in the Ra vine de la Belle Hotesse.
Many other small exposures of the formation were noted, particularly
around the shore of the cape north and west of O'ap-Ha1tien. Those near
the town are shown in some detail in Figure 3"/ (p. 5"/9) in connection with
the description of the water supply.
The structure of the formation is complex. Everywhere it is sharply
folded, and in good exposures many faults are visible. In the bluff east
of Morne Calvaire the beds dip intA> the hill, but at the north end of the
bluff there is part of a small anticlinal fold, much resembling a fan, in
which minor faul~ are seen. ,Just south of the steps leading up to the
gate there is a normal fault, which shows an offset of about a meter in the •

thick bed of conglomerate described above. A nearly vertical normal

fault is exposed near the gate south of the city on the road to Port-au-
Prince, where road metal has been dug off the hillside. The contact of tl1e
cherty formation with the porphyritic igneous rock is marked by a fault,
which has an apparent displacement of at least 20 or 30 meters.

•
92 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

MoNTAGNES N ornES.
About 4 kilometers southwest of St.-l\1ichel de l' Atalaye, on the trail
through Section Paul to Dessalines, stretches a broad interior valley
called Savane la Cidra, which lies back of the first range of the Mon..
tagnes Noires at the border of the Central Plain. This valley contains
r1umerous exposures of a thin-bedded slaty argillite. The rock is gr ay or
brown tinged at places with tints of blue or green. Part of the series con-
sists of a black slaty limestone, which contains small undetermined F ora-
minifera. This rocl{ weathers yellowish white. The beds are considerably
folded.
In contact with tl1is argillite appears a gray or green altered hornblende
andesite. Both the argillite and the andesite have been metamorphosed
by an intrusion of dacite porphyry. The argillite is partly replaced by
epidote, chlorite, and quartz and contains cubes of pyrite.
SOUTHERN PENINSULA.

Rocks of doubtful age that are known to be older than the oldest Ter-
tiary rocks were examined at several localities in the Southern Peninsula.
They are tentatively classed with the rocks of supposed Lower Cretaceous
age in the northern part of the Republic.
A rrondissement of J acmel. In the area of basalt north of J acmel there
•

are several exposures of schistose limestones ~hich apparently have been

engulfed by the basaltic eruptions. An exposure of this limestone was
fo11nd north of Coteaux on the trail from J acme! to Leogane, about 500
meters north of the southern boundary of the basalt. The limestone is
br own and dense and is much sheared but contains eyes of uncrushed
limestone. I n tllln section the limestone is seen to be only partly recrys-
tallized and contains small undetermined Foraminifera. The schistosity
strikes N. 60° W. and dips 80° S.
Another thin zone of metamorphic limestone was seen just south of
Corail-Brache on the same trail.
North of the divide along Ravine la Rououne, the western branch of
the Riviere des Citronniers, there are exposures of light-brownish much
sheared metamorphic limestone. The beds strike N . 80° W. and dip 50° S.
These metamorphic limestones appear to be overlain by the basalts,
although the contacts generally were concealed.
Near Petit-Goave. About 4 kilometers southeast of Petit-Goave, on a
trail leading up the mo11n tain slope, there are large exposures of a gray
to grayish-brown impure metamorphic limestone, but the extent of the
beds was not deter1nined. The rock is in regular and rather thin beds,
and some beds have a conchoidal fracture. The grayish-brown limestone
contains Globigerina, Textularia, and other small Foraminifera. I t prob-
ably is overlain by upper Eocene limestone, but the contact was not seen.
A rrondissement of Aquin. About 2 kilometers west of the little vil-
lage and chapel of Cha.ngier, at the highest point on the trail between
 SEDI MENTARY ROCKS. 93

I'Asile and Cavaillon, some small exposures of a reddish schistose lime-

stone were noted. The area covered is small, and the relations of tl1is
rock to the sur rounding rocks are not known, but it is 11ndoubtedly older
than the prevailing upper Eocene limestone and is tentatively referred
to the Cretaceous. Such highly metamorphosed sediments are not com-
mon in the Cretaceous but probably form local masses in less metamo1·-
phosed rock, as at Camp Perrin.
Arrondissement of Cayes. Rocks which on rather indefinite grounds
are tentatively assigned to the Lower Cretaceous were found at a n11mber
of other places in the Southern Peninsula. The principal area is north of
the lowland near Camp Perrin, which is underlain by the lignite-bearing
Miocene beds described on pages 236, 483. Here the rock is a thin-bedded,
very cherty, generally chocolate-brown limestone, but some beds are
whiter. Some beds are recrystallized and contain many closely spaced
fractures, which are filled with coarsely crystalline calcite. About 2 kilo-
meters north of the diversion dam of Canal d' A.vezac the limestone appears
to contain large zones of schist, which is probably derived from impure
limestone by metamorphism. The beds are crumpled into close folds, tl1e
strike changing greatly within a few meters, but the prevailing st;rike is
approximately east. No fossils were found in this limestone, but the de-
gree of metamorphism indicates that it is at least as old as Cretaceous.
It was seen in place only along La Ravine du Sud, beginning at a locality •

about a kilometer north of the diversion dam . Float of a similar rock

is very abundant in the lowland, indicating that it is extensive in the
mo11ntains to the north. Float or similar brown metamorphosed lime-
stone, which was noted at Port-a-Piment and elsewhere along the south
coast, possibly indicates an extensive area of such rocks in the unexplored
interior of the llfontagnes de la Hotte.
Arrondissement of Tibu.ron. Somewhat similar brown limestone was
found along the trail near the north coast of Tiburon Bay. Basalt seems
to overlie the limestone, but this relation was not definitely established.
If the limestone really underlies the basalt the l imestone probably is Cre-
taceous; if not, it probably is a pl1ase of the upper Eocene limestone,
which appears to cap the high ranges north of Tiburon.

UPPER CRETACEOUS SERIES.

DESCRIPTION BY REGIONS.

MASSIF nu Noan.
N e<Ilr the Citadelle of Christophe. A good exposure of limestone of
undoubted Upper Cretaceous age was found on the trail between Dondon
and the Ci tad elle of Christophe, about half a kilometer south of the
junction of the trail with a trail leading from Milot to tl1e Citadelle. The
locality is on the mountain side, approximately east of the Citadelle, at
an altitude of about 600 meters above sea level. (See Fig. 29, p. 46.2 .)

•
94 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The extent of the exposure is undetermined, but probably it is not

more than 100 to 300 meters in diameter. The rock consists of white
limestone, apparently massive and partly broken down by solution into a
mass of large boulders. In the calcareous matrix there are a few small
fragments, probably of volcanic rock. The whole limestone mass is richly
fossiliferous. It contains some undetermined Foraminifera, but the con-
spicuous fossils are large, mostly fragmentary rudistid mollusks. (See
1
list, p. 98, stations 9880 and 97.4 6.) Some single specimens on weathered
exposures are more than a meter in length, but it is difficult to extract
them from the tough rock. The limestone is virtually a reef rock formed
by these mollusks.
The relations of this limestone to the underlying rocks were not deter-
mined. Two exposures of a thick-bedded tilted conglomerate found near
by probably should be referred to the upper Eocene basal conglomerate.
(See p. 111.)
Near La Tannerie. Upper Cretaceous limestone was found near the
railway station called La TannE~rie, a few kilometers north of Grande-
Riviere du Nord, at the northern border of the mo11ntains. The limestone
at this place forms the first low mountain ridge bordering the North Plain.
It is exposed just north of La Tannerie, in a ra.i lway cut about 75 meters
long and 7 meters in maximum height. The rock at the south end of the
exposure consists mainly of dark-blue metamorphosed limestone contain-
ing prominent veins of crystalline calcite. At the north end the limestone
is mixed with a considerable amo11nt of purple argillite and dark-brown
sandstone, evidently belonging to the Lower Cretaceous series as developed
.near Dondon. (See p. 88.) The whole mass is intricately faulted and
badly crushed, and the intermixture of argillite and limestone is probably
due to the faulting.
On the ridge west of this cut the limestone is exposed for several hun-
dred meters. It is rather thick-bedded, the beds ranging from 20 to 40
centimeters in thickness. The strike is somewhat south of west and the
dip vertical or very steep to the north. The rock is brown on weathered
surfaces and is etched and furrowed by peculiar ridges. The broken in-
terior is dense and dark blue . . The rock contains small scattered fragments
of igneous rock. No fossils show on the interior, but weathered surfaces
contain undetermined Foraminifera and numerous fragments of rudistids
(see list, p. 98, station 9881), which appear to be indigenous to the cal-
car eous matrix.
To the south the limestone is in contact with quartz porphyry. Near La
Tannerie the contact is along a ravine and is covered by detrital material,
but westward it rises up the northern slope leading down to the ravine and
curves gradually southward. Although the relations were not definitely
1
The numbers giv~n designate stations at which collections were made by members of
the U. S. Geological Survey. The collections are deposited in the U. S. National Museum.
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 95

determined the contact is believed to be marked by a fault. Along the

contact there is a zone, 2 or 3 meters wide, of altered green igneous rock.
Directly east of La Tannerie, on the mo11ntain slopes east of the Grande-
Riviere du Nord, there are sm.all outcrops that appear from a distance to
be limestone, probably the same as that at La Tannerie.
Morne Grand-Gille. Morne Grand-Gille is an isolated hill in the
North Plain about 3 kilometers northeast of La Tannerie. It stands just
north of the road connecting l\Iilot and Limonade and just east of the
Grande Riviere du Nord. This hill is capped by dark limestone. Float
found along the road at the foot of the hill indicates that the rock is the
same as that at La Tannerie. A collection of float fossils made here was
lost.
MoNTAGNES DE TERRE-NEUVE.

At a.n altitude of about 800 meters above sea level, on the west slope
of Morne Guimbi, float limestone containing small indetermjnable gastro-
pods and an Anomia-like bivalve was collected. This rock may be of
Upper Cretaceous age, although at the same locality float containing upper
Eocene Foraminifera (see list opposite p. 144, station 9816) was obtained.
•

MASSIF DE LA SELLE.

In the southern part of the Republic impure limestone and tuffaceous

rocks, apparently interbedded in basalt, are considered Upper Cretaceous,
although the evidence is rather meager. Some of these rocks contain
fresh tuffaceous material and also marine fossils. The volcanic material
must either have been blown into the sea during eruptions or was quickly
washed from the land surf ace during floods. Other tl1inly laminated rocks
that contain no marine fossils probably were laid down on flood plains.
Such rocks were seen at many places in the basalt areas of the }.lassif
de la Selle. In the western part of, the Commune of Marigot, along the
trail leading from the coast to Etang Bossier, a brownish-gray shaly
limestone was found in the area of basalt at a locality about a kilometer
south of the lalce. It contains small pieces of thick shell that have the
fine fibrous texture characteristic of Inoceramus. A dark impure limestone
containing finely laminated bands crops out on the same trail about half
•
a kilometer closer to the lake. This rock contains fish vertebrae and car-
bonized plant fragments.
Rocks of the same age were seen at several places in the large basalt
area around Furey. They consist of black laminated calcareous tu.ff, sandy
tuff, and banded chert. The black laminated tuff contains scattered fresh
angular fragments of augite and fragments and crystals of plagioclase.
Thin seams in the tuff consist largely of crystals of plagioclase and frag-
ments of augite. The matrix is calcareous and contains Globigerina,
Textularia, and other small Foramjnifera, some of which have been re-
placed by hematite. The matrix is stained brown by iron oxides and other
impurities .

•
96 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF IIAI'rI.

Similar rocks crop out on the south slope of the mountains along th
trail from Jacmel to Carrefour. Dark banded calcareous tuff and impur
limestone are exposed on Riviere Gosseline, at the south end of the basalt
gorge between the locality marked by the contact 'vith upper Eocene lime-
stone and Carrefour Andral, where the trail leaves Riviere Gosseline and
ascends Riviere Mabial. These rocl{s are crumpled at the place where
the trail crosses from the right to the left side of the river. Along the
san1e trail near the crest of the mountains, at an altitude of 1,050 meters
above sea level, on the south slope, a bed of black tuffaceous limestone
stands vertically in a cut along the trail.
Numerous exposures of dark shaly limestone or tuffs were seen in t he
area occupied by basalt along the trail from Corail-Brache to tl1e head
of the valley of Riviere des Citronniers, on the easte1'n route from J acmel
to the Leogane Plain. Most of the rock exposed a.p peared to be in t hin
beds interbedded in the basalts. As these exposures were near the center
of the basalt band it is probable that they are in the lower part of the
basalt series.
At all these localities the exposures of these roclrs are very narrow across
the strike, and the beds seem to lie between basalt. They have a re-
markably uniform northwesterly strike, indicating that they belong to t he
same series as the basalt. They apparently lie near the base of this series.
At all the exposures examined the beds dip steeply, usually to the south-
west, indicating that the rocks are folded, although the folding is not
apparent from exposures of the basalt.

MASSIF DE LA HoTTE.

Limestone that is probably of Upper Cretaceous age was found near t he

Grande Riviere de Nippes north o.f the Asile \ Talley, along the trail be-
tween l' Asile and Anse-a-Veau. In this region the Grande Riviere de
Nippes occupies a narrow gorge cut mainly in basalt. About 3 kilometers
from l' Asile the river bends sharply eastward, and the trail also turns
eastward along the north bank of the river. At this turn a ledge of brown
limestone, apparently interbedded with the basalt, is exposed. It strikes
about N . 75° W. and dips 35° NE.
Perhaps 300 meters east of the turn in the trail and river the trail parts
from the river, ascends a steep mo11ntain side, and crosses a divide in
basalt at an altitude of about 300 meters above sea level. At an elevation
of 50 meters south of the crest of this divide there is an exposure of brown
limestone, which strikes ea.st and dips 55 ° N . beneath basalt. The trail
for several meters follows a sharp V-shaped ditch along the contact.
A little lower on the hillside an exposure shows basalt containing frag-
ments of limestone of irregular sjze and shape. The limestone is dark gray
and partly recrystallized. Plate VIII, B, a view of this exposure, shows
tl1at ellipsoidal masses of basalt fit into cusp-shaped edges of pieces of
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 97

r.&llestone. The head of the hammer shown in the view rests on one of
8 ellipsoidal masses of basalt. These features suggest pillow structure
and that the basalt flowed under water where calcareous muds were being
c)eposited, the calcareous mud filling the open spaces between the pillows
of basalt.
At all these exposures the limestone contains 11ndetermined calcareous
algae, and at the exposure near the crest of the hill it contains small
indeterminable gastropods. It is of marine origin and apparently was
Jaid down when the basalt was being poured out. The masses of lime-
stone that are included in the basalt contain small fragments of igneous
rock clouded with iron oxides.
In the level savanna south of the first range of mountains south of Anse-
8-Veau, along the same trail, there is a small ledge of brownish-yellow
limestone which protrudes through the basalt that floors the valley. The
rock is entirely recrystallized. It may or may not be the same as the rocks
described in the preceding paragraphs.
Another exposure of brownish-yellow limestone was found 5 or 6 kilo-
meters east of Baraderes on the trail to Anse-a-Veau. It is just east of
the crest of the third ridge east of Baraderes. Basalt appears to overlie
the limestone, which is poorly exposed. The limestone contains the coral
Actinacis ? (station 9639).
In the northern part of the arrondissement of Nippes there is prob-
ably much limestone overlain by or interbedded with basalt, but some of
it may be older than Upper Cretaceous.
FOSSILS.
The only fossils of undoubted Upper Cretaceous age come from the
limestone in the arrondissements of Cap-Ha1tien and of Grande-Riviere
du Nord. Rudistid mollusks form huge r eefs in this rock at some locali-
ties, particularly on the mountain side east of the Citadelle of Christophe.
They are similar to some of the peculiar rudistids described by Whitfield 1
from Jamaica. Similar mollusks have been found in the Dominican Re-
public, Cuba, and St. Croix, indicating that this fa11na is characteristic of
the Upper Cretaceous of the West Indies. Although the evidence is rather
meager, Dr. T. W. Stanton, of the United States Geological Survey, who
examined the collections from the Republic of Haiti, believes that the
fauna indicates a rather late Upper Cretaceous age.

Stations Upper Cretaceous.

9881 (B 300 F). Arrondissement of Cap-Haitien, mountain slope just west of
La Tannerie, a station on railroad from Cap-Hai:tien to Grande-Riviere du Nord,
about 10 kilometers northwest of Grande-Riviere du Nord. J. S. Brown, collector.
March 11, 1921.
1
Whitfield. R. P., Descriptions of species of Rudlstae from the Cretaceous rocks ot
Jamaica, W. I., collected and presented by Mr. F. C. Nicholas: Am. Mus. Nat. Hist. Bull.,
Yol. 9, pp. 185-196, pls. 6-22, 1897.
'1
98 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

9880 (B 296 F). Arrondissement of Grande-Riviere du Nord, trail from Dond

to Citadelle of Christophe, about halfway up mountain, about 3 kilometers
of Citadelle and 10 kilometers north of Dondon; altitude, 620 meters above
level. J. S. Brown, collector. March 8, 1921.
9746 (B 317 F). Arrondissement of Grande-Riviere du Nord, same locality
9880. W. P. Woodring and J. S. Brown, collectors. March 21, 1921.

Upper Cretaceous jossils from limestone of Massif du Nord.a

Massif du Nord.
Species.
Cap-Haitien. Grande-Riviere.

9881 0880 9746

Undetermined coral .......................•.......... x • ••• ••••

Mollusca:
Pelecypoda :
Radiolites nicholasi Whitfield ................ . • •• • x ••••
Radiolites sp. cf. R. cancellatus Whitfield .... . •••• x x
Radiolites sp. . .......•..•.................... x • • • • ••••
Genus ?, Caprinidae . ........................ . • • •• x x

•
•In the lists of fossils the names in the first enclosed beading (for example, Massif du Nord) indi·
cate geographic divisions; those in the second beading (for example, Cap-Haitien) indicate arrondi~e-
1ner1ts. The numbers at the beads of the columns are those of the stations in the preceding list.

Stations probably Upper Cretaceous .

•
,
9663 (W 67 F). Arrondissement of, Jacmel, trail from Cayes de Jacmel to Etang
Bossier, about a kilometer south of Etang Bossier; altitude, 200 meters above sea
level. W. P. Woodring, collector. November 2, 1920.
9639 (B 113 F). Arrondissement of Nippes, trail from Baraderes to Anse-a-Veau,
third ridge east of Baraderes. J. S. Brown, collector. November 22, 1920.

Upper Cretaceous (f) fossils from arrondissements of Jacmel and Nippes.

Coral: Station.
Actinacis ? sp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9639
Mollusca:
Pelecypoda:
Inoceramus sp. indet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9963

TERTIARY SYSTEM.
Sedimentary rocks of Tertiary age are the most extensive surface rocks
in the Republic, covering probably three-q1iarters of i~ area. Middle and
upper Eocene, middle and upper Oligocene, lower and middle Miocene,
and Pliocene deposits were seen during the reconnaissance. Rocks of lower
Eocene age have not yet been recognized anywhere in the West Indies
proper. The deposits that are considered middle Eocene in this report
are the first deposits of that age recognized in the West Indies proper
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 99

out-side of Jamaica. Rocks of lower Oligocene age that is, of the age of
the lower part of the Vicksburg group of the southeastern United States
were not definitely recognized in the Republic, but some of the limestones
that are tentatively considered upper Eocene may be lower Oligocene.
None of the Miocene deposits appear to be as young as the upper Miocene
Cerros de Sal formation of the Dominican Republic. The Tertiary de-
posits and their e·quivalents in the Dominican Republic and other regions
near by are given in the table on pages 100 and 101.
The rocks of Eocene and Oligocene age, corresponding to the Num-
mulitic series of the Mediterranean region, consist almost exclusively of
limestone, but the Miocene and Pliocene deposits consist principally of
detrital rocks. The Eocene and Oligocene limestones form many of the
mountains of the Republic and give rise to rugged surface features in
which cliffs, caverns, and sink holes are conspicuous. The Miocene and
Pliocene detrital rocks are almost entirely confined to the larger valleys
and plains and underlie intricately dissected lowlands. The extensive
distribution of the limestones and of the younger detri tal rocks to which
they have so largely contributed accounts for the high percentage of cal-
cium carbonate in the rocks, soils, and waters of the Republic.

EocENB SERIES.

The Eocene is the most extensive series of rocks in the Republic, both
in area covered and in thickness. By far the greater part of the series is
of upper Eocene age, but rocks of middle Eocene age attain a remarkable
thickness in the arrondissement of Plaisance. Both the middle and upper
Eocene rocks are characteristically limestones.

MIDDLE EOCENE.

PLAISANCE LIMESTONE.

1
Name. The name Plaisance limestone was used by Vaughan for the
limestone on the northeast slope of 1Iont Puilboreau. When the Plaisance
limestone was named it was supposed to be upper Eocene, but Woodring 1

has recently shown that it is middle Eocene.

Areal distribution. The Plaisance limestone crops out in a northwest-
ward-trending strip in the southern part of the arrondissement of Plai-
sance and adjoining parts of the arrondissements of Gona!ves and Marme-
lade. This area comprises the crest and the upper part of the northeast
slope of Mont Puilboreau and its prolongation northwestward and south-
eastward. The limestone was recognized as far to the northwest as La
Pierre, on Les Trois Rivieres, in the western part of the arrondissement of
1
A geological reconnaissance of the Dominican Republic : Dominican Rep. Geol. Sur-
vey Mem., vol. 1, pp. 58, 94, 1921.
2
Woodring, W. P., Washington Acad. Sci. Jour., vol. 12, pp. 244-247, 1922.
 c-:> •

.,, , ~
0
0
::0
r ' l
I 0
•

0
::0
,-··~
...._, m
-0 Tertiary sedimentary deposits of the Republic of Haiti.
• ' I

~American
~
time Republic of Haiti. Localities of some other American European time
...,._, subdivision. Dominican Republic. subdivision .
equivalents.
fll"'V.' a
.,, ·I I I I

s Hinche formation (non-marine) ·ILas Matas formation (non- IPanama, Jamaica, Cuba, and Costa IAstian. 0
c: Pliocene. Conglomerates and marl near ! marine.) Rica. P laisancian.
t,:tj
0
en Jacmel. ~
0
I( I s:' ~-----------~~-----------I I I------~-----------------------------------~------~ Q
t-<i
Cerros de Sal formation. Yorktown and Duplin formations, IT rt .
Upper. 0
3: . . .
Virg1rua an d N ort h C 1·
aro ina. o oruan. "tj

Mao clay. La Cruz marl, Cuba; Bowden marl,

~~
Conglomerate, sandstone, and Mao Adentro lime- I Jamaica; Gatun formation, Panama
Middle. limestone along south edge of stone. and Costa Rica; Porto Rico; Cal- IHelvetian. ~
~
the Cul-de-Sac Plain. vert, Choptank, and St. Marys d
Gurabo formation. formations, Maryland and Virginia. t:d
~
• H
p. I I----------- a
Miocene. ~
0
s...
Porto Rico; Shoal River marl and Oak 0
p.
• bO Cercado formation. Grove sand members of Alum Bluff ~
:::s Las Cahobas formation. Q) formation, Florida..
0 ~
Q
Thomonde formation and l
i>4 • •
Uscar1 formation, Panama; eastern
1
Burdigalian. ~
H
~
Lower. ...,
Q)
Baitoa formation.a Porto Rico ; Chipola marl member •
·s
0
Maissade tongue.
of Alum Bluff formation, Florida.
,.Q
Bulla conglomerate.a
•
~ Madame Joie formation .
 Cevicos limestone. Lime- Anguilla; St. Croix ; Porto Rico ; \Aquitanian.
Upper. Limestone around border of thel stone east of Bani and Cuba; Panama; Tampa, Florida.
Central Plain and elsewhere. I elsewhere. Byram calcareous marl,o Mississippi. \Chattian.

Oligocene.
Limestone in Mon tagnes N oires, IT b L. IAntigua; St. Croix; Porto Rico;
" a era formation.b ime- Cuba; Panama; eastern Mexico; IRupelian.
Middle. Cha1ne des Matheux, and else- t
1 s one near Tubano.
where. · Glendon formation, Gulf States. 0
-------1 I I I------------
Red Bluff cla.v, Alabama and Missis-
(?)Limestone near Dondon and in 00
t;lj
Lower. sippi; Marianna limestone, Gulf ILattorfian.
· the Chaine des Mateux.
States. s~
- - - - - - - - - -1 I I
•
I
I
1------- -- ---
~
Limestone at DamaJa~ua, St. Bartholomew; Cuba; Trinidad;
I •
8
~

Upper. Limestone in all the mountain! in the Sierra de Neiba, Ocala limestone, and Jackson for- IPriabonian.
~
ranges. I Sierra de Bahoruco and mation, Gulf States.
~
Eocene. elsewhere. 0
(')
~
'' Yell ow limestone,,, Jamaica; Clai-1Auversian. 00
•
Middle. Plaisance limestone.
borne group, Gulf States. Lutetian.
,

Ypresian.
,
Trinidad; Midway and Wilcox groups, Spamacian.
Lower.
Gulf States. Thanetian.
-·
.
Montian.
•

• Largely contemporaneous.
b May include lower Oligocene.
o See Cooke, C. W., The correlation of the Vicksburg group ; U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 133, 1923. ......
0
1-L

•
 102 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Gona1ves, and as far to the southeast as a locality in the arrondissement

of Marmelade 3 to 5 kilometers northwest of St.-Michel de I'Atalaye.
It probably extends farther northwestward in the a.r rondissement of
1
Gona1ves. It is the limestone called '' gelbe Kalke '' by Tippenhauer.
In the eastern part of the lvlontagnes de Terre-Neuve there is a con-
glomerate several hundred meters thick between the old lavas and the
upper Eocene limestone. Several collections of fossils (see lists, p. 107,
stations 9892, 9893, and 9894) indicate that the lower part of this con-
glomerate may be of middle Eocene age, but the fossils were collected from
float, and the stratigraphic relations of the beds from which they were
derived are not known.
The exposures on the northeast slope of Mont Puilboreau, along the
road between Plaisance and Ennery, constitute the type locality.
Stratigraphic relations. At its type locality the Plaisance limestone
rests 11nconformably on volcanic rocks, probably of early or middle Meso-
zoic age, and has a thin but conspicuous conglomerate at its base. This
basal conglomerate contains pebbles of the volcanic rocks and also of the
argillites of supposed Lower Cretaceous age in the Plaisance Valley,
although the contact between limestone and argillite was not seen.
Lithology. At its type locality the Plaisance limestone consists almost
entirely of hard limestone, usually gray, yellow, or white, and remarkably
pure, as indicated by the analysis on page 501 of a sample that contained
more than 99 per cent calcium carbonate (Ca C0 3 ) . Only the beds near
the base are materially different. The basal beds consist of conglomerate,
not particularly coarse, composed of ro11nded fragments of igneous rocks
and argillite, interbedded with shaly material and with thin lenses of
impure brownish-yellow limestorte, which also contains detrital fragments.
The proportion of limestone increases steadily above the base and there
is a transition zone of considerable thickness between the conglomerate
and the typical white or yellow limestone. In this transition zone the
rock is chiefly yellow or buff limestone with some shale. The beds are
· 5 to 10 centimeters in thickness and the rock has peculiar knots or lumps,
which give outcropping ledges in roadcuts a rough surface. The main mass
of the limestone, above the transition beds, occurs in beds 10 to 25 centi-
meters in thickness, and on weathered surfaces it commonly appears mas-
sive. It is readily dissolved and generally pitted with large solution cavi-
ties. On weathering it yields a red clay soil. The fossils listed on page 107,
stations 9771, 9857, 9888, 9889, 9858, 9441, 9859, 9860, 9442, 9861, and
9991, were collected on the north slope and crest of Mont Puilboreau.
At La Pierre, on Les Trois Ri vieres, the Plaisance limestone is brownish
yellow, particularly on weathered surfaces, but some of the unweathered
rock is dark gray. The fossils listed on page 107, stations 9753 and 9754,
were collected at this locality.
1 Tlppenhauer, L. G., Petermanns Mitt., Band 45, pp. 153-155, pl. 10, 1899.

•
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 103

The conglomerate a.t the base of the Plaisance limestone is exposed in

8
roadcut on the east slope of Crete Salee, along the road from Ennery to
St.-~1ichel de l'Atalaye. At this locality the conglomerate consists princi-
pally of pebb·les of purple andesite and other igneous rocks embedded in
8 purplish calcareous matrix. Shaly beds near the base of the limestone
are exposed along the west slope of Crete Salee along the same road.
Limestone crops out higher on the west slope and on the crest. Weathered
surfaces of this limestone have the peculiar lumpy appearance of the lower
part of the Plaisance limestone at its type locality. The limestone seems
to consist of calcareous lumps embedded in buff marl. Most of the corals,
echinoids, and mollusks listed on page 107, stations 9792, 9952, 9950, and
9951, were found weathered out and lying on the surface in roadcuts or
on dumps from roadcut5.
Thickness. Only a rough estimate of the thickness of the Plaisance
limestone is possible, as there are no accurate maps to show the width o:f
the outcrop. The thickness seems to be at least 1,000 meters at the type
locality, where there is no evidence of duplication by faulting.
Stru.ctu1·e. On the northeast slope of Mont Puilborea.u the Plaisance
limestone dips southwestward from 20° to 30°, and its strike parallels
the trend of the crest of the mountain. The contact with the upper Eocene
limestone just south of the crest appears to be marked by a steeply in-
clined normal fault that strikes N . 75° W. and dips southwestward. At
other localities the Plaisance limestone is folded and crumpled like tl1e
upper Eocene limestone.
Fossils. Some of the chara.c teristic fossils of the Plaisance limestone
are shown on Plates IX and X . The most common fossils are two species
of Foraminifera, Dictyoconus puilboreauen.sis Woodring (Pl. IX, Figs.
3-5, 7-8) and Dictyoconus codon Woodring (Pl. IX, Figs. 1-2, 5-6; de-
scriptions on pp. 608-609) . At the type locality they are found in the basal
conglomerate and at different horizons up to the highest beds exposed.
D. codon is very similar to D . egyptiensis (Chapman), a characteristic
fossil of the lower ' Mokattam group of middle Eocene (Lutetian) age
of Egypt. No orbitoidal Foraminifera were found in the Plaisance lime-
stone, so that its foraminiferal fauna is in striking contrast to the rich
orbitoidal fauna of the upper Eocene limestone. Although the species of
Dictyocorz·us are similar to Mediterranean species the Plaisance limestone
contains none of tl1e large n un1m uli tes that reach t.h eir culmination in
the middle Eocene of the Mediterranean region. This absence of large
nummulites is the most striking difference between the early Tertiary
Foraminifera of the Mediterranean and West Indian regions.
The Plaisance limestone yielded the largest collection of echinoids ob-
. tained in the Republic. Though poorly preserved, some of them seem
to be similar to lower Mokattam species. Some of the Plaisance mollusks
are similar to species from the Mediterranean region. Pseudomiltha.
1iaitensis Woodring and Mansfield (Pl. X, Fig. 1), and Chama engonia
 •

PLATE IX.
CHARAc-I'ERISTrc FoRAMINIFERA OF THE PLAISANCE LIMESTONE (MIDDLE EoCENE).

FIGURES 1, 2. Dictyoconus codon Woodring (p. 608). Side (1) and basal (2) views
of type, X 3. U.S. G. S. station 9857. U.S. N. M. catalogue No. 350586.
FIGURES 3, 4. Dictyoconus puilboreauensis Woodring (p. 609). Side (3) and basal
(4) views of type, X 3. U. S. G. S. station 9857. U. S. N. M. catalogue
No. 350587.
FIGURE 5. Dictyoconus codon Woodring (large) and Dictyoconus puilboreauensis
Woodring (small), X 3. U.S. G. S. station 9441.
FIGURE 6. Dictyoconus codon Woodring. Vertical section, X 20. U. S. G. S.
station 9441.
FrGuBEB 7, 8. Dictyoconm puilboreauensis Woodring. Vertical sections, X 20.
U. S. G. S. station 9441. Fig. 8 shows early spiral stage.
104

•
 11PUBLl C OF :fI A I T I PLATE IX
:EOLOOTCAL S UR \.EY

)( 3
l

X3
-
')

x3

X3

x 20
6

x 20 x 20-
7 8'
CIIARA C'£ E RISTIC FORA:\I I ~I I~ERA OF 'l~IIE P I.iAISANCE LI:\1ESTO ~E.

...
•

'

•
 SEDIMENT.ARY ROCKS. 105

Woodring and Mansfield (Pl. X, Figs. 2, 3; descriptions on pp. 612-613)

were collected at several localities.
Collections of fossils recently obtained in Jamaica by Dr. C. A. ·M a.tley,
Government Geologist of Jamaica, show that the ''Yellow limestone'' of
Jamaica is of the same age as the Plaisance limestone. The '' Yellow lime-
stone'' fauna is very similar to the Plaisance fauna, but is more varied.
Gigantic Cerithia, which are conspicuous in the'' Yellow limestone,'' have
not been fo11nd in the Plaisance limestone. Almost a century ago De la
1 2
Beebe considered the'' White limestone'' to be of the age of the Calcaire
1
grossier of the Paris Basin that is, middle Eocene (Lutetian) .
•

Stations Plaisance limestone (middle Eocene).

9771 (B 260 F). Arrondissement of Plaisance, road from Plaisance to Ennery,
at north foot of Mont Puilboreau, about 5 kilometers from Plaisance ; altitude,
515 meters above sea level. J. S. Brown, collector. Februa1-y 12, 1921.
9857 (B 260 Fa). Arrondissement of Plaisance, same locality as 9771. W. P.
Woodring and J. S. Brown, collectors. February 25, 1921.
9888 (B 325 F). Arrondissement of Plaisance, same locality as preceding stations
but from higher beds. J. S. Brown, collector. March 24, 1921.
9889 (B 326 F). Arrondissement of Plaisance, same locality as preceding stations
but from higher beds. W. P. Woodring and J. S. Brown, collectors. March
24, 1921.
9858 (B 262 F). Arrondissement of Plaisance, road from Plaisance to Ennery,
north slope of Mont Puilboreau, about 7 kilometers from Plaisance. J. S. Bro\vn,
collector. February 7, 1921.
9441 (H 6 V). Arrondissement of Plaisance, road from Plaisance to Ennery,
north slope of Mont Puilboreau; altitude, 475 meters above sea level. T. W.
Vaughan, collector. April 18, 1919.
9&59 (B 263 F). Arrondissement of Plaisance, road from Plaisance to Ennery,
north slope of Mont Puilboreau, about 8 kilometers from Plaisance; altitude, 620
meters above sea level. J. S. Brown, collector. February 24, 1921.
9860 (B 266 F). Arrondissement of Plaisance, road from Plaisance to Ennery,
north slope of Mont Puilboreau, about 8.5 kilometers from Plaisance; altitude,
685 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring and J. S. Brown, collectors. Febru-
ary 25, 1921.
9442 (H 7 V). Arrondissement of Plaisance, road from Plaisance to Ennery,
north slope of Mont Puilboreau; altitude, 700 meters above sea level. T. W.
Vaughan, collector. April 18, 1919.
9861 (B 267 F). Arrondissement of Plaisance, road from Plaisance to Ennery,
north slope of Mont Puilboreau, about 10 kilometers from Plaisance; altitude, 905
meters above sea level. J. S. Brown and W. P. Woodring, collectors. February
25, 1921.
9991 (B 236 F). Arrondissement of Plaisance, crest of Mont Puilboreau. J. S.
Brown, collector. February 16, 1921.
1 De la Beebe, II. T .. Remu1·ks on the geology of Jamaica: Geoi. Soc. I4ondon 'l~rnns.,
2d ser., vol. 2, pp. 143-194, pls. 18, 19, 21, 22, 1829. (See p. 171.)
2
The lower part of the ''White limestone'' ot De la Beche, which contained most of
the fossils listed, was called the ''Yellow limestone '' in the report of the Jamai can Star-
vey of 1869.
a Since this report was written Dr. C. T. Trechmann bas published a d(\scrlptlon or
the Yellow limestone and its mollusks: The Yellow limestone of Jamaica and Its
Mollusca: Geol. Mag., vol. 60, no. 710, pp. 337-367, pls. 14-18, 1923.
 •
106 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

9871 (B 284 F). Arrondissement of Marmelade, large cave about 3 kilometers

northeast of St.-Michel de l'Atalaye. J. S. Brown, collector. March 4, 1921.
9872 (B 285 F). Arrondi~ement of Marmelade, float on hill about 100 meters
south of large cave, 3 kilometers northeast of St.-Michel de l'Atalaye. J. S. Brown,
collector. March 4, 1921. .
9873 (B 287 F). Arrondissement of Marmelade, south slope of mountains near
plantation of United West Indies Corporation, 4 to 5 kilometers northeast of
St.-Michel de l' Atalaye. J. S. Brown, collector. March 5, 1921.
9734 (W 268 F .) Arrondissement of Marmelade, trail leading northward into
mountains from plantation of United West Indies Corporation, east of St.-Michel
de l'Atalaye, about 1 kilometer from plantation. W. P. Woodring, collector.
February 8, 1921.
9792 (W 316 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, road from Ennery to St.-Michel
de l'Atalaye, west slope of Crete Salee, about 1 kilometer from crest. T. W.
Vaughan and W. P. Woodring, collectors. March 4, 1921.
9952 (W 345 F). Arrondi~ement of Gona.lves, road from Ennery to St.-Michel
de I' Atalaye, west slope of Crete Salee, altitude 580 meters above sea level.
W. P. Woodring and J. S. Brown, collectors. March 24, 1921.
9951 (W 344 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, road from Ennery to St.-Michel
de l'Atalaye, west slope of Crete Salee, altitude, 565 meters above sea level.
W. P. Woodring and J. S. Brown, collectors. March 24, 1921.
9950 (W 343 F). Arrondissement of Gonalves, road from Ennery to St.-Michel
de l'Atalaye, west slope of Crete Salee; altitude, 535 meters above sea level.
W. P. Woodring and J. S. Brown, collectors. March 24, 1921.
9753 (W 287 F). Arrondissement of Gona.lves, trail from Gros-Morne to Pilate,
right bank of Les Trois Rivieres, 2 kilometers above second crossing. W. P. Wood-
ring, collector. February 16, 1921.
9754 (W 288 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, trail from Gros-Mome to Pilate,
right bank of Les Trois Rivieres, 50 meters above third crossing. W. P. Woodring,
collector. February 16, 1921.
9892 (B 338 F). Arrondissement of Gona1ves, trail from Gros-Morne to Terre-
N euve, float at ba"8e of mountains near Savanne Moulin in Section Moulin (300
meters west of station 9891). J. S. Brown, collector. March 27, 1921.
9893 (B 339 F). Arrondissement of Gonalves, fl.oat on trail from Gros-Marne
to Terre-N euve, 1 kilometer west of station 9892. J. S. Brown, collector. March
27, 1921.
9894 (B 340 F). Arrondissement of Gonalves, float along trail about 1 kilometer
north of little chapel in Section Moulin, north of Terre-N euve. J. S. Brown,
collector. March 27, 1921.
9&59 (B 342 F). Arrondissement of Gona1ves, Meme Valley, float at Des
Hammes prospects. J. S. Brown, collector. March 28, 1921.

•
 •
REPUBLIC OF HAITI
GEOLOGIC.AL SURVEY PLATE X

r
• ,,, .,
I

, r

2 •

~0)1.B 'II ..\Il ..\C'l'ERIS'l' I C ~lOLIJt;S I~S

Oli" 'l' llI~ I>LAI SANCE LI~11~ 8'1'0XI~
( l\IIDDLE EOCENE).
Figure 1. Pseudomiltha haite118i8 Woodring and Mansfield (p. 612). Type, X 1. U. S.
G. S. station 9792. U. S. N. ~f. catalogue No. 350572.
Figures 2, 3. Oha111a engonia '\"\'oodring and ~Iansfield (p. 612). Two views of type, X 1.
U. S. G. S. station 9792 . U. S. N. ~1. c~lt<1logue No. 350573.
 •
Fossils from Plaisance limestone (Middle Eocene).
Mont. de
Massif du Nor d. T erre Neuve.
- ---- -----~

Species. Plaisance. Mar1uelade. Gonaives.

co
~I ,......
~ I g
~
C'l ~

I ~ ~
~
50)
f'o. CJ) f""'4 e-l cl')
C'l r-4 fg
~ 0) CQ

I
I ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~ ~ I Q,~,0)10)10)1~10)10)1~10)10)10)1~10l10)l
I
~ s s s
- - . - . ~
&3
0)
S)
Ol
f'o.
~
C'l
lO
CJ)
o:i
lO 0)
lO Ol
O> ~ ~ •

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Foraminifera:
Nummulites (small sp.) ..... • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• • • •• x •• • • •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• ••
Dictyoconus puilbor~uen sis Woodring. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x x x x x x x x x x x •• x x x • • •• • • x x •• • • •• •• ••
Dictyoconu~ codon Woodring ..... ······ I • I I I I I I I I • I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I •• x x •• •• x x x x •• •• • • •• •• x •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • •
Corals:
Stylocoenia sp. . . . ' . . .. . . .. . .. ....
.• • • I I I I t • • I I • I I t I I ' I I I I I I I ' ' I I I • • •• • • •• •• •• •• • • •• •• ." • • •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• • • • • •• • • •• ••
r:n
Stylophora n. sp. (massive form cf. S. ponderosa Vaughan) ...... . •• •• •• • • • • •• •• • • •• • • •• •• x •• • • •• • • • • •• • • • • •• x x •• • • t.;j
Genus ?, fungid coral, cf. Haloseris ..................••..........•
Oladocora jamaicensis Vaughan .•.................•••.............
••
••
••
••
••
• •
• •

••
•
• •
• ••
••
••

••
••
• •
• •
• •
• •

••
••
••
• •

••
• •

• •
••
••
••
••
x
• •
•

••
• ••
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• •
••
• •
•

••
• ••
••
••
••
• •

• •
••
••
••
x
s~
Astreopora n. ~. (very small calices) ..•.........•............... x t:9
Goniopora sp. indet .. ................ . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
••
••
••
••
• •

• •
••
••
•
••
• • •
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• •
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• ••
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•

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•
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•
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• •

••
••
••
••
••
••
x
• •
• •
••
••
•
••
•
z8
Echinii:
Linthia sp. ct. L. cavernosa de Loriol . ........................... . x ~
•• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• • • •• •• •• •• • • • • •• • • • • • • •• k1
Schizaster ? sp . ................................................. . • • •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• x • • •• •• •• •• •• • • • • • • ••
Eupatagus n. sp. cf. E. mortoni (Conrad) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• x • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• ~
Plagiobrissus sp. cf. P. loveni (Ootteau) .. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • • •• •• • • • • •• •• • • •• •• •• • • x ••
c
~
• • •
Mollusca: 00
•
Gastropoda :
Volutospina sp. •••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • •• • • • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• • • •• •• x •• •• • • • • •• • • •• •• •• ••
Latrunculus sp. cf. L. stromeri Oppenheim ..••...........•.... • • •• •• •• • • •• •• • • •• •• • • •• • • •• •• x •• • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• ••
Cassis ? sp . .................................................. . x x • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• • • •• •• ••
Amauropsis ? sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • • • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• • • •• •• x •• •• •• •• ••
Pelecypoda :
Ostrea sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• x • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Spondylus sp. cf. S. dumosus Morton •...•..................... •• • • • • • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• I • • • •• •• x •• •• •• • • •• •• •• • • •• ••
SpondylUB ? sp ............................................... . •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • • • • •• •• •• • • • • •• • • x • • •• • • •• •• • • • • •• • •

Modiolus sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • • • •• •• •• • • • I • • •• •• •• •• • • •• • • x • • •• • • •• •• •• ••
Cardita sp. cf. C. chmeietensis Oppenheim .. . .....•......•.•.. •• •• • • •• • • I I • • •• • • • I • • •• •• • • •• x •• • • •• • • •• • • • • •• •• • •
Obama sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • • •• x •• •• • • •• •• • • •• •• •• • •
Chama engonia Woodring and Mansfield .•.......•.••........•. • • •• •• •• • • I • •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• x x •• x •• •• • • •• •• •• •• ~
0
Pseudomiltba baitensis Woodring and Mansfield .•••.......••• •• •• • • x •• •• • • •• • • x •• •• •• • • •• x x • • x •• •• •• • • •• •• •• --=l
Veneridae, genus ?•••••••••••.•••••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• x •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Decapod Crustacea :
Zanthopsie ? sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • • • •• •• x • • •• •• •• • • •• •• • • •• ••
108 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

UPPEB EOOENE.
GENERAL FEATURES •

.A. real distribution. ·U pper Eocene rocks cover large areas on most of
the mountains in the Republic and on Gonave Island. (See Pl. I.)
Stratigraphic relations. The only observed contact of upper Eocene
limestone with the Plaisance limestone appears to be marked by a fault
(see p. 103). Upper Eocene limestone overlaps the Plaisance limestone
and rests unconformably on the floor of igneous and other Mesozoic rocks.
This overlap is shown in the relatively short distance between the north-
east and southwest slopes of Jtiont Puilboreau.
Lithology. The upper Eocene rocks consist almost entirely of lime-
stone, but at some localities beds of shale, soft sandstone, and even coarse
conglomerate are interbedded with the limestone, particularly at the base
or in the lower part. A conglomerate generally lies at the base. It may be
either thick and prominent or thin and inconspicuous. The type of lime-
stone differs considerably at different localities and also at different hori-
zons at the same locality. For this reason it seems inadvisable to name the
upper Eocene limestones. The following are the most common types:
One type is white to yellow and has a porous chalky or sandy appear-
ance, although unweathered specimens are rather hard. It breaks with
a conchoidal fracture. The beds are generally rather regular and even
and most of them range from 5 to 15 centimeters in thickness. Shaly
partings are common, and some beds contain sandy detrital material and
even coarse conglomerate. Chert lenses and concretions a.r e common.
F ew of the chalky beds contain fossils, but certain beds of more granular
limestone that show traces of detrital material contain abundant Forami-
nifera. Some of the cherts also contain Foraminifera. In weathering this
rock leaves a gray or chalky soil and many reddish or brownish pieces of
siliceous limestone. This type of limestone is well developed around the
borders of the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve, on Morne Bienac north of
Gonaives, and along the railroad between Gonaives and Ennery. In these
regions it appears to form the lower or basal part of the upper Eocene, but
part of it may be middle Eocene. It is probably equivalent to part of tl1e
coarse basal conglomerate that contains a few beds of limestone which
occurs in great thickness at places in the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve.
Another type that is found in most of the larger areas where upper
Eocene rocks crop out is a hard limestone that is gray on weathered and
white on fresh surfaces. It occurs in reasonably regular beds ranging in
thickness from 10 to 30 centimeters, but on weathered slopes or bluffs it
usually appears massive. Some of the beds are composed of elongate
nodules such as characterize the lower part of the Plaisance limestone.
The beds contain little or no shale or other detrital material and generally
very little chert. The surface is roughly pitted and fretted. Such rock
is called roche-a-ravet. The rock yields a red clay soil. This type of lime-
RE PUBLIC OF HAIT~ PLATE :XI
GEO LOG I CAL s l,, R \ L:..:

A. UPPER EOCE~E l Jil\1ES1'0NE NJ~AR I,A PI E RRE.

T he limestone h<l s been P<l rtl ~· clissol,·ecl an<l i·ece111<'n tecl. f o r111ing a sol t1 t i on breccia.

B. CONGLOMERATE AT BASE OF UPPER EOCENE LIMESTONE AS EXPOSED

IX )IO('LIN NEAR 'l'HE TRAIL FRO~I GROS-:\IORNlij 'l 'O ,.l' ERRJ~-~EU\.E.
'l' h e cobbl<'S n r e ,·olca nic i·ocks.
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 109

atone commonly contains Foraminifera, some mollusks, and a few corals.

It is well developed south of Terre-Neuve on the road to Gonaives, along
the crest of the Montagnes Noires between Dessalines and Paul, near •

Montagnac east of Dame-Marie, and at other places in most of the moun-

tains. In the Gonaives region and elsewhere it overlies limestone of the
first type and forms the upper part of the upper Eocene deposits.
A third type consists of very evenly bedded cherty limestone, which at
many places contains beds and lenses of nearly pure chert. The beds are
10 to 15 centimeters in thickness. The rock is white to bluish, its color
depending probably on the proportion of siliceous material it contains.
It is very hard and breaks with a splintery conchoidal fracture. Such
beds contain little or no shale or other detrital material, except near tl1e
base. At some localities beds of white porous granular limestone are inter-
bedded with cherty limestone. Chert fragments are conspicuous in the
r.esiduum from this limestone. The chert may contain Foraminifera,
and well-preserved Foraminifera are fo11nd at some places in the granular
limestone. This type of limestone is common in the Port-Salut Peninsula
near Cavaillon and along the south coast from Marigot eastward to the
Dominican border. Sim.i lar rock in the mo11ntains just south of Anse-a-
Veau contains many beds of dark-blue or black chert.
Other types of upper Eocene limestone might be distinguished or dif-
ferent features might be chosen as criteria for their separation, as there
are many variations from the types described.
The solubility of most of the upper Eocene limestones accounts for their
great changes in physical appearance, which are especially conspicuous
near the surface but at places probably extend to great depth. The cover-
ing of soil, which is red or white, chalky or cherty, has been mentioned.
•
Other features include pitted or honeycombed surfaces, sharp pinnacled
projections, and surfaces coated by a crust of dissolved and redeposited •

calcareous material, which may contain excellent specimens of Recent

shells or impressions of plants. Cobbles of limestone embedded in a cal-
careous crust along trails may simulate a conglomerate. Cavities dissolved
in the limestone are commonly refilled with soil and sediment that is
recemented with calcareous material, producing a mass of rock that may
aptly be ter1ned solution breccia and that is illustrated in Plate XI, A.
Such solution breccias are common in all areas underlain by the second
type of limestone described on page 108.
'!hickness. The structure of the upper Eocene limestone is so complex
and the areas in which it lies at the surface are so difficult to explore
fully on account of their ruggedness and the thick growth of vegetation
that no accurate estimate of its thickness was obtained. In all the princi-
pal areas where it is found, however, it has a thickness of at least several
h11ndred meters and at a few places of 1,000 to 2,000 meters. The section
on the Bras-A-Gauche south of Jeremie is believed to represent at least
1,300 meters of limestone. Limestone at le&Bt 500 meters thick is
 •

110 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

exposed on the north slope of the mountains immediately south of

Rendez-vous, on the trail from Petionville to Furey. (Seep. 131.)
Structure. The upper Eocene limestone is nearly everywhere sharply
•
folded. In general, as has already been stated, the mountain ranges con-
sist of huge compo11nd anticlines (such as are commonly but incorrectly
called a.n ticlinoria) or are remnants of such anticlines modified by erosion.
At some places the limestone is intensely crumpled and small thrust
faults are common, and at a few places there are probably high-angle
thrust faults of considerable magnitude. The folding has here and there
caused shearing and produced a sheeted structure in the rock that makes
the determination of the bedding difficult or impossible.

DESCRIPTION BY REGIONS.

Massif du Nord.

M orne du Cap. The crest of the Morne du Cap is formed by a ridge

that trends east and west and that is several kilometers in length and from
100 to more than 200 meters in height. The crest and most of the north
slope of the mountain are covered by lim estone of upper Eocene age, which
lies unconformably on volcanic rocks and on an impure cherty limestone
of supposed Cretaceous age. The basal contact of the limestone along the
short, steep escarpment south of the crest was not examined but is plainly
visible from a distance and apparently is 50 to 100 meters below the sum-
mit of the ridge. On the north slope the limestone in most places extends
down to the sea. It therefore seems that the limestone
.
dips seaward and
overlies the older rocks.
A basal conglo,m erate marks the contact of the upper Eocene and older
roclcs. This conglomerate was found in place at only one locality, near
Source Cinq Carreaux and Source d'Aubry of the Cap-Ha1tien water
supply. The exposure is not very large but indicates a thickness of prob-
ably 50 meters or more, as the beds apparently are steeply titled. The
rock is hard and dark and consists mainly of chert, though in part of
fragments of volcanic rock. Beds half a meter thick were noted. At an-
other locality, about 1 kilometer west of Source Belair, float of a similar
conglomerate was found near the base of the limestone. It cont.a.ins a
greater proportion of fragments of volcanic rock, generally subangular
and very firmly cemented.
The main mass of the limestone a.ppears to resemble the second type
described on page 108. It is hard and is gray on weathered and white on
fresh surfaces. Some of it appears to be crystalline, and it contains coarse
crystals of calcite. The rock is generally massive on weathered exposures.
Its surface is pitted with solution cavities, and at almost every locality ob-
served it consists of huge blocks left by solution, making the land surface
very jagged and uneven. Such features are conspicuous west of the light-
house at Fort Picolet. No reliable estimate of its thickness is possible, b~t

I
 I

SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 111

the upper Eocene limestone is at least a few hundred meters thick. Upper
Eocene Foraminifera were collected at four localities. (See list at p. 144,
stations 9854, 9853, 9847, 9798.)
Near Don·don. Upper Eocene limestone forms a high mo11ntain just
west of Dondon and extends northward beyond the Citadelle of , Chris-
tophe, capping a sharp, narrow ridge known as the Bonnet-a-l'Eveque.
The limestone overlies volcanic rocks, old argillites and upper Cretaceous
limestone with angular unconformity.
, On the trail to the C'i tadelle of
Christophe and the Bonnet-a-l'Eveque the contact is at an altitude of
about 650 meters above sea level, but farther south the upper Eocene
limestone descends to the border of the valley of Dondon, which is only
about 400 meters above sea level.
At the base of the upper Eocene limestone is a conglomerate, which is
exposed at several places on the trail leading down from the Citadelle to
Dondon in the first half a kilometer south of the place where the trail
branches from that leading down to Milot. Near the fork in the trail are
dark sandy beds that may possibly belong in the basal upper Eocene. A
little farther south hard conglomerate occurs in beds ranging from 15 to
40 centimeters in thickness. ri,hese beds ar·e exposed again about half a
kilometer from the fork of the trail in contact with upper Cretaceous lime-
stone, which they apparently overlie. A sample of conglomerate from the
last exposure contains llndetermined species of Orthophragmina. The
hard conglomerate in both exposures is composed mainly of a gray or
bluish calcareous matrix which cements a considerable proportion of
small pebbles of the older igneous rocks, Cretaceous ( ?) argillites, and
upper Cretaceous limestone containing rudistid mollusks. Float from
the basal upper Eocene conglomera.t e was found on the trail to Milot.
The limestone above the basal beds in this region is very similar to that
on the Morne du Cap and contains the same Foraminifera. It most closely
resembles that of the second type described on page 108. It is gray and
appears massive on all weathered surfaces. The surfaces are pitted by solu-
tion cavities, and the whole mass is commonly honeycombed by caverns.
Several such caverns were seen along the trail to the Citadelle.
The thickness of the limestone, at least on the mountain just west of
Dondon, must aggregate several hundred meters.
•
The only fossils found were Foraminifera. Good specimens were ob-
tained from float just southwest of Milot (see list opposite p. 144, station
9744) and from a block of the masonry in the Citadelle (station 9797),
which is in pa.rt built of limestone from the mountain to the south.
To the east and south of Dondon there is supposed upper Eocene lime-
stone of a type considerably different from that to the west and north
and more similar to the first type, described on page 108. This rock occurs
in very even beds, which are generally 10 to 20 centimeters thick, though
at some places they reach 30 centimeters. Some beds are white and have
112 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

a chalky granular appearance, but most of them are dense and full of blu..
ish chert lenses. The beds are sharply folded and at places show a sheeting
transverse to the bedding. Good exposures are fo11nd on the mountain
slopes east of Dondon and south of Dondon on the trail to St.-Rafael in
bluffs along Riviere Bouyaha.
This rock is apparently overlain by middle Oligocene limestone, and
it may therefore be lower Oligocene instead of upper Eocene.
Arrondissement of Borgne. The eastern part of the coastal ridge be-
tween Anse-a-Foleur and the plain at the mouth of Riviere de Port llargot,
in the arrondissement of Borgne, is composed of upper Eocene limestone,
which rests on basaltic volcanic rocks. A conglomerate at the base of the
limestone conta.ins pebbles of the volcanic rock and also of limestone, p1·ob-
ably of Cretaceous age. The lower part of the limestone contains beds of
shale and sandy detrital material, and tl1e upper part consists of hard gray
limestone and thinner beds of dense porcellanous limestone. Upper
Eocene Foraminifera were collected at a locality on the west side of
Baie de la Riviere Salee. (See list opposite p. 144, station 9769.) The
limestone along the coast between Anse-a-liarigot and Acul Bay probably
is upper Eocene, but was not examined.

Northwest Peninsula.

Bombardopolis Plateau. Rocks of probably upper Eocene age were

found on the Bombardopolis Plateau along the trail from Baie de Henne
to Bombardopolis, where they are well exposed on three or four north-
south ridges, described on page 370. These rocks appear to overlie the
reworked fragmental volcanic rock described on page 266, but their exact
relations are obscure. They are overlain unconformably by Quaternary
coralliferous limestone.
The supposed Eocene rocks consist mainly of dark to bluish very cherty
limestone, in thin and even beds, but at some places they contain thick
layers of fine, dark-brown sandy material. The sandy material appears to
contain fragments of igneous rocks, which are probably de1·ived from the
same source as the fragments of the underlying tuffaceous rock. The
beds are sharply folded and generally strike a little west of north, but
they dip either to the east or west at angles of about 30°.
1
According to Liitgens the same series of rocks occurs on 11orne Chien,
2
west of Baie de Henne. His description sl1ows that apparently similar
rocks crop out on the edge of the plateau along the trail leading down to
La Plateforme. He believed, however, that the basaltic rocks underlying
the limestone and the fragmental volcanic beds at or near the base of the
limestone are of late Tertiary or early Quaternary age.
•

a LUtgens, R., Geog. Gesell. 1n Hamburg Mitt., Rand 32, pp. 68-69, tlg. 5, 1919.
1 Idem. p. 73, fig. 7, 1919.
 •

SEDIMENT.A.RY ROCKS. 113

Farther north, near Bombardopolis, a white chalky limestone is poorly

exposed at several localities. This limestone probably underlies the Qua-
ternary coralliferous limestone and may also be upper Eocene.
Montagnes de Jean. Rabel. Upper Eocene limestone forms a thick cap
on the top of the Montagnes de Jean Rabel, south of the town of Jean
Rabel, along the crest of the Northwest Peninsula. I t rests unconformably
on quartz diorite and volcanic rocks and is overlain by Oligocene and
Miocene beds.
At the base of the upper Eocene limestone lies a conglomerate composed
of fragments of the underlying igneous rocks. The only good exposure of
this conglomerate that was seen is about 5 kilometers southwest of Jean
Rabel, on Riviere Cadet. The conglomerate pebbles generally are less than
1.0 centimeters in diameter and are well rounded. The rocl{ is firmly ce-
mented, well bedded, and has a thickness of about 35 meters. It grades
upward into sandy limestone that conta.i ns much detrital material. This
zone is about 50 meters in thickness and grades upward into pure white
limestone like that of the second type described on page 108. This rock
apparently constitutes the great mass of the limestone in tl1is region.
The limestone and conglomerate on the Riviere Cadet are tilted north -
eastward at angles of 15° to 30°, and the limestone on the Jean Rabel-
Anse Rouge trail dips northward. The major structural feature of the
mountain ra.n ge appears to be an anticlinal arch.
Foraminifera, particularly Cuban species of Orthophragmina, are abun-
dant in the conglomera,t e and limestone at most of the places examined.
(See list at p. 144, stations 9795, 9842, 9843, 9845, 9796 and 9964.)
Montagnes de T erre-N euve. Upper Eocene deposits cover most of the
Montagnes de Terre-Neuve, although manjr patches of the underlying
igneous rocks are exposed, and in the Terre-N euve mineral district the
igneous rocks are predominant at the surface. The upper Eocene deposits
consist mainly of limestone, which rests as a thick cap unconformably on
a basement of basaltic and andesitic rocks. The lower part of the forma-
tion comprises a thickness of several hundred meters of impure beds which
grade from coarse conglomerate, composed almost entirely of igneous
debris, into thin-bedded limestone containing beds of sand and shale.
Some of the conglomerate and thin-bedded limestone may be middle
Eocene. The upper part of the series, also some hundreds of meters in
thickness, consists of purer limestone, generally in thicker beds and more
commonly fossiliferous. The thickness of the entire series was not meas-
ured, even roughly, but it is probably not less than 1,000 meters. Suc-
cessively higher beds overlap the lower beds, as the upper pure lime-
stone at many localities in the central part of the region rests almost
directly on the old igneous landmass. The lower beds are most widely
exposed and are thickest around the borders of the mo11ntain mass, whera-
as the purer limestone is predominant in the interior. This relation is

•
8
 114 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

significant not only stratigraphically and structurally but also because it

seems to afford some indication that the old landmass had its axis in part
in the same area that constitutes the present axis of the mountains. H ow-
ever, the existence of a trough in the central part of the region must be
postulated to account for the anomalous .development of thin-bedded im-
pure limestones on 1Iorne Miguinda.
Exposures of these rocks as they were found at a number of different
localities are described below.
Some of the best exposures of the basal conglomerate are fo11nd in
Section Moulin, Comm11ne of Gros-Morne, northeast of Terre-Neuve,
•

in the deep valley drained by Riviere Lhormand. About 400 meters north-
west of the Chapel, which is in the western part of this valley (for loca-
tion see Pl. II, in pocket), the conglomerate is exposed on low hills that
border a trail. It contains many cobbles, 20 to 30 centimeters in diameter,
composed of the volcanic rocks common in the region (Pl. XI, B) . Inter-
bedded with this coarse material are local beds of shaly and impure lime-
stone, some of them 1 to 2 meters thick. On the Terre-Neuve trail 500 to
1,000 meters southeast of the Chapel there are many thin beds of impure
bluish limestone and sandy detrita.l material, which overlie patches of
weathered igneous rock.
About 4 kilometers east of this same Chapel and about 1 kilometer west
of a village called Savane Moulin the Riviere Lhormand passes through
a gorge in the easternmost ridge of the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve, at the
border of the Trois Rivieres valley, along the main trail between Gros-
Morne and Terre-Neuve. Near the west end of the gorge a reddish por-
phyritic andesite is exposed in the stream bed and is overlain by a con-
glomerate composed of igneous materjal. The conglomerate extends down-
stream for perhaps 200 or 300 meters and apparently dips eastward. It
grades upward through sandy and conglomeratic limestone into pu1~e
limestone of the massive type, which crops out to the east in the main
part of the gorge. The exposures of conglomerate in the stream bluffs are
masked by talus. Much better exposures are found directly to the south,
on the southwest slope of the ridge through which the gorge has been
eroded. Here the conglomerate contains coarse and angular fragments,
as well as some well-rounded pebbles, and appears to be several hundred
meters thick.
Similar basal conglomerate of comparable thickness is found several
kilometers to the southeast, probably along a part of the same ridge. The
conglomerate is associated with the manganese deposits in the vicinity of
Morne Macat. (See p. 470. ) It crops out on the west slope and partly on
the crest of this somewhat broken ridge for an undetermined distance. The
observed extent is more than 3 kilometers. The conglomerate contains
many large, rough cobbles of dark andesitic rocks, and also a considerable
• amount of fine sand, the whole mass being rather poorly sorted. The
underlying volcanic rock appears to be exposed on the south end of ·
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS.
•
115

Morne Macat, but near the north end, on the west slope, the conglomerate
seems to re..st on a bluish metamorphosed shaly limestone, fragments of
which it contains. The beds of conglomerate generally dip eastward or
northeastward, and on the crest of the ridge they are overlain in places by
white limestone, probably of the pure massive type. Between the two there
is a transition zone of sandy and conglomeratic ljmestone, from which the
upper Eocene Foraminifera listed at page 144 (stations 9868, 9869, and
9870) were collected on the crest of Marne Macat. The upper Eocene
rocks in this region are cut off to the east by a fault, and at places the
basal conglomerate is in cont.r act with Oligocene rocks, as described on
page 121.
No other exposures of the basal conglomerate were found in the region.
Traces of it were noted about 1.5 kilometers southeast of Terre-Neuve, on
a trail that skirts the southwest side of Marne Miguinda, near the north-
west end of that mountain. The material is composed of fragments of
igneous rocks interbedded with limestone, but the rock has been brecciated
by faulting, so that the relations are not clear. The fossils listed opposite
page 144 (station 9800) are from this exposure.
Traces of conglomerate beneath the upper Eocene limestone were also
found about 3 l\:ilometers west of Terre-Neuve, in a ravine south of Morne
Avocat.
In the interior of the ~Iontagnes de Terre-Neuve the conglomerate
either is thin and masked by talus or is composed entirely of fragments of
igneous rock and can in f ew places be distinguished from weathered vol-
canic rock.
As suggested on page 102, some of the conglomerate in the eastern part
of the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve may be of middle Eocene age.
The best section of the thin-bedded limestone containing detrital mate-
rial is exposed on the south slope of Morne Bienac, a prominent isolated
mountain directly north of Gona1ves. This face of the mountain forms a
cuesta slope, on which the rocks strike approximately east and west and
dip 15°-30° N. On the southwest slope the beds are exposed almost con-
tinuously from an altitude of about 90 meters above sea level to the top
of the mountains, at about 350 meters above sea level. The lowest exposed
beds are thin-bedded yellowish chalky or sandy limestone with a little
interbedded clay.
At an altitude of about 160 meters above sea level the thickness of the
beds increases rather abruptly to perhaps 35 centimeters, and at this hori-
zon there is a conspicuous bed of conglomeratic limestone about a meter
thick, which was traced for several hundred meters along the moun-
tain side. It is composed of small pebbles, most of them less than 3 centi-
meters in diameter, of white or yellowish limestone that resembles the
underlying beds and of dark-blue chert and smaller, badly weathered frag-
ments of igneous rock. The pebbles are subangular to well rounded and
are firmly cemented in a calcareous matrix. Foraminifera apparently
116 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

embedded in the matrix were collected at two neighboring localities from

this bed (see list opposite p. 144, stations 9848 and 9851) . The beds below
the conglomerate may be of middle Eocene age.
The conglomerate is overlain by a meter or more of crumbly gray sand-
stone, followed by thin beds of limestone and by shaly or sandy beds
much like those on the lower slope of the mountain and containing no
fossils. These beds extend to an altitude of about 300 meters above sea
level. In the upper part they became whiter and more chalky and contain
less shale.
Capping the mountains and overlying the thin-bedded limestone lies
a massive gray limestone, 40 to 50 meters thick, which has been broken
down by solution and redeposition of material into a typical solution
breccia. It is pitted and pinnacled in odd shapes, and has been so filled
with red clay and stained by iron oxides that it has a peculiar reddish ti11t,
noticeable even from the plain to the south. Much crystalline calcite bas
also been deposited in the cavities. This rock extends an undetermined
distance northward down the dip slope of the mountain, suggesting that
its dip conforms to that of the llnderlying beds. I t is believed to be the
same as the pure massive type of limestone described on page 108. The
only fossils obtained were specimens of a poritid coral of massive growth
form. (Station 9850.)
The thickness of the thin-bedded limestone containing detrital material
exposed is fully 400 and probably more nearly 500 meters.
About 1 or 2 kilometers east of the section just described, on the lower
slope of Morne Bienac, there is a very prominent vertical cliff, about 50
meters high, which is especially conspicuous from the harbor. The base
of this cliff was examined hastily. It appears that the cliff consists of
massive grayish limestone, partly conglomeratic, which probably dips
northward. This bed probably is lower in the section than any of those
farther west, but its exact relations are not clear.
The eastern face of 1\1orne la Pierre, although not examined closely,
bears a striking resemblance to the south slope of Morne B ienac. I t is a
long and regular escarpment that rises gradually from the sea on the
south to a height of about 600 meters on the north, west of Morne Soleil.
The lower slopes appear to be composed mainly of the thin-bedded lime-
stone. About 100 or 200 meters below the top of the escarpment stands a
conspicuous, very reddish bluff, apparently overlain by gray or massive
limestone. The reddish color of the bluff doubtless is due to the formation
at the contact of the t1vo types of limestone of a solution breccia similar t o
that on the top of Morne Bienac.
Thin-bedded limestone similar to that on Morne Bienac occupies the
upper part of the south slope and all the north slope of Morne Soleil, t l1e
first ridge crossed by the trail from Gona1ves to Terre-N euve, north of
Gona1ves. On the south slope and near the summit it contains more
shale and sandy material than is common on Morne Bienac, at some places
 SEDIMENT.ARY ROCKS. 117

enougl1 to constitute fully half of tl1e section. About halfway up the soutl1
slope there is an exposure of badly 'vcatl1ered amygdaloidal basalt. The
limestone beds overlie the basalt, probably unconformably.. Only talus
is exposed on the lower slope. Near the foot of the north slope of Morne
Soleil, along the trail, the beds become much t11icker and contain less
detrital material. One bed of semicrystalline limestone in this section
contains many small undetermined Foraminifera. Tl1e summit of Morne
Soleil, which rises considerably above the trail, probably has a cap of the
more massive limestone. The rocks along the t.r ail are complexly folded,
and t he total thiclcness of the beds can not be estimated.
Just north of ~forne Soleil, on the trail to Terre-N euve, lies a deep
valley, chiefly soil-covered, known as ~1are-a-Colas. On the slope between
!fare-a-Colas and the community called Figuier t.h ere are a number of
exposures of soft bro\vn sandstone or fine conglomerate containing pebbles
of basalt and limestone, generally not more than 2 or 3 centimeters in
diameter. The rocks appear to be interbedded with chalky limestones.
Near the top of tl1e main ascent, about 2 kilometers southeast of Figuier,
there are some more massive limestone beds from which the Foraminifera
listed under station 9827 at page 144 \Vere obtained. All these heels appear
to dip from 15° to 40° southeastward, down the slope of the mountain.
Morne Bla.n c, which is scarcely more than a hill, on the nort.h shore of
Gona!ves harbor, is composed almost entirely of the thin-bedded and
elastic type of limestone, apparently identical with that 011 l\Iorne Bienac.
The surface of a bed on the north slope of the hill is pitted with numer-
ous regular depressions that were probably made by raindrops. Near
t he summit of the north slope, at an altitude of 90 or 100 meters above
sea level, a bed of crystalline limestone about a meter thick, containing
a few small pebbles of igneous rock, yielded Foraminifera similar to those
from the bed of conglomerate on Morne Bie11ac. (See p. 144, station
9735.) Near the seashore on the southwest point of this mountain the rock
is well exposed at a number of abandoned quarries. In the quarries there is
one unusually massive bed of limestone about 2 meters thick. At this
locality the thin-bedded yellowish limestone containing sandy or shaly
beds grades upward conformably into very white dense chalky limestone,
also thin-bedded, which at many places shows a peculiar sheeted structure
transverse to the bedding. There is no shaly material in this rock. On
Morne Blanc the beds are generally tilted 15 ° to 20° in different direc-
tions, generally southeastward. There are a few very short and sharp
flexures that have almost developed into thrust faults.
Nearly all the sout.h end of 1'1 orne la Pierre, along the trail from Go-
na1ves to La Pierre, is composed of massive gray limestone, very much
altered by weathering, which at many places forms the typical solution
breccia described on page 109 and shown in Plate XI, A~ and which closely
resembles the rock capping Morne Bienac. The bedding js determinable
at only a few places. The only fossil obtained was a coral. (See p. 144,
118 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

station 9737.) Beautifully preserved Recent shells of the genera Urocopti&

and Ohondropoma are included in the fillings and coatings of the breccia.
At La Pierre a small valley cuts a deep nokh in the steep slope down
to the coast. The lower part of this valley, apparently up to an altitude
of 50 to 100 meters above sea level, is underlain by a pure white chalky
sheeted limestone, which is believed to be equivalent of that in the upper
part of the section on Morne Blanc. This rock yields a very pure whit,e clay
soil. It is definitely overlain by the more massive type of limestone form-
ing the solution breccia, and the massive limestone appears to constitute
the mountain heights back from the coast. La Pierre Spring, the source
of the water supply of Gona1ves, issues at the contact of the two types of
limestone in the bed of the Ravine la Pierre and owes the position of its
outlet to the presence of the underlying less pervious chalky limestone.
(Seep. 591.) Higher in the section the overlying limestone, which can be
traced for some distance up the ravine, appears to be less brecciated and
probably grades into the pure massive type of limestone common in the
interior of t.he Montagnes de Terre-Neuve.
Limestone of the thin-bedded type, togetl1er with much sandy and shaly
material apparently derived from the erosion of basalt, is widely exposed
in the valley of Riviere Bras-a-Droit northwest of the ~Iontagnes de
Terre-Neuve and aro11nd the borders of the Arbre Plain from the Sources
Chaudes eastward and southeastward for several kilometers. Near Phi-
lippe, on Riviere Bras-a-Droit, half or more of the section appears to con-
sist of detrital material. At a locality about 2 kilometers southeast of
.P hilippe the limestone appears to be interbedded with basalt, but this
relation may be due to a strike fault. Upper Eocene Foraminifera were
collected at this locality (see list at p. 144, station 9824) from a bed that
probably belongs in the thin-bedded and elastic type of rock.
Good exposures of the thin-bedded limestone are fo11nd on the south
bank of Riviere Colombier about 1 kilometer west of Source Marianne and
beyond. The rock is rather cherty. It appears to be in a fault contact with
the pure massive type of limestone to the east. The fault trace occupies
a deep ravine that trends N. 15° E. The thin-bedded limestones dip
northwestward about 45° from an escarpment along this ravine. The
presence of the massive limestone is indicated by huge weathered blocks
lying on the ground. It seems that a thrust fault would be necessary to
explain this contact, and it is possible that the thin-bedded limestone is
overturned along the contact. -
On a trail leading to the Sources Chaudes, about 2 kilometers southwest
of Source Marianne and just north of a settlement called Petite Place,
there is an isolated series of low ridges of the massive limestone that
contains many Foraminifera. (See list at p. 144, station 9828.) The mas-
sive limestone appears to be surrounded by the thin-bedded type of lime-
stone that contains much detrital material.
 SEDI MENTARY ROCKS. 119

With the exception of that on Morne Miguinda (see below) the lime-
stone in the high interior ranges of the Montagnes de Terre-N euve appears
to belong exclusively to the purer massive or thick-bedded type that carries
little or no shaly or sandy materjal. At some loca.lities, apparently near
the base of the limestone, there are thinner beds that contain nodules or
lumps. These beds were noted in the Section Bois-Neuf northwest of
Terre-Neuve and on Riviere Bassin between Meme and Bassin. The more
typical limestone is exposed in bluffs, in places 100 to 300 meters high,
along Riviere Colom bier west of Terre-N euve from Bois-N euf to Source
Marianne. Some beds contain n11merous Foraminifera and others contain
no fossils. Stations 9825 and 9826 are in this region. (For lists see
p. 144.) The rocks in this region are sharply folded, and strikes appear
to vary a great deal. Other collections of fossils from the Terre-N euve
valley are listed opposite page 144 (stations 9813 and 9814) .
•

Equally good exposures are common along the trail between Terre-
N euve and Gona},res, in the region between Dolan and Darane, where
there are many high bluffs. The Foramini!era listed at page 144, station
9821, were collected from a cliff near Dolan. Around Darane, which is
near the crest of the divide on this trail, there are many large, flat sink-
holes surrounded by cliffy slopes, about 200 meters high, of tl1e pure
thick-bedded limestone, the bedding being approximately horizontal. This
locality is not far from Figuier, }1orne Soleil, and the nort11 end of Marne
la Pierre, where the massive limestone appears to overlie the thin-bedded
limestone, and it seems probable that at this locality the sinks have been
formed on the soluble massive limestone, which overlies less soluble chall~y
and impure limestone. The less soluble limestone doubtless underlies the
flat-bottomed sinks and prevents their enlargement downward, so that
•
they have begun to expa.n d laterally.
Foraminifera (see list, p. 144, station 9816) we1·e obtained from massive
limestone on the mountain slope northeast of Meme. In a gorge along
Riviere Bassin, about midway between Bassin and Meme, the pure massive
or thick-bedded limestone forms high cliffs. Other exposures in Section
Moulin and on Morne Macat are described on pages 114-115.
The limestone on lt1orne }.1iguinda, a comparatively low mountain spur
in the central part of the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve, a short distance
southeast of the town of Terre-Neuve, does not conform exactly to any of
the other types but probably should be correlated with the thin-bedded
and detrital limestone of Marne Bienac and elsewhere. The mountain ex-
tends northwestward as a spur from Morne Dumuraille and is flanked
on either side by deep, narrow valleys, so that it forms a rugged ridge. I t
appears to be composed almost entirely of rather cherty and siliceous lime-
stone in even beds that range in thickness from 1 to 20 centimeters and
are separated by shale partings hardly as thick as the limestone beds.
The rock is yellow or bluish. It has been greatly fractured and the joints

•
 120 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

are usually cemented with calcite. In weathering many polygonal blocks

are broken off or etched along the bedding planes, giving the surface an
unusually rough, jagged appearance. No fossils could be found in the
limestone, but possibly tl1ose in the conglomerate near the west end of
the mountain may come from the base of these beds. The rocks over most
of the mountain appear to stand nearly vertical.
Still another rather divergent type of limestone is found on Morne
Bouvard, an isolated ridge about 300 meters high along the coast between
La Pierre and Coridon. This mountain is composed of a limestone that is
black outside and commonly very dark inside. From a distance the rock
looks like a lava. I t is weathered into peculiarly pitted, pinnacled, and
jagged forms and is very hard and dense. This rock contains an unusual
species of Orthopliragmina, which is found also on Morne Grammont (see
list, p. 144, stations 9865, 9866, 9867), where the lithologic type is the
same. It is inferred that this limestone is merely a phase of the lighter
colored pure massive limestone found in the upper part of the normal
section, especially as there is some indication on Morne la Pierre of a
gradation phase between the two types.
The relation of the structure in the central part of the Montagnes de
Terre N euve to the ore deposits of the Terre-Neuve district is considered on
• pages 432-433 and is illustrated by figures 27 and 28, pages 442 and 444.
As a whole the Montagnes de T erre-N euve constitute a broad, gentle anti-
clinal arch trending northwestward. Numerous minor folds are superim-
posed on this arch, which is modified near its crest by a deep synclinal
trough corresponding approximately to the depression along Terre-N euve
and Meme valleys. On both sides of this syncline the base of the upper Eo-
cene limestone lies from 600 to 1,000 meters above sea level, but the dip on
the flanl(s carries the pure massive limestone down from an altitude of
200 to 300 meters above sea level on the northeast, at the border of the
trough of the T rois Rivieres Valley, to sea level at many places on the
southwest.
The crest of the major arch does not seem to pl11nge much in either
direction, and deep erosion has cut down to the lower part of the series
if not to the underlying bedrock both on the southeast, at Morne Soleil
and Morne Bienac, and on the northwest, in the valley of Riviere Bras-
a-Droit.
The anticlinal flank is broken on the northeast by one of the most
prominent faults yet recognized in the Republic. This fault is exposed
on the trail between Gros-Morne and Terre-Neuve, about half a kilometer
west of Savane Moulin, near the entrance to the gorge cut by Riviere
Lhormand in the low front range of the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve. ( See
P l. II, in pocket.) Along the trail the fault r11ns along a low ridge. It
trends about N . 55° W. and seems to dip steeply northeastward, but this
obser vation has not been verified . On the northeast is pure white t1nfos-
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 121

siliferous limestone, of chalky appearance but dense, apparently thin-

bedded and prominently sheeted. It resembles the chalky limestone found
at La Pierre and elsewhere, supposedly the middle of the upper Eocene
beds, but as apparently identical rock occurs in the Oligocene, and as
upper Oligocene rocks are found in the lowland to the east, this limestone
js tentatively correlated with the Oligocene. Southwest of the fault is
massive gray limestone of upper Eocene type containing abundant Fora-
minifera (see list, p. 144, station 9891). For 2 or 3 meters along the fault
this limestone is somewhat silicified and is largely replaced by brown or
yellow limonite. It also contains black stains, probably of manganese
minerals. The pure white limestone strikes about N . 75° W., and dips 25°
northeastward. The bedding of the massive limestone is not apparent, but
the structural and topographic features to the west indicate that it dips
northeastward toward the fault, as the basal conglomerate of the upper
Eocene is exposed not far away at higher altitudes. ·
A few kilometers south by east, along what is probably the continuation
of the same ridge, which strikes out into the Trois Rivieres Valley, the
fault was found on Morne Macat, where it is intimately related to the
deposit of manganese described on pages 470-475. Near this place the
white sheeted unfossiliferous limestone, of supposed Oligocene age, was
found east of the fault, which strikes about N. 20° W. West of the fault
the crest of the ridge is formed of upper Eocene basal conglomerate, which
is overlain by small patches of grayish limestone containing upper Eocene
Foraminifera. The sheeted limestone to the east stands nearly vertical.
The gray limestone and conglomerate to the west dip 20° or 30° north-
eastward toward the fault. The fault plane is very steep but probably dips
eastward. The fault trace in this locality is marked by a reef of altered
limestone, much of which is replaced by jasper and by oxides of iron and
manganese. It was followed for a distance of about 3 kilometers.
Further indications of this fault were fo11nd still farther south, north of
the road that branches from the Gona1ves-Gros-Morne road and goes north-
west to Bassin. North of a dry ravine that runs eastward past the north
end of 1Iorne d' Anneau is a bluff, 20 meters high, formed of the white
thin-bedded unfossiliferous limestone, in beds that strike northward and
stand vertical. A short distance to the west are andesites and other vol-
canic rocks. No search was made for the fault, but it doubtless comes in
somewhere in the intervening space. Its trend in this locality appears to
have changed to nea1·ly north.
This southernmost locality at which the fault was noted is about 14
kilometers from its exposure near Sava,ne Moulin, and from this point
it appears to extend a considerable distance both northward and southward.
The throw of the fault is apparently equal to at least the total thickness
of the upper Eocene se1·ies, certainly several hundred meters. It is prob-
ably a normal fault, although normal faults so great appear to be unusual
in Haiti, the thrust fault being the more common type.
122 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Some not.able faulting has undoubtedly occurred along the central syn-
cline in the Terre-Neuve district, but its details were not traced out, and
indeed the work of tracing them would be very difficult. Faults are sus-
pected to exist at other places, particularly at the contact of massive with
thin-bedded limestone west of Source Marianne.
Valley of Rivi~re d'Ennery.
-The valley of Riviere d'Ennery, as the term is here used, includes tl1e
mountain slopes north and south of that stream, the north slope belonging
to the province of the Massif du Nord and the south slope to the Mon-
tagnes Noires. Most of the surface rocks in this area are of Upper Eocene
age. In their lithology and fauna they resemble the upper Eocene rocks in
the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve.
At the border of the plain near Gona1ves, on a small hill just north of
the road to Enn ery, thin-bedded sandy limestone similar to that on Morne
Bienac rests on dark basalt. F.a rther east, where the road crosses a low
ridge at the edge of the mountains, there are crumpled thin-bedded lime-
stones and shaly beds, probably also the same as those on Morne Bienac.
The same beds of limestone crop out in numerous cuts along the rail-
road to Ennery and at many localities farther east, toward Ennery.
A railroad cut west of Passe Reine along the south side of Riviere d'En-
nery exposes white, dense limestone in thin and very even beds, separated
by beds of shaly limestone. (See Pl. XII, A..) The Foraminifera listed
at p. 144 (station 9923) were collected at this locality. Some of the beds
found still farther east are chalky or sandy and contain bluish black chert,
in nodules as well as in bands that lie parallel to the bedding. Such beds
contain little or no detrital ma.t erial. At Passe Garde, about 4 kilometers
east of Passe Reine, a massive bed of conglomerate about a meter in
thickness is interbedded in the limestone. The conglomerate is composed
mainly of small rounded pebbles of white limestone, a.p parently similar
to tha.t in the beds below and above it, embedded in a calcareous matrix
containing the Foraminifera listed a.t page 144 (station 9804). White,
dense unfossiliferous thin-bedded limestone, interbedded with brownish-
gray granular limestone containing pebbles of weathered igneous rock
is exposed in a. railroad cut on the south side of Riviere d'Ennery, 3 kilo-
meters southeast of Passe Garde. The Foraminifera listed at page 144
(station 9989) were collected from a bed of the granular limestone.
Rather similar limestone covers most of the south slope of Mont Puil-
boreau, on the road from Ennery to Plaisance. At places the limestone
is thin-bedded and contains shaly or sandy beds; at other places it is more
massive and contains less detrital material. Thick beds of coarse crystal-
line limestone rich in upper Eocene Foraminifera (see list, p. 144, stations
9862, 9863, and 9864) were noted at several places on this slope. Some
thick but regular beds of coarse conglomerate containing large cobbles of
dark igneous rock are also exposed on this slope. About 2 kilometers
 PLATE XII

A. TYPICAL EXPOSl:.TRE OF TllI~ -BEDDED UPPE~ EOCE~E

L1)1E-
STONE IN 'VESTER:N PAR"£ OF VALLEY OF RIVIERE D'ENNERY •
•

B. TIIIX-BEDDED Lll\IIDS"l' OXE OF SUPPOSED urPER EOCENE AGE

ON GRANDE RIVIERE ' DU CUL-DE-SAC.
•

0 . CHALKY UPPER EOCENE LIMESTONE CONTAINING BANDS AND

XODlT I~ES OF C ll~"}R 'r EXPOSJiJD IN SfiJA CTJTFF NEAR SALTROU.

•
•
 I

SEDIMENT.ARY ROCKS. 123

from Ennery, on the lower part of the slope, there is an exposure of solid
black basalt, probably part of the underlying basement of igneous rock
and doubtless the source from which the cobbles in the conglomerate were
derived.
Limestone belonging to the same series crops out southeast of Ennery,
along the road to St.-Michel de l' Atalaye, between Ennery and the foot of
Crete Salee. Foraminifera were collected from gray granular limestone
about a kilometer southeast of Ennery. (See list, p . 144, station 9924.)
r1,l1e basalt underlying the limestone crops out at the foot of a cliff on the
south side of Riviere d'Ennery, about 3 kilometers southeast of Ennery.
A bed of limestone, 50 centimeters in thickness, above the basalt contains
small weathered pebbles of the basalt. The Foraminifera listed at page 144
(station 9925) were collected from this bed. This locality is one of the few
at which free tests of upper Eocene Foraminifera were obtained. A mas-
. sive conglomerate containing cobbles of basalt as large as a man's head em-
bedded in a calcareous matrix overlies the lower bed of limestone. The
highest beds exposed consist of thin-bedded white limestone. The beds in
this cliff strike N. 45° E. and dip 15° NW. and are broken by a normal
fault of small throw that dips steeply southeastward.
'fhe rocks in this region that is, along Riviere d'Ennery and on the
north slope of its valley eastward and westward from Ennery appear to
belong mainly to the thin-bedded type that carries a large amount of
detrital material, which is so prominently developed on Morne Bienac and
elsewhere in the Montagnes de Terre-N euve~ In all this region the pre-
vailing dip is southward, even somewhat south of the course of Riviere
d'Ennery. This dip, alt.h ough it is doubtless reversed in the region not
far beyond, appears to carry the thin-bedded limestone beneath the great
mass of limestone that caps the Montagnes Noires to the south and that
forms conspicuously black and cliffy slopes. However, this steep front of
the Montagnes Noires was not examined, and its exact relations are
11nknown.
There appears to be some question whether the limestones near Ennery
are identica.l with those of Morne Bienac and others of the same type far-
ther west. The Foraminifera obtained in this region generally more
closely resemble those found in the massive and pure type of limestone
of the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve, and possibly the beds to the east, near
Ennery and beyond, sl1ould be correlated with those in the higher part of
the series in the Montagnes de Tef!e-Neuve, although lithologically they
rather resemble the beds in the lower part of the series. It can ha.r dly
be doubted that the beds bordering the plain near Gona1ves are almost if
not identically the same as those of Morne Bjenac.

Montagnes Noires.

Northwestern part. Southeast of the valley of Riviere d'Ennery, in

the region between the Artibonite Plain and St.-Michel de l' Atalaye, the

•
124 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Montagnes Noires consist of ranges composed almost entirely 0£ upper

Eocene limestone, generally very pure and usually either thick-bedded or
massive, closely resembling the limestone that forms the interior ranges
of the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve. The thin-bedded limestones containjng
detrital beds, which are typically exposed about the borders of the Mon-
tagnes de Terre-Neuve and in tl1e valley of Riviere d'Ennery, are almost
absent, so far as shown by the exa.m ination of the mountain front between
Gona1ves and Dessalines and by the traverse of the ranges from Dessalines
through Paul to St.-1Iichel de l' Atalaye. In this region the limestone
r ests on andesitic volcanic rocks and old argillites, probably of Cretaceous
age. The older rocks are exposed about the borders of the mountain ranges
and underlie extensive valleys in the interior of the mountains. The con-
tact undoubtedly is unconformable, although no basal conglomerate was
found on the weathered and talus-covered contacts. Descriptions of the
upper Eocene rocks at different localities follow.
Morne Grammont, although separated by an alluvial plain fro1n the
Montagnes Noires, is geologically a part of that province. This mountain
appears to be composed mainly if not entirely of upper Eocene limestone
of a peculiar type, semmingly identical with that on Morne Bouvard (see
p. 120) both lithologically and faunally. This rock is very dark, both on
the weathered exterior and on broken surfaces. It is unusually pitted and
r oughened by solution. In general the fossils are rather sparse, although at
certain horizons they are abundant (see list, p. 144, stations 9770 and
9742) and include a peculiar Ortliop}i1.,agmina, which is found also on
Morne Bouvard. Structurally the mountain appears to form a tilted
block that dips northeastward, although no positive dips were obtainable,
as the rock appears massive. Similar limestone is exposed on some small
hills in the plain east of the mountain and on one of them the limestone
rests on dark volcanic rock. Igneous rock probably underlies the lime-
stone of Morne Grammont a.t the southwest base of the mountain, which
was not examined. It seems lil\:ely that here, as at Morne Bouvard, ·t his
limestone of unusual facies is the equivalent of the lighter colored rocks
to the northeast, which contain a somewhat different fauna, particula1·ly
as the front range of the Montagnes Noires toward Dessalines appears to
contain much dark limestone that indicates a transition between the two
types.
The front range of the Montagnes N oircs between Dessalines and Go-
na1ves has a steep slope, which overlooks the Artibonite Plain. The north-
ern half of this slope is peculiarly straight and regular and apparently is
a fault scarp. (See p. 336.) It wa.s examined at a locality about 12 kilo-
meters southeast of Gona!ves, where its crest is about 350 meters above
sea level and 300 meters above the bordering plain. From the border of
the plain up to an altitude of about 200 meters above sea level the slope is
composed of volcanic rock, and from that altitude to the summit of gray-
 •

SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 125

ish limestone, at most places rather white in t he interior and apparently

massive. It is much pitted and pinnacled by solution. The configuration
of the slopes on opposite sides of the range unmistakably indicates t hat
the limestone is tilted to the northeast, for the northeastern slope is long
and gentle compared to that facing the plain. Very high mountains of
dark limestone rise in a much higher range to the northeast.
Farther southeast, where the road from Gona1ves to Port-au-Prince
skirts the base of this range, its front is more irregular and not so steep.
The rock exposed in the foothills is limestone, commonly rather dark on
broken surfaces. Similar limestone forms the main front range in the
gorge of Riviere Coupe-a-l'I nde east of Dessalines, on the trail to St.-
Michel de l'Atala ye. In front of this range is a ridge of limestone, per-
haps 100 meters high, which was not examined.
Behind the gorge of Riviere Ooupe-a-l'Inde lies a valley that is under-
lain by andesi tic rock, and beyond this valley stands a second much higher
range, which is composed of limestone that apparently rests on volcanic
rock. This range, probably 1,000 meters in height, seems to be composed
entirely of pure, wl1ite, thick-bedded or massive limestone, from which
the fossils from stations 9885, 9886, and 9887 were obtained. (For list
seep. 144.) The beds in this range appear to be crumpled into a n11mber of
folds of northwesterly trend.
The third and highest range, whose peaks probably rise 1,000 to 1,400
meters above sea level, lies betweE:n the valley of Riviere Paul and a similar
fiat ' 'alley to the northeast (Sa vane L e Cidra), both of which are about
400 meters a bo''e sea level. ...~1tl1ough the structure in this range and the
one just considered is not very well understood, the thickness of limestone
in each must be at least 500 to 1,000 meters and perhaps conside1·abl)·
more. In fact, the relations observed at the border of the third range sug-
gest a synclinal structure, but this doubtless is modified by further folding
in the interior of the range. The rock probably is mainly pure massive
limestone, although outcrops of a thin-bedded white limestone without
fossils and suggestive of tl1e upper Eocene on l\iorne Bienac and in t he
valley of Riviere d'Ennery were found in the central part of the gap that
traverses this range east of Paul. Fosils collected from more massive,
brownish beds to the \vest are listed at page 144 under station 9883.
The fourt.h and last range, which borders the Central Plain, is lower,
rising only about 700 or 800 meters above sea level, and it is also narrowe1·
than the other ranges. The rock in the western part of this range appears
to be white massive, rather cherty limestone. It yielded the Foraminifera
listed opposite page 144 (station 9890) . In this range the rocks appear to
be tilted steeply, if not actually overturned, as is suggested by appa.r ently
southwestward dips at the edge of the plain about 3 kilometers southwest
of St.-~Iichel de l' Atalaye.
The lower part of the southwestern slope of the 1'.Iontagnes Noires was
examined northeast of Savanne-a-Roche on the trail to P erodin. Here
126 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

the rock is a white massive or very thick-bedded limestone, presumably

of late Eocene age, although no determinable fossils w_ere found in it.
The top of what corresponds to the front range in this locality is a wide
bench that stands at an altitude of about 700 meters above sea level.
Behind it rises a much higher range, the rocks on which, all the way to its
crest, appea,r to be limestone. At this locality the anticlinal arch of t he
mo11ntains seems to rise much higher than in the area between Dessalines
and St.-Michel de l' Atalaye.
Southeastern part. Along the trail from Mirebalais through Dufailly
1

to Thomonde the main part of the Montagnes Noires forms a single anti-
clinal range. Thin-bedded limestone, which weathers chalky and contains
bands of chert, crops out on the crest of the range and on the slopes near
the crest. Foraminifera of upper Eocene age were collected from the lime-
stone a.n d chert. (See list, p. 144, stations 9789 and 9919.)
The single anticlinal ridge known as Morne Michel, extending from
the gorge of Riviere Artibonite southeastward to the abandoned gorge
followed by the road from Mirebalais to Las Cahobas, was exa.m ined only
1

along the southwestern slope near Mirebalais. Dense, brittle white lime-
stone that breaks with a conchoidal fracture crops out on this slope. Float
of this limestone, which is unfossiliferous at the outcrops examined, con-
tained the upper Eocene Foraminifera listed at page 144 (station 9456) .
The basaltic rocks that underlie the upper Eocene limestone are exposed
in the deep gap across the mountains southwest of Las Cahobas. Out-
crops of the upper Eocene limestone were not examined at this locality, but
Foraminifera of upper Eocene age were collected from float of white lime-
stone that probably comes from the same beds as the large block of massive
limestone that stands along the road. (See list, p. 144, station 9903.)
Limestone of upper Eocene age forms the crest of the range at the south-
eastern end of the Montagnes Noires, but the rocks are not well exposed
along the trail from Belladere to Savanette, the only route along whicl1
the range was crossed. Most of the rock seems to be thin bedded, and its
weathered surfaces have a chalky appearance. Foraminifera were obtained
from float at two localities. (See list, p. 144, stations 9914 and 9915.)

Chatne des Mateux.

The Chaine des Mateux was examined principally along a trail lead-
ing from I'Arcahaie north by east across the central part of the range to
Marche Desarmes. In this region the surface rocks on all the higher part
of the range, at an altitude of more than 800 or 900 meters above sea level,
are of upper Eocene age. These rocks probably rest unconformably on a
basement composed mainly of volcanic rocks, but this basement is not
exposed along the route traversed. Upon the upper Eocene beds on the
flanks of the range, and to all appearances conformably, rests limestone
of supposed Oligocene age.
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 127

The succession of ·the upper Eocene rocks was not ascertained very
clearly. Beds that probably lie in the lower part of the series are exposed
east of the habitation called Couyau on Morne Couyau, a high ridge along
t.he crest of the range. These beds consist partly of rather pure white lime-
. stone, gray on weathered surfaces and generally decomposed and soft, like
chalk. They contain numerous poor casts of fossils, including corals. The
beds are from 15 to 30 centimeters in thickness. Interbedded with this
limestone is a considerable amount of gray or brown sandy material that
is composed chiefly of very weathered grains of basaltic rock. On soil-
covered slopes this material is easily mistaken for weathered basalt. It
yielded a foraminifer, probably of upper Eocene age. (See list, p. 144, sta-
tion 9993.) The presence of these detrital beds, which are absent elsewhere
in the upper Eocene of this region, and the anticlinal structure of the range
suggest that these are the lowest beds of the series exposed on the route
described.
The first ridge northeast of Morne Couyau is but slightly lower and is
more rugged. It seems to be composed entirely of upper Eocene limestone
that is pure and massive or thick-bedded, white on fresh and gray on
weathered surfa.ces. It .is considerably pitted by solution but at places
breaks into smooth-weathered blocks. This limestone rather closely re-
sembles the massive upper Eocene limestone of the Montagnes Noires and
the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve. At some places it contains many speci-
mens of Nummulites parvula Cushman (see list, p. 144, stations 9487 and
9502), as well as indeterminable corals.
On the south slope of Morne Oouyau there is white limestone like
that just described. Farther southwest, in the vicinity of the habitation
Caille-Mare, the limestone is thick-bedded but very cherty, full of large
disk-shaped nodules of chert t.h at contain many small undetermined Fora-
minifera. South of Caille-Mare the limestone is more thin-bedded but
contains here and there thick beds of crystalline limestone full of larger
Foraminifera (see list, p. 144, station 9486) and suggestive of the fossil-
iferous beds in the upper Eocene on the south slopes of Mont Puilboreau,
near Ennery.
Structurally the Chaine des Mateux is an anticlinal range, probably
the most perfect example found in the Republic. The anticline is modi-
fied by secondary folds, and the resulting structure of the upper Eocene
beds is a series of broad anticlirtes and synclines. (See Fig. 5.) On the
lower slopes of the major anticline the upper Eocene beds plunge beneath
the younger Oligocene and Miocene beds. The observations made afforded
no means of estima.t ing the tbic~kness of the upper Eocene beds in this
area, but it is certainly hundreds of meters if not perhaps 1,000 or 2,000
meters.
The upper Eocene limestone of the Chame des Mateux was seen at a
locality about 3 kilometers southeast of Mont Rouis, where the bluffs of
 •

128 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

the mountajn range border the

sea. From a bluff of pure, white,
badly brecciated limestone beside
the railroad the fossils listed at
page 144 (station 9548) were col-
lected. The 0 ligocene limestone
that borders the range farther to
the southeast is missing at this
locality, and this relation prob-
ably holds around all the north-
west t ermination of the range, for
the cliffs and dark slopes of the
Hauts de St.-Marc look from a •

distance like typical upper Eocene

•
limestone .
~
g Along the trail from Saut
~ d'Eau (Ville Bonheur) to Port-
rn. au-Prince, at the southeast end
~ of the Chaine des Mateux, thin-
<!)
Q)
~ bedded dense limestone crops out
8
( .-4

tn ~ on the ridge south of the valley

~ g called Fond-des-Orangers. Float
Q,)

,m "'l....l&J r-d 95 probably derived from this lime-

(}] Cf) r:n
.If ,. _ l'--J
8 ~ stone contained the upper Eocene
I CJ
: ·LS $. ~ Foraminifera listed at page 144
~w-affi'9J
\
\ § (station 9459) .
'
• -4
\ +J
<:.)
' '' ~ :Monta gnes du Trou d'Eau.
' 1. Limestone of upper Eocene age
~ seems to be the surface rock jn
~
5
.......
the central part of the western
~ half of the Montagnes du Trou
d'Eau, at least along the road
from Port-au-Prince to Mireba-
lais. Most of the rock is massive
and gray on weathered surfaces.
The south slope of the mountains
along the road is covered with
talus. Float of hard white lime-
stone collected on the north slope
of Morne Terre-Rouge contained
numerous specimens of upper
Eocene Foraminifera. (See list,
p. 144, station 9790.) The succes-
sion and thickness of these rocks
is not known.
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 129

Massif de la. Selle.

Limestones of known or sup-

posed upper Eocene age are the
most extensive surface sedi-
mentary rocks in the Massif de
• la Selle. The limestones rest
on an eroaed surface of basalt,
but the lower part of the series
was seen at only a few locali-
ties. The contact between the
basalt and the overlying lime-
stone is exposed on the south
coast just west of the small •

stream at the habitation called

•
Adieu-au-Monde (or Guillau-
mone), in the eastern part of
• the arrondissement of J acmel.
Here massive limestone rests
on an irregular eroded surface
of basalt, although no basal
conglomerate was noted. Beds
at the base of the series of up-
per Eocene limestones are well
exposed on Riviere Gosseline,
along the trail from J acmel
across the mountains to Car1·e-
four. They consist almost en-
tirely of detrital material and
are made up of shale, sand-
stone, conglomerate, and sandy
limestone. A layer of sandy
limestone half a meter thick
contained carbonized plant
fragments and an undeter-
mined species of Cornuspira.
Basalt crops out a short dis-
tance farther upstream, but the
contact was not seen. (See
Fig. 6.) Similar detrital rocks 0•
and dark impure limestones fl.l.
occur in the same stratigraphic
position on the Grande Riviere
de J acmel, on the trail from
Jacmel to Leogane. They are
9
130 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAI'rl.

more fully described on page 476, in the matter on deposits of manganese

minerals.
Above these basal beds the upper Eocene limestone resembles rock of
the same age in other parts of the Republic and consists of two principal
types thin-bedded limestone, dense or chalky on weathered surfaces and
in most places containing nodules and bands of chert parallel to the bed-
ding, and massive limestone that at many localities forms a solution
breccia.
The highest beds on the north slope were examined on the Grande
Riviere du Cul-de-Sac. Both above and below the narrow gorge above
Bassin General the limestone occurs in thin even beds from 3 to 10 centi-
meters in thickness. (See Pl. XII, B.) The narrow gorge is due to steep
slopes in lower massive limestone on the north flank of an anticlinal arch.
The thin-bedded limestone is crumpled and ruptured along small high-
angle thrust faults.
Similar limestones crop out on Morne Hopital, the conspicuous ridge
south of Port-au-Prince. The rock is typically gray on weathered surfaces
and white on freshly broken surfaces and is considerably pitted and rough-
ened by solution. Much of it is massive or rather thick-bedded, but there
is considerable variation, and in some localities the beds are regular and
not more than 10 or 15 centimeters thick. The rock of a few beds is soft
and chalky rather than dense and fine-grained. The limestone contains
some chert, but it is nowhere abundant. The relation of this limestone
to the water supply of Port-au-Prince is discussed on page 57·0. These
upper Eocene limestones dip northward rather steeply, but the folding is
complex in detail and is modified by ma.n y small thrust faults that result
from the breaking of overturned folds. Such structure is well exhibited
in the first deep ravine east of Petionville, near Source Millet. The folds
here are overturned to the north.
Thin-bedded limestone is exposed on Riviere Froide, west of Port-au-
Prince. Farther west, along the main road that connects Port-au-Prince
and Leogane, in the region between the villages of Carrefour and Gressier,
there are a number of road cuts in which supposed upper Eocene limestone
is exposed. At all these exposures the rock is notably thin-bedded, the beds
ranging generally from 3 to 10 centimeters in thickness. The rock is a
white limestone, usually rather soft and chalky where weathered. The
beds are nearly everywhere steeply tilted in different directions and thrust
faults are associated with the cr11mpling.
Similar dense thin-bedded limestone forms the surface rock along vir-
tually the entire distance between Petionville and Kenscoff, as seen along
the trail. In the southern part of this region .the beds apparently are
arched into broad, rather open anticlines, which are separated by similar
synclines. (See Fig. 21, page 335.) Farther north, near the edge of the
mountain, the beds are more sharply folded and the folds are overturned
to the north, some of them being broken along thrust fault~. A thickness

•
 SEDIMENTARY ROOKS. 131

of at least 500 meters of these thin-bedded limestones is exposed on t he

steep mountain slope south of Rendez-vous, where the beds dip southward
with an average dip of 30°, but the total thickness is probably several
hundred meters more. Northeast of Furey more massive lower beds are
silicified along the fault between the limestone and basalt.
The only significant fossils found in this whole series of limestones
south and southeast of Port-au-Prince are the Foraminifera that were
collected near Kenscoff and on the crest of Morne Hopital (see list p. 144,
stations 9587 and 9553, respectively), from beds near the middle of the
section. The Foraminifera that were obtained from the higher beds (see
list, p. 144, stations 9608, 9443, 9583, 9585) have no stratigraphic signifi-
cance, and these beds may be of lower Oligocene age.
Limestones, all presumably of upper Eocene age, are the only rocks
seen in crossing the mo11ntains from the Cul-de-Sac Plain to the south
coast, along the trail from Fond-Parisien through Fond-Verrettes to
Grand-Gosier, near the Dominican border. In the first exposures, a few
kilometers south of Fond-Parisien, the rock is gray and massive on the
weathered ledges and yielded an indeterminate species of Stylophora
(station 9505) . The same kind of massive limestone crops out where the
trail reaches a stream northwest of Fond-Verrettes. Near the spring that
feeds the right branch of this stream the m~sive limestone for1ns a solu-
tion breccia. Near F·ond-Verrettes crumpled thin-bedded limestone is
interbedded with massive limestone. Thin-bedded limestone crops out at
several places along the north slope of the main central range. On the
crest of the central range, which bas an altitude of 1,700 meters above sea
level, the rocks are obscured by a thick mantle of red clay. An Operculina
similar to 0. ocalana Cushman was collected
•
from a pinnacle of massive
limestone that projects above the clay on the south slope not far from the
crest (station 9594). Typical upper Eocene Foraminifera, similar to
those in the massive limestone of the northern part of the Republic, were
collected farther down the south slope from a ledge of jagged solution-
pitted limestone. (See list, p. 144, station 9596.)
All along the south coast from the Dominican border westward to J ac-
me! the most common type of upper Eocene rock is white limestone in
thin, even beds from 2 to 20 centimeters thick. This limestone contains
chert in nodules and in bands that lie parallel to the bedding planes. The
thickness of the bands ranges from a few centimeters to almost a meter.
Some of the beds of limestone are hard and dense ; other beds are dazzling
white and chalky on the weathered surface; and still others consist of
granular limestone. Good exposures of this thin-bedded limestone may be
seen at many localities, particularly along Riviere Pederna.l es on the trail
from Grand Gosier to Anse-a-Pitre. The first high sea cliff northwest of
Grand-Gosier, which is 200 meters high, is composed from top to bottom
of thin-bedded hard white limestone, which weathers chalky and which
contains a few lenses of chert. The beds in this cliff are broken by faults.
 •

132 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

In Plate XII, 0, is given a view of the first sea cliff west of Saltrou, show-
ing the thin-bedded limestone that weathers chalky and that contains
nodules and bands of chert. Upper Eocene Foraminifera were collected
at several localities but only from beds of granular limestone. (See list,
p. 144, stations 9510, 9511, 9444, 9513, 9600.)
Similar thin-bedded limestone that weathers chalky forms the upper
part of the upper Eocene series of rocks on Riviere Gosseline. Numerous
specimens. of a small stellate Orthophragmina were collected at Passe la
V oute, the fourth crossing of the river as one goes from J acmel to Carre-
four (station 9605). Farther upstream the lower beds described on page
129 crop out. (See Fig. 6.)
A conspicuous massive limestone, which usually forms a typical solution
breccia, crops out in the desolate rock-floored plain at Anse-a-Pitre at the
Dominican border and in the ridge west of the plain. The rock is sta.i ned
light red or even blood-red by recemented clay. Its surface is deeply
pitted and it makes curiously shaped pinnacles. This rock forms the cliffs
marked'' red cliffs'' on chart No. 2653 of the Hydrographic Office of the
United States Navy. From a distance it could easily be mj staken for a
scoriaceous lava. The stratigraphic relations of this limestone to the thin-
bedded limestone are not precisely known, but it probably lies higher in
the section. The two kinds of limestone seem to be in fault contact in a
bluff on the right bank of Riviere Pedernales, about 3 kilometers north
of Anse-a-Pitre, but the thin-bedded limestone may dip under the mas-
sive limestone, as the lower slope of the bluff is covered with talus.
In the :first high sea cliff southeast of Grand-Gosier, about half a kilo-
meter from the village, the thin-bedded limestone is crumpled, and toward
the east end of the cliff a breccia of massive limestone containing angular
pieces of the thin-bedded limestone and chert rests on an irregular surface
that truncates the bedding. It is not known whether this breccia bas any
structural significance.
Massif de Ia llotte.
The most widespread series of rocks in the Massif de la Hotte is of
known or assumed upper Eocene age and here as elsewhere it consists
mainly of limestone. This series rests unconformably on a basement com-
posed mainly of dark basaltic rocks and in minor part of older limestones
and metamorphic rocks. Rocks of Oligocene age were not recognized,
although some of the limestones here grouped in the upper Eocene may
really be of 0 ligocene age.
At the base of the upper Eocene there is commonly a considerable thick-
ness of conglomeratic or sandy beds composed mainly of basaltic debris,
in many places difficult to distinguish from weathered igneous rock but
generally interstratified with impure, dark, shaly limestone beds and so
far as observed almost 11nfossiliferous. No good sections of these beds
were obtained, but they probably form a series that reaches a thickness of
a few hundred meters at some localities and at other localities is very
•

• •
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 133

thin. A number of exposures of beds believed to be basa.l upper Eocene are

described below.
North of the road on the east side of Pont de :U1iragoane bMaltic sand-
stones and conglomerate are interbedded with very dark or black rock that
is probably a very impure limestone. These beds dip northward toward
the base of Tapion de Miragoane, where higher and purer limestone crops
out.
At the east end of the Asile Valley, about 4 kilometers from Asile, a
detrital basaltic rock underlies a high bluff of supposed upper Eocene
limestone. Other exposures of beds at the base of the limestone were seen
along the trail between Aquin and the Asile Valley. The beds consist of
dark-brown impure limestone containing detrital material that is probably
derived from basalt.
The basal conglomerate of the limestone is exposed on the trail from
Cavaillon to St.-Louis du Sud, about 5 kilometers east of Cavaillon. It
•

contains small pebbles of weathered basalt and dark limestone in a cal-

careous matrix. The outcrop of the conglomerate was traced to a point
within a distance of a few meters of an exposure of weathered basalt.
Beds of shale and shaly dark limestone overlie the conglomerate. A road-
cut 8 or 9 kilometers west of Aquin exposes basalt overlain by brownish
and greenish shale and impure shaly limestone.
Similar beds, which are believed to lie near the base of the upper Eocene
limestone, are exposed for about a kilometer along the trail between Les
Cayes and Port-Salut on the eastern slope of the Port-Salut P eninsula.
The beds consist partly of rather hard blue or gray marl and partly o.f
interbedded shale and impure limestone. They are sharply folded and
their strike and dip vary within short distances. These beds are overlain
by white limestone of the thin-bedded and rather cherty type, of supposed
upper Eocene age. The volcanic rocks that presumably lmderlie the basal
beds are not exposed along the trail.
Other beds very much like those just described were found about 4 or
5 kilometers north of the Sources Chaudes de Dame-Marie or de Jeremie,
where unfossiliferous gray sandy beds overlie dark limestone. In the same
locality, just at the bed of the Bras-a-Gauche, is a bluff of dark sandy and
shaly limestone, very hard, partly thin-bedded and partly thick-bedded.
Rounded nodules break out of certain beds. Carbonized plant remains
are rather abundant in the rock. This whole series is probably basal upper
Eocene, for the underlying basalt crops out a short distance to the south I

in the river bed.

At the cemetery just south of the town of Anse d'Hainault beds that
probably lie near the base of the upper Eocene form a prominent ridge.
They are thin-bedded shaly or fine, sandy, dark-gray calcareous sediments,
which break with conchoidal fracture. The thickness of the exposed beds
must be from 100 to 200 meters if not more. The beds appear to overlie
basalt and dip steeply northward.

•
 •

134 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

Certain beds of marl and conglomerate east of Baraderes, described as

of questionable Miocene age on page 225, are possibly basal upper Eocene.
If so, the limestone in the conglomerate must be derived from older,
probably Cretaceous, limestone that underlies the basalt.
The remaining and principal part of the upper Eocene section in the
Massif de la Hotte may be classified into two types of limestone: ( 1)
white thin-bedded limestone, generally dense but here and there open-
textured and chalky, usually breaking with conchoidal fracture, most
of it more or less cherty and some of it extremely so, in few places contain-
ing determinable fossils but rarely rich in orbitoid Foraminifera; (2)
massive or thick-bedded white limestone, in some places crystalline,
weathering gray and to pitted for1ns, at many places full of small 11ndeter-
mined Foraminifera but at a few containing large Foramjnifera. The
second type closely resembles the massive upper Eocene limestone in the
northern part of the Republic. It yields a characteristic red ocherous soil
and in many places forms a solution breccia.
Cherty limestone was fo11nd north of Pont de Miragoane in association
with impure basal beds, and it also occurs abundantly as float farther
north, at the base of the escarpment of Tapion de Miragoane, which ap-
pears to be composed mainly of the massive type of limestone.
Most of the limestone on the road between Miragoane and Aquin, in the
interior of the peninsula, is of the thin-bedded type containing chert, float
of which furnished the upper Eocene Foraminifera listed at page 144
(station 9518).
At the south border of the first mountain range south of Anse-a-Veau
chert makes up virtually the entire section of supposed upper Eocene beds.
It is so black that it has been mistaken for coal. The chert beds here are
11ncommonly thick, in some places 30 centimeters in thickness. On the
north side of the range white limestone, probably'" thick-bedded, consti-
tutes the main part of the section. In the second range between Anse-a-
Veau and l'Asile much similar float of dark chert is associated with white
limestone, probably of upper Eocene age, but no good exposures were noted.
Cherty white limestone was found on the first slope southeast of Roseaux,
but its relations were not determined. Southwest of Jeremie, at and near
Moron, thin-bedded cherty limestone is very ab11ndant and appears to dip
northward beneath more massive purer limestone.
East of Dame-Marie, on the trail to Montagnac, white limestone with
chert is very abundant and yielded upper Eocene Foraminifera. (See list,
p. 144, station 9629.) The beds here are from 10 to 20 centimeters thick-
somewbat thicker than elsewhere. Very similar cherty limestone is ab11n-
dant south of Dame-Marie on the ridge just north of Bariadele and
contains abundant upper Eocene Foraminifera (see list, p. 144; stations
9631, 9632.) This cherty limestone is suspected to be in the lower part
of the upper Eocene series. The chert in this region is lighter colored
than that near Anse-a-Veau and generally is slightly bluish.
 ,
SEDIMENT.ARY ROCKS. 135

Most of the limestone exposed along the south coast from Port-Salut to
Jacmel is white and thin-bedded, commonly dense and in places porous
or chalky, has a splintery conchoidal fracture, and contains more or less
chert. It is quite devoid of large fossils, although at some localities it
contains abundant Globigerina and other minute Foraminifera. '!,his rock
forins the plateau of the Port-Salut Peninsula, where it lies nearly hori-
zontal and rests on the impure, probably basal beds described on page 133.
On the east slope of the peninsula the beds pl11nge steeply beneath the
Cayes Plain, if indeed they are not broken by a fault along that side. Beds
almost identical in appearance and also nearly horizontal compose the
ridge between the Cayes Plain and Cavaillon and were recognized between
Cavaillon and St.-Louis du Sud, where they overlie the impure transition
beds described on page 133, which rest on the basalt.
On the east side of Aquin Bay the trail from Aquin to Cotes-de-Fer
crosses low bills composed of limestone in beds 20 to 30 centimeters thick.
This limestone is gray and chalky on weathered surfaces and contains
bands of chert. Along the coast the upper Eocene rocks are generally con-
cealed by Quaternary deposits. Chalky limestone of assumed upper Eocene
age crops out in a ravine north of Cap Raymond, on the trail between
Mayette and Bainet. Farther east, between Bainet and Jacmel, white
granular limestone with chalky weathered surfaces is exposed on l'Eau
Genee, west of Morne Fontai. Foraminifera similar to those in the granu-
lar limestone farther east were collected from similar limestone on tl1e
west slope of Morne Fontai. (See list, p. 144, station 9649.)
It therefore seems that thin-bedded cherty and chiefly unfossiliferous
limestone is characteristic of the lower part of the upper Eocene section
pver virtually all the Massif de la Hotte and lies in nor1nal succession
above the more impure basal beds. It is quite possible, however, that
cherty beds occur in the higher part of the section at some places, and
this criterion should be used with caution.
The thickness of the upper part of the upper Eocene section is not known
but probably aggregates some hundreds of meters. On the Port Salut
Peninsula and between Les Cayes and Cavaillon the thickness can not
much exceed 300 meters, as the beds lie nearly flat and the relief would
not allow for a greater thickness above the basal beds.
The massive or thick-bedded purer type of limestone covers large areas
in and around the section called Plymouth, southeast of Jeremie, and is
exposed along the trail to Jeremie most of the way from Petit-'l'rou de
Nippes to Roseaux. A small species of Nummulites, similar to one found
in upper Eocene rocks of other parts of the Republic, was collected from
this limestone between Petit-Trou de Nippes and Baraderes (station
9547). This limestone is also found in part of the first range south of
Jeremie and at places in the succeeding ranges to the south and is well
developed near Montagnac east of Dame-Marie. Similar limestone ap-
pears to constitute the mass of the first range north of Port-a-Piment,
-
 136 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

the range south of Camp Perrin (station 9509, see list, p. 144), and the
heights of the range south of the Asile Valley.
Massiv:e limestone is found near Miragoane (see Pl. XL, B) and prob-
ably forms most of Tapion de Miragoane. On the road leading eastward
from Miragoane, about half a kilometer from the town, the small Dicty-
oconu.s, which is very abundant in uper Eocene rocks of the northern part
of the Republic, was collected from this massive solution-pitted limestone
(station 9517). West of the locality where the Aquin road branches off
the limestone is faulted against basalt.
This limestone appeal's generally to overlie the thinner bedded and
cherty limestones, but at some localities it probably rests directly on the
dark impure basal beds, as for instance along the trail between Aquin and
l'Asile. Thus either the upper beds are transgressive with overlap or at
places the thin-bedded limestone passes by lateral gradation into more
massive and less cherty rock.
Along the south coast between Mayette and Jacmel massive limestone
overlies the thin-bedded chalky limestone. At some localities it seems to
dip more gently than the thin-bedded limestone, but it probably is the
same massive limestone that elsewhere is known to be of upper Eocene age,
although it may be Oligocene or Miocene. No fossils were found in it
except poorly preserved indeterminate corals. This massive limestone
yields a heavy residue of red clay that is much more fertile than the light-
colored soil formed by the thin-bedded limestone.
The structural features of the upper Eocene rocks of the Massif de la
Hotte were not very clearly ascertained, but in its western part they appear
to be generally folded into sharp, open folds that trend more or less
nearly east and west. The general features are apparent in Figure 7, a
section across the north side of the massif from Jeremje to the Sources
Chaudes. Although not accurate in detail, this section gives the general
features of the structure. An exception to the general folded structure is
found on the south coast, where the thin-bedded cherty limestones of the
Port-Salut P eninsula lie nearly horizontal.
Faulting also has taken place on a considerable scale, although gener-
- ally it is not easily recognized. Topographic and stratigraphic evidence
indicate that thrust faults of considerable magnitude exist at the north
side of the Miocene area southwest of Jeremie (see Fig. 7) and at the south
side of the lowland near Camp Perrin. (See pp. 235-236 and Fig. 17'.) A
fault probably borders the south side of the Asile Valley. All these faults
are of post-Miocene age. A normal fault is exposed about 1 kilometer
southeast of Miragoane, on the Port-au-Prince road. Massive upper
Eocene limestone has been dropped down against the older volcanic rocks.
A weathered brecciated zone 3 or 4 meters wide in the volcanic rock marks
the fault plane.
 •

~
·~
,.~ ~

·~
•
•
•
~1 ~
~ ~~
~~ rn

~
~
~
· s-s.o~~ ~
t:j
• .....
~
~ '~ ~N-N.E ~
~ ~ '
Tm
~--Q_p~ Niveau
dek.M"er ~
0
a
~__,--. . . . . Te ---<' t;q
rn
•

•
0 ~
Kilometres
10 15 ~
-- -- -- -- -- Hauteurs rl <..,"''k
-:-. . ,. ~' "'I ,:5::
Qp~ -'=- rn--~ double es
"T- ·~Te· · • '?..j,u <1-:
-- -- -·-- --
~ --
~<'/\ --7V1'
Calce:ire corellien Ar~e et gt:e5
. I '
CalcaJre eocene
. '
Ba.salte
pleistocene .m1ocenes I •
super1eur cretace •

FIGURE 7. Section across the northwest part of the Massif de la .Hotte.

~
C.:>
~
 138 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Gonave Island.
Limestones of upper Eocene age cover a large part of the southeastern
half of Gonave Island. They are made up of a lower part consisting of
thin-bedded limestone having a chalky appearance on weathered surfaces
and an upper part consisting of massive limestone. (See Fig. 8.) The
greater solubility of the massive limestone has a marked effect on the sur-
face features and on the supply of water. The maximum exposed thick-
ness of the lower chalky limestone is about 100 meters, but its base was
not seen. The upper massive limestone is probably several hundred meters
thick.
Chalky limestone crops out in the ravine southwest of Anse-a-Galets
at and below the spring that supplies this part of the island with water.
Here the limestone is rather thick-bedded, but it includes thinner beds
of harder, denser limestone, less than 30 centimeters thick. The beds

I
N.E'~
Q,}
l
~
Te
Tm

. Kil 0I1~ewas
2.

...-· ...
~ . . ...... •
....
•.• Q. ··ar :...•• =:.
• ••
••
' ••.•.•
...··.:·.. •••
f·.•:· : ••
" ...
~e :re
~

.Alluvions Calcaire
. '
Calcajre Cales.ire
miocene :tpa~if c:r:a,y~ux
eos:ene . eo~ene
superieur superi~ur
FIGURE 8.-Section across the southeast part of Gonave Island.

probably crop out on the crest of a low arch, but at the spring they dip
gently northeastward and farther downstream they dip 11nder massive
limestone. Simjlar chalky limestone is poorly exposed in the ravine
northwest of Picmi. It covers a large area west and northwest of the
Mapoux Plain and probably underlies the covering of soil in the 1Iapoux
Plain.
The overlying massive limestone forms the ridge along the south coast
and apparently covers most of the southeastern end of the island south-
east of Fond-I' Aurore. Foraminifera are very abundant in it at some
localities (see list, p. 144, stations 9682, 9669, 9670, 9668, 9665, 9681,
9671, 9672, and 9674), and a number of mollusks were collected at the
west end of the Mapoux Plain. (See list at p. 144, station 9673.)
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 139

Fossils.

Foraminifera are the most abundant fossils in the upper Eocene lime-
stone, as is shown by the list at page 144, which records Foraminifera
definitely of upper Eocene age from 75 localities. Faunules from 16
additional localities are added, either because. they come from beds that
contain significant upper Eocene fossils elsewhere or because the beds are
supposed to be upper Eocene. Although the maximum thickness of upper
Eocene rocks is very great (between 1,000 and 2,000 m eters) it has been
impossible to discriminate faunal zones because of the lack of detailed
work.
Early workers in other West Indian islands have ass11med that similar
limestones are deep-water deposits, but the living Foraminifera that are
most similar to the fossils obtained are tropical shoal-water species. The
•
almost complete absence of other groups of organisms at many localities
is difficult to explain.
Some of the characteristic upper Eocene Foraminifera are shown on
Plate XIII. Orbitoidal Foraminifera of the genus Orthophra:gmina are
very common in these deposits. So far as known this genus is restricted
to rocks of Eocene age in the \iVest Indies and regions near by, although
it is found in upper Cretaceous deposits (Danian). In the northern part
of the Republic many of the species are identical with or very similar to
1
the following species described by Cushman from rocks of the same age
in Cuba: Orthophragmina cub ensis, 0 . crassa, 0. soulpturata, and 0 .
pustulata. Another species, which has been obtained from upper Eocene
deposits of the southeastern United States, 0. fiintensis Cushman, is com-
mon in nearly all tl1e r egions where collections were made.
Species of Lepidocyclina are not so widespread nor so abundant as Or-
thophragmi'Tl)(L. The assocjation of Orthophragmina and L epidocyclina is
a characteristic faunal feature of upper Eocene rocks of the West Indies
and regions near by, and also of those of Italy and other areas in the
Mediterranean region.
Dictyoconus puilboreauensis nannoides Woodring (see p . 609 and Pl.
XIII, B, 0) is the most . common foraminifer in the northern part of
the Republic. It is very similar to the Plaisance subspecies D. puilbo-
reauensis puilboreauensis Woodring.
Species of Nummulites and Operculina, though abundant, are difficult
to determine because most of them are known only from natural rock sec-
tions or thin sections.
Poorly preserved corals, which have virtually no stratigraphic signifi-
cance, were collected at only three localities.
Mollusks are not very abundant in the upper Eocene rocks. The largest
collection, 9 or 10 species, represented by casts and impressions, was col-
lected on Gonave Isla.n d, at the west end of the inclosed valley called
1 Cushman, J. A., Carnegie Inst. Washington Pub. 291, pp. 52-55, pls. 9, 10, 15, 1919.
 140 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Plaine des Mapoux. No Foraminifera were obtained at this locality. The

Terebellum is very similar to an unnamed species in the collections of the
United States National Museum from a locality near Port Antonio,
Jamaica. At the present time this genus is confined to the Indo-Pacific
region, but during Tertiary time it lived in all parts of the equatorial
geosyncline. Other mollusks from this locality are similar to species from
the Ocala limestone of Florida.
Limestones of upper Eocene age which contain the same or a similar
fauna are widely distributed in the West Indian region and in adjoining
1
parts of C·e ntral and South America. The St. Bartholomew limestone of
the island of St. Bartholomew is considered the type of this horizon.

Stations Upper Eocene.

9854 (B 239 F). Arrondissement of Cap-Ha.ltien, trail leading up Marne Lorry,

west of Cap-Haltien, about halfway up mountain. J. S. Brown, collector. Febru-
ary 18, 1921 .
. 9853 (B 237 F). Arrondi~ement of Cap-Ha1tien, float on hill slope just north
of Carenge at north end of Cap-Hai:tien. J. S. Brown, collector. F ebruary 18, 1921.
9847 (B 242 F). Arrondissement of Cap-Haitien, Source Cinq Carreaux, Cap-
Haitien water supply. J. S. Brown, collector. February 19, 1921.
9798 (B 243 F). Arrondissement of Cap-Haitien, Fort Picolet lighthouse, about
3 kilometers northeast of Cap-Haltien. J. S. Brown, collector. February 20, 1921.
9744 (B 314 F). Arrondissement of Cap-Haitien, float , on trail from Milot to
Citadelle of Christophe, northeast slope of Bonnet-a-l'Eveque, about 5 kilometers
south of Milot. J. S. Brown and W. P. Woodring, collectors. March 20, 1921.
9797 (B 294 F). Arrondissement of Cap-Hait ien, from masonry of Citadelle of
Christophe. J. S. Brown, collector. March 8, 1921.
9769 (W 306 F). Arrondissement of Borgne, trail from Le Borgne to Port
Margot, about 3 kilometers southeast of Le Borgne, west side of Baie de la Riviere
Salee. W. P. Woodring, collector. February 23, 1921.
9862 (B 268 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, road from Plaisance to Ennery,
just south of ·c rest of Mont Puilboreau .. J. S. Brown, collector. February 25, 1921.
9863 (B 269 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, road from Plaisance to Ennery,
south slope of Mont Puilboreau, altitu<;le 690 meters above sea level. J. S. BrQwn,
collector. F ebruary 25, 1921.
9864 (B 270 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, road from Plaisance to Ennery,
south slope of Mont Puilboreau, altitude 585 meters above sea level. J. S. Brown,
collector. February 25, 1921.
9924 (W 228 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, road from Ennery to St.-Michel
de l'Atalaye, 1 kilometer southeast of Ennery, altitude 380 met ers above sea level.
W. P. Woodring, collector. J anuary 24, 1921.
9925 (W 229 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, road from Ennery to St.-Michel
de l'"Atalaye, cliff on left bank of Riviere d'Ennery about 3 kilometers southeast
of Ennery. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 24, 1921.
9989 (W 227 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, railroad from Gonaives to Ennery,
cut 3 kilometers east of Passe Garde. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 24, 1921.
1 For a recent summary of the Tertiary deposits of the West Indies and adjoining
regions see Vaughan, T. W., Correlation ot the Tertiary formations of Central America
and the West Indies: Bernice P. Bishop Mus. Special Pub. 7, pp. 819-844, 1921 .

•
REPUBLIC OF HAITI
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PLATE XIII

A.
..

B. C.
SO:\IE CHARACTERISTIC UPI>Eil EOCENE FORA)1INIFERA .
.tl. Orthophragmi1ia ct·assa Cushman. Vertical sections, X 20. U. S. G. S. station 98rl4.
B, 0. Dictyoc:ori1ts pitilbo1·eaitensis '11an1ioides Woodring ( p. 60~).
B. Horizontnl section ne;1r base. X 20. U. S. G. S. station 9821.
0 . Vcrtic~11 section, tJ·pe, X 20. U. S. (j, . station 9821. U. S. N. M. catnlogtte
No. 3=>05 8.
'
 SEDIM:ENT.AB.Y ROCKS. 141

99'13 (W 226 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, railroad from Gonaives to

Ennery, cut about 4 kilometers northeast of Les Poteaux. W. P. Woodring, col-
lector. January 24, 1921.
9804 (B 146 F). Arrondissement of Gona1ves, railroad from Gonaives to
Ennery, cut 27 kilometers from Gona1ves and 4 kilometers east of Passe Reine.
J. S. Brown, collector. January 6, 1921.
9868 (B 276 F). Arrondissement of Gona1ves, Morne Macat, west of road from
Gona1ves to Gros-Morne, about halfway between the two t.owns. Float at summit
of bill. J. S. Brown, collector. March 2, 1921.
9869 (B 277 F). Arrondissement of Gona1ves, Mame Macat, a short distance
northeast of 9868. Float at summit of hill. J. S. Brown, collector. March 2, 1921.
9870 (B 278 F). Arrondissement of Gona1ves, Mome Macat, a short distance
northeast of 9869. Float at summit of hill. J. S. Brown, collector. Ma.rch 2, 1921.
9827 (B 192 F). Arrondissement of Gona1ves, trail from Gonaives to Terre-
N euve, about a kilometer southeast of Figuier. J. S. Brown, collector. January
21, 1921.
9735 (B 221 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, north slope of Marne Blanc near
crest, small mountain on coast west of Gona1ves. J. S. Brown, collector. Febru-
ary 11, 1921.
9848 (B 216 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, southwest slope of Mome Bienac,
about 2 kilometers north of Gonai:ves. J. S. Brown, collector. February 8, 1921.
9850 (B 219 F). Arrondissement of Gonai:ves, float on crest of Mame Bienac.
J. S. Brown, collector. February 8, 1921.
9851 (B 220 F). Arrondissement of Gona1ves, about halfway up southwest slope
of Marne Bienac. J. S. Brown, collector. F ebruary 8, 1921.
9737 (B 227 F). Arrondissement of Gona1ves, trail from Gonai:ves to La Pierre,
float at east base of Mome la Pierre. J. S. Brown, collector. F ebruary 11, 1921.
9865 (B 273 F). Arrondissement of Gona!ves, near coast between Gonaives and
Anse Rouge, float on crest of Morne Bouvard at Pointe Coridon, altitude 180
meters above sea level. J. S. Bro\vn. collector. F ebruary 27, 1921.
9866 (B 274 F). Arrondissement of Gona1ves, float on crest of Mome Bouvard,
a short distance east of 9865, altitude 260 meters above sea level. J. S. Brown,
collector. February 27, 1921.
9867 (B 275 F). Arrondissement of Gona1ves, float on crest of Mame Bouvard,
a short distance east of 9866, altitude 300 meters above sea level. J. S. Brown,
collector. February 27, 1921.
9813 (B 163 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, Terre-N euve Valley, float east of
Germinie. J. S. Brown, collector. January 12, 1921.
9814 (B 167 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, Terre-Neuve Valley, float on trail
to Raboteau, about a kilometer north of habitation Gaillarde. J. S. Brown,
collector. January 14, 1921.
9824 (B 184 F). Arrondissement of Gonalves, trail f ram Terre-N euve to
Philippe, north slope of Marne Songe, about 5 kilometers southeast of Philippe
and 7 or 8 kilometers northwest of Terre-Neuve. J. S. Brown, collector. January,
18, 1921.
9800 (K 204 F). Arrondissement of Gonalves, Terre-N euve region, southeast
of Rocher toward foot of Marne Miguinda. W. S. Burbank, collector. March
28, 1921.
9891 (B 337 F.) Arrondissement of Gonalves, trail from Gros-Mome to Terre-
N euve, foot of mountains near Savanne Moulin, Section Moulin. J. S. Brown,
collector. March 27, 1921.
9821 (B 180 F). Arrondissement of Gona!ves, cliff about a kilometer south of
Dolan, near trail from Terre-N euve to Gonaives. J. S. Brown, collector. Janu-
ary 17, 1921.

•
 142 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

9816 (B 170 F). Arrondis;ement of Gonaives, float on mountain slope northeast

of Meme, just above large prospect excavation on east side of valley. J. S. Brown,
collector. January 15, 1921.
9825 (B 190 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, trail from Terre-Neuve to Anse
Rouge, gorge about 7 kilometers northwest of Terre-Neuve and 4 kilometers east
of Source Marianne. J. S. Brown, collector. January 19, 1921.
9826 (B 191 F). Arrondi~ement of Gona1ves, trail from Terre-N euve to Anse
Rouge, about a kilometer east of 9825. J. S. Brown, collector. January 19, 1921.
9828 (B 194 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, trail from Terre-N euve to Anse
Rouge, about 2 kilometers southwest of Source Marianne, just north of Troupaux.
J. S. Brown, collector. January 25, 1921.
9845 (B 212 F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail from Jean Rabel to
Anse Rouge, Riviere Cadet, about 5 kilometers southwest of J ean Rabel. J. S.
Brown, collector. February 2, 1921.
9842 (B 210a F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail from Jean Rabel
to Anse Rouge, Riviere Cadet, about 5.5 kilometers southwest of Jean Rabel. J.
S. Brown, collector. February 2, 1921.
9843 (B 211 F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail from Jean Rabel to
Anse Rouge, Riviere Cadet, about 6 kilometers southwest of Jean Rabel, near con-
tact of limestone and volcanic rocks. J. S. Brown, collector. February 2, 1921.
9795 (K 120 F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail from Jean Rabel to
Anse Rouge, Riviere Cadet, about 6.5 kilometers southwest of J ean Rabel, from
limestone overlying volcanic rocks. W. S. Burbank, collector. February 2, 1921.
9796 (K 121 F). Arrondi~ement of Mole St-Nicolas, trail from Jean Rabel to
Anse Rouge, about 7 kilometers southwest of Jean Rabel. W. S. Burbank, col-
lector. February 3, 1921.
9964 (K 123 F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail from Jean Rabel to
Anse Rouge, float about 12 kilometers south of Jean Rabel. W. S. Burbank, col-
lector. February 3, 1921.
9742 (B 231 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, north end of Morne Grammont,
about 5 kilometers southeast of Gonaives. J. S. Brown, collector. February 12, 1921.
9770 (B 229 F). Arrondissement of Gona1ves, east slope of Mome Grammont,
about halfway to crest. J. S. Brown, collector. February 12, 1921.
9890 (B 327 F). Arrondissement of Marmelade, trail from St.-Michel de
l'Atalaye to Dessalines, about 3 kilometers southwest of St-Michel de l'Atalaye.
J. S. Brown, collector. March 25, 1921.
9883 (B 331 F). Arrondissement of Marmelade, trail from St.-Michel de
l'Atalaye to Dessalines, near Paul. J. S. Brown, collector. March 25, 1921.
9885 (B 332 F).. Arrondissement of Dessalines, trail from St.-Michel de l'Atalaye
to D essalines, float at entrance to gap in mountains about 3 kilometers west of
Paul. J. S. Brown, collector. March 25, 1921.
9886 (B 333 F). Arrondissement of Dessalines, about halfway down mountain
slope between Paul and Dessalines, probably 7 kilometers northeast of Dessalines,
altitude 390 meters a.hove sea level. J. S. Brown, collector. March 25, 1921.
9887 (B 334 F.) Arrondi~ement of Dessalines, float a. short distance southwest
of 9886, altitude 300 meters above sea. level. F. G. Evans, jr., collector. March
25, 1921.
9789 (W 220 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais. trail from Thomonde to Mire-
balais, about 0.5 kilometer south\\·est of crest of mountains at Bois-Joli, altitude
660 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. J anuary 18, 1921.
9919 (W 221 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, trail from Thomonde to Mire-
balais, float about 3 kilometers southwest of crest of mountains at Bois-Joli,
•
altitude 535 meters above sea. level. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 18, 1921 .
•
 SEDIMENT.ARY ROOKS. 143

9456 (W 133 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, float on southwest slope of

Morne Michel, about 8 kilometers northeast of Mirebalais, altitude 300 meters
above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 6, 1920.
9903 (W 184 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, float from gap in mountains
along road from Mirebalais to Las Cahobas. W. P. Woodring, collector. January
8, 1921.
9915 (W 202 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, trail from Belladere to Sava-
nette, float on south slope of mountains about 4 kilometers northeast of Savanette,
altitude 825 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 13, 1921.
9914 (W 201 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, trail from Belladere to Sava-
nette, float on south slope of mountains about 4.5 kilometers northeast of Sava-
nette, altitude 1,100 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. January
13, 1921.
9548 (B 119 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, railroad cut about 4 kilometers
southeast of Mont Rouis. J. S. Brown, collector. December 7, 1920.
9993 (K 56 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, trail from l'Arcahaie to Marche
Desarmes, 5 kilometers northeast of Couyau halfway down ridge, altitude 1,230
meters above sea level. W. S. Burbank, collector. December 15, 1920.
9502 (K 58 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, trail from l'Arcahaie to Marche
Desarmes, northeast of Couyau, on crest of ridge overlooking Artibonite Valley.
W. S. Burbank, collector. December 15, 1920.
9487 (B 130 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, trail from I'Arcahaie to Marche
Desarmes, float on slope of Mome Archeveque, about 11 kilometers southwest of
Marche Desarmes. J. S. Brown, collector. December 16, 1920.
9486 (B 129 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, trail from l' Arcahaie to
Marche Desarmes, 1 kilometer southwest of habitation Caille-Mare. J. S. Brown,
collector. December 14, 1920.
9459 (W 144 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, trail from Fond-des-
Orangers to the Cul-de-Sac Plain, float on north slope of ridge south of Fond-des-
Orangers, altitude 610 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector.
December 8, 1920.
9790 (W 313 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, road from Port-au-Prince
to Mirebalais, float on north slope of Morne Terre-Rouge, altitude 590 meters
above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. February 28, 1921.
9608 (W 79 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, north slope of ridge between
Riviere Froide and Riviere Momance, along trail leading southward from Carre-
four, altitude 360 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector, November
5, 1920.
9553 (W 11 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, float on crest of Morne
Hopital, east of triangulation station, altitude 950 meters above sea level~ W. P.
Woodring and J. S. Brown, collectors. October 9, 1920.
9443 (W 9 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, north slope of Morne Hopi-
tal, altitude 760 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring and J. S. Brown, col-
lectors. October 9, 1920.
9584 (W 13 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, trail from Petionville to
Furey, about 2 kilometers southwest of Petionville. W. P. Woodring, and F. G.
Evans, jr., collectors. October 12, 1920.
9583 (W 14 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, trail from Petionville to
Furey, about 3.5 kilometers southwest of Petionville. W. P. Woodring, collector.
October 12, 1920. •

9585 (W 15 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, trail from Petionville to

Furey,
•
about 2 kilometers south of Rendez-vous. W. P. Woodring and F. G. Evans,
Jr., collectors. October 12, 1920.
 144 , GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

9587 (W 25 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, trail from Petionville to

, Furey, upper part of village of K enskoff, altitude 1,515 meters above sea level
W. P. Woodring, and F. G. Evans, jr., collectors. October 14, 1920.
9505 (W 33 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, trail from Fond-Parisien to
Fond-Verrettes, about 3 kilomet ers south-southeast of Fond-Parisien, altitude
275 met ers above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. October 21, 1920.
9594 (W 37 F). Arrondissement of Saltrou, trail from Fond-Verrettes to Grand-
Gosier, south slope of mountains near crest, altitude 1,570 meters above sea level.
W. P. Woodring, collector. Oct ober 22, 1920.
9596 (W 39 F). Arrondissement of Saltrou, trail from Fond-Verrettes to Grand-
Gosier, south slope of mountains about 13 kilometers northeas t of Grand-Gosier,
altitude 940 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. October 23, 1920.
9510 (W 50 F). Arrondissement of Salt rou, trail from Grand-Gosier to Saltrou,
6 kilomet ers northwest of Grand-Gosier, altitude 210 meters above sea level. W.
P. Woodring, collector. October 28, 1920.
9511 (W 51 F). Arrondissement of Saltrou, trail from Saltrou to Marigot, 4.5
kilomet ers west of Saltrou , altitude 50 met ers above sea level. W. P. Woodring,
collector. October 30, 1920.
9444 (W 52 F). Arrondissement of Saltrou, trail from Saltrou to Marigot, about
7.5 kilomet ers west of Saltrou, altitude 45 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring,
collector. October 30, 1920.
9513 (W 54 F). Arrondi~ement of Saltrou, trail from Saltrou to Marigot, about
12.5 kilomet ers west of Saltrou, altitude 350 meters above sea level. W. P. Wood-
ring, collector. October 30, 1920.
9600 (W 59 F). Arrondissement of J acme!, trail from Marigot to J acmel, float
6 kilometers west of Marigot. W. P. Woodring, collector. October 31, 1920.
9605 (W 69 F). Arrondi~m ent of J acmel, right bank of Riviere Gosseline at
Passe la Voute, fourth crossing above Jacmel. W. P. Woodring and F. G. Evans,
jr., collectors. November 3, 1920.
9649 (K 28 F). Arrondi~em ent of J acmel, trail from Bainet to Jacmel, about
halfway up south slope of Marne Fontai. W. S. Burbank, collector. November
14, 1920.
9517 (W 81 F). Arrondissement of Nippes, road from Miragoane to Petit-Goave
about 0.5 kilometer east of Miragoane, altitude 45 meters above sea level. W. P.
Woodring, collector. November 14, 1920.
9518 (W 88 F). Arrondissement of Nippes, road from Miragoane to Aquin, float
about a kilometer south of Chapelle de Virgile, altitude 275 meters above sea
level. W. P. Woodring, collector. November 15, 1920.
9547 (B 114 F). Arrondissement of Nippes, float on trail from Baraderes t o
Petit-Trou de Nippes, about halfway b etween the towns. J. S. Brown, collector.
November 22, 1920.
9509 (B 56 F). Arrondissement of Cayes, bluff a kilometer west of Camp Perrin.
J. S. Brown, collector. November 5, 1920.
9631 (B 82 F). Arrondissement of Tiburon, trail from Anse d'Hainault to
Dame-Marie, float on small hill just north of Bariadele. J. S. B1·own, collector.
November 15, 1920.
9632 (B 83 F). Arrondissement of Tiburon, float on trail from Anse d' Hainault
to Dame-Marie, about 2 kilometers north of 9631. J. S. Brown, collector. Novem-
ber 15, 1920.
9629 (B 84 F). Arrondissement of Tiburon, trail from Dame-Marie to Sources
Chaudes, about 6 kilomet ers east of Dame-Marie. J. S. Brown, collector. Novem-
ber 16, 1920.
9682 (W 177 F). Gonave Island, about 200 met ers S. 60° E. of triangulation
station at Fond-Plaisir in southeastern part of island. W. P. Woodring, collector.
December 26, 19'20.
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 145

9669 (W 163 F). Gonave Island, trail from Anse-a-Galets to Picmi, about 2
.kilometers north of· Picmi, altitude 180 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring,
collector. December 19, 1920.
9670 (W 164 F). Gonave Island, trail from Anse-A-Galets to Picmi, float about
1.5 kilometers north of Picmi, altitude 70 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring,
collector. December 19, 1920.
9668 (W 162 F). Gonave Island, trail from Anse-a-Galets to Picmi, bottom of
ravine at spring north of Picmi. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 19, 1920.
9665 (W 158 F). Gonave Island, trail leading southwestward from Anse-8.-
Galets, about 4 kilometers from Anse-a-Galets, altitude 310 meters above sea
level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 18, 1920.
9681 (W 176 F). Gonave Island, trail from Anse-a-Galets to Fond-I'Aurore,
about 6 kilometers southeast of Anse-a-Galets. Altitude 380 meters above sea level.
W. P. Woodring, collector. December 26, 1920.
9671 (W 165 F). Gonave Island, trail from Anse-a-Galets to Plaine des Mapoux,
about 2 kilometers west-northwest of triangulation station on Morne Chien Con-
tent. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 20, 1920.
9672 (W 166 F). Gonave Island, trail from Anse-a-Galets to Plaine des Mapoux,
about a kilometer east of east end of Plaine des Mapoux, altitude 525 meters
above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 20, 1920.
9673 (W 167 F). Gonave Island, northwest corner of Plaine des Mapoux,
altitude 540 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 21, 1920.
9674 (W 168 F). Gonave Island, north slope of Morne la Pierre, about half a
kilometer northeast of triangulation station, altitude 700 meters above sea level.
W. P. Woodring, collector. December 21, 1920.

0LIGOCENB SERIES.

Oligocene deposits in narrow bands usually border upper Eocene lime-

stone along the lower slopes of the mountain ranges. These Oligocene
bands consist principally of limestone that can scarcely be distinguished
from the upper Eocene limestone except by the fossils it contains.

LOWER OLIGOCENE.

None of the deposits seen during the reconnaissance are considered of

undoubted lower Oligocene (Lattor:fian) age, as none of them contain
Lepidocyclinas of the type of L. mantelli (Morton), a species which, in
the southeastern United States, is confined to the lower part of the Vicks-
burg group (Marianna limestone) . Some of the limestone in the Cha.lne
des Mateux, on the north slope of Morne Hopital (pp. 130-131), east and
south of Dondon (pp. 111-112) and elsewhere, described as upper Eocene,
may be lower Oligocene. These deposits are unfossiliferous or contain
fossils that have no stratigraphic value. Deposits of lower Oligocene age
might be expected in such regions as the Cha1ne des Mate11x, where the
series from upper Eocene to Miocene seems to be conformable.
10
146 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

MIDDLE OLIGOCENE.
•

Middle Oligocene deposits were seen principally in isolated exposures

or as :float, and at most places their stratigraphic and structural relations
are obscure. As· their lithology differs at different places no general de-
scription of them can be given.

DESCRIPTION BY REGIONS.

Kassif du Nord.

A typical middle Oligocene fa11na was obtained from a float boulder of

yellowish white limestone in a ravine a few h11ndred meters northwest
of the town of Bahon (see list, p. 150, station 9884). The country rock at
this place is quartz diorite, and t.he fl.oat in the ravine consists principally
of quartz diorite and of slaty argillite of supposed lower or middle Cre-
taceous age, but limestone boulders, which have probably been transported
from an l1n explored locality some kilometers to the southwest, are fairly
common.
Rocks of known or supposed middle Oligocene age are exposed in a
large area along the northern border of the Central Plain near St.-Raphael.
They were examined along the trail from St.-Raphael to Dondon for a
distance of about 3 kilometers, where they overlie limestone of supposed
upper Eocene age (see pp. 111-112) and dip southward or southeastward
beneath the yo11nger rocks of the plain.
The lowest beds, which are exposed farthest north, consist mainly of
brown or gray marl and fine-grained sandstone in .very even, rather soft
beds, from 2 to 5 centimeters thick, which occupy a small lowland along
the narrow valley of Riviere Bouyaha. Lithologically they are similar to
some Miocene rocks. A few beds of coarser material containing small
pebbles of white limestone, presumably upper Eocene, suggest an erosional
11nconformity. Interbedded with the sand and marl are thicker beds of
brown crystalline lim estone containing the Foraminifera listed on page
150, stations 9877 and 9878.
Overlying these elastic beds to the south, at the border of the plain, is
pure limestone, white and partly crystalline, thick-bedded or massive,
and hard, forming steep walls along the gorge of Riviere Bonyaha. The
Foraminifera listed on p. 150, station 9876, were collected from this
limestone.
As the dips along the trail appear to be invariably to the south or south-
east, and as the width of outcrop is at least 3 kilometers, the total thick-
ness of middle Oligocene at this locality is several hundred meters.
Massive limestone 11nderlies the Pie de Pignon, a conspicuous conical
hill north of Pignon. The middle Oligocene Foraminifera listed on page
150, station 9940, were collected from loose pieces of limestone at the foot
of the hill. This limestone, which is apparently the same as the massive
 •

SEDIMENT.ARY ROCKS • 147

•

limestone along Riviere Bouyaha below St.-Raphael, forms the ridge ex-
1
tending southeastward from Pignon.
Northwest Peninsula.

Trois Rivieres Valley.

Rocks of middle Oligocene age are apparently
widely distributed in the Trois Rivieres Valley north of Gros-Morne. All
the rocks in this trough are folded in narrow anticlines and synclines
which are parallel to the length of the trough. The relations of the middle
Oligocene to the upper Oligocene south of Gros-Morne and to the Miocene
in the lower part of the valley were not deterrnined. The middle Oligocene
rocks were seen on the east side of Les Trois Rivieres along an l1nfre-
quented trail from Gros-Morne to Port-de-Paix. The corals listed on
page 150, station 9756, were collect ed from pieces of hard gray limestone
weathered from an outcropping ledge about 9 kilometers north of Gros-
Morne. Float containing similar corals was collected a short distance
farther north (see list, p. 150, station 9757). Beds of marl, shale, sand-
stone, and a conglomerate consisting entirely of large cobbles of basaltic '
rock crop out along the trail north and south of this locality. These beds
were seen only in isolated exposures, and as their folding is complex the
question whether all the rocks involved are of middle Oligocene age could
not be determined.
•
M on.tagnes de Jean Rabel. A series of brown or gray marls containing
many thick beds of dense yellowish limestone is exposed along the trail
f1·om J ean Rabel to Anse Rouge just south of the crest of the Montagnes
de Jean Rabel. These beds overlie upper Eocene limestone and probably
overlap it in the area to the north, where they rest on quartz diorite. To
the south they dip beneath marly beds of supposed Miocene age underly·
ing the Arbre Plain. An Operculina, apparently a common undescribed
middle Oligocene species, was collected from one of the beds of limestone.
(See list, p. 150, station 9962). The boundary between Oligocene and
Miocene in this locality was not determined.
Montagnes de Terre-N euve. About 5 kilometers southeast of Tcrre-
N euve, at a place known as Hilaire, just east of the mineral prospects
known as Casseus and Germinie, the mountain side is covered with large
float blocks of limestone, gray on weathered surfaces and white in the
interior, similar to the prevailing upper Eocene limestone. Some of the
boulders contain numerous specimens of Operculina, apparently of middle
Oligocene age, etched out on weathered surfaces. (See list, p. 150, stations
9810 and 9812.) The collection listed at page 144, station 9813, probably
of upper Eocene age, was obtained in the same locality. The middle Oli-
gocene float probably r epresents rock in place somewhere on the high
mountain ridge to the east, at the locality just north of Habitation
Dumuraille.
On the map ot the Central Plain, Pl. XXXVI, the limestone near Plinon and St.-
1
Raphael is lnco1·rectly shown as upper Oligocene.
 •

•
148 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI •

:Montagnes Noires .
..
Thin-bedded chalky limestone crops out on the northeast slope of the
Montagnes Noires, in the section called Bois-Joli, along the trail from
l\firebalais through Dufailly to Thomonde. The beds strike N. 40" W.
and dip 20° NE. Pieces of chert lying on the surface of the limestone
contain numerous specimens of the middle Oligocene Foraminifera listed
•

on page 150, station 9918. The chert probably came from bands or nodules
in the chalky limestone, although none were seen in the exposure. Litho-
logically this limestone is indistinguishable from thin-bedded chalky
upper Eocene limestone containing bands of chert.

Chatne des Mateux.

Some of the limestone on the north flank of the Cha.lne des Mateux is
of middle Oligocene age. Thin-bedded white brittle limestone containing
chert nodules crops out at the foot of the mountains south of Savane
Madame Michel, on the trail from Saut d'Eau to Fond-des-Orangers. A
piece of chert lying loose on the trail contained the middle Oligocene For-
aminifera listed on page 150, station 9658. The nephelite basalt described
on pages 314-318 overlies this limestone. Farther northwest, on both flanks
of the Cha!ne des Mateux, limestone of supposed Oligocene age crops out.
It is described on page 153.

Kontagnes du Trou d'Eau •

•

Middle Oligocene limestone probably extends eastward from the Chaine

des Mateux, as a Lepidocyclina similar to L. canellei yurnagunensis
Cushman was obtained from float on the south slope of the Montagnes du
Trou d'Eau along the road from Port-au-Prince to Mirebalais (see list,
p. 150, station 9900).
Near Jacmel.

Granular white limestone containing nodules of chert is exposed in tl1e

northernmost sea cliff on the west side of J acmel Bay, just south of the
mouth of a small stream. The bedding in this exposure is not apparent,
but the rock is probably crumpled, as pieces from almost any part of the
exposure are slickensided. A network of thin seams in the rock contains
dark-brown clay. This limestone contains the largest foraminifera.l fauna
discovered in any of the Tertiary rocks of Haiti. In addition to the species
listed on page 150, station 9601, the limestone contains some small unde-
termined Foraminifera. This is one of the few localities where it is possi-
ble to obtain entire tests from the rock. The tests stand out in relief on
weathered surfaces and can easily be dug out, as the rock is soft. This is
the only locality on the south coast where fossils of middle Oligocene age
were collected.
 SEDIMENT ARY ROCKS. 149

FOSSILS.

Foraminifera are the most abundant middle Oligocene fossils. They

include species of Lepidocyclina described by Cushman from Antigua and
Cuba and an unde.scribed species of Operculina found in Antigua and
other regions. Foraminifera are particularly abundant at station 9601,
on the west side of J acmel Bay, where hand specimens containing h11n-
dreds of tests of Lepidocyclina can be obtained. The few corals collected
are similar to species from Antigua. The same fauna has been found at
many localities in the Dominican Republic, in other parts of the West
Indies, and in Georgia. The Antigua formation of the island of Antigua,
which contains an unusually rich coral fauna, is the type formation of
this horizon. On account of its stratigraphic relations in Georgia and of
1
its corals it is correlated with the Rupelian of Italy.

Stations Middle Oligocene.

9884 (B 298 F). Arrondissement of Grande-Riviere du Nord, float in ravine
about a kilometer west of Bahon. J. S. Brown, collector. March 10, 1921.
9876 (B 290 F). Arrondissement of Grande-Riviere du Nord, trail from
St.-Raphael to Dondon, about a kilometer north of St.-Raphael. J. S. Brown,
collecto1~. March 7, 1921.
9877 (B 291 F). Arrondis.5ement of Grande-Riviere du Nord, trail from
St.-Raphael to Dondon, about 3 kilometers north of St.-Raphael. J. S. Brown,
collector. March 7, 1921.
9878 (B 292 F). Arrondissement of Grande-Riviere du Nord, trail from St.-
Raphael to Dondon, about 200 meters north of 9877. J. S. Brown, collector.
March 9, 1921.
9940 (W 264 F). Arrondissement of Grande-Riviere du Nord, float at foot of
Pie de Pignon, 0.5 kilometer east of Pignon, altitude 365 meters above sea level.
W. P. Woodring, collector. February 71 1921.
9756 (W 291 F). Arrondis.5ement of Port-de-Paix, trail from Gros-Mome to
Port-de-Paix on right side of Les Trois Rivieres, about 2 kilometers north of
crossing of Riviere l'Aqui. W. P. Woodring, collector. February 17, 1921.
9757 (W 292 F). Arrondissement of Port-de-Paix, trail from Gros-Morne to
Port-de-Paix on right side of Les Trois Rivieres, float about 4 kilometers north of
crossing of Riviere l'Aqui. W. P. Woodring, collector. February 17, 1921.
9962 (K 125 F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail from Jean Rabel to
Anse Rouge, south slope of mot1ntains in valley of Riviere de Port-a-Piment,
about 20 kilometers south of Jean Rabel. W. S. Burbank, collector. February
3, 1921.
9810 (B 160 F). Arrondissement of Gona!ves, float at Germinie, in Terre-N euve
•
region, south of Casseus prospect. J. S. Brown, collector. January 12, 1921.
9812 (B 162 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, float south of Germinie in Terre-
N euve region. J. S. Brown, collector. January 12, 1921.
9918 (W 219 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, trail from Thomonde to
Mirebalais, float on northeast slope of mountains at Bois-tToli, near crest, altitude
610 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 17, 1921.

1Vaughan, T. W., Fossil corals from Central America, Cuba., and Porto Rico, with an
account ot the American Tertiary, Pleistocene, and Recent coral reefs : U. S. National
Museum Bull. 103, pp. 199 and 202, 1919.
 150 GEOLOGY OF THE RE PUBLIC OF HAITI.

9658 (W 140 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, trail from Saut d 'Eau (Ville
Bonheur) to Fond-des-Orangers, float at f oat of mountains about 6 kilometers
eouthwest of Saut d 'Eau, altitude 500 meters above eea level. W. P. Woodring and
F. G. Evans, jr., collector8. December 8, 1920.
9900 (W 179 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, road from Port-au-Prince
to Mirebalais, float on south slope of mountains, alt it ude 360 meters above sea
level. W. P. Woodring, collector. J anuary 7, 1921.
9601 (W 60 F). Arrondissement of Jacmel, northernmost sea cliff on west side
of Jacmel Bay. W. P. Woodring, collector. November 1, 1920.

Middle Oligocene fossils.

Stations.

~
• =
...
0
~
•
ca• ~ +a

-z ~ =
QJ 0
~
0 ~ "'O
::s
Massif du Nord.
Nortbweat
Peninsula. co
QJ
i:::
m
"
"O
CD
C1>
Q • "'O
- et
C>

bl be ::s -...
Species. !1
Q)

....
Q cd t1S
~~
.....
0
r= t'IS r:: ~
0 "'O !)1
)1 t3 ~
d.i

.t'~IS • ~0 •
41
0
•

......
z ~ • ....r=
Grande-Riviere ~ ..c ....
llQ "4
co•
-
•
I
0 ~
.c
-a
~ ~ I
41
du Nord. "O 00
Q)
> CIS cd ::s •
0 .c t'IS

-
Q)
""'
....... ...0
I
~
...
0
Q)

<>
clS
Q
0 ~
Q) ~
<:)

~ at
~ ~ 0 ~ ~ ~

F oraminifera:
•
Operculina sp. cf. undescribed species
from Ant igua •••••••• • ••• • ••••••• • • x • • •• •• •• •• x x x x •• •• ••
Heterostegina antillea Cushman ? .•...••. • • • • - . •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• ••
Heterostegina sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• ••
•
Lepidocyclina canellei yurnagunensis
Cushman • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • x ? ? •• •• •• •• •• • • •• ? ••
•
Lepidocyclina g1gas Cushman ...... . ...... • • • • • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• x •• •• ••
Lepidocyclina undosa Ct.Ishman ....... . ... x •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x ? •• x
Lepidocyclina undulata Cushman ......•.. •• • • • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• x x •• x
Lepidocycl ina favosa Cushman ....••.. . •• • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• x
Lepidocyclina sp. cf. L. praemarginata R.
Douville ••••••••••••••••••••••••• • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• x x • • x
Lepidocyclina sp. cf. L. sumatrensie
(Brady) ••••• • ••••• • ••• ••• ••••••• • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • x
Lepidocyclina sp. cf. L. morgan1• Lemoine
and R. Douville . ................. • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• x
•
Lepidocyclina sp. •••••••••••••• •• •••••••• • • ? •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x
Corals:
Orbicella sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Antiguastrea cellulosa ( Duncan) ? ..... . . x • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Favites po]ygonalis (Dunc.a n) ? ....•.• • •• • • • • •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Cyatbomorpha sp. cf. c. belli Vaughan .. • • • • • • •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Oyathomorpba n. IP . ..... . .......... . ... . • • • • • • • • •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Mollusca:
Pelecypoda :
Phacoidea (Parvilucina) RP ••••••••••• • • •• • • •• • •• •• •• •• •• I •• •• x
 SEDIMENTARY ROOKS. 151

UPPER OLIGOCENE.

Rocks of upper Oligocene age seem to be confined to the northern and

central parts of the Republic. They consist principally of limestone, gen-
erally massive, resembling the massive limestone of Eocene and middle
Oligocene age. The upper Oligocene deposits probably are conforinable to
the middle Oligocene, although the actual contact was not seen. The
lithology and thickness differ in the regions where rocks of this age were
examined, as is shown below.

DESCRIPTION BY REGIONS.

Tortue Island,

The limestone that covers the interior of Tortue Island is at least 100
meters thick. It is massive, and most of the weathered outcrops on the
surface of the plateau are stained red by recemented residual clay. It
•
rests unconformably on a basement of schistose limestone. The structure
of the limestone was not determined, but the surface features indicate
that it is arched in a broad anticline. The only fossils obtained are the
Foraminifera and mollusks listed on page 156 (stations 9761 and 9762).
The evidence with regard to age furnished by these fossils is not con-
clusive, and the limestone may be of Miocene age.
The relation of this limestone to the water supply of the island is dis-
cussed on page 541.
Arrondissement of Borgne.

Massive white or grayish limestone crops out in the coastal ridge east of
Anse-a-Foleur, in the western part of the Arrondissement of Borgne. The
Foraminifera and corals listed on page 156 (stations 9766, 9767, and
9768) were obtained from this limestone. Its stratigraphic and structural
relations to the upper Eocene limestone in the same ridge farther east
are not known.
Troia ltivi~res Valley.

The surface rocks in virtually all the southern part of the trough known
as the Trois Rivieres Valley, which extends northward from Gonaives to
Port-de-Paix, are of upper Oligocene age. These deposits consist of lime-
stone, gray or brown marl, :fine-grained sandstone, and shale. Brownish-
yellow limestone is interbedded with the marl. The limestone, which is
in thick or thin beds, is harder than the marl and crops out in conspicuous
ledges. Partly crystalline massive limestone and sandy limestone in thin"'
ner beds are exposed in low, bare hills along the west side of the road
from Gona.lves to Gros-Morne south of the divide. The Forarninifera
listed on page 156 (station 9751) were collected from the massive }jme-
stone. The marl is well expoged in cuts along the same road just south of
the divide. It has a conchoidal fracture and closely resembles Miocene
marl. A bed of limestone interbedded with the marl at a locality about a
•
 •

152 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

kilometer north of the divide contained the Foraminifera listed on page

156 (station 9943).
Along the east and west borders of the trough there are a n11mber of
exposures of a white thin-bedded unfossiliferous limestone that commonly
is sheeted transverse to the bedding. It seems to be in fault contact with
upper Eocene limestone or older volcanic rocks. As the trough has prob-
ably been formed by normal faulting (see p. 121), this limestone appears
to be younger than Eocene. It is tentatively referred to the upper
Oligocene.
The upper Oligocene rocks, like other rocks in the trough, are folded in
narrow anticlines and synclines, and the dip and strike change within
short distances.
Borders of the Central Plain.

Limestone of upper Oligocene age crops out in the lower slopes of the
mo11ntains bordering the southeastern half of the Central Plain. At the
northwestern extremity of the plain this limestone seems to be concealed •
by flood-plain deposits, which are not shown on the map (Pl. I).
The limestone in the mountains bordering the plain from St.-Raphael
southeastward an unknown distance beyond Pignon is middle Oligocene.
At Bassin Zinn, northeast of Hinche, where Riviere Samana cascades
down the dip slope of the limestone into the plain, the limestone is of
upper Oligocene age. The surface of the limestone along the stream is
covered with travertine. A piece of limestone at the foot of the cascade
contained the Foraminifera listed on page 156 (station 9936). At this
locality the limestone has the same strike and dip as the overlying Miocene
conglomerate.
The same limestone was examined along the trail from Thomassique to
Cerca-la-Source, where it crops out in the ridge bordering the plain. 'l,he
Miocene beds in the plain and the upper Oligocene limestone in the ridge
dip about 20° SW. The southwest slope of the ridge, which faces the
plain, is a dip slope. The northeast slope, which over looks the valley of
Riviere !'Ocean, is a steep scarp, apparently a fault scarp. The limestone
•

appears massive in outcropping ledges. The coral listed on page 156 (sta-
tion 9949) was collected from a loose piece of limestone on the northeast
slope.
Massive limestone of supposed upper Oligocene age flanks upper Eocene
limestone on the north slope of the Montagnes Noires, along the south side
'
of the plain. It also crops out on the south side of the mountains facing
•
the valley of Rivi ere Fer-a-Cheva.l.
On the southwest side of the plain the upper Oligocene limestone crops
out in the lower slopes of the Montagnes Noires. It forms the conspicuous
hill northwest of Thomonde, on the crest of the Thomonde anticline. The
corals listed on page 156 (stations 9934 and 9741) were collected at the
foot of this hill. Massive gray limestone of upper Oligocene age was seen
on the northeast slope of the mountains on the trail from Thomonde to
•
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS • 153
•

Mirebalais through Bois-Joli. The fossils listed on page 15 6 (stations

9786, 9787, 9917, and 9788) were collected from float derived from
this limestone.
Low, isolated hills, which rise above the cover of flood-plain deposits
in the northwestern extremity of the plain, between St.-Michel de
l'Atalaye and Pignon, are composed of limestone, probably of upper Oligo-
cene age, although it may be middle Oligocene. An indeterminate species
of Goniopora was collected from this limestone (station 98 75).

Chatne des Mateux.

Along the trail from l' Arcahaie through Couyau to Marche Desarmes
a band of limestone of supposed Oligocene age, from 2 to 4 kilometers in
width, flanks upper Eocene limestone on the limbs of the anticlinal arch
of the Chaille des Mateux. The band of Oligocene rocks is narrower on the
northeast side than on the southwest side because of the steeper dips.
The structural relations are shown in Figure 5 (p. 128). On the south-
west slope of the mountains the Oligocene rocks are thrust southwestward
over Miocene rocks. No fossils were found in the beds of supposed Oli-
gocene age and their age is not definitely known.
The supposed Oligocene limestone rests without apparent discordance
on upper Eocene limestone. It is white and p·a rtly chalky and contains no
chert. In many exposures it is sheeted transverse to the beddings, appar-
ently as a result of fractures produced in folding. The sheeting may ob-
scure the bedding and at places resembles bedding. Most of the sheeting
planes a.r e only 2 to 5 centimeters apart and the bedding planes are far-
ther apart. The thickness of this limestone, as can be seen from Figure 5,
is at lea.s t several hundred meters if not more than 1,000 meters.

Montagnes du Trou d'Eau.

The surface rock in virtually the entire eastern part of the l\iontagnes du
Trou d'Eau east of Morne Trou d'Eau, is limestone of upper Oligocene
age. The thickness of this limestone is probably several hundred meters.
Its structural relations are obscure because at almost all the localities
examined it appears massive.
The limestone is gray or yellowish on weathered surfaces and white on
unweathered surfaces. Weathered surfaces in most places are deeply
pitted, and at some places the rock forms a solution breccia. The lime-
stone rests on the nephelite basalt described on page 315. A conglomerate
at the base of the limestone contains large cobbles of basalt and smaller
pebbles of limestone, presumably of upper Eocene age. This conglomerate
is well exposed on the trail from Thomazeau to Cornillon, about 1.5 kilo-
meters from Thomazeau.
Numerous collections
, of fossils were obtained from this limestone along
the north shore of Etang Sa11matre and along the trails from Thomazeau
154 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

to Cornillon, from Cornillon to St.-Pierre, and from Cornillon to Marche

Canard. (See list, p. 156, stations 9898, 9521, 9657, 9556, 9557, 9558,
9451, 9449, 9450, 9559, 9452, 9453, 9560, 9454, and 9561.) Corals are
particularly abundant, and at some places for example, on the crest of
the :first ridge northwest of Cornillon on the trail to Marche Canard,
where large heads of Orbicella and branches of Stylophora and Porites
are strewn along the trail the limestone is a reef rock.

FOSSILS.

Foraminifera are less abundant in the upper Oligocene limestones than

in the older Tertiary rocks. Sorites americana (Cushman), described
from the Emperador limestone of Panama, and Miogypsina antillea
(Cushman), described :from the Anguilla formation of the island of
Anguilla, are the most common species. The deposits south of Gros-
Morne contain Lepidocyclina g·iraudi) described by R. Douville from beds
on the island of Martinique that are considered to be of Aquitanian age by
1
Giraud and of Burdigalian age by Douville. This species duplicates in a
remarkable fashion the surface sculpture o:f the Cretaceous species Orbir
toides media ( d'Archiac).
At some localities, particularly in the Montagnes du Trou d'Eau, corals
are ab11ndant in the upper Oligocene deposits. Some of the species, such
as Orbicella imperatoris Vaughan, Orbicella canalis Vaughan, and Sider-
astrea silecen.sis Vaughan, have been described from upper Oligocene
rocks in adjacent regions. At least two species, Stephanocoenia sp. cf. S.
intersepta (Esper) and Goniopora jarobiana Vaughan, are of Miocene
aspect.
The upper Oligocene deposits of the Haitian Republic seem to be of the
same age as the upper part of the Culebra formation and the Emperador
limestone of Panama and the Anguilla formation o:f Anguilla. This hori-
zon probably is the equivalent of the Aquitanian, which is called Miocene
by most European geologists.

Stations Upper Oligocene.

9761 (W 298 F). Tortue Island, trail from La Vallee to Pointe des Oiseaux,
about 8 kilometers east of La Vallee, altitude 265 meters above sea level. W. P.
Woodring, collector. February 20, 1921.
9762 (W 299 F). Tortue Island, trail from La Vallee to Pointe des Oiseaux,
steep slope leading down to coast about 3 kilometers northwest of Pointe des
Oiseaux, altitude 235 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. Febru-
ary 20, 1921.
9766 (W 302 F). Arrondissement of Borgne, trail from Anse-a-Foleur to Le
Borgne, float in small stream about 2 kilometers east of Anse-8.-Foleur. W. P.
Woodring, collector. February 22, 1921.

i Douvill~,R., Sur des L~pidocyclines nouvelles : Soc. g~ol. France Bull., 4th ser., vol.
7, pp. 307-311, pl. 10, figs. 9, 10, 15, 16, text figs. 1, 2, 1907 .

•
 SEDIMENTARY ROOKS. 155

9767 (W 303 F). Arrondissement of Borgne, trail from Anse-a-Foleur to Le

Borgne, first ridge along coast on east side of Anse-a-Foleur. W. P. Woodring,
collector. F ebruary 22, 1921.
9768 (W 304 F). ArrondiSBement of Borgne, float in mountains about 7 kilo-
meters west-northwest of Le Borgne, altitude 195 meters above sea level. W. P.
Woodring, collector. F ebruary 22, 1921.
9751 (W 276 F). Arrondissement of Gona.lves, road from Gonaives to Gros-
Morne, low hill on northwest side of road about 4 kilometers from Gonaives.
W. P . Woodring and J. S. Brown, collectors. February 15, 1921.
9943 (W 280 F). Arrondissement of Gana.Ives, road from Gona1ves to Gros-
Mome, about 7 kilometers south of Gros-Morne. W. P. Woodring and J. S. Brown,
collectors. F ebruary 15, 1921.
9936 (W 244 F). Arrondissement of Hinche, float at foot of cascade on Riviere
Samana at Bassin Zinn. W. P. Woodring, collect or. January 31, 1921.
9949 (W 324 F). Arrondi~ement of Valliere, trail from Thomassique to Cerca-
la-Source, float on north slope of ridge overlooking valley of Riviere I' Ocean,
altitude 435 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. March 13, 1921.
9741 (W 240 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, crest of Thomonde anticline,
foot of Mame Marnont, about 4 kilometers west-northwest of Thomonde, altitude
360 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 29, 1921.
9934 (W 241 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, float at same locality as 9741.
W. P. Woodring, collector. January 29, 1921.
9786 (W 215 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, trail from Thomonde to
Mirebalais, float about a kilometer southwest of cemetery at Caille-Pain, altitude
480 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 17, 1921.
9787 (W 216 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, trail from Thomonde to
Mirebalais, about 1.5 kilometers southwest of cemetery at Caille-Pain, altitude
4&5 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 17, 1921.
9917 (W 217 F). Arrondissement of La.s Cahobas, trail from Thomonde to Mire-
balais, float about 3.5 kilomet ers southwest of cemetery at Caille-Pain, altitude
570 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collecto1·..January 17, 1921.
9788 (W 218 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, trail from Thomonde to
Mirebalais, float on northeast slope of mountains at Bois-Joli, near crest, altitude
610 meters above sea level; same locality as 9918. W. P. Woodring, collector.
J anuary 17, 1921.
9875 (B 289 F). Arrondissement of Grande-Riviere du Nord, float on road
from St.-Michel de l'Atalaye to St.-Raphael, about 8 kilometers southwest of
St.-Raphael. J. S. Brown, collector. March 6, 1921.
9898 (B 350 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, float 50 meters west of
Source Maneville. J. S. Brown, collector. March 30, 1921.
9657 (W 105 F). , Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, float on small island along
north shore of Etang Saumatre, about 6 kilometers southeast of Maneville.
W. P. Woodring, collector. November 23, 1920.
9521 (W 104 F). Arrondi~ement of Port-au-Prince, float short distance east
of 9657. W. P. Woodring, collector. November 23, 1921.
9556 (W 114 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, trail from Thomazeau to
Cornillon, eouth slope of mountains about 10 kilometer!! northeast of Thomazeau,
altitude 640 meters above !ea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 3, 1920.
9557 (W 116 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, trail from Thomazeau to
Cornillon, about 2 kilometers northwest of Cornillon, altitude 905 meters above
eea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 3, 1920.
9558 (W 118 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, entrance to cave on north eide
of trail from Thomazeau to Cornillon, about 3 kilometers northwest of Comillon,
altitude 915 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 3, 1920.
 Upper Oligocene fossils. >-'
01
..=cocos........, '
4> ..... -
O')

+;I
~ t> r::; =' Borders of Central Plain. Montagnes du Trou d'Eau.
Massif 0 ~ 4> co
Tortue z ~
• Island. du Nord. •
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s
z
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Species. • Las Cahobas. 4>
Port·au.Prince. I Mirebalais.
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Foraminifera : 0
Sorites americana (Cushman) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• ? •• •• •• •• x •• • • •• •• ? • • x •• x x x x x x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• 0
~
Orbicul ina sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • x •• • • • • •• •• • • •• • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• ••
Operculina sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • • • •• • • • • x • • • • •• • • •• 0
~
Operculina ? sp . ................................. . x x • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• ••
Miogypsina antillea (Cushman) ...•........•..•... x
~l?j
? x • • •• 9 •• •• • • ••
•• •• •• • • • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • •• •• •• •• • • •• • •
Lepidocyclina giraudi R. Douville ................ . • • • • •• •• •• x x • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Corals:
Stylophora sp. a. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Stylophora sp. b .. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
••
••
••
••
••
••
••
••
••
••
••
•
••
••
••
••
••
••
••
••
••
••
•
• •
• ••
••
••
••
••
• •
••
••
••
••
••
• •
••
••
••
••
••
••
••
••
x
••
••
• •
••
••
• •
••
••
• •
••
••
• •

• •
••
x
••
••
~
~
Stephanocoenia sp. cf. S. intersepta (Esper) ..... . •• •• •• • • •• • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • • • • • • • • •• •• • • • • •• •• x •• • • •• •• •• • • t::d
x ~
Orbicella imperatoris Vaughan .•...•..••.........• • • •• • • • • •• •• • • •• •• • • •• x • • • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• x •• • • •• ......
Orbicella canalis Vaughan .....•......•........... x x • x x •• •• •• ••
0
•• •• •• •• • •• • • •• •• • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Solenastrea sp.• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• 0
Lamellastrea n. sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x ":r:J
•• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• • • •• •• • • •• • • •• • • • • • • •• • • •• •• • • ••
Siderastrea silecensis Vaughan. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• • • •• •• • • •• •• • • • • •• • • •• x •• x p::
Psammocora n. sp. a. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• • • •• •• •• • • •• • • x •• •• •• • • • • • • •• • • •• • • • • •• •• • • • • •• • • •• • • • • •• >
......
Psammocora sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• • • •• •• • • •• • • • • • • • • • • •• • • • • • • • • • • •• • • •• j
Porites sp. aff. P. furcata Lamarck.............. . x •
• • •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • • •• • • • • •• ••
Goniopora jacobiana Vaughan .................... . •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• x ••
Goniopora sp. indet . ......... . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • x ••
Mollusca:
Gastropoda :
Cerithium sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • • •• • • • • •• •• •• • • •• •• • • • • •• •• • • •• ••
Pelecypoda :
Arca sp. cf. A. umbonata Lamarck .•.. ••••••• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• x • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• ••
Ohlamys (Aequipecten) ep. cf. C. (A.) flabel·
lum (Cooke) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Chlamys ( Aequipecten) sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••

•Found al., in middle and aplJltl' OJtpiaen• of l'blda and Qeomla.

 •

SEDIMENTARY ROCKS • 157

•
9449 (W 119 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, trail from Cornillon to St.-
Pierre, cliff along east side of trail about 1 kilometer east of Comillon. W. P.
Woodring, collector. December 3, 1920.
9450 (W 120 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, float at same locality as 9449.
W. P. Woodring, collector. December 3, 1920.
9559 (W 121 F). Arrondisscment of Mirebalais, trail from C9rnillon to St.-
Pierre, float about 2.5 kilometers east of Comillon, altitude 1,035 meters above
sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 3, 1920.
9451 (W 122 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, trail from Cornillon to St.-
Pierre, about 5 kilometers southeast of Cornillon, altitude 1,055 meters above sea
level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 3, 1920.
9452 (W 123 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, trail from Cornillon to Thoma-
zeau and Mirebalais, float about 2.5 kilometers northwest of Cornillon, altitude
900 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 4, 1920.
9453 (W 124 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, trail f1~om Cornillon to Mire-
balais, about 3.5 kilometers northwest of Cornillon, altitude 980 meters above
sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 4, 1921.
9560 (W 125 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, trail from Cornillon to Mire-
balais, float about 3.6 kilometers northwest of Cornillon, altitude 980 meters above
sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 4, 1920.
9454 (W 126 F~ Arrondissement of Mireba.lais, trail from Cornillon to Mire-
balais, crest of ridge about 5 kilometers northwest of Comillon, altitude 1,115
meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 4, 1920.
9561 (W 128 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, trail from Comillon to Mire-
balais, float on north slope of mountains about 10 kilometers northwest of Cor-
nillon, altitude 870 meters above sea. level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December
4, 1920.
MIOCENE SERIES.

Rocks of Miocene age are widely distributed in the plains and lowlands
of the Republic and have a maximum thickness of more than a thousand
meters. Probably all of them are lower and middle Miocene. The Miocene
fossils in the different regions are so diverse that a short account of them
is given for each region.

GENERAL FEATURES.

Areal distribution. The largest areas of Miocene deposits are in the

Central Plain and the Artibonite Valley. Other areas are shown on Plate I.
The larger areas shown are in plains or lowlands, and in other regions
the Miocene rocks are restricted to lowlands; at few places are they found
at altitudes of more than 400 meters above sea level. They were not seen
on the crests of any of the mountain ranges, although they formerly ex-
tended over some ranges. Some lowlands, such as the Cul-de-Sac Plain,
the lower part of the Artibonite Plain, and most of the Arbre Plain, con-
tain Miocene rocks, but they are almost wholly concealed by Quaternary
alluvium.
Stratigraphic relations. The transgression of the Miocene sea was
extensive, and at places the Miocene overlaps the Eocene or even older
rocks. Around the borders of the Central Plain and at other places where

•
 •

158 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

the Miocene rests on upper Oligocene there is no unconformity between

them and the change in lithology is gradual. In the northwest Peninsula,
where Miocene rocks rest on Eocene rocks, there is little or no evidence
of unconformity, the strike and dip of the two series being nearly the sa.m e;
neither is there any conglomerate at the base of the Miocene, although the
change in lithology is abrupt. At a few places the Miocene appears to rest
in marked unconformity on rocks older than Eocene.
Lithology. The Miocene rocks consist principally of detrital deposit.a.
Most of them are fine grained, consisting of clay, siltstone, sandstone, and
marl. Unweathered surfaces of these rocks at most places are bluish or
greenish, but on weathered outcrops they are yellowish brown or gray.
The marl is highly ca.l careous, as is shown by the analysis on page 502 of
a sample from a locality north of St.-Marc. On a moisture-free basis the
sample contained more than 57 per cent of calci11m carbonate. Beds of
impure yellowish limestone from a few centimeters up to a meter in thick-
ness are interbedded with the marl at some localities. At other places
there are thicker beds of coralliferous limestone. Close to old land masses
the rocks are coarser, consisting of conglomerate and coarse sandstone.
In the Central Plain, the Asile Valley, and the lowland at Camp Perrin
the Miocene deposits contain beds of lignite. Although the unweathered
Miocene rocks are firmly consolidated most of them are soft and crumble
readi·l y in the hand when weathered.
Most of the Miocene deposits are of shallow-water marine origin, but
some of the deposits in the Central Plain were laid down in coastal-plain
swamps and on flood plains. The Miocene rocks of the Asile Valley and
the lowland at Camp Perrin are entirely nonmarine, consisting of lake,
swamp, delta, and flood-plain deposits.
Thickness. The thickness of the Miocene rocks differs greatly in dif-
ferent localities. In all the large areas it reaches a·t l east several hundred
meters. The estimated thickness in the Central Plain is 1,400 meters.
Near La Chapelle in the Artibonite V:alley a thickness of about 700
meters is exposed. In the area northeast of St.-Marc 300 meters of Mio-
cene rocks are exposed, but the base of the series was not seen. Near Camp
Perrin the thickness is at least 500 met.era.
Structure. The Miocene rocks are folded and in many localities
crumpled. Structurally the two largest areas of Miocene rocks, the Central
Plain and the Artibonite Valley, are synclines. Some of the details of
•
the structure are given in the following pages. The structural features
of the Central Plain are described on pages 488-492.

DESCRIPTION BY REGIONS.
JEAN RABEL vAIJLEY.
Much if not all of the lowland called the Jean Rabel Valley is 11nderlain
by soft Miocene rocks, which are easily eroded. In the northern part of the
lowland, however, at least near Jean Rabel, the Miocene rocks are covered
 SEDIMENT.ARY ROCKS. 159

by Quaternary alluvi11m. Good exposures are fo11nd in the plateau region

to the south.
The Miocene rocks of the area were examined hurriedly near Jean Rabel
and in the vicinity of Riviere Cadet and of Riviere de Jean Rabel, to the
southwest and southeast, respectively, of the town. They consist principally
of thin-bedded marl or sandy marl, generally bluish, but at a few places
of a gray or yellow tint. The marl commonly has the typical conchoidal
fracture shown in Plate XIV, 0, page 168. !Most of the sandy beds are
:fine grained, but beds of coarse sandstone were seen on Riviere de Jean
Rabel about a kilometer southeast of Jean Rabel. Beds of coarse sand-
stone and conglomerate are conspicuous near the southern border of the
lowland. They are yellowish and rather firmly consolidated.
Just west of Jean Rabel the Jv.Iiocene beds are sharply tilted and gen-
erally dip 30°-40° N. Farther south, however, the dips flatten and become
variable. The general inclination along Riviere Cadet seems to be slightly
to the north, but along the ridge to the east the beds of conglomerate for
a considerable distance dip a few degrees to the south. Along Riviere
de Jean Rabel the general strike is northeastward, varying, however, with-
in the limits of north and east. The dips are 15° to 30°, generally north-
westward so far as observed. The southward extension of the areas of
Miocene beds along these two river valleys as reentrants into regions
flanked by upper Eocene limestone and the divergence of the strikes at
numerous places from the general east and west elongation of the lowland
suggest that the valleys may be the troughs of minor synclines whose axes
trend approximately northward.
At a large spring about 5 kilometers south by east from Jean Rabel
along the trail to Anse Rouge, near Riviere de Jean Rabel, the contact of
Miocene with upper Eocene limestone is unusually well exposed. Both
series of rocks dip northward at about the same angle, 15° or 20°, but the
change in lithology is abrupt and complete. The upper Eocene consists of
hard white limestone containing numerous Forarninifera. The Miocene is
a bluish sandy marl, but there is no trace of a basal conglomerate.
The relations appear to be similar on Riviere Cadet about 4 or 5 kilo-
meters southwest of Jean Rabel, but the actual contact could not be found.
The upper Eocene limestone, which contains many Foraminifera, dips
northeastward at an angle of about 15° beneath fine-grained sandy and
marly Miocene beds that dip gently northward.
No estimate was obtained of the thickness of the Miocene beds exposed
in this area, but it probably reaches some hundreds of meters.
So far as observed the Miocene beds of the Jean Rabel Valley are un-
f ossilifero11s. They are considered of Miocene age on stra.t igraphic and
Ii thologic grounds.
. Tho1s RmEREs VALLEY.

Rocks similar to the Miocene rocks of the Jean Rabel Valley extend up
the Trois Rivieres Valley for an undetermined distance. Their relations
 160 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.
'

to the Oligocene deposits of this valley are not known. Exposures in high
bluffs along the lower part of the river show that they are made up of
marl, sandstone, and siltstone. The beds generally strike parallel to the
valley and dip to the east or west. ·
Sandstone and shale, probably of Miocene age, crop out along the road
leading westward from Port-de-Paix to the crossing of Les Trois Rivieres.
Similar detrital rocks extend along the north coast from Port-de-Paix
southeastward to Cap Rouge at the eastern boundary of the arrondisse-
ment of Port-de-Paix. They dip to the northeast toward the se'a and over-
lie limestone of upper Oligocene age.
NEAR MOLE ST.-NICOLAS.
The Riviere du Mole south of Mole St.-Nicolas occupies a deep, canyon-
like valley cut mainly in Quaternary coralliferous limestone. At La Gorge,
about 3 kilometers south of Mole St.-Nicolas, the valley widens and is
•

floored with Miocene marl. The average width of the area underlain by
the Miocene beds probably is about half a kilometer. The area is at least
2 kilometers and very likely 3 or 4 kilometers in length.
The soft marl disintegrates readily into greenish clayey soil. The best
exposure was found in an excavation along the trail leading to Bombar-
dopolis, about 2 kilometers south of La Gorge, at an altitude of about 95
meters above sea level and 25 meters above the river bed. The marl is
greenish in color and contains a few fragments of mollusks. The bedding
was not visible, as the rocks in the exposure had sl11mped. Marl from
this excavation was being tried in making bricks at La Gorge. (See
p. 506.) •
The contact of the Miocene with the overlying coralliferous limestone
is about 100 meters above sea level along the trail just above the excava-
tion but is not well exposed. The Miocene beds generally seem to extend
to elevations from 15 to 30 meters above the river bed. The coralliferous
limestone generally forms steep bluffy slopes above the contact.
The Miocene rocks exposed on this stream are probably continuous
under the cover of Quaternary limestone with the extensive area of simi-
lar rocks in the Jean Rabel Valley.
. ARBRE PLAIN.

The Arbre Plain, a lowland on the south side of the northwest Penin-
sula, resembles in many features the Jean Rabel Valley. Rocks of Miocene
age 11nderlie probably the entire plain but are concealed by alluvium in
its lower part. They consist of marl, conglomerate, and limestone. A Mio-
cene coral was collected from a conglomerate containing poorly preserved
corals and mollusks (station 9846). The conglomerate is about 2 meters
thick and is overlain and underlain by bluish marl. At this locality the
beds are approximately horizontal. Just north of this exposure there is
a low hill of weathered, pitted limestone, probably massive Eocene lime-
stone, which crops out from beneath the Miocene rocks.
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS • 161
•

Miocene marl was found in a low bluff along a dry stream channel on
the trail from the Sources Chaudes to Anse Rouge, a little more than a
kilometer southwest of the Sources Chaudes and just north of a promi-
nent low hill called Morne Meron. The marl is bluish and clayey and
showed no bedding planes.
The contact between Miocene marl and thin-bedded limestone and simi-
•

lar rocks of middle Oligocene age is exposed at the northern edge of the
plain on the trail from Anse Rouge to Jean Rabel. The two series of rocks
seem to be conformable. At the Sources Chaudes there is evidence that
the contact between Miocene and older limestone, of supposed Eocene age,
is a fault. (Seep. 561.)
Fossils. The single collection of fossils from the Miocene rocks of the
Arbre Plain is given in the following table. The coral Psammocora n. sp.
was obtained also from the upper part of the Thomonde formation in the
Central Plain.
Station in Arbre Plain (Mioc ene ).
9846 (B 213 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, trail from Sources Chaudes to
l'Arbre, about 3 kilometers west-northwest from Sources Cha.u des. J. S. Brown,
collector. February 4, 1921.

Fossil (coral) from station 9846.

Psammocora n. sp. b, also from Miocene of Trinidad.

CENTRAL PLAIN.

Artibonite group.

The Miocene rocks of the Central Plain are better known than those of
1 2
any other region in the Republic. Tippenhauer and Jones have de-
scribed some of the Miocene deposits of the plain, and a preliminary
report setting forth the results of the reconnaissance has been published..'
Structurally the plain is a deep southeastward-plunging syncline modified
by secondary synclinal and anticlinal folds. It contains an estimated
thickness of 1,400 meters of Miocene rocks, for which Woodring' has
recently proposed the name Artibonite group, derived from Riviere Arti-
bonite. The Artibonite group is the equivalent of the lower part of the
Yaque group of the Dominican Republic. It consists of the following
• formations : ·
1 Tlppenhauer, L. G., Beitrlige zur Geologfe Hatti, VI, Das Llgnltlager von Malssade
und der Aufstteg zum Zentralplateau von Gonatves und von Norden aus : Petermanns
l\Iitt., Band 47, pp. 193-199, pis. 15, 16 (map and sections), 1901; Neuer Beftrag z11r
Topographie, Bevolkerungskunde und Geologie Haitls : Petermanns Mitt., Band 55, pp.
49-o7, pl. 5 (map), 1909.
2 Jones, W. F., A geological reconnaissance in Hatti ; a contribution to Antillean

geology: Jour. Geology, vol. 26, pp. 728-752, pl. 5 (map and sections), 10 text figs., 1918.
1
Woodring, W. P., Stratigraphy, structure, and possible oil resources of. the Miocene
rocks of the Central Plain, 19 pp., map, RP.p. Haiti Geol. Survey, 1922.
'Woodring, W. P., op. cit., p. 6.
11

•
162 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Formations comprised in the Artibonite group.

Approximate thickness
in meters.
Las Cahobas formation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 600-700
Thomonde formation (including Ma!~ade tongue in north-
western part) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300-600
Madame Joie formation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

The distribution of these formations is shown on Plate XXXVI

(p. 488).

MADAME JOIE FORMATION.

The name Madame Joie formation has been proposed for the lowest
1
group of Miocene rocks in the plain. The name is derived from Madame
Joie, a village about 10 kilometers
•
west of Ma!ssade, and the type locality
is a.t the foot of Morne Madame Joie, about 1 kilometer southwest of the

Metres
Tmj
500

• Tp
'+00

FIGURE 9. Diagrammatic section of foothills at Morne Madame Joie.

Tp, Pliocene (?) clay; Tmj, Madame Joie formation, lower Miocene;
Tos, upper Oligocene limestone.

village. It crops out at the base of the mountains along the western and
southern margins of the plain.
The Madame Joie formation overlies the upper Oligocene limestone,
but the actual contact was not seen. Apparently there is no unconformity
between them, but rocks that probably are the equivalent of the Madame
Joie :formation elsewhere directly overlie Eocene deposits.
At the type locality the formation is made up of alower part consisting
of bluish-gray siltstone and an upper part consisting of coralliferous lime-
stone, sandstone, and marl. The following section was measured at the
type locality. Each of the cora.l liferous limestones in the upper part of
the formation crops out in a prpminent ledge that has a long dip slope
facing toward the plain, as shown in Figure 9. The soft lower part of the
formation underlies the gap between the ridge formed by the coralliferous
limestones and the main part of Morne Madame Joie.
i Woodring, W. P., op. cit., p. 6, 1922.
 SEDIMENTARY ROOKS. 163

Section of Madame Joie formation at foot of Marne Madame Joie .

•
Est.
•
thickness
in meters.
12. Limestone, corallif erous, cream-colored; station 9720. . . . . . . . . 5
11. Sandstone, calcareous, yellow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
10. Siltstone, sandy, yellowish brown. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
9. Marl, light yellow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
8. Limestone, coralliferous, dirty white; station 9937..... . . . . . . . 5 •
•
7. Siltstone, marly, light brown. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 •

6. Marl, yellowish brown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

5. Limestone, coralliferous, dirty white; station 9938............ 5
4. Marl, light yellow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
3. Siltstone, marly, yellowish brown........................... 2
2. Limestone, coralliferous, light yellow. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1. Siltstone, bluish gray, not well exposed. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

60

The beds strike N. 50° W. and dip 25°-33° NE. At the foot of the
ridge lie clays of Pliocene or Quaternary age that probably conceal higher
beds in the formation.
1
On the Thomonde anticline the Madame Joie for1nation consists of
the same kinds of rocks. Limestone and yellowish-white marl in the
upper part of the formation form a low ridge that arches over the plung-
ing crest of the anticline about 2 kilometers northwest of Thomonde.
Bluish-gray siltstone in the lower part of the formation crops out along
a small stream that flows nearly on the crest of the anticline inside the
ridge. The mollusks listed on page 164, station 9933, were collected from
the siltstone along this stream. Similar mollusks (see list, p. 164, station
9784) were collected from yellowish-gray marl, probably in the upper
part of the formation, on the south limb of the Thomonde anticline.
At the south edge of the plain the Madame Joie for1nation was examined
only along the trail from Belladere to Savanette. Here the formation
seems to consist entirely of marl, from which the pteropods listed on page
164, station 9912, were obtained. The marl crops out in the mo11ntain
slope facing the plain at an altitude of 460 meters above sea level.
Fossils. The coralliferous limestones in the upper part of the forma-
tion at the type locality contain huge heads of Orbicella canalis Vaughan
and Orb·icclla altissima Duncan ( ?) . 0. canalis bas not heretofore been
recorded from rocks yo11nger than upper Oligocene, but it was fo11nd in
Miocene deposits at a number of localities in the Republic of Haiti.
The molluscan fa11na of the Madame Joie for1nation is meager, consist-
ing principally of pi:eropods of the genera Cavolina and Styliola. At some
localities, particularly station 9912, the pteropods are very abundant but
poorly preserved. The presence of these pteropods and of the bivalve
mollusks Bathyarca and Limopsis and the absence of common shoal-water
1
See pp. 488-492 and Pl. XXXVI for description and location of anticlines tn the
Central Plain.
164 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

mollusks indicate that these sediments were deposited in clear water at

some distance from land. The depth of the water may have been greater
when the lower part of the for1nation was being laid down than when the
upper part and the later formations were being deposited.
The Madame Joie formation is either Aquitanian or Burdigalian. Al-
though the evidence is not very conclusive it seems to be lower Burdi-
galian. It marks the beginning of the change from the limestones of the
Eocene and Oligocene to the detrital deposits of the Miocene.
'fl1e .Madame Joie fossils and the localities at which they were collected
are given in the following table.

Stations in Central Plai11r-Madame Joie formation (Miocene).

9720 (W 257 F). Arrondissement of Hinche, lower slopes of Morne Madame
Joie, about 1 kilometer southwest of Madame Joie, from uppermost coralliferous
limestone, altitude 400 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. Febru-
ary 3, 1921.
9937 (W 258 F). Arrondissement of Hinche, lower slopes of Morne Madame
Joie, from middle coralliferous limestone, altitude 430 meters above sea level.
W. P. Woodring, collector. February 3, 1921.
9938 (W 259 F). Arrondissement of Hinche, lower slopes of Morne Madame
Joie, from lower coralliferous limestone, altitude 465 meters above sea level.
W. P. Woodring, collector. February 3, 1921.
9933 (W 239 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, crest of Thomonde anticline,
about 3 kilometers west-northwest of Thomonde, altitude 315 meters above sea
level. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 29, 1921.
9784 (W 213 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, south limb of Thomonde
anticline, trail from Thomonde to Mirebalais, cro~ing of ravine about 4 kilo-
meters southwest of Thomonde, altitude 305 meters above sea level. W. P.
Woodring, collector. January 17, 1921.
9912 (W 199 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, trail from Belladere to
Savanette, north slope of mountains about 7 kilometers southwest of Belladere,
altitude 460 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 13, 1921.

Miocene fossils from Central Plain (Madame Joie formation) .

• '

Hinche. Las Cahobas.

Species.
9720 9937 9938 9933 978' 9912

Oorals:
Orbicella canalis Vaughan .......•....•....•...........•...• . • x x •••• •••• •••• ••••
Orbicella altissima Duncan f ....•....•.....•......•. . .....•.• • ••• •••• x •••• •••• ••••
Mollusca:
Pteropoda:
Styliola sp. . ..............................•...........••. • ••• • •• • • ••• x x x
Oavolina sp. cf. 0. bisulcata ( Gabb) ..•..•..........••... .... .... ... ' •• •• • •• x
Gastropoda :
Bullaria f sp ••••.•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••.••• • • •••• • ••• •••• x x • •••
Natica ? sp •.•••..••••••.•••••••••••••.•••••••••••••••••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••• • x • •••
Pelecypoda :
Limopsia sp. . ........................................... . •••• ••• • •••• x • ••• • •••
Bathyarca sp. cf. B. hendersoni Dall........ . ....•....... •• •• •••• • ••• •••• x ••••
 SEDIMENT.ARY ROCKS. 165

THOMONDE FORMATION AND MAISSADE TONGUE.

'
The name Thomonde ''beds,'' derived from the name of the town of
1
'fhon1onde, was given by Jones to the rocks overlying the J.\iladame Joie
formation. The type 10cality is in the vicinity of Thomonde. In the
southeastern part of the plain the Thomonde formation crops out at the
foot of the mountains. The width of the outcrop increases as the rocks
arch over the crests of the plunging anticlines. The outcrop is wider along
its northeast edge, because the formation •
is thicker there and the struc-
ture is different. In the entire northwestern part of the plain the
Thomonde for1nation lie,s at the surface or is covered only by a thin layer
of Pliocene or Quaternary stream deposits.
The Thomonde formation conformably overlies the Madame Joie for-
mation, which along the northeast edge of the plain seems to be com-
pletely overlapped by it.
Southeastern part. Along the west and south edges of the southeastern
part of the plain the Thomonde formation consists principally of soft
rocks, and its outcrop is marked by a depression along the foot of the
mountains and on the plunging anticlines. At the type locality the forma-
tion is about 400 meters thick and consists principally of siltstone, either
•
sandy or clayey. There are a few thin beds of sandstone near the base and
a few beds of coarser sandstone and conglomerate near the top. The
siltstone is similar to the siltstone in the lower part of the Madame Joie
formation. The unweathered rock is bluish gray, but surfaces that have
been oxidized and leached are rusty brown or yellowish brown. The upper
part of the formation is well exposed on the south limb of the Thomoude
anticline on the slope leading down to Riviere Thomonde, along the trail
from Las Cahoba~s to Thomonde, and on the north limb along the trail
from Thomonde to Thomassique.
Good exposures of the upper part of the formation can be seen on Riviere
Thomonde below Thomonde. Numerous collections of fossils were ob-
tained from the beds in the uppermost 100 meters of the Thomonde for-
n1ation, on the crest and limbs of the 'l homonde anticline. They are listed
1

on pages 178-190. Detailed descriptions of the localities are given on pages

175, 177 (stations 9782, 9781, 9780, 9929, 9778, 9779, 9791, and 9785).
The best fossils were collected on Riviere Thomonde at station 9782.
Along the trails where the beds lie above the level of ground water the
shell substance of many specimens bas been removed by leaching, leaving
only casts and impressions. Casts are particularly common in the porous
beds at the top of the formation. The lower part of the Thomonde for-
mation on the Thomonde anticline also consists of bluish-gray siltstone
but contains only a few fossils. (See list, pp. 178-190, station 9935.)
The middle part was examined on Riviere l'Ayaye, on the crest of the
l'Ayaye anticline along the west edge of the plain. The following section
1
Jones, W. F., op. cit., p. 736, 1918.
166 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

is exposed in the lower third of the first high bluff on the left bank of
Riviere l'Ayaye above its mouth:

Section of beds in middle part of Thomonde formation on Riviere l'Ayaye

(station 99(Jl). Est. thickness
in meters.
7. Siltstone, bluish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
· 6. Siltstone, sandy; fragments of lignitized wood. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
5. Siltstone, bluish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
4. Siltstone, sandy (lens) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
3. Siltstone, yellowish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
2. Siltstone, sandy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
1. Siltstone, bluish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Stream level.
8.5

The fossils from this locality (station 9907; see list, pp. 178-190) were
collected from the beds given in the section and higher beds, some of the
best specimens being obtained from loose blocks at the foot of the bluff,
which is about ·25 meters high. The fossils listed on pages 178-190 (station
9908), were collected from a layer in sandy siltstone in the next bluff
on the left bank downstream.
The Thomonde formation is not very well exposed along the south edge
of the plain near Las Cahobas. At the exposures examined it consists of
sandy and clayey siltstone. A collection of fossils (station 9904; see list,
pp. 178-190), indicates that the beds were laid down in relatively deep
water. On the east side of the ·r oad from Mirebalais to Las Cahobas and
immediately north of the small stream at the foot of the mountains, on
the north side of the gap, soft sandy and clayey beds in the Thomonde
formation strike N. 30° W. and dip 32° NE. At the same locality but on
the west side of the road, there is :finely laminated buff or yellowish clay,
from which the plants and fish listed on page 206 (station 7544) were
collected. The clay dips about 5 ° SW. At. the top of the hill about 60
meters farther northeast, toward Las Cabobas, similar clay seems to rest
unconformably on beds belonging to the Thomonde formation. The
plants are strand plants, and one of the species was obtained from beds of
known Miocene age in the Artibonite Valley (see p. 215), but the fish be-
longs to a fresh-water genus. The clay can hardly belong to the Thomonde
formation because of its stratigraphic relations and because the Thomendc
formation not far distant along the strike carries a relatively deep-watr.r
fauna. It may represent some part of the Miocene series not known else-
where in the Central Plain. Its stratigraphic relations led to the sup- ·
position in the field that it was of Pliocene age, but overwhelming evidence
shows that the sea withdrew from the a1·ea now embraced by the Central
Plain before Pliocene time. It is unfortunate that the age of these beds
is not known, as they furnished the largest collection of fossil plants
obtained in the Republic.
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 167

On the Belladere anticline, at the southeastern extremity of the plain,

the Thomonde formation was seen only on the north limb along the trail
from Las Cahobas to Belladere and its prolongation eastward beyond
Belladere toward Commendador. Siltstone and thin beds of sandstone
dip from 12 ° to 24 ° almost due north.
Along the northeast side of the plain the lithology of the Thomonde
formation is entirely different, for in this region it consists largely of
coarse detrital sediments, principally conglomerate and coarse sandstone.
(See Pl. XIV, A.) Most of the coarse seuiments are of nonmarine origin
and are apparently delta and flood-plain deposits laid down along the old
landmass that stretched along this side of the plain during Miocene time.
Toward the southwest, under the cover of younger rocks, the coarse non-
marine sediments probably interfinger with the fine-grained marine sedi-

5.0 N.E

__...J~-'--:r:.'--=~§~::~§~c~:r:':l;:~r:-t=~ai;::~c.~a.~ir:r:::e:~,0:7,i~g~o~c~~:~re~-s~-o~p~e~'r;:ii e:....u-r~-r-
F1GuRE 10. Diagram showing lateral change in lithology of the Miocene rocks of
t.he Central Plain and the transgressive overlap of the Thomonde formation.
The total thickness of the Las Cahobas formation is not sho"'n.

ments that crop out along the west and south edges of the plain, as is
shown in Figure 10. Thin wedges of fine-grained marine sedi1nents extend
northeastward into this area of coarse rocks, indicating continuous move-
ments of the strand and breaks in the deposition of sediments along the
margin of the sea. These marine wedges contain typical Thomonde fos-
sils. The largest collections made and the largest collections from the
entire Thomonde formation were obtained on Ravine Roche Salee at the
crossing of the trail from Hinche to Thomassique, about 3 kilometers
southeast of Los Palos. (See lists, pp. 178-190; stations 9945 and 9946.)
Many of the shells are closely packed in pockets, which indicates sorting
by waves or currents.
Fossils typical of the upper part of the Thomonde formation were col-
lected from sandy siltstone less than half a kilometer north of Thomas-
sique on the trail to Cerca-la-Source. (See list, pp. 178-190; station 9947.)
168 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Countless specjroens of Orthaulax aguadillensis are weathered out of or

partly ·embedded in the rock at this locality. Most of the specimens are
casts, except Orthaulax, Ostrea, and Pecten, as is common in beds above
the level of ground water.
Fossils similar to those in the middle part of the Thomonde for1nation
on the west side of the plain were collected on the same trail at the first
crossing of Riviere Ronde. (See list, pp. 178-190; station 9948.) The
Thomonde formation, which is clearly transgressive, probably overlaps the
coarse marginal deposits of the Madame Joie formation on this side of the
plain, as is shown on the map (Pl. XXXVI) and in Figure 10.
Beds of fine sandstone and siltstone that contain no marine fossils and
that are considered nonmarine are interbedded with the conglomerates and
coarse sandstones, but t11ey are buff, reddish, or greenish. Most of the
marine beds are bluish gray, but some of them are greenish. Toward the
mountains the conglomerates contain an increasing proportion of disk-
shaped pebbles of argillite derived from the area of argillite near Cerca-
la-Source. Conditions seem to be favorable for a quantitative study of
the gradual elimination of pebbles of argillite in terms of increasing dis-
tance from the landmass.
Northwestern part. In the northwestern part of the plain, northwest
of Hinche, the stratigraphic relations of different parts of the Thomonde
formation are more complex, and the relations presented in this report
are based primarily on a study of the fossil mollusks.
In this part of the plain the lower part of the Thomonde formation
consists of siltstone and thin beds of fine-grained sandstone resembling
the lower part of the formation in the southeastern part of the plain and
containing the same fauna. This part of the formation is about 250 meters
thick. It crops out along the foot of the mountains immediately above
the Madame Joie formation and on the Fond Bleu dome. Fossils were
collected from it on the south limb of the Fond Bleu dome (station 9719)
and northeast of Madame Joie near Riviere Blanche (station 9939; see
lists on pp. 178-190).
The middle part of the formation, which is about 100 meters thick,
consists principally of conglomerate and coarse sandstone resembling
those in the overlying Las Cahobas formation. These beds form the pine-
covered '' rim rock '' around the Fond Bleu dome. Riviere Blanche flows
across them in a short, narrow gorge. They probably r epresent some of
the beds in the middle part of the Thomonde formation as developed in
the southeastern part of the plain.
Above these conglomerates and sandstones lies a series of lignite-bearing
1
beds to which Jones gave the name Maissade ''beds,'' derived from the
name of the town of Maissade. Extensive collections of fossils were made
from this series of beds at exposures on Riviere Fond Gras and Riviere
1 Jones, W. F., op. cit., p. 739, 1918.
BEPUBLTC OF HATTI
GEOLOGI CAL SUR \' EY PLATE XIV

·... 1\ \ t'I
I

• •
• • •

A. TITO:\IO:NDE FORMATION ON RIVIERE ' RONDE, ON TIIE NORTHEAST

IDIU OF 'l'IIE CEXTR.AI.J 1•LAI:N.

B . L ..\S CATTOR1\S FOR:\IATIO~ NE ..\R L~\S CAIIORAS, ON' THE SOUTIT

SIDE OF 'l' IIl~ l' I•: ~'l'l{ .\ I.1 I,LAIX .

0. ~iIOCEN~j ~fARL NEAR LA CI-lAPELLE.

•
 •

SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 169

Blanche (or Rio Blanco), northeastward-flowing tributaries of Riviere

Canot northwest of Maissade. These collections show that the Ma1ssade
''beds'' consist of a remarkable alternation of beds, some of which contain
a marine fauna, others a mixture of marine and brackish-water faunas,
and others a brackish-water fauna. The collections are listed on pages
194-197 (sta.t ions 9717, 9713, 9714, 9715, 9722, 9726, 9711, 9716, 9723,
9724, 9725, 9727, 9728, 9729, 9732, 9733, 9710, 9718, 9712, 9730, 9731).
The beds containing the marine mollusks occur in the lower and middle
parts of the lignite-bearing series. The largest marine faunule was col-
lected at the northwest end of the Fond Bleu dome, on Riviere Fond Bleu,
from beds near the base of the series (station 9 717). These fossils are
typical of the middle part of the Thomonde formation in the southeastern
part, and show that the lower and middle parts of the Ma!ssade '' beds ''
are a coastal-swamp facies of the middle part of the Thomonde formation.
The series of lignite-bearing rocks is therefore called the Ma1ssade tongue

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FIGURE "'
11.-Diagram showing stratigraphic relations of the Malssade tongue of •

the Thomonde formation .

•

of the Thom on deformation. The fauna of the upper part of the Thomonde
formation was not discovered in this part of the plain, and the higher
beds of the Ma!ssade tongue, which are wholly nonmarine, seem to be the
equivalent of the upper part of the Thomonde. Toward the southeast the
Maissade tongue probably inter:fingers with other parts of the Thomonde
forma.t ion, but the outcrops were not traced. This inferred relation is
shown on Plate XXXVI and :in Figure 11.
Beds near the base of the Ma1ssade tongue are exposed in roadcuts along
the road from Maissade to Hinche, up the hill south of the crossing of
Riviere Frio. They consist of beds of sandy siltstone containing crystals
of gypsum and thi~ beds of coarse, pebbly sandstone and dip 45 ° NE.
Near the top of the hill lies a bed of carbonaceous clay 82 centimeters
•
thick. Farther to the south and southeast there are soft cross-bedded
sandstone containing Ostrea and Scapharca (station 9926) and con-
glomerate. These beds probably lie at the top of the series of coarse sand-
stones and conglomerates below the Maissade tongue.
 170 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The Ma!ssade tongue is about 200 meters thick. The lowermost beds,
about 50 meters thick, consist of siltstone, sandstone, and clay. In this
part of the formation some of the clay is carbonaceous. Higher beds con-
tain more carbonaceous material, and most of the beds of lignite, which
are described on pages 481-483, occur at about the middle of the formation.
The uppermost beds are entirely nonmarine and consist of sandstone,
clay, and siltstone, most of which are colored in shades of red and green.
A conspicuous bed of red clay containing flakes of gypsum extends across
the road from Ma1ssade to St.-Michel de l' Atalaye, about 200 meters
north of the crossing of Ravine Reparadere, near Ma1ssade.
The following sections of the Ma1ssade tongue show the rapid alterna-
tion of beds. The region in which they were deposited was a coastal swamp
that was repeatedly invaded by the sea, but finally the sea withdrew. The
carbonaceous material in the beds of carbonaceous shale and lignite prob..
ably represents debris of coastal-swamp vegeta,tion, but no determinable
plants were obtained.
The Ma1ssade tongue is well exposed on Riviere Blanche. The follow-
ing sections of beds about 20 meters above the base of the tongue was
measured in the first bluff on the left bank of Riviere Blanche below the
gorge formed by the underlying conglomerates and sandstones:

Section of lower part of M aissade tongue on Riviere Blanche.

lleters.
7. Clay, sandy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .50
6. Clay, black, carbonaceous. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
5. Clay, sandy, brown; fragments of brackish-water mollusks... .20
4. Siltstone, sandy, bluish; fragments of marine mollusks...... .50
3. Oyster bed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.75
2. Siltstone, sandy, bluish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
1. Siltstone, sandy, fragments of marine mollusks............. 2

15.06

Beds in the following section are exposed in the first long bluff on the
right bank of Riviere Blanche below the gorge. The base of this section
is about 75 meters higher stratigraphically than the top of the preceding
section. At this locality the beds dip northeastward 45a to 58°.

Section of middle part of M aissade tongue on R 'i vwre Blanche.

• Meters •
47. Siltstone, bluish, marine fauna; station 9722.............. 5.40
46. Siltstone, mixed marine and brackish-water fat1na; station
9723 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25
45. Siltstone, bluish gray, sandy; small fragile bivalves........ .80
44. Siltstone, gray, mixed marine and brackish-water fauna;
station 9724 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .60
43. Siltstone, gray; mixed marine and brackish-water fauna.;
station 9725 ................................. ~ . . . . . . . . .35
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 171
Meters .
42. Siltstone, dark gray, slightly carbonaceous ............... . .45
Lignite, dirty; streaks of pure lignite .................. . .30
41. Lignite .............................................. . .13
Lignite, dirty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....................... . .05
40. Siltstone, dark gray, carbonaceous; thin streaks of dirty
lignite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .60
39. Siltstone, gray ......................................... . .16
38. Siltstone, gray; streaks of dirty lignite ................... . .55
37. Not exposed ............... . ........................... . 3
36. Siltstone, bluish gray; marine fauna; station 9726 ......... . 3
35. Siltstone, gray; oyster b ed .............................. . .35
34. Siltstone, gray; mixed marine and brackish-water fauna;
station 9727 ......................................... . .65
33. Siltstone, gray, thin irregular Reams of lignite at base ..... . .13
32. Siltstone, gray; mixed marine and brackish fauna; nests
of Scapharca; station 9728 ............................ . 1.40
31. Siltstone, gray; oyster bed .............................. . .20
30. Siltstone, bluish gray; carries Potamides .. ............... . 2.50
29. Siltstone, gray ; extends as ledge across stream ; mixed
marine and brackish-water fauna; masses of Scapharca
chiriquiensi,s; station 9729 ............................ . .50
28. Siltstone, bluish gray .................................. . 1.75
Clay, carbonaceous ................................... . .15
. .
L igm te ............................................... . .20
27. Lignite; two sandy partings that contain fragments of
My tilopsis ......................................... . .60
. .
L 1gn1te, di rty ......................................... . .30
26. Clay, greenish blue ..................................... . 5
25. Siltstone; layers of hard sandy material and softer clayey
material ............................................ . 1.14
24. Clay, black, carbonaceous; a thin band contains brackish-
water mollusks; station 9730 .......................... . .07
23. Siltstone, sandy, dark gray . . ............................ . .27
22. Clay, black, carbonaceous; streaks of sandy siltstone ..... . .80
21. Siltstone, slightly carbonaceous; brackish-water fauna;
station 9731 ......................................... . .80
'
20. Clay, dark gray to black; carries Potamides .............. . 1
19. Siltstone, greenish blue ................................. . 1.25
18. Oyster bed ............................................ . .10
17. Siltstone, greenish blue ; not well exposed ................ . 4
16. Oyster bed ............................................ . .50
15. Siltstone, bluish green; carries Scapharca . ............... . .35
14. Clay, carbonaceous .................................... . .45
13. Sandstone; thin seams of lignite ......................... . 1.15
12. Lignite, very dirty ...................................... . .75
11. Siltstone, dark gray; seams of carbonaceous clay ......... . 4
. . di
L igrute, rly ........................................ . .06
10. . .
L ign1 te . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48
9. Siltstone, sandy, dark gray .............................. . .32
8. Lignite, dirty .......................................... . .05
7. Siltstone, bluish gray .................................. . 3
6. Siltstone, gray; mixed marine and brackish-water fauna.;
l!tation 9732 . • . • . • . • . . . • • . • . • . . . . . • • . . • . . . . . . • • . . • . . • • 3

•
 172 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI .

•
Meters •
5. Oyster bed ............................................ . .50
4. Siltstone, bluish ; carries Scapharca . ..................... . 4
3. Oyster bed ............................................ . .50
2. Siltstone, dark gray; pieces of carbonaceous material; mixed
marine and brackish-water fauna; station 9733. . . . . . . . . . 2
1. Siltstone, bluish gray . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

60.91

The fallowing section of beds in the middle part of the Ma1ssade tongue
was measured at a long bluff on the right bank of Rivi~re Fond Gras about
2 kilometers above the junction of Riviere Fond Gras and Riviere Canot.
The beds dip 70° to 80° NE.

Section of middle part of M a"issade tongue on Riviere Fond Gras.

Meters.
15. Oyster bed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
14. Clay, bluish green; mixed marine and brackish-water fa11na;
station 9711 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
13. Lignite, dirty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22
12. Siltstone, bl11ish; brackish-water fauna; station 9712.... . . 5
11. Oyster bed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
•

10. Siltstone, sandy . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

9. Lignite, dirty ........................................ . .50
. .
L 1gnite .......................................... · · · · · .43
8. Siltstone, brackish-water fauna. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
7. Oyster bed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
6. Siltstone, sandy; marine fauna; station 9713 ............. . 1.50
. •t
L 1gn1 e .......•..•......••..•........ · · • · · • · · · · · · · · · · · · .14
Clay, carbonaceous ................................... . .03
. .
L igrute ............................................... . .06
. . d'1rty ......................................... .
L 1grute, .07
5. Clay, carbonaceous ...................... ; ............ . .05
. .
L1gn1te, d'1rty ........................................ . .05 .
• . .
L ignite ............................................... . .07
. . d.
L ignite, 1rty ......................................... . .08
Clay, carbonaceous ................................... . .12
4. Siltstone, bluish; marine fauna; station 9714 ............. . 2
3. Siltstone, sandy; marine fauna; station 9715 ............. . 5
2. Lignite, dirty .......................................... . .09
1. Clay, carbonaceous; fragments of M ytilopsis ............. . .08

25.49

At a bluff on the right bank of Riviere Frio, about 100 meters abo\ e 1

the crossing of the road from Ma1ssade to Hinche, the following beds are
exposed:
• •
 •

SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 173

Section of beds in middle part of M a"issade tongue on Riviere Frio.

1t1eters.
10. Siltstone, grayish brown; carries Potamides.
. .
L ign1 te . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....................... . .17
Clay, brown, carbonaceous ............ ·. . .............. . .43
. 'te ............................................... .
9. L 1gn1 .14
. . d'irty ......................................... .
L 1gn1te, .18
Clay, black, carbonaceous; fragments of mollusks ....... . .55
8. Siltstone and clay, bluish green .......................... . 5
7. Clay, chocolate-brown .................................. . .50
6. Clay, black, carbonaceous; streaks of lignite ............. . .44
5. Clay, grayish brown .................................... . 2
4. Siltstone, bluish green . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
3. Not exposed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
2. Lignite, dirty streaks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.50 I

1. Clay, brown, brackish-water fauna; station 9710. . . . . . . . . . . 1

43.91

The upper part of the Ma1·ssade tongue was examined on Riviere Ca.not
below the crossing of the road from Ma1ssade to St.-Michel de l'Atalaye.
It is made up of reddish and greenish siltstone, coarse rusty-brown sand-
stone, greenish sandstone, and conglomerate containing small pebbles.
None of these beds is fossiliferous.
On the northeast side of the northwestern part of the plain the Tho-
monde formation resembles the middle part of that formation on the
southwest side of that part of the plain, but is much thicker and consists
principally of conglomerates and coarse sandstones. These beds are similar
to those in the Thomonde formation along the northeast side of the south-
eastern part of the plain, but no marine fossils were found in the north-
western part and the beds there probably consist entirely of flood-plain
and delta deposits. They are indistinguishable from similar beds in the
Las Cahobas formation, and when the Ma1ssade beds were named it was
supposed that they and the conglomerates underlying the Ma1ssade tongue
on the southeast side of the plain belonged to the Las Cahobas.
Fossils, Thomonde formation. Large collections of fossils were ob-
tained from the Thomonde formation, which can be divided into three
faunal zones corresponding to the lower, middle, and upper parts already
described. .
Corals are abundant in the middle and upper faunal zones, but none of
them are of reef facies. The Recent species Bolenastrea bournoni Milne-
Edwards and Haime and Siderastrea s·iderea (Ellis and Solander) give the
fauna a modern aspect. Several species of Stylophora and a new species
of Asterosmilia are common in the middle faunal zone at stations 9907
•
and 9908 on Riviere l'Ayaye. Stylophora minor Duncan, collected from
the middle fa11nal zone at station 9948, is characteristic of younger beds
( Gurabo forrnation and Mao Adentro limestone) in the northern part of •

the Dominican Republic. A.ntillia dubia D11ncan, found in the upper

174 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI. •

faunal zone, is known also only from younger beds ( Cercado and Gurabo
formations) in the Dominican Republic. A new species of Psammocora
was obtained from Miocene rocks in the Arbre Plain. The same species
has been obtained also from the lower Miocene rocks of Trinidad. The
middle part of the formation near Las Cahobas contains a Deltocyathus
similar to the Miocene and Recent relatively deep-water species D. italicus
(Michelotti), indicating that along the south edge of the plain the for1na-
tion was deposited in deeper water than in the central and northern partq.
Abundance of mollusks is a characteristic feature of the Miocene de-
posits of the West Indies and regions near by where these deposits consist
of detrital rocks. Large faunas have been obtained in the Dominican
Republic, Jamaica, Trinidad, Colombia, Panama, and Costa Rica. In
Cuba and Porto Rico, where rocks of the same age are more calcareous,
mollusks are less ab11ndant and poorly preserved. The mollusks of the
Cercado and Gurabo for1nations of the Dominican Republic are well known
1
through Maury's work, although many additional species were obtained
during the reconnaissance made under the supervision of the United
States Geological Survey.' About 500 species are known from the Cercado
formation and about 400 from the Gurabo formation. A description by
Woodring of the Bowden fa11na of Jamaica, comprising almost 600 species,
is awaiting publication by the Carnegie Institution of Washington.
Olsson• has recently described more than 300 Miocene species from
Costa Rica.
The total molluscan fa11na of the Thomonde formation, including the
Ma1ssade tongue, numbers more than 350 species. The upper fa11nal zone,
and probably the whole formation, is the equivalent of the Baitoa forma-
tion of the Dominican Republic. As only 60 species were obtained from the
Baitoa formation, the Thomonde fauna fills a gap in the succession of
Miocene fat1nas of the West Indies.
The lower faunal zone contains only a few mollusks, principally ptero-
pods of the genera Styliola and Cavolina, indicating clear and relatively
deep water and resembling the small faunule in the lower part of tl1e
underlying Madame Joie formation.
The middle and upper fa11nal zones contain a rich shoal-water fa11na.
Some of the characteristic Thomonde mollusks are shown on Plate XV.
Orthaulax aguadillensis Maury (Pl. XV, fig. 3) is the most striking and
one of the most common · of the mollusks in the upper faun.al zone.
Interesting specimens of this species have been described by Woodring.'
It was originally described from beds of upper Oligocene age in Porto
1 Maury, C. J., Santo Domingo type sections and fossils: Bull. Am. Paleontology, vol.
5, pp. 165-459, pls. 27-68, 1917.
2 See lists In A. geological reconnaissance of the Dominican Republic: Dominican Rep.

Geol. Survey Mem., vol. 1, pp. 116-129, 137-151, 1921.

1
Oleson, A. A., The Miocene of northern Costa Rica: Bull. Am. Paloontology, vol. 9,
pp. 179-418, pls. 4-35, 1922.
'Woodring, W. P., Tertiary mollusks of the genus 0-rthau.la~ from the Republic of
Hatti, Porto Rico, and Cuba : U. S. Nat. Mus. Proc., vol. 64, art. 1, 12 pp., 2 pls. 1923.
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 175

Rico but has been found also in deposits of the same age (Cevicos lime-
stone) in the Dominican Republic and in deposits of Miocene age in Porto
1
Rico and the Dominican Republic. Perhaps the most curious Thomonde
mollusk is a Terebra-Iike columbellid which is considered a new subspecies
of Strombinella acuformis Dall, described from beds of Miocene age near
Potrero, Province of Santiago, Dominican Republic! Many specimens of
this mollusk were collected from the upper faunal zone at stations 9945
and 9946.
The following are the most striking species confined to the upper fa11nal
zone: Oonus veatchi Olsson (Pl. XV, figs. 1, 2), Gonus n. sp. (also from
Baitoa formation), Xancus rex Pilsbry and Johnson, Pkos semicostatus
Gabb (Pl. XV, figs. 6, 7), Strombinella acuformis Dall n. subsp., Or-
t}iaulax aguadillensis Maury (Pl. XV, fig. 3), and .Scapharca corcupidonis
Ma.ury n. subsp. Most of these and other species are identical with or
similar to species from the Baitoa formation. Other species are similar to
species from the Cercado formation. Many specie-s are similar to species
from the Chipola marl of Florida, particularly some Pleurotomids, Mar--
ginellas, and Fusimitras. A few species are similar to those in the younger
Gurabo formation and the Bowden marl.
The Thomonde formation apparently is the equivalent of part of the
Y aque group of the San Juan Valley and the valley of Rio Y aque del Sur
in the Dominican Republic, although except for Orthaulax aguadillensis
the molluscan fa11nas are not very similar. It is regarded as of Burdigalian
age, probably middle Burdigalian, although no direct comparison has j-et
been made with European faunas.

Stations in Central Plain, Thomonde formation (Miocene).

9945 (W 320 F). Arrondissement of Hinche, trail from Hinche to Thomassique,
left bank of Ravine Roche Salee at crossing about 3 kilometers southeast of Los
Palos, upper part of Thomonde formation. W. P. Woodring, collector. March
12, 1921. .
9946 (W 321 F). Arrondissement of Hinche, trail from Hinche to Thomassique,
right bank of Ravine Roche Salee at crossing about 3 kilometers southeast of
Las Palos, upper part of Thomonde formation, 1 meter higher stratigraphically
than 9945. W. P. Woodring, collector. March 12, 1921.
9947 (W 322 F). Arrondissement of Hinche, trail from Thomassique to Cerca-
la-Source, 0.5. kilometer north-northeast of Thomassique; upper part of Thomonde
formation. W. P. Woodring, collector. March 13, 1921.
9782 (W 211 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, crest of Thomonde anticline,
left bank of Riviere Thomonde, about 4 kilometers east-southeast of Thomonde;
upper part of Thomonde formation. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 16, 1921.
9779 (W 208 F). Arrondi~ement of Las Cahobas, south limb of Thomonde
anticline, on trail from Las Cahobas to Thomonde, about 2 kilometers south-
southeast of Thomonde, at an altitude of 380 meters above sea level; upper part of
Thomonde formation. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 15, 1921.
1 Cooke, C. W., Orlhaulaa:, a Tertiary guide fossil : U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 129,
pp. 25, 30-31 ; pl. 4, figs. 2-6; pl. 5, figs. la, lb, 1921.
2
Guppy, R. J., and Dall, W. H., Descriptions of Tertiary fossils from the Antillean
region : U. S. Nat. Mus. Proc., vol. 19, p. 312, pl. 29, fig. 6, 1896.
 PLATE XV.
SoME CHARACTERISTIC MOLLUSKS OF THE THOMONDE FORMATION.

FIGURES 1, 2. Conus veatchi Olsson. Two specimens from the same locality, X 1.
U.S. G. S. station 9782. U. S. N. M. catalogue No. 350578.
FIGURE 3. Orthau/,ax aguadillensis Maury. View of small specimen showing sculp-
ture and apertural callus, X 1. U.S. G. S. station 9945. U.S. N. M. catalogue
No. 350577.
FIGURES 4, 5. Phos costatus Gabb. Apertural and dorsal views of same specimens,
• X 1. U.S. G. S. station 9945. U.S. N. M. catalogue No. 350574 .
FIGURES 6, 7. Phos semicostatus Gabb. Apertural and dorsal views of the same
specimen, X 1. U.S. G. S. station 9908. U.S. N. M. catalogue No. 350575.
FIGURES 8, 9. Cymia henekeni Maury. Apertural and dorsal views of same speci-
men, X 1. U.S. G. S. station 9946. U.S. N. M. catalogue No. 350579. .
FIGURES 10, 11. Potamides cahobasensis Pilsbry. U. S. G. S. station 9908. U. S.
N. M. catalogue No. 350576.
Fig. 10. Adult specimen, X 1.
Fig. 11. Y 011ng specimen, X 2, showing sculpture of early whorls.
176

•
RE PUBLI C OF HAITI
GEOLOG I CAl.. S l J R \ ' E Y PL.ATE XV

2
•

9 10

X2
11
CI C ARAC'fF.RIS'l~rc MOLT...U SI~S OF TTl R TfIO :\I O~DE FOR1\[ A'l'I ON.
 •

•
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 177

9791 (W 315 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, same locality as 9779.

T. W. Vaughan and W. P. Woodring, collectors. March 1, 1921.
9778 (W 207 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, south limb of Thomonde
anticline, trail from Las Cahobas to Thomonde, about 2.5 kilometers south-
southeast of Thomonde, just north of ridge farmed by base of Las Cahobas forma-
tion, top of Thomonde formation. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 15, 1921.
9785 (W 214 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, south limb of Thomonde
anticline, trail from Thomonde to Mirebalais, about 7 kilometers southwest of
Thomonde, altitude 395 meters above sea level, upper part of Thomonde forma-
tion. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 17, 1921.
9780 (W 209 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, north limb of Thomonde
anticline, trail from Thomonde to Thomassique, about 2.5 kilometers northeast of
'l'homonde, just south of ridge formed by base of Las Cahobas formation, top of
Thomonde formation. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 16, 1921.
9781 (W 210 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, north limb of Thomonde
anticline about 2.8 kilometers east-northeast of Thomonde, upper part of Tho-
monde formation. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 16, 1921.
9929 (W 235 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, trail from Hinche to Tho-
monde, ridge formed by base of Las Cahobas formation about 4 kilometers north-
northwest of Thomonde, top of Thomonde formation. W. P. Woodring, collector.
January 26, 1921.
9907 (W 190 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, first high bluff on left bank
of Riviere l'Ayaye above mouth, about a kilometer above trail crossing near
mouth, altitude 185 meters above sea level, middle part of Thomonde formation.
W. P. Woodring, collector. January 10, 1921. ·
9908 (W 191 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, low bluff on left bank of
Riviere l'Ayaye, about 0.8 kilometer above trail crossing near mouth, altitude 175
meters above sea level, middle part of Thom.onde formation. W. P. Woodring,
collector. January 10, 1921.
9926 (W 231 F). Arrondissement of Hinche, road from Ma.lssade to Hinche,
about 3.5 kilometers southeast of Maissade, altitude 330 meters above sea level,
middle part of Thomonde formation, or Ma1ssade tongue. W. P. Woodring, col-
lector. January 25, 1921.
9948 (W 323 F). Arrondi~ement of Hinche, trail from Thomassique to Ccrca-
la-Source, first crossing of Riviere Bonde, middle or lower part of Thomonde
formation. W. P. Wood1·ing, collector. March 13, 1921.
9935 (W 243 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, north limb of Thomonde
anticline, left bank of Riviere Blanche, about 2.5 kilometers northwest of Tho-
monde, altitude 310 meters above sea level, lower part of Thomonde formation.
W. P. Woodring, collector. January 29, 1921.
9904 (W 186 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, trail from Las Cahobas to
Petit-Fond, about 2 kilometers northwest of Las Cahobas, altitude 180 meters
above sea level, lower or middle part of Thomonde formation. W. P. Woodring,
collector. January 9, 1921.
9719 (W 256 F). Arrondissement of Hinche, west limb of Fond Bleu dome,
trail from Maissade to Madame Joie, about 6 kilometers west of Mai'ssade, altitude
310 meters above sea level, lower part of Thomonde formation. W. P. Woodring,
collector. February 3, 1021.
9939 (W 261 F). Arrondissement of Marmelade, trail from Madame Joie to
Riviere Blanche, about 3 kilometers southeast of Riviere Blanche, lower part of
Thomonde formation. W. P. Woodring, collector. February 5, 1921.
12
 -

Miocene fossils from Thomonde formation in Central Plain. •

......
~
00

Upper zone. Middle zone. Lower zone•

•

• •
Species. ~
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Q
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Foraminifera : ~
Homotrema sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x
~l:s:j
••• • •••• • ••• • • •• •••• • ••• • ••• • •• • •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• • ••• ••• •
,. Sorites sp. cf. S. americana (Cushman) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • ••• • ••• x ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• •• •• • ••• •• • • • •••

Orbiculina sp. ••••• • ••••••••••••••••••• • ••••••••••••••• •• •• •• •• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• x •• •• •• •• .. . ' • ••• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• • ••• •• •• •• • •

~q
Corals:
Deltocyathus sp. cf. D. italicus (Michelotti) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• •••• ••• • • • •• • ••• • ••• • • •• •••• • ••• ••• • •• • • •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• x
Paracyathus ? sp . ... . . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x • ••• •••• • ••• •• •• •• • • •••• ••• • • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •• •• bj
Stylopbora minor Duncan ....... . . . ...••.•...... . ....... . ..• x
• •••
x
•• ••
x
• ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • • •• • ••• •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• ••••
~
Stylophora n. sp ............. .............................. . •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • • •• • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• • ••• ••• • •• • • ••• • •••• c
Stylophora sp. a. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• ••• • •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• x x • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••••
0
Stylopbora sp. b. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• x • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •• • • • ••• •••• ~
Stylophora sp. c. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• •••• •• • • •• •• • ••• •••• • ••• •• •• • ••• ••• • ••• • x • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••••
tJ:1
Stylophora sp. d . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x
~
• ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • • • • ••• • • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •• ••
Aaterosmilia n. sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • x • • •• • • •• •• • • •••• x • ••• • ••• x x •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• ••••
~
• • ••• • ••
Antillia dubia (Duncan) . .. .. ...... . .......•...........•.... • ••• • ••• • ••• x •• •• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • • • • • ••• ••• • • •• • •••• •••• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• •
Antillia sp., apparently new .............................. . •••• •••• x •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• • • •• •• •• •••• ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •••
Solenaatrea bournoni Milne· Edwards and Haime .......•.... •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • • •• •••• x x •••• ••• • •••• •••• • ••• ...'
Siderastrea siderea (Ellis and Solander) ................... . • • • • •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• • •• • •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •• •• •••• •••• ••• • x •••• • •• • •••• • •••
Psammocora n. sp. b, also from Miocene of Trinidad ...... . x ••• • x • ••• • •• • ••• • •••• •••• • ••• • • • • •••• •• • • ••• • •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • •••
Porites sp. aff. P. furcata Lamarck ............•............ •••• • ••• • •• • ••• • •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• x x •••• • ••• • • •• •• •• • ••• ••••
Porites sp., apparently new •.....•. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x • ••• • ••• •••• ••• • •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• ••• • • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••••
Porites sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ... ~
••• • •••• • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• •••• x •••• • ••• •• •• ••• • •••• • ••• • •••
Porites sp. indet . .......................................... . ••• • ••• • •• • • •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • •• • • ••• •• •• • ••• x • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • •••
Goniopora sp. cf. G. jacobiana Vaughan ...•.•.•.•••••••...• x •••• x •••• •••• •• •• •••• • •• • •• •• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •• • • • ••• • ••• ••• • •••• ••••
 Bryozoa:
CJupuladria canarfensis Busk ....••.............•.....•..••••
Oallopora d11merillii Savigny-Audouin •.......•.•........•••
x
••••
x
• •••
••••
••••
••••
• •••
• •••
••••
••••
••••
•• ••
••••
••••
••••
• •••
••• •
• • • • • ••• •••• ••••
x
••• • •••• • ••• • ••• ••• • ..·-
• ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• ••• • • ••• • •••
Mamillopora tuberosa Canu and Bassler .........•.......•... x x • •• • •••• •••• •• •• • ••• •••• • • •• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••• • • ••• •••• • •• •
Metrarabdotos sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• ' ... •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• x • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • •••
Mollusca:
Pteropoda:
Styliola sp. .. ... ......... .... ......... .. .....
. ' . .. . .... ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• x •• •• •••• x
Cavolina sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• • ••• • ••• • ••• x •••• • ••• • •••
Gastropoda :
Actaeon ? sp . ............ . ............................ . •••• •••• • ••• •• •• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • • •• x • ••• ••••
Acteocina n. sp. a cf. A. subbullata Pilsbry and Johnson x x •••• • ••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• x x •• •• •••• •••• •••• • ••• ••••
Acteocina n, sp. b, also from Oercado formation of
Dominican Republic ••••• • ••••••••••••••••••••••••• • •• • • ••• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• •• •• •• •• •••• •• •• •••• x •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• ••• • ••••
Acteocina sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •••• •••• • •• • •••• •• • • •••• • •• • • ••• • • • • •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• 00
ttj
Oylichnella n. sp. a cf. C. trictumtritonis Maury ....•.. x x •••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • • •• • • • • • ••• • ••• • • •• •• • • • ••• •• •• •••• ••• • •••• ~
H
Oylicbnina n. sp. a cf. C. chipolana (Dall) .....•...•... x x •••• • ••• • •• • •••• • • • • •••• ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •• ••
~
••• • • • ••• • ••• • •••
Retusa sp. cf. R. fossil is Pilsbry and Johnson ......••.. x •••• • ••• •••• • • •• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • •• • • ••• •••• ~
Volvula sp. cf. V. eylindrica Gabb ..............•.•.•... x x • •• • ••• • • ••• •••• •• •• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• z
•
Ringicula n. sp. a cf. R. semilinata Dall ..•..•••.......
Bullaria paupercula (Sowerby) ?•••••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
x
• •••
x
••••
• •• •
••••
••••
x
••••
••• •
••• •
••••
• •••
• •••
••••
• •••
• •••
• •• •
•• ••

• •••
•••
?
• ••••
x
••••
x
• •••
• •••
• •••

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• •••
• •••
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• •••

,
• •••
• •••
• ••• ~..q
B11llaria sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• •• •• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • • • • •••• •• •• x x •••• •••• • ••• •••• • •••
Terebra (Strioterebra) sp. a cf. T. (S.) berlinerae Maury x
x
x •••• •••• • ••• •••• ••• • •••• • ••• •• •• •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• ••• • •••• ~
Terebra (Strioterebra) sp. b cf. T. (8.) b erlinerae Maury •••• • ••• ••• • • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• a
Terebra (Strioterebra) sp. c cf. T. (S.) cambiarsoi Maury x x •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• ••• • ••• • • ••• x •••• • ••• •••• • •• • • ••• • •• • ~
00
Terebra (Strioterebra) sp. d cf. T. {S.) cambiarsoi Maury x x x •••• •••• • ••• •• •• • •••
•
•• • • • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • •••
Terebra (Strioterebra) sp. e cf. new species from Cer-
cado formation •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • ••• •••• • ••• x • ••• ••• • • ••• ••• • • ••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • •••
Terebra ( Strioterebra) sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •• •• x • ••• x • ••• •••• •••• • •••
Oonus veatchi Oleson, also from Baitoa forn1ation of
Dominican Republic ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• x x • ••• x x x ••• • •••• •••• x x •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• ••••
Conus sp. a cf. 0. furvoides bracbys Pilsbry and Johnson •• •• •••• • •• • •• •• •••• •••• •••• ••• • • ••• • ••• •••• x x •••• x ••• • • ••• •• •• ••••
Conus n. sp. a cf. C. williampbbi Maury ..............• •••• •••• •••• x • •• • • ••• •••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••••
Conus sp. b cf. new species from Oercado formation ..•. x ... .. •• •• x • • •• • ••• •••• •• •• •••• • • • • •••• • ••• • • •• ••• • • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • •••
Conus ep. c cf. 0. burckhardti B<Sse ....•....•.....•••.. •••• •••• • ••• x •• •• •• • • •••• • •• • •••• • •• • •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •• ••
Oonus n. sp. b, also from Baitoa formation .. • ••••.•••• x x •• •• •••• •• •• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • •••
Conus sp. d cf. 0. hait.ensis Sowerby ............•...•.. • ••• •••• •• • • •••• x • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • •••
Surcula {Pleurofusia) sp ••••••••.•..• •••••••••••••••••• • •• • •••• •• •• x • ••• •••• •••• •••• ••• • • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••• • • ••• ........
-.;z
~
 •

• ~
Miocene fossil.s from Thomonde formation in Central Plain-Continued. 00
• 0

Upper zone. Middle zone. Lower zone.

• •
Species. •
:a
.g ..,• = .g
Hinche. Las Cahobas. Hinche.
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0
Surcula (Pleurofusia) sp. cf. S. (P.) paraservat.a Gard· b:j

ner (Mss.) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• x •• • •

~t:rJ
•• •• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •• • •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •• •• •••• •••• •••• ••••
Turris (Pleuroliria) sp. a cf. new species from Cercado
formation • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x • •• • •• • • •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • •• • •• •• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • •••
x
~C1
Turrie (Plcuroliria) sp. b cf. T. (P.) barretti (Guppy). • • • • • ••• • • • • x •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• ••• f
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'' Drillia '' sp. a cf. D. dorsuosa Pilsbry and Johnson ..• x x •••• ••• • •••• • ••• •• •• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• x x •• • • • •• • • ••• • •••• ••• • ••••
,, Drillia '' sp. b cf. new species from Cercado formation x x x
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Drillia '' sp. d cf. D. foveolata Pilsbry and Johnson .• x x •• •• •••• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• ••• • • ••• • ••• •• •• •••• •••• ••••
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'' Drillia ,, n. sp. i a cf. D. jamaicensis (Guppy) ....•.... •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •• • • •• •• •••• •• •• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• b:j

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'' Drillia '' n. sp. b cf. D. calligona Maury ............. . • • • • • • • • •••• •••• •• •• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• x • ••• • ••• • •• • • ••• ••• • • ••• •••• ~
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'' Drillia '' sp. e cf. D. wincbesterae Pilsbry and Johnson • • • • • • • • •••• ••• • • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• •••• •••• •••• ••••
'' Drillia '' sp. f cf. D. venusta (Sowerby) .........•.... •••• • ••• • • •• •••• • ••• • •• • ••• • •••• • ••• ••• • • •• • x ••• • • ••• • ••• ••• • •• •• •••• •••• ::l
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'' Drillia '' n. sp. c .. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• •••• •••• •• •• • ••• •••• •• • • • ••• •••• x •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •• • • • •••
. 1a '' n. sp. d . ..•....••••.••..••••................ • • • • • • • •
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'' Drillia ,, n. sp. e. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• x •••• ••• • •• •• ••• • ••• • • •••
'' Drillia '' sp. g . ........ • ............................ . x •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• •• • • • ••• •••• •• •• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • •••
'' Mangilia '' sp. a cf. M. ramondi Maury ......••...••.. x x •••• ••• • •••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••••
'' Mangilia ,, sp. b cf. M. psi la Bush ...........•..•..... x x • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • •••
• '' Mangilia '' sp. c cf. unnamed Cercado sp •••••••••• .. x x •••• •• •• •••• •••• ••• • • ••• •• •• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••••
'' Mangilia '' sp. d cf. unnamed Cercado sp ••••••••••.• x •• •• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •• •• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• ••••
'' Mangilia '' sp. e cf. unnamed Gurabo sp .•••••••••••. x • • •• ••• • •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •• ••
 '' llangilia '' IP· I . .................................... . x x • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • • • • • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• • •••
'' Mangilla '' sp. g. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• •••• • ••• • • • • •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • •••
'' Mangilia '' sp. b. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• x • ••• • ••• • • •• •••• •• •• •••• ••••
•
'' Mangilia '' ep. 1. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • • •• •• • • • ••• x •••• •• •• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • •••
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'' Mangilia '' sp. J. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • ••• • •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• x • •••
'' Oythara '' sp. a cf. C. cercadica Maury ....•.......... x x •• •• •••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• •••• • ••• • •• • •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •••
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'' Oythara '' ep. b cf. C. mucronata Guppy .......•...... x •• •• •••• •• •• • ••• • ••• • •• • • ••• ••• • • • •• • ••• x ? •••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• ••••
'' Oythara '' sp. c. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• x • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •• • • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • •••
'' Oythara '' sp. d . .................................... . x •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • • •• ••• • • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• •• ••
'' Oytbara '' sp. e cf. 0. gibba Guppy .................. . x ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •• •• •••• x • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • •••
Glyphostoma sp. cf. G. dentifera Gabb ................ . •• • • • ••• ••• • •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •• •• • ••• x • ••• ••• • • ••• •••• •• •• • ••• ••••
M.icrodrillia sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • ••• ••• • • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •• • • •• •• •••• • ••• x • •••
Oancellaria n. sp. cf. C. rowelli Dall, also from Baitoa
formation • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• x • ••• •••• •••• • •• •
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Oliva n. sp. cf. 0. gatunensis Toula, also from Bait.oa
formation • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Oliva sp. a cf. 0. dimidiata Pilsbry and Johnson •.•..••
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Olivella (Lamprodroma) n. sp. a cf. 0. muticoides Gabb x x •••• ? ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• ••• • •• •• •••• • ••• ••• • •• • • •• •• f •••• •••• ••••
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Olivella (Lamprodroma) n. ep. b cf. 0. indivisa Guppy. x x •••• ••• • • ••• ••••

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Olivella (Lamprodroma) sp. a . ........................ . ... .. • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • •• • • ••• ••• • ••• • •••• x x •• • • x •••• •••• • ••• • •••
Marginella nugax Pilsbry and Johnson ................ . x x •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••• • ••• • • •• • x x •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •••

Margin ella n. sp. a cf. M. maoensie Maury ............. . x x •••• x •••• •••• • ••• ••• • ••• • ••• • •••• x ? •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • •••
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Marginella n. sp. b cf. unnamed Baitoa sp . .... . . . ..... . x x •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •• • • •••• •••• •• • • •• • • • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• 0
Marginella n. sp. c cf. M. oryzoides Gardner (Mss.) .. . x ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••• • • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• • ••• Pi
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Marginella n. sp. d cf. M. eowerbyi Gabb .............. . ••• • •• •• x ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •
•••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••• • • ••• • ••• • •••
Marginella sp. a cf. M. amina Dall . ......... . .......... . x •••• •••• •••• •• •• • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • • •• • •• • ••••
Marginella (Gibberula) sp. a cf. M. (G.) cercadensfts
Maury • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• •• •• •••• •••• • ••• ••• • • ••• •••• • ••• • • •• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •• •• •••• ••••
Marginella (Gibberula) sp. b cf. M. (G.) cbondra Gard-
ner (Mss.) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x • • •• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• x • •• • • •• • •••• •••• •••• •••• ••••
Closia n. sp. a cf. unnamed Gurabo sp •••••..••••.•••... x ••• • ••• • •••• •••• •• •• •••• •• •• •••• • • •• •••• x x •••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• • •••
Mitra (Cancilla) n. sp. a cf. M. (C.) henekeni SowerbJ·. ... ' • •• • •• •• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• ••• • x x ••• • •••• •••• • • •• •••• • •••
Mitra (Cancilla) n. sp. b cf. M. (0.) longa Oabb, also
from Baitoa formation . ........................... . x x •• •• x • • •• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •• • • •••• •••• x •••• • ••• •••• ••••
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Mitra (Fusimitra) n. sp. c cf. M. (F.) manrilopsis
Gardner (Mss.) •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• x x • •
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Mitra ? sp .. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •• • • •• • • •• • • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •• • .....
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Strigatella ? sp ....•• ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • • • • •••• • •• • • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • • •• • ••• x •••• •••• •• • • • ••• • ••• •••• ••••
Xancus rex Pilsbry and Johnson, also from Baitoa
formation •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • • • • • ••• •••• x x •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• ? •••• •••• •••• x •••• ••• • • ••• • •••
Xancus sp. cf. X. praeovoidee Maury .•.•..•............ •••• • ••• ••• • • ••• x • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •••
Fasciolaria sp. cf. F. kempi Ma11ry ••••••..••••.•••••••• ••••
..........................................
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Fasciolaria sp. x x
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Peristernia sp. cf. P. insula Olsson. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• •••• • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •• • • x •• •• • ••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• •• •• 0
Fusinus ? sp . .... • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • ••• ••••
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Melongena consors (Sowerby) .•.•.....•.•.•••.•••••••• •••• • ••• x x x • ••• •••• x •••• ... _.... ••• • x x •• •• ••• • •••• ••• • •••• •• • •
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Melongena orthocantha Pilsbry and Johnson ...........• • • • • •••• •••• •• •• • ••• • ••• ••• • • •• • • ••• •••• • •• • x x • ••• x •••• • ••• •••• ••••
Solenosteira n. sp. cf. S. inornata Dall ...........•.•.... • • • • •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •• •• . .. ~
•••• x •••• • ••• t t e A • ••• • ••• •••• ••••
Phos costatus Gabb, also from Baitoa formation ...•.... x x •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• ••• • x x •••• x •••• • ••• • ••• ••••
Phos semicostatus Gabb, also from Baitoa formation .. . x x •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• _. ... • ••• •••• •••• •
Phoe sp. a cf. P. elegans Guppy ...................... . • • • • • ••• • ••• x • ••• x •••• • ••• •••• x •••• x • ••• •••• • ••• •• •• • ••• •• •• ••• •
Phos sp. b cf. P. chi polanus Dall ...................... . •••• • ••• •• •• •••• • ••• •••• ••• • •••• • ••• •••• • ••• x •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• ••••
Phos sp. c ............................................. . • • • • •• •• •••• • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• x • ••• •••• •• •• •••• ... ... • ••• •••• •• ••
.Alectrion cercadensis Maury ..... . •••••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• •••• •••• x x •••• x •••• • ••• ••• • ••••
Alectrion n. sp. cf. A, cercadeneis Maury. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • •• • •••• • •• • •••• ••• • • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••• •
Nassarina n. sp . .................. . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x • ••• • ••• •••• • • • • I • • • • • • •• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• •••• •••• • •• •
Metula sp. cf. M. cancellata Gabb. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •••• •••• • ••• • • • • I
• • • • • •••• •••• •••• • ••• x • • •• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••••
Oolumbella (Conidea) n. sp ...........•••.............• x ••• • •••• •••• •••• • • • • I • • • • •••• •• •• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •••
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Atilia n. so. cf. unnamed Cercado sp •• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• • • •• •••• • ••• •• •• ••• • ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • •• • •••• • •• • ••••
Atilia (Oolumbellopsis) e.xilis (Gabb). • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x • ••• • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• •• • • •••• •• •• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •• • ••••
Atilia (Col11mbellopsis) n. sp. a cf. A. (C.) exilis
(Gabb) •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• •• • • • ••• •• •• •••• •••• ••• • •••• ••• • •••• • ••• •••• x x ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••••
Atilia ( Columbellopsis) n. sp. b cf. unnamed Cercado
and Gurabo sp . .... • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• • • •• • •• • • ••• • •• • • • •• •• •• • • • • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• • • •• • •••
Atilia (Columbellopsis) n. sp. c. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • • •• •••• ••••
Atilia ( Columbellopsis) sp .. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• x •••• • • •• •••• ... ,. • • •• ... ,. •••• .. ." •••• •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • • •• ••• • ••• •
Strombina n. sp. a cf. s. caribaea Gabb, also from
Baitoa formation • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• x •••• • • •• •• • • •• • • • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • • •• • ••• • ••• • •• • ••••
Strombina n. sp. c cf. S. cypbonotus Pilsbry and Johnson •••• •••• • I t •
•••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• .. . " • ••• •••• x ••• • •••• • • • • •• • • •••• ••••
Strombina sp. a . ....................................... . •••• ••• • • ••• •••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• • ••• • •• • •••• •• •• •••• •••• x •••• • ••• • ••• • •••
Strombinella acuformis Dall n. subsp ......•...•.••.•.•• x x •••• • ••• • •• • •••• • e I • • ••• •• •• ••• • • • • • •• •• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••••
Murex sp. a cf. M. messorius Sowerby .••..........••.•• x x •• • • x •• •• ••• • •••• •• •• •••• • •• • • ••• x x • ••• x • • •• •••• •••• • •••

Murex (Phyllonotus) compactus Gabb ...•.......•...... • •• • •••• •• •• •••• •• • • •••• • ••• ••• • •••• • • • • ••• • • ••• x •••• •••• • ••• • • • • • • • • • ••• m
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Ocinebra sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •••• •••• • •• • •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •• • • • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •• • • • ••• • ••• t:='
Muricidea sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• •••• • ••• •••• ••• •••• •••• •••• x • ••• ••• • • • •• • • •• •• •• •••• • •••
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Typhis sp. cf. T. alatus Sowerby ....•...........••....•• • • • • x • •• • • •• • •••• • • •• • • •• •••• •• • • • • • • •••• x •••• • ••• •••• •• • • •••• • ••• ••••

Oymia henekeni Maury, also from Baitoa formation •... x x •••• •• •• •• •• •••• •••• ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• ? ••• • • •• • ..... •••• ••• • ••• • •••• z
Cymia henekeni tectiformis Pilsbry .......• . ....•..••.•. ••• • •••• •••• ••• • •••• •• •• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• x •••• • ••• •••• • •••
Morum sp. cf. M . domingense (Sowerby) ......•....••.. x •••• •••• • ••• ••• • ••• • •••• • ••• •••• • • •• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •• •• •••• •••• ••••
Malea elliptica Pilsbry and Johnson ................... . • • • • •••• ••• • x • I e t • ••• ••• • • ••• •• •• ? x •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• ••••
Cypraea n. sp. cf. C. raymondrobertsi Pilsbry .•••••.•.. •••• •• •• •••• •••• ••• • ••• • ••• • •••• •••• ... , •••• • ••• •••• •• • • x • ••• •••• •••• • ••• t:d
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Oypraea sp. indet . .................................... . •••• t • I • ..... •••• •••• •••• • I • • t I t t ••• • x ••• • x • ••• • • •• ••• • • •• • •••• • ••• • ••• 0
Strombus sp. cf. S. proximus Sowerby. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •••• ? x •••• • ••• x •• • • •••• x • •• • • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • • •• • ••• ~
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Strombus sp. ••••••••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •••• • •• • •••• • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• •••• ..." x •••• •••• • ••• • •• • •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •
Orthaulax aquadillensis Maury .........••.....•....... x x x x x ..... x x • •• • x x • • •• •••• •••• •• •• t t I t .. ." •••• • • ••
Cerithium (Vulgocerithium) n. sp. cf. 0. (V.) russeli
Maury • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• •••• • • •• •••• • ••• • • •• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• x •••• • ••• •••• •••• ••• • ••••
Cerithium ( V ulgocerithi um) sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • I ••• •• •• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •• •• • ••• • ••• •••• ..... ••• • x •••• •••• • ••• • •••

Cerithium (Ptychocerithium) n. sp. a. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • •••• •• • • • •• • •• • • • ••• •••• t •• I

•••• • ••• •••• x x •• •• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • •••
Cerithium ( Ptychocerithium) n. sp. b. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• •• •• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • •• • x x ••• • •• •• •••• • ••• •••• ••••
Clava ala juela Olsson, also from Baitoa formation ..... . x x x •••• • • •• ••• • • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •• • • •• •• • ••• •••• ••• • •••• • •••

Conocerithium sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x • • •• • ••• •• •• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • • ' I •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • •• • •••• ••••
Potamides dentilabris ( Gabb) ...........•..•........•.. •••• • • •• ••• • • ••• • • • • •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• x x •••• • •• • •••• •••• • ••• • •••
Potamides n. sp. a cf. P. gastrodon Pilsbry and Johnson x x • ••• •••• • • • • •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • •• • •••• x ••• • •••• • ••• • •••

Potamides caobasensia P ilsbry . ........................ . ••• • •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• x x •• •• •••• •••• •••• •••• ••••

Ceritbidea sp. a . ................ , .... , ................. . x x •••• •••• •••• ..., ••• • • ••• •• •• ... ,. •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• ......,.
00
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 •
184 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

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Jleioceras ap. cf. M. constrict11m (Gabb) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • •• • •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •• •• x •••• ••• • •• •• •••• • ••• • •••
Meioceras n. sp. a ............. . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •• •• • ••• •• • • • •• • •••• •••• ••• • •• •• • ••• •••• x x • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • •••
Hemisinus sp. cf. H. truncatus (Gabb) ..........•...... •• • • •••• • • •• •••• •••• • ••• ••• • •••• •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• x • ••• •• • • • ••• ••••
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Architectonica stonemanae Maury •...••••...•.......... x •••• • ••• •••• ••• • •••• ••• • •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • • •• •••• • ••• •••• • •••
Architectonica sp. a cf. 11nnamed Cercado sp ..•.......• x x •••• •••• •• •• •••• •••• •••• •• • • •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• ••••
Architec'tonica si;>. b .•••••••••.•••••.••••••..••..•..•... x • • •• • ••• ••• • • ••• •••• •••• •••• •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • •••
Fossa.rue (Isapis) ap. a ......•••••..•••...•••........••.. x x •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••• • ••• • •••• • ••• •• • • •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••••
Risaoina crassilabris ( Gabb) •....•.•.....••...•........• x x ••• • •••• ••• • •••• •••• • ••• ••• • • ••• •••• x x • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • •••
Rissoina sp. a cf. R. striatacostata d'Orbigny .......... . x x • • • • • •• • • •• • •••• •••• • • •• •••• •••• •••• x x • ••• • ••• ... " • ••• •••• • • ••
Riseoina ep. b cf. R. multicostata Adams .....••......•. x x •••• • ••• • •• • •• • • • ••• • ••• •••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • •••
Rissoina sp. c cf. R. sagriana d'Orbigny .............. . ••• • •••• • ••• x • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • •••
Riasoina sp. d .........•..•..•..••.......•.... - .••....... ••• • x • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • • • • • ••• •••• • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• •••• ••••
Tryonia sp. a .....••.••.•..•.••.•..........•..••........ •••• • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• x x • ••• • ••• • • •• • ••• • •• • • ••• 00
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Tryonia sp. c .....••.•...•...•.............•...•......•. •• • • • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• x x • ••• ••• •••• • ••• •••• ••••
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Crucibulum sp. cf. 0. chipolan11m Dall ................ . •••• • ••• • ••• x • ••• •••• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •• • x • ••• • •• • • ••• • •• • • ••• •••• z
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Oalyptraea sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• ••• • x • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• ••• • • •••
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Natica sp. cf. N. canrena Linnaeus •......•.•..•.••..... x x • • •• x • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• .' .. x x •• •• •••• •••• • ••• ••• • ••••
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Natica ep. indet ..••••••••...•••....••....••....•.....•• •••• .. .
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Natica (Stigmaulax) sp. cf. N. (S.) sulcata Born. • • • • • x • ••• •••• • •• • • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • •••
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N everita nereidis Maury ••••••••••••••••.••••..••••..•• x •••• •••• •••• •• •• • ••• •••• • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••• •
Amauropsis sp. cf. A. guppyi Gabb ...•..•...•.......... •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • • •• •••• • ••• x • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •• ••
Amauropsis ? sp •••••••••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • •• • .. . " • ••• x • ••• • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• ••••
Sinum sp. cf. s. chipolanum Dall. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• ••• • •••• x • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••• • ••••
Sinum sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • ••• • ••• x • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• ••••
Epitonium sp. a. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x
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Melanella sp. a. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• •• •• •• • • • ••• •••• • • •• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • •••
Melanella sp. b .. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x ••• • • ••• •••• •• •• • •• • • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• x •• •• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• r-'
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Melanella sp. d. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x • x •• • • •••• ••• • • •• • • • • ••• •• • ••• ••••
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Strornbiforrnis sp. a. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• x •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• x • ••• •••• •••• ••••
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P,yram idella sp. a ...•.••..•.•..••.•••.•........•.....•.. x x •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • • •• •• •• • •••
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Turbonilla sp. a . ....................•.................. x x •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••• • •••• • • •• • ••• 0
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Turbonilla sp. c. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• ••• • • ••• bj
Turbonilla sp. d. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x • •• • • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • •• • • ••• ••••
Turbonilla sp. e. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• x x • •••
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Turbonilla sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• • • •• •••• • ••• ••• • • •• • • •• • • ••• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • • •• • ••• • ••• • ••• x • ••• ~
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Astraea sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• I t t e • ••• • ••• x • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• ••••
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Phasianella sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• ••• • •••• • ••• •• •• ••• • • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• x •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••• • ••••
..
Neritina (Smaragdia) viridimaris Maury .•.•..•••••.•. x x x •• •• •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• x x •••• x ••• • •••• • ••• • •••
Neritina (Puperita) figulopicta Maury .......•••••..... x x •••• •• •• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •• • x x •••• x •••• •• •• • ••• • •••
Solariella ? sp ...•.. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• •••• .., . •••• • • ••
 Liotia sp. a. ...... . .. . ..... . ... .......
.. .. .' . .... . ..... x x •••• •••• ••• • •••• •• •• • ••• • ••• • • • • •••• •• •• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • •••
Lfotia sp. b ............................................ . x •• •• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •• • • ••• • • • • • • ••• •••• •••• • • •• ...' •••• •••• ••• • ••• •
Liotia sp. c. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• x •• •• •••• •••• • ••• • • •• • ••• •••• • • • • •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •• ••
Liotta sp. d ............................................ . •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •• •• •••• •• •• •• •• •• • • • ••• x x • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••••
Oirculua pentagona (Gabb) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ..' . ... ' • ••• • ••• x x •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •• •• ••••
Solariorbis sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• •• •• •• ••• • • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • • • • • • •• • ••• x •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • •••
Teinostoma depressum (Gabb) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x • • • • •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• x • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • •••
Teinostoma sp. a. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• • • •• • ••• • ••• • ••• •• •• ••• • •••• •••• • ••• •• •• •••• •• •• •••• • ••• • •• • • •••
Teinostoma sp. b. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• x • ••• •• •• •• •• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• ••• • • ••• x .. . ' • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••••
Teinostoma sp. c. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • • •• • ••• x •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• ' ...
Pseudorotella sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• ••• • ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• ••• • ••••
Discopsis derbyi Maury n. subsp ...•....•............... x x •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••• • • • •• ...' • ••• x x • ••• • ••• .' .. •••• •••• ••••
Fissuridea sp. a. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x • ••• • ••• •••• . ..' • ••• •••• •••• •••• ? •••• • ••• • •• • •••• •••• • ••• ••• • • ••• ••••
Fiasuridea sp. b. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• •••• •••• ..' . •••• •••• • ••• •••• ••• • •••• •••• • ••• x ••• • • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • •••
Scaphopoda : f/J
Dentalium dissimile Guppy ........................... . x x •••• x •• •• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• · X •• •• ' ... •••• •••• • ••• •••• ••••
ttj
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Dentalium pyrum Pilsbry and Sharp .•................. x x ••• • x • ••• . .. . ..
' ' •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• ' ... •••• •••• • ••• ..-4

Dentalium sp. group of D. antillarum d'Orbigny ...... . x x •••• •••• .' .. •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• • ••• ~
Dentalium sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x • ••• • • •• •• •• • ••• • ••• •••• ... ' • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• ~
Dentalium ? iP ........•.••..... · · · • · · • · · · · · • · · · • · · · · · · · •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• ..... • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• x ••• • ••••
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Oadulus sp. a cf. 0. phenax Pilsbry and Sharp ......... .
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Cadulus n. sp. cf. C. simrothi Pilsbry and Sharp...... . •••• • ••• • ••• •••• ' ... •••• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• •••• •••• ••• • • ••• •••• x ••••
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Pelecypoda : ~
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Nucula tenuisculpta Gabb .... • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• •••• ••• • •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• x x •• • • •• •• •••• ••• • •••• •••• •
Leda n. sp. a cf. L. extricata Pilsbry and Johnson. • • • • x x • ••• x • ••• •••• ? •••• •••• ? •••• x x I e t t •• • • •••• • •• • •• •• ••••
Leda T sp . ............................................ . • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • • •• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• x
Arca sp. cf. A. yaquensis Maury •....................... x •••• e t t I
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Arca yaquensis Maury n. eubsp .....••.................. •• •• • ••• •••• •• •• •••• • ••• •• • • • ••• •••• •••• •••• x • •• • • ••• ••• • •••• •• •• •••• ••••
Arca sp. cf. A. bowdenensis Dall .••.•••.....•.......... x ••• • •••• ... ' • • • • •• •• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • •• • • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• ••••
Barbatia sp. cf. B. marylandica (Conrad) ............. . ••• • x •••• • • • • • ••• • ••• •••• ••• • •• • • •• • • •••• •••• •••• • •• • •••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••••
Barbatia (Acar) sp, cf. B. (A.) domingensis (Lamarck) x x .' .. ' ... • • •• • ••• •••• • ••• •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • • •• •••• • ••• • ••• ••••
Scapharca tolepia Dall n. subsp., also from Baitoa
formation e f fe e• fe • e e
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Scapharca corcupidoni11 Maury n. subsp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •• •• x •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • •• • • ••• •••• •••• • ••• , ... • ••• • ••• •••• • •••
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Scapharca sp. c cf. S. hypomela Dall. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • •• • • • • • x •• •• •• •• •• •• ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •• • • • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • • • • • ••• ~
Scapharca sp. d •.. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• ••• • ••• x •••• ••• • ••• • • •• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••••
Scapharca cibaoica Maury n. subsp .................... . •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• •••• • • •• • ••• x x •• •• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• ~t:;j
Scapharca sp. e cf. S. golfoyaquensis Maury ••.......... •• •• •••• •••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• x •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• ••••
Scapharca sp. f cf. S. halidonata Dall .......•...•.•.•.. x
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Scapharca chiriquiensis ( Gabb) ............••..•....... • •• • •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• x x x • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • •••
Scapbarca chiriquiensis websteri (Pilsbry) ••••..... • • • • • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• • ••• •••• • •• • ••• • •• • • •••• •••• x x •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • •••
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Fossularca sp. cf. F. adamsi Dall ..••.•...•.•...•....••• x •••• •••• •••• • • •• •••• • ••• • •••
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Pinna sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • •••• •••• •••• •• • • x • ••• •• •• •••• •••• ••• ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• 1-:i:j
Perna sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • •• • • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• ••• • •• • x • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • •••
~
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Ostrea haitensis Sowerby. •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• •• • • •••• x •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• ~
Ostrea sp. cf. 0. folium Linnaeus .•••••.••••..•.•...... x x •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• t--4

Ostrea sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x x x •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• x x • ••• x • ••• • •• • x • ••• ~
•
Pecten (Pecten) soror Oabb. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • • ••• x x • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •• •• • •••
Cblamys ( Chlamys) sp •••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x • • •• •••• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •• •• • •• • ••• •• •• • ••• ••• • • ••• ••• • • •••
Oblamys (Aequipecten) sp. a cf. unnamed Oercado sp .. x x •••• •••• • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• •••• ? • ••• x • ••• •••• •••• • ••• ... ' •••• ••••
Ohlamys (Aequipecten) sp. b •.••....................... x •••• • ••• ? •••• •••• •• •• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• x • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••••
Chlamys (Aequipecten) sp. c cf. 0. (A.) thompsoni •

(Maury) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• • • x ? • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• x •• •• • ••• • •• • •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••••
Ohlamys (Aequip~n) sp. d cf. un~amed Cercado sp ..
•
•••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• \ x x • ••• •••• •••• ....
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Amusium (Amusium) sp ......•.. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • ••• • ••• x •••• • ••• •••• ••• • • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• ••••
Plicatula sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •• •• • •• • • ••• •••• • ••• • • •• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •• •• ••••

•
 Anomia sp. ct. A. indecisa Dall . ....................... . x x •••• x • •• • •• •• ••• • •• •• •••• ••• • •••• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••• • ••• • •••••
M.ytilopeis sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••• • •••• ••• • x x •• •• •••• •••• •••• • ••• ••••
Orassinella microdelta Pilsbry and Johnson ..••••••••.• x ••• • • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • •• • •••• •••• x • ••• •••• • ••• ••• • •••• ••••
Orassinella n. sp. a .. ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• x x •••• •••• • • •• •••• •••• •• •• • ••• •••• •••• x •••• •• •• • •• • ••• • •••• •• •• • •••
Oraseinella sp. cf. 0. bowdenensia (Dall) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •• •• x •••• •••• •• • • •••• • • •• •••• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• •• • • • •• • •••• • ••• •• ••

Oyrena (Pseudocyrena) n. sp ..... •••••••••••••••••••••• • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• ••• • •••• •••• ••• • •••• • ••• •••• x ••• t •• •• •••• • • •• •••• •••• • •••

Obama sp. cf. 0. involuta Guppy ••...••...••..•..•..... x x • •• • •••• • ••• •••• ••• • • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •• •• •••• • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• •• • •
Ood.akia ? sp . ......................................... . •••• •••• x •••• •••• •••• •••• • •• • ••• • •••• • ••• •• •• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • •••
Lucina sp. cf. L. cbrysostoma Philippi ..•...••...•.••.• •••• • ••• • • •• •••• •• • • •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• x ••• • •••• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• • •••
Phacoides (Parvilucina) n. sp. a cf. P. (P.) yaquensis
Gabb, also from Baitoa formation •........•...•.... x x • ••• x •••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• x • •• • •••• x • ••• • •• , ... ••••
Phacoides (Parvilucina) n. sp. b ...................... . • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• ...... • ••• •••• • ••• x x •••• •••• • ••• •• • • • ••• • •••
Divaricella sp. cf. D. prevaricata Guppy .......•....... x x •••• •••• •••• ••• • •••• ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• •••• •••• •• •• •••• • •• • • ••• ••••

Diplodonta sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • •••• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• • ••• ••• • • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• x • ••• ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •••
x • ••• •••• •• •• •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • • • • •••• •••• 00
Montacuta sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • •••
t!tj
Sportella ? sp ......................................... . •••• ••• • •••• x • • •• • • • • ••• • • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •• •• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• t='
~
Alveinus n. sp. cf. A. rotundatus Dall, also from Bait.oa ~
formation • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •• •• ••• • • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• ••• • x x •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •• •• ttj
- Alveinus sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• •• •• ••• • •••• • ••• •••• •• •• •••• •••• • ••• ••• • • • •• •••• • ••• z
Cardi um (Cardium) n. sp .•.•... • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• x x ••• • • ••• •••• ••• • •••• • •••
Cardium (Trachycardium)
. - sp. a. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• • ••• ? •••• •••• ? •••• • ••• •••• • •••
Cardium (Trachycardium) sp. b. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •••• •••• x • ••• • ••• • •• • • ••• •••• ? ? •• • • • ••• •••• •• •• •• •• •••• •••• • •••
Cardium (Trachycardium) sp. c. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •• •• •••• •••• x •••• •••• •••• • •• • •••• • ••• • ••• • •• • • ••• t:d
• ••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• 0
Oardium (Trigoniocardia) sp. cf. 0. (T.) aminense Dall x • •• • •••• x •••• ••• • ••• • ••• • • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• ••• • • ••• •••• c
x x •••• •• •• •••• ~
Protocardia ? sp . .................................... , . • •• • • •• • •• •• •• • • •••• •••• ••• • • ••• •• • • •• •• •••• •••• • ••• •••• f7J
x ••• • •
Dosinia sp. cf. D. chipolana Dall ...•................... •••• ••• • •• • • •••• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• •• t • •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• ••••
Dosinia ? sp . .......................................... . • • • • •••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••• • ••• • •••• x •••• •••• •••• •••• • •• • •••• • ••• •••• • •••
Olementia ? sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • ••• x •••• • •• • •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••••
• Transennella sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• ••• • ••• • •••• •••• •• • • • ••• •••• ••• • • • •• • ••• •••• x • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••••
Macrocallista ? sp • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • •••• •••• x • • •• •••• •••• • ••• • •• • x •••• • • t •
•••• •••• •••• •••• ••• • • ••• ••••
Oallocardia ? so ... ... . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • •• • •••• •• • • •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • • • • x • ••• ••• • • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •• ••
Pitar ? (Lamelliconcha ?) sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •• •• •• •• •••• •••• •• •• •• •• •••• •••• •• •• •••• •••• x •••• • •• • •••• • •• • • • •• •• ••
#

Pitar (Hyphantosoma) sp. cf. P. (H.) carbaseus

(Guppy) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • •••• • ••• x •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • •• • •••• •••• ••••
Oytherea sp. cf. C. tarquinia (Dall) ................... . •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •• • • ••• • •••• • •• • x • ••• • •• • • • • • • • • • •• •• •••• •••• •••• ••• •
Antigona (Ventricola) sp. cf. A. (V.) blandiana
(Guppy) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x • ••• ..... •••• ••• • ? • ••• • • •• •••• • •• • •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• • •• • •••• •••• ••••
Ohione sp. cf. 0. woodwardi (Guppy) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •••• •••• •••• • ••• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• ? •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• ••• • •• •• •••• •••• •••• ~
00

"'
•
 Miocene fossi,l3 from Thomonde fonnation in Central Plain-Continued.
~
Upper zone. Middle zone. Lower zone. c.o
0

• •
Species. '°as
.g ~
•
=
.g
Hinche. Laa Cahobas. Hincbe.
a •
.,
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I I t ' • t \ 1

9945 9946 9947 9782 9779 9791 9780 9781 9785 9929 9778 9907 9908 9926 9948 9935 9719 9939 9004
~t-4
0
Q
Chiona sp. cf. 0. socia Pilsbry and Johnson .....•...... •••• • ••• •••• •••• ••• • ••• • • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• x x •••• x •••• • ••• • ••• •••• 1-4
Anomalocardia ? sp . ....... . .......................... . x x •••• •••• • ••• •••• •• •• ..... • ••• ••• • ••• • x x • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• 0
Tellina sp. a .. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •• •• x • • •• •••• • ••• •••• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• b;1
Tellina sp. b. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x ? ••• ••• • •••• •••• ? ?
~~
•••• • •• • •• •• ••• • • • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• ••••
Tellina sp. c . ................ . ......................... . •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •• •• ••• • •• • • ••• • • ••• • ••• x x • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •••
Tellina sp. indet. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• ••• • •••• •••• •••• •••• x •• • • •• •• x •• • • •••• •••• •• •• x ••• • x • ••• ••••
x
~d
Macoma sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • • • •• • ••• •••• •••• •• •• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• •••• ••• •
Macoma ? sp. indet . ................................ . . . •••• • • •• •••• •••• • •• • •••• •• •• •••• •• • • x x •••• • ••• ••• • • •• • x • ••• • ••• • •••
Macoma (Psammacoma) sp. cf. M. (P.) olivella Dall .• •••• • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• •••• • • •• •••• • ••• •••• •• • • x •••• • •• • ••• • •• • •••• •• • • ••••
b:1
Metis ? sp . ............................................ . • • •• • ••• •••• •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •• •• •••• x x " ... • ••• • •• • •••• • ••• • •••
~
Strigilla sp. cf. S. pisiformis (Linnaeus) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •• • • •• •• • •• • •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •• •• •• •• •• •• •••• • ••• • • • r •••• •••• ••• • • ••• 0
Tagelus sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• •••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •• • • • ••• • ••• x x •••• • ••• •••• •••• t •••
• ••• 0
Sphenia sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •• • • •••• • ••• • ••• •• • • ••• • • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• •••• ~
Ervilia sp. .. .. . ...... . ... ....... . .... . ......
... . . . .. .. ' •••• • • • t
•••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • •• • • ••• •••• • •• • • ••• •• • • x •••• •••• ••• • • ••• .. .
' • •••
~
Corbula sp. a cf. 0. cercadica Maury. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x •••• • • •• •••• •••• •• •• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• x x • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ~
Corbula sp. b cf. 0. sericea Dall ...................•..•. x x •••• x ••• •••• • ••• •••• ••• • x • ••• •••• •••• • ••• ••• x • •••
.....
~
• • • ••• ••• •
Oorbula sp. c cf. 0. knoxiana fossilis Pilsbry •.••.•••.• x x •••• •••• •••• • ••• ... ' •••• •••• •••• •••• x • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •
Corbula sp. d cf. O. dominicensis Gabb ••••....•••••..•• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • • • t
••• • •••• •••• ••• • • ••• ••• • x • ••• ••• • • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• ••••
Corbula (Aloidis) vieta Guppy ...•...•••.....••...•••.• •••• x • ••• •••• ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• x x •••• •••• •••• •• •• •••• • • ••
Corbula (Bothrocorbula) viminea Guppy ...•.......•... x •••• • ••• x ••• • x •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••• • x x • ••• x •• •• • ••• • ••• • •••
Rocellaria sp. cf. R. r otunda (Dall) ....•.•.....•....•. • •• • x •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••• • • ••• •••• x x •• •• •• •• •••• •••• • ••• •• ••
Decapod Crustacea :
Portunus (Portunus) baitensis Rathbun ................... .. ••• • •• • • •• • • •• • • •• • • •••• •••• •• • • •• •• •••• x • ••• • ••• • ••• •• • • •••• •••• • ••• •• • •
Panopeus sp. indet . ....................................... . •••• • • • • • ••• ••• • •• •• •••• • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• •• • • x • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • •••
Panopeus ? sp .... • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • • • • • •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• •••• •••• •••• •••• x •••• •••• •••• •• •• •••• • ••• ••• •
Partbenope ? sp .• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• x • ••• • •• • • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• ••• •
 SEDIMENTARY BOCKS. 191

Fossils, Matssade tongue. Mollusks and decapod Crustacea are the

most abundant fossils obtained from the Ma1ssade tongue of the Tho-
monde formation. No corals were fo11nd in the Ma!ssade tongue, as the
deposits were laid down near the mouths of streams that flowed across
coastal-plain swamps. Some of the characteristic mollusks are shown on
Plate XVI.
The collections of mollusks are divided into three lists to show that some
of them contain a marine fauna, others a mixed marine and brackish
fauna, and others a brackish fauna. The list on pages 194-195 shows that
the ma.r ine fauna is essentially the same as the fauna in the middle part of
the Thomonde formation in the southeastern part of the plain, 44 per
cent of the species being identical. The most striking identical species are
several species of Tectibranchs and Pleurotomids, several small species of
Marginella, Melongena orthocantha Pilsbry and Johnson (Pl. XVI, fig.
5), Phos costatus Gabb (Pl. XV, figs. 4, 5), Turritella sulcigyrata Pils-
bry and Brown, and Scapharca chiriquiensis Gabb (Pl. XVI, figs. 6-8).
Some of the species in the Maissade tongue are known also in the upper
part of the Thomonde formation in the southeastern part of the plain,
but Xancus rex Pilsbry and Johnson, Phos semicostatus Gabb, and Or-
thaula.x aguadillensis Maury are not found in the Ma!ssade tongue. The
absence of some of these species and of .the Cones may be due to environ-
mental conditions, but the evidence seems to indicate that the lower and
middle parts of the Maissade tongue, which contain the marine fauna,
are the equivalent of the middle part of the Thomonde formation.
The collections containing a mixed marine and brackish fa11na a1·e
listed on page 196. The dwarf race of Phos costatus Gabb and species
of Hydrobia and Tryonria indicate a brackish element. The same dwarf
race of Phos costatus was found in the marine beds, but the collection f1·om
station 9717, the largest marine faunule, includes typical specimens of
this species.
The collections containing a brackish fauna are listed on page 197.
Potamides tippenh.aueri Woodring and Mansfield (see p. 611 and
Pl. XVI, figs. 3, 4), M elongena orthocantha Pilsbry and Johnson (Pl.
XVI, fig. 5), S capharca chi1·iquiensis ( Gabb) (Pl. XVI, figs. 6-8), and
subspecies websteri ( Pilsbry) (Pl. XVI, figs. 9-11), and Ostrea sp., are
the most abundant mollusks in the Ma!ssade tongue. Whole beds consist
of Scapharca chiriquiensis, and others are made up of oyster shells. Pota-
mides roumaini Pilsbry (Pl. XVI, figs. 1, 2) is remarkably abundant at
station 9710.
Stations in Central Plain, M aissade tongue (Miocene).
9710 (W 246 F). Arrondi~ement of Hinche, right bank of Riviere Frio about
100 meters above crossing of road from Maissade to Hinche. W. P. Woodrin~,
collector. February 1, 1921.
9711 to 9715. Arrondissement of Hinche, right bank of Riviere Fond Gras,
about a kilometer in air line above junction with Riviere Canot. (See p. 172 for
• .•

PLATE XVI.
SoME CHARAcrERISTIC MOLLUSKS OF THE MAissADE TONGUE AND OF THE
•
ARTIBONITE GROUP.

FIGURES 1, 2. Potamides roumaini Pilsbry. Maissade tongue, U. S. G. S. station

9710. U. S. N. M. catalogue No. 350580. .
Fig. I. Adult specimen, X 1.
Fig. 2. Young specimen, X 2, showing sculpture of early whorls.
FIGURES 3, 4. Potamides tippenhaueri Woodring and Mansfield (p. 611). Ma!ssade
tongue, U. S. G. S. station 9725.
Fig. 3. Tyoe, X 1. U.S. N. M. catalogue No. 350581.
Fig. 4. Young specimen, X 2, showing sculpture of early whorls. U. S. N. M.
catalogue No. 350582.
FIGURE 5. Melongena orthocantha Pilsbry and Johnson, X 1. Maissade tongue,
U. S. G. S. station 9732. U.S. N. M. cat&.!3gue No. 350583.
FIGURES 6, 7, 8. Scapharca chiriquiensis (Gabb). Three views of same specimen,
X 1. Thomonde formation U.S. G. S. station 9908. U. S. N. M. catalogue
No. 350584.
FIGURES 9, 10, 11. Scapharca chiriquiensis websteri (Pilsbry). Three views of
same specimen, X 1. Las Cahobas formation, U. S. G. S. station 9930. U. S.
N. M. catalogue No. 350585.
192

•
REPUBLIC OF HAITI
G EO LOG I CAi~ SU R\' EY PLATE XVI

X2
l
-
')

9
x2

l () 11

6
8
CHARAC1.'ERISTIC l\fOI.JLU SI~S OF TIIE l\lAiSS ..\DE TONGUE AND OF TIIE
ARTIBONITE GROUP.
 •

•
 SEDIMENT.ARY ROCKS. 193

Miocene marine fossils from Central Plain (M a"issade tongue).

Marme-
Hinche.
lade.
I Species.

9717 9713 9714 9715 9722 9726

Mollusca:
Gastropoda :
Actaeon sp. cf. A. riomaensis Maury .................... . • •• • • ••• •••• •• •• x ••••
Acteocina n. sp. a cf. A. subbullata Pilsbry and Johnson. • • • • •• •• •••• • ••• • •••
Acteocina n. sp. b, also from Cercada formation ......... . •••• ••• • •••• •••• x •• ••
Oylicbnella n. sp. a cf. 0. trictum-tritonis Maury ....... . x • • •• • ••• •••• •••• ••••
Ringicula n. sp. b cf. R. dorninicana Maury ............. . • ••• •••• •••• x x ••••
Bullaria sp. indet.................•...................... ••• • • ••• • ••• x •••• ••••
Turris (Pleuroliria) sp. a cf. new species from Cercado
formation ........................................... . ? •• •• • • •• •• •• •••• • •••
· '' sp. cf . n. sp. b . .............................. .
'' Dri·11 1a x •••• • ••• •••• • ••• ••• •
'' Drillia '' sp. b cf. new specie1::1 from Cercado format ion .. x •••• ? •••• •••• • •••
'' Drillia '' sp. c cf. new species from Cercado formation .. •••• • ••• x •••• •••• ••••
'' Mangilia '' sp. t .... ................................... . •••• •••• ? x • • •• ••••
'' M ang1·1·1a '' sp. g ..••....•••....•.•••••..•••••.••..••..•. x • • • • •• •• •••• •••• ••••
'' M angi·1·1a '' sp. 1n
. de t ................................... . •••• •••• • ••• •••• x ••••
Olivella (Lamprodroma) sp. cf. 0 limonensis Olsson ..... . •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• • • ••••
Marginella nugax Pilsbry and Johnson ...•......•........• x •••• •••• •• •• ••• • • •••
Marginella n. sp. a cf. M. maoensis Maury .............•.. x • ••• ••• • •• •• .' .. •• ••
Marginella n. sp. c cf. M. oryzoides Gardner (Mse.) •....• ? •• • • • ••• •••• •••• ••••
Marginella sp. b cf. M. latissima Dall .....•.............. • •• • • ••• •••• x •••• x
Marginella sp. c . ........•...............•......•..•.•.... •• • • •••• x •••• •••• ••••
Marginella (Gibberula) sp. b cf. M. chondra Gardner
( Mss.) ..••......................•....•........••..... x ••• • •••• •• •• •••• ••••
Marginella (Gibberula) sp ......•....•......•...•....•.•. ••• • •••• •••• •••• •••• x
Mitra (Cancilla) n. sp. a cf. M. (C.) henekeni Sowerby .. •••• x x x x x
Mitra (Fusimitra) n. sp. c ct. M. (F.) mangilopsis Gard-
ner (Mss.) .......................................... . x ••• • • • •• • ••• • •• • ••••
Mitra (Fusimitra) sp ................•...............•...• x •••• •••• • ••• •••• ••••
Fusinus sp. . ................................•.........•.. x •••• •••• ••• • ••• • ••••
Melongena ortbocantha Pilsbry and Johnson ..........•.. •••• • ••• x •••• •••• x
Pbos costa. tus Gab b ...................................... . x •••• • ••• •••• •••• • •••
Phos costatus Gabb (dwarf race) .........•............. •••• • ••• x •••• x x
Strombina n. sp. b, cf. S. caribaea Gabb ...•.............. x x x x •
x ••••
•

Murex sp. a cf. M. messorius Sowerby ..............•..... ••• x •••• x x • •• •

Cerithium (Vulgocerithium) sp. cf. C. (V.) dominicense
Gabb ......•......................•...•.........•.•.. •••• •••• x •••• • ••• ••••
Oeri thi um ? sp ..................................•...••... .... .... ... .. .... x x
Clava alajuela Olsson ................•........•....•...•.. •••• •••• x x •••• • •••
Potamides tippenhaueri Woodring and Mansfield ..•...... •••• •••• •••• •••• •• •• x
Cerithidea sp. a ......................................... . x • •• • •• •• • ••• •••• • •••
Bittium sp. b ................................... ; ....... . •••• ••• • •• •• • ••• x ••••
Bittium sp. . ............................................ . x ••• • ••• • • ••• • ••• x
Cerithiopsis sp. d ...................•......•..•.•..... ·.... x • • •• •••• ••• • •••• •• ••
Triphora sp. a .•.................................... · · · · · · x •••• •• •• • ••• •••• •• ••
Vermicularia sp. cf. V. spirata (Philippi) ...........•...• x • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • •••
Turritella cal ostemma Pilsbry and Brown .....•.••....... •••• x •••• x • ••• ••••
•
Turritella sulcigyrata Pilsbry and Brown ............... . x x •••• • • •• •••• ••••
Caecum sp. cf. 0. anellifer Pilsbry and Johnson ......... . x •••• •• •• • ••• • ••• • •••
•
Meioceras sp. cf. M. constrictum (Gabb) •...........•.... •••• • •• • • ••• •• •• •••• x

13
 194 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Miocene marine fossils from Central Plain (Matssade tongue)-Continued.

Marme-
Hinche.
lade.
Species.

9717 9713 9714 9715 9722

.

Mollusca-(Cont'd) :
Gastropod~-(Cont'd) :
Meioceras n. sp. a .. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x • ••• •• • • •• •• •••• •• ••
Fossarus (Isap is) sp. b. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •••• •• • • • •• • x • •••
Hydrobia sp. I f • f f f f • • f f • f I e f f f f f f • f f f f f f • f f I f f f f f f f f f • f f f
•••• •••• •••• x •• •• ••••
Tryonia sp. d . . ......................... . ........... . .... . •• •• •••• x •••• •••• ••••
Orepidula sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •••• •••• ••• • x • •••
Epitonium sp. ••• • •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••• • x ••••
Melanella sp • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• x •••• •••• •••• ••••
Turbonilla sp. e. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •••• x • ••• •••• ••••
Turbonilla sp. g ...............••...........•.......... . ... x •• •• • •• • •••• •• •• ••••
Turbonilla sp. h ......................................... . •••• •••• ••• • x x
Odostomia sp. c . . ......................••..... .. ......... ••• • • •• • x •••• •••• ••••
Odos'tomia sp. d ....••...........•..•.......•........... . .. •••• • ••• x •••• •••• • • ••
Odostomia sp. e. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •• • • •••• •••• x • •••
Odostomia sp. t . ..... . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • •• • • ••• •••• x ••••
Neritina ( Smaragdia) viridimaris Maury ................ . x •••• •••• •••• •••• ••••
Neritina (Puperita) figulopicta Maury ...........•......• •••• •• •• x •••• •••• •• ••
Liotia sp. a .............................................. . x •••• • ••• •••• •••• •• • •
Oirculus sp. •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••• • x ••••
Vitrinella sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • • ••• •••• x •• •• ••••
Teinostoma depressum (Gabb) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• x x ••• • ••••
Discopsis sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• •• •••• •••• •• •• ••• •
Scaphopoda :
Cadulus sp. b cf. C. colobus Pilsbry and Sharp .......... . •••• •••• •••• •• •• x • • ••
Pelecypoda :
Nucula tenuisculpta Gabb .•...•.•... ...................... x •••• • •• • • •• • x x
• Leda n. sp. a cf. L. extricata Pilabry and Johnson ....... . •••• •••• •••• • •• • x ••• •
Leda n. sp. b . . ........ . •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• •••• x •••• •• •• • •••
Scapharca chiriquiensis (Gabb) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• x x x •••• x
Scapharca ep. •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• •••• x •••• •••• x • •••
Ostrea sp. ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• x x • ••• x x x
Amusium (Pseudamusi11m) sp. cf. A. (P.) guppyi (Dall) x ••• • •••• •••• •••• • ••
Anomia sp. •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• •••• •••• ••• • ••• • x • •••
Modiolus ( Brachydontes) sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • • •• x • ••• x ••••
Mytilopsis sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •••• ••• • ••• • •••• x
Crassinella n. sp. a. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• •••• •• • • •••• ••••
Cyrena sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ? •••• x • ••• • ••• ••••
Phacoides (Parvilucina) n. sp. b ..............•. . ......• x •••• x • ••• x x
Obione sp. cf. 0. socia Pilabry and Johnson ........•..•.• •••• x x •••• •••• • •••
Ervilia sp. ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• x ••• •••• •••• •••• •• ••
Tellina sp. ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• x x x •• • • •••• x •
Macoma ? sp ....•............................••..•..•...• •••• • ••• x •••• • ••• • •••
Corbula sp. c cf. C. knoxiana f ossllis Pilsbry .. • • • • • • • • • • x •••• x •••• • ••• ••••
Rocellaria l!lp. cf. R. rotunda (Dall) ••••.••••••• • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • • ••• x •••• • ••• ••••
Decapod Crustacea :
Portunus (Portunus) baitensis Rathbun ...........•...••..•.. x •••• •••• • ••• x • •••

..
 SEDIMENT.ABY ROCKS. 195

Miocene marine and brackish-water f ossil.s from C en tral Plain (M a'issade tongue).

Hinche. Marmelade.
•

Species.
97!1 9716 9723 9724 9725 9727 9728 9729 9732 9733

Mollusca:
Gastropoda :
Ringicula n. sp. b. cf. R. domini-
...
cana Maury . . ' ........... . •••• •••• •• • • • • •• • ••• •••• ••• • •••• x ••••
Ringicu]a sp. . ................... . ••• • •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• ••• • • ••• x ••••
Olivella (Larnprodroma) sp. a ... . x •••• •••• •••• •• • • •••• •• • • •••• • • •• ••••
Melongena consors (Sowerby) ... . x x •• • • • ••• •••• •••• ? • •• • •••• x
Melongena orthocantba Pilsbry
and Johnson ••••••••••••••••• • ••• x x ••• • x x x •••• x ••••
Phos costatus Gabb (dwarf race) • • ••• x •• • • •••• • • • • • ••• • • •• ••• • •••• ••••
Atilia sp •..••••••••••. • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •••• x •••• •••• •• •• •••• • •• • •••• ••••
Strombina n. sp. b cf. S. caribaea
Gabb ••••••••••••••••••••••••• •••• x •••• •••• ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••••
Strombina sp. b ...........•..•....
•
... .. •••• •• •• •••• ••• • ••• • • ••• • ••• x ••••
Murex sp. a cf. ll. mesaor1us
Sowerby •••••••••••••••••••••• • ••• • ••• x • •• • •••• • •• • •••• ••• • •••• ••••
Potamides tippenhaueri Woodring
and Mansfield ••••••••••••••• x •••• • • I I •••• x x x •••• x x
Bittium sp. b ...............•....• •••• •••• • ••• x • •• • •••• • ••• • ••• ••• • • •••
Bittium sp. d . ................... . • •• • • • •• •••• •••• •••• •••• •• • • •••• x • •• •
Bittium sp. e . ................. . • • • ••• •••• ••• • • •• • • ••• •• • • • ••• • ••• x ••••
Bittium sp. f. • ••••••••••••••••••• x x • ••• •• •• ••• • •••• •••• ••• • •••• • •••
Bittium sp. • ...........•...•..... •••• ••• • •••• • ••• •••• •• • • •••• • ••• • ••• x
Hydrobia sp. ••••••••••••••••••••• x x •••• •••• ••• • ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• •• • •
Tcyonia sp. d .................... . x • • • • •• •• • •• • •••• •••• • ••• •••• x ••••
Crucibulum sp. . .............••.. • •• • •• •• •••• • ••• •• • • •• •• • ••• x • ••• • •••
Turbonilla sp. •••••••••••••••••••• •• •• •••• ••• • • •• • •• •• • ••• x • ••• • •• • ••••
N eritina (Puperita) figulopicta
Maury ••••••••••••••••••••••• x ••• • x • • • • •••• x •• • • • ••• • ••• x
Pelecypoda:
Leda n. sp. b . .................... . ••• • x ' ... • •• • •••• • ••• • ••• •• • • • ••• • •••
Scapharca cbiriquiensis (Gabb). x x x x •••• •••• x x x x
Scapharca cbiriquiensis websteri
(Pilsbry) •••••••••••••••••••• •••• •••• x •••• x •••• ••• • • ••• • ••• •• ••
Ostrea sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • x x x • •• • •••• •••• •••• • •• • ••• •
?tfytilopsis sp. •••••••••••••••••••• x •• •• x • ••• • ••• x • ••• x x • •••
Phacoides (Parvilucina) n. sp. b. x • • •• •• • • •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• x • •••
Cbione sp. cf. C socia Pilsbry and
Johnson • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• x • ••• •••• x •••• • ••• •••• ••• • ••••
Tellina sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •••• • •• • ••• • • • • •••• •••• • ••• •••• • •••
Corbula sp. c cf. C knoxiana f os-
sils Pilsbry ..........••....•.. •••• x ••• • ••• • •••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• ••••

•
 196 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI. •

section.) W. P. Woodring, collector. F ebruary 2, 1921. The beds in the section

that yielded the fossils are 9711 (W 248 F), bed 14; 9712 (W 249 F), bed 12;
9713 (W 250 F), bed 6; 9714 (W 251 F) , bed 4; 9715 (W 252 F), bed 3.
9716 (W 253 F). Arrondissement of Hinche, right bank of Riviere Fond Gras,
about half a kilometer below junction with Riviere Fond Bleu. W. P. Woodring,
collector. February 2, 1921.
9717 (W 254 F). Arrondissement of Hinche, right bank of Riviere Fond Bleu,
about half a kilometer above junction with Riviere Fond Gras. W. P. Woodring,
collector. February 2, 1921.
9718 (W 255 F). Arrondissement of Hinche, right bank of Riviere Fond Bleu,
about 2.5 kilometers above junct ion with Riviere Fond Gras. W. P. Woodring,
collector. February 2, 1921.
9722 to 9733. Arrondissement of Marmelade, first high bluff on right bank of
Riviere Blanche below gorge formed by conglomerat es in middle part of Thomonde
formation. (See pp. 170-172 for section.) W. P. Woodring, collector. F ebruary 5,
1921. The beds in the section that yielded the fossils are 9722 (W 262a, F), bed 47;
9723 (W 262b F), bed 46; 9724 (W 262c F) , bed 44; 9725 (W 262d F), bed 43;
9726 (W 262e F), bed 36; 9727 (W 262f F) , bed 34; 9728 (W 262g F) , bed 32;
9729 (W 262h F), bed 29; 9730 (W 262i F) , bed 24; 9731 (W 262j F) , bed 21 ;
9732 (W 262k F), bed 6; 9733 (W 2621 F), bed 2.

Miocene brackish-water fossils fro m Central Plain ( Ma"issade tongue ) .

Marme-
Hinche.
lade.
Species.

9710 9718 9712 9730 9731

Mollusca:
Gastrop oda:
Planorbis sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •••• x ••••
Bullaria sp. . .... ~ ................ . ......... . .. . · .. · . · · . · · · · · · · · x •••• • ••• ••• • ••••
Potamides roumaini Pilsbry .............. . . . ..... . . . .•.•.....•• x •••• • ••• • •• • . . ....
Potamides tippenhaueri Woodring and Mansfield . •............. •••• •••• • ••• •••• x
A.labina sp. . ............. .. ....... . .. . .... . ........ . ...... · · · · .. ••• • x •••• • ••• ••••
Hemisinus truncatus (Gabb) ....•........ . .. . ... . . . . ... ......•. •••• x x ? x
.. x
H em1s1n\1S sp. . .•. . .•.................. . . . .. . .. . .• . ............. •• •• •••• •••• ••••
Hydrobia sp. . ................ . ... . ......... . ........ . ........ . • •• • • ••• •••• x ••••
Tryonia sp. e . . . .. ... ... . ... . ... . ... . ..... . ............. . ...... . x • •• • • ••• • •• • • • • •
P elecypoda :
Scapharca chiriquiensis websteri (Pilsbry) ...•.•••..••........ ? ••• • x •••• • •••
Mytilopsis sp. . .•.......•........•... • ... . .. . ........•.. . .•.. · . · x •••• • ••• •••• • •••

LAS CAHOBAS FORMATION.

1
Jones gave the name ''Las Cahobas beds,'' derived from that of the
•
town of Las Cahobas, to the rocks that overlie the Thomonde formation.
The type locality is north of Las Cahobas. The Las Cahobas formation is
the youngest Miocene formation in the Centra.l Plain and the most exten-'
sive surface formation in its southeastern part, but at many places in the
interior it is concealed by younger stream deposits. It conformably over- .
1 Jones, W. F., op. cit., p. 737, 1918.

•
 SEDIMENTARY BOCKS. 197

lies the Thomonde formation but was laid down along a retreating shore
line. Its estimated maximum thickness is 700 meters.
Along the west and south edges of the plain the Las Cahobas formation
is strikingly different in lithology from the underlying Thomonde forma-
tion, as it consists almost entirely of coarse detrital sediments, principally
conglomerates and coarse cross-bedded sandstones. These deposits are
largely nonmarine and apparently represent delta and flood-plain deposits
that extended far seaward beyond the shore line of Thomonde time. As
these rocks are harder than the Thomonde rocks they form ridges with
steep mountain-facing cuestas. Such a ridge formed by the basal rocks
of the Las Cahobas formation is a striking feature along the south edge
of the plain. (See Pl. XIV, B.)
North and northeast of Las Cahobas there are two coralliferous lime-
stones at and near the base of the formation . The lower limestone, which
is considered the base of the formation, crops out in a low ridge about half
a kilometer north of Las Caho bas. It is yellowish and rather soft. Heads
of Orbicella and branches of Stylophora and Pocillopora weather out of
the rock and lie on the ground. The corals listed on page 20 3 ( station
9906) were collected at this locality. This limestone is exposed on the
main trail leading northeastward from Las Cahobas, about a quarter of
a kilometer from the town, where it overlies thin-bedded sa.n dstone and
sandy siltstone at the top of the Thomonde formation. About 50 meters
farther northeast the trail turns eastward and passes over a coralliferous
limestone about 20 meters higher stratigraphically. This limestone is hard
and grayish but weathers yellowish. It contains many corals, especially •

Stylophora, Pocillopora, Orbicella, and Cyathom,orpha. (See list, p. 203;

stations 9909 and 9773.) This limestone is overla.i n by • shaly beds and
poorly exposed coarse sandstone and conglomerate consisting of small
pebbles. Farther to the northeast a conspicuous bed about 40 centimeters
thick, consisting of the large massive valves of Ostrea cahobasensis, crops
out west of the trail (station 9910). At the place where the Belladere
trail branches off f1~om the Thomonde trail a bed of dark-gray siltstone
contains the mollusks listed on page 204 (station 9772). The overlying
beds consist of soft rusty-brown sandstone, white poorly consolidated
cross-bedded sandstone, and conglomerate.
The higher of the two coralliferous limestones forms the crest of the
high ridge north of Las Cahobas. The ruins of Fort Anglais, built by the
British during their occupation, stand on this ridge. The wa.lls of the
fort are constructed of blocks of this limestone. The corals listed on
page 203 (station 9905) were collected loose along the south slope of the
ridge, having weathered out and rolled down the slope.
The lower part of the Las Cahobas formation is exposed at many other
localities near Las Cahobas. Most of the beds above the coralliferous
limestones are congloll:lerates or coarse sandstones. The conglomerates con-
tain pebbles of limestone, argillite, and various igneous rocks, all derived
 •

198 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

from the present region of the Massif du Nord. Ostrea bolus was col·
l_ected from coarse poorly consolidated sandstone exposed along the trail
from Las Cahobas northwestward to Riviere Artibonite (station 9988).
The trail from Las Cahobas to Belladere approximately follows the
strike of the rocks for the greater part of the distance. Conglomerate and
sandstone crop out in many gullies and ravines. The beds at the base of
the Las Cahobas formation form a'' rim rock'' curving around the north-
westward-pl11nging crest of the Belladere anticline. Large valves of Ostrea
cahobasensis were collected from a bed near the base of the formation on
the south limb, where the dip is 55 °. The coralliferous limestones at the
base of the formation are not so prominent here as near Las Cahobas.
Along the trail from Las Cahobas to Thomonde there are many expos-
ures of beds higher in the Las Cahobas for1nation. Like the lower beds
they consist principally of conglomerate and sandstone, but they contain
no fossils. Beds at the base of the f or1nati on form the '' rim rock '' on
the southeastward-plunging crest of the Chamouscadille anticline, which
is visible from the trail. Oysters and other marine fossils were collected
from beds in the lower half of the formation. (See lists, pp. 203-204;
stations 9774, 9775, 9776, and 9916.)
Successively lower beds appear at the surface on the ascent of the high
ridge overlooking Thomonde. This ridge is part of the '' rim rock '' formed
by the basal beds of the formation that curve around the southeastward-
plunging crest of the Thomonde anticline. Westward and eastward from
the trail long, gentle dip slopes on the south limb of the anticline are
visible. They are formed by beds of conglomerate. The crest of the ridge
consists of conglomerate. Above and below the conglomerate lies a coralli-
ferous limestone• in the same stratigraphic position as the limestones at
the base of the formation at Las Cahobas. Here the septa of the corals are
dissolved, and the only specimens obtained are casts of Stylophora from
the upper limestone (station 9777). Below the lower limestone lies a
conglomerate containing small pebbles and below the conglomerate lies
sandy siltstone that contains Thomonde fossils (station 9778).
The lower part of the Las Cahobas formation is well exposed on the
north limb of the Thomonde anticline, where it forms a '' rim rock '' that
is a continuation of the ridge on the south limb described above. On the
trail from Thomonde to Hinche the beds dip from 70° to 80°, or even 90°
The following generalized section was measured along this trail:
Generalized section of lower part of Las Cahobas formation and upper part of
•
Thomonde formation on trail from Thomonde to Hinche .
Est. thickness
Las Cahobas formation: in met ers.
29. Coarse sandstone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
28. Oyster bed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
27. Conglomerate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
26. Oyster bed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
25. Sandy siltstone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 199

Est. thickness
Las Cahobas formation Continued. in meters.
24. Oyster bed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
23. Conglomerate ...................................... . 1
22. Oyst-er bed ......................................... . .5
21. Sandy siltstone ..................................... . 1
20. Oyster bed ......................... .- .............. . .2
19. Sandstone ......................................... . 1
18. Conglomerate ...................................... . .5
17. Siltstone, marine fossils; station 9927 ................. . 5
16. Conglomerate ...................................... . 3
15. Coralliferous limestone ............................. . 1.2
14. Conglomerate ...................................... . 3
13. Corallif erous limestone; station 9928 ................. . 1.6
12. Conglomerate ...................................... . 5
11. Sandstone .......................................... . 5
10. Conglomerate ..................................... . 3
9. Sandy siltstone ...................................... · 2
8. Conglomerate ...................................... . 1
7. Sandy siltstone ..................................... . 2
6. Conglomerate ...................................... . 3
Thomonde formation:
5. Siltstone; numerous casts of mollusks; station 9929 .... 10
4. Conglomerate ...................................... . .5
3. Sandy siltstone ..................................... . 2
2. Conglomerate ...................................... . .5
1. Siltstone • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••••••••••••••• 50

107.5

In this section the coralliferous limestones seem to lie higher above

the highest Thomonde fauna than elsewhere. The collection from station
9927 (bed 17 of preceding section) contains fragments of dicotyledonous
leaves, probably representing the genus Ficus, in addition to marine
mollusks.
On the trail from Thomonde to Thomassique a yellowish coralliferous
limestone lies above beds of heavy conglomerate and coarse sandstone at the
base of the forrnation. The corals listed on page 203 (station 9783) were
collected at this locality. Farther northeast on this trail the beds flatten
abruptly in the trough of the Central Plain syncline. They consist of
alternating beds of conglomerate, sandstone, and siltstone. They are
irregularly bedded and seem to be flood-plain and delta deposits. The
siltstones have a reddish or greenish color, which is in striking contrast
to the bluish color of the marine silt.stones. These are the highest Las
Cahobas beds examined.
Similar beds crop out in ravines and gullies along the trail from Tho-
monde to Hinche, north of the ridge described on page 198, but on the
upland they are concealed by younger stream deposits. As these higher
Las Oahobas beds are stream deposits they can hardly be distinguished
from the younger stream deposits in the regions where they lie fiat .
•

•
•
200 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

At Hinche, on the right bank of Riviere Guayamouc, a high bluff ex-

poses in ascending order rusty-brown sandstone, siltstone, and a bed of
sandy clay about 60 centimeters thick, which contains fragments of leaves
and thin streaks of lignite. These beds seem to l ie horizontal, but the river
flows along the strike and they probably dip gently southeastward. Sandy
clay containing a few small pebbles overlain by buff clay is exposed in
bluffs on the left bank of Riviere Guayamouc opposite Hinche, about 150
meters back from the river. Ponderous valves of Ostrea cahobasensis were
collected at the foot of the bluff. These beds dip 3 ° to 4 ° SW.
On the northeast side of the plain the Las Cahobaa formation is lithologi-
cally indistinguishable from the Thomonde formation, as both consist
principally of coarse detrital sediments and are included in the thick
wedge of delta and flood-plain deposits that tapers southwestward away
from the old landmass. Thin wedges of sandstone and siltstone near the
base of the formation carry a marine fauna (see pp. 20·2, 205; stations
9930 and 9931), showing that in early Las Cahobas time the sea at times
extended northeastward over the area where delta and flood -plain deposits
were usually being laid down. These marine deposits probably are the
littoral equivalent of the coralliferous limestones, which are not found
on this side of the plain. The boundary between the Thomonde ~nd Las
Cahobas formations on this side of the plain is drawn immedia~ly above
the highest beds carrying a Thomonde fauna.
Fossils. The Las Cahobas formation includes deposits of different
origin, and the collections of fossils obtained from them are correspond-
ingly diverse. The coralliferous limestones near the base of the formation
on the west side of the plain contain an extensive coral fauna of reef
facies and apparently represent a horizon from which a reef fauna has not
been collected in the Dominican Republic. For this reason the corals of
the Las Cahobas formation have a peculiar aspect, some of the species
heretofore being known only from older beds and others only from
yo11nger beds. Orbicella imperatoris Vaughan was formerly thought to ·
be an upper Oligocene species, and the genus Cyathomorp}ia was formerly
thought to be extinct before Miocene time. In the northern part of the
Dominican Republic Stylophora monticulosa Vaughan (MS.) and Pocil-
lopora crassoramosa Duncan are confined to the Gurabo formation and
Mao Adentro limestone. Both of these species are very abundant in the
Las Cahobas formation. \
Oysters are the most abundant mollusks on the west side of the plain.
Whole beds are composed of the large, heavy valves of Ostrea cahobasensis
Pilsbry and Brown. Other beds contain the smaller species 0. bolus Pils-
bry and Johnson. Both of these species are confined to the Las Cahobas
formation. The large plicate oyster 0. haitensis Sowerby was found in
both the Thomonde and Las Cahobas formations. Some beds contain large
numbers of Sropharca chiriquiensis Gabb (Pl. XVI, figs. 6-8), which also
is a common Thomonde fossil, especially in the Maissade tongue. This

•
 SEDilvIEN'.fARY ROCKS. 201
•

species, though found in strictly marine beds, seems to have been adapted
to living in brackish water. Beds near the base of the formation contain
a meager marine fa 11na. .
The mollusks listed under stations 9930 and 9931 were obtained from
beds slightly higher than beds carrying Orthaulax aguadillensis and other
mollusks typical of the upper fauna! zone of the Thomonde formation.
Many of the species, such as Conus n. sp., the Marginellas, M elongena
orthocantha Pilsbry and Johnson (Pl. XVI, fig. 5), and Scapharca chiri-
quiensis websteri ( Pilsbry) (Pl. XVI, figs. 9-11), are common Thomonde
species, and if the stratigraphic position of these beds were not known
they probably would be included in the Thomonde formation. They are
supposed to be the littoral equivalent of the coralliferous limestones at the
base of the Las Cahobas formation on the west side of the plain. 'l'he
inclusion of these beds in the Las Cahobas formation weakens the fauna!
evidence for considering the Ma!ssade tongue a part of the Thomonde
formation, as the mollusks from these Las Cahobas beds are very similar
to those in the marine beds of the Ma1ssade tongue.
The Las Cahobas formation is the equivalent of the Cercado fonnation
of the Dominican Republic, although the faunas of the two formations are
not at all comparable because of dissimilar environmental conditions. The
corals indicate that the Las Cahobas formation is the equivalent of an
unknown part of the Y aque group of the valley of Rio Y a.q ue del Sur,
Dominican Republic. Because of its correlation with the Cercado forma-
tion the Las Cahobas formation seems to be of upper Burdigalian age.

Statwns in Central Plain, Las Cahobas formation (Miocene).

'\Vest side ot plain.

9909 (W 193 F) . Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, trail from Las Cahobas to

Thomonde and Belladere, about 0.25 kilom,eter northeast of Las Cahobas. W. P.
Woodring, collector. January 11, 1921.
9773 (W 314 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, same locality as 9909. T. W.
Vaughan and W. P. Woodring, collectors. March 1, 1921.
9906 (W 188 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, low ridge about 0.6 kilometer
north of Las Cahobas, at an altitude of 260 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring,
collector. January 9, 1921.
9905 (W 187 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, float along south slope of
high ridge about a kilometer north of Las Caho bas, coralliferous limestone in
place at crest of ridge. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 9, 1921.
9910 (W 194 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, on trail from Las Cahobas to
Thomonde and Belladere, about a kilometer northeast of Las Cahobas. W. P.
Woodring, collector. January 11, 1921.
9772 (W 195 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, on trail from Las Cahobas
to Thomonde, at place where Belladere trail branches off. W. P. Woodring, col-
lector. January 11, 1921.
9988 (W 189 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, on trail leading north-
northwestward from Las Cahobas to Riviere I' Ayaye, about 5 kilometers from Las
Cahobas. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 10, 1921 .
•
 202 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

9911 (W 198 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, on trail from Las Cahobas to
Belladere, 80Uth limb of Belladere anticline, about 4 kilometers west of Belladere.
W. P. Woodring, collector. January 12, 1921.
9774 (W 204 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, on trail from Las Cahobas
to Thomonde, about 1.5 kilometers north of cemetery at Savane Cha.mouscadille.
•
W. P. Woodring, collector. January 15, 1921.
9775 (205a F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, on trail from Las Cahobas to
Thomonde, about 2 kilometers north of cemetery at Savane Chamouscadille.
W. P. Woodring, collector. January 15, 1921.
9776 (W 205b F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, same locality as 9775 but
from underlying bed. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 15, 1921.
9777 (W 206 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, south limb of Thomonde
anticline, on trail from Las Cahobas to Thomonde, crest of ridge formed by base
of Las Cahobas formation, about 3 kilometers southeast of Thomonde, at an
altitude of 395 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. · January 15, 1921.
9916 (W 205c F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, same locality as 9776 but
from underlying bed. W. P. Woodring, colle)tor. January 15, 1921.
9927 (W 233 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, north limb of Thomonde
anticline, on trail from Thomonde to Hinche, north slope of ridge formed by base
of Las Cahobas formation, about 4.5 kilometers north-northwest of Thomonde,
at an altitude of 350 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. January
26, 1921.
9928 (W 234 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, no1ih limb of Thomonde
anticline, on crest of ridge formed by base of Las Cahobas formation, 0.5 kilometer
west of trail from Thomonde to Hinche. W. P. Woodring, collector. January
26, 1921.
9783 (W 212 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, north limb of Thomonde
anticline, on trail from Thomonde to Thomassique, north slope of ridge formed by
base of Las Cahobas formation, about 2.8 kilometers east-northeast of Thononde.
W. P. Woodring, collector. January 16, 1921.
9944 (W 318 F). Arrondissement of Hinche, float at foot of bluffs on left bank
of Riviere Guayamouc opposite Hinche, about 150 meters northeast of upper
crossing. W. P. Woodring, collector. March 12, 1921.
•

East aide of plain.

9930 (W 236 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, right bank of Ravine Boucan
Toureau, about 0.5 kilometer southwest of Thomassique. W. P. Woodring, col-
lector. January 27, 1921.
9931 (W 237 F). Arrondi~ement of Las Cahobas, right bank of Riviere Honde
about 2 kilometers above crossing of trail from Thomassique to Thomonde.
W. P. Woodring, collector. January 28, 1921.

•
 Miocene fossils from Central Pwin, Las C ahobas formation.
West side of plain.
•
Las Cahobas. -5.e
Ill
Species.
9909 9773 9906 9905 9910 9772 9988 9911 9774 9775 9776 9777 9916 9927 9928 9783 0044

Foraminifera :
Sorites sp. cf. americana ( C'UShman) ..............•..... .... ........... • • • • • ••• • •• • •• •• • • •• ••• • • • •• I • t t •••• • ••• •••• ••• • x x •• •• •••• ••••
Corals:
Stylophora monticulosa Vaughan (MS.) .... • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x • • •• x • •• • •••• • ••• ••• • •••• t I t •
• ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••••
Stylophora n. sp., also from station 8610, Yaque group, Dominican
00
Republic • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •••• x • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • • •• • • • • •••• • ••• •••• • ••• •• • • •••• ••• • t:tj
Stylophora sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• ••• • • ••• •••• I I I I
• ••• •• I e • • • • • ••• •••• •••• x •••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• tj
~
Pocillopora cressoramosa Duncan. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x x
~
•••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • • • • • ••• • ••• • ••• • •• • •••• • • • • •••• ••••
Pocillopora sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • • •• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• I a I a •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • • • • x • • • •
Dichocoenia stokesi Milne-Edwards and Haime . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ... ' •••• • ••• x •••• ••• • • ••• •••• •••• • •• • ••• • ••• • • •• • •••• ••• • • ••• • •••
z~
x
~
Antillia dubia (Duncan) ............................................... . • •• • •••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• e I • t t I • t • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • • •• • ••• • ••• • • ••
Antillia sp. cf. A. walli Duncan ........................................ . •••• •• •• x • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • •••
Orbicella imperatoris Vaughan ........................................ . x • • • • • ••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••••
Orbicella sp. cf. 0. irnperatoris Vaughan .............................. . x x x t:d
• • • • •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••• • •••• • ••• 0
Orbicella sp. cf. 0. annularis (Ellis and Solander), smaller secondary a
septa x ~
e I I I I I I I I e I I I • I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I
• • • • •••• • • • • • ••• •• •• • ••• • • •• • I t t
•••• ••• • • •• • • ••• •••• •• •• •••• •••• tll
•
Orbicella cavernosa (Linnaeus) var .................................... . •••• •••• x I I I I
••• • •••• •••• • • • • •••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• • •••
Solenastrea bournoni Milne-Edwards and Haime ..................... . .. ' . • ••• x x • • •• •••• • ••• I I t t
•••• •••• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• ••••
Solena-s trea byades (Dana) .....••..•..•...............•.•.......•....... • • • •••• • ••• • • •• • ••• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• •• • • •• •• •••• •• •• • ••• •••• x ••••
Mycetopbyllia sp. a. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• •••• x •• •• ••• • • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • • • • • ••• •• •• •••• •• •• • ••• • ••• • •••
MycetopbyIlia sp. b ...•...................................... . .......... x •••• • ••• • •• • • •• • • ••• • ••• • •• • •• • • •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • •••
Agaricia sp., also from Gurabo formation and Mao Adentro limestone .. x • • • • •••• •••• • • •• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••• • •• • • • ••• • ••• • ••• • •••
Oyathomorpba n. sp ..........................•.•....•................. x •••• • ••• x • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •• • • •• • • • ••• •••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • •••
Genus ? fungid coral, cf. Cyathomorpha, but reproduction by fission .... • •• • •••• ••• • x • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• •••• •••• •••• •••• x •••• ••••
P samrnocora n. sp. c. • • • e • • • • • • • • e e e • • • • • • e e • e e • • e • • • I • • • • • e • • e • • • e e I e I I x •••• I I I I
•••• • •• • • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• • •••
P sammocora n. sp. d. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • •• • •• • • ••• •••• • ••• I t t t
•••• • ••• •• • • • ••• • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• x • • ••

Porites sp. aff. P. furcata Lamarck ..................................... . x •••• x • ••• • •• • •••• • ••• I t ••
• • •• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• ••••
Goniopora jacobiana Vaughan .................•..........•...•••....... •••• •••• •• •• I I I I
•• •• •••• • I t t
•••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• x •••• ••••
Goniopora n. sp ..... • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x ~
••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • •• • • ••• •••• • ••• • • • • • •••
0
Goniopora sp. indet. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• •••• •••• x •• •• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• v;
 Miocene fossil.s from Central Plain, Las Cahobas formation-Continued. ~
~
0
West aide of plain-Continued. ~

Q,I•

Las Cahobas. -5
.9
=
•

Species.
9909 9773 9906 9905 9910 9772 9988 9911 977• 9775 9776 9777 9916 9927 9928 9783 994'
•

0
t_:rj
Brachiopoda : 0
Lingula sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x t1
••• • •••• • ••• •••• ••• • ••• • • ••• ••• • • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• •••• 0
Mollusca: Q
~
Gastropoda :
Melongena consors Sowerby ?••••••••••.••••••••••••••••••••••••.••• •• • • • •• • •••• • ••• • • •• • ••• •••• •••• • • •• • ••• x •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• 0
~
Alectrion sp. cf. A. cercadensis Maury ...........................•.. • • •• • • •• •••• • • •• • ••• ••• • • ••• • ••• •••• •• •• • ••• •••• x ••• • • ••• •• •• ••••
Ceri thium ? sp ...•....•.....•.....•.•................... . ........... x ~
••• • •• •• •• •• ••• • • ••• •••• •••• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••••
Potamides ? sp . .......................... . ........................ . ••• • • • •• x •• •• •••• x •• •• •••• • • • • •••• x ••• • •• ••
x
•• • • •••• •••• • ••• ~
Turritella sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • ••• •• • • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• • ••• • ••• •••• ••• • •••• ••••
Fissuridea gp. indet. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • ••• •• • • •••• • ••• • • • • • ••• ••• • •• •• •• •• •••• • ••• •••• x •••• • ••• •••• ~
~
Pelecypoda : q
Barbatia sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •••• • ••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• • •• • x ••• • • ••• ••• • •••• •••• b:J
Scapharca chiriquiensis ( Gabb) •..•.•.•...•..........••...........• x x t'4
• ••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• ••• • • • • • •••• • •• • ••• • • •• • • ••• • •• • • ••• ......
Ostrea cahobaseneis Pilsbry and Brown ........................... . x •••• •••• •••• x •••• • ••• x x x • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • • •• • ••• x c
Ostrea bolus Pilsbry and Johnson ......•............ . ..........•.. ••• • •••• • ••• • ••• •• • • •••• x • ••• • •• • • ••• • ••• •••• •••• ••• • •••• •••• •••• 0
~
Ostrea haitensis Sowerby .. ....................................... . • •• • x • ••• • ••• • •• • •••• • • • • •••• ••• • • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• •• •• •••• x ••••
Pecten (Pecten) sp .... • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• x • • •• • ••• •••• •••• •••• • •• • ••• • • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• •• •• •••• •••• • ••• P:t
Oblamys (Aequipecten) sp . ..... . ••• • •••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • ••• • • •• •••• • ••• •••• •••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • •• • x •••• • ••• •••• ••• • >
......
Spondylus ep. cf. S. bostrychites Guppy. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •••• • ••• • • •• • ••• ••• • •• • • • • •• •••• • • •• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• ~
•
Mytilopsis sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• •• •• • ••• •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• • • •• • ••• ••• • •••• x • ••• •••• •••• ••••
Miltha sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • • • •• •• •• •• •• • ••• •• •• • ••• • ••• •• •• •••• • •• • x ••• • • • • • • • •• •••• • • ••
Tellina ? sp. indet. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •••• • •• • • ••• • •• • • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• • ••• x • ••• • ••• ••• • • ••• • •••
Macoma ? sp. indet. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • • •• • •• • • •• • • ••• • • • • • ••• • ••• • ••• •• •• •••• x • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• ••••
Tagelus ? sp. indet . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •••• • ••• •• • • • ••• • ••• •••• • • •• •• •• • ••• •••• x •••• • •• • • ••• • • •• • •••
Solen ? sp. indet ... • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •••• •••• • •• • •••• • •• • •••• • ••• •••• • ••• • ••• x • ••• • ••• ••• • •••• • •••
Labiosa ? sp. indet. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •••• ••• • ••• • • ••• • •• • • ••• •••• ••• • •• •• • ••• x •••• •••• • ••• •••• • •••
• Oorbula sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • •• • •••• •• • • • •• • • ••• ••• • •••• •••• x •• •• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •• ••
• •
Corbula ( Bothrocorbula) v1m1nea Guppy. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •••• • ••• • ••• • ••• •••• •••• •••• •••• •••• ? •••• • ••• •••• • •• • ••••

"

•
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 205

Miocene f ossil,s from Central Plain, Las Ca ho bas formation Continued

East side of plain.

Las Cabobas.

Species.
9930 9931

Mollusca:
Gastropoda :
Cylicbnella n. sp. a cf. C. trictumtritonis Maury ...•.................... ? ••••••••
Ringicula n. sp. c ...........................•.........•.................. x ••••••••
Conus n . sp., also from Baitoa formation ..••...•....•................... x ••••••••
Marginella nugax Pilsbry and Johnson ........ .............•............ x ••••••••
Margin ell a n. sp. a cf. M. maoensis Maury .............................. . x •••• • • • •
Marginella (Gibberula) sp. b cf. M. chondra Gardner (MSS.) .....•...... x ••••••••
Closia n. sp. a cf. unnamed Gurabo sp .......•.........•................. x ••••••••
Melongena ortbocantba Pilsbry and Johnson ............................. . ••••••• x
Alectrion cercadensis Maury ............................................ . x ••• •••••
Cerithium (Ptychocerithium) sp ...................................•..... x ••••••••
Potamides n. _,p, a cf. P. gastrodon Pilsbry and Johnson ...........•..... x x
Potamides sp. . ..................................................•....... •••••••• x
Cerithidea sp. . ..........••.............................................. x ••••••••
Bittium sp. g cf. B. asperoides Gabb ..........................•......... x ••••••••
Bittium sp. b ...........•....•........................................... x ••••••••
Alabina sp. . .............•.....•................•............... . .......• x ••••••••
Meioceras sp. cf. M. constrictum ( Gabb) ................................ . x ••••••••
Fossarus (Isapis) sp ...•..•............................................... x ••••••••
Rissoa sp. . ............................................................. . x ••••••••
Hydrobia sp. a ••.•••••.••••••••••.•••....•.•.••••..•••.•.•. •.•••••• ••.•.. x ••••••••
Hydrobia sp. b .............•....•........................................ x ••••••••
Tryonia sp. . .........•.............•..................................... x ••••••••
Epitonium sp. ••••••••••••••••••••••• ••• ••••••••• •••••••••••••• •• •••••••• x • •••••••
Turbonilla sp. . .•....•.•......••................•••.....•...•.•.......... x ••••••••
Odostomia sp. a ....................................•..................... x ••••••••
Phasianella pun etata ( Gabb) ...•....................................•... x ••••••••
Neritina (Puperita) ftgulopicta Maury .................................. . x x
Circulus sp. . ........•......•................•........................... x ••••••••
Teinostoma depressum (Gabb) .............. ......... ................... . x ••••••••
Scapbopoda :
Cadulus sp. • •.••...•......•..................•.......................... x ••••••••
Pelecypoda:
Nucula tenuisculpta Gabb .•.....•....•.............•...•........•...•.•.. x ••••••••
Leda sp. . ..•............................................................. x ••••••••
Scapharca chiriquiensis websteri (Pilsbry) ..•..•••........•......••..•...• x ••••••••
Ostrea sp. . .•....•...•.•....•...••........••...•........ · .. · · •...... · · · · . x x
Pbacoides (Phacoides) sp. • •.•.•.•...•••................................ x ••••• •••
Phacoides (Parvilucina) sp. . •••...............................•...•.... x ••••••••
Callodardia ? sp ...•..........•.............•.............. · •.•.... · ..... x ••••••••
Corbula sp. b cf. C. sericea Dall ......••.•.•...... ................ ..•.•... x ••••••••

Fossils of A rtibonite group. The collection from station 7544, ap-

parently from the Artibonite group, includes 6 new species of plants,
1 1
described by Berry, and a new species of fish, described by Cockerell.
The fish belongs to Oichlasoma, a, common genus in the streams of South
and Central America and north Africa. Six species of Oichlasoma are now
1 Berry, E. W., Tertiary fossil plants from the Republic ot Haiti: U. S. Nat. Mus. Proc .•
vol. 62, Art. 4, 10 pp., 1 pl., 2 text figs., 1922.
2 Cockerell, T. D. A., A fossil cichJid fish from the Republic of Haiti: U. S. Nat. Mus.

Proc., vol. 63, Art. 7, 2 pp., 1 pl., 1923.

 •

206 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

living in Cuba, but none in the other West Indian islands. The Cuban
cichlids are evidently remna.n ts of a once widely distributed West Indian
cichlid fa11na.
Station in Central Plain, Artibonite group (Miocene).
7544 (W 185 F). Arrondissement of Las Cahobas, in cut a.long road from
Mirebalais to Las Cahobas, on north side of ravine at foot of mountains on north
side of gap. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 8, 1921.

Miocene fossils from Central Pl,ain, Artibonite group (station 7:544).

Fish: Plants continued:
Cichlasoma woodringi Cockerell. Mespilodaphne hispaniolana Berry.
Plants: Mimusops preparvifolia Berry.
Gymnogramme woodringi Berry. Chrysophyllum cahobasensis Berry.
Simaruba haitensis Berry. Bumelia cuneata.folia Berry.
•

ARTIBONITE vALLEY AND CHAINE DES MATEUX.

The Miocene beds in the Artibonite Valley and on the Chaine des
Mateux were once probably continuous with those in the Central Plain
over the Montagnes Noires. The name Artibonite group is here applied
to them. As the outcrop of these beds is almost continuous the fossils
obtained from them are given in one list, on pages 217-218.
Artibonite Valley.

Artibonite Valley, as the term is here used, embraces the Artibonite

Valley proper and its southeastward prolongation, the valley of Riviere
Fer-a-Cheval. In many features it resembles the Central Plain, as it is a
deep plunging syncline, modified by secondary folds, containing Miocene
rocks. Although the essential stratigraphic features of the Artibonite
group of the Artibonite Valley are known, naming of the recognizable
rock units would only result in a cumbersome nomenclature.
In the lower part of the Artibonite Valley the Miocene rocks on the
northeast side of Riviere Artibonite seem to be concea.l ed by Recent flood-
plain deposits and Quaternary dissected terrace gravels downstream from
the vicinity of La Chapelle. Miocene rocks lie at the surface on the south-
west side of Riviere Artibonite downstream from La Chapelle, and
generally on both sides of the river upstream from La C1h apelle to
Mirebalais except where they are covered by flood-pla.i n deposits.
In the foothills 3 or 4 kilometers southwest of La Chapelle Miocene
marls rise to an altitude of 500 or 600 meters above sea level and con-
formably overlie white, chalky, unfossiliferous limestone of supposed Oli-
gocene age. Both series of rocks dip northeastward at angles of 45 ° to 7 5 °.
A transition from limestone to marl takes place by the intercalation o!
shaly beds that gradually increase in number and thickness as the beds
of white or yellowish unfossiliferous limestone din1inish. The thickness
of these transition beds is perhaps 100 meters. Above the transition beds
are several h11ndred meters of marl and very fine grained soft sandstone.
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 207

The prevailing colors are blue, gray, or yellow. The marl has the typical
conchoidal fracture shown in Plate XIV, 0. The beds are thin but gen-
erally very even. These rocks underlie a long lowland extending from
•
Morne Saut d'Eau northwestwa.r d beyond ~Iarche Desarmes, parallel to
the Artibonite flood plain. In the upper part of this marl-sandstone series
there are thin beds of yellowish limestone containing indeterminable casts
of corals. The beds of limestone probably increase in number a.n d thick-
ness up to the base of the overlying coralliferous limestone member.
The coralliferous limestone member is massive and has a thickness of
perhaps 50 to 100 meters. It forms the ridge that extends from Morne
Saut d'Eau northwestward to Marche Desarmes and an 11nknown distance
beyond, and that separates the lowland 11nderlain by the lower marl and
sandstone from the flood plain of the Artibonite. (See Pl. XXX, B,
p. 386.) The coralliferous limestone appears to be at the top of the Mio-
cene section below Morne Saut d'Eau, but farther southeast it is overlain
by marl beds like those in underlying part of the section.

s.o

• --
. --

I
0 I 3
- - ---
Hauteurs doublees
FiouBE 12.-Section of Miocene beds on the south side of Artibonite Valley near
La Chapelle, as exposed a.long Riviere Delean.
Total thickness of Miocene beds about 7fi0 meters.

In the lower valley the strike of the rocks averages about N. 50° W.,
parallel to the general elongation of the trough. The structu~e of the
Miocene beds on the southwest side of the valley is illustrated in Figure
12, which is based on excellent and almost continuous exposures along
Riviere Delean. This limb of the major syncline is modified by a single
prominent anticlinal arch, the crest of which has been eroded to the soft
marl and sandstone and forms the lowland between the coralliferous lime-
stone ridge and the base of the mo11ntains. The anticline probably rises
to the southeast, forming the crest of Morne Saut d'Eau, where the older
limestones apparently have been exposed by erosion. The folding on the
north flank of Morne Saut d'Eau is far more complex than that in the
region to the northwest. The dips at some places are steeper, the strikes
are variable in direction, and the beds here and there dip to the southwest.
Both on Riviere Delean and on the trail to Couyau the dips steepen at the
edge of the mo11ntains, where they range from 45° to 75° NE. ·
 •

208 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

..

The thickness of the Miocene

beds to the top of the corallifer-
ous lim:estone member, as esti-
mated from a paced traverse along
the Riviere Delean, is about 725
meters. This measurement in-
cludes the transition beds at the
.. base.
All the determinable fossils
collected in this area were found
on the north flank of Morne Saut
d'Eau, near the highest part of
the trail between La Chapelle and
Mirebalais, at an altitude of a
little more than 300 meters above
sea level. They include fossil
leaves, crinoid stems, corals, and
mollusks. (See lists, pp. 217-218,
stations 7 542, 9523, 9494, 9496.)
Rocks of the same .age underlie
the southeastern part of the Arti-
bonite Valley, but along the south
edge of the valley they differ in
lithology. The structure of the
part of the valley immediately be-
low Mirebalais is shown in Fig-
ure 13.
The lowest beds at the edge of
the mountains northeast of Du-
failly consist of white and yellow-
ish marl. A coral listed on page
217 (station 9920) was collected
from float derived from a coral-
liferous limestone probably a hun-
dred meters above the base of the
Miocene series. This corallifer-
ous limestone apparently is the
same as that. described on page
20?·, although.
the thjckness of
marl below it is less. Upon the
coralliferous limestone rest beds
of reddish-brown sandy marl and
a few thin beds of conglomerate.
All these beds dip southwestward
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 209

at angles of 30° to 60°. Southwest of Dufailly the trail to Mirebalais

crosses the southeastward-pl11nging crest of an anticline paralleling the
main synclinal trough. Northwest of the trail a narrow ridge, probably
formed by the coralliferous limestone in the lower part of the Miocene
series, encircles the plunging crest. Inside this ridge there is a depression
and inside the depression a high jagged ridge composed, probably, of
Oligocene or Eocene limestone. Beds of white marl, reddish-brown sandy
marl, and marly clay overlie the coralliferous limestone and arch over the
crest along the trail.
On the south side of the river a similar anticline pl11nges southeastward.
The coralliferous limestone is on the crest of the anticline immediately
south of Mireba.l ais, where it forms the ridge on which Fort Anglais
stands. In a road cut about a kilometer south of Mirebalais the limestone
weathers to a yellowish marl c.:ontaining harder lumps of coralltferous
limestone. The corals listed on page 217 (station 9563) were collected at
this locality, where the beds dip 20° SW. At Fort Anglais, southeast of
Mirebalais, the coralliferous limestone seems to dip northeastward. 'l,he
corals listed on pages 217-218 were collected on the crest of the ridge at
Fort Anglais (station 9922) and on the north slope of the ridge (station
9921). The southeasternmost exposure of this limestone is about 2 kilo-
meters southeast of Mirebalais, on the road to Las Cahobas, where the
corals listed on pages 217-218 (station 9901) were obtained.
The beds along the south side of the valley, as exposed along the road
between Mirebalais and Port-au-Prince, contain detrital material. Above
the coralliferous l imestone lie reddish-brown siltstone, rusty brown sand-
stone, and conglomerate consisting of small pebbles. Similar beds crop
out farther southwest, between Mirebalais and Trianon, where they lie
in the trough of a syncline. Between Trianon and the mountains the beds
have a general northeastward dip, but near the mountains they are
crumpled, and some exposures show that the softer beds have been squeezed
out of place. The corallif erous limestone crops out about half a kilometer
south of Trianon, but here it contains only pieces of Porites firmly em-
bedded in hard rock. Farther south the 11nderlying thin beds of clay,
sandstone, and conglomerate are well exposed in cuts along the recently
relocated road.
Miocene rocks crop out along the road from Mirebalais to Las CahobaR
east of the crossing of Riviere Fer-a-Cheval. The upper beds consist of
sandy shale, sandstone, and conglomerate. The lower beds, made up
of marl and thin beds of limestone, are crumpled near the foot of
Morna Michel.
At Savanette, in the valley of Riviere Fer-a-Cheval, the Miocene beds
correspond to those in the lower part of the series in the Artibonite Valley
• proper, consisting of thin beds of marl, marly shale, calcareous sandstone,
and limestone. Along the lower slopes of the mountains northeast of
14
210 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Savanette, on the trail to Belladere, these beds are folded in a very narrow
syncline. Immediately west of Savanette they are arched in an asymmetric
anticline (see Pl. XXVI, B) that extends across the narrow valley and
then bends southeastward along the south side of the valley. About 3
kilometers west of Savanette Riviere Fer-a-Cheval :flows in a narrow gorge
·of limestone of supposed upper Oligocene age, but farther northwest the
Miocene rocks reappear and beds of sandstone and conglomerate overlie
the marl and limestone. These detrital rocks form the northwestern end
of the ridge between Riviere Fer-a-Cheval and Riviere Gascogne.
The Miocene series in the valley of Riviere Gascogne consist almost
entirely of rather coarse detrital rocks. The lowermost beds exposed, which
confonnably overlie upper Oligocene limestone on t.h e north :flank of the
Montagnes du Trou d'Eau, consist of calcareous sandstone containing
Stylophora (station 956'2 ) and sandy clay. Above these beds lie beds of
coarse sandstone, containing lenses of conglomerate, and beds of conglom..
erat~ and sandy clay. The pebbles in the conglomerate are small and con-
sist of limestone, chert, and basalt. The mollusks listed on page 218 (sta-
tion 9455) and an undetermined shark tooth were collected from the con-
glomerate. On the south side of the valley the rocks are arched in two
secondary anticlines.
Ohatne des Kateux near St.-Karc.

The rocks of the Artibonite group bend southeastward .aro11nd the

plunging northwest end of the Chaine de Mateux and :flank most of the
southwest slope of this range of mountains. They were examined at the
following localities near St.-Marc:
M orne des Guepes. The Mornes des Guepes comprise some low ridges
and intervening lowlands of northwestward trend that lie between St.-
Marc and the Artibonite Plain. The hills border the northeast side of
St.-Marc Bay and extend southeastward for several kilometers, probably
continuing without interruption up the Artibonite Valley.
Along the road from St.-Marc to Gona1ves the hills consist of two ridges
separated by a lowland about 2 kilometers wide. To the northwest these
ridges unite, thus inclosing tl1e lowland in that direction. The drainage
escapes to the southwest through a narrow gap into St.-Marc Bay. ·
The entire lowland is underlain by blue, br<>wn, or yellowish soft Mio-
cene marls. A few thin beds of limestone interbedded with the marl con-
tain casts of corals. Good exposures occur in the principal stream course,
a usually dry ravine that is about 10 meters below the lowland surface. The
marl is very fine grained and highly calcareous. (See analysis, p. 502.)
The ridge on the northeast side of the lowland is composed of rather
soft coralliferous limestone, doubtless the same as that which forms the
prominent ridges in the Artibonite Valley farther southeast. (See pp.
207-208.) The rock is fairly well exposed in a cut along the road. The
northeast slope of this ridge leading down to the Artibonite Plain is cov-
ered by alluvial gravel and boulders.
 SEDllIENTARY ROCKS. 211

The ridge southwest of the lowland is composed mainly of the same

coralliferous limestone. In this locality it contains many pebbles of the
older Eocene limestone, some of them as much as 10 centimeters in diame-
ter, and also beds of calcareous sandstone. At both localities a transition
from marl to limestone seems to take place by gradual intercalation of
limestone beds.
The northwest end of the lviornes de Guepes, particularly the slopes
leading down to St.-Marc Bay, is covered with a veneer of Quaternary
coralliferous limestone, which rests 11nconformably on the Miocene. This
Quaternary limestone probably forms most of the ridge northwest of the
lowland area.
The structure of the Mornes de Guepes is rather simple. The whole
region forms the nose of a northwestward-pl11nging anticline, probably the

s.o N.E
&de tLe Qc Tern
Tm

....
•
• • • •
Kilometres
0 i ' 4
............., hi I 5
2 t
Hauteurs douolees
FIGURE 14. Section across the Mornes de~ Guepes.
Qal, Quaternary alluvium; Qc, Quate1·nary coralllferous limestone; Tcm., Miocene
coralliferous limestone; Tm, Miocene marl.

continuation of the anticline on the south limb of the syncline in the Arti-
bonite Valley. (Seep. 207.) The lowla.n d underlain by marls is on the
crest of this anticlinal nose; the ridges on either side are inward-facing
cuestas whose gentler dip slopes ]ead outward. Figure 14 is a cross section
of the fold along the line of the road. The anticline is modified on the
southwe.st limb by a secondary arch. As shown in figure 14, the base of
the Miocene is not exposed, but the thickness of the expooed beds is esti-
mated roughly at 315 meters.
Fossils are more or less abundant in all the exposed rocks but most of
them are poorly preserved, especially those in the marl beds. At the bridge
over the dry ravine near the base of the exposed rocks fossil leaves and
mollusks (stations 7543 and 9801) and fossil corals (stations 9897 and
9531) were collected. Mollusks were obtained from the intercalated lime-
stone beds farther southwest (stations 9532, 9533). These fossils are
listed on pages 217-218. The corals listed on pages 217-218 (station
212 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

9794) were collected from the coralliferous limestone on the ridge north-
east of the lowland. The cora.ls in this limestone weather out in loose
heaps on the surface of the ground.
South of St.-Marc. South of St.-Marc there is a region comparable in
several features to the Mornes des Guepes. It comprises an interior low-
land inclosed on the southwest, northwest, and northeast by ridges com-
posed principally of coralliferous limestone, through which the drainage
flows southward and northward in narrow gaps. , In the western part of
the low land is the small undrained lake called Etang Bois-Neuf.
The lowland appears to be 11nderlain entirely by }rliocene marl, sand-
stone, and conglomerate. The ridge to the southwest and northwest is
capped mainly if not entirely by Quaternary coralliferous limestone,
which unconformably overlies the Miocene beds. To the northeast, how-
ever, Miocene coralliferous limestone forms part of the inclosing ridges.
The corals listed on page 217 (station 9550) were collected from this
limestone.
In the northern part of the lowland the beds dip northeastward. At
the southern border of the lowland beds of sandstone and marl, which are
well exposed, strike N. 35° W. and dip 35° SW. A few harder beds of
sandstone are etched into relief by weathering. This sandstone, when
examined under the microscope, is found to contain about 20 or 25 per
cent of angular to subangular quartz grains, perhaps 15 per cent of green-
ish weathered fragments of igneous rock, mostly chloritic material, feld-
spar, or epidote, and the rest li1nestone fragments .. Gypsum is abundant
in this exposure, forming veins along bedding planes and joints, and is
also scattered through the sandstone as cementing material. It occurs
more sparingly in the exposures farther north. Loose weathered blocks
of coralliferous limestone indicate that a cap of this rock farmer ly cov..
ered the ridge here as it now does a short distance to the west.
The Miocene rocks in this area are similar to those in the Mornes des
Guepes and appear to lie on the nose of an anticline, the crest of which
trends northwestward. This anticline appears to plunge rather steeply to
the northwest.
St.-Marc Valley. Between the Mornes des Guepes on the northeast and
the similar area just described to the south of St.-Marc an intervening
lo,vland extends southeastward from St.-Marc.
For about 2 kilometers southeast of St.-Marc the lowland is covered
with a.lluvium, but farther southeast soft Miocene rocks, chiefly marl,
appear to lie at the surface. Bordering the lowland on the northeast
n.n d southwest are bills capped by Miocene coralliferous limestone. Corals
were collected from a bluff in this limestone at the stream crossing about
4 kilometers east by south from St.-Marc. (See list, pp. 217-218, station
9497.) The region 11ndoubtedly is occupied by a synclinal trough that
plunges northwestward 11nder St.-Marc Bay between plunging anticlines.
,

•
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 213

Southwest slope of Chatne des Mateux.

Miocene rocks underlie the foothills on the southwest slope of the Cha!ne
des Mateux from a locality near the northwest end of the Arcahaie Plain
southeastward to the place where the trail from Saut d'Eau through Fond-
des-Orangers to Port-au-Prince emerges on the Cul-de-Sac Plain. In the
Arcahaie Plain the Miocene rocks are covered by Quaternary · alluvial
deposits. Southeast of Prince, a railway station about 2 kilometers south-
east of Boucassin, the Miocene deposits extend to the sea or are separated
from it by a very narrow fringe of alluvi11m. Southeast of the Sources
Puantes the Miocene extends along the northern border of the Cul-de-Sac
Plain. These !1iocene rocks no doubt formerly extended over the crest
of the Chaine des Mateux and were continuous with the Artibonite group
of the Artibonite Valley, but they have since been completely removed
from the crest of the mountains by erosion. To the south they probably are
continuous under the cover of alluvium with the Miocene rocks along the
south edge of the Cul-de-Sac Plain.
At Prince a fine-grained yellowish sandstone is exposed in a roadcut..
It contains Orbiculina and many broken and indeterminable fragments
of mollusks (station 9478).
About 200 meters southeast of this exposure a railway cut has been
made by digging down the side of a sea cliff. At the base soft yellowish
sandstone and clay strike N. 10° E. and dip 40° SE., the strike being
nearly at right angles to the shore. These beds contain abundant flakes
of gypsum, some parallel to the bedding, others filling joints transverse
to the bedding.
Along the trail from l' Arcahaie to Marche Desarmes beds of Miocene
age are exposed from the border of the plain, at an altitude of about 100
meters, up to an altitude of about 400 meters above sea level on the moun-
tain side. Figure 5, page 128, shows the rather complicated structural
features and stratigraphic relations at this locality.
A prominent foothill ridge at the border of the plain is composed of
rather fine-grained yellowish sandstone containing layers of clay. The
first beds seen dip to the northeast, away from the plain, but in a short dis-
tance the dip changes to the southwest. Northeast of the sandstone ridge
stands another ridge, composed of black basaltic rock, considerably
weathered. Whet.h er the basalt is solid rock or is detrital rock composed
entirely of igneous fragments is not evident. The field observations sug-
gest that the material is solid rock.
Northeastward beyond the basalt and apparently dipping beneath it are
beds of yellowish marl. In a high river bluff below the trail this marl is
seen to overlie a considerable thickness of bluish marl such as is typical
of the Miocene at numerous localities. On the mountain slope the pre-
vailing dip is steep to the southwest up to an altitude of about 300 meters
above sea level, and successively lower beds are exposed. The marl grades

•
 •

214 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

down through a series of interbedded layers of blue clay and limestone

into rather thick beds of limestone separated by thin shale partings.
Higher up on the trail the dips reverse, so that two short anticlines, close
together, are crossed, and there the be'ds dip northeastward into the
face of the mountain for a considerable distance, so that the section on
the lower slope is repeated, and near the summit of a ridge that ha.s an alti-
tude of 410 meters beds of marl dip beneath basalt, which probably is the
same as that at the foot of the mountain. The exposure of basalt is not
more than 50 or 100 meters in width and caps a narrow ridge. The rock
appears to be solid basalt but it is greatly weathered, and the appearance
may be deceptive. ·
Immediately northeast of the basalt lies a hard white limestone, prob-
ably of Oligocene age. The bedding at first is indeterminable, but farther
up the mo11ntain the dips are to the south or southwest. It seems rea-
sonably certain that the limestone has been thrust over the Miocene as
shown in Figure 5. The fault indicated at the border of the plain is not
so well established, and this structure might be explained as an over-
turned fold.
The same Miocene rocks were seen along the trail from Saut d'Eau
through Fond-des-Orangers to Port-au-Prince. The crest of the mo11n-
tains on this trail has an altitude of about 680 meters above sea level.
To the south the first Miocene beds crop out on the south slope immedi-
ately below the crest. They consist of limestone and yellowish marl con-
taining harder 111mps of limestone. These beds apparently are high in
the series. Some of the beds of limestone contain corals, and specimens
weathered out and lying along the trail were collected. (See list, p. 217,
station 9460.) The underlying beds consist of marl and sandy limestone
arched over the crest of an anticline south of Source Marissel. About
2 kilometers southeast of Source Marissel the trail crosses a bed of igneous
rock, apparently interbedded with the marls and limestones. The rock is
greenish and is weathered. It seems to consist entirely of igneous material
but contains small, smooth pebbles of rock that have the same appearance
as the matrix. It contains also large angular pieces of vesicular basalt.
The basalt is apparently overlain by a limestone containing the corals
listed on page 217 (station 9461). This limestone probably is the same as
the coralliferous limestone near the crest of the mountains. Toward the
edge of the Cul-de-Sac Plain thin beds of marl and sandy marl, which
dip steeply northeastward, underlie the coralliferous limestone .
•

Fo1sll1.

The list given on pages 217-218 shows that many corals were collected
from the coralliferous limestone, or limestones, in the middle part of the •
Artibonite group in the Artibonite Valley and on the crest and flanks of
the Chaine des Mate11x. Several of the species were also found in the
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 215

coralliferous limestones at the base of the Las Cahobas formation in the

Central Plain, and the coralliferous limestones in all these regions prob-
ably lie at about the same horizon. The collections, like collections of
corals from Miocene rocks in the Central Plain, contain Orbicella impera-
toris Vaughan and Orbicella canalis Vaughan, which formerly were
thought to be restricted to upper Oligocene deposits.
The collection from station 9494 includes fragmentary crinoid stems
that have been examined by Mr. Frank Springer, of the United States
National Museum. He has described these remains as Bala.nocrinus
1
haitensis n. sp. The genus Balanocrinus is most ab11ndant in Jurassic
and Cretaceous deposits, but one species has been described from the
Eocene of the Anglo-Parisian basin and another from the Miocene
(Helvetian) of Italy. This Haitian crinoid is the first stalked Tertiary
rrinoid described from the western hemisphere.
'!'he molluscan fa11na of these beds is very meager. For some unknown
reason, probably environmental conditions, the rich shoal-water fauna of
the Thomonde formation was excluded from these regions.
A collection of plants obtained in the Mornes tle Guepes contains the
species Gymn:ogramme woodringi Berry, also collected in the Central
Plain. Another collection from the same region contains Pisonia conditi
Berry, described from beds of Miocene or Pliocene age on the north shore
of Samana Bay, Dominican Republic.

Stations in Artibonite Valley and Chaine des Mateux (Miocene).

7542 (B 139 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, trail from La Chapelle to Mire-
bala.is, ravine s. kilometer west of divide on trail, about 10 kilometers southeast
of La Chapelle, at an altitude of about 300 meters above sea level. J. S. Brown,
collector. December 18, 1920.
9523 (B 137 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, crest of hill near divide on trail
from La Chapelle to Mirebalais. J. S. Brown, collector. December 18, 1920.
9494 (B 138 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, divide on trail from La Chapelle
to Mirebalais. J. S. Brown, collector. December 18, 1920.
9496 (B 140 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, float on slope of hill on trail from
La Chapelle to Mirebalais about a kilometer west of divide. J. S. Brown,
collector. December 18, 1920.
9920 (W 222 F). Arrondi~ement of Mireba.lais, float on trail from Thomonde
to Mirebalais, about 2 kilometers north of Dufailly, at an altitude of 360 meters
a.hove sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 18, 1921.
•
9563 (W 134 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, road from Mirebalais to Port-
au-Prince, about half a kilometer south of Mirebalais. W. P. Woodring, collector.
December 7, 1920.
9921 (W 223 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, Boat on north slope of ridge
on which Fort Angla.is stands, 0.5 kilometer southeast of Mirebalais, at an altitude
of 140 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 19, 1921.
Springer, Frank, A new Tertiary crinold in the West Indies: U. S. Nat. Mus. Proc.
1
(Awaiting publication.)
216 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

9922 (W 224 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, crest of ridge at Fort Angla.is

about 0.75 kilometer southeast of Mirebalais, at an altitude of 190 meters above sea
level. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 19, 1921.
9901 (W 180 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, road from Mirebalais to Las
Cahobas, float about 2 kilometers east-southeast of Mirebalais, at an altitude of
165 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. January 8, 1921.
9941 (W 183 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, road from Mirebalais to Las
Cahobas, about 4 kilometers east of crossing of Riviere Fer-a-Cheval. W. P.
Woodring, collector. January 8, 1921.
9455 (W 131 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, trail from Cornillon to Marche
Canard, 200 meters south of first crossing of Riviere Gascogne, at an altitude of
325 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 3, 1921.
9562 (W 129 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, trail from Comillon to Marc.h e
Canard, north slope of mountains, about 11 kilometers northwest of Cornillon,
at an altitude of 545 meters above sea level. W. P. Wood1·ing, collector. Decem-
ber 4, 1920.
9801 (K 210 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, road from St.-Marc to Gonaives,
near bridge across dry ravine about 4 kilometers northeast of St.-Marc. W. S.
Burbank, collector. March 30, 1921.
7543 (K 210 F). Same collection as at station 9801.
9897 (B 346 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, float at same locality as station
9801. J. S. Brown, collector. March 30, 1921.
9532 (K 51 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, same locality as station 9801.
W. S. Burbank, collector. December 8, 1920.
9533 (K 52 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, road from St.-Marc to Gonaives,
about 3 kilometers northeast of St.-Marc. W. S. Burbank, collector. December
9, 1920.
9531 (K 50 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, road from St.-Marc to Gonaives,
just south of crest of divide about 4.5 kilometers northeast of St.-Marc. W. S.
Burbank, collector. December 8, 1920.
9794 (W 346 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, road from St.-Marc to Gona1ves,
north slope of divide about 6 kilometers northeast of St.-Marc. W. P. Woodring,
collector. March 27, 1921.
9550 (B 124 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, float on road from St.-Marc to
Port-au-Prince, south end of gap about 6 kilometers south of St.-Marc. J. S.
Brown, collector. December 7, 1920.
9497 (B 142 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, trail from St.-Marc to Verrettes,
crossing of stream a.b out 3 kilometers east-southeast of St.-Marc. J. S. Brown,
collector. December 22, 1920.
9478 (B 118 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, road from St.-Marc to
Port-au-Prince, cut about a kilometer east of Boucassin. J. S. Brown, collector.
December 6, 1920.
9460 (W 145 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, trail from Fond-des-
Orangers to the Cul-de-Sac Plain, float on south slope of mountains about a
kilometer north of Source Marissel, at an altitude of 635 meters above sea level.
W. P. Woodring, collector. December 8, 1920.
9461 (W 148 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, trail from Fond-des-
Orangers to the Cul-de-Sac Plain, south slope of mountains 3 kilometers southeast
of Source Marissel, at an altitude of 530 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring,
collector. December 8, 1920.
 Miocene fossils from Artibonite Valley and Chaine des M atew;.

Port-au·
St.-Marc. Mirebalaia. St.-Marc.
Prince.
Species. ---·---
. - --·-·-·-- -· - - - - ---

1~ ,...
~ ...
~ ~
~ ~
~
~

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00
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Foraminifera :
Orbiculina sp. ................... ......................... ' • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• x • • ••
Corals:
Stylophora n. sp., also from station 8610, Yaque group, Dominican Republic .. • • •• •• • • •• ? • • •• •• • • •• •• • • •• •• • • • • •• •• • • •• •• • • ••
Stylophora sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• x • • •• •• • • •• •• • • •• x •• •• • • •• • • •• x • • •• •• •• • • 00
Stephanocoenia intersepta (Esper) ........... .. ............................. . •• •• •• x • • x •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• tzj
~
Dichocoenia tuber<>ea Duncan . ...... . .... . ............ . ...................... . •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x • • t--4
Dichocoenia stokesi Milne-Edwards and Haime. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• x • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • •
~
Orbicella imperatoris Vaughan .. ............................ . ............... .
Orbicella sp. cf. 0. tmperatoris Vaughan. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
•• ••
x
•• x •• • • •• •• ••
x
• • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• ••
x
x z
•• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Orbicella canalie Vaughan . ........... . ...................................... . •• • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x ••
Orbicella n. sp., also from Miocene of Trinidad ...................•.. . ........ •• • • • • •• •• •• • • •• x •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Orbicella sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • x x •• •• • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • pj
Orbicella sp. cf. 0. annularis (Ellis and Solander) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• 0
Orbi~lJa limbata (Du:ican) ............................................ . ... . .
a
x
~
•• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• ••
Orbicella sp. atf. 0. alti.ssima (Duncan) .. ................................... . •• • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x • • •
Orbicella cavernosa var. endothecata (Duncan) .........•.................... • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• • • •• •• •• • • • • •• • • •• •• •• •• • • • •
Orbicella cavernosa (Linnaeus) var .• • • • • • • • • e • • e • • • e • • • • • • • • • • I e • • • I • • e e e I • •
•• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• x ••
Orbicella ? sp . . . . . .................................................. . ....... . •• •• •• •• • • x •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• ••
Solenastrea bournoni Milne-Edwards and Haime ............................. . •• x •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Solenastrea sp. atf. S. bournoni Milne-Edwards and Haime .... ........ . .... . •• •• •• x • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• • • •• •• •• x •• • • •• •• ••
Solenastrea hyades (Dana) ........................................... . ...... . • • • • • • x •• •• x • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • •
Mycetophyll ia sp. a . ......................................................... . •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • • •• •• •• • • •• •• • • •• ? •• •• •• ••
Siderastrea radians (Pallas) •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • x •• • • •• •• ••
·· d om1n1cens1s
A gar1c1a ·· ·vaughan .............................................. . •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• ••
Agaricia sp., also from Gurabo formation and Mao Adentro limestone ....... . • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• x • • •• •• •• • • •• •• • • ••
Agaricia sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• • • •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• ••
Psammocora n. sp. b . ........................................................ . •• • • •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
~
Porites sp. cf. P. porites (Pallas) ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • • •• •• • • • • •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• x • • •• x •• •• •• ~
-1

-
 Miocene fossils from Artibonite Valley and Chaine des Mateux Contint1ed.
~
~
Port-au- 00
St.-Marc. Mirebalais. St. -Marc. Prince.

Species. •

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g
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Corals-COntinued.
Porite-s furca'ta. Lamarck . ......... . .................. . . . ... . ................. . • • •• •• • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• • • •• ••
~
Porites sp. a:ff. P. furcata Lamarck .......................................... .
Porites sp. cf. P. ns·t reoides Lamarck . ........... . .. . ........................ .
••

••
x
• •
• •

••
• •

••
••

••
••
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x
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x
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••
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• •
• •
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• •
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• •
••
••
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• •
••
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••
••
••
•• s
Q
Porites sp. cf. sp. from Mao Adentro limestone ............ . .......... . ...... . • • • • •• • • •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• ~
x •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • ••
Gon iopora sp. cf. G. jacobiana Vaughan. ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • ••
0
Goniopora sp. indet . ... . ................ . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• x • • •• •• •• •• •• ~

~~
Orinoid:
Balanocrinus baitensis Springer ............................... . ... . .........•. •• •• x • • • • • • •• •• •• • • •• •• • • • • • • • • •• •• • • •• • • • • •• ••

Mollusca:

~d
, Pteropoda:
Styliola sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• • • • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••

Cavolina sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• • • •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• • • • • •• • • x •• • • •• •• • • •• •• ••
to
Gastropoda : ~
•• •• x •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• .....
Planorbis ? sp •• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• • • •• •• 0
Conus sp. indet. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• x • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • ••
0
Phoe ? sp ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••.••••••.•••••••••••••••••••• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• bj

Pelecypoda :
x • •• •• •• •• ••
~
•• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • •• ~
Nucula sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• ••
.....
•• • •• •• x •• • • •• •• •• x • • •• •• •• •• •• ••
~
Ostrea sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •

•• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
•
•• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• ••
•
Pecten sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• ••
Pecten sp. cf. P. pittieri Dall . ........................................... . •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
"
•• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• ••

Amusium (Pseudamusium) sp . ........................................... . • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••

Spondylus sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• • • • • ••

~lytilopsis sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• x •• • • •• •• • • • • • • •• • • •• •• • • ••

Phacoides (Parvilucina ?) sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• x •• •• •• • • •• •• •• ••

Plants:
Gymnogramme woodringi Berry. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• ••

Pisonia conditi Berry .... • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• x • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••

? •• • • • •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Simaruba baitensis Berry . ............................... · · · ... · · · · · · · · · · · · · · • • • • •• • • •• •• •

•
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 219

SOUTHERN EDGE OF THE CUL-DE-SAC PLAIN.

General features. The surf ace f eatu res of the Cul-de-Sac Plain are
shown in Plate XXXIX (p. 516), and are described on pages 395-397.
Most of the plain, which is relatively smooth throughout, is covered with
alluvi11m, but Miocene rocks are exposed in the foothills that border the
mountains on the south. The Miocene rocks are at most places unconform-
a bly covered with dissected gravels, probably of Pleistocene age, and are
exposed only in ravines and along roads and trails. The exposures were
examined at several places, most of them near Port-au-Prince and
Petionville.
Besides containing characteristic fossils, the Miocene series has certain
distinctive lithologic and structural features at nearly all the localities
examined. The series consists largely of soft, fine-grained grayish sand-
stone and of bluish marl, in thin, even beds. Beds of harder yellowish
s.o
N.E

P1 .AINE.
DU
L-D!:-5'C·

0 3
•
·-·--
-----
---~--
• -
'He,.1teurs
-----
doublees
-
- ------ '+Kilornetres
'
FIGURE 15.-Composite generalized section of Miocene beds along the south side of
Cul-de-Sac Plain.
Qal, Quaternary alluvium ; Qp, Pleistocene conglomerate ; Tm, Miocene ;
Te, upper Eocene limestone.

limestone and of conglomerate consisting of a mixture of boulders of black

basalt and of upper Eocene limestone are conspicuous at some places.
Fossils, especially small mollusks, are moderately abundant in the sandy
beds but most of them are poorly preserved. Some of the beds of limestone
contain numerous fossils, many of which, however, are only casts.
In nearly every exposure the beds are tilted at steep angles and appear
to be cr11mpled. There is clear evidence of faulting at some places in the
foothills where the upper Eocene limestone of the adjacent mountains
appears to have been thrust northward over the Miocene beds. (See
Fig. 15.)
The thickness of the beds ca.n not be estimated accurately but is doubt-
less several h11ndred meters. Although the line of exposures extends nearly
parallel to the strike of the beds, a thickness that appears to be at least
200 meters is exposed on the Petionville road. The ''Rasco'' well, near
Port-au-Prince (seep. 525), penetrated the Miocene to a depth of 141
meters, which, allowing for the dip, indicates a thickness at that place of
100 meters.

•
220 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Vicinity of Port-a'U-Prince and Petionville. The exposures near Port-

au-Prince and Petionville, which are in hillside cuts made in road grading
and are unusually good, are most numerous along the main road from
Port-au-Prince to Petionville, llarticularly in the first 2 kilometers out
of Petionville, along the southward bend of the road. These and other
exposures are shown diagrammatically in Figure 36 (p. 568), a sketch map
of the geology of the region near Port-au-Prince. They are not continuous
but are isolated. In these exposures the beds strike N. 45° W. to N. 75° W.
and dip northward at angles of 30 ° to 79 °. The beds consist of sandstone,
conglomerate, and limestone a.n d contain the fossils listed on page ·222,
stations 9564, 9574, 9573, and 9572.
Miocene beds are well exposed in the Ravine Bois de Chene just below
Source Plaisance at intervals for several hundred meters downstream from
the spring, but the full extent of the exposures was not determined. All
the dips observed were southward. The beds, which are intimately related
to the origin of the spring (seep. 572), a.r e chiefly bluish marl and brown-
ish sandstone. They contain the fossils listed on p. 222 (station 9468).
Three exposures of the Miocene were seen near Source Turgeau. Gray-
ish sandy beds, apparently dipping southward, are exposed in the bed of
a deep ravine about 300 meters east of Turgeau. The fossils listed on
p. 222 (station 9571) were collected at this locality. At a point about
100 meters east of Turgeau, on a trail, is a poor exposure of sandy beds,
apparently like those . just mentioned. About 300 meters a little south of
west of Turgeau, on a trail leading up Morne Hopital, is a poor exposure
of clayey marl, whose bedding is indistinct but appears to dip southward.
Miocene beds are exposed on the low hill where the houses of the Hay-
tian-American Sugar Co. ('' Hasco '') are situated, at the north edge of '
Port-au-Prince and just east of the Arc 9.e Triomphe. The slopes of the
hill are covered with soil, but good exposures are found in the ditches along
the road leading up to the houses and in pits on the crest of the hill south
of the houses. The beds exposed along the road consist of sandstone, clay,
marl, and limestone. Fossils were collected at several places along the
right side of the road going up the hill. (See list on p. 222, stations
9462, 9463, 9464, and 9750.) Valves of the large plicate oyster Ostrea
haitensis are strewn on the ground below the first house, and ma11y bar-
nacles may be seen in pockets in the weathered limestone. A pit near the
crest of the hill southeast of the club house exposes yellowish limestone
interbedded with poorly consolidated conglomerate containing pebbles,
as large as a man's fist, of hard white limestone, chert, and weathered
basalt. At all these exposures the beds dip steeply southwestward. A well
on this hill penetrated Miocene rocks to a depth of 141 meters.
At Drouillard, a railway station on the majn road out of Port-au-
Prince about 2 kilometers northeast of the Arc de Triomphe, Miocene
beds consisting of soft bluish marl and yellow clayey limestone are expose(l
for about 60 meters in a roadside cut. The beds dip 50° southwestward.
 •

SEDIMENT.ARY ROCKS. 221

Beds of Miocene age are exposed on the right bank of the Grande
Riviere du Cul-de-Sac for a distance of about 400 meters above the Bassin
General. The rocks exposed consist of bluish marl, grayish sand, and
thin beds of limestone. The prevailing dip is 30° to 60° N. At the south
end of the exposure the beds are in fault contact with upper Eocene lime-
stone, and near the contact they are crumpled. The mollusks listed on
page 222 (stations 9578 and 9590) were collected from these beds.
There is every reason to believe that the Miocene beds underlie the
alluvium throughout the plain. Wells at La Moriniere and Dessources
penetrate more than 100 meters of beds classified from the logs as Miocene
(see pp. 521-522).
Fossils. Tl1e fossils collected from the Miocene beds along the south
8ide of the Cul-de-Sac Plain comprise a variety of orga.nisms. The corals
are poorly preserved but include typical Miocene species. Echinoneus cy-
clostomus Leske, picked up loose on the hill where the houses of the Hay-
tian-American Sugar Co. stand, is the only post-Eocene echinoid obtained
in the Republic. This Recent species has been found in deposits as •
old as
the Anguilla formation. 1 The largest collection of mollusks made, obtained
from a bed of limestone on the same hill (station 9464), contains many
specimens of Ostrea haitensis, the large plicate oyster found also in the
Thomonde and Las Cahobas formations of the Central Plain and in the
Gurabo formation of the Dominican Republic. Several Pectens and
V eneroids found at this locality are very similar to Bowden species.
Pteropods are abundant in some of the beds exposed on the Petionville
road and on the Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac. Some of the pteropods
listed as '' T entaculites '' sp. are remarka.bly similar to the Paleozoic Ten-
taculites. They have not been studied critically but are probably similar
to the so-called Tentaculites obtained from the Oligocene of Germany by
Ludwig and by Blankenhorn.
These Miocene beds seem to be younger than the Artibonite group of
the Central Plain and Artibonite Valley and are correlated with the
Gurabo formation of the Dominican Republic, which is considered Helve-
tian. The Cerros de Sal formation, at the east end of the trough of which
the Cul-de-Sac Plain is a part, seems to be even younger.

Stations along south edge of Cul-de-Sac Plain (Miocene).

9654 (W 12 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, road from Port-au-Prince

to Petionville, about 1.5 kilometers from Petionville. W. P. Woodring and J. S.
Brown, collectors. October 9, 1920.
9574 (B 18 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, road from Port-au-Prince to
Petionville, about 2 kilometers from Petionville. J. S. Brown, collector. Octo-
ber 12, 1920.
lJackson, R. T ., Fossil Echlni of the West Indies: Carnegie Inst. Washington Pub.
306, pp. 54·55, pl. 9, figs. 4, 5, 1922.

•
 222 GEOLOGY OF THE .REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Miocene fossils, south edge Cul-de-Sac Pl<dn, arrondissement of Port-au-Prince.

Specie!. ~1I
0.)

Foraminifera :
Sorites sp. cf. s. amer1cana •
(Cushman) ......... . •• • • •• x •• •• •• •• •• • • •• ••
Corals:
Stylophora sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Asterosmilia sp. •••• • •• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Stephanocoenia intersepta (Esper) ..... •••••••••• •• x • • • • •• • • •• • • • • • • •• ••
Solenastrea hyades (Dana) ....................... . •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• ••
Agaricia dominicensis Vaughan .................. . •• •• x •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• ••
Porites sp. cf. P. astreoides Lamarck ............ . •• x •• •• •• • • •• • • • • • • •• ••
Echini:
Ecbinoneus cyclostomus Leske . .................. . •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • x •• ••
Bryozoa:
Hemiseptella sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• • • •• •• • •
Puellina radiata Moll . • • • • • • •• • • • • ••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• x •• •• ••
Holoporella albirostris Smitt. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• x •• •• • •
Mollusca:
Pteropoda:
Cavolina sp. cf. C. digitata (Guppy). • • • • • • • • • x x •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• ••
Cavolina sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• • • • • x x •• • • •• • • " . ••
'' Tentaculites '' sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• •• •• x •• • • • • •• •• ••
Gastropoda :
Actaeon sp. cf. A. textilis Guppy. ••••• • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• x
Bullaria sp. . ........... . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • •• • • •• •• • • • • x •• •• ••
Oliva sp. • ...... . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • •• •• •• •• • • • • x • • • • • •
•
Marginella sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• ••
Alectrion sp. ••••••••••••••••••••••••• • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• • • • • • •
Murex (Phyllonotus) pomum Gmelin. • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• • •
Sconsia sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • ••
Pyrula sp. . •.. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• ••
Calyptraea sp. ••••••••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• x
Xenophora conchyliophora Born
Pelecypoda :
' ........... . ••
•• ••
••
• •
••
••
••
••
••
••
••
• •
••
•• x
•
••
• ••
••
••
••

Barbatia (Acar) sp. cf. B. (A.) domingensis

(Lamarck) ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• •• • • •• •• •• •• • • x •• •• •• ••
Scapharca sp. cf. S. balidonata Dall ......... . •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• ••
Ostrea haitensis Sowerby .... . .... . • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• x •• • • ••
Ostrea sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• • • • • •• x •• •• • • •• ••
Chlamys (Aequipecten) sp. cf. C. (A .) uselmae
Pilsbry and Johnson ......•...•.......... •• • • •• • • •• •• x •• x •• •• ••
Chlamys (Aequipecten) sp. cf. C. (A.) pleuro-
nominis Pilsbry and Johnson ............ . •• •• •• •• •• •• x • • x •• •• ••
Ohlamys (Aequipecten) BP . ...........•..•.... •• • • • • • • •• •• •• • • • • x •• ••
Plicatula ? SI> •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• x • • •• ••
Placuanomia sp. . ....•.........••••.......•.• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• x • • •• ••
Orenella sp. •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • • •• •• •• •• •• x •• • • •• •• ••
Modiolus ? sp • I • e • e • t • e e •• I e • e e • e e • a e 4 • t e • t t •
•• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• • •
Modiolaria ? sp ...........•..•..........•..... •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• x
Lithopbaga sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• • • •• •• x •• •• ••
Obama sp. cf. C. macerophylla Gmelin ..••.... •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• • • ••
Cardium (Tracbycardium) sp . ............... . • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• x • •• • • ••
Cardium (Papyridea) sp. cf. 0. (P.) bulbosum
Dall ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• •• •• •• •• •• • • x •• •• •• •• ••
Antigona (Ventricola) sp. cf. A. (V.) blandi-
•
ana (Guppy) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • •• •• •• •• x • • ? •• • • ••
Ohione (Lirophora) sp. cf. C. (L.) bendersoni
Dall •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• x •• •• ••
Pitar ? sp •. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• x •• •• ••
Petricola ? sp .... • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x
Macoma ? sp . ................................ . •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• • • •• •• ••
Semele sp. cf. S. sulcata Dall .•...•..••...•... •• ' . •• •• •• •• x • • ? •• ? ••
Oirripedia :
Balanus sp. cf. B. eburneus Gould .•••.....•...... •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• x •• •• • •
Balanus concavue esepatus Pilsbry ..•••..••.••..•• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• ••
Balanus polyporus Pilsbry ..... ................. . •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• ••
 • •

SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 223

9573 (B 17 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, road from Port-au-Prince

to Petionville, about 100 meters farther from Petionville than 9574. J. S. Brown,
collector. October 12, 1920.
9572 (B 14 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, road from Port-au-Prince
to Petionville, about 300 meters farther from Petionville than 9573. J. S. Brown,
collector. October 12, 1920.
9468 (B 21 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, Ra.vine Bois de Chene,
just below Source Plaisance. J. S. Brown, collector. October 12, 1920.
9571 (B 13 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, 300 meters east of Source
Turgeau. J. S. Brown, collector. October 11, 1920.
9462 (W 149 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, road lea.ding up hill to
houses of Haytian-American Sugar Co.; altitude 60 meters above sea level. W. P.
Woodring, collector. December 14, 1920.
9463 (W 150 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, road leading up hill to
houses of Haytian-American Sugar Co.; altitude 70 meters above sea level. W. P.
Woodring, collector. December 14, 1920.
9464 (W 151 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, road leading up hill to
houses of Haytian-American Sugar Co., in long cut on right side of road just
below first house; altitude 75 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector.
December 14, 1920.
9750 (B 358 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, float on hill on which
houses of Haytian-American Sugar Co. are located. J. S. Brown, collector.
April 11, 1921.
9590 (W 29 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, right bank of Grande Riviere
du Cul-de-Sac about 300 meters above Bassin General. W. P. Woodring, col-
lector. October 15, 1920.
9578 (B 26 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, right bank of Grande
Riviere du Cul-de-Sac, about 400 meters above Bassin General, at fault contact.
J. S. Brown, collector. October 15, 1920.

NORTH COAST OF SOUTHERN PENINSULA.

Miocene rocks were recognized at a number of places on the north coast

of the Southern Peninsula, chiefly in the region between Port-au-Prince
and Petit-Goave, along the main highway following the coast. The rocks
consist generally of soft sandy or clayey beds, but grade into conglomerate
at one extreme or into limestone at the other. As a rule they are tilted and
folded. They doubtless form part of a series of marginal marine beds that
were continuous westward from the Cul-de-Sac Plain, but are now either
submerged or concealed by later deposits along most of the coast. As
only small isolated exposures were observed at most localities the details
of their stratigraphy can not be given.
M orne-d-Bateau. ~1orne-a-Ba teau, about 2 kilometers east of the vil-
lage of Gressier and midway between Port-au-Prince and Leogane, is a
small hill at the base of low limestone mountains. In a road cut on the
point of the hill there is an exposure of soft yellowish sandy and clayey
beds which dip a few degrees westward. The beds contain numerous speci-
mens of the few mollusks listed on page 2·25, station 9480. The age of the
beds is not evident; they may be Pliocene or Quaternary rather than
Miocene.
 •

•
224 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI •
•
L'Acul. At the southwest corner of the Leogane Plain, less than a
kilometer from a little valley and settlement, both called l' Acul, the road
crosses a low ridge in which a poorly consolidated conglomerate is exposed.
This conglomerate contains boulders of Eocene limestone and large lumps
of material carrying corals and other fossils that apparently resemble
Miocene species. At the little stream of l'Acul a collection of similar
fossils, clearly of Miocene age, was taken from a pile of loose limestone
boulders by the roadside (see list, p. 225, station 9481). The source of the
boulders is unknown, but they doubtless came from no great distance.
Grand-Goave. Some low hills rise from the little alluvial pla.i u of
Grand-Goave just south of the road and about a kilometer east of the
town. Here soft yellowish and brownish sandstone is exposed in a road-
side cut. The bedding is not apparent, but the rocks are cut by numerous
fracture planes, which are filled with an unidentified salt, probably alka-
line. The rocks contain the fossils listed on p. 225, station 9540.
Blocks of cavernous coralliferous limestone have slumped down from
the slope above. They may possibly be Miocene but more probably belong
to the Quaternary limestone that is well developed farther east.
Ta.pion . du Petit-Goave. Miocene rocl{s underlie a narrow trough
· between Tapion du Petit-Goave a.n d the mountains to the south. The
eastern part of the trough drains eastward and the western part drains
westward from a divide which has an altitude of about 182 meters above
sea level. On both sides of the divide, for a distance ·o f about 2 kilometers
along the road, exposures of the Miocene are common.
The first exposure at the eastern entrance to the trough-like valley is a
bluff of coralliferous limestone, probably of Miocene age. The rock is
greatly weathered, so that the bedding is not apparent. From this
exposure to the top of the divide, a distance of about a kilometer, the
rocks in numerous roadcuts consist mainly of brown calcareous sandstone,
sbaly beds, and angular boulders of basalt and limestone. These beds are
unfossiliferous and appear to be nonmarine, at least in part. The pre-
vailing strike is about N. 65° W. and the dip is 40° to 60° NE.
West of the divide the surface is covered by gravel for a few hundred
meters, but farther west there are more exposures of the sandy and con-
glomeratic beds. The beds are folded and show minor faulting and slick-
•
ensiding. About a kilometer west of the divide limestone is interbedded
in the conglomerate in beds striking about N. 60° W. and dipping 30° NE.
The corals listed on page 225 were obtained from the conglomerate
(station 9953) and from the limestone interbedded in the conglomerate
(station 9954).
In this locality the Miocene is unconformably overlain by a younger
coralliferous limestone, probably of Pliocene age, which at some places is
difficult to distinguish from the limestone in the Miocene series.
 •

SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 225

As the road in this area is nearly parallel to the strike of the rocks no
estimate of the thickness of beds can be made; probably only a small part
of the section is exposed.
Near Bwraderes. Near Baraderes, on the trail between Petit-Trou de
I

Nippes and Baraderes, there are a few exposures of rocks that are doubt-
fully referred to the Miocene. Exposures of a fairly consolidated bedded
tilted conglomerate were noted 5 or 6 kilometers east of Baraderes, in an
area underlain chiefly by basalt. The conglomerate contains pebbles of
basalt and of the limestone that was assumed to be the upper Eocene lime-
stone of this vicinity.
Beds of soft chalky, unfossiliferous mar1 are exposed for 200 meters or
more along the trail in a small valley about 3 kilometers east of Baraderes.
If these beds are Miocene they represent remnants preserved by faulting
or folding during the uplift and erosion of the surrounding mo11ntains.
Fossils. The few fossils obtained from the scattered outcrops of Mio-
cene beds a.long the north coast of the Southern Peninsula indicate that
these beds are of about the same age as the Miocene along the south side
of the Cul-de-Sac Plain.

Miocene fossils from north coast of Southern Peninsula.

Species. 9480 9481 9540 9953 9954

Foraminifera:
Orbiculina sp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... •• •• x •••• ••• •
Corals:
Stylophora monticulosa Vaughan (MS.)............................ . ... •••• •••• •••• x
Stylophora sp. a. . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . • . . • . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . x ... . .... . ...
Orbicella annularis (Ellis and Solander) . • • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... • .•. x ••••
YycetophyIlia sp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . x .... .•.. . .. .
Porites sp. indet.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... .... x ... .
Mollusca:
Gastropoda :
Conus sp. cf. unnamed Cercado species . ........................ . . . . x .... .... . ...
M urex sp. . .............................. . .... . .. • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... x .... . .. .
Strombus sp . cf. S. chipolanus Dall ......... . .. . . . ............. . •••• •••• x •••• ••••
Cerithium sp. . ........................... . ...... . ............. . • • • • x ••• • • ••• ••••
Torinia sp. cf. T. rotunda Gabb ............................... . • • • • x • • • • •••• ••••
Pelecypoda :
Scapharca sp. . .. ............ . .......... . .......... · . . · .. •. · • · · · · · · · • ••• x .. . . . .. .
Ostrea sp. . ............. . ....... . ... . ................... · .. · · · . . x .... ... . •. . . . .. .
Chlamys (Aequipecten) sp. cf. C. (A.) uselmae Pilsbry and
Johnson ................................... · · · · · · · · · • ·. · ·... · ·.• · ·•. X ••• • • • ••
Ohlamys (Aequipecten) sp ........... . ............ • ....... ·. · · · · X •• •• • •• •••• • •••
Cardium ( Laevicardium ?) sp ................... . ....... · . · . · . . . •.• •••• x •••• ••••
Metis sp. cf. M. chipolana Dall. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . • . . . . . . . . .. . • •• • x •••• •• • •
Semele sp. cf. S. sulcata Dall... . . • . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . • . . . .. . x •••• •••• • •••
Oirripedia:
Balanus a1nphitrite Darwin .•...................•........ · ..... ·. . . X ••• • •••• •••• • •••

15
 226 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Stations on north coast of Southern Peninsula (Miocene).

9480 (K 2 F). Arrondissement of Leogane, cut along road from Port-au-Prince
to Leogane at foot of Morne-a-Bateau, about 2 kilometers east of Gressier. W. S.
Burbank, collector. October 21, 1920.
9481 (K 3 F ) . Arrondissement of Leogane, road from Port-au-Prince to Leogane,
from boulders at crossing of Riviere l'Acul. W. S. Burbank, collector. October
22, 1920.
9540 (B 31 F). Arrondissement of L eogane, road from L eogane to Miragoane,
about a kilometer east of Grand-Goave. J. S. Brown, collector. October 23, 1920.
9953 (W 348a F). Arrondissement of Leogane, road from Leogane to Grand-
Goave, west slope of Tapion du P etit-Goave; from conglomerate. W. P. Woodring
and J. S. Brown, collectors. April 10, 1921.
9954 (W 348b F). Arrondissement of Leogane, same locality as 9953 but from
limestone interbedded with conglomerate. W. P. Woodring and J. S. Brown,
collectors. April 10, 1921.
COM?\iUNE OF JEREMIE.
Grande Riviere and Bras-a-D1·oit. Miocene rocks occupy two areas that
•
form small but prominent interior lowlands southwest of Jeremie, one
along the course of the Grande Riviere de Jeremie and the other on its
tributary, the Bras-a-Droit. The center of the larger area, the one on the
Grande Riviere de Jeremie, is about 7 kilometers southwest of Jeremie,
near the village of Tissier. In the southwest part of the area is the large
market called Mafron. This lowland measures about 3 kilometers from
north to south and at least 7 or 8 kilometers from east to west. The
smaller area is about 22 kilometers west-southwest of Jeremie and con-
tains the large market called Chambellan. Its length from ea.st to west
is about 4 kilometers, and its width is probably less than 2 kilometers.
The two lowlands were traversed hurriedly and were examined only
near the trail. ~Iuch of the area in each lowland is covered by thin allu-
vial deposits, so only a few exposures of the underlying rocks were found.
The full extent of the Miocene, which undoubtedly underlies most of each
lowland, is inferred from the surface features, which contrast strongly
with those of the surro11nding limestone areas.
From the few exposures examined it appears that the Miocene rocks in
both areas are very similar and consist largely of highly calcareous brown
marl and of brown or yellow sandstone, together with some conglomerate.
Many conspicuous low hills and ridges in the large area, which trend
nearly east and west, appear to be composed of the harder conglomer-
atic beds.
Marine fossils and strand plants of Miocene age were obtained in the
larger area (see lists on p. 228; stations 9992 and 7541). Similar but
indeterminable remains of fossil plants were obtained in the smaller area.
These fossils indicate that the Miocene sea extended far up the region
that now constitutes the valley of the Grande Riviere de Jeremie and
perhaps covered a great part of the peninsula.
Wherever the bedding is apparent the Miocene beds are steeply tilted.
All the observed dips are to the north or northwest. It seems likely that

•
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 227

the larger area is bounded on the north by a thrust fault. At this northern
boundary a very steep and regular escarpment of upper Eocene limestone
rises from 200 to 300 meters above the lowland. The nearest observed
Mjocene beds, several hundred meters south of the escarpment, dip north-
ward, apparently beneath the ridge. Although this is only a single ex·
posure it appears to represent one of the prominent east and west ridges,
the profile of which shows that it is a cuesta having a dip slope to the
north. This ridge and other northward ..dipping ridges do not reappear
between the observed exposure and the base of the escarpment, as would
be expected if the rocks are in a synclinal trough. The inference is that
they plunge beneath the limestone.
The structural rela.t ions of the smaller area are more obscure. It,
too, is bordered by a steep limestone slope on the north, and the single
observed dip, at a point not more than 500 meters south of the ridge, is
37° N., suggesting a relation similar to that in the larger area. However,
the dips observed in the Eocene limestone just east of the area seem to
indicate a simple syncline along the axis of this lowland, and possibly the
Miocene beds merely occupy the trough of a steeply folded syncline.
South of Les Roseaux. Numerous apparently authentic reports ob-
tained at Jeremie indicate that there are beds of lignite at a place a few
kilometers south of Les Roseaux. As lignite in the Republic of Haiti,
AO far as known, is found only in the Miocene formations there is probably
an area of Miocene rocks in that locality. Possibly, however, it may be
merely the eastward extension of the lowland on the Grande Ri\·iere de
Jeremie.
Fossils. The marine fossils obtained at station 9992 are poorly pre-
served but indicate that the beds are of Miocene age, probably lower or
middle Miocene. The strand plants Gymnogramme woodringi Berry and
Guettardia cookei Berry, were collected at station 7541. Gymnogramme
woodringi is also recorded from the lower part of the Artibonite group
of the Artibonite Valley and from the Artibonite group of the Central
Plain. Guettardia cookei was described from beds of Miocene or Pliocene
age on the north shore of Sarnana Bay, Dominican Republic.

Stations in Commune of Jeremie (Miocene).

9992 (B 96 F). Arrondissement of Grand 'Anse, trail from Jeremie to Moron,
about a kilometer east of Tissier and about 6 kilometers from Jeremie. J. S.
Brown, collector. November 18, 1920.
7541 (B 95 F). Arrondissement of Grand 'Anse, valley of Grande Riviere de ·
Jeremie, trail between Mafron and Fondelet markets, half a kilometer south of
Mafron and about 10 kilometers southwest of Jeremie. J. S. Brown, collector.
November 18, 1920.
228 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Miocene fossils from Commune of Jeremie (station 9992).

•
Foraminifer:
Sorites sp. cf. S. americana (Cushman).
Coral:
Porites sp. indet.
Mollusca:
Gastropoda :
Oliva sp. cf. 0. testacea Lamarck.
Olivella sp. •
•

Bittium ? sp.
Liotia ? sp.
N eritina sp.
Pelecypoda :
Arca sp. cf. A. bowdeniana Dall.
Cardi um (Laevicardium) sp. cf. C. (L.) venustum Gabb.

Miocene fossil plants from Commune of Jeremie (station 7541).

Gymnogramme woodringi Berry.
Guettardia cookei Berey.

BETWEEN PoRT-8ALUT AND PoRT-1-PrMENT.

Three exposures of limestone, probably of Miocene age, were noted on

the trail between Port-Salut and Port-a-Piment. Two exposures are on
either side of Anse-a-Drick; the third is about a kilometer southeast of
Damassin. The rock is a rather massive limestone, less dense than the
common massive upper Eocene and at most places containing numerous
poorly preserved corals, although only one identifiable specimen, a Pocil-
lopora similar to P. arnoldi Vaughan, was obtained (station 9477). The
limestone north of Anse-a-Drick contains undetermined calcareous algae.
These exposures seem to indicate a belt of Miocene limestone intervening
between the Quaternary coralliferous limestone and the higher mountains
of upper Eocene limestone.

Station between Port-Salut and Port-a-Piment (Miocene).

9477 (B 72 F). Arrondissement of Coteaux, trail from Port-Salut to Port-8.-
Piment, about a kilometer southeast of Damassin. J. S. Brown, collector. N ovem-
ber 11, 1920. .
Miocene coral from station 9477·.
Pocillopora sp. cf. P. arnoldi Vaughan.

ASILE vALLEY.
The Asile Valley is an interior lowland similar in many respects to the
lowlands of the commune of Jeremie. The valley stretches from east to
west and is about 3 kilometers wide and about 12 kilometers long. On its
west side it rises into a plateau of 11ndetermined extent. The town of
l'Asile is in the central part of the valley.
 SEDl:M~N'rARY ROC:KS. 229

•
Virtually all the Asile Valley seems to be underlain by Miocene rocks,
although a large part of the surface is covered with alluvial deposits and
the Miocene crops out only in strea.m bluffs, along trails, or on isolated
hills.
In all the valley proper, that part east of the pla.teau, the exposed 1'iio·
cene rocks consist of· soft, fine-grained sediments tha.t were laid down
in lakes or fresh-water swamps. White or cream-colored marl is the pre-
dominating rock near l' Asile. In the east and west ends of the valley
the sediments contain more clay and in places consist almost entirely
of greenish or yellowish clay. Thin seams of black carbonaceous clay are
interbedded with the clay and marl. In the western part of the valley the
carbonaceous beds contain less clay and consist of impure lignite.
These beds of lignite in the Asile Valley have been mentioned in many
publications and have been the object of several mining concessions and
some special investigations, but none of the beds observed could ever be
of commercial value, and the existence of more promjsing beds seems very
doubtful.
Beds of gravel crop out in the western part of the valley, and coarse
angular conglomerate underlies the plateau to the west. The conglomerate
and gravel appear to be composed mainly of fragments of limestone, and
none of the basalt that is common in the vicinity was found in the ex-
posures observed. The beds of conglomerate are believed to represent a
delta deposit formed at the border of the lakes and swamps in which the
fine-grained beds were deposited and probably grade into the finer beds
on the east. The conglomerate may, however, be really younger than the
Miocene beds.
The fine-grained clayey and calcareous sediments are very fossiliferous
at certain horizons and contain many small fresh-water mollusks.
The beds in the central and eastern part of the area are generally
slightly folded and dip to the south or southwest. Those in the western
part of the valley are n early horizontal. The conglomerate in the plateau
seems to dip gently eastward.
The relation of the Miocene to the older rocks was not deterrnined, most
of the contacts being covered by alluvium. Undoubtedly the Miocene was
deposited on a floor of Eocene limestone and consists partly of material
eroded from it. It doubtless also overlies the basalt, although no basaltic
debris was observed in the Miocene.
The broader structural r elations of the Asile Valley also are obscure.
The only observed contact of the Miocene and the older rocks, on the trail
to Aquin at the southeast edge of the valley, probably is a fault contact.
On the ascent from the Riviere Serpent the Miocene beds, which dip to
the southwest, are succeeded by supposed upper Eocene limestone striking
N. 65° E. and dipping 72° NW.; these in turn are succeeded abruptly •

by a narrow band of Miocene and finally by older limestone, most of it

of upper Eocene age. West of this locality the southern border of the
230 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

valley is formed by a steep escarpment of limestone several hundred

meters high. The northern border of the valley is less precipitous and
is apparently largely occupied by basalt.
The mot1ntains south of this valley have probably been elevated since
the Miocene beds were deposited. The structural relations may then be
comparable to those suggested for the lowland at Ca.m p Perrin (see
p. 236), and the mountain wall to the south may have been uplifted either
by folding or faulting, more likely both.
An exposure of the Miocene beds on the south bank of Riviere Serpent,
between Riviere Gaudet and Source Paul, about 5 kilometers southeast
of the town of l' Asile, shows the following section :

Section of fresh-water Miocene beds on Riviere Serpent.

Meters.
Alluvium . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Unconformity.
6. Clay, yellowish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.30
5. Clay, black, carbonaceous. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
4. Clay, yellowish, containing subangular pebbles as large as peas
and a little carbonaceous material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53
3. Clay, black, carbonaceous. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
2. Clay, grayish buff with darker streaks of carbonaceous mate-
rial containing carbonized fragments of wood and stems.... .20
1. Not exposed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
Stream level.
Thickness of Miocene beds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.69

The beds strike N. 45° W. and dip 25° SW.

Beds of soft buff to white marl containing numerous fresh-wa.t er mol-
lusks were examined at several localities farther northwest along Riviere
Serpent. (For list of fossils see p. 231 ; stations 9519, 9618, and 9619.)
Similar fossiliferous marl is exposed on the south bank of Riviere des
Pins just north of l' Asile (stations 9617 and 9655).
The following section was measured on the west bank of Riviere la
Hotte about 4 kilometers west of l'Asile on the trail to Les Cayes :

Section of fresh-water Miocene beds on Riviere la H otte. •

Meters.
Top of bluff.
7. Clay, greenish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.50
6. Marl, soft, buff colored; station 9621. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36
5. Lignite, soft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .03
4. Marl, soft, yellowish. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 •

3. Impure lignite grading downward into black clay. . . . . . . . . . . . .15

2. Clay, black, grading downward into green clay. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
I. Concealed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Bed of stream.
8.19

•
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 231

The beds are approximately horizontal. Similar beds crop out fartl1er
southwest along the stream.
In the plateau west of the lower valley, near the edge of the mountains,
on the trail to Les Cayes, beds of coarse reddish conglomerate are ex-
posed in the steep bluffs of Riviere la Hotte. Limestone cobbles from 15
to 30 centimeters in diameter are abundant. Fragments of chert are
common, and there is some fine sand. The beds seem to dip several de-
grees eastward. Similar conglomerate is found along the trail for some
kilometers, but is very poorly exposed.
Fossils. The fossils obtained from the Miocene beds of the Asile Valley
are fresh-water mollusks and fruits of Chara, described by Berry as Cliara
woodringi. A similar 1.1iocene fresh-water molluscan fauna is not known
in the West Indies. The two species of Planorbis are abundant at sta-
tions 9519 and 9619. At several localities the marls contain innumerable
specimens of H ydrobia.

Stations in Asile Valley (nonmarine Miocene).

9519 (W 96 F). Arrondissement. of Nippes, trail leading eastward from l'Asile,
between Riviere Goudet and Source Paul. W. P. Woodring, collector. November
16, 1920. Also United States Geological Survey fossil plant station 7555.
9618 (B 42 F). Arrondissement of Nippes, north bank of Riviere Serpent a. little
more than a kilometer east of l'Asile. J. S. Brown, collect or. October 31, 1920.
9619 (B 44 F). Arrondissement of Nippes, east bank of Riviere Serpent just
above junction wit h Riviere des Pins, about a kilomete1· northeast of l'Asile.
J. S. Brown, collector. October 31, 1920.
9617 (B 41 F). Arrondissement of Nippes, south bank of Riviere des Pins,
just north of l'Asile, at crossing of trail to Anse-a-Veau. J. S. Brown, collector.
October 29, 1920.
9555 (W 99 F). Arrondissement of Nippes, same locality as 9617. W. P.
Woodring, collector. November 17, 1920.
9620 (B 45 F). Arrondissement of Nippes, south banl{ of Riviere des Pins,
about a kilometer west of l'Asile. J. S. Brown, collector. November 1, 1920.
9621 (B 46 F). Arrondissement of Nippes, west bank of Riviere la Hotte, about
a kilometer above junction with Riviere des Pins, and about 3 kilometers west of
l'Asile. J. S. Brown, collector. November 1, 1920.

N onmarine Miocene f ossi,ls from A sile Valley, arrondissem ent of Nippes .

.

Species. 7555 9519 9618 0019 9617 9555 9620 9621

Mollusca:
Gastropoda : .
Planorbis sp. a . ............ . ................. ••• • x • ••• x x • ••• •• •• x
Planorbis sp. b . .............................. •••• x • • • • x • ••• • ••• ••• • ••••
Hydrobia sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• x • • • • x •••• x •••• x
Physa sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • •• • •••• x •• • • •••• • ••• x
Pelecypoda :
Pisidium sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••• • ••• x ••• • • • • • •••• x • •••
Plant:
Ohara woodringi Berry . .......................... x •••• •• •• .' . . •• • • • ••• •• •• • •••
232 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

CAMP PERRIN.

Non.marine lignite-bearing beds of Miocene age underlie a large interior

lowland near Camp P errin. In many features this lowland resembles the
Asile Valley and the smaller lowlands in the commune o:f Jeremie. The
beds consist of conglomerate, sandstone, shale, lignite, marl, and lime-
stone. Their distribution with ref erence to the older rock formations is
shown in Figure 16. The Miocene rocks are covered by alluvial gravels
over almost the entire lowland and are exposed at places along the prjn-
cipal streams and deep ravines. The most complete section examined is
on La Ravine du Sud, where good exposures extend almost continuously
from a locality about 600 meters north of the diversion dam of the Canal

I
N
ECHEI .I.E
0
K i.loznetres
1 2. 3
•
HAuiES

- - ~ ..-
"V.
' -,--

FIGURE 16.-Sketch map of the lignite area near Camp Perrin.

•

Base from map of engineers of the Department ot Public Works. See Fig. 17 tor
section along line a b o a.

d'Avezac downstream to a locality about 250 meters south of the dam.

A section of the beds measu1·ed is given on page 234. The thickness of
most of the lignite beds was measured, but the thickness a.ssigned to the
other beds is based on the width of outcrop as deterxnined by pacing.
Figure 1 ~· shows the structural relations of these beds.
The exposures along La Riviere and some tributary ravines were ex-
amined for a distance of 2 kilometers at a locality about 4 or 5 kilomete1·s
northwest of Camp Perrin. The beds consist of sandy clay, marl, and
lignite and closely resemble the beds in the upper part of the section on La
Ravine du Sud. As the strike of the beds is approximately parallel to
the course of the river, no great thickness is exposed. The base of the
series was not found in this area.
 • • •

••
•

S N •

c b
00
tlj

'! a r .. ....
t1

~
z

Miocene I

Recent r~ ..---------------------------.A-~--------------------------------....
.. ... .. ~ ..j) . . . .
Eocene CretaceC?> t:d
0
- ·o __
·- • "o • •
• •0 •
1
---- - . .I
.oeo
oo
I
.o ..·
. . .;-..p
.
.
•
.. •
.
• ... •
. •
0
- - -

-- - --- -
- I I I
0• ••
• • •· .•I
• "•.o .. .•........
. ..0 • ...
f;j
•
Grarier Houi.lle (lignite) Argile CaJcajre Sableet&avier Con§omemt Calcaiire .C,alca :ire
50 75 100
metamorpbiqt1 e
o '25 Metres

FIGURE 17. Section of Miocene lignite-bearing beds exposed north of Camp Perrin on La Ravine du Sud.
See fig. 16 for line of section a--b c d. Structure below the surface beds from a to o is largely hypothetlcaL

~
~
CJ:l

•
 234 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Section of nonmarine Miocene beds on La Ravine du Sud.

-
No. of Approximate thick·
Kind of bed. Strike and dip.
bed. ness (meters).
'4 Clay, poorly exposed ............................. . • •• • •••• • ••••• •• • ••• 35
43 Green clay ..................................... . N. 60° E. ; 45° SE. 5
42 lnterbedded shale and lignite.................... . ••• •• •• •• •• • •••• ••• • 1
41 Gravel .. . ... . ...................•................ ••• •• •• ••••••• • •••• • 1
40 Shale containing a poorly exposed bed of lignite. ••• • •••• ••• •• •• •• •• • 7
39 Shale and lignite ................................ . • •• • ••• • •••• • • •• ••• • 0.6
38 Shale ...................... . .................... . ••• • ••• ••• • • • ••••• • • 2
37 Good bard ligni"te ..•...........•...•.............. • • • • •• ••• • • ••• • • • • •• 0.3
36 Thin-bedded bard shale .......................... . . . ... . ..... . .. .. . . . ' 2
85 Gravel ....•...•.......•............•...•......... East-west; 75° S ... 2
34 Shaly limestone ................................. . • • ••• • • •••• • •••• ••• • 5
33 Good bard lignite ; sample 1 ....••• ... ............ • •••• • ••• • • •• ••• • ••• 0.9
82 Shale with lignite ............................... . •••• • •••• •••• • •••••• 1
31 Thin-bedded limestone ...•................ ....... • • • • • • ••• • ••• • • • •• • • 0.5
30 Green clay ................•.......•.............. •• • • ••• • • •• •• • •••• • • 9
29 Coarse gra·vel, pebbles, 2 to 3 cm. in diameter . .. ••••••••••• • •••• •• • • 1
28 Green clay .....•......•...........••...••.•.•.... N. 70° W.; 76° SW. 9
27 Sandy clay with shells and foesil wood ; st.ation 9624 • • • •• ••••••• •• •• • ••• 0.5
26 Green clay .........•........•...•................ • •• •• • • •••• •• •• • • • • • S2
25 Blue marl and shale............................. . • • •• • • ••• • • • •• • • •• • • 4
24 Sbaly limestone ................................. . ••••• •••••••••• ••••• 0.7
23 Ligtlite and clay ................................. . ••••• ••••• ••••• •••• • 0.8
22 Blue marl ....................................... . • •• •••• •••• ••• ••••• • 3
21 Hard Iigni'te ••••..••..•••..••..•••.•..•.•••.••• . . •• • •• • • • •• • • • • ••• • • • 0.5
20 Dark-green clay ................................. . N. 70° E. ; 40° SE. 2
19 Shale grading into lignite ....................... . • t t • e t t e I e • • • • I t t • e t 1
18 f Jreen and red clay ......................... . .... . • • ••• • ••• •• •••••• • •• 2
17 rhin·bedded shaly limestone ..................... . ••••• •• ••• ••• •• • • ••• 1.6
16 Clay and thin seams of lignite . .................. . • • •• •• ••• • • •••• •• •• • 2
15 Hard lignite poorly exposed ..................... . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• • 0.7
14 Chiefly clay, some limestone ..................... . ••• •• •••• •••• ••••••• 7
13 Limestone .•........................... . ......... •• • • • •• • • •• ••• • •• ••• 0.7
12 Blue marl, containing fossil wood at base........ East-west; 45• S ... 7
11 Impure limestone ............... ... ............. . • • ••• • • • •• • • ••• • •••• 2
•
10 Blue marl and green clay ........................ . • • ••••••••• • •••••••• 28
9 Coarse gravel with fossil wood ................... . ••••• • ••••••••••••• • 2
8 Green clay with thin beds of calcareous sandstone •••• •••• • ••••• •••• • • 9
7 Shaly limestone carrying thin seams of lignite ... •••• • ••• ••••• •••••• • 0.8
e Olay .........•................•...........•...... N. 70,, E. ; 40• SE. 2
5 Gravel .......................................... . •• •• ••• •• • ••• •••••• • 1

' Chiefly green clay, some gravel .................. .

Diversion dam, Canal D'Avezac .................. .
• ••

•
•• •• ••• • • ••••••••
••• • • • • ••• • • •• • • •••
80

8 Principally sandy clay. In lower part of section

some gravel ; in upper part some limestone and
• traces of carbonaceous shale ; in midde of sec-
tion fossil wood. Station 9640 about 15 meters
•
above base ; station 9625 about 20 meters from
top . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . N. 55° E. ; 50• SE. 6'
2 Coarse gravel, some pebbles 10 cm. diameter ..... . ••••••• •••• • ••• • • ••• 3
Total tbicknesa of beds exposed upstream from
this locality ................................... . ••• • • ••••• •• ••• • • •• •

2 Coarse gravel, same bed as No. 2 ........•....•.•• N. 55• E. ; oo• NW. 8

3 Sandy clay, etc., same bed that overlies No. 2 ... . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 25
Fault ; about 80 meters concealed ............... . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
1 At base very coarse and poorly stratifted con· •
glomerate with some boulders mere than a meter
in diameter, resting unconformably on meta·
• morphosed limestone. Grades into finer and
better stratified material above. Lenticular beds
of gravel and sand near top..................... N. '5° E.; so• SE. 200
•
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 235

The estimated thickness of the beds in the unbroken southward or

southeastward dipping section above the fault on La Ravine du Sud is
289 meters. As neither the top nor the base of the section is exposed, the
total thickness of this lignite-bearing section exceeds 300 meters. The
apparent thickness of the coarse basal conglomerate to the north of the
fault is about 200 meters, but a part of it may possibly correspond to
certain beds in the lignite-bearing section to the south. The MioceD:e
beds probably have a total thickness of about 500 meters.
The structure of the beds, as can readily be seen from the strikes and
dips in Figure 16, is very complicated. The whole lignite-bearing part
of the section appears to be crumpled into clos-e folds, which are very
likely overturned to the north. The general strike of the beds is east
and west, parallel to the length of the lowland, but locally the strikes are
di,rergent.
The northward strikes found along a ravine in the section examined on
La Riviere probably indicate faulting, although more work would be re-
quired to determine the structure in that locality. In the section on La
Ravine du Sud there seems to be clear evidence of an extensive fault at
the contact of the conglomerate and the lignite-bearing beds. As the anti-
clinal fold south of the contact is slightly overturned to the north and as
the beds of conglomerate plunge with 11ninterrupted dip beneath this fold,
the contact is interpreted as a thrust fault. (See Fig. 17.)
Positive correlation of the coarse i1nfossiliferous conglomerate with the
finer fossiliferous, lignite-bearing beds to the south is impossible, but as
the finer beds in the conglomerate closely resemble the coarse gravel beds
in the other part of the section and as the degrees of consolidation and
deformation are comparable, they probably belong to the same series. If
this assumption is true the conglomerate represents a basal and marginal
phase of the series, and certain beds in the lignite-bearing series may pos-
sibly be the equivalent of some of the finer beds in the conglomerate, as
shown in Figure 17.
When the !fiocene beds were deposited there was a land mass on the
north which supplied sediment to a lowland, probably a plain, on the
south. Near the border of this lowland the sediment was coarse and was
probably deposited on land. Farther south the sediment became progres-
sively finer, and some of it was deposited in fresh-water swamps, forming
beds of clay, limestone, and lignite. A similar change in the character
of the sediments can be observed at the present time on the Cayes Plain,
where coarse gravel at the northern border of the plain grades into clay
and even into peaty material in the swampy land near the sea. Still
farther south, beneath Cayes Bay, there are marine beds. The beds of
lignite and marl at Camp Perrin may grade into marine beds farther
south, as Miocene marine beds are exposed in hills on the Cayea Plain.
236 GEOLOGY OF THE REl>tJBLIC OF ltA1Tt.

The low mountain range south of the dissected lowland has been ele-
vated since the Miocene beds were deposited. The upper Eocene limestone
may have been thrust northward over the Miocene beds in the same
manner in which the lignite-bearing beds appear to have been th1~ust
northward over the basal and marginal conglomerate.
Evidence of several kinds indicate that the lignite-bearing beds are of
Miocene age, although the fresh-water and land mollusks, lignified steins,
and large pieces of wood that were collected from them do not positively
establish their age. The beds are lithologically and structurally similar
to the Miocene beds in similar dissected lowlands of the Southern Penin-
sula. Moreover, they are probably the equivalent of the marine Miocene
beds that crop out on the Cayes Plain and at one time may have been
continuous with those beds before the ridge of upper Eocene limestone was
elevated and the Miocene beds removed from it by erosion.
Fossils. An interesting fauna of land and fresh-water mollusks was
obtained from the lignite-bearing beds at Camp Perrin. The land mollusks
were examined by the late Mr. John B. Henderson, of the United States
National Museum. Although most of the specimens are crushed it seems
that the genera Thysanophora and Orocidopoma are represented. 'rhese
two genera have not heretofore been found in beds as old as Miocene.
Pachyclieilus is rather abundant at station 9624. The molluscan faunas
of the nonmarine beds in the Asile Valley and at Camp Perrin are en-
tirely different, although they seem to be of about the same age.

Stations near Camp Perrin (nonmarine Miocene).

•

9624 (B 57 F). Arrondissement of Cayes, la Ravine du Sud, about 300 meters

below intake of Canal d'Avezac. J. S. Brown, collector. November 5, 1920.
9625 (B 60 F). Arrondissement of Cayes, la Ravine du Sud, about 150 meters
below intake of Canal d'Avezac. J. S. Brown, collector. November 6, 1920.
9640 (B 61 F). Arrondissement of Cayes, la Ravine du Sud, just above intake
of Canal d'Avezac. J. S. Brown, collector. November 6, 1920.
•

Non marine Miocene fossils from Camp Perrin.

Species. 9624 9625 9640

Mollusca:
Gastropoda :
Tbysanophora sp. . ...... . ........................................... . •••• x • •••
Crocidopoma sp. . ................................................... . •••• x • •••
Pacbycheilus sp. . ............................ ....................... . x •••• x
Hydrobia ........................................................... . •••• ••• • x
Pelecypoda:
Cyrena ? sp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... •••• x
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 23'1

CAYES PLAIN.

A considerable number of low rounded hills rise from 10 to 30 meters

above the alluvial deposits in the northern and northwestern parts of the
Cayes Plain. These hills were examined at only one locality along one of
the main trails between Les Cayes and Camp Perrin, about 18 kilometers
up the trail northwest of Les Cayea and 3 kilometers southeast of a habi-
tation called La Vie, which is at the border of the plain. The locality is
only a few hundred met.era east of La Ravine du Sud. The trail passes
between two hills which form part of a low chain that trends north-
westward.
The rocks exposed along the trail and in an adjacent ravine consist
principa.lly of soft limestone and a little interbedded clayey marl. 'l,he
beds are approximately horizontal. The limestone contains poorly pre-
served corals and mollusks. (See list below; station 9626.)
Similar marine Miocene beds probably form the other hills, and l\fio-
cene beds very likely underlie all or most of the Cayes Plain, the hills
being either erosional remnants not covered by alluvium or eminences
formed by uplift, either through folding or faulting. The suggestion also
seems warranted that these marine beds are the seaward equivalent of
the nonmarine lignite-bearing Miocene at Camp P errin.
Fossils. Only two fossils, one coral and one mollusk, were collected
from the limestone in the Cayes Plain, but the coral is similar to a Mio-
cene species from Cuba.

Station in C ayes Plain (Miocene).

9626 (B 63 F). Arrondissement of Cayes, ma.in trail from Les Cayes to Camp
Perrin, about 3 kilometers southeast of habitation La Vie. J. S. Brown, collector.
November 7, 1920.

Miocene fossils from station 9626, Cayes Plain.

Coral: Mollusca:
Goniopora sp. cf. G. jacobiana Lithophaga sp.
Vaughan.
GoNAVE IsLAND.

Rocks of known or supposed Miocene age cover a large part of Gonave

Island, but as they consist entirely of limestone it is difficult to dis-
tinguish them from the older rocks, which also are limestone. The Mio-
cene limestone is massive, white on unweathered surfaces, and usually
gray on weathered surfaces except beneath overhanging cliffs and in other
sheltered places, where it weathers yellowish. Although no accurate
estimate of its thickness is possible the Miocene is probably less than
200 meters thick. It rests with transgressive overlap on the upper Eocene
limestone, at some places on the upper massive beds and at others on the
lower chalky beds. Where it rests on the massive upper Eocene limestone

•
 238 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

it is almost impossible to distinguish them 11nless fossils are fo11nd. 'fhe

supposed stratigraphic relations of the Miocene limestone is shown in
Figure 8, page 138.
The Miocene limestone forms a fringe around the north and south
coasts of the southeastern half of the island. South of Anse-a-Galets, on
the north coast, it crops out on a steep slope leading up to a dissected
coastal plateau. The rock there is jagged and deeply pitted by solution
cavities. The corals listed on page 239, station 9661, were collected near
the top of the slope a short distance east of the trail leading southwest-
ward from Anse-a-Galets to the spring that supplies the village. This
trail follows the channel of a ravine along which the Miocene limestone
crops out at intervals. About 2 kilometers southwest of Anse-a-Galets the
limestone is exposed in a cliff about 50 meters high, on the east side of
the ravine. Corals and mollusks were collected in a shallow cavern at
the foot of this cliff. (See list, p. 239, station 9663.) In the cavern t.h e
rock weathers to a soft powdery marl containing hard lumps of yellowish
li_m estone, but on the outside of the cliff it is gray and jag.ged. Near this
place calcareous rind on the surface of the limestone contains specimens
of the Recent land snails Urocoptis (Autocoptis) gruneri Dunker and
Pleurodonte. Another collection of corals was obtained along ,the trail
leading from Anse-a-Galets northwestward along the coast to Etroit, at
a point about 4 kilometers from Anse-a-Galets, where the massive pitted
limestone extends to the shore line. (See list, p. 239, station 9680.)
The surface rock over the entire northwestern half of the island con-
sists of similar massive limestone etched into fantastic shapes by solution.
It is supposed to be of Miocene age, but the only fossils obtained are the
impressions of the few mollusks listed on page '239, stations 9675, 9677,
and 9678. Erosion remnants of this limestone resembling ruined walls
rest on the chalky upper Eocene limestone about a kilometer south of
Fond-Negre on the trail to Grande Ravine. On the same trail, about 3
kilometers northwest of Grande Ravine and near the foot of the slope
leading up to the interior plateau, massive limestone of supposed Miocene
age rests on an uneven surface of the chalky upper Eocene limestone that
underlies the plateau.
Fossils. The corals collected from the limestone on Gonave Island
have a Miocene aspect, and some of them are similar to species obtained
from Miocene beds on the mainland. The mollusks have no stratigraphic
significance.
Stations on Gonave Island (Miocene). •

9661 (W 153 F). Gonave Island, short distance east of trail leading southwest-
•
ward from Anse-a-Galets, about a kilometer southwest of Anse-a-Galets; altitude
60 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 17, 1920.
9663 (W 155 F). Gonave Island, trail leading southwestward from Anse-a-
Galets, cliff on right side of dry ravine about 2 kilometers from Anse-A-Galets.
W. P. Woodring, collector. December 17, 1920.

•
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 239
,
9680 (W 175 F). Gonave Island, trail from Etroit to Anse-a-Galets, about
4 kilometers northwest of Anse-a-Galets. W. P. Woodring, collector. December
25, 1920.
9675 (W 169 F). Gonave Island, trail from Grande-Ravine to Fond-N egre,
about 5 kilometers northwest of Grande Ravine; altitude 410 meters above sea
level. W. P. Woodring, collector. December 22, 1920.
9677 (W 171 F). Gonave Island, trail from Fond-Negre to Dandeville, about
8 kilometers west-northwest of Fond-N egre; altitude 190 meters above sea level.
W. P. Woodring, collector. December 23, 1920.
9678 (W 172 F). Gonave Island, trail from Fond-Negre to Dandeville, about
15 kilometers west-northwest of Fond-N egre; altitude 275 meters above sea level.
W. P. Woodring, collector. December 23, 1920.

Miocene fossils from Gonave Island.

Species. 9661 9663 9680 9675 9677 9678

•

Corals:
Stylophora sp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . x x •••• •• •• •••• • •••
Stephanocoenia intersepta (Esper)....... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... x •••• •••• • •••
Meandrina sp. apparently new. • . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . x •••• •••• • • •• • •••
Orbicella sp. cf. 0. altissima (Duncan). • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . x •• •• • ••• • •• • • •••
Mollusca:
Gastropoda :
Conus sp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . x . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...
Xancus ? sp.............................................. . . . . x .... .. .. .... . ...
Cerithium ep. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... .... x ....
Emarginula ? sp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . .... .... x
Pelecypoda:
Ohlamys ( Aequipecten) sp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... x •••• • •••
Lucina ? sp • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • • • • • • • . • • • • • . • • • • x .... .... .... . ...
•

PLIOCENE SERIES.

Faunal evidence and the degree of deformation of the rocks are the
c1·iteria used in recognizing marine deposits of Pliocene age in Haiti.
Judged by these criteria marine Pliocene deposits appear to be confined
to relatively small areas in the Southern Peninsula. Some of the corallif-
erous limestones and other ma.rine beds called Quaternary may really be
Pliocene, but all the beds classed as Quaternary are undeformed or only
slightly deformed and have approximately the same fauna. N onmarine
deposits of Pliocene age are known in some of the larger valleys and 7 •

plains. They are more dissected than similar Quaternary beds and may
consist of different material.
MARINB DEPOSITS.

vALLEY OF RIVIERE GAUCHE.

The lowland that is drained by Riviere Gauche, extending northwest-
ward from J acmel for at least 17 kilometers, contains marine deposits of
Pliocene age. On the northeast side of the lowland these beds rest 11ncon-
formably on upper Eocene limestone, although at some localities they
 •

240 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

have about the same strike and dip as the upper Eocene rocks. The rela-
• tion to the older rocks along the foot of the steep, cliff-broken slope on
the southwest side of the lowland are not known. 'fhe Pliocene beds are
folded, -and along the trail following Riviere Gauche they dip steeply
southwestward. They consist principally of conglomerate and marl. The
conglomerate is firmly consolidated, except certain very coarse beds, and
contains pebbles and cobbles of different kinds of limestone, which have
a maximum diameter of half a meter. It contains also cobbles of chert
and basalt, which, however, are much less numerous. At some places the
conglomerate is made up of pebbles of uniform size, 5 or 6 centimeters
in diameter. Interbedded with the conglomerate are beds of gray and
yellow marl containing sandy and clayey layers. Some of the beds of
marl carry perfectly preserved fossils. Fossils were collected from thin
marl beds at two localities. (See list, p. 242, stations 9529 and 9530.)
There are also a few beds of limestone containing poorly preserved corals
and mollusks.
The strike of the beds along Riviere Gauche below Boucicaut is parallel
to the longer diameter of the lowland and the dip is southwestward at
angles of 40 ° to 50 °. The thickness of these beds is not known but is
probably more than 100 meters.
Near the mouth of Riviere Gauche and on Riviere Gosseline, at the
southeast end of the lowland, the Pliocene beds dip more gently south-
westward at angles of 10° to 25°, having virtually the same strike and
dip as the underlying upper Eocene limestone. ...~ bluff on the right bank
of Riviere Gosseline exposes marly sandstone and sandy marl containing
casts of the mollusks listed on page 242, sta.t ion 9604.

T APION DU PETIT-GOAVE.

The beds in the gap south of Tapian du Petit-Goave seem to consist

chiefly of the Miocene rocks that are described on page 224. Along the
road on the west slope a thick coralliferous limestone overlies the Miocene
rocks. It is more massive than the coralliferous limestones interbedded
with the Miocene conglomerate but seems to have about the same dip. An
extensive series of corals (see list, p. 243, station 9793) collected along the
road at an altitude of 150 meters above sea level contains only genera still
living in the West Indies, and this limestone is believed to be either
Pliocene or Quaternary probably Pliocene, because the beds are more
greatly deformed than those classed as Quaternary. .

NONMARINE DEPOSITS.

Nonmarine deposits of Pliocene age probably 11nderlie similar Quater-

nary deposits in most of the larger valleys and plains, but detailed work
would be required to separate them. Most of the dissected nonmarine
deposits in these regions are arbitrarily called Quaternary.
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 241

CENTRAL PLAIN.

Hinche f orma.tion.

In the Central Plain beds of silt, clay, sand, and gravel, usually uncon-
solidated or imperfectly consolidated, rest on the eroded surface of the
folded rocks of the Artibonite group. These beds were apparently laid
down along a drainage system that emptied southeastward into the San
1
Juan Valley of the Dominican Republic. Jones gave the name '' Hinche
beds,'' derived from the town of Hinche, to these stream deposits. So far •

as observed these rocks are undeformed. They closely resemble imperfectly

consolidated rocks of similar orjgin in the Las Cahobas formation, and
where the Las Cahobas rocks lie flat, as in the trough of the Central
Plain syncline, the two for1nations can hardly be distinguished. The
gravels of the Hinche beds contain a greater proportion of limestone
pebbles than is found in poorly consolidated conglomerates in the upper
part of t.he Las Cahobas formation, but they do not contain the large
boulders of limestone and brown chert that are common in the Quaternary
stream gravels. The Hinche beds underlie the extensive savanna in the
northwestern part of the plain and patches of them are found at succes-
sively lower altitudes in the southeastern part. The estimated maximum
thickness of this formation is 25 meters.
The Hinche formation is considered Pliocene because of its strati-
graphic position. It is the equivalent of the Las Matas formation of the
San Juan Valley in the Dominican Republic, and the two formations are
probably continuous. ·
FOSSILS.

'l'he corals obtained from the Pliocene beds on Riviere Gauche have a
more modern aspect than the Miocene corals collected in the Republic.
Only five genera are represented, but these genera a1·e all still living in the
\Vest Indian region. Maeandra labyrinth if ormis (Linnaeus) and Acropora
muricata (Linnaeus) have never been r ecorded from West Indian Mio-
cene deposits.
The molluscan fauna seems to be intermediate between MiQcene and
Quaternary faunas. Species like Fusinus sp. cf. F. ulcimus ru.shii Dall,
Astrea sp. cf. A. caelata Gmelin, Oalliostoma sp. cf. 0. zonamesta Reeve,
and Torinia sp. cf. T. cylind1·ica ( Gmelin) are more modern than any
Miocene species. The Sconsia is inter1nediate between the Miocene B.
laevigata (Sowerby) and the Recent S. striata (Lamarck). Torinia
1
rotundata Gabb, recently :figured by Pilsbry, is the only Torinia recorded
from West Indian Miocene deposits, although a similar species is listed
on page 225, station 9481, from the Miocene at the west end of the Leogane
1 Jones, W. F., A geological reconnaissance in Haiti; a contribution to Antillean
geology : J our. Geology, vol. 26, p. 7 48. 1918. •

s Pilsbry, H. A., Revision or W. M. Gabb's Tertiary Mollusca of Santo Domingo: Acad.

•
Nat. Sci. Philadelphia Proc., vol. 73, p. 379, pl. 34, figs. 19-20, 1922.
16
 242 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Plain. The species from the Pliocene beds is more similar to the Recent
T. cy lindrica ( Gmelin). Other mollusks from these beds resemble Bowden
and Gurabo (Miocene) species.
Marine deposits of Pliocene age have not been recognized in other
West Indian islands, with the doubtful exception of Cuba, but beds of
this age are known at Port Limon, Costa Rica.
Most of the corals from the limestone on the west slope of Tapion du
Petit-Goave are Recent species, but the limestone is considered of doubt-
ful Pliocene age because of its structural relations .
•

Stations in arrondissement of Jacmel (Pliocene).

9529 (K 30 F). Arrondissement of Jacmel, trail from Jacmel to Boucicaut, right

bank of Riviere Gauche, about 7 kilometers northwest of Jacmel. W. S. Burbank,
collector. November 16, 1920.
9530 (K 31 F). Arrondissement of Jacmel, trail from Jacmel to Boucicaut, left
bank of Riviere Gauche, about 9 kilometers northwest of Jacmel. W. S. Burbank,
collector. November 16, 1920.
9604 (W 68 F). Arrondissement of Jacmel, trail from Jacmel to Carrefour,
right bank of Riviere Gosseline 100 meters above second crossing above J acme!.
W. P. Woodring, collector. November 3, 1920.

Pliocene fossils from beds on Riviere Gauche, arrondissement of J acmel.

Species. 9529 9530 960,

Corals:
Solenastrea hyades (D8lla) ............................................... . x •• •• ••••
Maeandra labyrinthilormis (Linnaeus) ................................... . x •••• ••••
Maeandra ? sp ••••..•...•.•••..•••••••••••.••.•••••..••.••.......••••••••• x •••• ••••
Siderastrea sp. afJ. S. siderea (Ellie and Solander) ....................... . x •••• •• • •
Agaricia sp. . ............................................................ . x •••• ••• •
Acropora muricata (Linnaeus) ...........................•.....•.......... • •• • x • •••
Mollusca:
Pteropoda:
Cavolina sp. cf. C. tridentata. Forskal ............................... . ••• • • • •• x
Gastropoda :
Oliva sp. cf. 0. reticularis Lamarck ...........••..................... •••• x ••••
Olivella sp. cf. 0. jaspidea rotunda Dall ........•....................• •••• x ••••
Fusinus sp. cf. F. ulcimus rusbii Dall ..••..................•..•...... •••• x ••••
Phos sp. cf. P. moorei Guppy .... .................................... - •••• x ••• •
Murex sp. cf. M. domingensis Sowerby .........•..................••. . •••• x ••••
Sconsia sp. cf. S. laevigata (Sowerby) ..............••..••............ •••• x ? ,
Colubraria sp. . ............................................... · · · .... . ••• • x ••••
Turritella sp. cf. T. submortoni Maury ............................... . •••• x ••••
Astrea sp. cf. A. caelata (Gmelin) .........•.............•.......•.... • ••• x ••••
Calliostoma sp. cf. 0. zonamesta Reeve .............................. . •••• x ••••
Torinia sp. cf. T. cylindrica (Gmelin) .................•..••.•.•....•. •••• x ••••
Pelecypoda:
Leda sp. . ........................................................... . • ••• •••• x
Glycymeris sp. cf. G. pennacea (Lamarck) ....•...........•........... •••• x •• ••
Chlamys (Aequipecten) sp. cf. 0. (A.) uselmae Pilsbry and Johnson. •••• x •• ••
Cardium (Fragum) medium Linnaeus ...........•••.••••..•.••..••••• •••• x ••••
 •

SEDllfENTARY ROCKS. 243

Stations on west slope of Tapion du Petit-Goave (Pliocene r).

9793 (W 317 F). Arrondissement of Leogane, road from Leogane to Miragoane,
west slope of Tapion du Petit-Goa ve, altitude 150 meters above sea level. T. W1
Vaughan and W. P. Woodring, collectors. March 6, 1921.
9470 (B 33 F). Arrondissement of Leogane, road from Leogane to Miragoane,
west slope of Tapion du Petit-Goavc, altitude about 100 meters above sea level.
J. S. Brown, collector. October 23, 1920.

Pliocene ( 1) fossils from west slope of Tapion du Petit-Goave.

Species. 9793 9470

Corals :
Orbicella annularis (Ellis and Solander) .•••••...•...•••••..••..••.••••••••••••••• x ••••
Solenastrea bournoni Milne-Edwards and Haime .••..•••...••..• -•...•••.••••..•.. x ••••
Solenastrea byades (Dana) ........................................................ . x •• • •
Maeandra labyrinthiformis ( Linnaeus) ...••...••••.. -•...•..••••.•.•...•••..•••..• x ••••
Siderastrea sp. aff. S. sidera (Ellis and Solander) •.••...••..•.•.•••••...••••••••• x ••••
Agaricia agarici tes var. purpurea (Le Sueur) .•..•..•....••.•••••...•..•••..••••.• x ••••
Porites sp. cf. P. porites (Pallas) .......•......••............................•.... x ••••
Porites sp. cf. P. astreoides Lamarck ...........•................................. x ••••
Mollusca:
Gastropoda :
Bullaria ? sp......... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . X
Pelecypoda :
Arca umbona ta Lamarck .•••..............•••...••..•••••••••...••..••...•••.. •••• x
Chlamys (Aequipecten) sp. cf. C. (A.) phrygium Dall ...•..••••....•...•••.• x x
Cblamys (Plagioctenium) sp. cf. 0. (P .) gibbus Lamarck ••••••••..•....••••• •••• x
Oatrea sp. . ....•..•....•.....•.•••••...• • • · • •.•••••• • • • • • · · • • • • • • · • • · · · · · · · · · · x ••••
Venus ca.mpecbiensis Gmelin ?•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• x ••••
Chione ? ep ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• x x
Macroc.allista f sp •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• x ••••

QUATERNARY SYSTEM.
GENERAL FEATURES.

The effects of the rise and decline of glaciation in the temperate regions
are apparently not recognizable in the Republic, either directly or indi-
rectly, and the limits of Pliocene, Pleistocene, and Recent time are poorly
defined, depending on several criteria, none of which can be rigidly
applied. Deposits that are poorly consolidated, that are undeformed or
only slight.l y deformed, that are dissected by present streams, and that
contain a fauna identical with or very similar to the living fa1ma are
here considered Quaternary.
Quaternary sedimentary deposits are rather widely distributed in the
Republic, although most of the areas in which they fonn the surface rocks
are small. (See Pl. I.) They may be divided into marine and non-
marine deposits.
MARINE DEPOSITS.

Marine Quaternary deposits are common only along the coast, where
they form narrow fringes, at few places more than 1 or 2 kilometers wide.
 244 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

However, they spread over virtually all the Bombardopolis Plateau, thus
extending back many kilometers from the coast. Small patches are fo11nd
along the north and south borders of the Cul -de-Sac Plain to and beyond
· the international boundary. This probably is the greatest distance inland
at which marine Quaternary deposits have been found, but when they
were deposited the sea occupied the trough now known as the Cul-de-Sac
Plain, and these deposits, like the others, are the ref ore coastal fringes.
These marine Quaternary deposits cover the emerged coastal terraces that
stretch along nearly one-half the coast of the Republic.

STRATIGRAPI-IIC RELATIONS.

The Quaternary deposits everywhere rest on the underlying formations

unconformably. The unconformity is angular as well as erosional, even
with the Pliocene and Miocene, but at some places where there are no
Pliocene deposits the discordance with the Miocene deposits may be slight.

LITHOLOGY AND LOCAL DETAILS.

The greater part of the marine Quaternary deposits are reef deposits
very similar to those now forming at many localities around the shore of
the Republic. They consist of reef rock, coralliferous limestone, a11d
molluscan limestone, but reef rock and coralliferous limestone are the
most common, a fact indicating that fringing reefs were :flourishing dur-
ing probably all of Quaternary time. If some of these rocks are indeed
of Pleistocene age, as seems probable, there seems to be no basis, at least
so far as the Republic of Haiti is concerned, for the contention that the
vigorous growth of Pleistocene reefs was retarded by the supposed lower-
ing of the temperature of tropical seas during Pleistocene time. Although
detailed work should be done to warrant definite statements, it seems that
the maxima of Pleistocene glaciation can not be recognized by their effect
on the Pleistocene reefs. The reefs of supposed Pleistocene age are simi-
lar in many features to the Recent reefs. The list on page 250 shows that
Orbicella annularis (Ellis and Solander) was the most common reef
builder in the emerged Quaternary deposits, just as it is the most common
coral on the living West Indian reefs.
At few places does the weathered surface of the limestone give a cor-
rect impression of its lithology, which can be observed only in very fresh I

stream-cut bluffs or in artificial excavations. In such favorable exposures

the rock is seen to consist of thick-bedded, poorly assorted, and very
poorly consolidated calcareous and detrital materials, in most places con-
taining a large proportion of heads of corals and shells of mollusks. There
are all gradations of rock from pure coral and pure coquina to gravel
derived entirely from land debris. Ordinarily the purer calcareous rock
is found near the sea or on the outer margins of terraces, and the detrital
material is fo11nd at the landward margin of the deposits. The charac-

•
•
 SEDl1'£ENTARY ROCKS. 245

teristic gradation is well shown along the Riviere des Roseaux near
Roseaux, a village about 7 kilometers east of Jeremie. The terrace near
the shore is composed very largely of heads of corals and shells of mol-
lusks. To the south the organic remains become rarer and rarer, and the
detrital materials become more and more abundant, until in the bluffs
about a kilometer south of Rosea11x only dissected water-laid gravels can
be found. The zone of gradation ordinarily, however, is not conspicuous.
At some places where the initial slope was steep a narrow reef is plas-
tered almost directly on the basement of the older rocks. This relation is
shown at St.-Marc Bay, where relatively wide terraces veneered with reef
rock or coralliferous limestone cover the promontories north and south
of the bay. At the head of the bay, just south of the place where the road
- to Gona1ves leaves the coast and enters the ravine, a narrow fringe of
coralliferous limestone rises to an altitude of 15 meters above sea level.
The limestone grades laterally and vertically into marl and poorly con-
solidated gravels. The fossils lis·t ed on pages 250-254 (station 9551) were
collected here. At some places the zone of gradation is obscured by later
alluvial deposits or is indistinguishable from them. In places it seems
t.h at the deposits in the zone of gradation are softer than the more cal-
careous rock and have been eroded away, as a.t the rear of the coastal es-
carpments near Anse Rouge and north of Jean Rabel. The erosion in
both these localities, however, has undoubtedly been due primarily to the
presence of soft Miocene beds back of the Quaternary limestone.
A lateral gradation in constituent material somewhat like that just
described was observed at some places directly on the shore, where the
prevailing coralliferous limestone of the lowest coastal terraces is replaced
for an interval by stratified gravel or sand that generally contains marine
fossils in considerable numbers. This type of material doubtless repre-
sents the delta deposits of streams which at their mouths interrupted the
continuity of the reefs by depositing a large amount of sediment. Such a
gradation is particularly well shown just west of the mouth of Riviere
de Jean Rabel, along the trail between Mole St.-Nicolas and Jean Rabel.
The coralliferous limestone typically developed 2 or 3 kilometers west
of that stream grades eastward into stratified sand and coarse gravel con-
taining few fossils, such as that found in bluffs along the Rivi.ere de Jean
Rabel. Again, between Petit-Riviere de Nippes and Grande-Riviere de
Nippes the prevailing coralliferous limestone is replaced by fine-grained
soft brown sand containing shells of mollusks. (See list, pp. 250-254;
station 9520.) At these two localities, as probably at most others, the
main streams of Quaternary time seem to have occupied approximately
the same valleys which they now occupy, and Quaternary delta deposits
may normally be expected at the mouths of all the larger streams where
the coast has emerged during Quaternary time.
Where they have been long exposed to weathering the Quaternary rocks
assume an appearance very different from that which they show in fresh
•
 246 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

excavations. The fossils are commonly dissolved by preferential leaching,

leaving the surface of the rock pitted, and only casts or impressions of
the fossils remain. A veneer of travertine deposited over the rock surface
in many places accentuates its massive appearance. There is also a pro-
nounced hardening of the outer crust, which commonly extends to a depth
of several meters. This hardening is probably due mainly to firm cemen-
tation of the particles by redeposited calcium carbonate. The density of
the rock also may be increased to some extent by this introduced material,
some of which was probably brought to the surface by capillary water,
which having penetrated the rock to a shallow depth returned to the
surface and evaporated, leaving its dissolved material behind. As a result
of these changes the purer calcareous Quaternary rock may closely re-
semble phases of the massive upper Eocene and other Tertiary limestones,
as for instance, in the cliff shown in Plate XVII, A. Some of the Quater-
nary limestone also yields a red clay soil almost identical with that charac-
teristic of areas of the massive Tertiary limestones.
The following section of Qua ternary deposits is exposed in a sea cliff
7 meters high just west of the colonial fort on the west side of the entrance
to the harbor of Port-de-Pai:x:
Section of Quaterna·ry beds exposed near Port-de-Paix.
Meters.
Reef rock, yellowish buff, soft, containing large heads of Orbi-
cel'la annularis and other corals; station 9765. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.6
Waterwom pebbles, poorly consolidated, in matrix of sand;
lenses of sand containing worn shells and small pieces of
corals ; station 9764. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5
Sand, rusty brown, poorly consolidated, fragmentary shells in
pockets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Sea level.
7.1
The lenses of sand in the middle bed furnished the la.r gest collection of
Quaternary mollusks obtained in the Republic. (See list, pp. 250-254,
station 9764.) The overlying reef rock contained only a few mollusks.
The remarkable emerged coastal terraces of the Northwest Peninsula are
•
described on pages 371-375, and the fossils obtained from the coralliferous
limestone covering them are listed on pages ·250-254 (stations 9841, 9840,
9844, 9838, 9837, 9836, 9835, 9834, 9833, 9832, and 9831).
In the Cul-de-Sac Plain the most extensive areas of Quaternary lime-
stone lie along the south side. The best, collection of corals was obtained
at Balan, near the southwest corner of Etang Sa11matre. (See list, p. 250;
station 9659.) Along the trail from Gantier to Fond-Parisien cavernous
limestone crops out near Pont Quinet at an altitude of about 150 meters
above sea level. This limestone is the surface rock for most of the distance
from this locality eastward to Fond-Parisien and probably forms the
ridge that exi"iends northward to the lake. Partly dissolved corals were
collected about 3 kilometers northwest of Fond-Parisien at an altitude of
90 meters above sea level. (See list, p. 250; station 9591.)
J{El' U l~ I~ I C OJ<' IT •.\ l 'J' l
<J J1;()L(><J I C..'AL S U lt\' EY !>LATE XVII

_4. PITTED QT. ATERX ARY I..1 J:\IEST(JXE '

(ROCIIE-A-RA \TET ) EXPO~ED IX
l•'Ili''l' II E:\II•: Jl(J J ~D SI•:.i\. C LII1"'I1"' OX 1'IIR Tl{AJL li'RQ:\[ l)E1"IT
JlAl{AJ)J S 1_ro B,.\.IE DI~ IIENNI·~.

fl. Pf.1E IS1"'0CENE C0X'(~I~O:\II~RA1,E o~ Tilflj ROAD T~EADI~G T~ r TO FORT

N A'l' IO~AL, 1)01{1'-.-t\. U -I•Jl IX(' E.
X ote th(l hnrflenecl . ltrface cr11. t.
 •

•
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 247

At numerous other localities where Quaternary deposits fringe the

coast they consist of one of the types of deposits that have just been de-
scribed. The terraces on which they rest are fully described in Part III.
THICKNESS.
Because of the great unevenness of the floor on which it was deposited
and the unequal amount of erosion at the surface the thickness of the
marine Quaternary is decidedly variable. It probably exceeds 50 meters
at but few places, although on the Bombardopolis Plateau the maximum
thickness may be 100 meters. At La Gorge, on Riviere du Mole, south-
east of Mole St.-Nicolas, the contact of the Quaternary deposits with the
underlying Miocene beds is at an altitude of less than 100 meters above
sea level, and t.h e Quaternary deposits rise to heights of abo11t 400 meters
above sea level on the plateau on either side of the river valley. It can
not be assumed, however, that the intervening interval represents the
thickness of the QuaternaIJ', because on each of the terraces the Quater-
nary is represented only by a thin lens of deposits that gradually tapers
landward and more rapjdly seawa.r d.
STRUCTURE.
The structure of the Quaternary formations is very simple. Although
they have undergone arching, as indicated by the unequal amounts of
emergence of the coastal terraces, especially in the Northwest Peninsula,
they are not at all crumpled, as are the underlying formations. At most
places they were deposited with a pronounced seaward dip, commonly
from 5° to 15°, which is generally visible in large excavations or in deep
stream channels. As the direction of the coast line changes the direction
of dip determined by the initial slope usually changes correspondingly.
FOSSILS.
Some of the collections here classified as Quaternary may really be
Pliocene. It is very difficult to distinguish Pleistocene from Pliocene
faunas, a difficulty which probably accounts for the apparent scarcity
of Pliocene deposits in the American tropics. No adequate attempt has
yet been made in the American tropics to sepa.r ate Pleistocene and Recent
faunas, much less to recognize faunal zones in the Pleistocene.
'
Corals are the most abundant marine Quaternary fossils, as the most
common rock is coral reef rock or coralliferous limestone. Virtually all
the species are identical with living ones. Orbicella annularis (Ellis and
Solander) was obtained at almost every locality where collections were
made from rocks of this type. Solenastrea bournoni Milne-Edwards and
Haime, Siderastrea siderea (Ellis and Solander), and Acropora muricata
(Linnaeus) are other common Quaternary corals. The lists of Miocene
corals (see pp. 178, 203, 217) show that the following Recent species
were living in Miocene time: Orbicella annularis, Dichocoenia stokesi,
Stephanocoema intersepta, Solenastrea bournoni, Solenastrea hyades, and
Siderastrea siderea. A small collection of Miocene corals may therefore
248 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

resemble a Quaternary fauna, unless it includes Stylophora, Pocillopora,

1
Antillia; Oyathomorpha, or Goniopora.
The molluscan fa11na of the Quaternary fringing reefs is rather meager,
but the total molluscan fa11na is extensive, because large collections were
obtained at localities where the deposits consist of sand and gravel or of
limestone that contains hardly any corals. Strombus gigas Linnaeus,
Arca umbonata Lamarck, Oodalcia orbicularis (Linnaeus), and Phacoides
pennsylvanicus (Linnaeus) are the common mollusks of the fringing reefs.
Not enough time was given to the determination of the mollusks to sl1ow
clearly whether any of them are different froin living West Indian species.
Most of those that are not determined specifically are poorly preserved.
Stations in marine Quaternary deposits.
9764 (W 301a F). Arrondissement of Port-de-Paix, on the coast, 100 meters
west of old fort on west side of entrance to Port-de-Paix harbor; from middle bed
of section on page 246. W. P. Woodring, collector. February 21, 1921.
9765 (W 301b F). Arrondissement of Port-de-Paix, same locality as 9764; from
upper bed of section on page 246. W. P. Woodring, collector. February 21, 1921.
9841 (B 210 F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail from Mole St.-
Nicolas to Jean Rabel, about 2 kilometers northeast of Mole St.-Nicolas. J. S.
Brown, collector. January 30, 1921.
9840 (B 209 F). Arrondissement of Mole-St.-Nicolas, cliff at northeast end of
bay. J. S. Brown, collector. January 30, 1921.
9844 (B 211a F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail from Mole St.-
Nicolas to Bombardopolis, about 2 kilometers south of Mole St.-Nicolas. J. S.
Brown, collector. January 31, 1921.
9838 (B 207 F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail from Mole-St.-
Nicolas to Bombardopolis, about 8 kilometers northwest of Bombardopolis. J. S.
Brown, collector. January 29, 1921.
9837 (B 206 F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail, from Mole St.-
Nicolas to Bombardopolis, about halfway between the towns. J. S. Brown, col-
lector. January 29, 1921.
9836 (B 205 F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail from Mole St.-
Nicolas to Bombardopolis, about 7 kilometers northwest of Bombardopolis. J. S.
Brown, collector. January 29, 1921.
9835 (B 204 F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail from Mole St.-
Nicolas to Bombardopolis, about 5 kilometers northwest of Bombardopolis. J. S.
Brown, collector. January 29, 1921.
9834 (B 203 F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail from Mole St.-
Nicolas to Bombardopolis, about a kilometer northwest of Bombardopolis. J. S.
Brown, collector. January 29, 1921.
9833 (B 200 F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail from Bombardopolis
to Baie de Henne, about 3 kilometers west of Baie de Henne and halfway up
slope of Morne
.
Chien. J. S. Brown, collector. January 27, 1921 .
9832 (B 199 F). Arrondissement of Mole St.-Nicolas, trail from Bombardopolis
to Baie de Henne, 2 kilometers west of Baie de Henne, foot of Morne Chien. J. S . •

Brown, collector. January 27, 1921.

9831 (B 197 F). Arrondissement of Gonaives, trail from Terre-N euve to Anse
Rouge, gap in low range of coastal hills about 5 kilometers southeast of Anse
Rouge. J. S. Brown, collector. January 25, 1921. I
1 There are other West Indlan Miocene genera now confined to the Indo·Paclftc region,
or extinct. (See Vaughan, T. W., U. S. Nat. Mus. Bull. 103, p. 222, 1919.) The genera
listed are knQwn in the Miocene fauna from the Republic of Haiti.
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS • 249
•

9551 (W 2 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, road from St.-Marc to Gona!ves,

steep slope on east side of t'oad at outskirts of St.-Marc. W. P. Woodring, col-
lector. September 29, 1920.
9479 (B 120 F). Arrondissement of St.-Marc, road from St.-Marc to Port-au-
Prince, 4 kilometers northwest of Mont Rouis. J. S. Brown, collector. Decem-
ber 7, 1920.
9659
, (W 110 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, Balan, southwest corner
of Etang Saumatre. W. P. Woodring, collector. November 24, 1920.
9504 (W 30 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, trail from Gantier to Fond-
Parisien, 4 kilometers east of Gantier, at an altitude of 150 meters above sea level.
W. P. Woodring, collector. October 20, 1920.
9591 (W 31 F). Arrondissement of Port-au-Prince, trail from Gantier to Fond-
Parisien, 3 kilometers northwest of Fond-Parisien, at an altitude of 90 meters
above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. October 20, 1920.
9539 (B 28 F). Arrondissement of Leogane, road from Leogane to Miragoane,
about 2 kilomet.ers west of l'Acul. J. S. Brown, collector. October 22, 1920.
9576 (B 29 F). Arrondissement of Leogane, road from Leogane to Miragoane,
Source Mahot. J. S. Brown, collector. October 22, 1920.
9469 (B 30 F). Arrondissement of Leogane, road from Leogane to Miragoane,
short distance west of Source Mahot. J. S. Brown, collector. October 22, 1920.
9613 (B 35 F). Arrondissement of Nippes, trail from Miragoane to Anse-a-
Veau, about a kilometer east of village of Charlier. J S. Brown, collector.
October 28, 1920.
9520 (W 103 F). Arrondissement of Nippes, trail from Miragoane to Anse-a-
Veau, about halfway between Petit-Riviere de Nippes a11d Anse-A-Veau. W. P.
Woodring, collector. November 18, 1920.
9614 (B 36 F). Arrondissement of Nippes, roadside cut descending steep slope
in town of Anse-a-Veau. J. S. Brown, collector. October 29, 1920.
9484 (B 115 F). Arrondissement of Nippes, about 300 meters east of Petit-
Trou de Nippes. J. S. Brown, collector. November 22, 1920.
9637 (B 100 F). Arrondissement of Grand'Anse, trail from Les Roseaux to
Corail, about 2 kilometers east of Les Roseaux. J. S. Brown, collector. N ovem-
ber 19, 1920.
9638 (B 101 F). Arrondissement of Grand'Anse, shore line at Les Roseaux.
J. S. Brown, collector. November 19, 1920.
9627 (B 74 F). Arrondissement of Coteaux, cliffs along coast 5 kilometers
northwest of Port-a-Piment. J. S. Brown, collector. November 13, 1920.
94 73 (B 67 F). Arrondissement of Cay es, sea. cliff a kilometer northwest of
Port-Salut. J. S. Brown, collector. November 11, 1920. I

9474 (B 68 F). Arrondissement of Cayes, sea cliff 1.5 kilometers northwest

of Port-Salut. J. S. Brown, collector. November 11, 1920.
9652 (K 22 F). Arrondissement of Aquin, trail from Aquin to Cotes-de-Fer,
a.bout 9 kilometers west of Cotes-de-Fer. W. S. Burbank, collector. November
12, 1920.
9650 (K 29 F). Arrondissement of J acmel, trail from Bain et to J acmel, from
surface of lowest terrace. W. S. Burbank, collector. November 14, 1921.
9603 (W 63 F). Arrondissement of J acme!, east side of J acmel Bay about 2
kilometers southeast of Jacmel, at. an altitude of 1 meter above sea level. W. P.
Woodring, collector. November 1, 1920.
• 9514 (W 62 F). Arrondissement. of Jacmel, east side of Jacmel bay, about a
kilometer southeast of Jacmel, at an altitude of 50 meters above sea level. W. P.
· Woodring, collector. November 1, 1920.
9602 (W 61 F). Arrondissement of Jacmel, same locality as 9514, at an altitude
of 60 meters above sea level. W. P. Woodring, collector. November 1, 1920.
 Marine Quaternary fossi.ls.
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Madracls decactis (Lyman) ........ . .. x x • • •• •• • • ••
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x •• • • •• • • •• 0
Eusmilia fastigiata (Pallas) .... .. .. . . • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• • • •• •• ••
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Dichoccenia stokesi Milne-Edwards and
Haime • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Dichocoenia sp., apparently new .. . ... • •
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Meandrina maeand.rites (Linnaeus) ... • • •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • • • • x •• • • •• x •• •• ••
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Orbicellaannularis (Ellis and Solander) • • • • • • •• ><. • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• • • •• • • • • •• • • ••
Orbicella cavernosa (Linnaeus) . .. .. . . • • x • • x •• x • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• • • •• •• • • ••
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Solenastrea bournoni Milne-Edwards td
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and Hai me • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• x • • •• •• • • •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• • • H
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Solenastrea hyades (Dana) ........... • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • • • • x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• • • • • ••
Maeandra labyrinthiformis (Linnaeus) • • x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• ? •• x • • •• •• •• x •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• x •• •• •• •• •• 0
~
Maeandra areolata (Linnaeus) ........ x x •• • • •• • • • • •• •• • • • • •• •• • • •• x •• •• •• • • • • • • •• •• •• •• • • • • •• x •• •• •• •• ••
Maeandra strigosa (Dana) .... .. .. .. .. • • x • • x • • • • •• •• •• •• •• • • • x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • ? •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • • ~
Maeandra clivosa (Ellis and Solander) • • •• •• •• •• •• x x • • •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • x ? • • •• >
H

Manicina gyrosa (Ellis and Solander) • • •• •• x • • •• •• • • •• •• • • • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• ~

•
Siderastrea radians (Pallas) ..... .. ... • • •• • • •• •• •• x •• •• •• • • • • • • x •• •• • • •• x •• •• •• x • • •• •• •• •• • • • • •• • • •• •• • •

Siderastrea siderea (Ellis and Solander ) • • •• • • x •• • • •• •• • • •• • • x • • x •• •• •• x ? •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• x • • • •

Agaricia agaricites (Linnaeus) .... .. . • • x • • x •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• x • • • • •• •• • • •• • • • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • •• •• • • ••

Agaricia agaricit es var. purpurea (Le-

Sueur) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x • • x •• •• •• •• • • •• • • • • • • •• •• • • • • •• •• •• • • • • •• •• • • • • •• • • •• x • • • •• •• x
Acropora muricata (Linnaeus) . . . ..... •• x x • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ? x •• •• • • •• •• •• • • •• •• x •• •• • •• x x x
Acropora palmata (Lamarck) . .. . . .. . • • •• • • • • • • •• x •• x •• •• • • •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• x • • •• •• x x •• • • •• •• • • x • • • •

Porites porites (Pallas) .......... . ... •• • • • • • • •• • • •• •• •• • • • • •• • • x x •• •• •• • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• • • •• • • ••

Porites f urcata Lamarck ... . .......... • • x •• •• • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• • • •• • • • • •• ? •• •• •• • • • • •• • • •• •• • • •• •• •• • • • • • • ••
P orites astreoides Lamarck . . . . . ...... • • x •• • • • • • • x • • • • • • •• • • • • •• •• • • • • • • •• •• • • • • •• •• •• • • • • •• • • x •• • • •• •• ••
Porites sp. cf. P. ast reoides Lamarck. •• •• •• • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• • • • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• x •• x •• ••
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Brachipoda :
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Hinds •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • • • •• •• • • •• ••
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Oypraea lurida Linnaeus ••••••••. x x •• •• •• •• •• t I 0 I •• I I •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• ••

Oypraea exanthema Linnaeus ••.• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• ••

x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• I I •• •• •• •• •• ••
Trivia pedicula Linnaeus .•••.•.•. •• •• •• I I
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x •• • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Trivia sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •

Strombus gigas Linnaeus ...••..•• •• x • • •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• • • ••

Strombus pugilis Linnaeus ...•••• •• • • • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• ••

Ceritbium caudatum Sowerby •••• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••

Cerithium sp. cf. c. fiorida11um

MBrch • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
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Cerithium sp. cf. c. literratum ,_.
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252 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

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Scaphopoda :
Den tali um sp. cf. D. semistriolatum
Guilding • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• • • • • • • • • •• • • •• •• • • •• •• • • •• ••

Pelecypoda :
Arca umbonata Lamarck .............. x •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• • • •• •• • • x •• •• • • • • •• •• •• • • •• ? •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • en
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x ? •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• ••
Barbatia candida (Gmelin) .•.••.•.••• •• •• • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • t='
Scapharca auriculata (Lamarck) ..••• x . •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
t-4

~
•• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ' •• •• •• •• • •

Bcapbarca deshayesi (Lamarck) ...••• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• ••

Glycymeris pennacea (Lamarck) ...•• x x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• z~

Glycymeris sp. cf. 6. pectin a ta (Gme·
lin) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ~
~
Glycymerie sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• ••
•
Atrina sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• t:d
0
Ostrea folium Linnaeus ............... x •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• Q
Ostrea sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x x • •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ~
•• •• •• •• • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• 00
Chlamys (Ohlamys) imbricatus (Orne- •
lin) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• •• •• • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Ohlamys (Aequipecten) sp .•••.••••••• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• . ' •• ., •• •• x •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• ••
Cblamys ( Plagioctenium) sp, cf. o.
(P.) gibbus ( Linnaeus) ...••.• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• ••
Spondylus amer1cana •
Lamarck .....••• ? x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• . ' •• •• • • • • • • • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •

Lima seabra Born .. ................... x •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••

Mytilus sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Ohama macerophylla Gmelin .......... x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ? •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• ••

Cocakia (Codakia) orbicularis (Lin-

naeus) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ? x •• •• •• • • •• •• • • • • •• ? •• x •• •• • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• ? •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Oodakia (Jagonia) sp . ................ •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• ••
Lucina sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ~
Ot
Phacoides (Here) pennsylvanicus (Lin- ~
x
naeus) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ? • • •• • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
'
 Ma1·ine Qua~ernary fossils Continued. •

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Pelecypoda- Continued : fil0

Pbacoides (Oallucina) radians (Oon· t-4
0
rad) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• • • ••
0
Phacoidee (Parvilucina) sp. cf. P. ~
(P.) lintea Conrad ..••..••••.• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ? • • • • •• •• • • •• •• • • •• •• • • •• 0
Divaricella quadrisulcata d'Orbigny .• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ? x •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• ~
Diplodonta sp. cf. D. candeana d'Or- ,..,
bigny • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • • • • • •• •• • • •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • ~
l2j
Cardium (Fragum) mediu.m Linnaeus x •• •• • • •• •• • •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • ••
Oardi11m (Papyridea) sp. cf. c. (P.) ~
•
sp1nosum Meuschen • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • ~
Protocardia sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• ••
Cl
td
Dosinia elegans Conrad ............... x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• ••
~
Pitar ep. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• a
Oytherea (Ventricola) rigida (Dill· 0
wyn) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ~
Obione cancella Linnaeus ••••••••••••• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• x •• • • •• x •• •• •• •• •• ••
~
Chione (Lirophora) paphia Linnaeus .• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• ~
~
Coralliophaga ep. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • x •• ••
~
•• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• • • •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••
Tellina (Tellina) interrupta Wood ..• x • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •
Tellina ( Eurytellina) georgiana •
Dall. •• x •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• • • • • • • •• • • •• •• •• x •• •• • • • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •

Tellina (Angulus) sp. cf. T. (A.)

promera Dall • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• • • •• •• • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• • • ••

•
Tellina ( Cyclotellina) fausta Donovan x •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• • • •• • • •• • • • • •• • • •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• • • •• x •• ••
Tellina ep. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• • • • • •• •• •• x • • • • •• • • •• • • •• x •• •• •• •• • • ••

Strigilla rombesgii lll::Srch . ..•......... •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ? •• x •• •• •• •• • • • • •• •• •• • • •• ••

Yacoma ? IP· .••.• • ••.••...••..•...•• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• • • •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• ••
Oorbula sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• x • • •• •• • • •• •• •• •• • • ••
•
Decapod Crustacea:
Mithrax sp. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• •• •• •• x •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• • • •• •• •• • • ••
 SEDil!ENTARY ROCKS. 255
•
N ONMARINE DEPOSITS.
•

The nonmarine Quaternary deposits consist of stratified but generally

poorly sorted silt, clay, sand, or gravel deposited by streams. The
material of which they are composed is usually identified as derived from
adjacent highlands. They are unconsolidated, and although the beds in
many places have a slight initial dip, equivalent to that of the slope on
which they were deposited, they are not deformed. No attempt was made
to separate Pleistocene and Recent deposits. In general the older (prob-
ably Pleistocene) deposits are more dissected than the yo11nger deposits.
It is equally difficult to distinguish the Quaternary deposits from similar
deposits of Pliocene age. The degree of dissection and the general geologic
history have been utilized in attempting this separation.
The presence of nonmarine Quaternary gravels at the landward margin
of the marine Qua.t ernary deposits and the reasons for their apparent or
actual absence at many places have been mentioned on page 245.
Extensive areas of sands and gravels of Quaternary age are found
on some of the plains adjoining the sea, particular1y in the eastern part
of the North Plain, east of the longitude of Fort Liberte. Here they floor
a dissected plain, and a thin veneer of gravels covers parts of the rock
platform that extend along the mountain front to the south. (For de-
scription of surface features see pp. 356-358.) The deposits consist of
11nconsolidated gravels, sands, and clays, derived chiefly from eroded and
weathered products of the quartz diorite, which crops out in the mol1n-
tains and on the platform on which the deposits lie. The beds have a
gentle seaward slope, parallel to the surface of the plain. The beds of
sand and gravel are lenticular and cross-bedded. The clay is fine and
dark, and at places it contains indeterminable fragments of plants. On
the plain northeast of Acul Samedi, where the deposits are well exposed,
the sands and gravels cap small mesas. Near the surface the sandy beds
are at places cemented into relatively hard sandstones by iron and manga-
nese oxides. Residual concretionary masses of these oxides are scattered
on the surface. (See pp. 4 77-4 78.)
The deposits probably were laid down by streams during the retreat of
the sea after the cutting of the rock platform. More careful study might
show that some of the beds are marine. Coral reefs and coralliferous
limestones, probably of Quaternary age, were found on the eastward
prolongation of the plain near Copey, in the Dominican Republic. 1
Other unconsolidated gravels and sands of Quaternary age occupy con-
siderable areas in the interior, generally at the foot of high mol1ntain
ranges or in interior valleys and plains.
Quaternary deposits cover stream terraces along t.he large streams. The
most extensive terrace deposits are in the drainage basin of Riviere Arti-
.
1
A geological reconnaissance of the Dominican Republic : Dominican Rep. Geol.
Survey Mem., vol. 1, pp. 165, 174-175, 1921.
 256 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

bonite. The terraces are described on pages 380-385. The separation of

the Pliocene Hinche formation from the Quaternary terrace deposits in the
Central Plain may be artificial. In general the Quaternary deposits here
contain a greater proportion of large cobbles and boulders of limestone
and brown or black chert derived from the surro11nding mountains.
Similar terrace deposits are widespread in the Artibonite Valley. Along
the trail from Mirebalais to Saut d'Eau the deposits on the west side of
Riviere Tombe consist of gravel, coarse sand, and lenses of white marl.
At places boulders of chert and basalt larger than a man's head are strewn
on the surface. These deposits are as much as 30 meters higher than the
stream and are well dissected. The land gastropods listed on page 25 7
(station 9457) were collected from coarse sa.n d 25 meters above the
stream at a locality about 5 kilometers southwest of Mirebalais. Fresh-
water and land gastropods were collected from silt a kilometer southeast
of Mirebalais, on the road to Las Cahobas. (See list, p. 257, station 9902.)
Some of these stream deposits may be of the same age as the Hinche for-
mation of the Central Plain, but more detailed work would be required
to separate Pliocene and Quaternary deposits.
In the lower part of the Artibonite Va.lley Quaternary terrace gravels
extend along the north side of the river. At places the surface is strewn
with boulders and cobbles. (See Pl. XXX, A, p. 386.) On the south side
of the river a narrow band of gravels extends downstream from Les
Verrettes. Northwest of the road from St.-Marc to GonaYves the gravels
grade into conglomeratic coralliferous limestone.
The relations of the Quaternary gravels near Port-au-Prince to the
water supply of the city are discussed on pages 571-573.
The nonmarine Quaternary deposits are similar to the marine in show-
ing a peculiar hardening near the surface, which causes them to resemble
much older and more consolidated rocks. The process is essentia.lly the
same as with the marine deposits. Near the surface the bedding usually
is destroyed by this process, which is assisted by slump and creep. A typi-
cally hardened surface is shown in Plate XVII, B. This effect is not
noticeable more than 2 or 3 meters below the surface of the ground.
The thickness of the nonmarine Quaternary deposits is perhaps even
more variable than that of the marine. Only at a few places, probably,
does it exceed 50 meters.
FOSSILS.
Land and fresh-water mollusks are the only invertebrate fossils obtained
from nonmarine deposits of Quaternary age. Most of the land mollusks,
which were examined by the late Mr. John B. Henderson, of the United
States National Museum, are similar to species now living in Haiti.
Stations near M irebalais (nonmarine Quaternary).
9457 (W 135 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, trail from Mirebalais to Saut
d'Eau (Ville Bonheur), about 5 kilometers southwest of Mirebalais. W. P.
Woodring, collector. December 7, 1920.
•

•
 •
I

SEDI~lENT.ARY ROCKS. 257

•

9902 (W 181 F). Arrondissement of Mirebalais, road from Mirebalais to Laa

Cahobas, about a kilometer east-southeast of Mirebalais. W. P. Woodring, col-
lector. January 8, 1921.

Nonmarine Quaternary fossils collected near M irebalais.

Species. 9457 9902

Gastropoda:
Limnnea sp. • .••..••.••••.•.••••..•....••..•.....•••..•••.•••.••••.••..••.....•.• •••• x
Oepolis (Plagioptycbus) indisti ncta Ferussac .......•.......•..••...•.....•......
Pupo ides marginatus nitidulus Pfeiffer ...•..............•..••......•..••.........
••••
••••
x
x •
Obeliscus ep. . ..•...•....•......•.........•.............•...•.•.....•...........• •• • • x
Obeliscus (Dolicholestes) sp., apparently different from any described West
Indian species .•....•...•....•...••.....••...•....••...••.•••••••••••...••..• x ••••
Pleurodonte (Parthena) sp. cf. P. (P.) angusta Ferussac ................ ·....•..• x ••••
Pleurodonte (Parthena) undulata Ferussac ..•....•.......•..••..........•....••.. x ••••
Pleurodonte (LuquilJa) sp. cf. P. (L.) audelbardi Pfeiffer .......•...•.....•••.•.• x ••••

EXTINCT QUATERNARY MAMMALS AND BIRDS.

Extinct Quaternary mammals, prjncipally rodents, ground sloths and

bats, have been found in caves and kitchen middens in Cuba, Porto Rico,
1
and other West Indian islands. Miller has described three rodents, be-
longing to the genera Isolobodon, Plagiodontia, and Brotomys, from
kitchen middens at San Pedro de Macorfs and San Lorenzo in the Do-
miniran Republic. During the reconnaissance of the Republic of Haiti
a preliminary examination was made of two caves in the arrondissement
of Marmelade in order to determine whether a similar fauna could be
discovered in the Republic. The results fully justified the preliminary
exploratjon and indicate that more extensive exploration of these and
other caves in the Republic is warranted.
The caves examined are on the south slope of the mountains northeast
of St.-Michel de l'Atalaye and northwest of the plantation of the United
West Indian Corporation. The mountains here consist of limestone of
middle Eocene age. In this region there are a large number of caves,
formed during a period when the drainage systems were different from
the present. Many of the caves stand high on the mountain slope and have
no apparent relation to the present drainage, either surface or subterra-
nean. There is little evidence of active solution. The caves are dry and are
apparently being filled with residual clay, rain-washed debris, and other
material. Many of them contain a thick floor cover of guano left by the
thousands of bats that now inhabit or recently inhabited them.
1
Miller, G. S., jr., Bones of mammals from Indian sites in Cuba and Santo Domingo:
Smithsonian Misc. Coll., vol. 66, no. 12, 10 pp., 1 pl., 1916.

17
258 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The larger of the two caves explored is about 3 or 4 kilometers north-

east of St.-Michel de l'Atalaye and the same distance northwest of the
plantation. It stands about 600 meters above sea level, nearly 200 mete1·s
above the Central Plain, which adjoins the mountains to the south. Its
length is about 40 meters and its width and height 10 to 20 meters.
Several large columns, formed by the union of stAlactites and stalagmites,
extend from the floor to the roof. The cave has two large openings, sepa-
rated by a pillar, and a third small opening on the sloping hillside, which
affords entrance nearly on the plane of the floor. Near the rear of the
cave there is an opening or skylight, about 5 meters in diameter, through
which long roots of figuier trees extend. Fragments of rock and surface
wash falling down the skylight have built up a small cone of coarse debris
beneath it. An excavation nearly 2 meters deep and a little more than a
meter in diameter was made in the middle of one of the largest open
spaces. Only firm, dry, reddish dirt was enco11ntered. The rock floor
appears to be very deep here and was not approached in this pit. Another
hole was made near the rear end of the cave, about a meter from the wall
and 5 meters from the cone of debris near the skylight. The excavation
was less than a meter deep and about a meter in diameter. Rocks and
boulders were embedded in the cave earth. From very near the surface
downward this hole yielded bones.
The smaller cave examined is about 2 kilometers north-northwest of
•

the plantation and perhaps 2 kilometers east of the first cave, on the south
side of a deep dry ravine. The diameter of the opening is about 30 meters.
The roof is arched, all in one chamber, and the floor is convex, the rear
half being nearly bare rock, partly covered by a thin deposit of bat guano.
The mouth, which was formerly much larger, is choked by a pile of debris
from the cliff that rises above it. This debris has rolled inward as well
as outward, covering the floor of the front part of the cave. An excavation
was made at the lowest part of the cave adjacent to one of the vertical
rock walls, following down the wall to a depth of nearly 2 meters. At the
bottom the rock wall sloped inward steeply, and the entire floor of the
excavation was on rock. The material excavated consisted of loose stones,
between which lay dirt and guano. Bones were found from a depth of
0.6 meter to the bottom, increasing in number downward.
The bones obtained are the remains of mammals and birds. The mam-
mals have been examined by Mr. G. S. Miller, jr., of the United States
National Muse11m, and the birds by Mr. Alexander Wetmore, of the Bio-
logical Survey, United States Department of Agriculture. Papers con-
1
taining descriptions of the remains have recently been published. The
remains identified by Miller and Wetmore are tabulated below.
1Miller, G. S., jr., Remains ot mammals from caves in the Republic of Haiti: Smith-
sonian Misc. Coll., vol. 74, no. 3, 8 pp., 1922. Wetmore, Alexander, Remains of birds from
caves In the Republic of Haiti: Smithsonian Misc. Coll., vol. 74, no. 4, 4 pp., 2 t~t figs.,
1922.
 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 259

Mammals: Mammals :-Continued.

Rodents: Man:
Isolobodon portoricensis Allen.
Aphaetreus montanus Mille1·
Homo sapiens (head of left femur).
Unidentified fragments. -
n. gen. and n. sp. Birds:
Ithydontia levir Miller n. gen. Chaemepelia passerina (Linnaeus).
and n. sp. Crotophaga ani Linnaeus.
Brotomys voratus Miller? Tyto ostologa Wetmore n. sp.
Ground sloth : Tolmarchus gabbii (Lawrence).
Megalocnus?
'
Rodents of the genus Isolobodon furnished the most abundant remains
in both caves. The new genus Aphaetreus is represented by a mandible
with a full set of cheek teeth, and the new genus Ithydontia by isolated
teeth, all of which were collected in the larger cave. A small ground sloth,
probably resembling the extinct M egalocnus of Cuba, is represented by
a nearly perfect caudal vertebra, an imperfect probably dorsal vertebra, a
fragment a.p parently of the proximal end of the radius of a young animal,
all obtained in the larger cave; and by two imperfect caudal vertebrae and
the proximal end of a fragment of the shaft of a rib, collected in the
smaller cave. The human remains consist of the head of a left femur
found at the same level with the remains of the ground sloth in the
smaller cave. The bone substance is lighter and less infiltrated with
mineral matter than the bones of the sloth. A chipped chert, identified
by Mr. Walter Hough, of the United States National Museum, as a
human artifact, was found at an undetermined level in the same cave.
The human remains are probably yo11nger than the others. The unidenti-
fied fragments include parts of a foot of perhaps a large rodent and a
piece of a large bone, probably of a ground sloth.
Three of the birds a dove ( Ohaemepelia), an ani ( Orotophaga), and a
petchary ( T olmarchus) are now found in the Republic. The fourth,
Tyto ostologa, is a very remarkable extinct gigantic barn owl, represented
by the head of a metatarsus and other fragments. Evidently this bird
'vas the marauder that brought into the caves the rodents whose bones
are found there in such large numbers. Some o.f these rodents are so
large that no living owl of the Republic could handle them.
Aside from the interesting discovery of the unknown gigantic owl, the
remains obtained from the excavations increase our knowledge of the
extinct early Quaternary mammalian fa11na of the West Indies. Although
no carnivores or ungulates have yet been found, the known fauna is be-
coming more and more diversified with each exploration. The extinct
1
Haitian mammals support Miller's suggestion that the West Indian early
Quaternary mammals descended directly from a South American fauna
probably not older than Miocene. This suggestion hannonizes with the
view that during late Miocene time the West Indian lands were more
extensive than now and probably were directly connected with Central
America, and that they were separated into islands during Pliocene time.
1 Miller, G. S., jr., op. cit., p. 4, 1916.
•
 260 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI •

.
IGNEOUS ROCKS.

By WILBUR s. BURBANK.

GENERAL DISTRIBUTION.
Igneous rocks crop out in probably a little more than one-fifth of the
total area of the Republic. The largest areas are in the Massif du Nord
and in the ranges of the Southern Peninsula. Relatively few exposures
are found in the central ranges and intervening plains. Most of the igne-
ous rocks are older than the T ertiary sedimentary rocks and are now ex-
posed principally on the eroded crests of anticlinal arches and in deep .
valleys where the sedimentary rocks have been removed. The areal dis-
tribution of the igneous rocks is shown on the geologic map (Pl. I.)
•

The igneous rocks are discussed under the heading of extrusive rocks,
or those that have poured out on the surface of the earth, and of intrusive
rocks, or those that have been injected into or have penetrated between
other rocks and solidified with.
out reaching the surface. As it is not
always possible in the field, especially among the older rocks, to distin-
guish between extrusive and intrusive rocks, certain rocks of doubtful
origin are either classified on t extural and other features, or are discussed
with other rocks of known origin that accompany them.
The geology of the igneous rocks is relatively complex. Notable dif-
ferences are found both in the rocks and in the igneous history of the north-
ern and southern parts of the country. The early igneous history of the
central part of the country is obscured by the overlying Tertiary forma-
tions, but its later Tertiary history has some distinctive features. Both
because of convenience in discussion and because of petrologic considera-
tions, the igneous rocks of the Republic will be discussed under three
geographical divisions:
1. The northern region (see Pl. XXVII), comprisjng Tortue Island,
the North Plain, the Massif du Nord, the Northwest Peninsula, the
northwestern part of the Montagnes Noires, the northern part of the
Central Plain, and the northern extremity of the Artibonite Plain.
2. The central region, comprising the southern part of the Central
Plain, the southeastern part of the Montagnes Noires, the southern part
of the Artibonite Plain, the Montagnes du Trou d'Eau, and the Cha!ne
des Mate11x. ·
3. The southern region, comprising the Massif de la Selle and the
Massit de la Hotte.
The general boundaries of these regions are shown on the geologic
map, although naturally they can not be sharply drawn. A summary
of the igneous activity and of the tectonic history of these three regions
is given in the following table:
•
 •

IGNEOUS ROCKS. 261

Summary of the igneous activity and tectonic history.

•

Time Northern Central Southern

•
subdivisions. region. region. region.

Pli'>Cene • • • • • • • • . . Emergence ••••••• , . • • • • Emergence ••••.•••.•••• Minor submergence and

continuation of fold-
ing.
Upper Miocene ..• Emergence and folding. Emergence and intense Emergence and folding.
Intrusion of quartz di- folding.
orite in Monts. de
Terre-Neuve.
Lower and middle Marginal submergence. Nearly complete sub- Marginal submergence.
Miocene. Marls and \!oralliferous mergence. Minor erup-
limestones. tions of basalt, inter-
bedded in marl.
Upper Oligocene •• Partial submergence fol- Extensive submergence. Emergence.
lowed by emergence. Limestones.
Eruption of nephelitl!
basalt. Partial emer··
gence.
Middle Oligocene . Partial submergence . . . • Extensive submergence .. Local submergence.
Lower Oligocene .• I Emergence and folding. . I Probable emergence ...• j Emergence and folding.
Upper Eocene • • • • Extensive submergence. Complete submergence. Complete submergence.
Limestones. Limestones. Limestones.
Middle Eocene • • • • I Partial submergence • • . • I Emergence . . . . . . . . • • • • .
I Emergence.
Lower Eocene ...•• Emergence and extensive Emergence and extensive Emergence and extensive
erosion. ( ?) Minor •
erosion.
.
erosion.
\

eruptions of basalt,
andesite, diabase, es-
sexite. Exact age un-
known.
Upper Cretaceous. Batholitbic intrusions of Basalts and tufts, prob- F olding. Extensive fis-
quartz diorite. Intense ably of this age. sure eruptions of ba·
folding. salt, partly submarine.
Local submergence. Lime· Probably partial sub- Partial submergence.
stones. mergence. Limestones.
Lo\ver or middle Partial submergence. • ••••••••••••••••••••••• • Partial submergence. Ar-
Cretaceous. Sandstones, shales, ar- gillaceous limestones
gillites, non-marine and and shales.
•
marine.
• Jurassic .......•.•Emergence. Extensive •• •••••• •••• • •••• ••••• • • • Emergence ( ?). No evi-
volcanic activity. dence of igneous ac-
Eruption of andesites tivity.
and dacites.
Early Jurassic or Eruptions of basaltic
Triassic ( ?) • lavas and minor in-
trusions of basic and
ultrabasic rocks.

•
 262 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

OUTLINE OF THE IGNEOUS GEOLOGY.

Northern region. The northern system of mountains in the Republic
of Haiti, here called the Massif du Nord, is characterized by a core of
large bodies of massive quartz diorite, probably of middle or late Cre-
taceous age. These granitic rocks intrude and metamorphose lavas of
Mesozoic age and some older metamorphic sediments, possibly of Paleo-
zoic age. The mountain ranges of the Northwest Peninsula also contain
some bodies, of unknown size, of similar granitic intrusives.
Apparently the oldest Mesozoic lavas are basalts. Associated with them
are some pyroxenites, peridotites, and diabasic intrusives, which are
probably of nearly the same age. Near the quartz diorite batholith these
older rocks have been subjected to contact metamorphism and a-re con-
verted locally into amphibolites and serpentinous amphibolites or into
. amphibole, talc, and chloritic schists. The alteration of the pyroxenites
and peridotites is somewhat in contrast to that of similar rocks in Cuba,
where the f orm.a tion of serpentine was the most common alteration. lf ost
of the earlier basaltic rocks have suffered more or less metamorphism,
a.nd many are converted to '' greenstones.'' Olivine-free and hypersthene
basalts and porphyritic basalts rich in pyroxene and containing some
olivine seem to be the more common types. The age of these basalts is
possibly Jurassic or older.
The yo11nger and more extensive Mesozoic lavas are chiefly andesites
but include some dacites. They are found throughout nearly the lengtl1
of the Massif du Nord and are remarkably l1niform in composition and
texture. The apparent lack of more diverse types of lava in association
with the andesites and dacites is noteworthy. Where they have been in-
truded by the quartz diorite these lavas have been locally metamorphosed
but not to the extent of the older basaltic rocks. The more common
varieties seem to be pyroxene andesites, hornblende-augite andesites, and
hornblende andesites; hypersthene andesites and hornblende-biotite ande-
sites are less common. The quartz-bearing varieties of lava include pyrox-
ene dacites, hornblende-augite dacites, and hornblende-biotite dacites.
Some of the lavas that contain only a little quartz should possibly be
classified as quartz-bearing pyroxene andesites. The eruption of the
andesites and dacites in the central part of the Massif du Nord certainly
took place prior to the deposition of certain sedimentary rocks that are
considered Lower or Middle Cretaceous, but in the Montagnes Noires
the lavas appear locally to have buried similar sediments. However, no
lava flows have been found definitely interbedded in the Cretaceous ( ?)
sedimentary rocks. Probably the eruptions occurred largely in the Juras-
sic period, but in some regions they extended at least into the lower Cre-
taceous, and minor undiscovered eruptions may be even later.
Basaltic lavas and intrusive rocks, some of them alkaline, have a
rather local distribution in the western part and along the southwestern
 lGN'EOUS :aoc:KS. 263

border of the Massif du Nord. At several localities these rocks seem to be

younger than the andesites, but their relation to the quartz diorite was
not detennined at any place. Calcareous sediments containing Foraminif-
era of 11nknown age are in places associated with these lavas and are
locally engulfed or included in pillow lavas of this series. The varieties of
rock include amygdaloidal basalts, olivine basalts and diabases, analcite
andesites, analcite-olivine andesites, and essexite. Some of the rocks are
much zeolitized. The more or less alkaline varieties are rather common •

and are widely distributed. The age of the eruptions may have been late
Cretaceous or early Eocene, but the evidence warrants only very general
conclusions.
The major igneous intrusion occurred in rnjddle or late Cretaceot1s
time and consisted of large bodies of quartz diorite of rather uniform
composition. In the eastern part of the Massif du Nord, where it is ex-
tensively exposed, the quartz diorite contains hornblende and chlorite.
In the Northwest Peninsula altered porphyritic facies of the intrusive
rock locally contain mica. Some lamprophyric dikes and veins of quartz
hornblendite cut the main body of the batholith.
Intrusions of minor stocks of quartz diorite, granodiorite, and asso-
ciated porphyries occurred probably during the Miocene along the central
arch 0£ the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve. These rocks invaded the Mesozoic
andesitic lavas and the overlying upper Eocene limestones. The intrusives
where exposed are principally the fine-grained porphyries. There are also
some associated dikes of porphyry and veins of pegmatite.
In a general way the igneous rocks of the northern part of the Republic
are similar in many features to those of the Western Cordillera of South
America and to those of the Pacific Coast ranges of North America. The
prevalence of andesites and dacites among the volcanic rocks is a char-
acteristic feature of the Western Cordillera of South America. An analy-
sis of a pyroxene andesite from the Terre-Neuve region (p. 276) shows
relatively higher silica and lower potassium oxide than the average andes-
ite. The high percentage of quartz and the practical absence of orthoclase
in the quartz diorite from the central part of the Massif du Nord is also
particularly noteworthy. The Cretaceous quartz diorite of the Northwest
Peninsula and the Miocene ( ?) intrusives of the Montagnes de Terre..
N euve are higher in potash feldspar than the principal body of quartz
diorite. All the rocks are rather high in titanium.
Quartz and hornblende bearing granitic intrusives are widespread in
the West Indies and are found in the islands of Cuba, Porto Rico,
1
Vieques, St. Thomas, and St. Martin. They a.r e both pre-Cretaceous
1
and post-Cretaceous in age.
Central region. In the central ranges and plains of the Republic the
pre-Tertiary igneous rocks are rarely exposed. Small patches of glassy
1 Vaughan, T. w., unpublished notes.
264 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

hypersthene basalts are exposed along the central arch in the southeastern
part of the Montagnes Noires. These lavas are older than upper Eocene.
Small areas of early or pre-Tertiary igneous rocks are exposed in tl1e
central part of the Cha.lne des Mate11x.
Nephelite basalts are found at several localities in the Montagnes du
Trou d'Eau. Flows and explosive eruptions of these lavas took place
probably from isolated central vents. In composition the rocks are
largely or entirely nephelite basalt.. Some varieties contain haiiynite or
melilite ·and others are much zeolitized. Rocks of similar composition
1
(p. 316) have been found in Grenada and in Uvalde County, Texas! The
nephelite basalts northeast of Thomazeau are of middle or upper Oligo-
cene age; basalts near Saut d'Eau are post-middle Oligocene and may be
younger than the others, but their relations to the Miocene beds of the
Artibonite Valley are not known. In the Dominican Republic limburgite,
8
probably of Pleistocene age, has been found.
Minor amounts of basaltic lavas and debris are interbedded in the
Miocene sedimentary rocks on the western flank of the Chaine des Mateux
and in the southwestern part of the Montagnes du Trou d'Eau.
Southern region. The principal igneous rocks found in the mountain
ranges comprising the Southern Peninsula of Haiti are basaltic lavas.
These lavas are exposed in the central arch of the mountains or in deep
v~lleys cut in the Tertiary limestones. The lavas have buried older lime-
stones and argillaceous rocks, probably partly of Cretaceous age, and
together with these comprise a basement on which the Tertiary l imestones
lie. Probably only a part of the original extent of the eruptions is included
by the present outline of the Southern Peninsula. The eruptions were
doubtless for the most part of the fissure type, as pyroclastic debris is
found only locally. Ordinary basalts are the most common variety of lava,
but olivine basalts, spilitic basalts, diabase porphyries, and augite ande-
sites are also found. Some of the lavas are amygdular and many have
pillow structure. Large amounts of tuff and agglomerate are exposed in
the northwestern part of the Massif de la Selle. An analysis of an ordi-
nary basalt from the Massif de la Selle (p. 325) shows that the lava is
unusually high in calcium oxide and rather high in titanium. One of the
noteworthy features of the analysis is the very high ferrous iron, showing
that the lavas were probably fluid.4 The eruptions doubtless occurred in
Upper Cretaceous time, as the lavas have buried argillaceous limestones
that are considered Lower or Middle Cretaceous, and pillow lavas have
locally buried or intruded unconsolidated calcareous deposits that are
1 Harrison, J. B., Rocks and soils of Grenada and Carriacou, p. 10, London, 1896.
1 Osann, A., Melilite-nephelite basalt and nepheline basanite from Southern Texas:

Jour. Geol., vol. 1, pp. 341-346, 1913. Vaughan, T. W., and C1·oss, W., U. S. Geol. Survey
Geol. Atlas, Uvalde Folio (No. 64), pp. 3-5. 1900.
1 Condit, D. D., and Ross, C. P., Dominican Rep. Geol. Survey Mem., vol. 1, p. 203, 1921.

' Washington, H. S., Deccan traps and other plateau basalts: Geol. Soc. America Bull.,
vol. 33, pp. 765-804:, 1922.
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 265

supposed to be Upper Cretaceous (pp. 96-97). The lavas lie uncon-

formably beneath upper Eocene limestones.
Hypersthene and hornblende andesites are found near Baraderes in
the Southern Peninsula. They comprise only a small group of rocks, and
their relations to the basalts are unknown. They are probably, like the
basalts, of late Cretaceous age.
NORTHERN REGION.
EXTRUSIVE RocKs.

GENERAL FEATtJRES AND DISTRIBUTION.

•

The extrusive rocks of the northern region are principally lavas. Al-
though they include some interbedded breccias and tuffs, no thick de-
posits of such rocks were seen except in the western part of the Northwest
Peninsula, where some tu:ffaceous and agglomeratic rocks of unknown
thickness underlie limestone of supposed upper Eocene age. A large part
of the detrital volcanic rocks have probably been reworked and deposited
in water. The lavas form the larger part of the igneous rocks in the
northern region and in general range in composition from basalts to
dacites, but may include more basic or more acidic rocks.
The thickness of the extrusive series is unknown but is probably varia.ble
in different parts of the region, and at some places is undoubtedly very
great. No reliable estimate of the thickness is possible at present, as
the basement on which the lavas rest has not been definitely recognized
in outcrops. In the western part of the Massif du Nord the thickness
probably is more than 1,000 meters. The original thickness of the series
may have considerably exceeded 1,000 meters in some places, as in addi-
tion to their erosion in the present cycle these rocks underwent erosion
during long periods in both Cretaceous and early Eocene time, parts of
the later volcanic accumulations probably having been removed during
each period. In some regions a part of the series has also been engulfed
in a Cretaceous batholitbic intrusion of quartz diorite.
In the eastern part of the Massif du Nord the volcanics flank the intru-
sive quartz diorite along its entire southern boundary, and a band of
metamorphic volcanic rocks extends along the north side from Grande-
Ri viere du Nord eastward to Les Perches. East of Les Perches they were
largely engulfed in the quartz diorite, although small patches are still
preserved and in places crop out through the alluvial deposits of the
North Plain. (See Fig. 18, A and B, p. 311.) In the western part of the
Massif du Nord, west of the Grande Riviere du Nord, the volcanic rocks
comprise 80 to 90 per cent or more of the exposed igneous rocks. A small
area of volcanic rocks is found at the border of the Central Plain north
of Hinche. Northwest of the plain, near St.-Michel de l' Atalaye and
Ennery, small patches of the underlying lavas are exposed in the areas of
Eocene limestones.
266 GEOLOGY OF THE B.EPUBLIC OF HAITI. •

In the northern part of the Montagnes Noires and outlying parts of the
Artibonite Plain, lavas apparently constitute the bulk of the igneo11s
rocks and are exposed in the deeper valleys and along the tilted northwest
front of the mountains.
The igneous rocks in the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve are p1·edominantly
lavas In the extreme western part o:f the Northwest Peninsula small
areas of the lavas and pyroclastic rocks underlie the upper Eocene
limestone.
AGE OF ERUPTIONS.

The longest periods of volcanic activity were clearly pre-Tertiary,

and as lavas of these periods near Grande-Riviere du Nord and Dondo11
are i1nconformably overlain by argillites of supposed Lower Cretaceous
age and by Upper Cretaceous limestone the earlier periods can be re-
f erred back to pre-Cretaceous time. Little or no evidence was found to
show how long before Cretaceous time the volcanic activity may have
existed. Much of the activity was probably o:f Jurassic age, but at least
the later part of it may have been of Lower Cretaceous age, as hornblende
andesites in the Montagnes Noires southwest of St.-Michel appear to
cover sedimentary rocks tentatively correlated with the Cretaceous series.
No positive evidence of igneous activity in middle or upper Eocene time
was found. Except for usually thin basal beds, composed largely of detrital
igneous material, the Eocene sedimentary rocks are principally lime-
stones. The basal conglomerate of the Plaisance limestone (middle
Eocene) exposed at the northeast base o:f Mont Puilboreau and between
Ennery and St.-Michel de l' Atalaye contains rounded pebbles and boulders
of the 11nderlying volcanic rocks (see pp. 272, 102, and Fig. 18, 0, p. 311).
This material was derived by erosion from the 11nderlying volcanic base-
ment. In the western part of the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve the basal
part of the Eocene limestone, for a thickness of several hundred meters,
1
contains interbedded sandy layers of igneous material. '1 his material
appears to be waterworn sand and pebbles and was derived by erosion from
an igneous landmass above sea level probably in what is now the central
part of the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve. (See pp. 113-115.) In the extreme
western part of the Northwest Peninsula, at Morne Chien, between Baie
de Henne and Bombardopolis, a small amount of sandy material derived
from igneous rocks is interbedded in the basal parts of limestone of sup-
posed upper Eocene age. The sandy basal beds immediately overlie tuf-
faceous and agglomeratic volcanic debris. The igneous material in the
sandy limestone apparently was not a product of contemporaneous vol-
canic activity but was derived by erosion from the underlying tuff. About
1
10 to 12 kilometers farther west, near Plateforme, according to Liitgens,
ash, tuffs, and basalt flows are interbedded with metamorphosed marly
1Ltttgens, R., Geographische und geologische Beobachtungen in Nordwest-Haiti: Geog.
Gesell. in Hamburg Mitt., Band 32, pp. 72-75, 1919.

,
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 267

limestone. Although Liitgens has apparently misjudged the age of the

limestone and basalt, which, from lack of paleontologic data, he calls Plio-
cene, his sections and descriptions appear to indicate that basal parts of the
upper Eocene limestone and the llnderlying volcanic debris are exposed
near Plateforme. (See also pp. 112 and 370.) However, great thicknesses
of interbedded tuffs are found farther west in the upper Eocene limestone
of the Sierra Maestra of Cuba.
The upper limits of age of the principal periods of volcanic activity
•
can thus be placed at middle Eocene and in most places at upper Cre-
taceous. There is little or no evidence to show how far back in the
Mesozoic the earlier volcanic eruptions took place. The intense local
meta.m orphism produced during the batholithic intrusion of quartz diorite
near the close of Cretaceous time renders the criterion of metamorphism
of rather doubtful value. Certain schists that possibly consist of remnants
of the basement upon which the lavas were erupted show a degree of
metamorphism much greater than that found in any of the volcanic
rocks or other rocks in which the metamorphism can be definitely at-
tributed to the period at the end of Cretaceous time. (See pp. 84, 85.) If
it is a.s sumed that these schists are of early Mesozoic or of late Paleozoic
age, the principal periods of volcanic activity must be referred to early
or rnj ddle Mesozoic time, to the Triassic, Jurassic, or Lower Cretaceous.
In certain areas later basaltic eruptions may be as young as late Cre-
taceous or early Eocene. (Seep. '2 80.)

ORDER OF ERUPTION.

The Mesozoic igneous activity was so complex that only the general
features of its history can be determjned. At critical localities the older
rocks may be covered by the Tertiary and Cretaceous sedimentary rocks,
and erosion during Cretaceous and Eocene time has removed many of
the later volcanic accumulations. Detailed work would be required to
establish accurately the relations of the rocks in these series, but a few
of the more important features of the igneous history are recognizable.
The major eruptions apparently were marked by enormous outflows of
lava from a large number of central vents or :fissures, which at times
probably covered much of the northern and central part of the island of
Haiti, including what is now the northern part of the Republic. The
landmass at the time of these eruptions was presumably very much greater
than at present. The unifor1nity of the lavas in the northern part of the
• Republic indicates large reservoirs of a common magma from which they
were derived.
The earliest known eruptions were basaltic. At many places the older
basaltic rocks are associated with metamorphic rocks and schists, some
of which are pres11mably the result of local metamorphism of the igneous
rocks or of associated tuffs and sediments. The schists at some localities
268 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI. •

may, however, be much older. Peridotites and pyroxenites ( ?) are found

at some localities with the basalts and probably are intrusive into them.
The rocks of these earlier periods of activity are generally characterized
by much metamorphism and alteration, as they were buried to consider-
able depths l1nder accumulating volcanic and sedimentary rocks and were
in tensely affected by the folding and ba tholi thic intrusions at the close
of Cretaceous time. These earlier periods of basaltic eruptions may have
been of Jurassic age or even older.
Later eruptions consisted largely of pyroxene andesites and dacites.
Events separating these later eruptions from the earlier periods of activity
are obscure. Neither accumulations of sedimentary material nor evidences
of erosion were definitely recognized. In the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve
the pyroxene andesites apparently overlie a basement containing shales
and metamorphic limestone, but the older basalts are not present in the
section. Whether the eruptive periods were continuous or were separated
by an interval of quiescence, the lavas of the later eruptions are uniformly
andesitic or dacitic, presumably indicating important changes in the
parent magmas from which the eruptive rocks were derived. Pr·obably
many of the later lavas of tl1is series were dacites. The age of the
andesitic and dacitic lavas is considered Jurassic or possibly in part Lower •

Cretaceous.
Hornblende and pyroxene andesites and some olivine-bearing andesites
that are found in the northwestern part of the Montagnes Noires are of
unknown age, but from their petrographic character they are tentatively
assigned to the period during which the andesites were erupted in the
Massif du Nord and the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve.
At the southern border of the northern region, in a belt extending from
St. Michel northwestward through Ennery, including the Montagnes de
Terre-Neuve and the region around Gros-Morne, there is a series of
younger basaltic lavas and intrusive rocks. These rocks are younger tl1an
the pyroxene and hornblende andesites of the Terre-Neuve mountains
and are clearly younger than the hornblende andesite bet\veen Gona1ves
and Ennery. They may be of Cretaceous or early Eocene age.
Among the later eruptives that reached the surface in the northern
region is a series of dacite porphyries, which engulfed and possibly over-
flowed Cretaceous argillites southwest of St.-Michel in Section Paul.
Because of their petrographic character and possible intrusive relations
these rocks are tentatively correlated with the ql1artz-diorite intrusion
of the Massif du Nord and hence may be of very late Cretaceous age.

EARLIER BAS.ALTIO ROOKS.

DISTRIBUTION AND STRUCTURAL RELATIONS.

Although the earlier basaltic rocks are widely distributed and their
exposures cover considerable areas in some localities their structural
relations are somewhat obscure, and the basement on which they rest was

•
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 269

not definitely recognized. As float of old schists is found on the surface

of the volcanic rocks in the North Plain, it is believed that they originally
rested on a basement of early Mesozoic or Paleozoic schists. (See p. 84.)
The old basalts are exposed on the North Plain at a n11mber of places,
and are found as float in the central and western parts. The northward-
extending spurs and foothills of the Massif du Nord between Grande.;
Riviere du Nord and Les Perches are composed of volcanic rocks, at least
a part of which are the older basalts. These hills, except for the no1ihern-
most extension of bedrock east of Le Trou, were not examined during the
reconnaissance. Along the road from Cap-Ha1tien to Ouanaminthe, about
6 kilometers east of Le Trou, these rocks crop out and are exposed inter-
mittently from this locality eastward to the Fort Liberte road, a distance
of about 10 kilometers. They are exposed in low ridges or :fiat domes that
barely rise above the alluvial covering of the plain. At many places actual ·
outcrops were not seen, although abundant float of angular joint blocks
of the bedrock indicates that the covering of alluvium is thin. These
exposures east of La Trou are cut by dikes and small stocks of quartz
diorite porphyry.
Elsewhere in the eastern part of the North Plain these oider volcanic
rocks seem to have been largely engulfed in the quartz diorite and are
now preserved only in small much metamorphosed patches. Small areas
of the volcanic rocks were seen in the quartz diorite south of Les Perches,
and small included fragments of botl1 volcanic rocks and schists were
noted at several places in the quartz diorite. (See Fig. 18, B, p. 311.)
Most of the amphibolitic and talcose schists at Morne Beckly were prob-
ably formed by intense dynamic and contact metamorphism of rocks of '

this series.
At Morne du.
Cap the altered basaltic rocks comprise a large part of the
basement on which lies the upper Eocene limestone that caps the moun-
tain. The basaltic rocks and some patches of Cretaceous ( ?) sedimentary
rocks form the lower slopes and foothills of the Morne du Cap. The
Cretaceous ( ?) cherts and sediments rest on the basaltic rocks, and cer-
tain conglomeratic beds in them contain pebbles derived from the basalts.
Small bodies of quartz diorite porphyry are associated with the volcanic
rocks here and presumably are intrusive into them.
Altered volcanic rocks, probably largely basalts, form a belt of low hills
. that extends southward from the igneous foothills of the Morne du Cap
to the outlying hills of the Massif du Nord west of Milot. These volcanic
rocks are intruded at a few places by small dikes or stocks of porphyry.
West of Grande-Riviere du Nord, and in Section Cormiers, where
copper veins have been prospected, the country rock consists of basalts
and some associated chloritic schists.
I
The igneous rocks of Limbe Mountain consist in part of much altered •

basaltic rocks of this series. The metamorphism of the rocks in this

mountain is so intense that their exact classification is difficult. A large
 270 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI •
•

part of Plaisance Mountain also is composed of altered volcanic rocks.

The metamorphosed basaltic rocks crop out on the crest and north slope,
but the south slope contains some yo11nger andesitic and dacitic lavas.
Intrusive stocks of quartz diorite, which proballly caused much of the
metamorphism, cut the older rocks and are exposed south of Limbe.
The basalts are exposed also at the base of the middle Eocene limestone
in the small valley northeast of St.-Michel in Section Las Lomas. Here
they are associated with chloritic schists exactly similar to those west of
Grande-Riviere du Nord.
Associated with the basalts at many places there are ultra.basic rocks,
such as peridotites and pyroxenites, and much-metamorphosed rocks, such
as amphibolites and epidiorites. Some of these rocks may be intrusive
into the basalts.

PETROORAPHY.

The earlier basaltic rocks are genera.l ly characterized by intense altera-

tion and metamorphism. Most of the1n are greenish gray to dark green
or nearly black, although some are reddish brown, purple, or gray. The
green color in most of the rocks is due to secondary minerals, such as
hornblende, epidote, and chlorite, and as a field designation most of the
rocks could appropriately be called greenstones. Some of them are tough
and :fine-grained, and most of them are porphyritic or amygdular. The
phenocrysts are generally altered plagioclase and augite and, more rarely,
altered hypersthene or olivine. The amygdules are composed of chlorite,
epidote, quartz, or zeolites. The rocks at some places are closely and ir-
regularly jointed, and in road cuts and other outcrops they crumble away
into small, irregular blocks. Some of the altered basalts are r eddish brown
or purplish gray. The weathered surface of the normal greenstones may
be somewhat bleached to gray or brown.
The following types of rocks are the more common among the earlier •

basalts.
Olivine-free basalts. Basalts of ·the olivine-free type, found west of
Grande Riviere du Nord in Section Cormiers, on the North Plain, and
in the vicinity of Limbe, are dark green to greenish gray and general!)..
are porphyritic. Plagioclase when p1'E. sent as phenocrysts is generally
1

found in clusters of prisms, 2 to 3 millimeters jn diameter. So far as could

be determined these basalts contain no alteration products derived from
olivine. The groundmass is dense, and in thin section the texture is inter-
granular that is, the rock consists of thin plagioclase laths, the largest
about 0.1 millimeter in length, bet\veen which lie crowded small gi·ains
of augite. The plagioclase, both of the. phenocrysts and groundmass, is
dull megascopically and in thin section is invariably seen to be more
or less completely altered to albite and clouded with alteration products.
In some rocks the alteration products accompanying the albite can be
recognized as epidote and zoisite.
 •

IGNEOUS ROCKS. 271

The relatively unaltered augite is light greenish or yellowish and is

more generally found 11naltered than the plagioclase. In some rocks it is
partly or completely replaced by chlorite or uralitic hornblende. Grains
of magnetite between the plagioclase and augite are generally recrystal-
lized in the altered rocks, some of them to tabular hematite.
A peculiar nonporphyritic basaltic rock of amy.g dular texture was
found as a cobble in the Riviere Limbe, just south of the town of Limbe.
The rock is purplish brown and contains amydules of white and greenish
silicates, some as much as 4 centimeters in diameter. The texture is inter-
granular, the plagioclase laths, 0.05 to 0.10 millimeter in length, being
surrounded with granules of augite about 0.05 millimeter in diameter.
The somewhat dusty plagioclase has been recrystallized and consists
largely of albite. The colorless or pale greenish a.u gite is practically un-
altered except for a small amount of secondary chlorite. The magnetite,
a primary accessory, has been recrystallized in part to a platy ore, probably
hematite, which in places cuts across the amydular fillings. The peculiar
amygdules are bordered with albite, the centers consisting of blue-green
and yellow-green minerals, possibly epidote.
The :filling of the vesicles or replacement of the original amygdules
with the albite and epidote ( ?) is clearly a result of the regional meta-
morphism of these basalts. •

Hypersthene basalt. At only one loca.l ity, in Section Cormiers west of

Grande-Riviere du Nord, was hypersthene basalt found, but as it was
fo11nd there associated with the ordina1·y basalts, basalts of this type may
occur elsewhere. The rock is dark greenish gray, but weathers rusty
brown. The plagioclase appears as clusters of phenocrysts and as thin
laths in the groundmass largely altered to albite and clouded with
p-rehnite, chlorite, and sericite. The hypersthene occurs as phenocrysts,
which are now completely alte1·ed to a greenish pleochroic bastite. The
augite in the groundmass is relatively fresh but bas been in part altered
to chlorite. The magnetite has been partly recrystallized. Chlorite and
prebnite are present in amygdules and replace the plagioclase of the rock.
Other basaltic rocks. Much-altered basaltic rocks containing numer-
ous large phenocrysts of pyroxene were found on the N ortb Plain. The
constituents of these rocks are largely altered to amphiboles and to talc,
so that there is some uncertainty as to the original character of the rocks.
The porphyritic texture is not promjnent on freshly broken surfaces, but
on weathered surfaces the phenocrysts are~etched out in relief, giving the
rock a warty appearance. The pyroxene, which in some of the rocks is
near diopside, is largely altered to a pale fibrous amphibole and chlorite,
or to serpentine or talc. The secondary amphibole in many of these rocks
is very pale and scarcely pleochroic. In some rocks talc is an important
secondary constituent, having nearly completely replaced phenocrysts of
diopside or forming part of the groundmass. A network of actinolitic
 •

272 GEOLOGY OF THE BEPUBLIO OF HAITI.

hornblende needles has replaced the pyroxene in some rocks along cleavage
lines. In one specimen a few remnants probably of olivine were asso-
ciated with flaky serpentine. Because of the abundance of large pheno-
crysts of pyroxene, many of the rocks are believed to be transitional toward
the pyroxenites and peridotites. Extreme metamorphism and more com-
plete recrystallization of basaltic rocks of this type may have produced
the amphibolites and schists found at some localities on the North Plain.
(See pp. 306-309.)
Au!ERATION AND METAMORPHISM.

These earlier basaltic rocks, which are at the base of the series of lavas,
have been extensively intruded and partly engulfed in the quartz diorite
batholith. This intrusion in Cretaceous or early Eocene time was prob-
ably the cause of their intense metamorphism, which is regional in extent.
The most common alteration is the albitization of the calcic plagioclase,
which is generally accompanied by the separation of epidote or uralitic
hornblende. Albite and epidote were formed in some rocks without ap-
preciable alteration of the augite. In nlore advanced metamorphism the
albitization is accompanied by complete uralitization of the augite, and
finally the rock is converted to an amphibolite. Some of the albite is
altered along cleavage lines to sericite. Talc or serpentine may be im-
portant products of alteration in rocks consisting predominantly of
pyroxenes.
At some localities, as near Grande-Riviere du Nord, the augite has been
converted to chlorite and the conversion appears to be connected with the
general metamorphism that accompanied the formation of the veins at
that locality. Chlorite, calcite, and finally zeolites may more or less com-
•

pletely replace the plagioclase. Prehnite was noted as a replacement

product of plagioclase and it forms amygdules in rocks from near Grande-
Ri viere du Nord. Epidote, chlorite, calcite, and zeolites are at many
places found in amygdules, and zeolites encrust joint planes of an amphi-
bolitized rock from Limbe Mountain.

ANDESITES AND DACITES.

D1sTRmuTioN AND STRUCTURAL RELATIONS.

Andesitic and dacitic lavas are abundant in the northwestern part of

the Massif du Nord and in the eastern and northeastern parts of the
Montagnes de Terre-Neuve. Andesite~ are also found on the south slope
of the Massif du Nord as far east as Lamielle. In general andesitic lavas
appear to be the predominating type, although quartz-bearing rocks are
widespread.
South of Plaisance Valley, at the foot of Mont Puilboreau, the dacites
and andesites 11nderlie the middle Eocene (Plaisance) limestone. (See
Fig. 18, 0, p. 311.) Near the foot of the mountain basal beds of the Plai-
sance limestone contain fragments of these lavas and also considerable

•
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 273

quartz, which appears to have been derived from dacitic lavas outcropping
near by. Just below the conglomeratic beds, at an altitude of about 530
meter~, a yellowish much altered dacitic lava, with included blocks of dark,
fresher dacite is exposed. A kilometer or so farther down the slope, near
the foot of the mountain, at an altitude of about 420 meters, there are
exposures of altered pyroxene andesites. Faulting in the volcanic rocks
•

obscures their original relative positions, although the position of the

dacites close to the middle Eocene conglomerate indicates that the dacites
were at or near the top of the volcanic series and probably overlie the
andesites. The alteration of both the dacites and andesites gives evi-
dence of intrusive activity, although no intrusive rocks are exposed at
the surface.
Andesites and dacites were found north of Dondon and in the valley of
Grande-Gille, which runs from a locality just east of the Citadelle north-
eastward to the valley of the Grande Riviere du Nord. Conglomeratic
and tuffaceous beds in marine Cretaceous ( ?) argillites, about 3 kilometers
north of Dondon (see p. 88), contain abundant angular fragments of
altered dacitic lava and of quartz and plagioclase. The ab11ndance of
quartz in the argillite indicates that quartz-bearing lavas were surface
rocks during its deposition. Homogeneous tuffaceous-appearing material
in a calcareous matrix containing small Foraminifera may indicate some
contemporaneous eruptions during the deposition of the argillite, although
rapid transportation or reworking of older tuffs might under certain
conditions give similar results. No actual flows of volcanic rock were
found in any part of the argillite series.
The prevailing volcanic rocks along the trail southward from Milot to
the Citadelle of Christophe and Dondon are pyroxene andesites.
Small areas of hornblende and pyroxene andesites were found in the
northwestern part of the Montagnes Noires. A small interior valley along
the Riviere Coupe-a-l'Inde and back of the first limestone range east of
Dessalines is floored in part with ho1·nblende andesites. Southeast of
Gona!ves pyroxene andesites, olivine-bearing andesite, and_basaltic rocks
are exposed along the mountain front and in the valleys east of Morne
Grammont. Small patches of much altered hornblende andesites are
associated with the Cretaceous ( ?) argillites exposed in the valley back of
the first limestone range of the Montagnes Noires southwest of St.-Michel.
Locally the andesites seem to have buried or intruded the Cretaceous ( ?)
rocks. The alteration of the andesites appears to be due to intrusive
bodies of dacite porphyry. The lavas in the Montagnes Noires are exposed
in lowlands or valleys formed by removal of the upper Eocene limestone.
Andesites and dacites constitute a considerable proportion of the lavas
in the mountains between Gros-Morne and Le Borgne. At some places in
this region the lavas are altered, apparently owing to the proximity of
t1nderlying intrusive bodies of qua1. tz diorite.
18
274 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

The distribution of the andesites in the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve is

discussed in the description of the Terre-Neuve district. (See p. 430.)
Hornblende andesite was seen at one locality northeast of Gona1ves,
along the railroad track to Ennery, in a cut near Kjlometer 16. Here the
hornblende andesite has been thrust up along a high-angle fault into
contact with the overlying basaltic rocks. (See Pl. XVIII, A, p. 280.)
Hornblende-mica andesite or dacite porphyries crop out southwest of
Jean Rabel and are apparently intruded by the quartz diorite porphyry.
They are bright reddish rocks showing in some places a conspicuous flow
structure. The structural relations of these rocks are somewhat obscure,
but owing to their texture and the apparent intrusive relations of the
quartz diorite porphyry they are tentatively correlated with the effusive
andesites and dacites.
Andesitic and dacitic appearing lavas were noted in the agglomeratic
material underlying the upper Eocene ( ?) limestone on Morne Chien,
northwest of Baie de Henne.

PETROGRAPHY AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION.

Pyroxene ( oogite-hypersthene) andesites. The rocks called pyroxene

andesites are fine grained to dense or glassy and are prevailing porphy-
ritic in texture; an1ygdular types are rare. In general the fresher glassy
or partly glassy lavas are black to green or greenish gray; the more
crystalline and more altered lavas are reddish, purplish brown, or gray.
Oxidation by weathering and by circulating solutions has changed the
lavas locally to red ferric oxide tints. A mottling of green and reddish
tints is found in some places. Weathering bleaches the dark-green lavas
to brown or gray speckled with whitish feldspar phenocrysts.
· Most lavas of this group contain some glass; lavas that are predomi-
nantly glassy or predominantly holocrystalline a.re not so abundant
as intermediate types. Phenocrysts of both plagioclase and pyroxene are
generally present in the lavas. The plagioclase phenocrysts reach a length
of 5 millimeters in some lavas, but their average length is between 1 and
2 millimeters. Greenish-black augite and in some lavas yellowish-brown
grains of hypersthene can be recognized.
In thin sections the p1agioclase is in euhedral to subhedral laths that
range in length from 0.2 to 4 or 5 millimeters and comprise about 15
per cent of the vol11me of the rock, though their sizes and proportions
differ in di:fferent lavas. The crystals are zoned and show Carlsbad, alb.ite,
and in some specimens penetration twinning. Extinction angles on com-
bined twins and indices of refraction show that the plagioclase has a
1
composition around Ab, 0 An 60 • Strongly zonal phenocrysts range from
bytownite (Abso An10) to sodic labradorite (Abcso AnGo). Both augite and
hypersthene generally are present in varying proportions and together
1 Wright, F. E., A graphical plot for use tn the microscopic determination ot the pla·
gloclase feldspars: Am. Jour. Sci., 4th ser., vol. 36, pp. 540-542, 1913.
•
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 275

constitute from 6 to io per cent of the rock. The hypersthene occurs in

prisms, the largest of which are 1 to 2 millimeters in length, and the
mineral has a distinct but faint pleochroism, which ranges from pale
yellowish to gray-green. In the lavas that contain a considerable propor-
tion of glass in the groundmass the hypersthene is practically llnaltered.
As the groundmass becomes predominantly crystalline most of the hyper-
sthene is altered to bastite, which may be accompanied by calcite and by
various forms of silica. A second generation of hypersthene, occurring
as microlites, invariably altered to bastite, is found in places in the
groundmass of the more crystalline lavas.
The a.ugite is in light-greenish or greenish-gray prisms, from 0.5 to 2
mjllimeters in length, that show no pleochroism. The angle Z /\ c is about
46°. In the more glassy lavas it is unaltered, but in the more crystalline
lavas it is here and there partly altered to calcite or quartz. It generally
occurs in larger crystals than the hypersthene. The groundmass usually
has a characteristic andesitic or hyalopilitic texture, consisting of a
felted aggregate of plagioclase microlites in an interstitial light-brown
glass base. In specimens in which the base is more crystalline small
prisms and quadratic sections of plagioclase may predominate. The
plagioclase microlites are generally 0.05 millimeter or less in size and
vary in composition from oligoclase to sodi·c labradorite in different speci-
mens. Small grains and specks of magnetite are attached to the plagio-
clase microlites. Apatite in thin needles is here and there an accessory
mineral. Reddish-brown flakes of hematite are present in some specimens.
The subordinate glass base usually has an index of refraction of 1.50
to 1.52.
Holocrystalline pyroxene andesites are. not abundant, although they
may be more common than the specimens collected would indicate. In
general they seem to have been confined to the hornblende-bearing types.
A few specimens of holocrystalline pyroxene andesites were found, but
they are somewhat altered, so that the original character of the plagioclase
could not be determined. The hypersthene is altered to bastite or other
alteration products, and the augite in one specimen partly to calcite,
plagioclase, quartz, and iron oxides. 'rhe gro11ndmass of such rocks is
a fine-grained irregular intergrowth of plagioclase grains and prisms.
Pyroxene andesites, consisting predominantly of glass, were found on
Morne Dumuraille in the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve, in the vicinity of
•
Morne Macat, in the valley of the Riviere Lhormand west of Gros-Morne,
and northeast of Gros-Morne. Most of the very glassy rocks have a sheeted
or platy structure, caused probably by contraction due to sudden cooling
after they were extruded. Plagioclase and pyroxene phenocrysts can be
recognized with the unaided eye and range from a fraction of a milli-
meter to 1 or 2 millimeters in length. The augite is in greenish-black
grains and the hyperstl1ene, where unaltered, is in somewhat smaller
yellowish-brown grains.
276 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The plagioclase in
'
these glassy
lavas generally ranges in composition
•

from bytownite ( Ab 25 An1i>) to sodic labradorite ( Abtso An50). In some

specimens magnetite is rather abundant in octahedral grains, the largest
half a millimeter in diameter. The index of r efraction of the glass base
generally is about 1.50 to 1.52. The glass base of some lavas has perlitic
texture. (See Pl. XXII, B, p. 304.) In other features the lavas a.r e like
the more crystalline ones and are presumably of similar composition.
A chemical analysis of a glassy pyroxene andesite from Morne Dumu-
raille, commune of T erre-Neuve (Pl. XXII, B) , is given below. This
analysis, as well as those of other rocks in this report, was made by
Dr. H. S. Washington of the Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institu-
tion of Washington. This analysis, its calculation as water-free, and the
average of some analyses of andesites for comparison are given in the
following table :
Chemical analysis of pyroxene andesite Jrom M orne Dumuraille and average
analyses of andesites .
.
1 1-a 2 3

.
BiO~ •..•....•...••.•........................ ...••.......• , 61 .41
14.00
64.23
14.65
60.35
17.54
59.92
17.51
Al20a • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Fe20a • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 2. 56 2. 68 8.87 2.98
FeO • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • .• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 2.69 2.81 8.17 8.70
MgO • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 8.01 3.15 2.78 8.31
OaO • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 5.29 5.53 5.87 6.66
Na20 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 8.39 8.55 8.63 8.44
K20 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 1.56 1.63 2.07 1.65
H20 + • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 8.93 •••• •••• •• ••
H 20 - ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 0.55 •••• •••• ••••
TiOa • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 1.17 1.22 .78 .48
P20is • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 0.37 0.89 .26 .20
){110 •••• ••• • •• • ••••• •••• • ••• • ••• • • • • • • •• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 0.14 0.15 .18 .15

100.<Yl

1. Pyroxene andesite, south slope of Morne Dumuraille, commune of T erre-Neuve, Republic of

Haiti. H. S. Washington, analyst.
1-a. Analysis 1 calculated as water free.
2. Average of 87 analyses of all andesites (calculated as water free). Daly, R. A. Igneous rocks
and their origin, p. 26, 1914.
3. Average of 20 analyses of hypersthene andesites calculated as water free. Daly, R. A., op. cit.,
p. 26, 1921.

The norm of the rock, calculated from this analysis according to the
1
system of quantitative classification, is as follows:

Norm of pyroxene andesite from Morne Dumuraille.

Quartz •••••••...••..••..•...••.•••••••••.. 21.60 Hypersthene •.•...••..........•...•.•.....• 6.61
Orthoclase ...•...•...•...••..••..•••.••..•• 9.29 Magn.etite . . ............. . ................. 3. 71
Albite ..•..•••..••...•........•..••...•..•• 28. 72 Ilmenite ............. . .......•............ 2.24
Anorthite •••••..•........•..•.•..••••••.•.• 18.24 Apatite . . . • . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .91
Diopside ••••••••••••••.•••••••..•••••••.•• 4.4.3 The rock is tonalose (''11.4. 3.4).

See Washington, H. S., Chemical analyses of Igneous rocks: U. S. Geol. Survey Prof.
1

Paper 99, appendix 1, pp. 1151-1180, 1917.

 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 277

In its relatively low alumina and high titanium the andesite corre-
sponds to quartz diorite of Cretaceous age (p. 292) and to the granodiorite
of Miocene ( ?) age (p. 304). The silica is also higher than in the average
ande~ites given by Daly. As there is little secondary alteration the high
proportion of water in the lava is noteworthy.
Hypersthene andesites. Lavas containing predominant hypersthene or
h3rpersthene alone as the ferromagnesian constituent are apparently less
abundant than t11e a.u gite-hypersthene type. A dark brownish-gray glassy
hypersthene andesite was found along the trail between Gros-Morne and
Pilate. In a dark-gray andesite from middle or upper Eocene con-
glomeratic beds at Morne Macat, hypersthene is the predominant ferro-
magnesian mineral. Except for the absence or the low proportion of
augite these lavas are similar to the glassy pyroxene andesites.
A ugite-hypersthene-h.CYrnblende andesite. Andesite containing horn-
blende in addition to augite and hypersthene was found only at Dola11,
southwest of Terre-Neuve village. This rock is holocryst.a lline, partly
altered, and mottled reddish brown to green. The plagioclase phenocrysts
range in composition from calcic labradorite (Ab 35 An 65 ) to sodic labra-
dorite or andesine. Augite crystals together with bastite pseudomorphs -
after hypersthene form 10 or 15 per cent of the rock. The hornblende,
generally largely resorbed to an opaque aggregate contai;ning iron oxides,
has a pleochroism from yellow to reddish brown, probably due to a high
proportion of ferric iron. The groundmass is plagioclase, largely andesi11e,
and some magnetite and secondary iron oxides. Secondary quartz and
chrysocolla are present as the result of alteration adjacent to mineralized
fissures.
Hornblende-augite andesites. Lavas of the type known as hornblende-
augite andesites were found at several places, although alteration and
weathering makes most of the specimens unsuitable for petrographic
study. The unweathered and unaltered rocks are generally gray, but the
'
weathered or altered rocks may be reddish or rusty brown. They are
•
usually speckled with rusty brown needles of hornblende, which have been
largely resorbed.
A comparatively fresh rock from a locality in the valley of the Riviere
Coup a-l'Inde, a tributary of the Estere, just east of Dessalines, is repre-
sentative of these lavas. It is a .g ray rock speckled with small altered
needles of hornblende and whitish prisms of partly kaolinized plagioclase
from 1 to 2 millimeters in length. The plagioclase phenocrysts occur in
rather stout prisms, in part fragmental, and comprise about 15 to 20 per
cent of the rock. They are zoned but not so markedly as in the pyroxene
andesites, ranging from medium andesine to a sodic oligoclase at tl1e
margins of crystals. Their average composition is probably around Ab 65
An 85 to Ab 60 An 40 • Iron oxides and scattered flakes of kaolinite are altera-
tion products. The hornblende needles comprise 5 to 8 per cent of the
 278 GEOLOGY. OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

rock and are largely resorbed, although a few remnants of a reddish-brown

hornblende remain. There are scattered prisms of a fresh colorless to pale-
greenisb augite. The ground.mass is apparently largely oligoclase but is
clouded with specks of iron oxides and contains some chlorite. The
plagioclase is in thin needles and stouter anhedral plates, which show
no well-defined arrangement.
Hornblende andesites. The lavas known as hornblende andesites are
generally light gray or greenish gray where fresh, but where oxidized and
altered may be reddish or rusty brown. Many of the reddish lavas in the
Montagnes de . Terre-Neuve are probably altered hornblende andesites.
The freshest andesite was obtained along the Gona!ves-Ennery railroad in
a cut near Kilometer 16. The rock is light gray and carries pbenocrysts
of plagioclase and thin needles of hornblende 1 to 2 millimeters in length.
The plagioclase phenocrysts range in composition from calcic andesine
to labradorite and comprise about 10 per cent of the rock. The horn-
blende has a thin resorption rim, probably consisting of iron oxides and
augite, and is pleochroic from faint yellow to yellowish or brownish
green. It comprises 5 to 8 per cent of the rock. The groundmass contains
some glassy base and consists of a plexus of thin, needle-like prisms and
larger quadratic and irregula~ sections, chiefly andesine. There is some
quartz in the ground.mass, mostly in small nests of anhedral grains. •

Octahedral grains of magnetite and stout prisms of apatite are accessories.

Hornblende-mica andesites or dacites. Rocks of the type of horn-
blende-mica andesites or dacites were fo11nd southwest of Jean Rabel.
They are conspicuously porphyritic, and some specimens have a promi-
nent :How structure. They are purplish and contain large whitish pheno-
crysts of plagioclase, from 1 to 6 millimeters in length. Hornblende
occurs generally in small, inconspicuous needles, although some are
2 to 3 millimeters in length. There are a few scattered flakes of biotite.
The phenocrysts of plagioclase are zonal and range from labradorite (Ab, 5
An6 s) to andesine, probably averaging aro1lnd Ab 50 Anr; 0 to Ab 45 An 55 •
•
They comprise 15 to 20 per cent of the rock. A few corroded and frag-
mental crystals of quartz show transition toward dacite. The hornblende
is deep brown, and the smaller needles are generally resorbed to iron oxides
and augite. The biotite, like the hornblende, is partly resorbed to magnet- 1
ite. The ground.mass, like that in the other hornblende andesites, consists
of andesine and contains a few scattered grains of prima.ry augite. Magnet-
ite and stout prisms of brownish apatite are the usual accessories. Opal-
escent silica, a secondary mineral, obscures the structure of the ground-
mass
.
and is probably formed by weathering.
Pyroxene ( augite-hyperstkene) dacites. Pyroxene daci tes were found
at the north base of Mont Puilboreau and in the region north of Gros-
Morne and Pilate. These rocks are greenish gray to gray where dense and
relatively fresh, but many of them, either from oxidation or from altera-
tion show dull shades of red or purple. The green or gray lavas are por-
•
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 279

phyritic, with phenocrysts of plagioclase ranging from 0.5 to 5 milli1neters

in length and crystals of augite and hypersthene, both of which are
commonly altered. Quartz is present in rounded bipyramidal crystals,
some of them 5 to 6 millimeters in diameter. In most of the specimens
studied the plagioclase had been altered by the Cretaceous quartz diorite
intrusion to albite and sericite; in one relatively fresh rock it consisted
of sodic andesine ( Abs5 Ans5) . Except for the phenocrysts of quartz and
for some quartz in the groundmass the rocks ate much like the pyroxene
andesi tes in general textural features and accessory minerals.
H orn,blende-augite dacites. Lavas of the type known as hornblende-
augite dacites were found in the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve north of
Terre-Neuve village. They are purplish gray and contain prisms of
whitish feldspar from 1 to 2 millimeters in length, scattered crystals of
quartz, and dull-brown needles of hornblende that are largely resorbed.
The phenocrysts of plagioclase are near andesine ( Ab60 An 40 ) , and the
groundmass consists of sodic andesine in thin prisms with a trachytic
•
texture. There are scattered crystals of augite partly replaced by calcite.
Hornblende-mica dacites. The hornblende-mica andesites near Jean
Rabel contain some quartz, a.n d some varieties are dacites. Hornblende-
mica dacite porphyry was found in the Montagnes Noires, but because of
its coarse porphyritic character and the accompanying alteration it prob-
ably does not belong to the andesite-dacite effusive group, and it is dis-
cussed under the heading ''Intrusive rocks.'' (See p. 299.)

RELATIONS OF THE v ABIOUS TYPES.

The variation in the mineral composition and texture of the lavas of

this .g roup covers a rather wide range. The almost continuous gradations
between the various types indicate their close relationship and their com-
mon origin. The pyroxene and hypersthene andesites constitute the more
basic members of this group; the hornblende andesites and the dacites
the more salic members. Pyroxenes are found, however, in some of the
dacitic lavas, and some hornblende also occurs in the more basic andesites.
Conditions such as the percentage of water or variations in pressure or in
temperature probably controlled the crystallization of hornblende and
pyroxene from the magmas. In the rocks nearest the salic end of the
group, the hornblende-mica andesites or dacites, the pyroxenes are sub-
ordinate or absent, and the alteration of these more salic rocks as a whole
indicates greater activity of the water in their magmas. The l1niversal
resorption of hornblende to augite and iron oxides probably is the result
of extrusion or intrusion to positions of reduced pressure, where the
escape of water vapor rendered the hornblende unstable. In certain
altered hornblende-mica andesites near Jean Rabel small crystals and
microlites of pyroxene crystallized in the groundmass, though hornblende
was the stable mineral during the early or intratelluric period of crys-
tallization.
280 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

ALTERATION AND METAMORPHISM.

The principal widespread alterations in this group of lavas are the

alteration of hypersthene, resorption of hornblende, and some replace-
ments of the constituents by secondary forms of silica, chlorite, serpentine,
and probably hematite and other iron oxides. 'I,he hypersthene commonly
•

alters to bastite or other forms of serpentine, which may be accompanied

by quartz, chalcedony, or opal. These alterations are all apparently
related to events occurring during the extrusion of the lavas, such as the
action of expelled magmatic waters, or to the action of associated hot
springs. More intense forms of local metamorphism, as albitization and
sericitization of the plagioclase, replacement of augite by aggregates of
calcite, quartz, plagioclase and iron oxides, and more complete cbloriti-
zation, are the results of circulating solutions genetically related to the
quartz diorite intrusion.

LATER BASALTIC ROCKS.

DISTRIBUTION AND STRUCTURAL RELATIONS.

Basaltic lavas that are yo11nger than the andesites and dacites prevj-
ously described appear to be confined to a zone which extends from the
vicinity of Ennery northwestward at least as far as the village of Gros-
Morne and which includes parts of the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve. This
zone is rather indefinitely bounded, both because of the lack of informa.-
tion and because the lavas are covered by the Tertiary limestones.
Lavas of this group are exposed at a number of places along the
Gona!ves-St.-Michel road southeast of Ennery. They are fo11nd under the
upper Eocene limestone and fragments of them occur as cobbles or peb-
bles in conglomeratic beds near its base. Outcrops of the lavas at many
places in this vicinity show pillow structure. Other exposures of these
basalts 11nderlying the upper Eocene limestone were seen at the southern
base of Mont Puilboreau along the Plaisance-Ennery road.
Northeast of Gona!ves, approximately south of Morne De11x Mam-
elles, these basalts crop out both along the automobile road to Ennery
and along the Gonaives-Ennery railroad. At Kilometer 16 on the rail-
road a cut shows a fault contact between the basaltic rocks of this series
and the l1nderlying hornblende andesites. (See Pl. XVIII, A.) The an-
desite has been thrust up into contact with the basalt. The fault strikes
about N. 50° E. and dips 57° SE. The basalt is amygdular and shows
pillow structure. A reddish shaly limestone containing many small Foram-
inifera fills the interstices between the rounded to sub angular pillows
of basalt. The evidence indicates that the basalt had intruded or flowed
over beds of unconsolidated calcareous deposits. Essexite belonging to
this group of rocks crops out about half a kilometer northeast of Poteau.
It probably underlies the Eocene limestone unconforrnably. The texture
 REPUBLIC OF HAITI
GEO f..,OGICA L SURVEY PLATE XVIII

:I. ·1· rr1~t · 1' F •.\.l_;I.,T IX R .\IT.. l~O ..\.D Cl.1" ~ OCTII
OF MORNE DEUX )!Al\IELLES,
••
NO I{TII E~\ S11 Ob" GO:NA l \ ?J·:S .
...\nclesi te (at l< f t)
1
is tbrt1Rt o,·(' r ~·o t111ger basa lt
( <l t l' i g h t ) .
•

,
TJ. BEDDED VOLCANIC DRRRT~ ON SAVANE MADA1fR ~fTCHAUD 80UTHE.t\ST
<>I., 8AlrT D'EA U.
 '

I
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 281

of this rock indicates that it may belong to a minor intrusive body of

this series. .
Lavas petrographically similar to those in the vicinity of Ennery occur
in the Montagnes de Terre-N euve. Particularly fresh diabasic and
amygdular rocks are exposed along the trail from Gros-Morne to Terre-
.Neuve on the northeast slope of Morne Decouflay. Some of the rocks at
this locality have a coarse diabasic texture with ophitic plates of augite
8 or 10 centimeters in diameter and may be parts of minor intrusive
bodies. Abundant float of this type of basalt is found along the valley of
the Riviere Lhormand, part of which may come from the western part of
Section Moulin. The basaltic rocks in the valley of the Riviere Bras-a-
Droit are of the Ennery type, and at one place they seemed to form an
intrusive sheet parallel to the bedding of the Eocene limestone. As there
were no inclusions of the limestone in the basalt and as the relations could
be explained by strike faulting, this exposure is not considered as conclu-
sive evidence of the Eocene or post-Eocene age of the basalt at tl1is
locality.
Along the trail from Gros-Morne to Pilate, 2 or 3 kilometers east of
Gros-Morne, these later basalts are exposed near reddish-brown shaly
limestones of unknoWI} age.
Although the region was not explored, rocks of this group will probably
be found in the area of igneous rocks on the east side of the trough of the
vallev
., of Les Trois Rivieres from Morne Deux Mamelles northwestward
to Gros-Morne.
PETBOGRAPHY.

Ge1teral features. This later series of basaltic lavas and intrusive rocks
has some distinctive features which sharply separate them petrographi-
cally from the ear lier basaltic rocks. They are characterized by a purplish
titaniferous augite that commonly shows a tendency toward idiomorphic
development, in contrast to the interstitial pale-greenish augite or diop-
side of the ordinary basalts; some of the more alkaline rocks are further .
characterized by sodic plagioclase, anorthoclase, and analcite or other
soda zeolites.
In chemical composition the magmas ranged from essexite to nearly
normal olivine diabase. All the types probably have a high content of
titanium, but no chemical analyses are available to determine the extent
of the variation in the amount of this constituent from that in ordinary
basal tic rocks.
No primary sodalite or nephelite was identified in any of the rocks, but
much of the clear analcite, if it is secondary, has probably replaced these
minerals, as its relations in many places indicate that it is not a replace-
ment of primary plagioclase. In some rocks intense zeolitization has
resulted probably from the local circulation of highly alkaline solutions
of extraneous origin caused by the general volcanic activity.
 282 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Essexite. Rock here classified as essexite was found at only one lo-
cality, about half a kilometer northeast of Poteau along the road from
•
Gona1ves to Ennery, at the base of a small hill west of the road. BecauBe
of it.s relatively coarse diabasic texture this rock has been classified as
essexite, although its field relations do not show whether or not it is part
of an intrusive body.
The essexite is a medium-grained greenish-gray rock of diabasic texture
in which prisms and grains of dark augite and of greenish plagioclase can
be recognized with the unaided eye. The rock is spotted with pinkish
glassy patches of analcite 2 to 3 millimeters in diameter.
In thin section the texture generally is hypidiomorphic but locally may
be typically ophitic. The earlier plagioclase is labradorite ( Ab,ts Anlits),
but the crystals are very strongly zoned and most of these have borders of
oligoclase or of albite. The albite is distinguished by its low refractive
index and positive optical character. The average plagioclase of the rock
is at least as sodic as andesine. Potash feldspar forms irregular borders
surrounding the plagioclase, or occurs in clear interstitial patches between
the plagioclase and augite, or borders miarolitic cavities which are filled
with analcite and zeolites. The potash feldspar in some places shows
idiomorphic outline against analcite in miarolitic cavities. The orthoclase
probably is soda orthoclase, as the indices are higher than those for nor-
mal potash orthoclase (a=±l.523; y=±l.53), and the optic angle
(2 V) is medium to small. The proportion of soda orthoclase or anortho-
clase is difficult to estimate because of its alteration and the presence of
albite, but the ratio of orthoclase to plagioclase appears to lie between one-
:fifth and one-third. The pyroxene is a purplish-bro~n pleochroic augite,
commonly somewhat zonal, and is found mostly in hypidiomorphic prisms
with cross fractures and with the margins molded on the more calcic pla-
gioclase. A few of the crystals are more idiomorphic, but some of the augite
fills the angular spaces between the plagioclase in a typical ophitic man-
• ner. The maxim11m extinction angle of the zonal augite on 010 is 53°,
and the pleochroism is from yellowish gray to purplish brown. The crys-
t.als are generally from 1 to 2 millimeters in length. The analcite is
interstitial and fills the angular spaces between the feldspars and between
the plagioclase and augite, or else it occurs in aggregates, some of which
show crystal outline in miaroli tic cavities in the rock. Analcite also re-
places the plagioclase along some of the cleavage cracks, and such analcite
is undoubtedly secondary. Ilmenite, which is usually in peculiar skele-
tal growths, is quite common in grains from microscopic size up to 0.4
or 0.5 millimeter in diameter, and some of it is included in the augite.
Some titaniferous magnetite may be present. Long fractured needles of
a nearly colorless or slightly greenish apatite are very abundant as inclu-
sions in the alkali and plagioclase feldspars but are less common in the
augite. Small shreds oi a dark-brown strongly pleochroic biotite are

,
 •

IGNEOUS ROCKS. 283

'
present. Both the feldspar and the augite are replaced along cracks by
chlorite. Calcite occurs in spherulitic or radial growths, some of them
molded on the analcite crystals, and fills many of the cavities in the roclr.
The mineral composition of the rock was calculated approximately by
the Rosiwal method as follows:

Mineral compoS'ition of essexite from locality near Poteau.

Percentage by
volume.
Feldspar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50.0
Augite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 .0
Analcite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15.0
Iron-ores . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.0
Biotite and apatite. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.5

The percentage of soda orthoclase in the rock could not be conveniently

measured but was estimated at 8 to 12 per cent. The strongly zonal
plagioclase probably averages at least as sodic as andesine in composition.
'l'he rock has some affinities with rocks which have been described as
analcite monzonites, although in the relative proportions of the alkali
feldspar and the plagioclase it is more comparable to the granodioritea
among the quartz-bearing rocks. Johannsen, in his mineralogical classi-
1
fication, has suggested the name monzodiori te for rocks of this char-
acter, and in this classification the rock would be an analcite monzodi-
orite with the symbol 2224.
A nalcite andesites and analcite-olivine andesites. The analcite ande-
sites and analcite-olivine andesites are dark-gray to greenish-gray rocks
where unweathered, but where they aTe at the surface they may be a rusty
or greenish brown. Their field relations do not definitely show whether
these rocks are parts of thick flows or of intrusive bodies. They are gen-
erally spotted with growths of natrolite or other zeolites. Fine-grained
rocks of this type were found north of Ennery near the base of Mont
Puilboreau and in the valley of the Riviere Bras-a-Droit north of
1
'1 erre-Neuve.
The plagioclase is strongly zonal and ranges in composition from labra-
dorite to sodic oligocla.se or albite. Because of the irregular borders of
sodic plagioclase the interlacing prisms are never strictly euhedral. Be-
tween the plagioclase laths a small amount of soda orthoclase is found in
some of the specimens, but it is inconspicuous. The plagioclase generally
amo11nts to 40 or 50 per cent of the rock. 1 The purple pleochroic augite
occurs in subordinate amo11nt, for1ning 20 to 30 per cent of the rock, and
is exceedingly variable in its development. It may form subhedral to
euhedral prisms, which are commonly hollow or skeletal, or it may
occur in anhedral grains interstitial to the plagioclase. Olivine apparently
iJohannsen, A., A quantitative mineralogical classification ot igneous rocks revised!
Jour. Geol., vol. 28, pp. 50, 175, 177, 1920.
 •
•

284 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

was a primary constituent in some of the rocks but is completely altered

to serpentine in all those examined. The serpentine has migrated to
some extent and is accompanied by chloritic minerals. In some specimens
analcite and in others natrolite or other zeolites fill angular spaces be-
tween the plagioclase, and all the zeolites replace the feldspars to a
variable extent. In one specimen analci te forms sea ttered round grains.
The iron ore is probably largely ilmenite and forms peculiar skeletal
grains, but much of it shows no alteration. Some of it is accompanied by
small flakes of biotite. Small microlites of a greenish mineral, probably
augite, are ab11ndant in some specimens. All the rocks contain some
calcite.
These rocks clearly are transitional between the essexite and the more
normal basalts described below. As the average plagioclase is andesine
and the f erromagnesian minerals are subordinate, the rocks can not be
classified as basalts or tephrites, although they have some of the struc-
tural characteristics of the normal basaltic rocks of this group.
Amygdaloidal basalts. Conspicuous amygdaloidal basalts were found
along the road between Ennery and St.-Michel, where they underlie the
upper Eocene limestone. The amygdules generally consist of chlorite,
calcite, or zeolites. The rocks are normally dark greenish gray but may
be stained brown by weathering.
One of these rocks from a locality about 3 kilometers southeast of
Ennery is nonporphyritic in thin section and has a type of intergranular
texture. The prisms of plagioclase and augite are from 0.2 to 0.5 milli-
meter in length, and the amygdules, which comprise about 20 per cent of
the vol11me of the rock, are from 1 to 3 millimeters in diamet er. The
plagioclase is labradorite and slightly zonal, ranging from Ab 85 An 65 to
Ab.5 An 5 5. The augite is purplish brown and zonal, with ''hour-glass''
structure, and has an extinction on 010 that ranges from 46 ° to 52 °.
Some of the augite occurs in irregular grains interstitial to the plagioclase
and some forms thin nearly euhedral prisms, in places grown parallel to
the plagioclase. The iron ores occur in part in skeletal growths and are
presumably titaniferous. Chlorite is abundant in the rocks and is either
interstitial to the plagioclase and augite or fills or lines the vesicles.
Augite is the predominating const ituent of the rock and forms 40 to 50
per cent of the groundmass; chlorite makes up 12 to 15 per cent of the
rock exclusive of that in the amygdules. Both calcite and zeolites form
:fillings in the amygdules.
Z eolitized olivine basalts and diabases. Olivine-bearing basaltic rocks,
which are nearly nor1nal basalts although they still show some affinities
fo the more alkaline members of this group, were fo11nd in the Montagnes
de Terre-Neuve. They are dark greenish gray and contain prisms of
plagioclase 1 to 2 millimeters long, a few yellowish grains of olivine, and
large plates of pyroxene. Some of the rocks are speckled with white radial
growths of zeolites, mostly natrolite. The plagioclase is only slightly

•
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 285

zonal, ranging from bytownite ( Ab15 An85 ) to basic labradori te, and is
in euhedral to subhedral laths from 0.5 to 2 millimeters in length. It
comprises approximately 40 per cent of the rock. The augite is brownish
gray, and some of it has a distinct purplish tinge, but it is not so st1·ongly
tinted as that in the more alkaline rocks. The extinction on 010 is about
45 °. In places it forms large plates, 4 to 6 millimeters in diameter, which
are poikilitic and inclose prisms of plagioclase. The olivine occurs in
ro11nded and partly or completely serpentinized granules, which range in
diameter from 0.5 to 2 millimeters, and comprises from 5 to 10 per cent of
the rock. Some of the olivine wraps partly around the end of the prisms of
•
plagioclase like the augite. The principal accessory mineral is magnetite
in irregular skeletal or octahedral grains, amo11nting to about 5 per
cent. Thin needles of apatite, a few prisms of green and brown horn-
blende, and a few flakes of biotite partly altered to chlorite are minor
•
accessories.
The serpentine is a greenish flaky nonpleochroic variety and replaces
plagioclase adjacent to the olivine along with some chloritic minerals.
Analcite has replaced the basic plagioclase along cracks to some extent,
and zeolites, mostly natrolite, are present as fibrous radial growths be-
tween the laths of plagioclase. A small amount of calcite is generally
associated with the zeolites. The zeolites and subordinate analcite may
constitute from 5 to 10 per cent of the rock.
Olivine diabase. The type classified as olivine diabase is similar to the
preceding rocks in texture and mineral composition, but the rock con-
tains little or no analcite and only a few scattered growths of natrolite.
It was found on the east slope of Morne Decouflay, along the trail be-
tween Gros-Morne and Terre-Neuve. Its coarse texture and position
indicates that it may bear intrusive relations to the pyroxene andesites.
(See Fig. 27, section A-A'; p. 442.)

ALTERATION.

The principal alterations are the formation of zeolites, chlorite, serpen-

tine, and calcite. These rocks show no recognizable alterations that could
be attributed to the Cretaceous regional metamorphism. The above-
mentioned secondary minerals can all be attributed either to later mag-
matic ( deuteric) replacements, or to the action of circulating alkaline
solutions associated with the vulcanism. As indicated by the sodic plagio-
clase and soda ortboclase among the later minerals of crystallization of
some of the rocks, there was a considerable concentration of alkaline con-
stituents in the residual magmatic liquids, which resulted in the formation
of analcite and natrolite. Some of the rocks have probably been enriched
by soda derived from alkaline solutions of extraneous origin.
Chlorite and serpentine generally appear to have been formed before
zeolite or calcite. Chlorite fills pores in the rocks and in many lavas lines
vesicles that are filled with later calcite or zeolite.

'
 286 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

RELATIONS OF THE vARIOUS TYPES.

Because of the close assbciation of the members of this series in their
distribution, and because they show certain distinctive mineralogic fea-
tures, they are believed to constitute a cogenetic group that is entirely
separate from the older andesites and dacites. The distinct gradations
that occur between the alkaline and the normal basaltic members of this
group indicate genetic relations. In the group as a whole the order of
crystallization of the essential minerals is generally olivine, bytownite .
and labradorite, titaniferous augite, sodic plagioclase, soda orthoclase,
analcite, and natrolite. Sodic plagioclase and small amo11nts of orthoclase
found in rocks where crystallization begins with olivine and labradorite
· furnish sufficient proof that the rocks of this group are closely related
and that olivine diabase magma was the parent magma of this group.
The decided tendency of the magma toward an alkaline descent is appar-
ent even in the more basic members of the group. The strong zoning of
the plagioclase and possibly a low percentage of water and the presence
of carbon dioxide in the magma should be considered as contributing
to this descent. Calcite occurs in all the rocks and appears to have been
deposited from the solutions that deposited zeolites, although at a some-
what later stage. The surface lavas contain blowholes, many of which are
filled with calcite.

AGE OF THE LAVAS.

At most places these rocks seem to be older than the middle and upper
Eocene limestones, and probably they are younger than most of the
pyroxene and hornblende andesites. This would place their period of
eruption some time between early Cretaceous and mjddle Eocene. At
several places they are associated with shaly calcareous sediments of
unknown age, and at some places they have intruded or flowed over lln-
consolidated calcareous muds. So far as known they were not intruded
or altered by the late Cretaceous batholithic intrusion. They are there-
fore probably of early Eocene or late Cretaceous age.

INTRUSIVE ROCKS.

GENERAL FEATURES AND DISTRIBUTION.

Igneous intrusives, which represent at least three periods of intrusion,

can be recognized in the northern part of the Republic. Little is known
of the earliest period, evidences of which remain only in much meta-
morphosed intrusives associated with the older basalts. Most of the rocks
of this group were basic types intruded probably during or soon after the
earlier periods of basaltic eruptions. The most important period of
intrusive activity is represented by the quartz diorite intrusions. These
batholithic rocks, which are probably of late Cretaceous age, intrude the
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 287

older Mesozoic volcanic rocks and the older schists. The intrusion and the
preceding and accompanying folding resulted in widespread regional
metamorphism. The latest known intrusions are represented by minor
stocks of quartz diorite or granodiorite of Miocene ( ?) age. Minor intru-
sive bodies that accompanied the various volcanic eruptions have been
mentioned in the description of the volcanic rocks.
The largest area of intrusive rocks is exposed in the eastern part of the
Massif du Nord, where the core of the quartz diorite batholith has been
exposed by erosion. West of Grande-Riviere du Nord the quartz diorite
is exposed only in smaller stocks or bosses. The oldest intrusive rocks
associated with the metamorphosed volcanic rocks and amphibolites were
not differentiated in the field. The yo11ngest intrusions are in the Mon-
tagnes de Terre-Neuv:e and occupy only a narrow zone. Small bodies of
porphyry, probably in part of intrusive origin, are exposed in the Mon-
tagnes Noires.
EARLIER BASIC INTRUSIV'ES.
DISTRIBUTION AND STRUCTURAL REI.ATIONS.

In the field no attempt could be made to separate the earlier basic

intrusive rocks from the older volcanic rocks, as their character and rela-
tions are obscured by extreme metamorphism.
•

No large bodies of intrusive rock of this group were recognized. Minor

intrusive bodies of composition similar to that of the extrusive basaltic
rocks and minor bodies of basic differentiates, such as peridotites and
pyroxenites, probably constitute most of the bodies of rock that make up
this group. Altered gabbros, epidiorites, and peridotites or pyroxenites,
which are described from the Province of Santiago in the Dominican
1
Republic, may represent part of these old basic intrusives. The serpentine
that covers large areas in the Cordillera Central of the Dominican Repub-
lic may represent altered peridotites, pyroxenites, or gabbros.
Much altered and relatively coarse grained diabasic rocks, the structural
relations of which are unknown, were found on Limbe Mountain and
between Limbe and Plaisance. Float of similar rocks was fo11nd on the
Plaine du Nord. Much-metamorphosed basaltic rocks and float of augite
peridotite were found in the Valley of Las Lomas. Many of the highly
metamorphosed rocks the amphibolites, talc schists, and epidosites were ,
derived by alteration from basic or ultrabasic rocks, some of which may
have been parts of minor intrusive bodies.

PETROGRAPHY.

A number of the rocks of these older igneous groups could not be

definitely classified because of advanced metamorphism. They consist
chiefly of uralitic hornblende and some dusty albite feldspar, generally
1 A geological reconnaissance ot the Dominion Republic: Dominican Republic Geol.
Survey Memoirs, vol. 1, pp. 84-85, 1921.
288 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI •

•
with some chlorite, epidote, and quartz. Some of the commoner types
of the rocks showing more advanced metamorphism are described on
pages 306-309. ·
Metadiabase. Rocks that have probably resulted .
from the metamor-
phism of relatively coarse diabasic rocks were found on the Plaine du Nord
a.n d in the mo11ntains near Limbe and north of Plaisance. These rocks
are dark green to greenish gray and of rather unifor1n texture. They
may be stained rusty brown by weathering. One of these rocks, from
a locality near the crest of Limbe Mountain, shows in thin section traces
of an ophi tic or diabasic texture in less altered parts. The plagioclase
consists largely of dull-brown or dusty albite crowded with flakes of
sericite and microlites of the alteration products of the rocks, pale-green
hornblende, chlorite, and epidote. Remnants of primary augite show an
extinction angle on 010 of about 45°, although the crystals are largely
replaced by uralitic hornblende. The secondary hornblende is faintly
pleochroic, from yellowish or nearly colorless to a faint green or blue
green with the angle Z /\ c about 16° or 17°. The amount of uralitic
hornblende a.nd augite somewhat exceeds the amount of plagioclase.
Chlorite is fo11nd as an alteration product parallel to the cleavage lines of
the hornblende. The iron ores are pa1·tly recrystallized and are coated
with grains of ti tani te.
A rock probably of similar origin· fo11nd on the North Plain contains
more epidote and quartz. In some of the specimens the sodic plagioclase
is partly altered to sericite.
Augite peridotite. Although p·e ridotite was found only in the Valley
of Las Lomas, rocks of this type are believed to be generally distributed
in minor quantities throughout the older series. Peridotites are reported
from the basal complex of the Dominican Republic, as well as from Cuba,
a.nd are the natural basic differentiates of the basaltic magmas of these
early periods of igneous activity.
The augite peridotite is a greenish-black rock of medium grain com-
posed of augite and other ferromagnesian minerals and minor quantities
of greenish plagioclase. In thin section the rock is seen to be composed
predominantly of olivine in anhedral to subhedral crystals, which form 60
to 70 per cent of it. It alters with the characteristic mesh structure to
serpentine and iron oxides. The augite is brownish yellow, unaltered, and
generally interstitial to the olivine crystals. Some of the larger plates of
augite inclose small subhedral olivine crystals in a poikilitic manner.
An orthorhombic pyroxene in small cross-fractured prisms and grains
with faint pleochroism, from nearly colorless to pale yellowish, is a minor
accessory. Plagioclase, probably bytownite, is an interstitial constituent
and is in part altered to opaque brownish saussuritic patches and to ser-
pentine derived from the olivine. It constitutes about 10 per cent of the
rock. The other accessories are grains of iron ore and flakes of a pale
altered biotite.

•
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 289

EARLIER QUARTZ DIORITE GROUP.

DISTRIBUTION AND STRUCTURAL RELATIONS.

The rocks of the earlier quartz diorite group are most widely distributed
in the eastern part of the Massif du Nord, where the batholith of quartz
diori te is exposed by erosion over an area of 500 to 650 square kilometers.
Small stocks and apophysal dikes are exposed on the Plaine du Nord.
The rocks of this group clearly are intruded into the Mesozoic volcanic
rocks and schists, but whether they are intrusive into the sedimentary
rocks of supposed Lower Cretaceous age on the southern border of the
Massif du Nord is not known. During the reconnaissance no intrusive
contact between these rocks was found. A locality between Bahon and
1
Ranquite, where they presumably are in contact, was not visited. Evi-
•
dence discussed on page 299 indicates, however, that the quartz diorite
is younger than the Lower Cretaceous rocks.
About 12 or 15 kilometers east of Le Trou the volcanic rocks are in-
truded and metamorphosed by small stocks or dikes of quartz diorite
porphyry, and abundant float of the intrusive rocks is found on the sur-
face of the volcanic rocks. On Morne Beckly dikes of porphyry and
felsite, which probably belong to this intrusive group, cut the schists.
Veins of quartz carrying sulphides or iron oxides and pegmatitic veins
have been considerably defor1ned.
West of the Grande Riviere du Nord the intrusive rocks are exposed only
in small stocks or dikes cutting the metamorphosed volcanics. Such
bodies were seen on Morne du Cap north and west of Cap-Ha1tien and on
the North Plain along the road from Cap-Ha1tien to Limbe.
About 6 or 7 kilometers north of the town of Grande-Riviere du Nord,
near the railroad station called La Tannerie a.n d west of the river, the1·e
is an exposure of a kaolinized porphyry in contact with fossiliferous
limestone of late upper Cretaceous age. (See pp. 94-95.) The relations
at this locality suggest faulting, and the limestone shows no evidence of
•
contact meta.morphism, but the relations of the quartz diorite to these
Upper Cretaceous limestones are not known.
South of Limbe, on the road to Plaisance, there are several exposures of
quartz diorite. The surrounding older volcanic rocks are strongly meta-
morphosed. Farther west evidence of intrusive bodies was established
by the finding of float boulders of quartz diorite in Section Margot, along
the trail from Port Margot to Pilate.
Exposures of quartz diorite porphyry, presumably related to this intru-
sive group, were found jn the Northwest Peninsula at several places in the
Commune of Jean Rabel. The largest exposures examined are 7 or 8
kilometers southwest of the town of Jean Rabel, along the valley of the
1Tippenhauer, L. G., Beitrilge zur Geologie Haltis: Petermanns Mltteilungen, vol. 47,
map opposite page 198, 1901.
19 •
•

•
290 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Riviere Cadet. The rocks are apparently intrusive into hornblende-mica

andesites at this locality and are overlain unconformably by limestone of
upper Eocene age. Cobbles of quartz diorite and of the porphyries are
fo11nd in the basal upper Eocene conglomerate along the valley of the
river. Near the crest of the mountains along the trail from Jean Rabel
to Anse Rouge quartz diorite porphyry underlies the upper Eocene
limestone.

PETRoGRAPHY AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF THE NoRMAL QUARTZ D10RITE.

The normal quartz diorite, the dominant type of this intrusive group,
is a speckled gray to greenish-gray medium to coarse grained granitoid
rock. (See Pl. XIX, A.) The constituents recognizable with the unaided
eye are prisms of whitish plagioclase showing albite twinning lamellae,
greenish-black hornblende, generally subordinate to the light constituents,
and abundant quartz, usually in grains interstitial to the plagioclase and
hornblende. A little magnetite and some chlorite can be distinguished,
and in altered rocks some secondary pyrite and epidote. The rocks are
generally rather even grained in texture, and the plagioclase is here and
there idiomorphic. The distinctly porphyritic rocks, which are less abun-
dant, contain phenocrysts of plagioclase, the largest of them 1 centi-
meter in length, which stand out prominently as white blotches on the
weathered surface. (See Pl. XIX, B.) One rock was found in which
large poikilitic plates of hornblende, 8 to 10 millimeters in diameter,
inclose some of the smaller prisms of plagioclase.
Along narrow zones the quartz diorite has been intensely sheared,
although no general gneissoid texture was found. Some of the rock shows
evidence of intense dynamic strain that has crushed the quartz and
plagioclase a.n d drawn out the hornblende. In some of these crushed rocks
t~e quartz is distinctly bluish. Quartz diorite gneiss that · apparently
belongs to this group of int1'usives has been found in the Dominican Re-
1
public in the Cordillera Central, a continuation of the Massif du Nord of
the Republic of Haiti.
In thin section the plagioclase shows a euhedral tendency and generally
seems to have been the first mineral to crystallize except a few small
grains of accessory minerals·. (See Pl. XXI, A.) The prisms are sub-
hedral to euhedral and are generally 1 to 4 millimeters long. The outside
rims of the smaller crystals show growth interference with the larger
crystals of hornblende and with a few of the crystals of quartz. The
plagioclase shows Carlsbad and albite twinning, is zonal, and ranges
in composition from calcic andesine or sodic labradorite in the centers
of p1·isms to sodic andesine or oligoclase on the borders (Ab 45 Ancs 5 to
1 A geological reconnaissance of the Dominican Republic : Dominican Republic GeoL
Survey ~!em., vol. 1, pp. 84, 202, 1921 .

•
 Jt 1:<; 1•t • t: f, I (' <1 1•' 11,\.l 'l' I
1; I·:<11, <J(; l l'.\ l , :-> l It \ ' l. :l

.·t. QlJc\It'l,7. DIOfiT'l'E J4.,fl0:\f ~fOR~E :\T.\DF:f,TXE. ROl ~'l'TI ()I~'

l,fi:8 J•En(~TIE~.

1~ . 1 1 <.)l{l 1 lIYl{l 'l ' IC QUAR'fZ DIORITE FROl\I MOR:XE ~1ADI~ l~l~I·:,
~<>l "' l'II <>I•' J,Ji: ' J>fi~ llCIII~ ~ -
•
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 291

Ab 1o Anso)· Its average composition is probably around Ab6o An.ao• Most

of it is slightly altered to gray saussuritic patches, in so:ille specimens
zonally developed, and small grains of colorless zoisite or clinozoisite.
Some sericite generally occurs along the cleavage lines. The quartz occurs
in irregular grains
.
from 1 to 3 millimeters in diameter, interstitial to the
other constituents of the rock. It is irregularly cracked and has a wavy
extinction. Small bubbles containing gaseous and liquid inclusions are
common along the cracks in the quartz.
The hornblende is in subhedral prisms, generally 1 to 3 millimeters in
length, less commonly 5 to 6 millimeters, or in irregular grains of smaller
size molded on the more calcic plagioclase. The earliest hornblende gen-
erally is interstitial to the larger prisms of plagioclase, but the period of
crystallization of the hornblende overlaps that of the plagioclase and to
some extent that of the quartz. The hornblende ranges in color in different
specimens of rock, or even in the same specimen, from colorless to olive-
green, blue-green, or brown-green. Colorless hornblende in a coarse por-
phyritic rock from Morne Madeleine, south of Les Perches, has a border of
light olive-green. The colorless variety was of slightly lower refraction
I

and somewhat higher double refraction than the green variety, but both
varieties had about the same extinction angle (Z A c=l9° to 20°).
Magnetite is present in octahedral or irregular grains generally asso-
ciated with or inclosed in hornblende or chlorite. Small prisms of colorless
a.p atite inclosed in plagioclase and a few grains of titanite are found in
most of the rocks. A few minute crystals of zircon were noted in some
slides. Chlorite (pennjnite) is a secondary mineral that is everywhere
present, either replacing hornblende or in separate flakes, and is in places
interlaminated by opaque streaks of fine granular epidote or epidote and
calcite. Possibly some of the chlorite may be secondary after biotite.
Biotite altering to cblorite was fo11nd in a porphyritic phase of the intru-
sive rock in the Northwest Peninsula. Biotite is reported to be subordi-
nate to hornblende in specimens of quartz diorite from the Cordillera
1
Central in the Dominican Republic. Orthoclase is usually absent in sec-
tions of the typical quartz diorite.
One rather unusual type of quartz diorite was found near the chapel on
Savane Longue, on the trail from Mont Organise to Ouanaminthe. In
this rock large poikilitic plates of hornblende inclose small prisms of
plagioclase and crystals of magnetite. The hornblende is more abundant
than that in most of the quartz diorite and constitutes about 28 per cent
of the rock by volume. The quartz also forms large grains, which include
and wrap aro11nd the plagioclase in a poikilitic manner. (See the follow-
ing table, specimen No. 3.) The plagioclase ranges from Abtscs An, 1 to
Ab,o Anao and the average is probably a calcic andesine.
1 Op. cit., p. 84,
' I

..
292 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

The approximate mineral composition of several thin sections of quartz

diorite as determined by the Rosiwal method is as follows :

Approximate volumetric mineral composition of quartz diorite.a

1 2 s

Quartz ........••....••...•.•....•....•......•..•....•....•.•.••...•..•• 34.0 27.6 22.4

Andesine b ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••.•••••••••••••••••••..••••••••••• 51.3 43.3 41.0
Hornblende ........................................................... . 12.0 24.0 28.0
Magnetite ............................................................ . 1.2 2.1 2.7
Ohlorite • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 1.5° 8.0° 4.2
Epidote e • t t t • • e t • e e t t e t e e • e t t e t e • • • • • I • e • e • • • e • • • • • • • e • e • • e • • • • e • e e • • e • •••• •••• 1.2
Titanite • e • • e • • • • • • e • • • e • • e • • ' a ' • e ' • e • • • ' I ' • • • • e e e e • • ' • • • • • • ' • • • • ' e e • ' • Trace Trace 0.6

See also p.. 495 for mineral composition and physical properties of quartz diorite tested for road-
a
building material.
•
b Includes 2 to 3 per cent of sericite. 0 Includes some epidote.
1. Specimen from Riviere Marion, near Acul Samedi. Field No. K 185 L. (See Pl. XIX, B.)
2. Specimen from Morne Madeleine, south of Les Perches. Field No. K 186 L.
3. Specimen from Savane Longue between Mont Organise and Ouanaminthe. Field No. W 342 L.

The chemical composition of a specimen of quartz diorite collected on

the north slope of Morne Madeleine, along the trail between Les Perches
and Valliere, is shown in the following table, which contains also one
hitherto unpublished analysis of quartz diorite from the Virgin Islands
and the average of twenty analyses of quartz diorite for comparison.

Analyses of quartz diorite from M orne Madeleine and quartz diorite from Virgin
Islands, and average analysis of quartz diorite.

1 2 8
.

A 120a e • ' • I • e • I • e • ' ' I e ' ' I • • ' • • e e • • ' ' I e • e • I •• • e • I ' • • I I • a e e ' • e e ' • e • a • • t 13.33 16.47 16.52
si02 •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 59.66 61.22 59.,7
F e20s ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 5.12 2.97 2.63
F eO • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 6.58 3.47 4.11
M gO •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 4.50 2.54 3.75
caO ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 5.96 6.18 6.24
N a20 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • S.l, 3.81 2.98
K20 •••• • • •• •• • •• ••• • • •• ••• •• • •• • • •• • • • • • •• •• • •• • • • • •• • • • • •• • • • • • •• • 0.9'7 1.77 1.93
H 20 + • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 0.47 1.12 ..
0.19
.. 1.89
H 20- • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 0.08
•
T i02 •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 1.55 0.48 O.M
p 205 • • • • • • •• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • • • • • •• • • • •• •• •• • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • • • • • • • 0.18 None 0.26
M nO •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 0.12 0.13 0.08

100.61 100.4f>G

•Bao, 0.04; SrO, 0.06.

1. Quartz diorite, north slope of Morne Madeleine, between Les Perches and Valliere, Republic of
Haiti. H. S. Washington, analyst.
2. Quartz diorite, Virgin Islands, Island of Vieques, western edge of Mosquito. R. C. Wells,
analyst; T. W. Vaughan, collector.
8. Average of 20 analyses of quartz diorite. Daly, R. A., Igneous rocks and their origin, p. 26, 191,.

'
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 293

The approximate mineral composition of the analyzed specimen, esti-

mated from determinations by the Rosiwal method and from chemical
calculations, and the norm calculated according to the quantitative clas-
sification are given in the following table:

Approximate mineral composition and norm of quartz diorite from

•
M orne Madeleine .
•

Approximate mineral composition. Norm.

Quar'tz ..................................... 23. o Quam ................................... . 18. 89

Andesine (Abeo A~±) ...........•..•.•.• •46.0 Orthoclase ................................. 6.95
Hornblende ................................ 23. 6 Albi'te ................................. · · · · 26. 62
Magnetite .................................. 4. 7 Anorthite ................................ . 19.12
Chlori te ................................... . 112. 7 Diopside . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 · 57
Hypersthene .............................. . 11 .10
Ma,g netite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7. 47
Ilmenite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2. 9"1
Apatite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.8'
The rock is tonalose (II. 4. 3. 4'').

•Includes sericite amounting to 2 to S per cent of the total. "Including some epidote.

The high percentage of quartz in these rocks and the negligible per-
centage or lack of potash feldspar are striking. In the specimen analyzed
no potash feldspar was fo11nd on the slide, although very small amounts
may have escaped detection. The chemical analysis shows, however, that
the rock is unusually low in potassium oxide, even for rocks in the quartz
diorite family. All or nearly all of the potassium is probably in the
plagioclase. The high content of titanium and the low content of alu·
mina are the only other notable features of the chemical analysis. Ferric
iron possibly replaces alumina in some of its combinations.

MINOR VARIATIONS.

Minor quantities of the rocks of this group range from seemingly basic
appearing types, in which the hornblende may constitute 35 to 40 per cent
of the rock, to types in which the dark minerals may constitute 15 per
cent or less. Most of these rocks are, however, probably classifiable as
quartz diorite, although the more basic members are transitional toward
quartz-hornblende gabbro, and the more acidic members are oligoclasc
quartz diorites or transitional toward granodiorites. The structural and
age relations of these different types are unknown.
Quartz diorite. Rocks in which the plagioclase is strongly zonal, gen-
erally ranging from calcic andesine (Ab6o An 60 ) to sodic oligoclase and
albite, were found south of Limbe. The borders of oligoclase and albite
are irregular, so that although zoning gives the plagioclase an appearance
of euhedrism it is largely in subhedral to anhedral crystals. The albite
may form irregular patches interstitial to the plagioclase. The plagioclase
in these rocks generally is considerably altered to serjcite, to saussuritic

• •
294 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

patches, and to epidote, probably owing to the position of the rocks near
intrusive contacts at this locality.
Ophitic quartz diorite. A fine-grained phase of the intrusive was
found about 4 kilometers northeast of Mont-Organize. It is a gray-
speckled rather even textured rock that contains a very few scattered ill-
de:fined pbenocrysts of plagioclase. In thin section the texture is ophitic,
the thin euhedral plagioclase laths being inclosed in grains of later crys-
tallized hornblende and quartz. The plagioclase, which occurs in thin
laths from 0.5 to 1 millimet er in length, with only a few twinning lamellae,
ranges in composition from sodic labradorite ( Abao An5o ±) to andesine
(Ab 65 An3 ~). The mo1·e massive hornblende is brown-green and incloses
the plagioclase laths like augite plates in typical djabase. In addition a
secondary blue-green hornblende in shreddy prisms cuts across the struc-
ture of the rock. The quartz also is in grains inclosing the plagioclase and
is an abundant constituent, forming 25 per cent or more of the rock.
Magnetite, chlorite, epidote, and titanite are found in the rock. The
plagioclase is partly clouded with saussurite and sericite. In mineral
composition the rock apparently corresponds closely to the normal quartz
diorite, of which it appears to be a textural variety.
Dacite pophyries. Fine-grained contact porphyries were fo11nd near
the southern border of the batholith north of Lamielle. They are greenish-
gray porphyritic rocks with phenocrysts of plagioclase, hornblende, and
quartz in a fine-grained groundmass. In one section studied the subhedral
plagioclase phenocrysts are strongly zoned and range in composition from
sodic bytownite to calcic andesine. The quartz occurs in somewhat cor-
roded bipyramida.l crystals. The hornblende is a pale-green fibrous
variety, partly altering to chlorite and epidote. The groundmass con-
sists of a fine-grained granulitic growth of andesine and quartz in which
the quartz apparently occurs in somewhat subordinate amounts. Rather
large octahedral grains of magnetite are commonly associated with the
hornblende.
Kaolinized porphyry. A kaolinized porphyry with large phenocrysts
of quartz, some of which are 4 or 5 millimeters in diameter, was collected
north of the town of Grande-Riviere du Nord, near the railroad station
called La Tannerie. The phenocrysts of plagioclase have been completely
replaced by kaolinite, and the gro11ndmass has recrystallized to an aggre-
gate of quartz, kaolinite, and some sodic plagioclase. The rock contains
abundant pyrite, which apparently accompanied the introduction of the
kaolinite and quai·tz.
Quartz diorite porphyries. A greenish-gra.y quartz diorite porphyry
of medi11m grain crops out about 10 kilometers south of Jean Rabel. It
is part of the basement under the upper Eocene limestone. In thin sec-
tion the texture is porphyritic, wi~h euhedral to subhedral prisms of
plagioclase and hornblende, from 1 to 5 millimeters in length, and cor-
roded bipyramidal crystals of quartz, the largest of them 2 millimeters in
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 295

diameter, in a fine-grained ground.mass. The phenocrysts comprise about

50 per cent of the volume of the rock. The plagioclase ranges in com-
position from andesine to sodic oligoclase and probably averages a sodic
andesine (Ab10 Anao to Ab65 Ans5). The hornblende is in long twinned
pale-olive or blue-green prisms and comprises about 20 per cent of the
rock. The gro11ndmass of the rock consists of a :fine intergrowth of sodic
plagioclase, quartz, and some orthoclase, although the proportions of the
constituents are difficult to determine. Titanite is an ab11ndant accessory
or secondary mineral. It accompanies the hornblende and occurs also
in the groundmass. The orthoclase in these porphyries is much more
abundant than in the quartz diorites exposed farther west in the Massif
du Nord.
Rocks like the porphyries just described but in which the plagio-
clase is more sodic, probably averaging oligoclase in composition_, were
found southwest of Jean Rabel. Much of the porphyry here is pyritized.
The pale-green color and shreddy appearance of the hornblende in
these rocks from the Northwest Peninsula and the grains of titanite in-
cluded in and associated with it suggest that it has been formed by re-
crystallization of a primary hornblende with the accompanying separa-
tion of titanite. These porphyries are intrusive into hornblende-mica
andesites, which possibly accounts for their texture and alteration.

D1xE RocKs AND VEINS.

General features. }fost of the dike rocks that are definitely correlated
with the quartz diorite are those which cut the main body of the batho-
li th itself in the Massif du Nord. A small number of dikes and veins
of doubtful origin on the Plaine du Nord cut the schists and meta-
morphosed volcanic rocks but are believed to be genetically related to the
rocks of the quartz diorite group.
Fine-grained to aphanitic dikes a few meters across cut the batholith
at several places. Some of them are extremely altered flinty rocks carry-
ing considerable pyrite and other alteration products. A section of one
from a locality north of Les Perches shows a microcrystalline growtl1 of
secondary amphibole, chlorite, and magnetite, probably some quartz, and
a few nests of coarser grained plagioclase, chlorite, or hornblende. The
rock shows evidence of considerable brecciation.
A somewhat coarser grained dike of this type from the Riviere Marion
near Acul Samedi contains about 60 per cent of hornblende in euhedral
b11t somewhat fibrous prisms, 0.2 to 1.0 millimeter long, in a gro11ndma.ss
of plagioclase and quartz. The hornblende, a blue-green variety, ap-
parently has been somewhat recrystallized. Tl1e plagioclase is labradorite
and commonly shows micrographic intergrowth with quartz or occurs in
sheaf-like groupings. There is about 20 per cent of quartz in the rock.
Magnetite, epidote, and chlorite are present. The rock is considerably
 296 GEOWGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

richer in the ferromagnesian minerals than any of the quartz diorite~ and
is probably related to the lamprophyres.
Dikes of porphyry and felsite at Morne Beckly are extremely altered.
A. porphyritic dike containing phenocrysts of plagioclase and quartz has
been largely recrystallized. The plagioclase was r ecrystallized to albite
with the separation of epidote. The original character of the rock can not
be determined.
Large veins of pure quartz cut the quartz diorite and the surrounding
rocks. The mineral-bearing veins related to this intrusion are described
on pages 459-468. Veins of hornblende and of hornblende and quartz,
sharp or blurred, cut the batholith along shear zones and joints. A quartz
hornblendite of this type from Morne Madeleine consists of hornblende, 50
to 60 per cent; quartz, 25 to 35 per cent; magnetite, 5 per cent; and
chlorite and epidote, 8 to 10 per cent. The hornblende is massive and
pleochroic in colors ranging from yellowish to brownish green. The quartz
grains are full of dustlike inclusions and give wavy extinction. The rock
contains some titanite, which is associated with the chlorite and epidote,
and a few grains of zircon. These hornblendite veins, as shown by their
mineral composition, are the later products of crystallization of the quartz
cliorite magma and presumably comprise a differentiate that has been
transported outward from the zone of crystallization by aqueous solutions.

ALTERATION AND METAMORPHISM.

Both the contact phases of the intrusive itself and the invaded country
rocks for a considerable distance from the intrusive contact are intensely
altered and metamorphosed. Enormous quantities of highly alkaline
aqueous solutions must have escaped from the solidifying magma, in
•

places even at considerable depths and pressures.

Alteration in the contact phases of the intrusive itself consisted in
some recrystallization of the hornblende, accompanied by separation of
titanite and iron oxides, and albitization and sericitization of the plagio-
clase. The epidote and calcite in the plagioclase and the quartz and epi-
dote veinlets that cut the quartz diorite itself were probably formed dur-
ing this period of alteration. Locally pyrite was developed abundantly in
the contact porphyries and accompanies quartz and kaolinite along later
shear veins.
The quartz veins carrying copper sulphides and iron oxides are later
phases of the intrusive activity and are described in greater detail on
'
pages 459-468. .
The deep-seated metamorphism of the basic eruptive rocks next to the •

quartz diorite contacts was very intense and generally resulted in the
development of amphibolites or of rocks consisting essentially of amphi-
boles aud varying amounts of albite. Epidote, quartz, chlorite, sericite,
and iron oxides are other products of the metamorphism. Where intense
REPUBLI C OF HAITI
GEOLOG I CAL SU R\'EY PLATE XX

_·l . DACITE PORPHYRY FRO:\I SAVANFJ I...1A CIDRA,

l\IONTAGNES NOIRES.

,
B. GRANODIOillTE FROl\1 l\1EME VALLEY, CO:\i:\I U NE OF
TERilE- ~E UVE.
• •
•

•
..-
,._

• , ...•
•
-. •, ... •• I
• \

•• ••• • '-
•• .; i. ' •
~ • "'
•
•
~ . ••
•J.
••
 IGNEOUS ROCKS • 291
•

shearing action has accompanied the intrusion hornblende, chlorite, and

talc schists have been formed. •

The lines of schistosity developed in some of the schists clearly ante-

date some of the later quartz veins of the intrusion, showing that intense
deformation was in progress before the intrusive period and during its
earlier part. Some pegmatite veins intruded along the schistosity have
a pinch and swell structure. The most intensely metamorphosed rocks
were generally fo11nd near the outcrops of quartz diorite, and where
intrusive bodies were not seen the quartz or pegmatite veins and intrusive
dikes indicate the presence of larger intrusive bodies near by or concealed
beneath the surface.
At greater distances from the contacts albitization is not generally ac-
companied by the change of the pyroxenes to amphiboles, although some
epidote is formed. The formation of chlorite from augite took place
at some localities. In a few andesitic rocks orthoclase had partly replaced
secondary albite. Rarely the augite in some of the less intensely altered
andesites or dacites was partly recrystallized to a granular aggregate of
calcite, plagioclase, iron oxides, an~ quartz.
Prehnite was found near Grande-Riviere and Lamielle as an alteration
product of plagioclase and filling cavities in much altered andesitic rocks. •
Zeolites are found occasionally under similar circumstances, and at one
place they were found along joint planes in an amphibolitized rock. Prob-
ably these minerals represent a very late stage in the intrusive period,
when the temperature of the rocks and of the aqueous solutions had
fallen considerably.
Although the distance from the intrusive cont.acts to which the more
intense metamorphism reached can not be estimated because of the possi-
bility of concealed or undiscovered intrusive bodies, partly amphibolitized
and albitized rocks were found from 2 to 4 kilometers from any known
surface exposures of the quartz diorite. Rocks in which albite had been
formed but in which the augite was left relatively 11naltered were found
from 6 to 7 kilometers from known exposures of the intrusive mass. Rocks
found in place in the eastern part of the ~iontagnes de Terre-Neuve,
probably from 15 to 20 kilometers from any outcrop of quartz diorite of
this age, show no alteration attributable to the intrusion. This area and
small areas of volcanic rocks in the extreme western part of the North-
west Peninsula and possibly in the northwestern parts of the Montagnes •

Noires are the only ones in the northern part of the country where older
rocks are 11naffected by this intrusion.

WEATHERING.
•

In exposures of the quartz diorite that are not subjected to active

erosion weathering has decomposed the rock to considerable depths. Ex-
cellent exposures of a section through the residual soil were fo11nd at the
 298 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBT.1IC OF HAITI.

crest of the trail between Les Perches and Valliere on Morne Madeleine.
The upland at this locality stands about 600 meters above sea level. It
iA rolling and bas a relief of about 100 meters. Re1nnants of flat surfaces
possibly represent an older Tertiary erosion surface which had been partly
peneplained. The surface of this upland is covered, except where erosion
is active, with a thick mantle of clayey . soil derived from the qua.r tz
diorite bedrock.
The upper 4 or 5 meters of the soil has a mottled appearance and is
•
of a reddish color. It consists essentially of a mixture of clay, earthy
hematite and limonite, brown earthy manganese oxides, and undecom-
posed fragments of quartz. At a depth of a few meters the clay is spotted
with white blotches of nearly pure kaolinite, some of which are stained
a delicate pink, probably by manganese oxides. A sample of the kaolinite
was picked and separated from included qua.r tz fragments and was an-
alyzed with the following results:

• Analysis of kaolinite from residual soil on quartz dwrite at M orne Madeleine .1

Si02 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44.88
Al20s ....................................................... 41.03
Fe201 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Mll20s ..................................................... Trace.
H20 below 110° C .......................................... 1.40
H20 above 110° C. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.70

The analysis as well as the optical properties indicate that the mate-
rial probably is kaolinite, which is derived from the plagioclase by altera-
tion. The earthy bro"rn to black manganese oxides, which form veins
and irregular pockets in the upper part of the residual clay, are derived
from the hornblende by decomposition. The upper reddish clayey sojl
grades down through the speckled clay to partly decomposed quartz diorite
and to solid rock. The concentration of the manganese in the upper part
of the soil is very noticeable but not in such quantities as to form com-
mercial deposits at any place. A description of a ·section through
weathered quartz diorite gravel and sand containing large concretions of
iron and manganese oxides is given on pages 477-478.
Between Lamielle and Mont Organise a red claj'ey soil similar to that
on Morne Madeleine is found on the weathered surfa.ce of the quartz
diorite. The red clay is very conspicuous at Mont Organise.
At the northern part of the North Plain, in the vicinity of Les Percl1es,
small pockets of white clay, probably largely kaolinite, were seen along
the slopes of the ravines. They probably were concentrated by water in
favorable places during Pleistocene or Recent time.
1Analyst, Earl V. Shannon, Un!ted States National ~fuseum. ~iaterlal for anaty8l!t
examined optically and pronounced homogeneous by E. S. Larsen, of the United States
Geological Survey.
 •

IGNEOUS ROCKS. 299

The kaoliniza ti on of the plagioclase is noticeable on weathered expo-

sures of the quartz diorite, particularly in porphyritic phases of the rock,
where the phenocrysts are attacked first so as to give the rock a spotted
appearance.
AGE OF INTRUSION.

The intrusion of quartz diorite probably occurred between the end of

Lower Cretaceous and the beginning of middle Eocene time. Although
the quartz diorite is not definitely known to intrude the Lower Creta-
ceous argillite series, the presence of large and small quartz veins cutting
these argillites between Cerca-la-Source and Lamielle and the meta-
morphism of the argillites indicate that the quartz diorite is younger.
In the Dominican Republic, along the edge of the pre-Tertiary basal com-
plex south of Sabanet.a and between Sabaneta and Restauraci6n, sericitic
argillites that probably are of the same age as the argillites of the Repu b-
lic of Haiti are intruded by quartz diorite and dikes of granitic ~r dioritic
1
.. porphyry. Although the argillite south of Sabaneta is somewhat more
metamorphosed than most of the Cretaceous ( ?) rocks in the Republic
of Haiti, it resembles, according to the Dominican report: sheared slaty
srgillites south of Restauraci6n that are without doubt a continuation of
the band of Cretaceous ( ?) rocks extending southeastward from Lamielle.
The relation of the quartz diorite to the late Upper Cretaceous lime-
stones found only in the region around Grande-Riviere du Nord is not
known a relation that if determined would place the age of the intrusio:g
within narrow limits.
The quartz diorite porphyries in the Montagnes de Jean Rabel are over-
lain unconformably by the upper Eocene limestone, and pebbles of a
porphyry presumably related to the quartz diorite in origin are found
in the basal upper Eocene conglomerate on Morne du Cap. Dacites much
altered by the intrusion are unconformably overlain by relatively 11nal-
tered Plaisance limestone (middle Eocene) at the northeast base of Mont
Puilboreau. No effects of contact metamorphism have been found in any
of the Tertiary limestones.
Tbe quartz diorite is therefore probably of late Cretaceous age, as before
Eocene time at least the outer shell of the batholith had been exposed
by erosion near what is now the Montagnes de Jean Rabel.

D.ACITE PORPHYRY OF 'rHE MONTAGNES NOIRES.

D1smmuTION AND STRUCTURAL REIAATIONS.

A dacite porphyry is exposed southwest of St.-Michel, in the intermon-

tane valleys of the northwestern part of the Montagnes Noires. This rock
constitutes the greater part of the igneous rocks in the valley in Savane
1 A geological reconnaissance ot the Dominican Republic : Dominican Republic Geol.
Survey Mem., vol. 1, pp. 52, 53, 56, 1921.
•
2 Op. cit., pp. 52-53.
 •

300 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

la Cidra back of the first limestone range southwest of St.-Michel and

part of the rocks flooring the second savanna, in which stands the village
of Paul. These savannas are separated by limestone ranges. In Savane
la Cidra the dacite porphyry is in contact with hornblende andesites and
sedimentary rocks of supposed lower Cretaceous age. The Cretaceous ( ?)
rocks are mildly contact metamorphosed near the porphyry, as shown by
a development of epidote, chlorite, quartz, and in places cubes of pyrite.
The andesites have been altered to greenish-gray rocks containing abun-
dant secondary epidote, quartz, chlorite, and calcite, and in some speci-
mens the plagioclase is altered to albite and sericite. In the dacite por-
phyry itself there is some recrystallization of the hornblende, sericitiza-
tion of the plagioclase, and formation of a manganese epidote from the
ferromagnesian minerals. At some places farther southwest in the savanna
the dacite porphyry shows a well-developed flow structure and evidence of
brecciation. There is a lack of definite structural evidence to demon-
strate either the intrusive or extrusive origin of the porphyry, although
its texture and the accompanying metamorphism indicate that part of the
•
porphyry exposed belongs to minor intrusive bodies. As the Cretaceous ( ?)
beds presumably were the surface formation in early Tertiary or late
Cretaceous times, the intrusive bodies probably were rather close to the
surface, which may acco11nt for the texture and widespread resorption of
the hornblende in the porphyry. The porphyry may, however, have broken
through the comparatively thin cover of Cretaceous ( ?) deposits in
some places.
PETROORAPHY.

The dacite porphyry is a conspicuous purplish-gray to brown rock with

large crystals of plagioclase, prisms of hornblende, grains of quartz, an<l
scattered hexagonal plates of dark mica in a felsitic groundmass. (See
Pl. XX, A, and Pl. XXI, B.) The porphyry bleaches somewhat in
weathering and gives rise to a soil that in favorable places contains 1·e-
sidual concretionary masses of iron and manganese oxides very much
like those fo11nd on the quartz diorite soil northeast of Acul Samedi.
(See pp. 477-478.)
In thin section the plagioclase phenocrysts are seen in zoned euhedral
or fragmental prisms, ranging in composition from calcic andesine to
oligoclase ( Ab5o An 50 to Ab 70 An 30 ). Carlsbad and albite twinning are
common. The prisms range in size from less than a millimeter up to 5
millimeters and constitute roughly ~O per cent of the rock volume. The
hornblende is in euhedral to subhedral prisms as much as 5 millimeters in
length and in small scattered grains comprising 8 to 10 per cent of the
rock. It is a basaltic variety, is pleochroic from yellowish to deep brown,
and is partly resorbed, leaving an aggregate of magnetite and augite. The
quartz is in irregular grains or rounded crystals as much as 5 or 6 milli--
meters in diameter. It is somewhat shattered but gives sharp extinction.
REPUBLI C OF IT.1\lTI
GEOLOGICAL SCR\'BY PLATE x .. r

..1. JlTTO'I'O)fTC'non R.\PIT OF QT":\R'"fZ DlORI':rE FRO:\I :\IOR:\TE -:\IADELI~E,

80'C'1' 11 ()l•"' I.iES !•EI{( 'Il l~ .
I), i>l<1gi(>c lil c, r>artl)" scricitizE>cl: Q. qt1<11·tz; II, h ornbl€'n<1e ; C, cblorite.
l'ro ~s<.'<1 nicols, X 10.

... .

R. PlIOTO~IlCROGRAPII OF DA CITE PORPIIYRY FR0~1 SA ' "AXE LA ClDR.\,

~10NTAGNES NOIRES.
Q, q11~1 rtz; P, plagiocl11se: B, biotite: 1\-f, n1ngn etite; Pel, 1)iecl111ontite.
Or<linnry light, X 10.
 •

•
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 301

The mica is a deep-brown pleochroic variety, with high birefringence and

unusually high refraction, and possibly contains some manganese (p =
1. 7 ±, 2V medium to small, a= straw yellow, y =deep brown). It is
usually resorbed around the borders of flakes and is partly altered to a
manganese epidote, piedmontite (a=yellow, y=deep rose, y/\001 cleav-
age= 32 °) . The mica is in flakes 3 or 4 millimeters in diameter and
in amounts su.bordinate to those of the other dark constituents. The
groundmass consists of mi croli tes of oligoclase in slender and stout sec-
tions, and of roicrofelsitic intergrowths of a sodic plagioclase with quartz
and probably orth9clase. Magnetite is scattered in the groundmass in
small octahedral grains together with some small scales, probably of
hematite. The apatite is in stout yellowish pleochroic prisms. Some
sericite is developed along cracks in the plagioclase and some scattered
piedmontite a.n d calcite occurs jn the groundmass.

CORRELATION AND AGE OF THE PORPHYRY.

The porphyry is in some features unlike the other igneous rocks in

the Republic and can not be correlated definitely on its petrographic
character. As it appears to have intrusive relations both to the Cretaceous
, rocks and to the hornblende andesites, and as it is older than the upper
Eocene limestone, it is probably of the same or nearly the same age as the
quartz diorite in the Massif du Nord. It may be a chilled intrusive phase
of the quartz diorite batholith that was intruded into the rocks of the
northern part of the Republic in Cretaceous time. The nearest known
outcrops of quartz diorite are those south of Limbe and near Bahon,
although intrusive bodies of considerable magnitude unquestionably under-
lie the metamorphosed volcanic rocks in Section Las Lomas, about 12
kilometers northeast of Savane La Cidra.
The variation in the mineral composition of the dacite porphyry from
the normal contact porphyries of the quartz diorite might be accounted
for by the conditions of oxidation and of considerably reduced pressure
and temperature in the Cretaceous ( ?) rocks near the surface. The con-
cretionary masses of iron and manganese oxides found on its surface are
exactly similar, both in texture and in the relative proportions of iron •

and manganese, to those formed by the weathering of quartz diorite debris

near Acul Samedi.

LATER QUARTZ DIORITE GROUP OF THE MONTAGNES DE TERRE-NEUVE•.

DISTRIBUTION AND STRUCTURAL RELATIONS.

Rocks of the later quartz diorite group, so far as known, are confined
to a narrow zone, about 11 kilometers in length, in the Montagnes de
Terre-Neuve. They consist of a series of small elongated stocks and a
few accompanying dikes and pegmatitic veins. At some places irregular
 302 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

or laccolith-like bodies appear to have spread out laterally from areas

near the apex of the main intrusive masses. These rocks were intruded,
probably during Miocene time, through the older volcanic rocks and into
the upper Eocene limestone. The exposed rocks of this group are pre-
dominantly chilled contact porphyries, although there are a few small
bodies and dikes of coarser grained quartz diorite and granodiorite. Their
distribution and structural relations and the associated ore deposits are
considered more fully in the description of the Terre-Neuve district. (See
pp. 425-459 and Pla~ II.)
PETROGBAPHY AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION.

Quartz diorite. The quartz diorite phase of the intrusive at Hilaire,

in the Comm11ne of Terre-Neuve, is a gray rock of medi11m-grained tex-
ture in which the dark minerals are usually subordinate in amount, al-
though hornblende may be abundant locally. It is similar in appearance
to the Cretaceous quartz diorite shown in Plate XIX, A, except that it
is of somewhat finer grain. Prisms of plagioclase and hornblende, grains
of quartz, and in some rocks flakes of biotite can be recognized mega-
scopically. .
In thin section the rock has a somewhat porphyritic texture, containing
euhedral to subhedral prisms of plagioclase and subhedral prisms of
hornblende in a matrix of smaller grains of quartz and some orthocla.se
of later crystallization. Much of the hornblende may also be interstitial
with the quartz, depending on its relative abundance. The plagioclase is
in zoned subhedral prisms, generally with albite and Carlsbad twinning,
from 2 to 4 millimeters in length. Extinction angles on combined twins
and on the 010 zone show a composition ranging from andesine (Ab&1
An•s) to oligoclase ( Ab 70 An 80 ) • Rims of even more sodic oligoclase may
be present on the more zonal crystals, so that the average plagioclase is
probably near Ab 65 An 85 • The plagioclase for1ns from 45 to 50 per cent
of the rock volume. Quartz is in formless interstitial grains between the
•
prisms of plagioclase and hornblende. It is somewhat fractured and has
a slight wavy extinction. The amo11nt of quartz is rather high, forming
20 to 30 per cent of the rock. Orthoclase, in general very subordinate,
is fo11nd interstitial like the quartz but may forrn irregular plates plas-
tered on the outside of prisms of plagioclase. Orthoclase generally appears
to form less than 5 per cent of the rock in this facies of the intrusive but
is sufficient in amount to differentiate the rock from the Cretaceous quartz
diorites, most of which contain no orthoclase.
Hornblende, which at some places forms 15 to 20 per cent of the rock,
is pleochroic from yellow-green to olive-green, and some has a shreddy
or uralitic appearance. The largest prisms of hornblende indent only the
borders of the plagioclase, as they began to crystallize somewhat later than
the calcic plagioclase. The hornblende is quite idiomorphic toward quartz.
Diopside or au~te is found only in subordinate amounts in some parts of

•
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 303

the rock, chiefly in rather small prisms and granules interstitial to the
plagioclase. A small amount of brown biotite was noted in one section,
associated with somewhat larger amounts of orthoclase, so that the rock
apparently approaches a granodiorite in composition. The biotite was
altering to chlorite. Magnetite, titanite, and apatite are the principal
accessory minerals. Titanite is especially abundant in some rocks, owing
in part probably to decomposition of an earlier titanium:bearing horn-
blende. Chlorite, calcite, and quartz are secondary minerals. Fibrous or
uralitic-appearing hornblende may have been for1ned by the recrystalliza-
tion of a more basic hornblende and is usually accompanied by grains of
ti tani te and magnetite.
Granodiorite. Rocks of this type were fo11nd only in Meme Valley as
dikes or small intrusive bodies cutting the fine-grained porphyries. '!,hey
•
are gray or slightly greenish rocks of medium grain, speckled with flakes
of dark-brown biotite and grains of pyroxene or hornblende. (See Plate
XX, B.) Plagioclase feldspar and quartz can be recognized. Close inspec-
tion shows that in some specimens the biotite occurs in poikilitic flakes
enclosing other minerals. •

In a thin section of a dike rock from a locality just south of the R-Oche
Glisse workings (Plate XXII, A) the plagioclase is in euhedral to sub-
hedral prisms between which are irregular grains of quartz, orthoclase, and
biotite. The prisms of plagioclase are from 0.2 to 2 millimeters in length
but average about 1 millimeter. The plagioclase is zonal, ranging from
andesine, and in some crystals from sodic labradorite (Ah.cs Ancscs), to
oligoclase, and probably has an average composition of sodic andesine or
oligoclase ( Ab 76 An 25 to Ab 70 An 80 ). Orthoclase occurs in irregular inter-
stitial grains, some of them as much as 1 or 2 millimeters in diameter,
generally untwinned. Many of the larger grains are poikilitic and inclose
a few small prisms of plagioclase. The quartz is in irregular grains, some
showing undulatory extinction. The brown biotite is in entirely irregular
flakes which are interstitial to or inclose minerals of earlier crystalliza-
tion, such as plagioclase, pyroxene, and iron ores. The flakes range from
small specks up to pieces 2 or 3 millimeters in larger diameter. The
pyroxene, probably diopside or some nonal11minous variety, is colorless
to pale greenish in section and forms rather stout prismatic grains with
ragged outline that very commonly inclose numerous grains of iron ore
and small prisms of plagioclase. The angle Z /\ c is about 42°. A light-
green hornblende is intergrow11 with or has replaced some crystals of
diopside, forming an imperfect network and giving the crystals a mottled
appearance. Small grains of massive hornblende also occur which are not
associated with the diopside. Magnetite, the commonest accessory, occurs
in irregular or octahedral grains. 'l,itani te, epidote, and apatite are other
• •
minor accessories.
A chemical analysis of this rock and averages of some analyses of grano-
diorite and quartz diorite are given in the following table:
 304 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Chemical analysis of granodiorite from Meme Valley, average analyses of grano-

diorite and quartz diorite, and limits of variation of granodiorite.

1 2 s
'
Si0.1 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 59.37 65 .10 59.47 59-68.5
•
A120a • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 13.23 15 .82 16.52 14-17
FE!20a • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 8.45 1.64 2.63 1.5-2.25
FeO • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 4.25 2.66 4.11 1.50-4.5
MgO ••• •• ••• ••••• •• • •••• • ••• •••• •• •••• •• • ••• • •• •• 3.76 2.17 8.75 1.0-2.5
Cao •••• •• •• •••• •• •••• • • ••• •• • •••• • •• • • •• • •• • • • • •• 5.63 4.66 6.24 S-6.5
Na20 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 3.69 8.82 2.98 2.5-4.5
K20 •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 2.62 2.29 1.93 1- 8.5
H20 + • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 1.08 '
~ 1.09 1.39
H20- e • • e e e e e I • • • e e e • e • 4 I I e • • I • e • I I e e I I I e I e I I I • • I 0.06 ~

Ti02 •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 2.14 0.54 0.64

P:.iOtS •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 0.22 0.16 0.26
MnO •• •• •• •• •• •• • •• •• • •• • • •• • •• • • • • •• • •• • • •• • • ••• • 0.17 •••• ••••

99.67 100.00 100.00

1. Granodiorite, Meme Valley, Republic of Haiti. H. S. Washington, analyst.

2. Average of 12 analyses of granodiorite. Daly, R. A., Igneous rocks and their origin, p. 25, 1914.
3. Average of 20 analyses of quartz diorite. Daly, R. A., op. cit., p. 26, 1914.
4. Limits of variation of granodiorite. Lindgren, Waldemar, Granodiorite and other intermediate
rocks: Am. Jour. Sci., 4th ser., vol. 9, p. 272, 1900.

An approximate mode, determined by a combination of measurement

by the Rosiwal method and by chemical calculation, and the norm are
shown in the following table :

Approximate mineral composition and norm of M eme granodiorite.

•

Approximate mineral composition. Norm.

Quart;z. .•.......•••..................•... . 17 . 9 Quartz ................................. . 13 .18

Ortboclase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8. 9 Ortboclase ............................. . 15. 68
Andesine (Abro All3() ±) ................... 40. 7 Albite ................................. . 31.34 •
•
Bioti'te .................................. . 12. 7 Anorthite .............................. . 11 . 48
Diopside . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Diopside ............................... . 12 .18
Hornblende ............ .................. 4 Hypersthene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5. 87
Magnetite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.? Ilmenite ................................ 4.(J"[
Ilmenite ................................. 2.1 Magnetite ............................... 4 . 99
Apatite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O. 4 Apatite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O. 51
Titanite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 The rock is dacose (11.4'' .2''.''4).

The rock is lower in silica and higher in iron and magnesium oxides ·
than the average analysis of the granodiorites, the amounts of these
oxides clearly corresponding more closely to those in the average quartz
diorite. The alumina is low for rocks in the diorite or granodiorite fami-
lies, but in this respect the rock is similar to the Cretaceous quartz diorite '
from Mome Madeleine. (See p. 292.) The titani11m is rather high. The
chemical calculations indicate that ferric iron probably replaces the alu-
mina t.o some extent in the biotite and hornblende, and the pyroxene
REPUBLI C OF 1-IAITI
GEOLOG I CAL S U R\.E Y PLATE XX II

Q.

,
.4 . PFIOTO:.\II CROGRAPII OF GRAKODIOilITN FR0:\1 ::.\IE'ME VALLEY,
CO~IMUNE OF TERRE-NEU\' E.
0 , o rthocla s c ; r, plngioc.:la se ; Q, quartz ; B , biotite ; D, cli op ·i cle ; ~1 , 111agne ti t e.
C1·ossec1 nico l s , X 3 0.

B . PHOTOMICROGRAPH OF GLASSY PYROXENE ANDESITE WITH PERI,ITIC

TEXTUR E FROM SOUTH SLOPE 01'"' iVIORNE D U:.\IUR.\ ILLE,
COl\1i\ilUNE OF '.rERRE-NEUVE .
P, plagiocln se ; A , at1gite ; H, hyperstbene; M, magnetite. Or<linary light, X 90.
 •

'

•
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 305

presumably is a variety of diopside. The relative amounts of the calcium,

sodium, and potassi11m oxides correspond to those of Daly's average
granodiorite, and the ratio of the orthoclase to the plagioclase in the
mode brings the rock well within the limits of the ratio that is common
in rocks of the granodiorite family. The low percentage of orthoclase and
the high percentage of ferromagnesian minerals indicate, however, that
the_rock approaches a diorite in composition.
Dacite porphyries. Contact porphyries are the most widespread type
of this group. Although they differ in appearance, owing to alteration
and variations in texture, they have the same general character under the
microscope. The porphyries are light gray to dark gray or greenish gray,
in places stained yellowish or brownish by weathering, and commonly
much jointed. The plagioclase phenocrysts, prisms of hornblende, and
grains of quartz can easily be recognized with the unaided eye or with a
hand lens, unless alteration has been so intense as to have recrystallized
the hornblende or altered the plagioclase.
In thin section the plagioclase phenocrysts are in more or less euhedral
zonal prisms, some of them fragmental, and from 1 to 3 millimeters in
length. They are generally andesine, ranging in composition from Abao
An 40 to Absrs An 35, although phenocrysts as calcic as labradorite (Ab4o
Anso to AbGo An6o) are found in some specimens. These phenocrysts con-
stitute from 30· to 50 per cent of the rock volume. The quartz is in
rounded bipyramidal crystals, some of them fractured, the largest 1 milli-
meter in diameter. Quartz phenocrysts are generally rather sparingly
present, for1ning from a small percentage to about 10 per cent of the
rock, most of the quartz being in the groundmass. The hornblende is olive-
green or blue-green and may be partly resorbed to magnetite or recrystal-
lized to a shreddy uralitic variety. The hornblende alters to chlorite,
iron oxides, and calcite. A colorless augite is sparingly present in some
sections, generally surrounded by a granular aggregate of albite, chlorite,
titanite, and other secondary minerals. The groundmass in most speci-
mens is a fine-grained intergrowth of sodic andesine or oligoclase with
qua.r tz and probably some potash feldspar. Magnetite and apatite are
accessory minerals. The groundmass of some of the specimens contains
abundant microlites of a uralitic hornblende, apparently of secondary
. origin. Sericite, chlorite, calcite, and quartz are secondary minerals.
Titanite is generally present in traces and may be abundant where altera-
tion has decomposed some of the f erromagnesian minerals. A more com-
plete description of the alteration of these rocks is given in the descrip-
tion of the ore deposits of the Terre-Neuve district (pp. 439-440).
Dike rocks. A small number of dikes cut the older andesitic lavas out-
side of the main intrusive zone in the Terre-Neuve region. A large promi-
nent dike of this type at Rocher, southeast of Terre-Neuve village, is the
country rock of some of the copper veins. The rock is a gray porphyry
20
306 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

containing white plagioclase phenocrysts 2 to 3 millimeters in length,

some hornblende prisms, and a few grains of quartz in a dark-gray
'

aphanitic groundmass. Except for a few flakes of biotite partly altered

to chlorite the rock is much like the contact porphyries. The plagioclase
phenocrysts are sodic andesine with borders of oligoclase. The ground-
mass consists of oligoclase, some quartz, and potash feldspar.
Aplites and pegmatites. Aplitic and pegmatitic facies of the intrusive
are not abundant. Pegmatite veins consisting of untwinned orthoclase
plagioclase, quartz, and biotite and some pyrite and chalcopyrite were
seen in Meme Valley. An aplitic rock of rather unusual type, consistjng
largely of albite, a little quartz, and spherulitic or radial growths of mus-
covite, was found near Jeanty Ravine. Some chlorite, titanite, and mag-
netite are present in the rock.

RELATIONS OF THE VARIOUS TYPES.

The dacite porphyries make up the larger part of the intrusive masses
and generally were the first rocks intruded. They represent qui~kly chilled
magma that first came into contact with the relatively cold volcanic rocks
and limestones. The porphyries in Meme Valley have been cut by dikes
and irregular masses of the granodiorite. The relation of the quartz
diorite at Hilaire to the porphyries is not known. The intense alteration
of the porphyries at some places and the general absence of this alteration
in the coarser-grained rocks indicate that the coarser-grained rocks are
intrusive into the chilled porphyries. Veins of pegmatite and aplite cut
both the dacite porphyries and the granodiorite. The relative age of the
surrounding dikes, such as the one at Rocher, is not known. This dike
does not have chilled borders and may be one of the later intrusives. Al·
though no analyses of the altered porphyries are available they probably
are more similar in composition to the quartz diorite at Hilaire than to
the fresh granodiorite at Meme, which is a later differentiate, probably
richer in potash and soda.

METAMORPHIC ROCKS ENTIRELY OR IN P.ART OF IGNEOUS ORIGIN.

DISTRIBUTION AND GENERAL FE.A.TURES.

Metamorphic rocks largely of igneous origin are found at a number of

places in the northern region. The most notable localities where these
rocks were fo11nd during the reconnaissance are on the North Plain at
Morne Beckly and west of Le Trou, near Grande-Riviere du Nord, west of
Limbe, on Limbe Mountain, and in Section Las Lomas, northeast of St.-
ltiiichel. All the metamorphic igneous rocks at these localities appear to
have been derived by intense dynamic and hydrothermal contact meta-
morphism from the earlier basalts and associated pyroxenites and perido-
tites;probably during the folding and batholithic intrusions of Cretaceous
•
• •
 •

•
IGNEOUS ROCKS • 307
•

time. The more intense phases of this metamorphism have resulted in the
formation of chloritic, amphibolitic, talcose, and serpentinous rocks and
in the production of local zones of schists. •
The following table gives a brief classification of the more notable
types of metamorphic and igneous rocks in the northern region. 'l,he
more notable types of metamorphjc rocks are described in the following •

text.

Classification of igneous and metamorphic rocks in the northern part of the

Republic of Haiti.

Original state of rocks. Present state of rocks. Age or relations.

1. Sediments.
Impure quartz sandstone ( ?) . Garnetiferous quartz-mica schist.
Limestones • . . • . . . . . . . . . . • • . Metamorphic limestone schists Probably Paleozoic.
and marble.

2. Basaltic lavas and tuffs ...•... Fine-grained or porphyritic

'' greenstones '' ; and amyg-
daloidal basalts.
Uralitized and albitized basalts; Early or middle Mesozoic
chloritized basalts ; chlorite (Triassic ( ?) and Jurassic).
schists ; some amph ibolites ( ?) .
Tufts and calcareous tufts ( ?) •.. Chlorite schists; chloritic calc
schists.

3. Basic and ultrabasic intru-

•
s1ves.
Diabases and gabbroa........ Uralitized and albitized dia- Associated with and probably
bases ; rnetadiabases ; epido- intrusive into the basaltic
sites ; hornblende schists. lavas and tuffs.
Pyroxenites ( ?) . • • • . • • • . . • . Amphibolites and hornblende Early or middle Mesozoic.
schists.
Peridotites . • . • • • . • • • • • • • • . • Partially serpentinized perido-
tites ; talc schists; serpen-
tines.a.

4. Andesites and dacites ...•..... Andesites and dacites. Jurassic ( ?) , possibly in part
Locally albitized and sericitized early Cretaceous.
and otherwise slightly altered.

5. Sediments.
Claystones, siltstones, sand- Chloritic or sericitic argillites ; Early or middle Mesozoic.
stones, limestones. Largely slaty shales and sandstones;
nonmarine but partly ma- calcareous sand-.tones; crystal·
rine. line limestones and marble.
Locally schistose.

6. Quartz diorite and associated Quartz diorite, etc., locally Late Cretaceous.
rocks. sheared and fractured.

7. Basaltic and andesitic lavas, Practically same, except for local Late Cretaceous or early Eo·
diabase, essexite. Zeoli- alteration. cene. Exact age unknown.
tized.

a. Large
areas of serpentine were not found in the Republic of Haiti but are found in the Dominican
Republic. (See p. 287.)
 308 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

AM:PHIBOLITES AND HORNBLENDE SCHISTS.

Rocks generally without schistose structure but in some places showing

it and consisting predominantly of hornblende are found southwest of
Limbe and on the North Plain at Morne Beckly and east of Le Trou.
Practically all gradations from incipient amphibolitization of basaltic
rocks to rocks that have been fully recr3 stallized to amphiboles are found.
1

Generally some chlorite, talc, or serpentine is fo11nd in the amphibolites,

and iron ores are invariably present.
Dark-gray amphibolites, which on weathered surfaces are conspicuously
porphyritic, are found east of Le Trou along the road between Cap
Ha!tien and Ouanaminthe. These rocks were originally coarsely porph.Y-
. ritic, containing many large crystals of diopside or augite from 1 to
5 millimeters in diameter. On freshly broken surfaces the rocks are dark
green and the porphyritic texture is not so apparent. In thin section
some of the rocks show remnants of unaltered pyroxene or less commonly
of unaltered olivine. One rock was completely converted to pale amphibole
with some chlorite and iron oxides, though the original porphyritic tex-
ture could be easily recognized. In another rock from the same locality
and of similar appearance the phenocrysts, which were largely diopside,
were altered to a pale scarcely pleochroic amphibole with some flaky ser-
pentine. Along fractures in some of the phenocrysi;s green isotropic
grains, probably of pleonaste, have been deposited.
A grayish-green hornblende schist from Morne Beckly is greasy to the
touch and is spotted with dark-green patches of chlorite. Microscopic
examination shows that it was derived by metamorphism from a coarse
porphyritic basalt or pyroxenite probably similar to rocks east of Le Trou.
The groundmass of the rock now consists largely of a very pale amphibole
with considerable serpentine or chlori te and iron ores. Along seams i11
the rock the opaque iron ores and in some places reddish-brown trans-
parent grains, probably of pictotite or chromite: have been deposited. The
phenocrysts, which resemble in outline large crystals of pyroxene and
olivine ( ?) , are completely altered to serpentine and interlacing needles
of actinolitic hornblende, with some chlorite.
The ultrabasic rocks from which these serpentinous amphibolites were
•
derived probably are of the sa.me age as the basic rocks from which the
nickel-bearing serpentines of the Dominican Republic and of Cuba were
derived. It is noteworthy that no areas of serpentine rocks were fo11nd in
the Republic of Haiti. Amphibole is a major constituent and serpentine
is a minor constituent of most of the altered rocks. An augite peridotite
found in Section Las Lomas showed only incipient serpentinization (see
p. 288).
Some amphibolites and hornblende schists at Morne Beckly are com-
posed of greenish-black to gray hornblende in thin fragments that are
pleochroic from colorless or yellowish to blue-green (a=l.62±.003,,8=
1.635±.003, y=l.645±.003). The hornblende is arranged in parallel,
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 309

radial, or confused aggregates and in some rocks in b11ndles of acicular

crystals 5 to 6 centimeters in length. Between the dark crystals of horn-
blende or along shear planes some yellowish or brownish asbestiform acti-
nolite is found in places. The complete recrystallization of these rocks
· obscures their texture and origin. Probably, however, they represent only
the final stage in the amphibolitization of rocks such as those just
described.
TAI,Q SCHIST.

A relatively pure talc schist derived through metamorphism from an

enstatite-bearing rock was found on Morne Beckly. About 15 per cent of
the rock consists of remnants of a colorless orthorhombic pyroxene, and
the rest is made up of talc and iron oxides. The rock appears to have
been brecciated or sheared. Talc and some stringers of iron ores replace
the primary constituents, starting from the fracture lines. Enstatite is
the only primary mineral preserved in the rock.

CHLORITIO SCHISTS.

Chlorite schists occur as country rock associated with the metalliferous

veins in Section Cormiers, west of Grande-Riviere du Nord, and in Sec-
tion Las Lomas, northeast of St. Michel. These light-greenish schists are
spotted with dark flakes of chlorite and consist predominantly of calcite
and chlinochore, with some iron ores and pyrite. Quartz, chalcopyrite,
or titanite may be present. The schists may have once been predominantly
chlorite and clearly show replacement of the chlinochore by later calcite.
Although the exact origin of these calcitic chlorite schists is \1nknown,
they may have been formed by chloritization of basaltic rocks along zones
of hydrotherinal activity, and the resulting chlorite rocks, during sub-
sequent periods of mineralization, were recrystallized and partly replaced •

by calcite and quartz carrying sulphides. Almost complete chloritization

· of amygdaloidal basalts was observed in lavas collected at habitation La
Selle, in Section Cormiers north of the locality where the chlorite schists
were fo11nd. This type of schist, so far as known at present, is confined
to mineralized shear zones.
A different type of chloritic schist is fo11nd on Morne Beckly. This is
a reddish-brown distinctly schistose rock spotted with deep-green flakes
of chlorite. In thin section the rock is seen to be of fragmental origin
and is probably a metamorphosed tu:ff. The fragments are angular and of
varying size and are contained in a clouded base, consisting largely of
calcite with scattered flakes of chlorite and some recrystallized iron oxides.
The fragments appear to be largely of igneous origin and are altered to
pale amphibole, tale, or chlorite. Some fragments consist of calcite and
may possibly be fragments of limestones.
 310 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

SUMMARY OF THE RELATIONS OF THE EXTRUSIVE AND INTRUSIVE SERIES.

Briefly summarized, the igneous rocks of the northern region comprise

a.n older complex series of volcanic rocks and a younger group of batho-
lithic rocks that have intruded the volcanic rocks. The old basement on
which the volcanic series rests has largely been engulfed in the quartz
diorite batholjth in the central part of the Massif du Nord, although
patches of it are probably preserved on the North Plain and on Tortue
Island north of the main axis of intrusion. The structural relations
within the volcanic series are only imperfectly lrnown. In general, there
appears to be an older basaltic series and a younger andesitic series, but
it is doubtful if a complete section including both series is to be fo11nd at
all places. The volcanic rocks contain some old intrusive igneous bodies
of basic or ultrabasic composition that are associated with and presumably
•
intrude the oldest basaltic rocks.
A blanket of Cretaceous sedimentary rocks overlaps the surface of the
younger volcanic rocks. In middle or late Cretaceous time, when these
sediments had attained considerable thickness, all the rocks were intensely
folded and were intruded by the batholith of quartz diorite.
Among the latest lavas of late Cretaceous or early Eocene age are some
basaltic and andesitic rocks, in part of alkaline composition. Their rela-
tions to the quartz diorite are unknown.
• Later folding, possibly in Miocene t ime, was accompanied by minor
stocks of quartz diorite and granodiorite that intruded the older volcanic
rocks and the Tertiary limestones in the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve.
The sections given in Figure 18 are somewhat generalized, but they
show diagrammatically the relations of some of the igneous and sedi-
mentary rocks. The minor intrusions south of Limbe (in section 0) lie
along the crest of an anticlinal arch, the core of which consists of the older
basaltic rocks, and the south flank and probably also the north flank
are composed of the younger andesitic lavas.
Figures 27 and 28, on pages 442-444, show in sections the structural
relations of the post-Eocene intrusives in the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve.
Presumably the series of rocks ranging from the early basaltic lavas in
Jurassic ( ?) or earlier Mesozoic time through the andesitic and dacitic
lavas to the batholitbic intrusions of quartz diorite of late Cretaceous age
comprise a single cycle_of igneous activity.
The relation of the later Miocene ( ?) quartz cliorite group to the earlier
cycle of activity is not apparent. The similarity of the chemical analyses
of the Cretaceous quartz diorite and the post-upper Eocene granodiorite
is very marked and surely indicates that these rocks were derived from a
similar parent magma, though probably during separate cycles of igneous
activity. (See pp. 292 and 304.)
The later basaltic and alkaline andesitic rocks of the vicinity of Ennery
and of the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve appear to have been erupted along
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I .superieur super1et r mayen ~e l.nconnu oumoyen ~o~~~~~~las o&~ique!!. ~ ...
1

18. Generalized sections showing the relations of the igneous and sedimentary rocks in the Massif du Nord.
FIGURE
~
A, Section from Cerca-la-Source to Ouanamlnthe. B, Section from Cerca-Cabajal to the vicinity ot Morne Beckly near Limonade. a, Section ~
~
from the Rtvl~re d'Ennery between Ennery and Poteau through Plaisance Valley and LimM to the north coast .

•
312 GEOLOGY OF THE B.EPUELIC OF HAITI.

a late Cretaceous ( ?) structural trough south of the main axis of the Cre-
taceous batholith. They probably are relatively minor eruptions belonging
to the later stages of the Mesozoic cycle of activity.

CENTRAL REGION.
GENERAL FEATURES AND DISTRIBUTION OF IGNEOUS ROCKS.

In the central part of the Republic there were at least three periods of
igneous eruptions Cretaceous or Eocene, middle or upper Oligocene, and
Miocene. Basaltic lavas and tuffs representing the earliest of these periods
of eruption were definitely recognized at only two localities, one south-
west of Las Cahobas and the other in the central part of the Cha1ne des
Mateux. Nephelite basalts of Oligocene age were found northeast of
Thomazeau, and basalts of the same composition near Saut d'Eau may be
of the same age or possibly younger. Miocene basaltic rocks were found in
the Miocene sedimentary rocks just north of the Cul-de-Sac Plain and
north of l'Arcahaie.
So far as known, all the igneous rocks are extrusive ·lavas or tuffs"'1--
and no indications of intrusive activity were recognized in any part of the
central region. Fragments of quartz and of yellowish iron-rich epidote
in some of the Miocene sedimentary beds just south of St.-Marc probably
were derived from the central parts of the Montagnes Noires, where these
minerals are found in and associated with the intrusive rocks.

PRE-TERTIARY OR LOWER EOCENE BASALTIC ROCKS.

Basaltic lavas of pre-Tertiary or lower Eocene age are exposed about

4 kilometers southwest of Las Cahobas, where the road to Mirebalais
crosses the gap in the Montagnes Noires. The mo11ntains are anticlinal,
and the ba-aalts underlie the upper Eocene limestone near the center of
the gap. (See Fig. 19.)
Basaltic volcanic rocks crop out in small areas south and east of Couyau,
near the crest of the anticlinal arch of the Chaille des Mateux. They prob-
ably lie at the base of the upper Eocene limestone or underlie it. Most
of the outcrops are deeply weathered and have a reddish· or yellowish
iron-stained soil. At one exposure a basaltic tuff composed largely of
altered basaltic glass and containing small Foramjnifera is interbedded
in the upper Eocene limestone. This material may represent reworked tuff
in the basal parts of the upper Eocene limestones.
Exposures of the basal parts of the Eocene limestone and any underly-
ing or interbedded volcanic rocks may be found in the unexplored deep
valley north of Couyau that drains westward to Mont Rouis.

PETROGRAPHY.

Hypersthene basalts. Two specimens collected southwest of Las Caho-

bas are hypersthene basalts.
 •

s.s.o N.N.E

:!
• ,.g
.....
MoRNE DuPRE MoRNE MacHEL Q
z
ltj
Too 0
PurNE OU - Tos ~
00
Niveaade ~U~"".DE-SA ~ .. . ~vea.ude t:d
la.Mer ".... . . .
~: . 0
- . .... ..L. ~~
laNer a
~
~ 7 00
! i ~ 7 ~Kilometres •
Hei1t,eur~ dou.blee s

F1ounE 19. Section across the Montagnes du Trou d' Eau and the Montagnes Noires from Maneville to Las Cahobas, showing the
relations of the middle Eocene basalts in the Montagnes Noires and the supposed relations of the nephelite basalts to the middle
and upper Oligocene limestones in the Montagnes du Trou d'Eau.
Qal, Quaternary alluvium; Tm. Miocene; Tos, upper Oligocene limestone; Tbn, bedded lavas, agglomerates and tutfs, principally nephelite basalts;
Tom, middle Oligocene limestone; Tes, upper Eocene limestone; b, early Tertiary or Mesozoic basaltic lavas.
.

Clo)
~
~
 314 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The rock has a sheet-like jointing. One of the specimens is a dark-gray

to black highly vesicular lava, with vesicles 3 to 4 millimeters in diameter.
Some of the vesicles are lined with altered glass or chloritic substances
and opal. In thin section the lava is seen to contain prisms about 1 milli-
meter in length of a nearly colorless orthorhombic pyroxene. The fine
groundmass shows a flow structure and consists of thin prisms of labrado-
ri te in a base of brown partly altered glass. The hypersthene phenocrysts
may be in clusters of as many as six or seven crystals. Small hypersthene
microlites are present in the glassy base. There are a few scattered prisms
• of plagioclase about 0.2 millimeter in length, and a few greenish to brown-
ish grains of augite of about the same size. Fine specks of magnetite are
scattered in the groundmass.
The second specimen is a greenish-gray rock of aphanitic texture. The
hypersthene phenocrysts are altered to greenish serpentine and a mineral
of low refraction ( n= 1.47), possjbly some form of silica. There are a
few grains of unaltered augite. The groundmass of this rock is similar
in texture to the other lava except for a smaller proportion of glassy base.
Tuff. No lavas suitable for petrographic study were collected in the
Cha.lne des Mateux. The tuffaceous rock east of Couyau interbedded in
the upper Eocene limestone is a light-brownish rock resembling a much-
weathered porph3rry. It consists of fragments of a brown fine-vesjcular
altered glass or palagonite in a matrix of calcareous material. The original
shapes of the glass fragments have been destroyed, either by alteration or
transportation.
NEPHELITB BAS.ALTS.

DISTRIBUTION AND STRUCTURAL RELATIONS.

Near Saut d'Eaw.. Southwest of Saut d'Eau (Ville Bonheur) the
nepbelite basalts rest on an eroded surface of limestone of middle Oligo-
cene age. Along the trail from Mirebalais to Saut d'Eau, 3 kilometers
southeast of Saut d'Eau, the basalts rest on soft, white marly beds that are
considered a marly facies of Oligocene or Eocene limestone, which is also
fo11nd on the hill west of Saut d'Eau. The relations of the basalts to the
Miocene beds of the Artibonite Valley are not known. The basalt floors
the <;>pen grass-covered savanna southwest of Saut d'Eau called Savane
Madame Michel. Between this savanna and the Savane Madame Michaud,
to the southwest, the trail to Fond-des-Orangers crosses low hills, where
the underlying middle Oligocene limestone crops out. Northwest of the
trail, just beyond the divide on Savane Maaame Michaud, a more or less
conical dissected hill rises about 200 meters above the savanna. The
southeast slopes consist of bedded volcanic material and some vesicular
flows. The bedded material is in thin, even beds, which in some places
dip 20° to 30° southwestward. It consists of small fragments, some
of which are partly ro11nded, and a few fragments of vesicular lava
larger than a man's head. The general character of the material and

•
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 315

bedding indicate that it is partly reworked volcanic tuff and agglomerates,

although their source was not discovered. (See Pl. XVIII, B, p. 280.)
They probably overlie the flows to the east and south. The basaltic lavas
extend southward into the valley called Fond-des-Orangers, where the
underlying limestone is of upper Eocene age.
Near Thomazeau. Nephelite basalts of the same character as those
found at Saut d'Eau are exposed at the foot of the mountains nortl1east
of Thomazeau and north of Maneville. On the trail from Thomazeau to
Cormillon, at the foot of the mountains, conglomeratic beds near the base
of the overlying upper Oligocene limestone contain pebbles of basalt and •

of a limestone, presumably of upper Eocene age. All the igneous pebbles

in this conglomerate consist of altered nephelite basalt containing abun...
dant crysta,l s of olivine and generally are well rounded, as are the few
pebbles of limestone. The igneous pebbles may be reworked tuffaceous
and agglomeratic material. About 4 kilometers northeast of Thomazeau
there are exposures of material that appears to consist of reworked ag-
glomerates and tu:ffs, loosely cemented and dipping as much as 15° to 18°.
Along the trail from Cornillon to Marche Canard, on the north slope
of the mountains, about 1 or 2 kilometers beyond their crest, weathered
basalt underlies the upper Oligocene limestone. This basalt pres11mably
is the same as that exposed farther southwest, near Thomazeau, although
no specimens were examined petrographically. (See Fig. 19, p. 313.)

PETROGRAPHY AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION.

The massive basalts of this series are dark-gray rocks when unaltered,
although some are brownish. Extremely vesicular or scoriaceous lavas
may be brown, coated with yellowish alteration products. The weathered
surfaces of the gray rocks are bleached to a rusty brown, and vesicular
lavas may be deeply pitted. The lavas from Saut d'Eau and Maneville are
of exactly the same appearance and mineral composition, and in thin
sections they are practically indistinguishable.
N ephelite basalt. A typical unaltered rock from a locality about 2
kilometers northeast of Maneville is dark gray and not noticeably por-
phyritic but contains small phenocrysts, the largest about 1 millimeter
in length, of glassy olivine and of augite in a dark-gray dense groundmass.
In thin section the texture is porphyritic with phenocrysts of olivine
and augite in a fine-grained holocrystalline groundmass of augite, neph-
elite, and zeolites. (See Pl. XXIII, B.) The unaltered olivine pheno-
crysts are rounded to subhedral crystals of characteristic outline or are
straight cross-fractured prisms, partly in clusters. A yellowish to brown-
ish-yellow augite is less common as phenocrysts. It usually occurs in long, .
thin, cross-fractured prisms, which make up about 5 to 10 per cent of the
rock. The augite is zonal, with extinction on 010 (..L /3), ranging from
42° to 52° on the outside, pleochroic (a=l.'l'O, y==l.72+ ). The augite
 316 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

in the gro11ndmass is in small prisms and microlites. Titaniferous

magnetite and probably ilmenite are the principal accessory minerals and
form irregular grains and clustered aggregates. Both apatite in small
prisms and some melilite are scattered in the gro11ndmass in minor quanti-
ties. The nephelite forms irregular grains except near borders of the
miarolitic cavities, where it forms 8tout hexagonal prisms that are sharply
idiomorphic against the surro11nding later crystallized zeolites. (See
Pl. XXIII, B.) The nephelite is perfectly clear and unaltered. The
zeolites scattered in the groundmass and :filling the cavities in the rock
could not be definitely identified.
As the nephelite is clear and unaltered in contact with the zeolites,
some of the zeolites may be of primary origin. Small amo11nts of calcite
and analcite, both probably of secondary origin, are present in the rock,
generally in cavities with the zeolites.
The mineral composition of the rock could be only roughly estimated
because of the texture of the gro11ndmass and is about as follows: Olivine,
15 per cent; augite, 50 per cent; nephelite, 15 per cent; iron ores, melilite,
and apatite, 10 to 12 per cent; zeolites, 8 to 10 per cent.
A chemical analysis of this rock, an analysis of a similar rock from
Grenada, British West Indies, and average analyses of nephelite and
melilite-nephelite basalts for comparison are given in the following table:

Analysis of nephelite basalt from Maneville, an analysis of a similar rock from

Grenada, and average analyses of nephelite basalts.

1 2 8

Si02 •••••••• ••• • •• •• ••• • • •••• •••• • •• • • • • • •••• • ••• • •• • ••• •• 38.64 42 .83 39.87 37.56
Al20a •••• •••••••• ••• •• •••••• • •••• •••• •• • ••• •• •• •• • ••• • • • • • 11.14 10.9'2 13.68 10.08
F~Oa •• •• ••• ••• •• ••••• ••• • • • • •••• • • • • ••• •• ••• • • •• • • • •• • • • 5.35 4.33 6.71 6.82
FeO • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 6.31 8.82 6.43 6.94
MgO • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 13 .04 14 .02 10.46 16.32
OaO • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 14.40 18.20 12. 36 18.82
Na20 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 3.48 3.24 3.85 8.11
K20 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 1.90 .64 1.87 1.53
H20 + • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 8.01 1.80
.29 2.22 2.52
H 20 - • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••
Ti02 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 2.85 .05 1.50 2.66
P205 •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• . 71 .89 .9, •• ••
MnO • ••• •• • • •••• ••• • • • •• •• • • • ••• •• •• • • • • • • • •• • • • • • • ••••• • .14 .12 .21 .06
•
100.21 100.86

1. Nephelite basalt, near Maneville, Republic of Haiti. H. S. Washington, analyst.

2. ''Olivine basalt,'' Grenada, British West Indies. J. B. Harrison, analyst. Rocks of Grenada,
p. 10, 1896. Given by H. S. Washington in Chemical a nalyses of igneous rocks, U. S. Geol. Survey
Prof. Paper 99, p. 709, 1917.
8. Average of 26 analyses of nephelite basalt. Daly, R. A., Igneous rocks and their origin, p. 88,
1914.
'· Average of 6 analyses of melilite-nephelite basalt. Daly, R. A., op. cit., p. 38.
 JtE 1•£' R L 1 C () J;' HA I 'J' I
<;EI >I,< >G I l ' .\ I , 8 l . R \' lt~ ) '

,4. l'II C)'l' ():\I I< ' Jt Of~R-t\.PCT OF BARAI,T F'RO~l rl' IIE :\IASRII1 DI~ LA SEf,f,F.,
' Jll.: (j()~SEI.. I~I~.
XOl{' l' If f)I•' l{l,?IJ;:
l'. J)l: ! ~i<><'l<1st1 : D, <l i(>J> s i<l<': 0 . o li,·i11e : H, St'l'l><•11 tin P: I . i1111<•nit<'.
<>r<li11 nr ~· li~l1t. '( !)C).

Tl . PIIO'f'O~II('ROGRAPII 01" XE(lfJF.T,T1'E R \ , .\T,T J;"no'r 1'TIE ,. T f' I~T'T'i.. OF

~lA~I ~ \' 1 r.. r_,J;J.

(), <>1i\·i11<' : .\, tit:1niff'rot1s D.llf?i1P: X. nephPlitP: :\I. tita11if<•rc>11..;; 111:1gn<'ti t<• : Z, Zl'<)l i tc-s.
01~c1innry light, X 90.
•

•
 IGNEOUS ROCKS • 317
•

The norm of the Maneville nephelite basalt, calculated according to the

quantitative classification, is as follows:
N arm of M aneville nephelite basalt.
Anorthite .............................. 9.48 Calcium orthosilicate ...•...••..••.•..... 7. 75
Leucite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8. 72 Magrietite ................................ 7. 78
Nephelite .............................. . 15·. 70 Ilmenite ................................. 5. 40
Diopside ................................ 25 .10 Apatite .................................. . 1. 71
0 Iivine ................................ . 15. 80 The rock is uvaldose ((III) IV. 2.3.2''.2.)

In chemical composition the rock falls between Daly's nephelite and

melilite-nephelite basalts, except that it is higher in calcium and slightly
higher in titanium. The iron oxides are somewhat lower. The gradation
toward melilite-nephelite basalt is also indicated by the presence of some
calcium orthosilicate in the norm.
Some of the basalts at this locality are notably higher in augite and
iron ores than the rock analyzed. In a specimen collected about half
a kilometer northeast of Maneville the groundmass is composed largely
of augite prisms and microlites together with a smaller percentage of
interstitial nephelite and zeolites. Besides the accessory minerals it con-
tains small brownish cloudy grains of an isotropic feldspathoid, probably
haiiynite or some member of the sodalite group, and flakes of reddish-
brown biotite. The olivine in this rock is partly altered to serpentine and
iron ores. Calcite accompanies the zeolites, both in the groundmass and
in the cavities, and these minerals are probably to some extent secondary,
although probably of late magmatic or deuteric origin: The augite prob-
•
ably comprises about 60-65 per cent .
Hauynite-nephelite basalt. A specimen collected about 2 kilometers
northeast of Thomazeau contains 3 to 5 per cent of haiiynite as an acces-
sory mineral. In thin section it shows hexagonal cross sections about 0.2
millimeter in diameter, generally clouded with brown or gray dusty in-
clusions, some of them in sectors or symmetrically arranged. Some sec-
tions are elongated, forming hexagonal prisms, which are probably due
to dodecahedral twinning. Reddish-brown biotite is also present in small
flakes.
Z eolitized nephelite basalt. A brownish-gray rock, collected about 4
kilometers southeast of Saut d'Eau, is a nephelite basalt containing zeo-
lites. It contains scattered vesicles and amygdules and is speckled with
brownish-yellow grains of olivine altering to serpentine and iron oxides.
In thin section the olivine is seen to occur in euhedral to subhedral crys-
tals, some of which are marked by embayments of the gro11ndmass. The
augite phenocrysts are brownish green and have the characteristic zonal
and ''hourglass'' structure. The augite is partly in very long prisms
whose ratio of length to width is more than 10 to 1. This rock differs from
some of the basalts in the development of the nephelite, which may be in
relatively large crystals that poikilitically inclose the augite and acces-
sories of the gro11ndmass, and in the presence of considerable analcite,
 318 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

which forms part of the base and replaces the nephelite. The mineral
composition of the rock is approximately as follows: Olivine, 10 per cent;
augite, 60 per cent; nephelite, 7 ( ?) per cent; iron ores, 5 per cent;
analcite, 10 ( ?) per cent; zeolites, 8 ( ?) per cent. Apatite is an acces-
sory mineral.
•
M elilite-nephelite basalt. A large vesicular bomb or fragment from
the bedded volcanic debris northwest of Savane Madame Michaud is a
melilite-nephelite basalt. It differs from the other nephelite basalts only
in the presence of a few small yellowish crystals of melilite, some of which
have characteristic biconcave sections.

RELATIONS AND ORIGIN OF 1•HE LAVAS.

In six sections studied from both localities and in specimens of con-

glomeratic volcanic debris that included fragments of lava, none of
the basalts contained feldspar. The lavas from Thomazeau, from near
Maneville, and from Saut d'Eau are remarkably siinilar in petrographic
character. Accordingly, the lavas at these different localities must either
have been derived from the same parent source of magma or the magmas
must have had a similar genetic history.
As the lavas overlie the middle Oligocene and Eocene limestones the
magmas in reaching the surface must have passed through at least a
thousand meters of limestone. The uniformity of the lavas and the failure
to find more siliceous types of igneous rocks associated with them indi-
cates that the magmas were fully formed before they reached the chambers
or conduits of the volcanoes from which they were erupted. A more ex-
tended study might, however, reveal the presence of other types of lavas.

AGE OF THE ERUPTIONS.

As the basaltic rocks at Saut d' Eau and northeast of Thomazeau are
of exactly the same petrographic character and cont.a.in similar associated
beds of reworked volcanic debris the eruptions in the two localities prob-
ably occurred at the same time, although this has not been proved by
studies of the structure. The basalts at Saut d'Eau are of post-middle
Oligocene age, and those near Thomazeau are overlain by upper Oligo-
cene limestone. If the rocks at the two localities are of the same age the
eruptions occurred in late middle or early upper Oligocene time. No
evidence was fol1nd during the field work to indicate that the eruptive
rocks were ever continuous between the two regions.
In the San Juan Valley and the valley of Rio Yaque del Sur, in tl1e
Dominican Republic, nearly flat-lying beds of limburgite capping mesas
1
and upland areas of gravel are considered Pleiatocene. The fact that
these limburgites are probably of similar composition to the nephelite
basalts of the Republic of Haiti indicates that eruptions of lava of
1A geological reconnaissance of the Dominican Republic : Dominican Rep. Geol. Survey
Mem., vol. 1, p. 203, 1921.
 IGNEOUS ROOKS. 319

ultrabasic composition may have occurred intermittently over a con-

siderable part of later Tertiary time. The lavas at Saut d'Eau may there-
fore be younger than those near Maneville, but their relation to the Mio-
cene beds of the Artibonite Valley is not known.

MIOCENE ( ?) BASALTIC ROCKS.

GENERAL FEATURES AND STRUCTURAL RELATIONS.

/ •

Basaltic lavas and waterworn debris derived from them are interbedded
in Miocene sediments on the so11th slope of the Cbaine des Mateux. About
4 or 5 kilometers north of I'Arcahaie, on the trail to Couyau, basalt is
exposed in a ridge 50 to 60 meters in width and appears to be interbedded
in the Miocene series. (See Fig. 5 and pp. 213-214.) Another exposure,
which probably represents the sa.m e bed, was seen along the same trail,
about 2 or 3 kilometers farther north.
Along the trail between Saut d'Eau and the Cul-de-Sac Plain, about
3 kilometers southeast of Source Morissel, conglomerate that consists
probably of reworked basaltic agglomerates and tuffs is interbedded in the
Miocene series.
PETROGRAPHY.

A fragment or cobble of dark-gi;ay amygdaloidal lava in the Miocene

sediments south of Saut d'Eau contains amygdules lined with chlorite
and calcite.
In thin section this rock consists of abundant needles of labradorite
and thin prisms and grains of augite in a somewhat altered base that
contains chlorite. Greenish augite also forms phenocrysts from 0.2 to
~bout 1 millimeter in diameter, partly in clusters of several grains. The
thin prisms of augite, especially in the gro11ndmass, have a brownish color
and are zonal, giving an extinction Z /\ c ranging from 46° to 52°. Mag-
netite is an accessory mineral in small grains. Some aggregates of a ser-
pentinous or chloritic mineral may be seco~dary after olivine, although
their shapes are not distinctive. Chlorite occurs interstitially in the
altered base and also lines some amygdules. Zeolites and calcite are
also present in the amygdules. The augite, which forms 40 to 50 per cent
of the base, is somewhat similar in character and development to the
augite found in the nephelite basalts near Saut d'Eau and Maneville .
•

This basalt is further1nore similar in many respects to the amygdaloidal

basalts of the later basaltic eruptions of the northern region. (See
p. 284.)
AGE AND REL.A.TIO NS OF THE LAVAS.

Conclusive evidence that the volcanic debris in the Miocene beds near
Source Morissel was derived from lavas of Miocene age was not obtained.
Some of the eruptions, however, probably occurred in Miocene time, as
is indica,t ed by the bed of solid basalt in the Miocene north of l' Arcahaie.
(See Fig. 5, p. 128.)
 •

320 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

SOUTHERN REGION.
GENERAL FEATURES.

The igneous rocks of the southern part of the Republic are more uni-
form than those of the northern and central regions. So far as known, all
are of extrusive origin or are parts of minor intrusive bodies associated
with eruptions of lava. With the exception of small areas of andesitic
•
rocks near Baraderes the lavas are predominantly basalts. 'fhe largest
area of these basaltic rocks is in the ~fassif de la Selle, where they are ex-
posed on the crest of the major anticlinal arch. Smaller areas are exposed
farther west, where the overlying Tertiary limestones have been removed
by erosion.
With the possible exception of a minor occurrence of basalt that may be
of Miocene age, a Cretaceous period of igneous activity is the only one
that has been recognized in the southern region. The small zone of ande-
sitic rocks near Baraderes may not belong to the main period of basaltic
eruptions, but as the andesites also underlie the upper Eocene limestone,
the two periods of eruption probably were separated by only a relatively
short interval.
•

LATE CRETACEOUS BASAI,TIC ROCKS.

DISTRIBUTION AND STRUCTURAL REI,ATIONS.

Basaltic rocks, probably of late Cretaceous age, constitute most of the

basement on which the Tertiary limestones were deposited in the southern
part of the Republic. Their surface distribution is entirely dependen·t
on later erosion. At many places the basalts are exposed only in small
patches beneath the cover of Tertiary sediments. A n11mber of the larger
exposures are shown on the geologic map (Pl. I). Descriptions of the
distribution and structural relations in the larger areas examined during
•
the reconnaissance are given below.
Massif de la Selle. In the Massif de la Selle the overlying upper
Eocene limestone has been removed over an area from 500 to 600 square
kilometers in extent. The major structure of the area is that of an eroded
anticlinal arch, although this structure is modified by more or less exten-
sive faulting. The northern boundary of the area, near Furey, which is
marked by a conspicuous scarp of limestone, appears to be a high-angle
thrust fault. (See Fig. 20, A, p. 322.) At the southern bo11ndary, along
the Grande Riviere de Jacmel, the contact is also marked by a fault, up-
turned basal beds of Eocene limestone being in contact with massive basalt.
(See Fig. 20, B.) The faulting at this locality appears to be normal.
'fhe basal beds of the upper Eocene limestone are clearly exposed along
the Grande Riviere de Jacmel below the boundary between the basalt and
the limestone. Near Furey the upper part of the series is in contact with
• the basalt. The southeastern boundary of the area was not seen, except
•
 • IGNEOUS ROCKS • 321
\

from a distance, but it appears to be irregular, owing to high limestone

ranges that jut into the area of basalt. At the southern boundary of the
Leogane Plain, near the Riviere des Citronniers, basaltic agglomerate and
breccia pass under the alluvial deposits. Farther east, along the Riviere
Momance, the basaltic breccia and limestone seem to be in fault contact.
A s1nall area of basalt is exposed on the south coast, on the west side of
the small stream at Guillaumone. This basalt clearly underlies the upper
Eocene limestone. An exposure on the slope leading down to the coast
shows that the limestone was deposited on an irregular surface of the
basalt.
A larger area of basalt lies back of the plain at Cayes de J acmel. Impure
,
tuffaceous limestones are interbedded with the basalts south of Etang
J

Bossier. There is no basis for the supposition that Etang Bossier is a

erater lake.
Near the base of the basalts in the Massif de la Selle are interbedded
impure tuffaceous limestones and shaly rocks of marine origin, giving
evidence of contemporaneous volcanic activity during their deposition.
(See p. 95.) Patches of older sheared metamorphic limestones are en-
gulfed in the basalts at several localities. (See p. 92.) Both the basalts
and their associated tuffs and limestones are intricately folded.
Except for thin local beds or lenses the basalts are remarkably free from
interbedded tu:ffs or other pyroclastic debris, although in the valley of
the Riviere des Citronniers there are exposures of coarse volcanic breccias
and tuffs, w.hich appear to be of considerable extent and thickness.
Whether these rocks are at the top or the bottom of the eruptive series
was not definitely determined, although th~y probably are near the top.
The generalized sections in Figure 20, A and B, show the relations of
the, basalts and the associated limestones in the Massif de la Selle.
Etang, de Mira.,qoane. Basalts are exposed in the depression occupied
by the Etang de Miragoane. Along the road at the north side of the lake
the basalts are overlain unconformably by basal beds of the upper Eocene
limestone, consisting of fine conglomerates or sandstones and dark slates.
The south side of the basin was not explored, but it consists of a straig:Qt
and rather steep mountain front, the lower slopes of which may possibly
be of volcanic rocks but the crest is composed of limestone. This mo11ntain
wall may be flank of an eroded anticline, the crest
, of which passes through
• the center of the depression occupied by the Etang de Miragoane .
Vicinity of Asile Valley. Basaltic rocks associated in part with lime-
stones, probably of upper Cretaceous age, are exposed along the Grande
Riviere des Nippes and the Riviere Serpent. The structural relations of
these limestones to the basalts indicate that they were deposited at the
time of the earlier eruptions.
Pillow structure in basalt exposed north of the Grande-Riviere des
Nippes on the trail to Anse-a-Veau shows that some of the :flows were
21 .

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F1ounm 20. Generalized sections across the Southern Peninsula showing the relations of the basaltic lavas and the sedimentary rocks.
A, Section from Aquln through the Asile Valley to Anse-A-Veau. B, Section from Jacmel to the Rlvl~re Momance, southeast of the
Uogane Plain. 0, Section from Cayes de Jacmel to Morne ".rranchant.
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 323

submarine and included fossiliferous calcareous mud similar to that

which forms the more massive limestones. (See Plate VIII, B, and p. 96.)
At other places the lavas have overflowed or buried more indurated cal-
careous deposits. The contacts at some places are parallel to the bedding
planes of the limestones. Figure 20, C, is a generalized section which
shows diagrammatically the relations of the upper Cretaceous ( ?) sedi-
mentary rocks to the basalts.
Vicinity of Aquin and St. Louis du Sud. Basalts crop out in some
parts of the Aquin Plain and along its borders, where they are overlain
by upper Eocene limestone. A few low hills between Aquin and Vieux
•
Bourg consist largely of basalt, but their sides are strewn with limestone
float, which probably comes from a cap of upper Eocene limestone. A
good exposure in a road cut about 8 or 9 kilometers west of Aquin shows
basalt overlain by brownish and greenish shales and impure limestone.
Farther west along the coast, near St. Louis du Sud, the basalts form the
lower parts of the mountain ranges, which are capped with massive lime-
stones, and also form many of the coastal hills. The lower alluvial valleys
of some of the rivers, such as that of the Riviere du Mesle, are underlain
by basalts, although the bed rock is concealed in places by river deposits.
East of St. Louis du Sud many of the basalts show pillow structure and
weather into ellipsoidal or round boulders, which strew the ground. Basa.I t
underlying the basal beds of the upper Eocene limestone is exposed on the
trail from Cavaillon to St.-Louis, near the crest of the hill 6 or 7 kilo-
meters southeast of Cavaillon.
Western part of peninsula. North of Port-a-Piment the basaltic rocks
occupy an east-west troughlike valley that separates the limestone moun-
tains near the coast from the outskirts of the main range of the Massif
de la Hotte to the north. From Les Anglais to Tiburon the low basalt
ranges skirt the coast and a higher limestone range, which adjoins them
to the north. Between Tiburon and Anse d'Ainhault basalt is the pre-
dominating rock of the foothills and low ridges along the coast, although
here and there spurs of limestone extend to the coast. Limestone crops
out on the crests of the higher ranges to the east.
Sources Ohaudes. The interior valley at the Sources Chaudes is in
basaltic rocks, which are apparently overlain along the northern border by
basal shaly beds of the upper Eocene limestone. The hot springs issue
from fissures in the basalt along the south side of the valley.

PETROGRAPHY AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION.

Basalts. The normal basalts are dark-gray to black rocks, less com-
monly brownish gray or brown because of alteration. In texture they gen-
erally are aphanitic, but contain a few phenocrysts of plagioclase, augite,
or olivine. Some of the rocks, particularly those in the central part of the
peninsula, are a.mygdaloidal, and pillow structure is common everywhere.
The amygdules generally are filled with chl.oritic minerals, chalcedony,

•
324 GEOLOGY OF THE R.EPUBLIO OF HAITI.

calcite, or zeolites, and a few contain pyrite. The blocks of the pillow
lavas vary from subangular to smoothly ellipsoidal in outline and range
in diamete·r from 8 or 10 centimeters to a meter or more. The spaces
between the blocks may be occupied by secondary minerals or, less com-
monly, by sediments (Pl. VIII, B). Some of the more altered purplish-
brown lavas are amygdular and have a banding or eutaxitic structure.
The black lavas weather at the surface to a brownish gray or rusty
brown, and have rusty-brown films along the joint cracks. The pillow
lavas weat.h er into round cobbles or boulders that may strew the ground.
They disintegrate by spalling off parallel to the surface.
In thin section the dark-gray aphanitic lavas generally are porphyritic,
containing phenocrysts of basic plagioclase and less commonly of diopside
or augite in a groundmass of intergranular texture, consisting of granules
of augite interstitial to a plexus of thin plagioclase laths. (See Pl. XXIII,
A, p. 316.) Many lavas contain a few phenocrysts of olivine.
The plagioclase phenocrysts are euhedral to subhedral prisms, generally
from 0.2 to 2.0 millimeters in length, and comprise from 5 to 10 per cent
of the rock volume. They differ in composition in different lavas but are
either bytownite or labradorite when :unaltered and are somewhat zonal.
. The more calcic plagioclase may have centers as calcic as Ab 25 An 715 , but
most of the phenocrysts are calcic labradorite ( Ab. 0 Anao to Abs~ An6cs).
The plagioclase may be partly in clusters of prisms. A few smaller pheno-
crysts of diopside or augite may be present, generally associated with the
clusters of plagioclase.
Olivine is sparingly present as phenocrysts in many of the lavas but
rarely comprises more than a small proportion of the rock. It generally
is partly or completely altered to serpentine or iddingsite. Olivine or its
alteration products comprise as much as 10 or 15 per cent of the rocks
in only one or two specimens examined. Such rocks are olivine basalts.
The plagioclase of the groundmass is in thin subhedral to euhedral
prisms, consisting mostly of labradorite (Ab. 0 An60 ). They range in
length from 0.05 to 0.5 millimeter. In many of the basalts the prisms are
interlacing. In specimens containing a high percentage of augite or a
partly glassy base, they may form only a very incomplete network. The
plagioclase, including the pbenocrysts, forms 30 to 45 per cent of the rock.
The pyroxene, which is the predominating constituent in most of the
rocks, generally appears to be a variety of diopside but varies in different
rocks (a.=1.675, ,B=l.685, y=l.70-1.705). It is nearly colorless or
slightly greenish to brownish, and except for a few scattered phenocrysts
in some of the rocks is in small granules ( 0.05 millimeter) interstitial to
the plagioclase. The diopside rarely occurs in grains large enough to
inclose prisms of plagioclase. It forms 40 to 60 per cent of the rock.
Magnetite, probably titaniferous, occurs in small grains interstitial to
the plagioclase or as larger grains of earlier crystallization. In some lavas
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 325

the iron ore is certainly largely ilmenite. The iron ores comprise from 5 to
10 or 12 per cent of the rock. A few grains of greenish to brownish ac-
cessory hornblende were noted in one rock.
Some rocks are coarser grained, containing pyroxene grains as much as
a millimeter or more in diameter inclosing the plagioclase and producing
a subophitic texture. The texture is in some places intersertal, with glass
or alteration products occupying the spaces between the diopside or augite.
A brow11ish to greenish micaceous mineral, resembling the serpentine that
replaces some of the olivine, fills pores in the groundmass of some lavas.
A chemical analysis of a basalt from the Massif de la Selle, north of the
Riviere Gosseline, and the average of a number of analyses of basalts for
comparison are given in the following table:
Analysis of basalt from the Southern Peninsula of Haiti, and average analysis
of basalt.

1 2

Si02 •• • • ••• • •••• •• • ••• •• ••• • • ••• •• •• •• •• ••• • ••• •• • •• • •• ••• • •• ••• •• • •• •• • • ••• • ••• 48. 97 48.78
Al20 8 •••••••••••••••••••••••• ••••••••••• ••••• ••• •••••••••••••••••••• •••••••••••• 14. 90 15.85
Fe20a • • • . . • • • . . . • . • • • . • . • • . . . . . . • . • • • . • • • . • • • . . . • . . . . . • . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . • • . . . . . . . . 96 5.37
FeO . • • • . . • • • • • • • • • • • . • • . . . • • . . • . . • • . • • • . • . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . 10.27 6.8•
MgO • • • • • • • • . • • • . . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . . . . • • • • • • . • . • . • . • • • . . . • • . . . . . . . . . . . 7. 09 6.08
cao . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11. 72 8.91
Na20 . . . . . . . • . . • • . . • • . . • . . • . • . . . . . . • • . . . • . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2. 06 3.18
K 20 . . . • . • • • • • • • • • . • . • . • . . • • . . . . . . • • • • • • . . • • . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . 33 1.6.1
H 20 + .. . .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. ... . .. .. ... . .. . . ... . . .. .. . ... .. . ... . . ... . .. .. .. . . .. .. . 1. 85
1.76
H .,O - • • • • . • . • . • • • . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • • . • • • • • • • • . . • • . . • • • • . . . • • . • . . • . •28
- 1.89
Ti02 • . . . . . • • . . . . . . . . . . • • . . • • . . . . . . • • . . . . . . • • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2. 05
P 20 5 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 24 .47
MnO • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • • . . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . . . . • • • • • • • • • • . . . • • • • . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . .15 .29

100.37
1. Basalt, Southern Peninsula of Haiti, Massif de la Selle north of the Riviere Gosseline, Republic
of Haiti. H. S. Washington, analyst.
2. Average of 161 analyses of basalt. Daly, R. A., Igneous rocks and their origin, p. 27, 191•.

The mineral composition of the rock analyzed, as measured approxi-

mately by the Rosiwal method, and the norm, as calculated according to
the quantitative classification, are as follows:
Approximate mineral composition and norm of basalt from the Southern
Peninsula of Haiti .

.Approximate mineral composition. Norm.

Labradorite ••.•••••.••••••••••••••••••••• 38. 6 Orthoclase • . • . . . • • • • • • . • • • . . . • . • . . . • • • . • 1. 8'

Diopside •..•••••.••••••••••..••.••••••... 60. 6 Albite ...•...•.•••...••.......•.•...•••.• 17 .40
Olivine and serpentine ...•.......•.•••.••• 4.1 Anorthite ••••.••••..•..•..........••.•.. 30. 4.4
Ilmenite and magnetite ..•.....•••.••....• 6. 7 Diopside ••••........•.••.•.•.••.•....•••• 21.51
Hypersthene ••••••••.•••.••••••.•••••.••• 20. 60
Olivine .•.•.••...•.......••••••••••••.••• 1.09
Ilmeni"te ••••.••••.••••.•.••••.•••.••••••• 3.88:
Magnetite •••••.•....•..•••.•.•.•...••••. 1.39
Apatite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . .57
The rock is auvergnose (111.6.4.6).
326 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The basalt is notably high in lime and is rather high in titanium. The
low ferric iron indicates that the iron ore is largely ilmenite;.
Albitized or stnlitic basalts. Reddish-brown to gray lavas of amygda-
loidal texture, in which the feldspars are largely albite, apparently of
secondary and late magmatic origin, are fo11nd in the valley of the Riviere
des Citronniers. The amygdules have a maximum diameter of 5 or 6 centi-
meters. They are filled with calcite, chlorite, or zeolites.
In thin section the rocks are porphyritic, containing phenocrysts of
plagioclase and some of olivine in a groundmass of intergranular texture
similar to that of the normal basalts. The plagioclase consist.a largely or
entirely of albite. Their original texture and twinning lamallae are gen-
erally preserved, although in some rocks the plagioclase is recrystallized
to a granular aggregate of albite. The olivine once present in some of the
rocks is altered to iron oxides or chloritic minerals. The pyroxenes are
rather fresh, although they may be partly replaced by cl1lorite. Chlorite
and zeoli tes replace the plagioclase in some of the rocks.
The amygdules of the rocks consist of zeolites, chlorite, and calcite. The
zeolites do not appear to correspond in optical properties to any described
species. In some rocks zeolites ( ?) are the principal minerals in the
amygdules. They form parallel or radial crystalline growths or hard
fibrous growths resembling chalcedony. Some of the minerals are stained
pinkish in places from impurities.
The optical properties of three minerals that are common in many of
the lavas were determined as follows:
1. A colorless to translucent or whitish mineral forms parallel or ra-
diating growths of prismatic plates. Fragments colorless. Optically+,
2V medium. Prismatic plates with Z normal to perfect cleavage and
plates. Y is parallel to the prismatic cleavage and elongation. Crushed
fragments t end to lie on a face that is normal to Z and that in convergent
light shows an acute bisectrix.
a.=1.523 ± o.ooa P= 1.524± 0.003 y = 1.536 ± 0.003.
2. Translucent to white or bluish fibrous platy mineral. Hardness 5
to 6. Fragments may be clouded with threadlike inclusions para.Ile! to
cleavage. Optically+, 2V large. Prismatic plates with Z normal to
platy cleavage. Xis parallel to fibers or prismatic cleavage. Crushed frag-
ments tend to lie on a face that is normal to Z and that shows a posi-
tive bisectrix.
a.=1.508 ± .003. f3=1.51 ± .003. =
y 1.513 ± .003.
a. Whitish to bluish translucent mineral in tough fibrous growths.
Hardness 6. Parallel fibers with parallel extinction and negative elonga-
tion. Birefringence very low ( .001 ±). n= 1.52 approximately.
Diabase porphyries. Coarse-grained basaltic rocks containing large
pbenocrysts of plagioclase and some of augite were found at several places
in the Massif de la Selle south of Furey. The plagioclase phenocrysts,
•
 IGNEOUS ROOXS. 32~

consisting of labradorite and bytownite, range from a few millimeters to

1 centimeter in length and comprise 10 to 15 per cent of the rock. The
phenocrysts are partly in starlike groups. The plagioclase phenocrysts
in one of the specimens are considerably clouded with saussuritic aggre-
gates. and are replaced along cracks by chlorite. The texture of the
groundmass of these rocks is subophitic. The grains of augite are about a
millimeter in diameter and only partly wrap around the plagioclase in the .
groundmass. Besides platy titaniferous magnetite or ilmenite a few flakes
of partly altered biotite occur as an accessory mineral. Pyrite is a secon-
dary mineral in one specimen. Although the texture of these rocks is not
typical of the coarse-grained diabases, they presumably are parts of minor
intrusive bodies.
Basic augite andesites. Rocks similar to the ordinary basalt in appear-
ance and texture, but in which the plagioclase is predominantly andesine
( Ab 60 An,0 ), were found at a few places in the central part of the penin-
sula between Miragoane and Aquin. They contain no remnants of olivine
and generally have some interstitial brown glassy base. The few specimens
studied are considerably more altered than most of the basalts. Chlorite
( delessite), calcite, and zeolites are abundant alteration products, replac-
ing plagioclase and obscuring the texture of some of the rocks. Calcite
and heulandite are associated in veinlets and replace the plagioclase. The
plagioclase seems to be the :first mineral to alter, the augite in some rocks
remaining almost 11naltered when the plagioclase is nearly ·destroyed.
ALTERATION.
.
The only extensive alteration product.a in the basalts are chlorite,
zeolites, calcite, and serpentine. The chlorite, calcite, and zeolites form
amygdules or line vesicles and may fill the spaces or replace the basalts
•
around the blocks in pillar lavas. In some places the rock is almost com-
pletely .replaced by these minerals. The plagi oclaee is the :first mineral
attacked in alterations of this type. The zeolites are analcite, heulandite,
and several unidentified or undescribed species found in the albitized
basalts along the Riviere des Citronniers. (See p. 326.) Heulandite is
widespread and generally is intergrown with or accompanies calcite. In
a few places pyrite accompanies analcite and calcite in amygdules. The
presence of these alteration products only in the amygdules of some rocks
or between the blocks of pillow lava indicates that they were formed dur-
ing or shortly after the period of volcanic activity. They were presumably
deposited from aqueous solutions expelled by the solidification of the
lavas themselves or from similar solutions of extraneous origin and from
hot springs associated with the volcanic activity. The complete alteration
of some lavas probably was due to their position near volcanic centers or
near conduits bearing such solutions.
The alteration of olivine to serpentine or iddingsite appears to be of
slightly different character. This alteration may have taken place in rock
 328 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

that is otherwise quite fresh. It probably occurred during or soon after

the solidification of the lavas and was assisted only by the presence of a
small amount of expelled water.
Local albitization and formation of zeolites and other minerals ( ?) was
· noted in the reddish amygdular lavas from the valley of the Riviere des
Citronniers and in reddish amygdular lava from the Grande Riviere de
Nippes. There appears to be little doubt as to the secondary origin of
the a.lbite in some of these rocks, although the augite is unaltered .
•

The basaltic lavas weather to hematite-bearing soil.

ORIGIN OF THE I ..AVAS.

The uniformity of the basalts over the greater part of the southe1·n
region and the general lack of extensive pyroclastic deposits indicate that
they were erupted principally through :fissures. A few small dikes, however,
cut the basaltic rocks.
The large deposits of agglomerate and tuff along the north side of the
Massif de la Selle south and east of the Leogane Plain may have been
formed during a late period in the volcanic activity, as they are not near
the base of the basalt series. These deposits must have been formed by
~xplosive eruptions from central vents or volcanoes. It may be of some
significance that the amygdaloidal albitized or spilitic lavas are fo11nd in
the vicinity of the fragmental deposits in the valley of Riviere des Citron-
niers. During periods of relative quiet between periods of explosive
activity the molten lava in the volcanic necks or conduits would be under
conditions more favorable for the concentration of the light constituents
than during the relatively quick eruptions that produced the fissure type
of rocks. The concentration in the upper part of the magma chambers
of the volatile and alkaline constituent.a would produce alkaline magmas
· yielding highly gaseous vesicular and amygdaloidal lavas and would
cause the local albitization either of the lavas themselves or of the rocks
adjacent to the volcanic vent.
The association of the lavas with limestones north of the Asile Valley,
the presence of pillow structure in many of them, and the interbedding of
calcareous shales and limestones in the lavas of the Massif de la Selle
all seem to indicate that the eruptions took place at or near sea level and
were sometimes interrupted by the deposition of material derived from
them on flood plains or in the sea. Some of the flows were l1ndoubtedly
submarine, possibly the greater part of those that show pillow structure.
Some of the submarine flows may not have pjllow structure.
The centers from which the eruptions of the southern region took place
are not known and in all probability were not confined to the present out-
lines of the peninsula, which were largely determined in late Tertiary
time. The agglomerates and tufts in the northwestern part of the Massif
de la Selle probably are close to later centers of explosive activity. •
 IGNEOUS ROCKS. 329

AGE OF THE LAVAS.

,
As the lavas in the Massif de la Selle at Etang Bossier are interbed-
ded with limestones containing fragments of supposed upper Cretaceous
mollusks, a part of the eruptive rocks at this locality is probably of late
Cretaceous age. (See p. 95.) Pillow lavas east of the Asile Valley along
the Grande Riviere de Nippes are also associated with limestones which
are probably of the same age. (See Pl. VIII, B.) The lavas both in the
Massif de la Selle and at other places in the Southern Peninsula contain
interbedded marine deposits, indicating that the eruptions took place at
or near sea level, probably for the most part during Cretaceous time.
Between J acmel and Leogane the basalts have buried sheared limestones,
which may be lower Cretaceous or older.
The periods of greatest igneous activity were probably in upper and
possibly late middle Cretaceous time. Probably the activity ceased during
the folding that took place in most parts of the Republic in very late
Cretaceous time. No evidence of contemporaneous activity was found in
any part of the basal upper Eocene of the Southern Peninsula.
ANDESITES.
DISTRIBUTION, STRUCTURAL RELATIONS, AND AGE.

Andesitic lavas were found only west of Baraderes, where they underlie •
the upper Eocene limestone unconformably, like the basalts east of the
town. Their relations to these basalts are unknown, but they may be
minor flows or intrusive bodies of the same age as the Cretaceous basaltic
eruptions. So far as known they are not interbedded with basalts. They
extend from the vicinity of the Riviere Salee eastward to the Riviere du
Baraderes. Small areas may extend along the west side of the Baie des
Baraderes.
PETBOGRAPHY.

Hypersthene andesites. Gray or brown rocks oI fine-grained porphy-

ritic texture containing abundant plagioclase phenocrysts as much as 1
millimeter in length and scattered smaller prjsms of altered hypersthene
make up part of the andesites. One specimen showed fine platy partings
or sheeting planes about 4 millimeters apart, probably genetically related
to the .contraction of the rock after solidification.
In thin section the sheeted lava consists of plagioclase phenocrysts,
mostly in euhedral prisms from 0.2 to 1 millimeter in length, comprising
about 50 per cent of the rock, in a fine-grained semicrystalline base. The
plagioclase phenocrysts range from labradorite ( Ab4o An 80 ) in the more
calcic ones to calcic andesine and are strongly zonal. They probably
average a calcic andesine or sodic labradorite (Ab6o AnlSo±) in composi-
tion. Bastite pseudomorphs after hypersthene are less abt1ndant as pheno-
crysts, a few of them a millimeter in length. The groundmass consists
mainly of small plagioclase prisms and microlites, prisms and microlites
 •

330 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

-
of bastite, and some light-colored glassy base. A small amount of magne-
'
tite and nt1merous small apatite prisms are scattered in the groundmass.
rrhe rock is notably low in dark constituents.
Hornblende andesites. Light-gray to brownish-gray porphyritic rocks
containing plagioclase and hornblende phenocrysts in a fine-grained to
felsitic gro11ndmass form another variety of the andesites. Some of these
andesites weather into round boulders that spall off in concentric zones.
These boulders are stained on the outside with brown iron oxides.
In a thin section of a rock collected west of the Riviere des Baraderes,
the plagioclase phenocrysts form euhedral to subhedral laths, from 2 to
5 milljmeters in length, and comprise about 15 to 20 per cent of the rock.
The more calcic ones have centers of labradorite (Ab 40 An 60 ), but most
are andesine. Some are strongly zoned, ranging in composition from
andesine ( Ab65 An4lS) to oligoclase (Abas AnsG). The hornblende pheno-
crysts, as much as 4 or 5 millimeters in length, generally are completely
resorbed, leaving a skeleton of magnetite or a granular aggregate of
magnetite, pyroxene, plagioclase, and calcite. There are two generations
of plagioclase in the groundmass, the later generation of small laths show-
ing a trachytic texture. The plagioclase is sodic andesine or oligoclase
(Ab 65 An 35 to Ab70 An 80 ) in composition. Magnetite and small browr1ish
• prisms of apatite are accessory minerals.

POST-EOCENE ( ?) BASALTIC ROOKS.

Basaltic rocks underlying Pleistocene marine deposits crop out at the

base of a prominent sea cliff about 5 kilometers northwest of Chardon-
nieres. A bed of gravel several meters thick, composed of cobbles of
the 11nderlying basalt and of limestone, lies at the base of the Pleistocene
marine deposit.a. The basalt itself contains large blocks of white limestone
resembling Eocene limestone and blocks of brown metamorphic limestone..
The relations suggest that the basalt may overlie the upper Eocene lime-
stone exposed a few hundred meters to the southeast along the coast. As
the Eocene age of the limestone fragments in the basalt has not been
established the suggestion that the basalt is younger than Eocene is only
tentative. No exposures of basalt known to be younger than Eocene have
been recognized south of the Cul-de-Sac Plain. The Oligocene and Mio-
cene basalts in the Chaine des Mate11x and Montagnes du Trou d'Eau are
entirely different from any basalts found in the Southern Peninsula.
The basalt in the cliff near Chardonnierea is mottled from greenish
gray to red or black by weathering. It is thickly veined with calcite,
part of it in crystals 10 to 15 centimeters in length. The lava is an ordi-
nary basalt or an augite-rich andesite, as the plagioclase is labradorite
and calcic andesine. The rock contains considerable augite, so that it
appears to correspond in mineral composition to the Cretaceous basalts.
 TECTONICS. 331

TECTONICS.

By WENDELL P. WOODRING.

GENERAL FEA'rURES.

The relation of the West Indies to North America is somewhat similar

to the relation of the Alps to Europe and of the Hjmalayas and East
Indies to Asia. The West Indian region is a young mountainous complex,
and its major tectonic features are due to cr11mpling of the earth's crust
during the Alpine period of folding. It lies between the rigid mass of the
Venezuelan highlands and the coastal plain of the southeastern United
States, which, although covered in part by the Tertiary seas, was virtually
rigid during the folding. During late Mesozoic and Tertiary time the
West Indian region was part of the equatorial geosyncline that apparently
almost completely encircled the globe. The track of this geosyncline is
outlined by a zone of Alpine folds.
The tectonic trends of the Republic are shown in Plate XXIV. In the
i·egions of broad folds these lines represent the crests of anticlines and
the troughs of synclines, but in regions of closely spaced folds they merely
represent the prevailing strike of the rocks. Some of the tectonic lines
show the direction of major lines of rupture.
A striking feature of the tectonic lines, as shown by Plate XXIV, is
their arrangement in arcs resembling the arcs of the geographic features,
which the tectonic features have largely deter1nined. No attempt has
been made to discover the significance of the arrangement of these arcs,
but they are like the arcs of folded mo11ntains in other regions. Most of
the arcs trend northwestward and are convex southward. In the North-
west Peninsula the west end of the arc representing the crest of the anti-
clinal arch formed at the end of Miocene time bends southwestward,
thus paralleling the northeast end of the Bartlett Deep, which separates
the islands of Haiti and Cuba and which at some places between them
attains a depth of more than 1,000 fathoms. Some of the arcs in the
Southern Peninsula are convex northward, and at the west end of the
peninsula they seem to virgate, or branch out sheaf-like.
In this part as in other parts of the Tertiary equatorial geosyncline,
beds that are no older than Pliocene, even Quaternary beds, are folded.
Here also, as in other regions, the beds were folded at different times.
There were apparently three principal periods of folding, one at the end
of Cretaceous time, one at the end of Eocene time, and one during and at
the end of Miocene time. Probably each of the periods of folding con-
tinued into the succeeding geologic period, and in parts of the Republic
the folding that began in Miocene time still continues. A surprising
result of the reconnaissance is the discovery that the tectonic features of
 •
332 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

a large part of the Republic are due to folding and crumpling of the
beds during the last period of folding that is, during Miocene and
Pliocene time.
TECTONIC HISTORY.

The pre-Mesozoic and early Mesozoic tectonic history of Haiti is so

obscure that it can not be deciphered from the information now available.
The schistose limestones of Tortue Island and the float of similar intensely
metamorphosed rocks seen on the North Plain and the Leogane Plain
indicate a record of Paleozoic or early Mesozoic folding that is too frag-
mentary to read.
The most extensive beds of known or supposed Cretaceous age are in the
Massif du Nord. These beds are everywhere complexly folded. In the
eastern part of the massif their strike is to the northwest, but in the west-
ern part it bends aro11nd toward the north, thus forming arcs that are
convex to the south. Beds in the northwestern part of the Montagnes
Noires and in the Southern Peninsula that are considered of the same age
are similarly folded. This folding probably took place at the end of Cre-
taceous time, although its reEsults can not easily be distinguished from
those of later folding. For this reason no age can be fixed for some of the
tectonic lines shown on Plate XXIV. The folding was accompanied or
followed by intrusions of relatively large batholiths and stocks of quartz
diorite, which reach the surface only in the northern part of the Republic
and probably were confined to that part. The eastern part of the Massif
du Nord contains the largest exposed batbolith, and this same region was
rigid after the intrusion. This rigidity presents a marked contrast to the
mobility that prevails in the central part of the Republic, where thick
deposits of younger marine sedimentary rocks have been considerably
folded and crumpled.
Beds of marine limestone of upper Eocene age are the most widespread
surface rocks in the Republic, as is shown by the geologic map (Pl. I) and
the descriptions on pages 106-138. These beds a.re folded and crumpled,
in some areas more complexly folded than the younger rocks, so that
there may have been a period of folding at the end of Eocene time and in
early Oligocene time. It is difficult to distinguish the results of this period
of folding from the results of the folding at the end of Miocene time.
In the northwestern part of the Montagnes Noires, where there are no
Miocene rocks, the trend of the folds is the same as in the southeast-
ern part, where Miocene beds are involved in the folding. In several
parts of the Southern Peninsula the Eocene beds have been folded since
Miocene time. The large basalt area south of Port-au-Prince seems to be
on the crest of a broad anticlinal arch, which probably dates back to the •

end of Eocene time. The thrust faulting along the north side of the area
of basalt may be later. (See fig. 20, 0.) The wide distribution of folded
upper Eocene beds gives the impression that the results of the folding that
 TECTONICS. 333

occurred at the end of Eocene time are extensive, but the impression is
probably misleading. In the mobile central part of the Republic, where
there are extensive areas of Miocene rocks, the Oligocene and Miocene
beds have the same strike and dip as the Eocene beds. In the south-
western part of the Northwest Peninsula, however, beds apparently of
upper Eocene age strike north-northwestward, whereas the crest of the
main anticlinal arch formed at the end of Miocene time trends west-
southwestward. Some of the folding in the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve
and in the mountains in the central part of the peninsula (Montagnes du
Nord-ou.est) probably took place at the end of Eocene time. The folds
in the upper Eocene beds along the northern and southern borders of the
Massif du Nord are probably of the same age. The Eocene beds extending
across the crest of the Massif du Nord near Dondon and Christophe's
Citadelle were apparently deposited in a trol1gh diagonal to the trend of
the Cretaceous rocks. Meager evidence indicates that the beds in this
t.r ough were folded at the end of Eocene time along lines diagonal to the
older trends. There is no evidence that Eocene deposits formerly extended
across the crest of the massif east or west of this trough. The folds in the
northwestern part of the Montagnes Noires, as well as those in part of
the interior of the Southern Peninsula, may also date back to the close of
Eocene time.
The evidence available indicates that there was no folding during
Oligocene time or at its end, but the post-Eocene folding may have con-
tinued into lower Oligocene time. Upper Oligocene deposits are appar-
ently conformable with middle Oligocene, and Miocene beds rest con-
f ormably on upper Oligocene.
Considered in relation to the present morphology, the most important
occurrence in the tectonic history of the Republic wa.s the folding and
crumpling of the rocks during Miocene and Pliocene time. The tectonic
features of the entire mobile central part of the Republic, as well as the
outlines of the Northwest Peninsula and of parts of the Southern Penin-
sula are the results of this folding. The Central Plain, Artibonite Valley,
and Cul-de-Sac Plain are deep synclinal troughs; the Northwest Penin-
sula, Montagnes Noires, Chaine des Mateux, and Gonave Isla11d are anti ..
clinal arches. Miocene rocks are involved in all of these folds.
The Miocene beds of the Northwest Peninsula seem to be arched in a
broad anticline trending west-southwest. Miocene marl crops out under
the cover of Quaternary limestone near the crest of the arch along Riviere
du Mole. Evidence presented on page 159 indicates that the Miocene beds
in the reentrants near the head of Riviere de Jean Rabel and Riviere
Cadet on the north side of the peninsula are in a shallow synclinal trough
diagonal to the general trend of the arch but parallel to the strike of the
upper Eocene rocks farther west. The syncline may be a survival from an
older structural feature in the upper Eocene rocks flanking the trough.
The reentrant of Oligocene and Miocene rocks on the south side of the
 334 GEOLOGY OF THE BEPUBLIO OF HAITI.

same gap and the similar reentrants heading into the gap separating the
Montagnes du N ord-ouest from the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve may be
similar structural f eatures. Along the east side of the Arbre Plain the
strike of the Miocene beds parallels the Montagnes de Terre N euve. Some
of the folding in the Montagnes de Terre N euve and in the Montagnes du
Nord-ouest probably took place at the close of Miocene time. In the
Montagnes de Terre-Neuve the folding was accompanied or followed by
intrusions of quartz diorite and granodiorite.
The upper Oligocene or Miocene limestone covering most of Tortue
•
Island seems to be arched in a broad anticline.
The sections on Plate XXXVI show that the Miocene rocks of the
Central Plain are folded in a deep syncline and that they are upturned
against the mountains along the borders of the plain. Near the foot of
the Montagnes Noires in the northwestern part of the plain the lower part
of the Thomonde formation is thrust northeastward over the Ma!ssade
tongue (see Pl. XXXVI, section B-B'), and there is probably another
high angle thrust fault of greater displacement at the mountain front.
The northeast limbs of the Thomonde and Chamouscadille anticlines are
very steeply tilted near the mountains, and in depth these folds probably
pass into thrust faults. The great scarp south of Cerca-la-Source, near
the southern border of the Massif du N01·d (see Pl. XXV, A), seems to be
a fault scarp between upper Oligocene limestone and Cretaceous ( ?) ar-
gillite, but the evidence available to prove the existence of this fa ult is
stratigraphic only.
Northwest of the gorge of Riviere Artibonite the Montagnes Noires con-
stitute a compound anticline, but southeast of the gorge they constitute a
single anticlinal arch separated from the compound anticline by a syncline.
Figure 12, page 207, and Figure 13, page 208, show that the Artibonite
Valley is a deep synclinal trough resembling the Central Plain and con-
taining secondary anticlines. Exposures along the road from Mirebalais
to Las Cahobas show that the Miocene rocks are crumpled near the foot
of the Montagnes Noires. Plate XXVI, A, is a view of a small, peculiar
asyrnmetrical anticline that extends across the narrow valley of Riviere
Fer-a-Cheval at Savanette and, on the south side of the stream, bends
eastward up the valley. West of Savannette a low arch almost at right
angles to the trend of the trough of the syncline brings upper Oligocene
limestone to the surface.
The Chaille des Mateux is perhaps the most perfect example of a
large anticline in the Republic. Figure 5, page 128, a section across the
range, shows that on the southwest flank Oligocene rocks are thrust south-
westward over Miocene rocks and that there probably is another thrust
fault at the edge of the Arcahaie Plain. The secondary anticline on the
northeast flank of the mountains near St.-Marc is shown in Figure 12~
page 207.
REPUBLIC QF HAITI
GEOLOGICAI-' SUR \"EY

... -
,. •
•
•

.4. SuPPOSED F~\ UL'I, SCARP SOUTII'\rEST OF CERCA-LA.-SOL'IlCE.

'£be ri<lg<'\ is ~0 1111)osP<l (Jf li111e ~ton(' for111i11g steep cliffJ· s lopes. Pn.1·t of the vill<1ge of ('erc:1-la-Sourcr i s bo\\'ll i11 the forC'g r ol111<l .

••
Tl . FA l "LT SCARP O:N TICE EAST SIDE OF TIIE GO:NA I ' "ES Pf.1..\ IX.
 •

•
 TECTONICS. 335
\

The trough of the Cul-de-Sac Plain is perhaps the most remarkable

surface feature of the Republic. It has been interpreted as a downfaulted
block bounded by normal faults and has been cited as a subaerial form of
trough of the sort that is generally submerged in the West Indies, such
as the Bartlett Deep, Brownson Deep, and Anegada trough. The Cul-de-
Sac trough is clearly a syncline, a.a Miocene beds are upturned on the
flanks of the mountains bo1·dering it and similar beds have been penetrated
by wells in the plain. Moreover, the trough is bounded on the south side
by a zone of high-angle thrust faults that dip toward the mounta.ins, and
there is evidence on the north side of similar high-angle thrust faults. •

Figure 21 is a section drawn across the trough and part of the bordering
mountains. (See also Fig. 15, p. 219.) The Eocene and Miocene rocks are
more intricately crumpled than is shown in the figure. The main fault
on the south side of the trough is well exposed on the Grande Riviere du
Cul-de-Sac a short distance above Bassin General. Steep southward dips
...
s.o .., ~o ~er N.E
2; z 0
"<
0 II ~J
Hetres l: t- tt
. :re
•
1000

0 I 'Z. 4 6 8 10
-- - -- - -- - Kilometres
Ha:12t.eurs doublees
FIGURE 21.-Section across the Cul-de-Sac trough and adjoining mountains.
Qal, Quaternary alluvium; Tm, Miocene; To, Oligocene limestone; Te, upper Eocene
limestone.

were found on the north limb of the overturned arch south of the main
fault. Plate XXVI, B, shows minor imbricated high-angle thrust faults
exposed on the Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac in a zone of crumpled
upper Eocene rocks south of the main fault. Port-au-Prince Bay and the
St.-Marc Canal are apparently the submerged prolongation of this trough,
which thus trends northwestward in an arc convex southward, parallel to
the arcs of the Cha1ne des Mateux, the Artibonite Valley, the Montagnes
Noires, and the Central Plain. ,
The tect-Onic features of several parts of the Southern Peninsula clearly
show that the widespread upper Eocene limestones were folded during
Miocene time. Marine Miocene beds in the interior lowland on the Grande
Riviere de Jeremie are now separated from the sea by a range composed
of upper Eocene limestone. As shown on page 227 and in Figure 7
(p. 137), these Miocene rocks are not folded to form a synclinal trough
but dip persistently northward toward the mountains, indicating that the
upper Eocene limestone has been thrust southward over the Miocene beds.
Lignite-bearing Miocene rocks at Camp Perrin are thrust northward over
coarse conglomerates deposited as deltas and alluvial fans near the lakes
336 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI •
•

and swamps where the lignite-bearing beds were laid down. (See pp. 235-
236, and Fig. 17, p. 234.) These nonmarine beds were probably at one time
continuous with the marine Miocene beds that crop out on the Cayes Plain.
The range of upper Eocene limestone now separating them may also have
been thrust northward. Although the tectonic features of the largest
interior lowland, the Asile Valley, are not fully known, it seems prob-
able that a fault bo11nds the lowland on the south. Most of the nonmarine
Miocene beds in this low·I and are but slightly folded.
Gonave Island is a broad anticlinal arch. The trend of its crest paral-
lels the Chaine des Mateux and the folds in the northern part of the
Massif de la Selle. Tilted Miocene beds cover the lower part of the flanks
•

of the arch, and in the northwestern part of the island these beds extend
across the crest.
All the Miocene rocks involved in the folding seem to be of lower and
middle Miocene age. The folding probably began in late Miocene time.
The evidence already given (seep. 241) shows that the marine conglom-
erates and marls in the valley of Riviere Gauche near J acmel are of Plio-
cene age. These rocks are as strongly folded as any of the Miocene beds,
so the folding must have continued into Pliocene time. The Pliocene
beds strike northwestward and at all the localities where they were ex-
amined dip southwestward. The southern margin of the lowland was not
examined, but if the southwestward dip continues it may be inferred that
the upper Eocene limestone in the range bordering the lowland has been
thrust northward. The same relation is suggested by the discovery that
there are middle Oligocene rocks at sea level on the west side of J acmel
Bay and upper Eocene rocks at a higher altitude not far to the west. •

Many high-angle thrust faults are associated with the folds, particu-
larly those that were formed during the last period of folding. No exten-
sive overthrust sheets such as characterize Alpine folds in many other parts
of the Tertiary equatorial geosyncline were discovered. Detailed work
among the upper Eocene limestones, which consist of many different
types of rock, may reveal overthrnst sheets.
The remarkable normal faults along the Trois Rivieres trough are prob-
ably later than Miocene. The rocks in the trough are of middle and upper
Oligocene age. Details of the fault along the west side of the trough
south of Gros-Morne are given on pages 120-121, and the fault is show11
in the section forming Figure 27, A-A' (p. 442), and Figure 30 (p. 471).
The fault plane seems to dip steeply eastward, and the throw is several
hundred meters. Normal faults of this magnitude are 11nusual in the
Republic. The fault along the east side of the trough was not closely
examined. The scarp that along its southward prolongation rises abruptly
above the Gona.lves Plain is shown in Plate XXV, B. Morne Grammont,
an outlier of the Montagnes Noires in this region, resembles the main
mo11ntain front, as it seems to be a block tilted northeastward and bounded
on the west by a norinal fault.
REPUBLIC OF HAITI
GEOLOG I CAL SURVEY PLATE :XXVI

'

:l . ASY)J:\IETTIIC ..\TJ ~.\~""TTCLIN E OF ~flOC'E XE ~1 .r\RTJ AXD T.1T:\:IEST()XE i\T

' '
SA\ ".A:'\ETTE, 0:-\ RIVIERE FER-A-C HEV..:\ L.

B . ~ll~OR IIIGH-ANGLE THRUST FAULT IN LI:\1ESTON E OF SUI)POSED

"GPPER EOCE~E '
AGE ON GRANDE RI,"I ERE DU CUL-DE-SAC.
•
'

1....
 TECTONICS. 337

In the mobile central part of the Republic and in the Northwest Penin-
1
sula the distribution of the Quaternary reef caps is intimately related to
the major folds produced during the Miocene folding. In these parts of
the Republic the reef caps are confined almost entirely to the flanks and
plunging crests of anticlines. This relation is shown by the reef caps on
the crests and flanks of the northwestward-plunging anticlines north and
south of St.-Marc but is most strikingly shown in the Northwest Penin-
sula, where the Quaternary reef caps have an altitude of 400 to 450 meters
ttbove sea level on the crest of the anticline -formed during the Miocene
folding. The r eef caps are most numerous at the crest of the arch but de-
crease in number and altitude down on the flanks, away from the end
of the peninsula. Gonave Island is the only major anticline striking into
the sea on which reef caps were not fo11nd, but the extremities of the island
were not examined and the caps may be there. So far as known all the
reef caps are symmetrically arched over the anticlines. This arching of
the reef caps shows that the folding in places continued through Quater-
nary time. In the Northwest Peninsula, at least, it is probably still going
on. The significance of the distribution of the reef caps in the southern
Peninsula is not known .
•

BEARING OF TECTONICS ON GEOLOGIC HISTORY OF WEST INDIES.

The folding at the close of Miocene time deter1nined the location of
such geographic features as the Central Plain, Artibonite Valley, and
Cul-de-Sac Plain, which if submerged would be similar on a small scale
to the great submerged troughs of the West Indies. The Cul-de-Sac Plain
would be a particularly striking trough if submerged, comparable to the
Anegada trough and having about the same curvature. Accumulating
evidence indicates that the submerged troughs were at least deepened if
not entirely formed at the close of Miocene and during Pliocene time!
The Northwest Peninsula, which was the most mobile part of the Re-
public during Quaternary time, is adjacent to the northeast end of the
Bartlett Deep, perhaps the most remarkable of the submerged troughs.
The submerged troughs, which have been recently described by Taber,* ·
have been interpreted by Vaughan and Taber as downfaulted blocks
bounded by normal faults. The subaerial troughs are deep synclines
bounded in part by a zone of imbricated high-angle thrust faults. It has •

recently been suggested that it is more reasonable to believe that the sub-
merged troughs are similar deep synclines ' probably limited by high-angle
1
The Quaternary limestones at many localities resemble material in the near-by living
fringing reefs; at other localities they are merely coralllferous limestones. For con-
venience all these depoRits ar~ called reef caps.
1
See Vaughnn, T. W., Geol. Soc. America Bull., vol. 29, pp. 625-627, 1918; U. S. Nat.
~ft1s. Bull. 103, pp. 609-610, 1919.
1
Taber, S., The grea t fault troughs of the Antilles: Jour. Geology, vol. 30, pp. 89-114,
Pl. 1, text fig. 1, 1922.
"See Woodring, W. P .. Tect onic features of the Republic of Hnlti and their benring on
the geologic history of the West Indies (abstract) : Washington Acad. Sci. Jour. (Await-
ing publication.)
22
 •
338 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

thrust faults. Possibly both the subaerial and the submerged troughs were
deepened by vertical movements later than the folding, probably of the
same age as the movements that produced the high-angle normal faults •

at the edge of the Troia Rivieres Valley trough. This narrow trough
would be a striking feature if submerged, but such troughs bo11nded by
normal faults are unusual in the Republic.

EARTHQUAKES.

BY WENDELL P. WOODRING.

• RECORDS AVAILABLE •

Earthquakes are frequent in the Republic, as in other parts of the

Tertiary equatorj al geosyncline. During the history of the colony and
•
of the Republic disastrous earthquakes have at times almost or completely
aestroyed Port-au-Prince, Cap-Ha!tien, and other cities. Different parts
of the Republic have had distinct seismic histories, and an attempt is
here made to correlate the seismic phenomena with the known tectonic
features. The information on which this attempt is based was obtained
from records and accounts published by Rev. J. Scherer, Directeur de
l'Observa'toire ~1eteorologique du Seminaire-College St.-Martial, Port-au-
Prince. M. Scherer deserves the hjghest praise for his patience in collect-
ing records and for his striking accounts of the disastrous shocks and of
their relation to the surface and to the geologic features. H is publications
are as follows :
Les grands tremblements de terre dans l'ile d'Ha.lti: Observatoire Meteoro-
logique du Seminaire-College St.-Martial Bull. semest., July-Dec., 1911, pp.
153-162, 1912. An English translation of this article was publjshed in the Bulletin
of the Seismological Society of America, vol. 2, pp. 161-180, map, 1912.
Les tremblements de Terre de l'ile d'Hai'.ti dans leurs rapports avec le relief du
sol et les f osses maritimes qui l'entot1rent: Observatoire Meteorologique du
Seminaire-College St.-Martial Bull. semest., July-Dec., 1912, pp. 132-139, 1913.
Catalogue chronologique des tremblements de terre ressentis dans l'ile d'Ha!ti de
1551 a 1900: Observatoire Meteorologique du Seminaire-College St.-Martial Bull.
semest., July-Dec., 1913, pp. 147-151, 1914. This catalogue is based principally on
the following two catalogues: Poey y Aguirre, Andres, Catalogue chronologique
• des tremblements de terre ressentis dans les Indies Occidentals de 1530 a 1858; suivi
d'une bibliographie seismique concernant les travaux relatifs au tremblements de
terre des Antilles: (Extrait de l'annuaire de la Societe Meteorologique de France,
tome 5, p . 75, seance du 12 Mai, 1857) 76 pp., Versailles, 1858; and Tippenhauer,
L. Gentil, Liste der Erdbeben auf Haiti: Die Insel Haiti, pp. 170-175, Leipzig, 1893.
Tremblements de terre observes en Haiti de l'annee 1901-1910: Observatoire
Meteorologique du Seminaire-College St.-Martial Bull. ann., annee 1920, pp. 100-
104, 1921.
In addition to these accounts and catalogues, M. Scherer bas published
records of shocks in the Bulletins of the Observatoire. The Bulletins ap-
peared semjannually from the last half of 1909 to the end of 1916, and
 • EARTHQUAKES • 339

annually since 1917. The records are based on observations made by

M. Scherer in Port-au-Prince and by correspondents at twenty-three
other localities, namely: Cap-Ha1tien, Borgne, Port-de-Paix, Bassin-Bleu,
Gros-Morne, Mole St.-Nicolas, St.-Michel de l' Atalaye, Pilate, Gona!ves,
Mirebalais, St.-Marc, Thomazeau, Gantier, Fond-Verrettes, Petionville,
Furey, P etit-Goave, Anse-a-Veau, Jeremie, Tiburon, Cayes, Bainet and
Jacmel.
This list is based on the list of stations published in the bulletin for
1921, which is the latest bulletjn now available. At times records were
• kept at Grande-Riviere du Nord, Bahon, Dondon, Baye11x, I' Arcahaie,
Miragoane, Dame-Marie, and Chardonnieres.
Beginning with the bulletin of July-December, 1911, the records of a
seismograph installed at the Observatoire have been published. The seis-
mograph is the Omori-Bosch horizontal pendulum type, recording south-
east-northwest and southwest-northeast movements magnified 40 times.
•
This instrument is very useful in registering distant shocks, but it is use-
less for det ermining the direction and amplitude of local shocks. There is
an immediate need in Haiti for instruments designed to register local
sl1ocks. Such instruments should be installed first at Port-au-Prince and
Cape-Ha1tien, and later nt other places, particularly Mole St.-Nicolas and
Anse-a-Vea u.
The analysis of the 8eismic phenomena is divided into two parts, as the
.r ecords gathered from different parts of the Republic by M. Scherer since
1909 are much more detailed than the records before 1909. Shocks that
originated in the Dominican Republic or elsewhere are not considered.

DISASTROUS EARTHQUAKES FROM 1551 TO 1908.

During the early colonial period (1630-1750), after the French and
English buccaneers had driven out the first Spanish settlers, the principal
towns were on Tortue Island, along the north coast, at Petit-Goave, near
the present site of Leogane (founded in 1712), and at St.-Louis du Sud.
During the late colonial period ( 1750-1803), Cap-Haitien was the largest
cjty, but Port-au-Prince was already established and the present cities
and towns grew gradually.
During the colonial period and the early period of the Republic only
earthquakes that affected the aaministration of the government or the
means of livelihood of the people were recorded. Even in such records only
the destruction in the larger cities would be noted. Masonry and brick
buildings, whose destruction during earthquake shocks causes the great-
•
est havoc, are most numerous in the cities, and many of the larger cities
are built wholly or in part on alluvium, which is more susceptible to the
effect of shocks than bed rock or residua.I soil, particularly where ground
water is near the surface. For these reasons, as Scherer has pointed out,
records of the effects produced in the cities and in the more thickly popu-
lated alluvial plains, where the destruction was greatest, are the only
 340 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

records that have come down to us. Little is known of the intensity of
even the most disastrous shocks in the hilly country districts. But as
cities were widely distributed even in the late colonial period, the inten-
sity of disastrous earthquakes as indicated by their effects in the cities
may be safely used in detennining their origin. Moreover, the results
of a study of the records of the disastrous shocks from 1551 to 1908 agree
closely with the results of a study of the more complete records from
1909 to 1922.
From 1551 to 1908 there were seven disastrous earthquakes that appar-
ently originated in the Republic of Haiti or under the sea near its shores.
Many less severe shocks were recorded, most of them in the large cities,
particularly in Port-au-Prince, but the records are of no value in deter-
mining the places of their origin.
On May 7, 1842, Cap-Ha1tien, Port-de-Paix, and Mole St.-Nicolas were
completely destroyed by the most disastrous earthquake recorded along
the north coast. Cap-Ha!tien was then and had been during the colonial
period the most beautiful city in the Republic, and the accounts of the
destruction there are most complete. It is estimated that 5,000 people
were killed at the Cap out of a total population of 10,000. Most of the
city stood on alluvium close to its contact with bed rock. The only record
of a sea wave is that the sea dashed against the buildings along the quay.
At Port-de-Paix not a single building remained standing a.f ter the shock.
The sea withdrew 200 feet and then returned, covering the city with
more than 15 feet of water. Probably most of the city stood on alluvi11m.
Mole St.-Nicolas was an important military post, but the shock ruined the
warehouses, forts, church, and aqueducts. There seems to be no definite
record of a sea wave here, although in his catalogue Scherer records a
wave along the entire Atlantic coast. Probably the entire town, except the
fortifications, was built on alluvium. The destruction was great in the
area extending eastward along the North Plain to and beyond the Domini-
can border. At Gona1ves and St.-Marc the shock was much less severe,
although several houses fell. In the Southern Peninsula the shock was
slight.
These records show that the shock was most severe along the north coast
from Mole St.-Nicolas eastward to Cap-Haltien. The recording of the
sea wave only at Port-de-Paix may indicate that Port-de-Paix is near
the place of origin, or the records may be deficient. The Bartlett Deep,
as limited by the 1,000 fathom line, begins north of the Northwest Penin-
sula of the Republic and plunges sharply southwestward, parallel to the
similarly plunging anticlinal c1·est of the Northwest Peninsula. It h8.b
been suggested on page 337 that the Bartlett Deep and other submerged
• deeps of the West Indies are synclinal troughs bounded by zones of hi·gh· ·
angle thrust faults. The earthquake of May 7, 1842, was probably due to
almost vertical displacement of the sea bottom a.long the fault zone at the
south edge of the Bartlett Deep off the coast of the Northwest Peninsula.
•
 •

EARTHQUAKES. 341

1
This interpretation has already been gi,en by Taber, who claims, however,
that the Bartlett Deep is a downfaulted block, bounded by normal faults.
There is no evidence to substantiate the claim made by both Scherer and
Taber that a prolongation of the Hartlett Deep extends along the channel
south of Tortue Island and thence southeastward across the Cibao Valley
of the Dominican Republic.
On September 23, 1887, another severe earthquake shook the same
region. The destruction was greatest at Mole St.-Nicolas, where nearly all
the houses were ruined. The sea withdrew a great distance and in return-
jng augmented the disaster. At Port-de-Paix the recently erected church
was destroyed. Farther east and south the destruction was not so great,
but the sea wave was recorded as far west as Jeremie and Anse d'Hainault.
The intensity of the shock and the size of the great sea wa,re at Mole
St.-Nicolas indicate that this earthquake was due to almost vertical dis-
placement along the south edge of the Bartlett Deep, probably farther
southwest than the displacement that caused the earthquake of 1842, as
1
Taber has suggested.
No disastrous shocks are recorded in the central part of the Republic
between 1551 a.n d 1908. During the colonial period and the early years of
the Republic the Central Plain and adjoining parts of the Massif du Nord
belonged to the Spanish colony.
During the same period (1551 to 1908) there were several severe earth-
quakes in the southern part of the Republic, most of them centering near
Port-au-Prince. The earliest shock occurred on November 9, 1701, when
houses on the Leogane Plain were destroyed. The road from Uogane to
Petit-Goave sank into the sea at places, but this movement may have been
due to slumping. The records are too meager to show the place of origin
of this shock. Port-au-Prince had not been founded at that time and the
neighboring regions were thinly populated.
On November 21, 1751, Port-au-Prince suffered one of its greatest dis-
asters from an earthquake. The newly founded capital then consisted of
about 100 buildings, most of which were constructed of ma.sonry. It is
said that only one building was left standing after the shock and that it
was destroyed by equally severe shocks·on the following day. There were
numerous aftershocks, and the people lived in tents until December 8.
Probably all the buildings at that time, except the fortifications, stood
on the low alluvia.I ground near the shore. In the Cul-de-Sac Plain, which
is almost wholly covered with alluvium, many plantation buildings were
laid in ruins. The shocks were felt at Leogane, St.-Marc, Gona1ves, and
the Cap, but apparently the destruction was confined to Port-au-Prince
1 Taber, Stephen, The great fault troughs of the Antilles: Jour. Geology, vol. 30, p.
102, 1922. Since this account was written Prof. Taber has pt1bllsbed another paper
describing the disastrous earthquakes of the Republic (The seismic belt In the Greater
Antilles: Seismological Soc. America Bull., vol. 12, pp. 199-219, pl. 7, 1922). The con-
clusions regarding the origin of these shocks are the same as those given in the earlier
paper.
1
Idem.
 342 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

and the Cul-de-Sac Plain. The field work done during the reconnaissance
revealed a zone of imbricated high-angle thrust faults along the south
side of the Cul-de-Sac trough. Some of these faults are well exposed on
the Grande-Riviere du Cul-de-Sac above Bassin General. Overturned
folds, some of which are ruptured along high-angle thrust faults, were
. discovered closer to Port-all-Prince (see p. 130). The probable west-
ward prolongation of this zone of overturned folds and faults is concealed
near Port-au-Prince by nonmarine conglomerates, probably of Pleistocene
age. Most of the folding and pres11mably of the thrust faulting took place
at the end of Miocene and during Pliocene time. The region was mobile
even later, as the Cul-de-Sac trough was completely submerged in Quater-
nary time. The earthquake of 1751, which was so disastrous to Port-au-
Prince, was probably due to movements along one of the fractures in this
fault zone. If the shocks were due to vertical or nearly vertical submarine
movements, as the earthquakes of 1842 and 1887 were supposed to be,
there would surely be some record of a sea wave, as the coast from the
site of the city northward along the Cul-de-Sac Plain is very low.
Only 19 years later, on Jt1ne 3, 1770, Port-au-Prince and the Cul-de-
Sac Plain suffered another disaster, caused by one of the most severe earth-
quakes that has occurred since the island was settled by Europeans. The
region of greatest destruction extended from Croix-des-Bouquets westward
through the Cul-de-Sac Plain to Port-au-Prince and thence westward
a1ong the coast through Leogane and Petit-Goave to Miragoane. Two hun-
dred people were killed in the capital. Leogane was destroyed and only one
building remained
, standing in Petit-Goave. The houses between Petit-
Goave and Etang de Miragoane were thrown down in ruins, even those
that had been built on other than alluvial ground. The shock was felt all
1
over the colony. Southey states that the sea rose a league and a half up
into the island, but this exaggerated report is not confirmed in contempo-
rary accounts. At Grand-Goave part of the foot of a hill called La Saline
was submerged, and'' something similar happened in part of I'Arcahaie.= ''
This movement may have been due to slumping. If there had been a great
sea wave it would be recorded, for all the towns destroyed along the coast
were so situated that they would have been at least partly inundated. In
the absence of authentic reports of a sea wave it seems reasonable to
believe that this disastrous shock also had its origin in the fault zone along
the south side of the Cul-de-Sac trough. Its intensity was apparently
greater than that of the shock of 1751 and the area of destruction was
greater along the thickly populated coast west of Port-au-Prince.
The coast from Petit-Goave to Anse-a-Veau had a moderately severe
shock on April 8, 1860. At Anse-a-Veau the people sought refuge in La
1 Southey, Captain Thomas, Chronological history ot the West Indies, vol. 2, p. 407,
London, 1827.
2 Scherer, J., Les grands tremblements de terre dans l'tle d'Haiti: Observatolre
M6t~orologique du S~mlna11~e-College St.-Martial Bull. semest., July-Dec., 19ti, p. 161,
1912.
 •

EARTHQUAKES. 343

Haute Ville, the eastern part of the town, which stands on a Quaternary
1·eef cap about 10 meters higher than La Basse Ville, the western part,
which is built on alluvi11m. The sea withdrew and then broke on the shore
with a crash. The shock did some damage as far west as Baraderes, but
was only slight at Jeremie. It was pronounced on the south coast at
Aquin and Les Cayes, and even at Port-Salut. The damage in Port-au-
Prince was only slight. The sea wave was not a prominent feature, as no
wave is recorded at coast towns other tha.n Anse-a-Veau. Moreover, the
shock was much stronger on the south coast than on the north coast.
Although the evidence is conflicting it seems that this shock originated
in the Southern Peninsula. The tectonic features of the Asile Valley are
not fully known, but the abrupt mo11ntain slope along the south side of
the valley seems to be a fault scarp, along which the principal movement
took place after the close of Miocene time. (See Fig. 20, A, p. 322.) Con-
I.I.I
u
-z

10

0 0

FIGURE 22. Graph showing the number of earthquakes recorded at different sta-
tions from 1909 to 1922.
Lower curve (solid) i·epresents general earthquakes felt in almost the entire country.

tjnued movements along this supposed fault may account for the shock
of 1860 and many later less serious shocks.
1
Taber believed that the shocks of 1701, 1751, 1770, and 1860 were
due to movements of the sea bottom off the north coast of the Southern
P eninsula along a supposed fault zone extending westward from the
Cul-de-Sa.c trough. The description on pages 397-398 clearly shows that
the submerged prolongation of the Cul-de-Sac trough bends northwestward
into the St.-Marc Canal. Although the off-shore slope along the western
half of the Southern Peninsula is very steep t.h ere is hardly enough evi-
dence to warrant the supposition of faulting, a.n d the seismic phenomena
can be interpreted otherwise.
1909 TO 1922.
EARTHQUAKES FROM
Figure 22 graphically shows the number of shocks recorded by Scherer
and his correspondents from 1909 to May 4, 1922, inclusive. This graph
1 Op. cit., pp. 94.95, 1922•
•
344 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

can not be rigidly used to show the frequency of earthquakes in different

parts oi the Republic, for the records of the observations on which it is
based were furnished by as many different persons as there are localities. •

At some of the stations, Aquin for example, records 'vere not kept continu-
ously during the period covered. The completeness of the record at Port-
au-Prince, which includes a large number of shocks, is probably due in
part to the unfailing energy of M. Scherer. The lower line of the graph,
representing the number of general shocks, would be smoother in some
parts if all the general shocks were accurately recorded during the entire
period at the different stations. The shocks considered general were re-
corded at five or more stations, but some of them were general only in
parts of the Republic. Some of the general shocks for example, that of
the Porto Rico earthquake of October 11, 1918 were of distant origin
and were felt in virtt1ally all the Republic. Clearly recognizable after-
shocks were not included in the total number of shocks. The location of
the stations also affects the graph. Some of them are on alluvial ground,
others are on bed rock or on residual soil.
In view of the facts just stated the graph may not seem to be very use-
ful, yet it shows clearly the relative frequency of earthquakes in some parts
of the Republic. The large n11mber of shocks recorded in the Northwest
Peninsula, at Port-au-Prince, and at Anse-a-Veau indicate that they are
the regions of highest seismicity. Moreover, this indication agrees with
the results of a study of the disastrous shocks from 1551 to 1908.
The n11merous shocks recorded at Mole St.-Nicolas, Gona1ves, Port-de-
Paix, and Cap-Ha1tien probably originated along the fault zone at the
south side of the Bartlett Deep, as did the disastrous shocks of 1842 and
1887. Sea waves are not recorded for any of the shocks from 1908 to 1922,
which may therefore have involved sma.l l vertical displacement. The
largest n11mber of shocks were recorded at Gonaives and Mole St.-Nicolas,
which are closest to the place of supposed origin. Most of the shocks
have an intensity of II to IV (Rossi-Forel scale), but a few are as high
as V and VI. Some of the shocks for example, that of February 4,
1918 were relatively strong at Mole St.-Nicolas (IV-V) but were not
recorded elsewhere. The earthquake of March 20, 1910, is typical of the
minor shocks felt in the northern part of the Republic, particularly in
the Northwest Peninsula. It was recorded at Mole St.-Nicolas, Gona1ves,
Port-de-Paix, Bassin Bleu (on Les Trois Rivieres between Gros-Morna
and Port-de-Paix), Cap-Haitien, Grande-Riviere du Nord, Dondon, and
Bahon. A shock that occurred on August 21, 1911, was recorded at Mole
St.-Nicolas (IV-V), Gona1ves (V), Gros-Morne (V-VI), Port-de-Paix
(V), Pilate (V), Cap-Ha!tien, St.-Michel de l'Atalaye, Hinche, St.-Marc
(IV), Port-au-Prince (III), Furey (III), Petit-Goave (II), Anse-a-
Veau (III-IV), and Cayes. It is remarkable that this shock was not
recorded at Petionville, for at Furey, farther from the place of its origin,
•
 EAR".l'H QUAKEB. 345

it had an intensity of III. Both stations are on bedrock or on residual soil

close to bedrock. Scherer remarks that this is not the first time that a gen-
eral shock was not felt at Petionville. The highest intensity in the South-
ern Peninsula was at Anse-a-Veau, and Les Cayes was the only locality on
the south coast where the shock was felt.
The earthquake of September 6-7, 1912, apparently had its origin in
the interior of the Massif du Nord, as it was strongest at Plaisance (VII),
Limbe (VII), Grande-Riviere du Nord (VII), and St.-Michel de l'Ata-
laye (VII). At Port-au-Prince the intensity was IV-V. The shock was
felt at all the stations except Tiburon, Aquin, and Les Cayes.
St.-Marc is strikingly free from frequent shocks, the only shocks re-
corded there being general shocks originating at some distant locality.
The records at St.-Michel de l' Atalaye and Mirebalais show similar f ea-
tures, indicating that the central part of the Republic has fewer earth-
quakes than the northern and southern parts. The serious earthquake of
October 6, 1911, seems to have originated along the southern border of
the Massif du Nord, or of its prolongation the Cordillera Central of the
Dominican Republic, as Scherer has suggested. The greatest intensity
was at San Juan de la Maguana (IX-X) in the Dominican Republic.
It was felt at Cerca-la-Source (IX), Hinche (VII-IX), Valliere (VI),
Cap-Ha1tien (VI-VII), Mirebalais (VI-VII), St.-Marc (VI), Gona1ves
(VI), Port-de-Paix (IV-V), Port-au-Prince (VI), and throughout the
Republic, the intensity diminishing in all directions from Cerca-la-Source
a.n d Sa.n Juan de la Maguana. The destruction was not very great, as
the region where the intensity was highest is thinly populated and most
of the houses are built of wood. The great scarp overlooking Cerca-la-
Source from the south may be a fault scarp. (Seep. 334 and Pl. XXV, A.)
If it is a fault it was active at the close of Miocene time, and if it is still
active it may account for this earthquake. At Port-au-Prince this shock
was the strongest recorded. since September 23, 1887, the time of one of
the disastrous earthquakes in the northern part of the Republic. Seven
aftershocks of intensity II and III were felt at Port-au-Prince.
More earthquakes have been reported at Port-au-Prince that at any
other station. Many of them are supposed to be due to movement of the
rocks along the fault zone at the south side of he Cul-de-Sac Plain, such
as produced the disastrous shocks of 1751 and 177'0. If this supposition
is correct it is surprising that so few of the shocks were recorded at
Gantier, Petionville, and Thomazeau. Gantier and Petionville are on bed-
rock or residual soil, but Thomazeau stands on alluvi11m. A prono11nced
vertical movement was felt during many shocks that apparently origi-
nated near Port-au-Prince. On July 31, 1914, a shock lasting 40 to 50
seconds at Port-au-Prince had an intensity of V. All of the movement
seemed to be vertical. Despite its intensity the shock was purely local
and was not felt farther than Petionville, Furey, and Leogane. The earth-
346 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI .
•

quake of July 26, 1917, was the most recent pronol1nced shock apparently
originating near Port-au-Prince, where it had an intensity of VI. The
intensity in general decreased away from Port-au-Prince, but it was un-
usua.lly high at Cap-Ha1tien (VI) and Limonade (V-VI). Although the
shock was felt throughout the Cul-de-Sac Plain and at Gantier (V), it
"ras not felt at Petionville and Furey. }IIost of the sl1ocks recorded at
Petionville, Gantier, and Thomazeau were felt at Port-au-Prince and
generally with greater intensity there.
The most striking feature of the Southern Peninsula is the large number
of shocks of low intensity (II-III) recorded at Anse-a-Veau. Probably
most of them originated along the south side of the Asile Valley, as
suggested for the earthquake of April 8, 1860, but on this supposition
more of them should be felt at Aquin and Les Cayes.
The earthquake of August 3, 1910, seems to have been most severe at
Jeremie (VII). It was felt over virtually the entire Republic and had an
intensity of V at Port-au-Prince and Cap-Ha1tien. At many stations a
strong vertical movement was noted. An observer on the south coast of
Gonave I sland felt the shock, but states that the sea was as calm as a lake.
The origin of this earthquake is not so clear as for some other shocks,
although it is supposed that a fault, active since Miocene time, extends
along the north edge of the interior lowland south of Jeremie. (See
pp. 226 -227 and Fig. 7, p. 137.)
The most recent prono11nced shock was on January 15, 1922. The in-
tensity was greatest at Les Cayes (V-VI), where houses even of reinforced
concrete were cracked. It was felt all along the south coast as far east as
,Tacmel (IV), along the nortl1 coast of the Southern Peninsula from
Jeremie (IV-V) to Port-au-Prince (IV-V), and as far north as Gona1ves
(III) and St.-Michel de l' Atalaye (II). In i:he absence of adequate in-
formation it may be suggested that this earthquake had its origin either
along the supposed fault at the south edge of the Asile Valley or along the
scarp between the Port-Salut Peninsula and the Cayes Plain. This scarp
has the appearanre of a fault scarp. (See p. 135.)

CONCLUSIONS REGARDING FREQUENCY OF SHOCKS IN DIFFERENT p ARTS

OF THE REPUBLIC.

An analysis of the disastrous shocks from 1551 to 1908 and of the more
detailed records of shocks from 1909 to 1922 indicate that the N ortbwest
Peninsula, the region near Port-au-Prince, and the region nea.r Anse-a-
Veau are the areas where earthquakes are most frequent.
The frequency of earthquakes in the Northwest Peninsula agrees with
the evidence derived from its geologic features. It is the most mobile
region in the Republic, as Quaternary reef caps there have an altitude of
400 to 450 meters above sea level and are more numerous than elsewhere.
The elevation of these reef caps is clearly due to the emergence of the

•
 EARTHQUAKES. 347

southwestward plunging crest of the Northwest Peninsula anticline. This

continued rapid emergence causes strains in the rocks that are relieved
by fracturing along the submerged northwest flank of the anticline where
it plunges into the remarkable depths of the Bartlett Deep, or by slipping
along former fractures at the same place. The strains would be relieved
principally by vertical or almost vertical fracturing or slipping. The
vertical movements transmitted through the elastic rocks cause the vibra-
tions. If this explanation is correct the serious shocks should cause sea
waves. The observer at Mole St.-Nicolas, the station nearest to the sup-
posed place of origin, should record any indications of a sea wave.
Only one earthquake (September 6-7, 1912) seems to have originated
in the interior western part of the Massif du Nord. There is a fault of
considerable displacement on the south slope of Mont Puilbo1·eau near
its crest (see Fig. 18, C, p. 311), but it probably was active at the end of
Eocene time and there is no other evidence that it is still active. The
ii1terior eastern part of the Massif du Nord, which is a great batholith of
quartz diorite, is probably the most stable area in the Republic. This
supposition could be verified by obtaining records at Valliere. The south-
ern border of the massif is relatively stable, although one shock of high •

intensity (October 6, 1911), originated near Cerca-la-Source.

Thrust faults along the southwest edge of the Central Plain, act.ive at
the end of J\'Iiocene time, seem to be no longer active, but this region is
thinly populated, and minor shocks originating there might not be
recorded.
No shocks seem to have originated near St.-Marc or in the Artibonite
Valley. On both sides of St.-Marc there are plunging anticlines bearing
Quaternary reef caps resembling in miniature those of the Northwest
Peninsula. It might be supposed that the emergence of these reef caps
would produce strains; if so, they have not caused rupturing of the rocks
during the time since the region was colonized. The thrust faults along
the southwest · flank of the Chaine des Mateux near the Arcahaie and
the Cul-de-Sac plains (see Fig. 5, p. 128 and Fig. 21, p . 335) are
evidently no longer active, as no shocks have originated near l' Arcahaie.
If the interpretation of the numerous shocks at Port-au-Prince given
on page 342 is correct the thrust faulra along the south edge of the
Cul-de-Sac Plain have been active during historic time, and there is no
indication that their activity has ceased.. Many of tl1e shocks seem to be
due to vertical or almost vertical displacement indicating corresponding
movements along the high-angle thrust faults. The cause of the strains
thus relieved is not known but may be related to the emergence of the
Cul-de-Sac Plain, which was submerged early in Quaternary time.
It is hoped that M. Scherer can find a correspondent at l' Asile. If
the unusually numerous shocks recorded at Anse-a-Veau are due to dis-
placement along the south side of the Asile Valley the shocks should be
 348 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

of higher intensity at l'Asile. A correspondent at Baraderes could furnish

records that would be valuable in fixing the limits of this highly seismic
area. The rest of the Southern Peninsula seems to be fairly stable, al-
though one shock (August 3, 1910) seems to have originated near Jeremie,
and the most recent widespread shock (January 15, 1922) had its origin
near Les Cayes. The central basalt in the lvlassif de la Selle is limited on
at least the north side by faults, which apparently are no longer active.
M. Scherer should enjoin his correspondents at all stations on the
coast to collect faithfully any information concerning sea waves, particu-
la1·ly during shocks of high intensity.
There are so many faults in Haiti that any shock originating on the
land could plausibly be considered the result of movements along some
fault, but it is difficult actually to prove that any fault is still active. The
only faults that have been regarded as probable places of origin of earth-
quakes have been active since Miocene time. Surface indications of recent
activity are usually soon obliterated, and even immediately after they are
formed a careful search generally is required to reveal them. No surface
•
indications were seen during the reconnaissance. The only way actually
to prove, for example, that the numerous shocks at Port-au-Prince are
due to movements along the faults at the south edge of the Cul-de-Sac
Plain would be to determine the region of highest intensity after a serious
shock and then search for signs of a recently active fault.

PRECAUTIONS AGAINST DAMAGE.

Earthquakes have been very frequent in Haiti, particularly in the

Northwest Peninsula, at Port-au-Prince, and at Anse-a-Veau. At times
they have been disastrous. Shocks may be expected to continue at fre-
quent intervals and some of them may devastate the most thickly popu-
lated parts of the Republic. No one can predict when the shocks will come
or at how frequent intervals they will be disastrous. Port-au-Prince was
almost or completely destroyed twice within the period of 19 years from
1751 to 1770, but disastrous shocks are usually not so frequent. In such
a region disaster is invited unless precautions are taken. The earthquakes
can not be warded off, but buildings and other structures can be so located
and constructed that they will most successfully stand the shocks. The
following precautions are taken from the account of Professors Reid and
Taber, who investigated the Porto Rico earthquake of October 11, 1918.1
Methods of building construction in Porto Rico are very similar to those
used in the Republic.
Shocks are more severe on alluvial soils, especially soils that are satu-
rated with gro11nd water, than on bedrock or on residual soils. Most of
1 Reid, Harry Fielding, and Taber, Stephen, The Porto Rico earthquake of 1918, with
descriptions ot earlier earthquakes: 66th Congress, 1st Session, House ot Representa-
tives Document 269, 74 pp., 6 figs., 1919 (see pp. 69-74) ; The Porto Rico earthquakes of
October-November, 1918: Selsmol. Soc. America Bull., vol. 4, pp. 95-127, pis. 7-14, 1919.
 EARTHQUAKES. 349

the large cities and towns in Haiti stand along the coast and are built
wholly or in part on alluvium. The location of many city buildings on
alluvium is therefore unavoidable. The possibility of damage is diminished
by extending the foundations to bedrock, if possible. Virtually the same
result is obtained by building on a thick reinforced concrete plate, which
causes the building to move as a whole. Contacts of alluvi11m with bed
rock, escarpments, and river banks are especially dangerous locations.
Buildings and other structures should be either so elastic that they
yield without breaking or so strong that the shocks can not seriously
injure them. Wooden buildings are one type of elastic structures. They
should be well braced and the joints should be strong enough to resist
pulling apart. For some time after the earthquake of June 3, 1770, the
colonial authorities permitted only wooden buildings to be built in Port-
au-Prince. The chief objection to the us~ of wooden buildings in the
tropics is that they rapidly deteriorate through rotting and the attacks of
termites and other insects. The common type of houses in the co11ntry
districts and in the city districts where the poorer classes live are virtually
immune from damage. They consist of wooden frames, usually lashed
together with fiber thongs, and the walls are made of wicker, which is
sometimes covered with plaster or adobe. Steel-frame buildings, such as
the market at Port-au-Prince, are also strong, elastic structures.
Buildings constructed of rigid material, such as brick, building stone,
•
and concrete, should be strong enough to resist injury. Many of the dwel-
lings and public buildings show an inferior type of masonry construction,
consisting of stones of irregular size and shape embedded in a poor lime
•
mortar. The soft Quaternary coralliferous limestone is frequently used.
The lime used in the mortar is often incompletely burned and imper-
fectly slacked, and the sand contains many impurities. Several such build-
ings were being built in Port-au-Prince during our stay there. Buildings
of this kind would be the first to fall during a shock of high intensity,
and their construction should be prohibited.
Brick buildings will resist any but the strongest shocks if a good mortar
is used and the bricks are properly crossed. Clean sand should be used
for mortar in both brick and masonry work. The only known large de-
posits of quartz sand relatively free from impurities are on the North
Plain. The binding power of lime mortar is improved by adding cement.
First-class concrete made with clean sand and sufficient cement is fairly
strong. Concrete strengthened with steel reinforcements is believed to be
the strongest material available.
Heavy roofs, parapet walls aro11nd roofs, and overhanging cornices
should be avoided. Solid partition walls should be firmly tied to the outer
walls. Floor and roof joists should pass through the supporting wall, or
at least half a meter beyond the inner face of the wall. They should be
entirely free to slide in their recesses or should be firmly attached to the
walls with iron plates.
350 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

' SUMMARY OF GEOLOGIC HISTORY.

By WENDEI.L P. WOODRING.

Little is known of the Paleozoic and early Mesozoic history of the Re··
public. The schistose limestones of Tortue Island, which are probably
marine, are of Paleozoic or early Mesozoic age, but the distribution of
land and sea when they were laid down and later events in early Mesozoic
time are not known. The intensely metamorphosed schists found as float
on the North Plain and the Leogane Plain are altered igneous and sedi-
mentary rocks at least as old as the schistose limestones. There may be
relatively large areas of these ancient rocks in some of the unexplored
rugged mountains, such as the Montagnes de la .H otte. They were
formerly extensive in the eastern part of the Massif du Nord, as younger
rocks contain material derived from them. •

The known Mesozoic history begins with a long-continued period of

vulcanism in the no1"thern part of the Republic. There were extensive
flows of basaltic lavas, followed by flows of andesitic and dacitic lavas.
At some places, basaltic flows followed the andesitic lavas. The flows
came from non-explosive vents, as very little pyroclastic material ac-
companies them. These volcanic rocks probably are largely of Jurassic
age. The earlier basaltic lavas are very much altered and at places have
been converted into greenstones and amphibolites. No trace was found ()f
the Triassic sea that extended westward from the European }ilediter-
ranean to Cuba and Mexico, carrying with it a Mediterranean and later
a north European fauna.
The early volca.n ic rocks of the northern part of the Republic were tl1en
•
attacked by weathering and erosion and the n1aterial derived from them
was deposited along the flood plains of streams that carved wide, gently
sloping valleys. Some of the material was laid down in shallow seas tl1at
extended over an 11nknown part of the country. rrhese nonmarine and
marine rocks are the argillites and limestones of supposed Lower Cre-
taceous age. At the same time shallow seas covered a large part of the
present Southern Peninsula and the limestones found at many localities
were laid down on a basement of unknown rocks.
In Upper Cretaceous time a shallow sea covered at least part of the
northern part of the Republic. Its limits are not known, as the rocks of
this age that were found probably are mere remnants. A typical Medi-
terranean fauna, consisting principally of Rudistid mollusks, flourished
in this sea. At places the Upper Cretaceous limestone is a Rudistid reef,
consisting of masses of valves, some of which are a meter or more in length.
This fauna, apparently of late Upper Cretaceous age, has been found in
St. Croix, Porto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and Jamaica, but
1
it seems to be most extensive in J amaica.
 EARTHQUAKES. 351

While this sea covered parts of the northern part of the Republic there
were :fissure eruptions in the southern part, covering low-lying lands with
thick flows of basalt that is remarkably 11niform from the Massif de la
Selle westward to the end of the Southern Peninsula. Material derived
from these flows and some of the flows themselves were deposited in shal-
low marginal seas.
Mesozoic time apparently was closed by a period of folding, but it is
difficult to ascertain, in most places, what elements of the present struc-
ture are due to Mesozoic movement and what to later Tertiary movements.
Intrusions of batholiths and stocks of quartz diorite accompanied or fol-
lowed the folding in the northern part of the Republic, altering the old
volcanic rocks near the contacts to amphibolites and to chloritic and
talcose schists. These masses of quartz diori te are exposed by erosion fron1
the Dominican border westward to the Northwest P eninsula. The largest
exposed batholith is in the eastern part of the Massif du Nord, and this
region was very rigid during later time.
Early Eocene time was a period of erosion, and if there were then any
highlands they were rapidly worn down, exposing in the northern part of
the Republic the batholiths and stocks of quartz diorite. During middle
Eocene time the sea covered part of the 1fassif du Nord and the North-
west Peninsula., and in it the Plaisance limestone, wl1ich carries a Mediter-
ranean fauna, was deposited. The trough in which this limestone was laid
down probably was much larger than the present outcrop of the limestone,
but its boundaries are not known.
The extensive transgression of the sea in late Eocene time is one of tl1e
outstanding features of the Tertiary geologic history. Its shallow waters
covered almost the entire Republic except the northeastern and probably
the western parts of the Massif du Nord. The many different kinds of
limestone, which cover so large an area, were deposited in this sea.
Foraminifera of Mediterranean aspect are the most common fossils in the
rocks. At the end of Eocene time the sea withdrew and for a period there
was apparentl}r folding, the results of which, however, are almost as
obscure as those of the folding at the end of Cretaceous time.
Early Oligocene time, it seems, like early Eocene time, was a period of
widespread emergence and erosion. The sea returned a.g ain in middle
Oligocene time, but its transgression was less extensive than in late Eocene
time. A shallow sea covered large areas, particularly in the central part
of the Republic, which was very mobile during Tertiary time. The rocks
of middle Oligocene age, like the Eocene rocks, are limestones, indjcating
that the waters were clear. The history of the events between middle and
upper Oligocene is rather obscure. During this interval there were flows of
1
See recent articles by C. T. Trecbn1ann, The Cretaceous and T ertiary question in
Jamaica: Geol. Mag., vol. 59, no. 699, pp. 422-431, 3 text figs., 1922 ; The Barrettia beds
ot Jamaica : Geol. Mag., vol. 59, pp. 501-514, pis. 18-20, 1 text fig., 1922 .

•
352 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

nephelite basalt in the Montagnes du Trou d'Eau. Farther west, near

Saut d'Eau, the volcanic activity may have been of Miocene age. The
nephelite basalt and other basalts interbedded with Miocene sedimentary
rocks on the southwest slope of the Chaille des Mate11x represent the last
know11 period of volcanism. The late Oligocene sea covered a smaller
area than t.he middle Oligocene, the largest areas being in the mobile
central part of the Republic. The upper Oligocene rocks are limestones.
The most common fossils in both the middle and upper Oligocene lime-
stones are Foraminifera and corals of Mediterranean aspect.
The end of Oligocene time was a period of extensive elevation except
possibly in the central part of the Republic. Detrital debris derived from
the highlands was carried into the Miocene sea as it advanced. Near old
land masses, as in the Central Plain, the Miocene rocks consist almost
entirely of detrital material, although clearer waters at intervals permitt.ed
the establishment of coral reefs. The early Miocene trangression was the
most extensive except that in the late Eocene. The sea covered all of the
Northwest Peninsula except the central part, all of the central part of .
the Republic, and parts of the Southern Peninsula. This was the last
extensive transgression and also the last appearance of a Mediterranean
fa11na. It would be more correct to consider the Mediterranean Tertiary
faunas as having a West Indian aspect. Many of the genera of mollusks
found in the Miocene Tertiary faunas of the West Indies and the Medi-
terranean region are now living in the West Indies but are extinct in the
Mediterranean Sea. The present Mediterranean fa11na is the result of
invasions of northern genera in Quaternary time. The sea probably
covered the Cul-de-Sac Plain and marginal parts of the Southern Penin-
sula in middle Miocene time. N onmarine deposits in the interior of the
Southern Peninsula seem to be of the same age.
Toward the end of Miocene time there was a period of folding that
determined the tectonic features of a large part of the Republic. Intru-
sions of quartz diorite and granodiorite in upper Eocene beds may have
accompanied or followed this folding in the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve.
The mot1ntain ranges in the central part of the Republic coincide with
anticlinal arches formed at the end of Miocene time. It is not knowIL
whether the arches were elevated as mo11ntains at the same time. Miocene
and even older rocks are completely removed from their crests, and in
the Chaine des Mateux there is evidence of peneplanation. All this erosion
may have taken place when the present mountains were at a lower altitude.
The mountains in the northern part of the Republic and in the Southern
Peninsula probably have been highlands since the end of Oligocene time,
although they may have shared in the elevation after the Miocene folding.
The normal faults bo11nding the Trois Rivieres trough seem to be later
than the folding and may be genetically related to the elevation of the
mountains that followed the folding.
 •
..
EARTHQUAKES. 353

During middle or late Miocene time the West Indian islands were
apparently larger than they are now, and they may have been joined to
South or Central America, thus permittjng the invasion of a mammalian
fa11na of South American aspect, principally rodents and gro11nd sloths.
These mammals are represented by Quaternary remains found in caves,
such as those explored near St.-Michel de l' Atalaye. The folding and
faulting begun toward the end of Miocene time probably outlined the
island of Haiti as we now know it.
So far as known the sea covered only small areas near J acmel and Petit-
Goave in Pliocene time. The corals and mollusks in the beds in these areas
are very similar to living West Indian species. The period of folding
begun in Miocene time continued after these beds were deposited.
At the beginning of Quaternary time the sea covered the western part
of the Northwest Peninsula, the Cul-de-Sac trough (which divided the
island into two parts), and other smaller areas along the present coast.
These regions have emerged since then. In the Northwest Peninsula and
the mobile central part of the Republic, where the emergence apparently
is still continuing, the marine Quaternary rocks, or reef caps, are at a
higher altitude on the crests of the anticlines, indicating that folding is
still continuing. If observations could be extended over a long period it
mjght be possible to determine the rate of emergence in the Northwest
Peninsula, where Quaternary reef caps have an altitude of 400 to 450
meters above sea level.
In the San Juan Valley of the Dominican Republic basaltic lavas of
Pliocene or Quaternary age rest on Pliocene gravels. No trace of these
lavas was fo11nd in the Central Plain.
Folding and mountain-making have been active in the Republic since
late Tertiary time and therefore earthquakes are frequent. There is no
reason to believe that their frequency will diminish .
•

23
•
 •

PART III. GEOMORPHOLOGY.

By WENDELL P. WoonRING, JoHN S. BROWN, and WILBUR S. BURBANK.

The term geomorphology as used in this report signifies a description

of the surface features of the earth with regard to their origin. Each of the
geographic provinces of the Republic of Haiti comprises an area in which
the surface features have a certain uniformity, usually the result of a
common geologic history. These provinces are listed on page 31 and their
location is shown on Plate XXVII. They are here described in the order
in which they are listed on page 31, beginning in the northern part of the
Republic. Only the major surface features of each province are described.
As it seems unnecessary to repeat a discussion of the major events in the
geologic history of each province, the reader should keep constantly in
mind the geologic history of Haiti as outlined on pages 350-353. The lith-
ology and the structure of the surface rocks, which are the most potent
agencies in determining the shape of the features, are described briefly
for each province.
TORTUE ISLAND.
GENERAL RELATIONS.
Tortue Island is 37 kilometers long and has a maximum widt.h of 7
kilometers. It is separated from the mainland by a channel that is 15
kilometers wide at the west end of the island and 9 kilometers wide at
its east end but that narrows to 7 kilometers off St.-Louis du Nord. The
maximum recorded depth of the channel is 1,267 meters ( 693 fathoms)
off the west end of the island. In the narrowest part of the channel the
maximum recorded depth is 777 meters ( 425 fathoms).
The axis of the island trends N. 78° W., parallel to the trend of the
main structural features of the Massif du Nord.

LAND FEATURES.
• •

UPLAND FORMS.

Tortue Island is a plateau modified by erosion and at the margins fur-

ther modified by the results of recent emergence. The interior is a rolling
plateau, the crest of which has a mean altitude of about 300 meters above
sea level, but low, rounded knobs rise 325 meters above sea level. The
plateau slopes gently seaward, both to the north and to the south. On the
crest of the plateau there are no well-defined drainage channels. Near the
354
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 355

roast the slope is steep and is scarred by ravines that have slightly dis-
sected the plateau by headward erosion. 411 the coastal ravines are short
except those at La Vallee, on the south coast, where several extend far
back into the plateau, forming a huge, intricately dissected amphitl1eater
bounded by limestone cliffs.
SHORE FEATURES.

The most striking shore features are emerged coastal terraces. These
terraces are widest and best preserved at the extremities of the island,
where the seaward slope is more gentle than on the flanks. Plate XXVIII,
A, a view of the east end of the island as seen from the south, shows
clear1y the profile of two emerged terraces. Each of the terraces has a
gentle seaward slope and each has an emerged sea cliff at its inner edge.
The lower terrace is tr11ncated at the shore line by a similar but steeper
cliff. As this part of the island was seen only from a distance no measure-
ments were taken, but at other localities visited the inner edge of the
lower terrace stands about 15 meters above sea level. The altitude of the
upper terrace is not known, but the vertical interval between its outer
edge and the outer edge of the lower terrace is greater than that between
the lower terrace and the shore line.
On the south coast the terraces have been obliterated by erosion except
in sheltered regions. One kilometer west of Pojnte des Oiseaux there is a
narrow remnant of the lower terrace 50 to 80 meters wide. At the outer
edge there is a perpendicular sea cliff 8 to 10 meters high. The steep slope
at the inner edge of the terrace merges into the coastal slope of the plateau
and is not clearly discernible as a sea cliff. The abrasion platform is com-
posed of schistose limestone, which is covered with a thin veneer of soft
conglomeratic coralliferous limestone.
The west end of the island and the north coast were seen only from a
distance. Terrace profiles are visible at the west end, and according to the
1
description of Moreau de St.-Mery terraces are conspicuous features at
some localities on the north coast.
Along almost its entire length the north coast is truncated by sea cliffs
and is inaccessible. The south coast is not so precipitous. At La Vallee an
alluvial apron extends westward along the coast, embracing a narrow mud
flat fringed with mangrove thickets. East of La Vallee the coast is bor-
dered by sea cliffs that truncate remnants of the lower terrace.
SUBLITTORAL FEATURES.
A very narrow sublittoral platform encircles the island. Its width on
the north coast is not known, but on the south coast its maximum width,
as limited by the 20-fathom line, is 2.6 kilometers. The mean depth of
water on the platform is about 15 fathoms (27 meters). In Haiti such
narrow, shallow platforms are, with certain exceptions, characteristic of
11dem, vol. 1, pp. 739-7 40.

•
 356 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

shore lines of emergence. The width of the emerged coastal terraces ·is
comparable to the width of the sublittoral platform, and it is inferred that
these terraces were planed off by wave erosion during periods of time
comparable to the time that elapsed during the making of the sublittoral
platform. The emerged terraces are of Quaternary age and are probably
Pleistocene, as along the south coast they are strongly dissected and at
some places entirely obliterated.

NORTH PLAIN.
EXTENT AND GENERAL FEATURES.
The name North Plain has been applied since the early colonial period
to the plain that extends along the north coast of the Departement du
Nord from Acul Bay eastward to the Dominican border. Its length is
about 65 kilometers and its width is 5 to 20 kilometers. Its eastward pro-
longation in the Dominican Republic, which extends from the inter-
national boundary and Manzanillo Bay southeastward to Samana Bay, is
called the Cibao Valley. The western part of the Cibao Valley, adjoining
the North Plain, is called the Valley of Rio Y aque del Norte. Between
Acul Bay and Cap-Ha!tien Bay the North Plain is separated from the sea
by a short, rugged mo11ntain range called the Morne du Cap. Elsewhere
the plain fronts the sea. The southern border of the plain is the steep and
very irregular mountain front of the Massif du Nord. From an altitude
of 50 to 150 meters above sea level, at the base of the mountains, the plain
slopes gently northward to the sea.

LAND FEATURES.
•

The North Plain comprises four divisions, each of which has distinct
surface features : ( 1) an alluvial plain, which has little or no relief,
adjacent to the shore line; (2) a dissected plain composed of gravels of
Quaternary age; (3) low hills composed of bed-rock; ( 4) a rock platforrn
of irregular width at the base of the mo11ntains.

UNDISSECTED ALLUVIAL PLAIN •

•

The seaward part of the North Plain is an undissected alluvial plain

composed principally of deposits of Recent age, built by streams that
flow northward in shallow trenches and that probably inundate large areas
during floods. This part of the plain is widest along the Dominican bor-
der north of Ouanaminthe and narrows westward, terminating in the
marshes on the right bank of Riviere Haut du Cap near Cap-Ha1tien .
•

DISSECTED PLAIN.

Back of the undissected plain, in the region east of the longitude of

Fort-Liberte, lies a dissected plain composed principally of stream gravels
of Quaternary, probably Pleistocene, age. This plain is a conspicuous
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 357

feature northeast of Acul Samedi and extends eastward to Ouanaminthe.

Large areas of the plain consist of grassy or bushy savannas. The ravines
and narrow stream valleys are entrenched 5 to 10 meters below the general
level of the plain. The transition from this dissected plain to the lower
and flatter undissected plain along the coast is gradual.

•
Low HILLS•

Small hills or groups of hills composed principally of many kinds of

igneous and metamorphic rocks rise above the plain at several localities.
Some of the hills, such as that on which the Gendarmerie post at Ouana-
minthe is situated and Morne Beckly, east of Limonade, are so low and
rounded that they scarcely break the continuity of t.he plain. Others,
such as Morne Grande-Gille, north of the road from Limonade to Milot,
and Morne Pele, east of the railroad between Grande-Riviere du Nord
and Cap-Ha!tien, rise more steeply to altitudes of 50 meters or more
above the plain. East of the head of Acul Bay low bedrock hills are very
numerous.
ROCK PLATFORM.

A narrow rock platform, 75 to 150 meters above sea level, extends along
the extremely irregular front of the Massif du Nord. This platform is
particularly conspicuous in the vicinity of Les Perches and south of
Ouanaminthe. The surface of the platform grades imperceptibly into the
gravel-covered plain that bounds it on the north, and the platform itself
is at many places so thoroughly covered with a thin veneer of alluvium
and residual soil that it may easily be overlooked. It is exposed along the
road from Cap-Ha!tien to Ouanaminthe, about 5 kilometers east of Ter-
rier-Rouge, where the road skirts the base of a spur that projects out into
the plain from the mountains. At this place the rock platform has an
altitude of perhaps 75 meters above sea level. The rock platform, like the
gravel-covered plain that lies in front of it, is dissected by the present
streams, but the valleys, being entrenched in bedrock, are generally nar-
rower than the valleys in the plain. The metamorphic volcanic rocks and
quartz diorite that floor the platform are exposed in many road cuts and in
ravines. Along the foot of the mo11ntains south of Les Perches, where a
deep, ro11nded embayment of the plain extends into the mo11ntains, the
, rock platform has an altitude of about 100 meters above sea level. Here it
is cut entirely in quartz diorite, which is exposed in the ravines and at
many localities along the trails. At some localities the floor is covered with
soil and alluvial debris that is as much as 5 meters thick. Along the trail
from Ouanaminthe to Mont-Organise the rock platform has an altitude
of about 150 meters above sea level. Quartz diorite crops out along the
trail and in the ravines.
The rock platform along the front of the Massif du Nord is apparently
an abrasion platform cut by 'vave erosion when the sea stood at a higher

,
 358 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.
•
.

level, and some of the features of the steep, irregular front that faces the
platfor1n are believed to be due to the cutting of sea cliffs. In other parts
of Haiti rock platforms that are known to be abrasion platforms cut by
wave erosion are veneered with coralliferous limestone or beach shingle.
No deposits that are obviously marine were seen on the rock platform at
the rear of the North Plain, but some of the gravels on it may be of marine
• origin. As the cliffs along the shore of this supposed abrasion platform
were very high, detrital rock material may have been carried into the sea
too rapidly to permit the growth of corals on the inner part of the plat-
form, the only part that is now exposed. ·
The cutting of this platform apparently determined the present out-
line of the southern border of the North Plain. As the platform is higher
near the Dominican border than it is farther west, the emergence tl1at
followed the cutting of the platform was progressively less westward. The
outer part of the emerged platform was covered with stream gravels that
now underlie the dissected plain adjacent to the platform. The trenching
of the streams in this plain and in the platform indicate renewed emer-
gence, probably at the end of Pleistocene time. The undissected seaward
plain probably is wholly of Recent age. Some of the shore features indi-
cate later submergence.

SHORE FEATURES.

From the Dominican border to Cap-Ha1tien the shore of the No1·th

Plain consists principally of low sandy beaches. The shore line of the
western part is indented by Caracol Bay. East of Caracol Bay the shore
line is straighter but is broken by Fort-Liberte Bay.
Fort-Liberte Bay is the only bilobate pouch-shaped harbor in the Re-
public. It was not examined during the reconna.issance, but its features as
shown on the coast charts indicate that it is similar to the Cuban pouch-
shaped harbors, the origin of which has recently been considered by
1
Vaugban. The outline of Fort-Liberte Bay is probably due to submer-
gence following the emergence that caused the streams to trench the
inner part of the plain, but its history can not be given until field studies
have been made. The mouth of Riviere Massacre, the largest stream in
the region, is not embayed, and the streams that enter the digitations of
the bay are very small. These features indicate that the history of this
pouch-shaped harbor is more complex than the history of the Cuban
harbors.
•
SUBLITTORAL FEATURES . •
.
At the Dominican border a wedge of deep water extends into the head
of Manzanillo Bay between the extensive platform of Monte Cristi bank .
· Vaughan, T. Wayland, Contributions to the paleontology of the Canal Zone, Panama,
1
and geologically related a1·eas in Central Ame·r ica and the West Indies: U. S. Nat. Mua.
Bull. lOS, ·pp. 280-286, 1919.

•
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 359

and the coast of the Republic of Haiti. A very narrow sublittoral plat-
form extends westward along the coast from the Dominican border.
Between Fort-Liberte Bay and Caracol Bay the platform widens, as its
outer edge maintains a northwesterly direction, diverging somewhat from
the shore line opposite the shallow inlet of Caracol Bay. The significance
of the narrow platfor·m off Fort Liberte is not known. In other parts of
the Republic shore lines of submergence have wider sublittoral platfo1"ms
or show traces of a submerged terrace scarp.

MASSIF DU NOR.D.
NAME AND EXTENT.
The name Massif du Nord is here used for the northern mountain sys-
tem of the Republic. It comprises a complex group of mountains and
mountain ranges that extend from the Dominican border westward to the
vicinity of Gros-Morne. The Massif du Nord is the northwestward pro-
longation of the Cordillera Central of the Dominican Republic. In the
Republic of Haiti the belt of mountains is narrower, and as it occupies the
northern part of the Republic a name similar to that given it in the Do-
minica.n Republic would be inappropriate. Many of the peaks and short
ranges in the Massif du Nord have separate names, but no names are
known ior the major ranges. •
The eastern half of the massif is bounded on the north by the North
Plain and on the south by the Central Plain. The western half is bo11nded
on the north by the sea and on the south by the 1'Ionta.gnes Noires, from
which it is imperfectly separated by a gap that is traversed by the road
from Gona1ves to St.-Michel de l'Atalaye. The deep trough of the valleys
of Les Trois Rivieres and Riviere la Quinte separates the massif from
similar mountains in the eastern part of the Northwest Peninsula. The
total length of the massif is about 120 kilometers, and its width is 25 to
40 kilometers.
GENERAL FEATURES.
The Massif du Nord constitutes one of the largest mountainous regions
in the Republic. Some peaks in its western part attain estimated alti-
tudes of 1,200 to 1,500 meters above sea level. In its central and eastern
parts the altitudes range from 600 to 1,000 meters above sea level. The
valleys are deep, and the crests of the mo11ntains rise 300 to 1,000 meters
above the valley floors. The relief is grea.ter in the western and central
parts than in the eastern part.
The mountains comprise a mass of peaks, short ridges, and longer
ranges, the arrangement of which appears systematic only when con-
sidered with regard to the structure and the distribution of the surface
rocks. As a whole, the massif is a complex northwestward-trending anti-
cline. Many of the minor surface features have a corresponding north-
westward trend.
 •

360 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

All the massif east of the valley of Grande Riviere du Nord except a
narrow band along the border of the Central Plain is composed of meta-
morphic volcanic rocks, metamorphic detrital rocks, and quartz diorite.
The same rocks continue westward beyond the valley of Grande Riviere
du Nord, but in the central part of the massif and along the southern
border of the western part they are concealed by younger limestone. The
metamorphic detrital rocks consist of rather soft argillites that yield
readily to erosion and have had a marked effect on the development of the
surface features.
LAND FEATURES.
EASTERN PART •

. The eastern part of the Massif du Nord embraces the region between
the valley of Grande Riviere du Nord and the Dominican border. This
region has three different types of mountain features. ·
The northern part of this region from the Dominican border westward
beyond Valliere is a mol1ntainous highland. The general surface of the
highland is undulating and has an altitude of 600 to 700 meters above sea
level. Sharp-crested ridges that generally trend northwestward rise 200
to 300 meters above the general surface. The valleys are relatively shallow
and have an altitude of about 500 meters above sea level. The village
of Mont-Organise is near the northern edge of the highland, at an altitude
of 700 meters above sea level. Mont Tenebres, which is west of Mont-
Organise, is the highest peak along the northern edge of the highland.
Its crest rises perhaps 200 meters above the level of the highland at Mont-
Organise and from a distance appears rounded. Along the trail fro111
Mont-Organise to Ouanamjnthe there is a difference in altitude of 400
meters between the outer edge of the mountains and the rock platform at
their base. The slope is so steep that one viewing it from the plain can
hardly believe that a trail ascends it. The uniform surface features
of this mo11ntainous highland are the result of the deep erosion of a
batholith of quartz diorite.
The region west and south of the mountainous highland is occupied by
a complex group of intricately dissected ridges that have a general north-
westward trend. Probably the most striking difference between this region
and the mo11ntainous highland is the more intricate dissection and cor-
respondingly greater relief. At any one locality the ridges have approxi-
mately equal heights. Their crests and the crests of the spurs are rounded.
The ridges are separated by deep V-shaped valleys, and their flanks are
deeply furrowed by ravines that have an intricate dendritic pattern. The
trail from Cerca-la-Source northward to Lamielle crosses three ridges
that stand, respectively, 605, 765, and 775 meters above sea level. From
the crest of the third ridge the trail descends abruptly to the depression
at Lamielle. This depression has the same intricate drainage pattern and
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 361

rounded divides that characterize the flanks of the ridges. The surface
rocks in this entire region are metamorphic volcanic and detrital rocks.
The southernmost ridge in this part of the massif adjoining the Cen-
tral Plain is a distinct feature. It is composed of beds of limestone that
dip southwestward, toward the plain. This ridge is continuous from
Pignon southeastward to the Dominican border. Pie de Pignon, a very
conspicuous landmark in the northern part of the plain, is a conical peak
that is isolated from this ridge by the gap of Riviere Gouape. From
Riviere Gouape southeastward to the pass traversed by the trail from
Thomassique to Cerca-la-Source the ridge has a fairly even crest, which
is slightly notched by the high pass where the trail from Hinche to Cerca-
Car baj.al crosses it at an altitude of 600 meters above sea level. The pass
along the trail from Thomassique to Cerca-la-Source is wider and has an
altitude of only 470 meters above sea level. Southeastward from this pass
toward the Dominican border the crest of the ridge descends steeply.
The contrast between the south and · north slopes of this ridge is very
striking. The south slope is a uniform and relatively gentle dip slope, but
the north slope, which apparently is a fault scarp, is precipitous and is
scarred by high cliffs. To one looking westward from Cerca-la-Source
(see Plate XXV, A, p. 334), this scarp is very impressive, as it rises to an
altitude of perhaps 500 meters above the valley of Riviere !'Ocean. The
hot springs at Los Pozos, described on pages 562-564, are at the base of
this scarp southeast of Cerca-la-Source, where the slope is not so steep.
CENTRAL p ART.
The central part of the massif, as arbitrarily delimited, extends from
·the valley of Grande Riviere du Nord and St.-Raphael westward to Plai-
sance and Ennery. The most striking surface features of this region are
due to the presence of limestone, which covers a larger area in this region
than in any other part of the massif. The mo11ntains in this region are
not so high as those to the east and west. The road from Ennery to
Plaisance crosses Mont Puilboreau, one of the highest ranges, at an alti-
tude of 950 meters above sea level.
The eastern part of this region, near Grande-Riviere du Nord and
Dondon, is occupied by intricately dissected mo11ntains composed of meta-
morphic igneous and detrital rocks. These mo11ntains are bordered en-
tirely on the southwest and in part on the northeast by ranges composed of
tilted beds of limestone. The mountains that consist principally of lime-
stone are characterized by deep canyon-like ravines. Some of the moun-
tain slopes for example, that at St.-Raphael and the upper part of the
southwest slope of Mont Puilboreau conform to the dip of the limestone.
The opposite slope is generally a steep escarpment or even a sheer cliff.
The cliffs on the northeast slope of Mont Puilboreau are several hundred
meters high. There is a very prominent cliff just west of Dondon. High
cliffs may also scar the slopes of gently tilted beds of limestone.
362 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.
,
A high ridge called Bonnet-a-l'Eveque extends northward to the edge
of the North Plain west of Milot. It is composed of porphyry and meta-
morphic detrital rocks capped by limestone. The limestone rises above the
contact with the underlying rocks in almost sheer cliffs. Christophe's
citadel stands on the crest of this ridge at an altitude 0£ 865 meters above
sea level. The crest of the ridge north of the citadel is very jagged. ],rom
the west wall of the citadel there is a sheer drop of probably 150 meters.
Caves and sink holes are minor features of the limestone mountains.
The development of sink holes has not progressed far enough to dominate
the surface features except in a few small areas.

WESTERN PART.

The western part of the massif includes all the mountains north of an
east-west line drawn through Christophe's citadel and Plaisance. It con-
tains the highest mountains in tl1e massif. Between Acul Bay and Port-
de-Paix the mountains reach the sea, but at the mouth of Riviere de Port-
Margot they are bordered by a narrow coastal plain.
Between Limbe and Plaisance and between Port-Margot and Pilate the
mountains are intricately dissected. They are composed of metamorphic
volcanic rocks and have essentially the same features as the mountains in
the central region of the eastern part of the massif. The road from
Limbe to Plaisance crosses their crest at an altitude of 520 meters above
sea level, and the trail between Port-Margot and Pilate reaches an altitude
of 540 meters above sea level. Mont Maleuvre, the highest peak south of
Port-Margot, has an estimated altitude of 1,200 meters above sea level.
The longitudinal profile of the mountains is serrate, but in transverse
profile their crests are rounded. The ridges are separated by deep, nar-
row valleys and their flanks are int1·icately furrowed by ravines, all oI
which contain running water. The deep, wide valley of Les Trois Rivieres
borders these mountains on the south. South of the valley of Les Trois
Rivieres rises the steep, scarred slope of a limestone range, the northwest-
ward prolongation of }font Puilboreau. The south slope of this range is
virtually continuous with the Montagnes Noires, as the two mountainous
regions are separated only by the narrow gap of Riviere d'Ennery. 'l'hese
limestone mountains in the southern part of the massif end abruptly
along the fault scarp on the east side of the valley of Riviere le Quinte.
Morne Deux Mamelles is a conspicuous peak along this fault scarp. The
isolated mass of Gros Morne, which stands near the western edge of the
Massif du Nord, southeast of the town of Gros-Moine, towers to an alti-
tude of perhaps 1,200 meters above sea level. It is apparently composed
principally of volcanic rocks.
The range that parallels the coast between Port-Margot and Anse-a-
Foleur is composed of limestone that dips steeply seaward. Northwest of
Anse-a-Foleur this range is separated from the coast by a rolling lowland
•
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 363

underlain by younger detrital rocks. Several streams for example, those

at Le Borgne and Anse-a-Foleur reach the sea through deep, narrow
ga,ps in this range. At many localities the seaward or dip slope of tl1e
range is barely furrowed by ravines, in marked contrast to the intricately
furrowed flanks of the higher interior mountains. A very conspicuous
peak in the interior about 12 kilometers southeast of Port-de-Paix has
an estimated altitude of 1,200 meters above sea level.

MORNE DU CAP.

The Morne du Cap is a rough, broken mountain that lies between Acul
Bay and Cap-Ha1tien Bay. It is an outlier and properly a part of the
north flank of the Massif du Nord. Its crest, which trends approximately
east and west, has an altitude of 600 to 800 meters above sea level, and
one peak reaches an altitude .of about 827 meters. Its length from east
to west is about 12 kilometers, and its width is 7 or 8 kilometers.
The Morne du Cap is composed of a sheet of li~estone overlying older
metamorphic detrital and igneous rocks. The northward dip of the lime-
stone accounts for the short, steep southern slope and the longer northern
slope of the mountain. The southward-facing escarpment, scarred by
cliffs, coincides with the cap of limestone. The height of this escarpment
and that of the mountain diminishes from east to west. Below the escarp-
ment are gentler slopes in igneous rocks, deeply trenched by ravines that
are separated by rounded divides. This slope gradually merges into the
low rounded hills that dot the North Plain southeast of Acul Bay, joining
the Morne du Cap to the Massif du Nord. The hill on which Fort Belair
stands, near Cap-Ha1tien, is a good example of this kind of rounded hill.
Most of the longer northern slope of the }!orne du Cap is composed of
limestone, although many of the ravines are cut down into the older rocks.
The limestone extends down to sea level at many localities. The slope is
rugged, and small cliffs are common. There are no permanent streams,
but the slope is strongly dissected except in certain areas whe1·e sink holes
are conspicuous features. A semi-detached ridge, called iiorne de la
Vigie, which reaches an altitude of about 300 meters above sea level, ex-
tends northward from Cap-Ha1tien. It consists principally of limestone,
in which there are conspicuous sink holes, particularly west of Fort
Picolet lighthouse, where the rock is a mere mass of fragments honey-
combed by holes and caverns.

DRAINAGE.
-
The drainage pattern differs in different parts of the Massif du Nord.
In the regions where volcanic rocks are exposed at the surface the pattern
is dendritic, but in regions where limestone and metamorphic detrital
rocks crop out the drainage is generally adjusted to the structure.
364 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

In the eastern part of the massif most of the streams originate at an

apex near Valliere and radiate outward in almost all directions. Some of
the streams for example, Riviere Tenebres in a short distance take
southeastward or northwestward courses, ]>arallel to the trend of the
mo11ntains. The valley of Riviere l'Ocean is in a band of argillites that
yield readily to erosion. At present this stream has no flood plain but is
entrenched 30 meters below the level of a barely dissected old flood plain at
an altitude of 400 meters above sea level, on which stands Cerca-la-Source.
In its upper course Grande Riviere du Nord parallels the strike of the
rocks, but its lower course is transverse to the prevailing structural trend.
The river has a very narrow but continuous flood plain.
In the central part of the massif several streams originate at an apex
near Marmelade. Most of them flow north,vestward or southwestward,
parallel to the mo11ntain ranges. Riviere Canot, Riviere Atalaye, Riviere
Bouyaha, and Riviere Gouape break across these ranges to reach the Cen-
tral Plain. Riviere Atalaye and Riviere Bouyaha cross the outermost
range in deep, narrow gorges with sheer limestone walls. Riviere Samana
cascades down the dip slope of the limestone range into the Central Plain.
The largest valley in the massif is that of Les Trois Rivieres, which
is called Riviere de Plaisance at and above Plaisance. This valley, like
that of Riviere l'Ocean, owes its origin to relatively soft argillites which
when once exposed are easily carved into wide valleys. The irregularities
in the surface of the valley at Plaisance are due to the complex folding
and the varying hardness of these rocks. Les Troia Rivieres leaves the
outcrop of these rocks at Pilate and flows westward in a wide gorge
diagonally across the prevailing trends to Gros-Morne, where it emerges
from the massif and turns abruptly northward.

SHORB FEATURES. •

The Morne du Cap abruptly interrupts the low coast that characterizes
the seaward margin of the North Plain. Cap-Haitien is on a narrow
alluvial shelf that skirts the base of the mo11ntain. From the northern
edge of the town northward and westward to Acul Bay the mountain
reaches the sea. The promontories are truncated by sea cliffs having a
maxim11m height of 100 meters and an average height of 25 to 30 meters.
The stretches of steep and 1mapproachable coast are broken by small areas
of alluvium at the heads of little coves.
West of the Morne du Cap the shore line is deeply indented by Acul
Bay, a unilateral pouch-shaped harbor, probably a submerged valley. The
Morne du Cap borders the northern half of the eastern shore of the bay,
but the height of the sea cliffs on the promontories diminishes southward.
The remainder of the shore of the bay is low and swampy and forms the
western ter1nination of the North Plain.
From Pointe Limbe northwestward to Le Borgne there is a series of
small bays separated by rocky promontories. The heads of the bays are
 •

GEOMORPHOLOGY. 365

:filled with a narrow fringe of alluvium and the 11nterraced promontories

are truncated by sea cliffs.
From Le Borgne to the promontory on the east side of Anse-a-Foleur
the shore is the truncated flank of a limestone mountain range and is rela-
tively straight. Sea cliffs here attain a height of 30 to 50 meters. This kind
of inaccessible coast is known as cotes-de-fer. The trail from Cap-Ha1tien
to Port-de-Paix winds up and down the deep, narrow ravines back from
the coast. Anse a Foleur and the similar but smaller bay between Pointe
Foleur and Cap Rouge lie between truncated unterraced headlands. The
heads of both of these coves are filled with alluvium.
Between Cap Rouge and Port-de-Paix the shore gradually assumes the
characteristic features of the shore line of the Northwest Peninsula. The
low beach along this part of. the coast is interrupted by low promontories,
which are formed of Quaternary marine deposits. The low truncated
promontories on both sides of the small embayment of Port-de-Paix
'
METRES BRASSES '
METRES BRASSES
' 0 .,........,_ 0 0 0
-...........
z.o • 10 20 10

4.0 "l.0 20
•• • • • • 40 •
• 30 30
60 60
40 40
80 80
•
50 50
1 0 0 - - - - - - - - - - -;- - - - - - - - - ' - - ' I 00 '""""---......__,
A . POINTE L IMBE CBAIE. DE L'ACUL> 8.
GRANDE POINTE·
(PORT DE PAI X)
FIGURE 23.-Subaqueous profiles off the north coast.
Horizontal scale 1 : 70,000. Vertical scale exaggerated 20 times.

• harbor are composed of reef rock overlying poorly consolidated gravel and
sand. On the west side of the bay the upper surface of the reef rock is
about 12 meters above sea level. Between Port-de-Paix and the wide allu-
vial flat at the mouth of Les Troia Rivieres there is a similar low
promontory.
SUBLITTORAL FEA11JRES.
The outer edge of the sublittoral platform off the coast of the Massif
du Nord, as limited by the 20-fathom line, has an almost uniform trend
of N. 75° W., despite the irregularities of the shore line. Off Acul Bay
the platform attains a maxim11m width of 15 kilometers, but it becomes
progressively narrower northwestward. At Port-de-Paix it is indented
parallel to the shore line and its maximum width is only 0.5 kilo-
meter. As the depth of the channel in Acul Bay exceeds the depth of
water on most of the platform this bay seems to be a submerged valley.
The littoral and sublittoral features of the coast of the North Plain
· and of the Massif du Nord westward to Le Borgne indicate that this part
of the coast of the Republic has been recently submerged. Figure 23, A,
 •

366 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

shows a subaqueous profile off Pointe Limbe, west of the entrance to Acul
Bay, based on chart No. 5251 of the Hydrographic Office, U. S. Navy.
The plotted points represent depths recorded along and near the line of
profile, which is drawn perpendicular to the contours. The narrow, shal-
low bank where the depth is less than 5 fat.horns (9.1 meters) apparently
is a reef, but the lower part of the abrupt slope between 5 fathoms and 18
fathoms (32.9 meters) may be part of a submerged terrace scarp. 'l,he
wide platform extending seaward from the foot of this scarp slopes from
18 fathoms to 30 fathoms ( 45. 7 meters). This platform seems to be
slightly submerged, as in other parts of the Republic wave-cut platforms
have a maximum depth of 20 fathoms(36.5 meters). (See Fig. 24,p. 377.)
On the east side of the entrance to Acul Bay the submerged platform is
obscured by the reefs that are growing on it. Detailed charts are not avail-
able for other parts of the coast having shore features characteristic of
submergence.
Westward from Cap Rouge the shore line is clearly a shore line of
emergence, and the emergence is progressively greater t.oward the end of
the Northwest Peninsula. Figure 23, B, a subaqueous profile off Grand
Pointe on the east side of Port-de-Paix harbor (Chart No. 5250) is a
typical profile of a recently emerged shore line. The significance of these
two contrasted types of shore line is considered elsewhere.

NORTHWEST PENINSULA.
EXTENT AND GENERAL FEATURES.
The Northwest Peninsula is a mountainous region resembling in many
features the Massif du Nord, from which it is severed by the deep trough
here called the Trois Rivieres Valley. The name as used here denotes the •

entire region west of this trough. The length of the peninsula from east
to west is about 75 kilometers, a.n d its average width is 35 kilometers.
Several mountain ranges constitute the axis of the peninsula. In the
southeastern part of the peninsula the ranges trend about N. 50° W. a.n d
attain altitudes slightly more than 1,000 meters above sea level in the
communes of Terre-Neuve and Gros-Morne. In the main body of the
peninsula the ranges trend approximately east and west and attain alti-
tudes less than 700 meters above sea level. These ranges stand about
halfway between the north and the south coast and are bordered on the
north and south by lowlands that are only 200 or 300 meters above sea
level. The west end of the peninsula is a broad plateau with terraced sea-
ward borders that has a maxim11rn altitude of 450 meters above sea level.
The diversity of surface features is partly due to the diversity of sur-
face rocks. Virtually all the mountain ranges contain a basement of
igneous rocks covered by a great thickness of limestone. Soft marls and
sandstones extend around the mountains and overlap the rocks that com-
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 367'

pose them. These detrital rocks are the surface rocks in the lowlands north
and south of the central ranges. Coralliferous limestone of Quaternary
age veneers the plateau and terraces at the western end of the peninsula.

LAND FEATURES.
SUBPROVINCES.

Although the geographic isolation of the Northwest Peninsula permits

its separation as a distinct geographic province, the surface features of
different parts of the peninsula are so different that it is divided into six
subprovinces Trois Rivieres Valley, Montagnes de Terre-Neuve, Mon..
tagnes du N ord-ouest, Bombardopolis Plateau, Arbre Plain, and Jean
Rabel Valley. .
TROIS RIVIERES VALLEY.

The conspicuous trough that separates the Northwest Peninsula from

the Massif du Nord is here called the Trois Rivieres Valley. This trough
trends about N. 15° W. along an almost straight line from a locality
between Gona1ves and Les Poteaux northward to the mouth of Les Trois
Rivieres near Port-de-Paix. Les Trois Rivieres flows only in the northern
part of the trough northward from Gros-Morne, but the trough is pro..
longed southward from Gros-Morne along the low divide between Les
Trois Rivieres and Riviere la Quinte and along the valley of Riviere la
Quinte to the locality where it enters the Gonaives Plain. This trough is
apparently limited by faults on parts of both the east and the west side.
The valley of Riviere la Quinte ~as little relief. Along the road from
•

· Gona!ves to Gros-Morne the divide between Riviere la Quinte and Les

Trois Rjvieres has an altitude of 270 meters above sea level. The :flood
plain of Les Trois Rivieres northward from Gros-Morne is narrow, and
the river swings in great loops against high bluffs. The lowland on both
sides of the flood plain is strongly dissected and contains low, rounded
hills and higher, narrower strike ridges. A conspicuous strike ridge on the
east side of the valley, about 20 kilometers north of Gros-Morne, reaches
an altitude of 560 meters above sea level. These hills and ridges are
dwarfed by the lofty mo11ntains behind them, in the western part of the
Massif du Nord. North of Gros-Morne the mountains west of the valley
are not so high.
MoNTAGNES DE TERRE-NEuVE.

The Montagnes de Terre-Neuve extend northwestward from Gonaives

for a distance of about 30 kilometers and comprise several distinct ranges
that trend about N. 50° W. The crests of the ranges have an average alti-
tude of 700 meters above sea level, but the altitude of some of the peaks
exceeds 1,000 meters. Between the mountain ranges are deep valleys,
most of which are V-shaped and some of which resemble canyons. The
368 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.
'

slope from the mountains southwestward to the sea and to the southeast-
ern part of the Arbre Plain is very steep, and the slope northeastward to
the lowland valley of Riviere la Q11inte is almost equally steep.
Most of the mountain crests are rounded and fairly smooth, but the
slopes are steep and rough, and are at many places scarred by cliffs, which
at some localities, as along the valley of Riviere Colombier west of Terre-
N euve, reach heights of more than 100 meters. The mountains consist
of a complex anticline, the axis of which coincides with the axis of the
mountain system. The limestone that caps many of the mountains is
tilted on the flanks of the folds, thus producing dip slopes and steep es-
carpments that face toward the crests of the anticlinal folds. Cliffs are
common on the escarpments, but are not confined i:o them, for even on dip
slopes erosion in the limestone produces narrow gorges bounded by cliffs.
Sink holes are conspicuous features on the more level mountain summjts.
Some especially large sink holes have a flat floor of alluvium. Such sinks
are conspicuous in Section Darane, along the trail from Gonaives to
Terre-Neuve.
Some of the mountains near Terre-Neuve have no cap of limestone and
owe their surface features to the erosion of volcanic rocks. The slopes
generally are less broken and less precipitous than those in limestone, but
the surface is more dissected, and level uplands and smooth slopes are
less common. The divides are rounded but narrow. As the volcanic rocks
comprise rocks of different hardness, some of the slopes are broken by
cliffs, but cliffs are particularly common along contacts between the vol-
canic rocks and limestone.
There are no large streams in the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve. Riviere
Colombier is a small stream that is intermittent, even in its upper course,
and disappears completely long before it reaches the Arbre Plain. All
the streams have steep gradients and cascades are common. About 3 kilo-
meters southeast of Terre-Neuve a small stream tumbles over a stairlike
cascade probably more than 30 meters high. There are other cascades
along Riviere Colombier and in Meme Valley along the upper course of
Riviere Bassin.
MONT.AGNES DU NORD-QUEST.

The Montagnes du N ord-ouest comprise three distinct ranges, which

extend northwestward from the northwestern end of the Montagnes de
Terre-Neuve to the central part of the peninsula and thence westward to
the eastern edge of the Bombardopolis Plateau. On some maps these
mountains are called th_e Montagnes de St.-Nicolas, on the ass11mption
that they extend westward between Bombardopolis and Mole St.-Nicolas
to the end of the peninsula, but as the mountains nowhere approach Mole
St.-Nicolas the name is inappropriate. The westernmost range is situated
south of Jean Rabel and may be called the Montagnes de Jean Rabel.
No common or appropriate names are known for the other ranges. The ·
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 369

Montagnes de Jean Rabel were visited during the reconnaissance, but the
other two ranges were seen only from a distance.
The three ranges collectively are arranged along an arc that is convex
northward, but they are more or less en echelon and all of them trend
north of west. The easternmost range parallels the strike of the older
rocks farther south, but the trend of the middle and westernmost ranges
swings more to the west, although the strike of the older rocks in the west-
ernmost range is north-northwest.
The easternmost and highest of the three ranges rises abruptly from
the northeast border of the Arbre Plain. To the southeast a deep, nar-
row valley imperfectly separates this range from the Montagnes de Terre-
Neuve, and the surface features of the two regions seem to be quite simi-
lar. Much of the range appears to consist of limestone and is characterized
by steep slopes and high precipices.
The middle range is the lowest of the three. It is in the middle of the
peninsula between the Arbre Plain and the Jean Rabel Valley and is
almost if not entirely separated from the range to the east by a deep gap
extending northeastwa.r d from the Arbre Plain. This range appears to
be less rugged than either of the other two and lacks the prominent cliffs
and escarpments that characterize them. It probably contains less lime-
stone and more igneous rocks.
The westernmost range, or Montagnes de Jean Rabel, rises 850 meters •

above sea level. Seen from the Arbre Plain, to the southeast, the crest ap-
pears to be a great square block with a comparatively flat top and nearly
perpendicular white cliffs on the sides, surmounting a dissected pyramidal
base of gentler slope. Undoubtedly the range is crowned by a thick cap
of limestone, which rests upon a mass of igneous rocks. The lower and less
rugged foothills consist in part of the igneous rock that underlies the
limestone and partly of the soft marls that overlie the limestone. The
interior of the range is deeply dissected, and the underlying igneous rocks
are exposed in the valleys. The bottoms of the valleys generally are V-
sha ped, but the upper slopes in the limestone are at many places scarred
by high cliffs.
BoMBARDOPoLrs PLATEAU.

GENERAL FEATURES.

The Bombardopolis Plateau, named for the principal and only im-
portant town in this region, is a high and relatively flat upland that em-
braces most of the Northwest Peninsula west of the longitude of Jean
Rabel and Baie de Henne. To the east it is bounded by the Jean Rabel
Valley, the Montagnes de Jean Rabel, and the Arbre Plain. A long,
narrow valley that extends northwestward from Baie de Henne separates
the plateau proper from the genetically similar ridge that extends south-
eastward to Port-a-Piment, bordering the west side of the Arbre Plain.
24
 370 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The width of the plateau proper is 15 or 20 kilometers from _east to west,

and its length is about 26 kilometers from north to south.
The most striking feature of this region is the remarkable series of well-
preserved emerged coastal terraces that extend from the surface of the
plateau down to the shore line like gigantic stairs.
Coralliferous limestone of Qua.ternary age covers almost the entire
plateau, and the successively lower terraces are veneered with similar but
progressively younger coralliferous limestone. The coralliferous limestone
on the plateau clearly veneers an abrasion platform that has been planed
by wave erosion from a terrane consisting of folded chalky limestone,
cherty limestone, and sa.n dy limestone containing boulders and subangular
fragments of volcanic rocks. These older rocks are exposed on the outer
edge of the plateau along the trail between Baie de Henne and Bom-
bardopolis. The Chaine des Desforges, a low mo11ntain range along the
outer edge of the plateau southwest of Bombardopolis, probably is com-
posed of these older rocks. Volcanic rocks crop out on the lower slopes of
the outer edge of the plateau at Le Platefor1ne. This region was not seen
1
during the reconnaissance, but has been described by Liitgens, who inter-
preted this area of volcanic rocks as half of the crater of a volcano that
was active during late Tertiary and Quaternary time. The evidence is
unconvincing, and it seems more likely that the basaltic volcanic rocks
are older than the Eocene limestone.
The surface of the plateau, which rises to an altitude of 400 to 450
meters above sea level, is flat or gently rolling and is imperfectly dis-
sected. The average relief does not exceed 20 or 30 meters. The few
valleys generally are narrow and steep-sided. The lack of surface streams
in large areas seems to be due to underground drainage in the limestone·.
Many of the small valleys are of the sink-hole type. Their trend is north-
northwestward or northward, apparently conforming to the trend of the
underlying Eocene limestone, which, at least along the trail from Baie
de Henne to Bombardopolis, strikes in the same direction. Near the
eastern margin of the plateau a.l ong this trail there is a remarkable series
of small parallel valleys that drain northward into the valley extending
northwestward from Baie de Henne. Cherty limestone and sandy lime-
stone, probably of Eocene age, are exposed in the bottom of these valleys.
The following four strike readings were taken in the bottoms of four
valleys, each of which trends parallel to the strike of the older rocks in
a distance of 3 kilometers from east to west: North-south, N. 15° W.,
north-south, N. 30° W. The suggestion seems reasonable that the strike
of the older limestone has controlled the direction of the circulation of
underground water in the younger limestone, first producing subterra-
nean streams of a corresponding trend, which by caving and enlarging
have been opened to the surface. This kind of erosion, but in an earlier
1Ltitgens, Rudolf, Geographlsche und geologtsche Beobachtungen in Nordwest-Hafti:
Geog. Gesell. ln Hamburg Mitt., Band 32, pp. 72-75, 1919.

•
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 371

stage, is probably exhibited in the interrupted sink-hole valleys farther

west, on the main plateau.
The Bombardopolis Plateau embraces two large valleys that indicate
features of an inherited struct.ure. One of these is the deep, narrow valley
that extends northwestward from Baie de Henne. At its bottom is a
narrow alluvial plain. The other is the valley of Riviere du Mole (also
called Riviere la Gorge), which extends northward from the interior of
the plateau to Mole St.-Nicolas. This valley is very narrow and has pre-
cipitous walls that are at some places fully 200 meters high. Along both
sides of the valley of Baie de Henne there are well-preserved emerged
sea terraces that extend up to the summit of the plateau. The valley of
Riviere du Mole has distinct terraces above the 200-meter level. These
coastal terraces along the valley walls indicate that the present valleys
occupy depressions older than the coralliferous limestone. The valleys are
therefore emerged bays, along which drainage lines have been developed.

EMERGED COASTAL TERR.ACES.

•

Emerged coastal terraces are the most striking feat.urea of the seaward
slope of the Bombardopolis Plateau. The terraces along the north coast
extend eastward beyond the boundary of the peninsula; those along the
south coast end at Port-a-Piment. The following table shows the altitude
in meters above sea level at the outer and inner edge and the approximate
maximum width in meters of five disti11ct terraces on the east slope or
the ridge between Petit Paradis and Baie de Henne. The altitudes given
are based on the reading of an aneroid barometer and are therefore only
approximate. Plate XVII, A (p. 246) shows the sea cliff between the
£ourth and fifth terraces.

Altitude and width, in meters, of terraces on east side of ridge between Petit
Paradis and Baie de Henne.

No. of Altitude at Altitude at Maximum

terrace. outer E:dge. inner edge. width.

1 5 15 200
2 30 40 100
3 65 60 100
4 70 80 200
5 95 •• 500+

On the west side of the same ridge, the side descending toward Baie de
Henne, the terraces are narro\ver and more eroded. The following ter-
races were recognized and are designated by the number of the terrace in
the preceding table wit.h which they seem to agree in altitude.

•
 372
•
GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI •

Altitudes of terraces on west side of ridge between Petit Paradis and Baie de Henne.

No. of Mean •

•
terrace. altitude.

1 29
2 ( ?) 47
8 55
4 70-75

Along the trail that ascends the margin of the plateau from Baie de
.Henne to Bombardopolis the lower terraces are dissected and are difficult
to distinguish, but there are at least 20 recognizable terraces between the
alluvial plain of Baie de Henne, which has an altitude of 10 meters above
sea level, and a conspicuous terrace that has a mean altitude of 195
meters above sea level. The approximate mean altitude of the conspicuous
terraces above and including the 195-meter terrace are shown in the fol-
lowing table. Most of these readings were obtained on flat-topped ridges
between the northward draining valleys described on p. 370.

Altitudes and features of terrace between Baie de Henne and Bombardopolis.

Altitude. Feature.

195 Conspicuous terrace.

225 Terrace.
280 Ridge.
335 Ridge.
860 Ridge.
870 Ridge.
380 Two adjacent parallel ridges.
412-480 Top of plateau.

The following table shows the approximate mean altitude of prominent

terraces above and including a 200-meter terrace along the trail between
Bombardopolis and Mole St.-Nicolas. .

Altitude and width of terraces between Bombardopolis and Mole St.-Nicolas.

Mean altitude Width in

in meters. kilometers.

200
235 •

200-275 1
285 1
825
• -I
345 0.5
360 0.5
400 1
•

•
 ll EP UBLIC OF HAITI
' J EOL(>GICAL SUR\"EY PLATE XXVIII

..

. t . EAST END OF TORTUI~ ISL ...:\ND AS SEE~ FR01'1 TilE B. NOR'l.,IIE .c\- ST END OF "
~10LE sr1,.-NICOLAS BAY .
CHAN~EL 'l'O TlIE SOUTII. 1'he st1rfacc of the is t bmt1 s in the center of the vie'v is pa rt <>f the
lo,vest en1erged t err·t1ce.

a. CAP ST.-N'ICOLAS.
E~1ERGED COASTAL TERRACES.
•

'
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 373

The preceding table embraces only the upper half of the total vertical
interval that is characterized by emerged terraces, as below the 200-meter
terrace the trail lies in the bottom of the deep gorge of Riviere du Mole,
and the altitude of the lower terraces could not be determined.
The emerged terraces are very prominent along the coast at Mole St.-
Nicolas, which has the best harbor in the Republic. The lowest terrace is
bordered at the shore line by a sea cliff similar to the emerged sea cliffs
at the front and rear of the higher terraces. The peninsula on the north
side of the bay is a remarkably fl.at table-land, corresponding to a terrace
that has an altitude of about 45 meters above sea level. In addition to
this terrace there are two other conspicuous terraces on the peninsula, one
30 meters above sea level and the other 10 meters above sea level. The
bay of Mole St.-Nicolas owes its existence to the emergence of the narrow
flat isthmus that ties the peninsula to the mainland. The surface of the
isthmus coincides with the lowest terrace and was a narrow channel
before its emergence. Heavy storms from the north probably drive a little •

wa.ter across the isthmus even at the present time. The strong trade winds
that blow through this gap have developed perfect d11nes on a miniature
scale n ear the north coast of the isthmus. Calcareous sand derived from
the coralliferous limestone is heaped up in low dune ridges on the surface
above the sea cliff.
Plate XXVIII, B, a view looking toward the head of the bay from the
beach in front of the town, shows the low, narrow isthmus and the ter-
races on both sides. Plate XXVIII, 0, a view looking southwestward
toward Cap St.-Nicolas from the mouth of Riviere du Mole, shows some
of the t erraces on Cap St.-Nicolas and on the west side of the valley of
Riviere du Mole.
'l., he coast between Mole St.-Nicolas and Baie de Henne was not seen
during the reconnaissance, but the emerged terraces are probably as strik-
•
ing at many localities as they are at those two towns. Near La Plateforme
the material that forms the terraces has apparently been stripped from
the plateau slope, revealing the volcanic rocks and the overlying impure
limestone, in which the highest abrasion platform was cut, although La
Plateform itself is a table-land capped by cora.lliferous limest-0ne and
apparently forms part of one of the lower terraces.
Southeastward from Baie de Henne to Port-a-Piment the emerged ter-
races become progressively less numerous and less conspicuous. Between
Baie de H enne and Pointe du Petit-Paradis the lowest t errace at many
localities is merely an emerged beach less than 5 meters above sea level
and generally covered with sand, although the underlying coralliferous
limestone is usually exposed in a low cliff at the shore line. At Petit-
Paradis a tidal inlet nearly 10 meters deep, entrenched in the youngest
coralliferous limestone, is said to connect the sea with an extensive inland
lagoon. An emerged beach that has a width of 50 to 150 meters and an
altitude of 5 to 8 meters above sea level extends along the coast between
Petit-Paradis and Anse Rouge.
374 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The emerged terraces completely disappear at Port-a-Piment, at the

end of the terraced ridge separating the northwestern part of the Arbre
Plain from the sea. This ridge gradually tapers and its height decreases
southeastward from Petit-Paradis.
Along the north coast the emerged terraces extend to and beyond Port-
de-Paix. Between Mole St.-Nicolas and Jean Rabel at. least six well-pre-
served terraces rise at increasing intervals to an altitude of perhaps more
than 300 meters above sea level. The mean altitude of the lowest terrace
is about 10 meters above sea level, of the second 35 to 40, of the third 60.
The higher main terraces are separated by greater intervals, but there are
many obscure intermediate terraces separated by intervals of no greater
magnitude than those between the lower terraces.
The description given shows that emerged coastal terraces become pro-
gressively more numerous and reach a progressively greater altitude west-
ward along both the north and south coasts of the Northwest Peninsula.
In the Bombardopolis Plateau they reach an altitude of 400 to 450 meters
above sea level. The total number of terraces is not known and probably
would not be represented in any single profile drawn from the shore line
to the top of the plateau because some of the terraces are very narrow or
have in places been completely obliterated by the recession of the sea
cliff during the cutting of the next younger terrace or by subsequent
erosion. It is difficult to recognize the narrow terraces at higher levels,
as they are more degraded than at lower levels. In an ascent of the plateau
from Baie de Henne to Bombardopolis about 28 distinct terraces were seen.
There is no evidence to indicate that any of the terraces are older than
Quaternary. The limestone on the highest terrace contains the same living
species of corals as the limestone on the lowest terrace. The terraces are
not so conspicuously trenched by the channels of present streams as in
other parts of the Republic because the climate is semiarid and under-
ground drainage has been developed.
The emerged coastal terraces of the Northwest Peninsula reach a
greater altitude than emerged terraces of the same age in any other part
of the Republic. Directly across the Windward Passage at Caho Maise,
in Cuba, emerged coastal terraces reach an estimated maximum altitude
of 185 meters above sea level, greater than in any other part of that island.
The two regions are evidently genetically related. The Cuban terraces
1 1
have been described by Agassiz, by Hill, by Hayes, Vaughan, and Spen-
cer,' and by Vaughan and Spencer!
1 .A..gassi~,
Alexander, A reconnaissance of the Bahamas and of the elevated reefs of
Cuba In the steam yacht Wild Duck, January to April, 1893: Harvard Coll. Mus. Comp. •
Zool. Bull., vol. 26, pp. 110-116, 1894.
a Hill, ~ T .• Notes on the geology of the island of Cuba: Harvard Coll. Mue. Comp.
Zool. Bull., vol. 16, pp. 267-269, 1895.
1 Hafes, C. W., Vaughan, T. W. and Spencer, A. C., Report on a geological reconnais-

sance of Cuba, made under the direction of General Leonard Wood, Military Governor:
Civil Rept. Brigadler·General L~onard Wood, Military Governor ot Cuba, 1901, vol. 1,
pp. 19-20, 1901.
•Vaughan, T. Wayland, and Spencer, A. C., The geography of Cuba: Am. Geog. Soc.
Bull., vol. 34, pp. 112-113, 1902.
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 375

Emerged coastal terraces of the same age and at so great an altitude

are not known in any of the other West Indian Islands except Barbados,
1
where they reach an altitude of about 320 meters above sea level.
Emerged coastal terraces of the same age as these remarkable West In-
dian terraces and at a comparable altitude are not known anywhere along
the coast of the United States except along southern California, where,
1
on the island of San Clemente, according to Lawson, there are 17 dis-
tinct terraces, the highest of which is 402 meters above sea level. On this
island two higher terraces, which are more dissected than the others, have
altitudes of 419 meters and 457 meters respectively.

•
ARBRE Pr.AIN.

The Arbre Plain is a lowland t.h at lies west of the Montagnes de Terre-
Neuve and south of the Montagnes du Nord-ouest. It extends from
northwest to southeast and is about 25 kilometers long and almost 10 kilo-
meters wide. Its name is derived from the small settlement, l'Arbre, in
the interior of the plain. The name Port-a-Piment Plain is sometimes
applied to this plain, but it is unsuitable, as Port-a-Piment is at the
margin of the plain and there is another Port-a-Piment on the south coast
of the Southern Peninsula. Southeast of Port-a-Piment the plain reaches
the sea, but to the northeast it is separated from the sea by a narrow,
southeastward-tapering terraced ridge, part of the Bombardopolis Plateau.
Near l'Arbre and on the coast at Port-a-Piment the plain is flat over
large areas, but at some places, particularly near the Sources Chaudes, it
is dotted with small bills, which have a maximum height of 30 mete1·s.
At the border of the mountains, on the north side of the plain, broad allu-
vial fans spread out and merge into the lowland. The maximum altitude
of the plain, including the alluvial fans, is probably not more than 250
meters above sea level. The plain owes its origin to the underlying clay
and marl of Miocene age, which readily yield to planation but which
are almost wholly concealed by a cover of alluvium.
This plain is very arid, probably the most arid part of the Republic,
and its most striking surface features are those that characterize arid
regions. The mountains on the north rise abruptly above alluvial fans
composed of coarse detrital material. Most of the streams that issue from
the mo11ntains disappear in a short distance. In times of flood their
. waters spread out over wide areas of mud-cracked playa or collect in shal-
low saline lakes that have no outlet. Several of these lakes lie along the
southwestern edge of the plain, near the foot of the ridge that separates
1 See accounts by Harrison, J. B., and Jukes-Brown, A. J., The geology of Barbados,
being an explanation of the geological map of Barbados prepared by the same authors,
pp. 27-34, 1890; Jukes-Brown, A. J., and Harrison, J. B., The geology ot Barbados;
Part I, The coral rocks of Barbados and other West Indian islands: Geol. Soc. London
Quart. Jour., vol. 47, pp. 197-243, 9 ft.gs., 1891. (See especially pp. 209-210.)
• ~wson, A. C., California Univ. Dept. Geol. Bull., vol. 1, pp. 128-135, 1893.
376 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

the plain from the sea. The dissection of the plain is also typical of erosion
in arid regions. Wide, dry arroyos and deep gullies with perpendicular
11nro11nded walls are common at some places, particularly in the north-
western part of the plain.
•

JEAN RABEL VALLEY.

The Jean Rabel Valley is a lowland on the north side of the Montagnes
du Nord-ouest, extending from the vicinity of Jean Rabel eastward to the
Trois Rivieres Valley. Like part of the Arbre Plain, it is separated from
the sea by a seaward-sloping ridge composed of limestone of Quaternary
age, which is the eastward prolongation of the outer margin of the Bom-
bardopolis Plateau. The seaward slope of this ridge is terraced, but the
inner slope is a steep escarpment. Near Jean Rabel the altitude of the
ridge is 250 meters above sea level. The same ridge was seen from a dis-
tance west of the mouth of Les Trois Rivieres, and it probably extends
along the entire north border of the lowland but is interrupted by the
valleys of a few streams that pierce it and thus reach the sea.
The surface rocks in the Jean Rabel Valley are soft marl, clay, and
sandstone, like those in the Arbre Plain. The heavier rainfall in the Jean
Rabel Valley accounts for the marked difference in the surface features.
Near Jean Rabel, which is the only locality where the lowland was ex-
amined, there are two kinds of major surface features extensive flat
alluvial flood plains along the streams and rolling hills that are 100 to 200
meters higher than the alluvial plains. Surface features of th.is type, con-
sisting of plains and rolling lowlands, probably extend eastward to the
Trois Rivieres Valley.
As the coastal ridge and the rolling lowland at the rear of the Jean
Rabel Valley have virtually accordant summits, the suggestion seems
warranted that a plateau formerly extended over the coastal ridge and the
entire lowland. The plateau platform, which was the eastward prolonga-
tion of the Bombardopolis Plateau, was cut by marine erosion. Subaerial
erosion stripped the thin cover of coralliferous limestone from the inner
edge of the plateau, revealing the readily eroded Miocene rocks. The
resultant enlarged lowland is the Jean Rabel Valley.

SHORE FEATURES.

The shore features of the Northwest Peninsula from the mouth of Les
Trois Rivieres westward to Mole St.-Nicolas and thence southward and
eastward to Port-a-Piment are described on pages 371-374.
The Arbre Plain extends down to the sea between Port-a-Piment and
Pointe Cordion, and the shore is bordered by mangrove swamps that
separate extensive saline mud flats from the sea. At Pointe Coridon sea
cliffs truncate an unterraced promontory that is part of a ridge extending
 •

•
•

GEOMORPHOLOGY. 377

to the coast from the Montagnes de T erre-Neuve. Between Pointe Coridon

and Pointe la Pierre the shore consists of a gradually narrowing strip of
detritus derived from the steep mountain slopes,, fringed by sandy beaches.
SUBLITTORAL FEATURES.
The relation between the width of the shallow offshore platform and the
presence or absence of emerged coastal terrace is remarkably uniform
along the coast of the Northwest Peninsula. From the mouth of Les '1,rois
Rivieres westward around the end of the peninsula and southeastward to
Port-a-Piment, the platform, as limited by the 20-fathom •
line, is very
narrow, and its outline closely coincides with the outline of the shore line.
This platform, on which reef corals are growing, resembles the n11merous
emerged terraces. Southeast of Port-a-Piment, where the emerged terraces
end, the outer edge of the platform diverges from the shore line, and off
Pointe la Pierre the platform attains a maximum width of 10.9 kilo-
~

METRES SR ASSES
0 0

io 10
•

l.O
40 • •
30
60
40
80
50
100---------------------------------------------__.---
24. Subaqueous profile off Pointe La Pierre near Gona1ves.
FIGURE
Horizontal scale 1: 60,000. Vertical scale exaggerated 20 times.

meters. (See Fig. 24.) The conclusion seems warranted that the greater
width of the platform is due to the longer interval of time during which
it has been subjected to wave erosion. Figure 24 shows that along this part
of the coast the maximum depth of effective wave erosion is 20 fathoms
(36.5 meters).
The deep indentations in the offshore platform at Mole St.-Nicolas and
Baie de Henne indicate that the valleys that extend into the interior of
the plateau at these two localities are structural depressions, probably
synclines. •

CENTRAL PLAIN.
NAME AND EXTENT.
The name Plaine de Goave, or Guaba, was applied by Moreau de St.
Mery and other geographers to the extensive plain between the Massif
du Nord and the Montagnes Noires. As that name no longer has any
1
local significance, the name Central Plain, first used by J ones, is here
used.
1 Jones, W. F., A geological reconnaissance in Haiti: Jour. Geology, vol. 26, p. 730,
1918.
•
 I

378 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Tl1e Central Plain is the largest interior plain in the Republic. It

extends from the Dominican border northwestward to St.-Michel de
l'Atalaye like a wedge between the Massif du Nord and the Montagnes
Noires. The prolongation of the plain in the Dominican Republic is
called the San Juan Valley. From St.-Michel de l'Atalaye to the Domini-
can border the length of the plain is about 75 kilometers. The north-
western part is 22 kilometers wide, but in the central part the bordering
ranges approach each other and the width of the plain is only 16 kilo-
meters. Southeast of this narrow part the width of the plain increases
abruptly to 40 kilometers. Toward the Dominican frontier the mountains
bordering the plain converge slightly, and along the frontier between
Belladere and Banica the width of the plain is about 30 kilometers.

SURFACE FEATURES.
NORTHWESTF.JlN PART.

The northwestern part of the plain is a flat grassy savanna, which

slopes southeastward to a point about 10 kilometers north~rest of Ma!ssade.
The altitude above sea level at St.-Michel de l'Atalaye is about 425 meters
and that at St.-Raphael about 350 meters. Long reentrants of the
savanna extend up main streams at St.-Michel de l' Atalaye, St.-Raphael,
and Pignon. The floor of the savanna consists of flood-plain gravel and
silt deposited during a period when the streams were sluggish and me-
andered over the plain. The extensions of the savannas up the large
valleys indicate that the main streams at that time occupied positions
approximately the same as at present. These streams have r ecently en-
trenched themselves in the flood-plain deposits, probably because their
gradient was increased by a change in the course of Riviere Artibonite
below Las Cahobas (see p. 382). Riviere Bouyaha at the place where it is
crossed by the trail from Ma1ssade to Pignon is entrenched 25 meters
below the level of the plain, and Riviere Gouape, a tributary, is en-
trenched 15 meters. The smaller streams have scarcely begun to dissect
the savanna.
The flood-plain deposits conceal the folded Miocene rocks, which con-
trol the surface features in the southeastern part of the plain. West of
Pignon and south of St.-Raphael some low ridges rise to a maximum
height of 30 meters above the savanna. These ridges are probably com-
posed of limestone similar to that in the mountains bordering the plain.
North of Maissade an intricately dissected pine-covered ridge extends
from the southeast into the savanna. Along the trail from Ma!ssade to
Pignon the ridge is about 6 kilometers wide and its crest stands abo11t
430 meters above sea level. It narrows toward the northwest and finally
disappears beneath the flood-plain deposits of the savanna. The ridge is
composed of conglomerate and sandstone.
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 379

West and southwest of MaYssade the plain is much more dissected, but
flat-topped buttes with accordant summits at an altitude of about 345
I

meters above sea level indicate that the savanna formerly extended farther
southward.
A much greater variety of surface features characterizes the region
soutl1west of }Ja1ssade, where folded Miocene rocks are exposed. An es-
carpment composed of the calcareous sediments in the upper part of the
Madame Joie formation parallels the mountain front, facing outward from
the plain. In the vicinity of Riviere Blanche the conglomerates in the
Thomonde formation form a second escarpment facing in the same direc-
tion, farther from the mountains. This ridge ends abruptly along a fault
on the southeast.
An elliptical depression eroded in the finer sediments of the lower part
1
of the Thomonde formation occupies the crest of the Fond Bleu Dome.
Encircling it is an inward-facing escarpment formed by the overlying
conglomerate. Southwest of the dome these conglomerates form a synclinal
ridge with an outward-facing escarpment on the flank near the mountains
similar to that in the vicinity of Riviere Blanche. A wide depression
formed in the lower Thomonde beds intervenes between this escarpment
and the mo11ntain.
SOUTHEASTERN PART.

Between Hinche and Las Cahobas the western margin of the plain is
more rugged. Northeast of Thomonde a spur from the mountains pro-
jects southeastward into the plain along the axis of the Thomonde anti-
cline. Several crescentic troughs and escarpments parallel the mountain
spur. The largest trough, in which the town of Thomonde stands, coin-
cides with the outcrop of the fine-grained sediments of the Thomonde
formation. Near Thomonde the floor of the trough is a savanna deeply
entrenched by Riviere Thomonde and its tributaries. The prominent
escarpment, or ''rim rock,'' which overlooks this trough is composed of
conglomerates and sandstones in the lower part of the Las Cahobas forma-
tion. The outlet of Riviere Thomonde is the only gap in this escarpment.
Successive dip slopes extend out into the plain from the crest of the
escarpment.
The same surface features are duplicated on a red~ced scale along the
Chamouscadille anticline, south of the Thomonde anticline. Features
that are similar but even more reduced appear along the Ayaye anticline
south of the Chamouscadille anticline.
Along the foot of the mountains at the southern margin of the plain is
a trough coinciding with the outcrop of the Thomonde formation. The
town of Las Cahobas stands near the northern edge of this trough on
a gravel-covered terrace at an altitude of about 215 meters above sea level.
1 The Fond Bleu Dome and other structural feature• are described on pages 488-492.
 380 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

A high escarpment consisting of conglomerate and limestone at the base

of the Las Cahobas formation overlooks this trough. The ruins of old
Fort Anglais, north of Las Cahobas, are on the highest part of the escarp-
ment, where the crest is 145 meters above the town. Riviere de Las
Cahobas flows northward through a wide alluvium-filled gap in the escarp-
ment. This gap is shown in Plate XIV, B, page 168, a view westward from
a place about a kilometer northeast of Las Cahobas. The main trail lead-
•

ing northeastward from Las Cahobas toward Thomonde and Belladere

follows a narrower and higher gap. Dip slopes extend from the escarpment
toward the interior of the plain.
The trough and the accompanying escarpment facing it extend eastward
along the southern margin of the plain to the vicinity of Belladere, where
they bulge northwestward along the axis of the Belladere anticline, form-
ing a spur much like that at Thomonde. Belladere stands in the trough
along the axis of this spur at an altitude of about 360 meters above sea
level.
In the interior of the plain the most conspicuous surface features are
remnants of a high-level plain and several terraces at lower altitudes. .
Between Hinche and Thomonde the high-level plain remnants consist of
flood-plain deposits and lie at an altitude of about 300 meters above sea
level. It is inferred that this plain is the southeastward continuation of
the savanna that forms the northwestern extremity of the plain, remnants
of which can be traced between Ma!ssade and Hinche, because if the sur-
face of the isolated remnants were restored it would agree with the slope
of the savanna. Entrenching of the streams is shown by terraces, four of
which were seen between Hinche and Thomonde at altitudes of about
290, 265, 255, and 240 meters above sea level. The streams are entrenched
10 or 15 meters below the lowest terrace. The older terraces extend
across the interstream areas or encircle small isolated patches of the high-
level plain. Plate XXIX, B, shows three terraces as they appear looking
southeastward from a place about 3 kilometers south of Hinche.
Discontinuous terraces extend across the interior of the plain along the
trail from Thomonde to Thomassique. Riviere Guayamouc is entrenched
35 meters below a terrace that stands about 235 meters above sea level.
Northeast of the river there are higher terraces, at altitudes of about
260 and 300 meters, but the highest terrace may correspond to the high-
level plain.
It is inferred that Savane Chamouscadille, which is about 8 kilo-
. meters southeast of Thomonde on the trail to Las Cahobas, is an isolated
part of the high-level plain. It is covered with flood-plain deposits at an
altitude of about 285 meters above sea level. South of this savanna the
trail passes near the boundary between the interior of the plain, where
terraces are the most prominent surface features, and the western margin
of the plain, where tilted ridges composed of Miocene rocks are the most
conspicuous features. North of the crossing of Riviere Artibonite there
 •
REPU BLJ C OF IIAI TI
G E O LOGI CAL S URVEY PLA'rE XXIX

A . ACCOnDAN'l' CilE STS OF S'rRII( F, RIDnES :F'OR)fED BY CONGI; 0)1ERATES OF TIIE LA S CAHOBAS FOR1'1ATION ON TIIE SOUTH
S CDI·~ OF '1-.HE CEN'£IlA IJ 1-.T..AIN.
()n t l10 <l ivi<l cs innny of the ricl ges h n, ·c a cap of s t r e;1111 g r~1v el .

R . STRE..\ ~f 'rERR.\ ('ES IN THE CENTRAL PLAIN, AS SEE~ LOOI<ING SOUTHEAST'\rARD Af;QNG
THE 'l'RA!L FROJ\! HI~C HE TO TIIO)fONDE.
 •

.•
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 381

are terraces at altitudes of about 265, 235, and 190 meters above sea
level. The surface of the alluvium in the present stream valley is 170
meters above sea level. On the south side of the river, as on the north side,
the 190 meter terrace adjoins the alluvium; the widest terrace is 210
meters above sea level, and the highest is 225 meters.
. Along the trail from Las Cahobas to Belladere the terrace gravels have
been stripped off by erosion, except in isolated patches, and the underly-
ing tilted Miocene rocks are exposed. The more resistant beds form low
outward-facing escarpments. The accordant height of the summits of
these esca.r pments (see Plate XXIX, A) indicates the southward con-
tinuation of the high-level plain. On this trail small terrace remnants
were seen at altitudes of about 290, 320, and 350 meters above sea level.
The northeast edge of the plain is not so rugged as the west and south
edges because the structure is more simple and the lithology of the Mio-
cene rocks is more uniform. The most conspicuous surface features are
dip slopes and outward-facing escarpments. Toward the foot of the moun-
tains the dip slopes become steeper and the accompanying escarpments
higher. Plate XXXVII, A, page 492, shows the dip slopes and escarp-
ments near Thomassique. Toward the interior of the plain the dip slopes
disappear beneath the cover of terrace deposits.

DRAINAGE.

The Central Plain lies wholly within the drainage basin of Riviere
Artibonite, which enters the plain at the Dominican border near Banica
and flows southwestward. Streams emerging from the mountains around
the edge of the plain converge to form the southeastward-flowing Riviere
Guayamouc, which joins the Artibonite as its largest tributary, in the
south-central part of the plain.
In the northern two-thirds of the plain the drainage system is controlled
by the structure, but in the southern third most of it is unrelated to the
structure. Instead of continuing southeastward along the plunging trough
of the syncline and thus finding access to the sea along the present course
of Rio Yaque del Sur, the combined Guayamouc and Artibonite turn
southwestward and cut through the high mountain wall of the Montagnes
Noires northwest of Las Cahobas. In the absence of adequate maps it is
impossible to trace precisely the history of this anomalous drainage.
All the evidence available indicates that the plain drained into the
San Juan Valley during the time when the high-level flood-plain deposits
were laid down. The accordant erosion remnants of a high-level plain
that slopes gently southeastward support this interpretation. At that time
lateral streams in the southern part of the plain flowed in toward a main
central stream, forming a drainage system like that now seen in the
northern part of the plain. The :flood-plain deposits are apparently of
Pliocene age, and this drainage system probably persisted during early
Quaternary time.
382 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The entire drainage of the plain, apparently, was first diverted into the
present course of Riviere Las Cahobas across the escarpment along the
south margin of the plain and through the conspicuous gap in the Mon-
tagnes Noires southwest of Las Cahobas, as has been suggested by Tippen- ·
1
hauer, and outlined by Jones! The gap in the escarpment northwest of
Las Cahobas seems much wider than it would be if cut by the stream tl1at
now occupies it. The gap in the Montagnes Noires southwest of Las Caho-
bas is all out of proportion to the present small streams that flow north-
eastward and southwestward from the divide in the gap, which has an
altitude of about 245 meters above sea level. The cause of the diversion
is not known. The high-level gravels at Las Cahobas ·and in the valley of
Riviere Fer-a-Cheval south of the Montagnes Noires are, according to
available infor1nation, about 30 meters lower than the gap. If the former
surface of the plain were as high as the gap these gravels were deposited
during a later stage of the drainage. Additional evidence concerning the
outlet of the Central Plain drainage through the Las Cahobas gap, based
on the features of the valley of Riviere Fer-a-Cheval, is considered on •
page 388.
The present gorge of the Artibonii:€ is cut wholly in limestone and its
course was probably determined by a former lateral stream in the north
slope of the mountains that had an extensive underground drainage.
After the gap across the Montagnes Noires at Las Cahobas was deepened
down to the basement of volcanic rocks now exposed the deepening pro-
ceeded less rapidly, whereas the development of the underground drainage
of the lateral streams was accelerated. The final diversion may have been
due to the capture of this headward underground drainage by a south-
westward-flowing tributary of the Artibonite on the south slope of the
mountains. At the time of the diversion the surface of the plain probably
coincided with one of the higher terraces along Riviere Artibonite above
the mouth of Riviere de Las Cahobas. Between the present gorge and the
mouth of Riviere de Las Cahobas the valley of the Artibonite is very
narrow, presenting a contrast to the wide terraced valley above.
MONTAGNES NOIRES.
NAME AND EXTENT.
The name Montagnes Noires is here used for the mountains between the
Central Plain and the Artibonite Valley and their prolongation east-
ward to the Dominican border. The entire mountain complex is named
from the Montagnes Noires, the mountains immediately northwest of the
gorge of Riviere Artibonite. The higher mountains farther northwest are
generally called the Chaine des Cabos. The range between the Centra]
Plain and the valley of Riviere Fer-a-Cheval is unnamed.
1
Tlppenbauer, L. Gentll, Neuer Beltrag zur Topographle, Bevtslkerungskunde, unt1
Geologle Hartis : Petermanns Mitt., Band 55, p. 53, 1909.
2
Jon es, "1·1111am F., A geological reconnaissance in Haiti: Jour. Geology, vol. 26, pp.
748-749, 1918.
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 383

Toward the northwest the Montagnes Noires merge into the Massif du
Nord, and toward the southeast they are continuous with the northern part
of the Sierra de N eiba of the Domjnican Republic. The northwestern
boundary of the Montagnes Noires is drawn somewhat arbitrarily along
the valley of Riviere d'Ennery and southeastward along the pass traversed
by the road from Ennery to St.-Michel de l' Atalaye.
Between the valley of Riviere d'Ennery and the Dominican border the
length of the Montagnes Noires is about 120 kilometers and their average
width is 15 kilometers, but toward the southeast their width is reduced to
6 kilometers or even less.
GENERAL FEATURES.
The northwestern part of the Montagnes Noires comprises several
mountain ranges, but the southeastern part is a single range. The trend
of the ranges parallels the structural trend. The crest of the southeastern
part of the range coincides with the crest of a simple anticline that trends
about N. 70° W. This trend extends from the Dominican border westward
to the co;nspicuous gap followed by the road from Mirebalais to Las
Cahobas. Immediately northwest of this g'ap there is a single anticlinal
range, but the trend changes to N. 50° W. Farther northwest the Mon-
tagnes Noires comprise several ranges, the crest of which generally coin-
cides with the crest of a complex anticline. The conspicuous change in
trend coincides with the change in trend of the upper part of the Arti-
bonite Valley and in the mountain system included in the Montagnes du
Trou d'Eau and the Chaille des Mateux. A separate name might be justi-
fied for the range southeast of the gorge of Riviere Artibonite, as it strikes
into the Artibonite Valley and is separated from the main part of the
mountains by a syncline.
Limestones are the surface rocks over large areas in the Montagnes
Noires. Older rocks are exposed in the deep valleys and possibly on the
crests of the interior ranges.

SURF ACE FEATURES.

NORTHWESTERN PART.

The northwestern part of the Montagnes Noires was crossed during I

the reconnaissance only along the trail between St.-Michel de l'Atalaye

and Dessalines. Along this trail the mountains include several rugged
ranges. The crest of the mountains is crossed at an altitude of 510 meters
above sea level, but on both sides of the trail peaks rise to an estimated
altitude of 1,200 meters above sea level. Morne Chapelet, a conspicuous
peak near Ennery, has an estimated altitude of 1,400 meters above sea
level. These mountains are very rugged. Stairlike cliffs rise for hundreds
of meters on some of th€ slopes. Southwest of St.-Michel de l'Atalaye a
low range composed of limestone faces the Central Plain. West of this
 384 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

range Morne Salee rises to an estimated altitude of 800 meters above sea
level. In this region the ridges are composed of limestone and are very
rugged. The valleys have been cut down to the underlying volcanic rocks,
and some of them have been enlarged into rolling interior lowlands. (See
Pl. VI, A, p. 64.) Near Paul alluvial savannas are common in these low-
lands, which have an altitude of about 400 meters above sea level, slightly
higher than that of the Central Plain, into which they drain. Some
of the valleys near Dessalines are like those near Paul, but they are nar-
rower and have been cut down to an altitude of 100 me~rs above sea level.
The western boundary of this part of the Montagnes Noires is a straight
scarp that extends for many kilometers from the eastern side of the
valley of Riviere la Quinte southeastward toward Dessalines and rises
abruptly 300 to 600 meters above the Gona1ves Plain. (See Pl. XXV, B,
p. 334.) This abrupt scarp apparently is a fault scarp, along which the
western range of the mountains is tilted in a monoclinal block sloping
northwestward. This type of structure, which has determined the surface
features, extends farther west, as Morne Grammont, an isolated outlier
of the Montagnes Noires rising above the Gona1ves Plain southeast of
Gona1ves, apparently is a similar monoclinal block. Other hills near the
boundary of the Montagnes Noires southeast of Morne Grammont are
almost completely buried in alluvium.

SOUTHEASTERN PART.

The top of the range southeast of the Las Cahobas gap is a rolling
plateau, about 4 kilometers wide, in which large areas are covered with
residual red clay. The central part of the range consists of limestone, and
the slopes from the plateau are much steeper but less intricately dissected
than those in the foothills, which are composed of younger detrital rocks.
The range is bo11nded on the south by the narrow valley of Riviere Fer-a-
'
Cheval, a prolongation of the Artibonite Valley. Along the trail from
Belladere to Savanette the south slope of the range is much more precipi-
tous than the north slope, descending from an altitude of 1,250 met.era
above sea level at the crest of the range to 535 meters above sea level at
Savanette, only about 3 kilometers to the south.

DRAINAG:&.
The gorge of Riviere Artibonite, which cuts directly across the Mon-
tagnes Noires, and the abandoned gorge at Las Cahobas are the most con-
spicuous drainage features. The probable history of Riviere Artibonite
is discussed on pages 381-382. In the northwestern part of the Montagnes
Noires the drainage is almost completely controlled by the structure.
Most of the streams flow either northwestward or southeastward, parallel
to the strike of the rocks, and finally break across the outer ranges through
deep, narrow gorges into the Artibonite Plain or the Central Plain.
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 385

ARTIBONITE PLAIN AND VALLEY.

NAME AND GENERAL FEATURES.
The name Artibonite Plain has ·been applied since early colonial days
to the seaward flood plain and deltas of Riviere Artibonite and Riviere
l'Estere, and to the contiguous flood plain of Riviere la Quinte, which is
also known as the Gona1ves Plain. The name Artibonite Valley is here
used for the part of the valley of the Artibonite above Petite-Riviere and
its southeastward prolongation, the valley of Riviere Fer-a-Cheval. The
plain and valley forrn a southeastward tapering wedge separating the
Montagnes Noires from the Chaille des Mateux and 1'fontagnes du Trou
d'Eau. Near the Dominican border the wedge tapers out, and the Mon-
tagnes Noires unite with the Montagnes du Trou d'Eau. Northwest of
Mirebalais the valley trends N. 50° W., parallel to the inclosing mo11n-
tains, but southeast of Mirebalais the trend of the valley and of the inclos-
ing mountains changes to N. 70° W. The length of the plain and valley
is about 120 kilometers, and the width decreases southeastward from a
maximum of 30 kilometers near the sea.

LAND FEATURES.
• ARTIBONITE PLAIN •

The Artibonite Plain as defined in the preceding paragraph has a

maximum altitude above sea level of not more than about 50 meters.
Virtually all the region is covered with Recent alluvium, which near
the sea forms a true plain. (See Pl. VI, B, p. 64.) The surface deposits
consist principally of fine silt, but near the mo11ntains there are beds of
gravel and boulders. A large part of the plain is periodically flooded
during the rainy seasons. As the entire region is semiarid it is not dia-
sected rapidly, and the great quantities of silt deposited when the rivers
overflow diminish the surface irregularities. An extensive playa flat
between Gona!ves and Dessalines, east of Morne Grammont, apparently
has no s11rface outlet. (See Pl. XXV, B, p. 334.)
Several isolated hills and a conspicuous ridge, Morne Grammont, rise
above the surface of the plain in the northeastern part near the ~fon­
tagnes Noires. These surface features are more fully described on
page 384.
ARTIBONITE VALLEY.

A narrow flood plain, at few places more than 1 or 2 kilometers wide,

extends along the river from Petite-Riviere southeastward to Mirebalais.
Its surface gradually rises southeastward and at Mirebalais is about
100 meters above sea level. On the north side of the river, in the region
between Petite-Riviere and La Chapelle, a belt of low, rounded hills and
remnants of a smoothly sloping terrace plain separate the flood plain from
25
 386 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

the flanks of the Montagnes Noires. These hills and the terrace plain
•
are the dissected remnants of a former flood plain. Near Petite-Riviere
this higher flood plain is strongly dissected and includes an area, several
kilometers wide, of low hills that rise perhaps 50 meters above the
present flood plain. Farther southeast, near Savane-a-Roche, the higher
flood plain is a dissected terrace. The outer edge of this terrace is
20 or 30 meters higher than the present flood plain and its surface rises
rather steeply toward the base of the near-by mountains. The terrace
material consists of gravels, and the surface is in many places strewn
with boulders and cobbles. Part of this terrace is a smoothly sloping
grass-covered savanna. (See Pl. XXX, A.)
On the south side of the river a conspicuous ridge adjoining the pres-
ent flood plain extends from Verrettes past La Chapelle toward Mire-
balais. The ridge consists of resistant coralliferous Jjmestone dipping
northeastward on the north flank of a secondary anticline toward the
trough of the main syncline. The ridge rises to an altitude of 100 to
150 Dieters above sea level. Its inner slope is a steep escarpment, but
its outer slope is a long dip slope. . A long, narrow lowland separates the
ridge from the base of the mountains. The lowland contains a series
of stream valleys carved in soft marl and sandstone, which underlie the
coralliferous limestone. The many small streams that drain this low-
land originate in the mountains to the southwest and many of them
•

are deflected into courses parallel to the Artibonite by the ridge of

coralljferous limestone. All of them ultimately break across the ridge
in deep, narrow gaps and reach the Artibonite. The lowland and escarp-
ment are shown in Plate XXX, B. Southeast of La Chapelle the low-
land and ridge are interrupted by Morne Saut d'Eau, which ext~nds
northward from the Chaine des Mateux.
Southeast of Morne Saut d'Eau the width of the Artibonite Valley
increases to 20 kilometers. The flood plain of the Artibonite is very
narrow and discontinuous, as the river swings against bluffs cut in clay
and marl of Miocene age. The ridge of northeastward-dipping coral-
liierous limestone is not so conspicuous in this area as it is northwest
of Morne Saut d'Eau, but it persists in the ridge southeast of Mirebalais
on which Fort Anglais is situated. At the fort the altitude of the ridge
is 190 meters above sea level, 60 meters higher than that of the town.
The Miocene rocks between Mirebalais and the foot of the mo11ntains to
the south are intricately dissected. The divides are covered with gravels
deposite~ along the tributaries of the Artibonite at a time when the
flood plain of the Artibonite stood at a higher level. Near the moun-
tains these gravels are at an altitude of 250 meters above sea level. The
town of Mirebalais stands on a gravel-covered bench at an altitude of
..
130 meters above sea level, or about 30 meters higher than the present
flood plain.
 REPUBL IC OJI~ HAITI
GEOLOGICAL SUR\!EY PLATE XXX

A. GRAVELCOVERED TERRACE IN THE ARTIBO~ITE VALLEY ~EAR

'
SA VANE-A-ROCflE.
-

B. LOWLAND OF ~IIOCENE MARL AND RIDGE OF MIOCENE CORALLIFEROUS

LIMES'l,ONE NEAR J,A CIIAPELLE.
The lowlancl is floored 'vith marl arched in nn nnticline. The overlying corallifer-
ous limestone dips northeastward towa1·d Rivi~re Artibonite on the northeast limb of
the anticline.
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 387

The surface features on the north side of the Artibonite from Mire-
balais to La Chapelle resen;lble those on the south side and are the
result of the erosion of rocks of different hardness that are arched in a
secondary anticline parallel to the main syncline. A high ridge on the
crest of the anticline corresponds to Marne Saut d'Eau on the south
side but apparently is completely isolated from the Montagnes Noires.
This ridge is surrounded by a narrow lowland, at the outer edge of which
the Miocene coralliferous limestone crops out in a low, narrow ridge
that has a long dip slope facing outward from the lowland and a steep
escarpment facing inward. Softer rocks 11nderlie the lowland between
the low ridge and the narrow flood plain of the Artibonite. These rocks
are intricately dissected. The divides are covered with gravels, which
•

reach an altitude of 240 meters above sea level near the foot of the
mountains.
All the surface features of the Artibonite Valley continue southeast-
ward from Mirebalais along the valley of Riviere Fer-a-Cheval, which
is 11nderlain by the same rocks and is structurally part of the same
northwestward-plunging syncline. The flood plain of Riviere Fer-a-
Cheval is very narrow and is flanked by low rolling hills covered with
gravels deposited at the same time as the gravels in the Artibonite
Valley. On the south side of the river, between Mirebalais and the
mouth of Riviere Gascogne, the highest of these hills has an altitude
of 290 meters above sea level, or 60 meters above the level, grass-covered
savannas bordering the hills near the river. The Miocene rocks of the
Artibonite Valley extend up Riviere Gascoyne, a tributary of Riviere
Fer-a-Cheval, and underlie the intricately dissected spurs along the
base of the mountains.
East of Poste de Flande, where the road from Mirebalais to Las
Cahobas turns northward through the gap in the Montagnes Noires,
the valley of the Fer-a-Cheval abruptly narrows and is hemmed in by
the Montagnes Noires and a range that separates the Fer-a-Cheval and
Gascogne valleys. The rocks in this narrow valley are the same as those
in the Artibonite Valley but are more strongly folded. They underlie
the grass-covered spurs that lead up to the more densely wooded and
· more rugged limestone mountains. The west end of the range between
the valleys of Riviere Fer-a-Cheval and Riviere Gascogne is composed
entirely of these Miocene detrital rocks. Farther east older limestone
crops out in the central part of the range. The difference in suriace
features between the detrital rocks and limestone is strikingly shown in
this range. The detrital rocks are more intricately dissected, but the
slopes on the limestone are steeper and are scarred by cliffs.
About 4 kilometers west of Savanette a northward-trending arch
brings the older limestone to the surface and for a distance of almost
2 kilometers Riviere Fer-a-Cheval flows in a gorge cut in older lime-
stone. About 3 kilometers west of Sav:anette the Miocene rocks again

...
388 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

appear and they underlie the narrow river valley. Immediately west I

of Savanette the river cuts through a narrow ridge consisting of Miocene

rocks folded into a narrow, asymmetric anticline. (See Pl. XXVI, A,
p. 336.) This ridge extends southeastward across the valley and then
eastward along the south side of the valley for a distance of about a
kilometer east of Savanette. The slope of the mountains into the narrow
valley is remarkably steep, especially on the south side.

DRAINAGE.

Riviere Fer-a-Cheval and Riviere Artibonite below Mirebalais occupy

the trough of a northwestward-plunging S)rncline. It seems that tl1e
drainage of the lower Artibonite was formerly limited to the drainage
of this syncline. At that time the Central Plain drained southeastward
toward the present Rio Yaque del S11r, and the volume of water in the
system that comprised the Fer-a-Cheval and the Artibonite was much
less than it is no\v. ri.,he gravels about 30 meters above the present flood
plain were deposited at that time when the flood plain was much wider
than it is today. The altitude of the gravels increases toward the moun-
tains along the lateral streams. The trenching of this old flood plain
is probably due to the greatly increased volume of water derived from
the Central Plain through the Las Cahobas gap. (See pp. 381-382.) The
vallev., of Riviere Fer-a-Cheval between Mirebalais and the Las Cahobas
gap is much wider than the valley east of the gap and is the direct con-
tinuation of the Artibonite Valley below Mirebalais. These features of
the Fer-a-Cheval valley support the conclusion that the Central Plain
drainage formerly entered the Artibonite Valley thro11g]1 the Las Caho-
bas gap. The probable history of the second deflection of the Central
Plain drainage to its present course across the Montagnes Noires is
considered on page 382. Between the gorge and the mouth of Riviere
Fer-a-Cheval the Artibonite is intrenched in the flood-plain deposits of
the earlier Artibonite and its lateral streams.
The large number of streams that cut across the ridge of coralliferous ·
limestone on the south side of Riviere Artibonite, between Verrettes
and Marne Saut d'Ea11, s11ggests that their course was determined dur-
ing the time when the Artibonite flood plain was higher and when t11e
valle)" was nearly leveled. The courses of these streams across the ridge
that were uncovered during the renewed erosion were retained.

SHORE FEATURES.

The shore features of the Artibonite Plain are very uniform. Exten-
sive mud flats, saline lagoons, and mangrove thickets extend from
Gonaives to the southern edge of the plain at Pojnt Diable. The shore
line is very ir1·egular a11d is being continually modified by the deposition
of sediments.
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 389

SUBLITTORAL FEATURES.
A shallow platform that has a minimum width of 4 kilometers ex-
tends along the shore line of the Artibonite Plain. The 20-fathom line
at the outer edge of the platform is indented off Gona1ves Bay, bl1t the
head of this indentation is 11 kilometers from the head of the bay.
The outer edge of the platform extends almost due south,vard from the
head of this indentation to Pointe Diable, and the platform gradt1ally
narrows southward.

MONTAGNES DU TROU D'EAU.

NAME AND EXTENT.
. ,
The mountains on the north side of the Cul-de-Sac Plain and Etang
Saumatre are here called the Montagnes du Trou d'Eau. The name
is derived from Morne Trou d'Eau, a conspicuous peak nortl1east of
Thomazeau.
The }fontagnes du Trou d'Eal1 lie between the Artibonite Valley and
the Cul-de-Sac Plain, but near the Dominican border t.hey merge into
the eastward extension of the Montagnes Noires, forming the Sierra de
N eiba of the Dominican Republic. From the Dominican border the
Montagnes du Trou d'Eau trend about N. 70° W.) but as they approach
the sea their trend changes to N. 50° ,V., and although the mountains are
continuous this part of the range is know11 as the Chaine des Mateux.
The length of the Montagnes du Trou d'Eau is about 50 kilometers.
Their maximum width at the eastern end is 18 kilometers, but along the
•
road from Port-au-Prince to Mirebalais their width is 8 kilometers .

SURFACE FEATURES.
•

EASTERN PART.

From the Dominican border westward to Morne Trou d'Eau the sur-
face rock is limestone. Basaltic volcanic rocks, which 11nderlie the lime-
stone, are exposed in some of the deep ravines on the north and south
slopes of the mountains. Near Morne Trou d'Eau the mountains form
a single range, the crest of which is close to the southern margin, over-
looking the Cul-de-Sac Plain. Farther east the mountains are wider
and are not clearly aligned in ranges.
Rounded spurs project from the mountains down to the edge o·f
the plain, bl1t the upper slopes are more rugged. Deep ravines gasl1 the
mountain front, but no through-flowing surface streams enter tl1e plain
from these mountains. ~Iorne Trou d'Eau, which has an altitl1de of
1,385 meters above sea level as determined trigonometrically by the
Service des Leves Topographiques, is the highest peak on the south side of
the mountains. As seen from the plain its crest is rounded, but cliffy
slopes lead down to a deep ravine, which severs it from the mo11ntains
390 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

farther east. The trail from Thomazeau to Cornillon crosses the divicle
at the head of this ravine at an altitude of 820 meters above sea level.
The most striking surface features of the mountains northeast of
Morne Trou d'Eau are due to solution of the limestone and to under-
ground drainage. The village of Cornillon stands in a deep, narrow,
flat-floored valley that has no surface outlet. At Cornillon the valley
trends about N. 70° W. The valley drains eastward and westward
toward the village, and during the rainy season surface water collects
on the residual clay that forms the valley floor. The walls of the valley are
steep and are scarred by cliffs. From the crest of the ridge on the south
side of the valley a similar but wider depression that has no surface, out-
let is visible on the north side of the ridge that towers above Etang
Sa11matre. The trail from Cornillon to St.-Pierre passes along the
north side of another narrow depression that has no surface outlet.
The floor of this depression is pitted by small basins, which probably
coincide with the course of an 11ndergro11nd stream. Near St.-Pierre
and to the north, toward Savanette, the valleys are wide and the ridges
more subdued. Cornillon has an altitude of 925 meters above sea level.
Morne Napipe, the crest of a prominent ridge northwest of St.-Pierre,
rises to an altitu de of 1,520 meters above sea level, as determined
trigonometrically by the Service des Leves Topographiques.
The trail from Cornillon to Mirebalais ascends a steep slope of bare,
jagged limestone to the crest of a spur and crosses the diTide at an
altitude of 1,150 meters above sea level. At an altitude of 800 meters
above sea level it pl11nges down a steep dip slope of limestone onto a
gently sloping spur of folded det:rital rocks that leads do\vn into the
valley of Riviere Gascoyne. This spur and similar spurs to the east and
west are much more intricately dissected than the main mol1ntain mass.
The spurs are separated by deep ravines that contain r11nning water.

WES TERN p .A.RT.

From Morne Trou d'Eau westward to the eastern end of the Chaille
des Mateux the Montagnes du Trou d'Eau comprise a single narrow
range that is not so high as the mo11ntains farther east. The road from
Port-au-Prince to Mirebalais approaches the mo11ntains along a ravine
but in a short distance leaves the ravine and ascends the steep slope of
Morne A Cabrits to an altitude of 620 meters above sea level. It then
descends into the same ravine at Fond-Diable. The steep grade on
Morne a Cabrits might be avoided by constructing a road along the
ravine, but the lower part of the ravine is very narrow and steep-walled.
Morne Terre-Rouge, the crest of the range north of Fond-Diable, has
an altitude of 880 meters above sea level, as determined trigonometri...
cally by the Service des Leves Topographiques. Morne des Crochua,
whose altitude is 1,1 70 meters, is the highest peak in the western part
of the Montagnes du Trou d'Eau.

•
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 391

DRAINAGE.

The Montagnes du Trou d'Eau are deficient in surface streams. The

underground drainage in the eastern part is described on page 390.
In the western part surface drainage is more clearly established, and
deep ravines, which are dry during most of the year, drain northward
and southward from the crest. Parts of the courses of these ravines are
parallel to the strike of the rocks.

"
CRAINE DES MATEUX.
NAME AND EXTENT.
The mo11ntains that extend southeastward from St.-Marc to,vard the
Cul-de-Sac Plain are here called the Chaine des Mateux, from the name
•
generally given to their central part. As the mo11ntains approach the
Cul-de-Sac Plain their trend veers eastward, and beyond this turn the
range is called the Montagnes du Trou d'Eau. The Chaille des Mateux
lies between the Artibonite Plain and the St.-Marc Canal. Its length is
75 kilometers and its average width 20 kilometers.

GENERAL FEATURES.
The trend of the mountain mass and of manv-. of the surface features
is about N. 50° W., parallel to the structural trend. Limestones are
the surface rocks in the interior mo11ntains, and younger limestone an<;l
detrital rocks 11nderlie foothills on the flanks of the range. Basaltic
volcanic rocks are exposed on the north slope of the mo11ntains near
Saut d'Eau.
The hills inclosing St.-Marc Bay, which may be called the Mornes de
St.-Marc, and the narrow coastal plain at l'Arcahaie are included in the
Chaille des Mate11x, but as they 11ave entirely different features they are
described under separate headings.

LAND FEATURES.
CRAINE DES MATEUX PROPER. •

The Cha!ne des Mateux proper has an average altitu(le of 1,200 to

1,300 meters above sea level. Morne Batiste, the highest s11mmit, rises
to an estimated altitude of 1,575 meters above sea level. The chain
includes several ranges and many isolated mountains. Riviere Mont
Rouis flows almost due westward across the northern part of the chain
and divides it into two ranges. The mountains on the north side of
Riviere Mont Rouis overlooking the Artibonite Plain are frequently
called the Montagnes des Verrettes. The valley of Riviere Mont Rouis
is very deep and its slopes are broken by high cliffs. The mo11ntains slope
abruptly north-eastward to the Artibonite Plain and southwestward to
 392 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

the sea and the Arcahaie Plain. The northwest end of the chain rises
steeply above the Mornes de St.-Marc to an estimated altitude of 1,200
meters above sea level, and the slope is scarred by towering dark cliffs.
The crest of the chain northeast of l'Arcahaie is a mot1ntainot1s higl1-
land that has a range in relief of 200 to 300 meters. The slo1Jes are
relatively gentle, and the summits are rounded. This highla11d, unlike
most other areas where limestone is the surface rock, co1ttai11s n<> con-
spicuous cliffs. The profiles of the ridges at the outer edges of the high-
land are asymmetrical. Short, steep escarpments face inward from tl1c
summit of the ridges, and longer, more gentle dip slopes 011 beds of
limestone face outward toward the flanks of the chain. Certain areas
in the highla.nd have si1tk holes arranged along depressions that prob-
ably coincide with the courses of underground streams.
A belt of foothills ru11s parallel to the mountains on both the northPast
and the southwest side except along the coast between 1\font Rouis an<l
Pointe Trou Forban. The foothills consist of limestone and marl of
Miocene age that at one time probably extended over the n1ountains l>ut
have been removed from the mountain crest by erosion. ln\vard-facing
escarpments and outward-facing dip slopes are the most conspicuous
features of the foothills.
The southeast end of the Chaine des Mateux has a greater variety or
surface rocks and surface features. Morne Saut d'Eau, the conspicuot1s
ridge northwest of Saut d'Eau, is joined to the main mountains. Riviere
Canot plunges over a high falls on the east slope of this ridge. On the
•
southeast slope there is a remarkably level plateau at an altitude of 480
meters above sea level. The small stream that drains the plateau ap-
parently has been diverted for irrigation, as it has no channel. It
plunges over the edge of the plateau in a waterfall that is probably 80
meters high. Hugh masses of the marl that underlies the plateau break
off along the crest of the waterfall. Southwest of Sa:ut d'Ea u two rolling,
grass-covered savannas, Savane Madame Michel and Savane Madan1e
Michaud, extend southwestward into the mo11ntains. These savannas are
11nderlain by basaltic volcanic rocks.
The interior highland of the Chaine des Mateux is so slightly dis-
sected, despite its altitude, that it probably has not long been exposed
to erosion. The Miocene beds on the flanks of the chain probably ex-
tended across the crest of the mountains and have been removed, re-
vealing the 11nderlying limestone.

MoRNES DE ST.-M.A.Rc .
•

T he name Mornes de St.-Marc is here used for the hills that enclose •
St.-Marc Bay. They include Morne de l'Anse-a-l'Inde, the hills on the
north side of the bay, and its southeastward prolongation, the Mornes
des Guepes. They are composed of the same rocks as the foothills of
 GEOMORPHOLOGY • 393
•

the Chaine des Mateux proper and are essentially the continuation o·f
the foothills around the pl11nging crest of the main anticline. These
rocks are more readily eroded than the rocks that underlie the Chaine
des Mateux proper'.. Structurally the Mornes de St.-Marc comprise two
anticlines that plunge northwestward and are separated by a similarly
plunging syncline. The outline of the coast is determined b}r these
three structural features. The promontories on both the north and
· the south side of the bay, 1vhich coincide with the crests of the anticlines,
are beveled by several emerged coastal terraces.
The Mornes de St.-Marc are much lower and less rugged than the
adjacent slopes of the Cha.m e des ~fat.eux proper. Their summits rise
to altitudes of 300 to 350 meters above sea level. The entire region is
\,...;

strongly dissected and comprises almost equal areas of hills and low-
lands. The hills are capped by coralliferous limestone that overlies tl1e
marls in which the valleys are cut. The limestone is much harder than
the marl, and wherever the streams reach the marl they establish a grade
quickly and rapidly broaden their valleys by undercutting the lirr1e-
stone, which stands up in steep slopes or cliffs bordering tl1e valleys.
There are three valleys, or really lowlands, in this region. One of these
lowlands has been eroded on the crest of the anticline in the Mornes des
Guepes, north of St.-Marc, and is travers~d by the road from St.-Marc
to Gona1ves. It is completely surrounded by a rim of limestone, but the
stream escapes southwestward through a gorge. Another lowland coin-
cides with the trough of the S}rncline and extends southeastward from
St.-Marc. It is drained by t"\"\ro small streams that flow 11orth,vestwar<l
into the bay. The third lowland is on the crest of the anticline south
of St.-Marc. Its drainage escapes northward and soutl1ward tl1rougl1
gorges in the encircling limestone hills. The road from Port-au-Prince
to St.-Marc follows these gaps. The encircling hills rise from 100 to
200 meters higher than the lowlands .

.AB.cAH.AIE PLAIN.

The Arcahaie Plain is a narrow alluvial coastal plain that has a maxi-
mum width of 6 kilometers and a length of almost 28 kilometers. It is
separated from the northwest end of the Cul-de-Sac Plain by foothills
of the Chaille des Mateux that extend almost down to the shore line.
The plain wedges out to the northwest, where the steep slopes of the
mountains reach the sea. Near the shore line the plain is low and barely
dissected. The landw~rd part slopes more steeply and is dissected by
ravines. The maximwn altitude of the plain near the base of the moun-
tains is about 150 meters above sea level. The plai1 L clearly owes its ori-
gin to the deposition of sediments on the shallow sublittoral platform
that extends northwestward as far as the plain.
394 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

DRAINAGE.

· In the interior highland of the Chaille des Mate11x proper the streams
originate in valleys that run roughly parallel to the strike of the rocks.
After flowing parallel to the structural trend they break across the ridges
on the outer sides of the highland and plunge down the steep slopes of
the mountains in deep V-shaped ravines. The relief on the outer border
of the mo1Jntains is much greater than in the highland, and the slopes
are far more rugged.
The streams on the anticlines of the Mornes de St.-Marc apparently
are superimposed on the structure.
'

SHORE FEATURES.

Between the south edge of the Artibonite Plain and Mont Rouis the
shore line is bordered by the Mornes de St.-Marc. This shore line is
clearly a shore line of emergence, and steeply sloping emerged coastal
terraces are the most conspicuous shore features. St.-Marc Bay is a
broad U-shaped indentation coinciding with a northwestward-plunging
syncline. Except at the head of the bay, the shore line is bordered by an
almost continuous sea cliff, 20 to 30 meters high. This cliff is the sea-
ward face of the lowest terrace. On the south side of the bay the altitude
of the outer edge of the lowest terrace is about 35 meters above sea level
and that of the second about 100 meters. On Cap St.-Marc there are four
well-defined terraces, but the upper two were not examined. The width
of the lower terraces increases to a maximum of between 1 and 2 kilome-
ters on Cap St.-Marc. On both the north and the south coast of the cape
the width decreases. The terraces on the north side of St.-Marc Bay ap-
pear to correspond to those on the south side. Pointe Diable is the western
extremit}r or a small table-land, part of the lowest terrace, isolated by
mud flats which may indicate a former channel of Riviere Artibonite.
The head of St.-Marc Bay is bordered by a narrow fringe of alluvium.
The hills at the edge of the fringe are not terraced like the hills along •

the north and the south side of the bay. Southeast of Cap St.-]}farc the
coastal terraces become lower and narrow. There are no conspicuous ter-
races southeast of Bois-Neuf, but at Mont Rouis recently emerged coral-
liferous limestone is found at an altitude of 10 meters above sea level.
From the mouth of Riviere Mont Rouis southeastward almost to Pointe
Trou Forban the sea washes the steep unterraced slopes of the Chaille
des Mateux. The shore line is bordered by• a narrow fringe of detritus
derived from the limestone cliffs. From Pointe Trou Forban southeast-
ward to Boucassin the shore is bordered by the Arcahaie Plain, which
is gradually extending seaward. Foothills of the Cha1ne des Mateux
extend along the coast from Boucassin southeastward to the northwest
extremity of the Cul-de-Sac Plain.
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 395

SUBLITTORAL FEATURES.
Between Pointe Diable and Mont Rouis the sublittoral platform js
very narrow, like that along other shores of emergence. The 20-fathom
line closely parallels the shore line aro11nd the indentation of St.-Marc
Bay. At the head of the bay it is only 300 meters distant from tl1e
shore. Between Mont Rouis and Pointe Trou Forban the platfor1n is
even narrower. The steep sublittoral slope conforms to the steep slope
of the mountains above the shore line. Off Pointe Trou Forban the
20-fathom line bends southwestward toward the southeast end of Gonave
Island along the outer edge of the extensive platform described on
page 398.
CUL-DE-SAC PLAIN.
NAME AND EXTENT.
The Cul-de-Sac Plain is perhaps the most striking surface feature
of the Republic. When the early settlements were established at Petit-
Goave and near the present site of Leogane the huge gulf between the
two westward-extending peninsulas of the Republic that has its apex
in Port-au-Prince Bay was called the Cul-de-Sac. The name was finally
restricted to the plain at the apex of the cul-de-sac. The plain itself is
not a cul-de-sac but part of a remarkable depression extending from
Port-au-Prince Bay southeastward across the island to N eiba Bay.
The part of the depression within the limits of the Dominican Repub-
lic is called the Hoya de Enriquillo.
, This depression contains the two
largest lakes in the island, Etang Sa11matre and Lago de Enriquillo,
both of which have no outlet.
The plain is rectangular in outline. Its length from · the shore of
Port-au-Prince Bay southeastward to Etang Sa11matre is about 30 kilo-
meters, and its average width is about 16 kilometers.

GENERAL FEATURES.
The Cul-de-Sac Plain is a deep trough, bo11nded on the north and
south by high mo11ntains. The plain stands at an average altitude of
not more than 50 meters above sea level so low that when seen from
a distance, as from Gonave Island, it looks like an ar1n of the sea. It
trends about N. 75° W., parallel to the trend of the inclosing mountains
and to the strike of the older rocks.

LAND FEATURES.
OUTLINE AND DOMIN ANT ELEMENTS.

The outline and principal surface features of the plain are shown on
Plate XXXIX (p. 516) . The plain has a general northward slope that
extends almost to the very base of the mountains on the north side. A
•
 •

396 . GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HA1TI. •

low north-south, divide in the eastern part diverts a part of the drainage
eastward into Etang Saumatre and a larger part westward toward the
sea . ..t\ ghallo\v depression near the middle of the northern part of the
plain contains a small fresh-water lake called Trou Ca1man, which is
said to overflow occasionally during floods down Ravine Bo1lcan Brou
to the sea. During years of abnormally low rainfall Trou Ca1man is
smaller than it appears on Plate XXXIX. A much larger depression at
the eastern extremity of the plain contains the brackish-water lake called
Etang Saumatre. Its level is higher dt1ring years of heavy rainfall than
it was during the winter of 1919-20, which, was preceded by several years
of low rainfall. In 1900 the surface of Etang Saumatre was 20 meters
1
above sea level, accoraing to levels run from Port-au-Prince. At tl1e
same time the similar but larger and saltier lake in the Dominiran
2
Republic, Lago de , Enriquillo, was 34 meters below sea level. Along
the north side of Etang Saumatre high mountains rise abruptly fron1
the edge of the water. Along the south side, west of Fond-Parisien, ~
ridge separates the lake from the mountains, but near the Dominican
border the mou11tains extend down to the lake.
The surface of the plain consists of alluvium "rashed down f1·om the
inclosing mountains. As the only through-flowing surface streams that
carry water to the margin of the plain emerge from the mountains on
its south side, more alluvium has been deposited on that side, and this fact
accounts for the northward slope of the plain. This slope is greatest
near the southern border of the plain and decreases north,vard. The
northern half of the plain is very flat and but little dissected, but along
the southern margin of the plain ravines attain a depth of several
meters. Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac near Bassin General is in-
trenched to a depth of almost 10 meters. This dissection along the
southern side of the plain is hardly more than sufficient to accommodate
flood waters. Foothills composed of strongly folded detrital rocks of
Miocene age and yo11nger imperfectly consolidated gravels extend into
the plain from the mountains along the south side. Fort National is
situated on one of these foothill ridges, which partly incloses Port-au-
Prince. The dwelling houses of the Haytian-American Sugar Co. are
built on the northern end of this ridge.
About 4 kilometers southeast of Croix-des-Bouquets, near Peyrard, a
low northwestward-trending ridge rises 10 or 20 meters above the s11r-
ro11nding plain. It is composed of cemented gravels and probably is a
remnant of older alluvial deposits that were laid down along a former
channel of Riviere Blanche and has since been isolated by erosio11.
Ridges of a similar appearance as seen from the plain flank the present
channel of Riviere Blanche near the southern margin of the plain.
1
Tippenhauer, L. G., Beitrilge zur Geologie Hartis, V: Petermanns Mitt., Band 47,
p. 170, 1901.
2
Tippenhauer, L. G., idem, v. 16A.
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 397'

Foothills composed of coralliferous limestone of Quaternary age ex-

tend along parts of the southern and northern margins of the eastern
part of the plain. This limestone was deposited when the entire trotlgh
was a strait separating the island of Haiti into two major parts. Just
north of Trou Ca1man the limestone forms irregular, narrow benches
that extend to altitudes of 50 or 75 meters above the surface of the lake.
Similar limestone , underlies the prominent ridge that projects north-
ward into the Etang Saumatre between Gantier and Fond-Parisien.
Along the trail between these two villages the ridge attains an altitude
of 125 meters above sea level, and it is higher near the lake. 'fhe north-
westward-extending ridge south of Sources Despuzea11x, which was not
examined, probably is composed of the same limestone.
Other features of the plain that are significant with regard to the
supply of water are dEscribed on page 515.
The surface features of the Cul-de-Sac Plain are due almost , entirely
to QuaternaIJ alluviation. The depressions occupied by Etang San-
1

matre and Trou Ca1man are most likely due to the same cause, although
their formation probably began during the time when the sea covered
the site of the plain, before the period of subaerial alluviation. The
sediments deposited in the sea at that time by streams corresponding
more or less closely to the present streams were unevenly distributed
on the sea bottom, and the areas that received the smallest amount of
sediments became basins that remained as lakes when the sea withdrew.
The semiarid climate that characterizes the plain would preserve rather
than destroy these depressions because the quantity of surface water jg
not sufficient to support through-flowing streams and permit the estab-
lishment of an unbroken drainage system.

SHORE FEATURES.
'

Alluviation has largely determined the form of the shore features of

the plain. Mud flats and mangrove swamps extend along the entire
shore line. Barren saline flats back from the coast are occasionally
flooded by sea water. Small mangrove islets lie off the shore.

SUBLITTORAL FEATURES.
•

The peculiar features of the Cul-de-Sac Plain are not confined to its
subaerial part. The soundings recorded on chart No. 2656 of the
Hydrographic Office of the United States Navy reveal a submerged
part of the plain that is remarkably similar to the subaerial part. (See
Pl. XXXI.) The submerged part of the plain bends northwestwa1·d
parallel to the trend of the Chaine des Mateux and the lower Artibonite
Valley. It extends as far as a line drawn from the southeastern end of
Gonave Island to Pointe Tron Forban. Its length is 45 kilometers and
its maximum width is 32 kilometers. It comprises a fiat plain and an
 •

398 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

inclosed basin having relations

, to each other like those of the Cul-de-Sac
Plain to the basin of Etang Sa11matre. The plain is part of the sub-
littoral platform that borders the coast of other parts of the Republic.
The maximum depth of water on the fiat part of the platform is 20
fathoms ( 37 meters), but the mean depth is about 17 fathoms ( 31
meters). Tongues on which the maximum depth is 10 fathoms
(18 meters) extend southeastward and northeastward from the south-
eastern end of Gonave Island along the outer edge of the platform.
Smaller ridges encircled by the 10-fathom contour rise above the s11r-
face of the platform. The small, low islands called Les Arcadins rise
above the surface of the water on one of these ridges. The platform is
widest between the northern coast of the Leogane Plain and the southeast-
ern coast of Gonave Island and off the coast of the Arcahaie Plain.
The outline of the platform is very irregular in the harbor of Port-au-
Prince, where numerous cays and shoals rise above the surface of the
water or lie awash. The outer edge of the platform slopes steeply into
deep water. The length of the basin inclosed by the platform from a
point south of Les Arcadins to the harbor of Port-au-Prince, is 35 kilo-
meters, and its width is 17.5 kilometers. The maximum depth of water
recorded in the basin is 85 fathoms ( 155 meters).
An emergence of 25 fathoms ( 46 meters) would 11nite Gonave Island
with the mainland and add an extensive area , to the Cul-de-Sac Plain.
This area would contain a lake larger than Etang Sa11matre that would
resemble the lakes in the subaerial part of the plain.
The platform probably owes its origin to base-leveling at a time when
the land stood higher. The basin may have been outlined even at that
time, and it may have been accentuated by unequal sedimentation dur-
ing the Quaternary submergence, although it is difficult to acco11nt for
rapid sedimentation across the northwest end of the platform. Inequali-
ties on the platform have been and still are being planed off by wave
erosion subsequent to the emergence that is known to have affected the
subaerial part of the plain.
•

MASSIF DE LA SELLE.
NAME AND EXTENT.
The name Massif de la Selle, which is derived from Mont La Selle, its
highest peak, is used here for the mo11ntainous area in the southeastern
part of the Republic. Geographers have used the name Montagne de
la Selle for the range of which Mont La Selle is a part, but no name
has heretofore been given to the entire mountainous complex.
The Massif de la Selle is the northwestward prolongation of the Sierra
de Bahoruco of the Dominican Republic. The western boundary of the
massif is not well defined, but between Jacmel and Grand-Goave the
mountains are low, and as the geologic history of the more mountainous
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 399
•
region to the east di.ffera from the history of the mountainous region to
the west, this break is taken as the boundary. ,
The area included in the Massif de la Selle is 100 kilometers long
and has an average width of 30 kilometers.

GENERAL FEATURES.
Most of the Massif de La Selle is extremely mountainous. The largest
coastal plain in this region, Leogane Plain, is on the north coast, and a
narrow lowland extends almost continuously from this plain eastward
to Port-au-Prince, where it merges into the Cul-de-Sac Plain. On the
south coast there are very small coastal plains at Jacmel, Cayes de
J acmel, Saltrou, and Anse-a-Pitre. A narrow lowland extends along
the south coast from J acmel eastward to the mouth of Riviere de Fesle
near Marigot.
The surface trends of the Massif de la Selle coincide approximately
with the northwestward strike of the older rocks except where 11nde-
formed younger rocks overlap the older rocks.

LAND FEATURES.
MOUNT.A.INS.

NORTH SLOPE.

The mountains on the north slope of the Massif de la Selle rise

boldly above the Cul-de-Sac Plain. They are composed mainly of lin1e-
stone but certain spurs at their bases are composed of younger detrital
rocks. The contrast between the two groups of rocks is sharply defined,
as the slopes of the limestone terrane are much steeper but less intri-
cately dissected.
South of Port-au-Prince is a narrow, steep ridge called Morne Hopital,
which, as determined trigonometrically by the Service des Leves Topo-
graphiques, rises to an altitude of 1,040 meters above sea level, tower-
ing above the city. The ridge trends about N. 75° W., parallel to the
strike of the rocks. The upper part of the northern slope is very steep
and conforms closely to the steep northward dip of the rocks. South
of the ridge and approxjmately parallel to it is the deep, narrow valley
of Riviere Froide. To the west, where the ridge is lower, it is crossed
by Riviere Froide in a narrow gorge. The prolongation of the ridge
farther west strikes into the Leogane Plain. Toward the east Morne
Hopital loses its identity, but the first ridge between Petionville and the
gor_ge of the Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac is essentially its prolongation.
The :first ridge east of the Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac reaches an
altitude of 984 meters above sea level in Morne des Enfants Perdus,
as deterrnined trigonometrically by the Service des Leves Topograph-
iques. Eastward from Morne des Enfants Perdus the front range

•
400 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF H.AITI •
•
apparently consists of several ridges aligned parallel to the strike of the
rocks.
The trail from Petionville to Furey crosses the crest of a second ridge
about 5 kilometers south of Petionville at an altitude of 1,200 meters
above sea level. Fort Jacques, which, as determined trigonometrically
by the Service des Leves Topographiques, has an altitude of 1,340
meters above sea level, stands on the eastward prolongation of this ridge.
The ridge terminates south of Morne Hopital on the north side of the
valley of Rivi ere Froide.
The mountains on the north slope of the massif owe some of their
peculiar surface features to solution of the limestone by ground water.
On the crest of the first ridge southeast of Fond-Parisien the trail to
Fond-Verrettes crosses a shallow elliptical depression, apparently a sink
hole. The floor of this depression, like that of most sink holes, has a
thick covering of fertile soil, most of which is cultivated. The longer
axis of the depression is parallel to the strike of the rocks. Fond-
Verrettes, also called Mission, stands 810 meters above sea level, in a
narrow U-shaped valley, the sides of which rise steeply to perhaps 250
meters above the valley floor. The valley parallels the northwestward
strike of the rocks and probably has been widened and deepened by
solution. Near the east end of Morne Hopital a small, deep sink hole
was seen. About 1 kilometer southeast of Rendez-vous there is a wide,
deep sink hole, the floor of which is under intensive cultivation. A small
sink hole was seen only a few h11ndred meters south of the crest of the
mo11ntains at an altitude of nearly 1, 700 meters, on the trail from Fond-
Parisien to Grand Gosier.
INTERIOR. '

EASTERN PART, INCLUDING MONTAGNE DE LA SELLE.

The highest mountains in the Massif de la Selle are in the jnterior.

The surface features of the eastern and western parts are quite different.
The surface features of the eastern part are relatively simple, apparently
because the entire region is composed of limestone. The limestone is
folded and generally strikes north of west. The dominant feature of
the region is a high, narro\v central range known as Montagne de la
Selle, the summit of which, lvfont de la Selle, as determined trigonometri-
cally by the Service des Leves Topographiques, stands 2,680 meters above
sea level and, according to all available information, is the highest point
in the Republic. Mont de la Selle is not a clearly isolated peak but ratl1er
a broad eminence. The profile of the mountain, viewed from the north,
is fairly smooth, showing a gradual slope eastward to the Dominican
border but a somewhat steeper slope westward. During the rainy season
Mont de la Selle is hidden most of the time by clouds.
Deep ravines separated by high ridges furrow the steep north and
south slopes of Montagne de la Selle. The trail from Fond-Parisien to

•
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 401

Grand-Gosier crosses the divide at an altitude of 1,700 meters above sea

level. On the north slope it ascends from an altitude of 810 meters at
the valley of Fond-Verrettes to an altitude of 1,500 meters in a distance
of about 7 kilometers. On the south slope it descends from 1,500
meters to 950 meters in a distance of about 5 kilometers. Near the crest
the slopes are not so steep.
WESTERN p ABT.
The surface features of the mountains in the western part of the
interior of the massif are more varied than those in the eastern part be-
cause the surface rocks are more varied and the structural features are
more complex. The surface rocks include basaltic volcanic rocks and
limestone, and the structure is complicated by faulting. The region
comprises a 'vide central highland of basalt flanked on the north and
south b}~ still higher limestone ranges.
•

The lofty limestone range on the north side of the area of basalt forms
the sky line as seen by an observer stationed in the Cul-de-Sac Plain.
On some maps this range is designated the Montagne Noire, but this
range should not be confused with the Montagnes Noires of the
Departement de l'Artibonite (see p. 382). In general features this range
resembles Montagne de la Selle. Its crest along the trail from Petion-
ville to Furey has an altitude of 1,680 meters above sea level. The high-
est peaks, ~Iorne Tranchant (altitude 1,926 meters) and Morne N oir
(also called ~1orne Pays-Pourri; altitude 1,805 meters as determined
trigonometrically by the Service des Leves Topographiques) are on tl1e
crest of the range west of the Furey trail. East of the Furey trail the
range is less conspicuous and west of Morne N oir its height diminisl1es
until it is hardly recognizable west of the gorge of Riviere Momance.
The deep valley of Riviere Froide separates this range from Morne
Hopital. The crest of the range trends about N. 70° W.
The central area is about 60 kilometers long and has a maxim11m
'vidth of 16 kilometers. It comprises probably the most rugged moun-
tains of the Republic. The characteristic feature of the area is its intri-
cate dissection in a complex dendritic pattern. Long flat-topped spurs
extend southward a little distance into this region from the foot of
Montagne Noire. The village of Furey is on such a spur at an altitude
of 1,520 meters above sea level. In the main body of the area the flat-
topped spurs are replaced by knife-edge divides, which separate the
lateral streams, tributaries of the Riviere Momance. The valle)TS ancl
ravines are deep and V-shaped. The maximum relief in the region
southeast of Furey is about 700 meters. Precipitous rock slopes are
common at the heads of ravines and there are nt1merous waterfalls.
Trails plunge abruptly several hi1ndred meters down into ravines.
The surface is equally rugged along the trail that ascends Riviere
Gosseline from Jacmel to Port-au-Prince. This trail leaves Riviere Gos-
26
402 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

seline at an altitude of 240 meters above sea level and follows Riviere
Mabial to an altitude of 450 meters; then, within a distance of 6 kilo-
meters, it ascends to 1,330 meters above sea level on the crest of the
divide between Riviere Gosseline and Riviere Momance. Westward from
this trail the mountains are lower but are as intricately dissected as the
higher mo11ntains farther east. (See Pl. XXXII, A.) The main trail
from Jacmel to Port-au-Prince, which follows the Grande Riviere de
J acmel, crosses the divide at an altitude of 400 meters above sea level.
These mountains extend northward to the Leogane Plain.
On the south a high range overlooks the area of basalt as far west
as the longitude of Port-au-Prince. It has a general east to west trend,
but its western part appears to consist of segments arranged en echelo1i,
which strike northwestward into the area of basalt and terminate along
abrupt scarps. A segment southeast of Furey culminates in Morne
Cabaio (also called la Fenetre), which has an altitude of 2,280 meters
above sea level, as determined trigonometrically by the Service des
Leves Topographiques. The last segment ends abruptly about 10 kilo-
meters west of !forne Cabaio. Its summit, which has an estimated alti-
tude of 2,000 meters above sea level, overlooks the rugged mountains
in the area of basalt both to the north and west. The prominent white
cliffs on its slopes indicate that this range, like that on the north side
of the area of basalt, is composed of limestone.

SOUTH SLOPE.

On the south slope of the massif the mountains extend almost or

quite to the shore line. On this slope, as in the interior, the variety of
surface rocks and of surface features is greater in the western than
in the eastern part. The mountains are not so clearly aligned in ridges
as in the interior and on the north slope, and the relation between the
structural trends and surface features is correspondingly less distinct.
The entire region east of Marigot is very rugged, and mountains of
limestone descend to the coast. The maps show a trail following the
coast from Grand-Gosier to the Dominican border, but such a route
could be traversed only on foot. Between the settlement called Adieu-
au-monde and Saltrou the trail in use leaves the coast to avoid rugh
sea cliffs. It extends almost due east from Grand-Gosier to Banane on
.Riviere Pedernales and thence follows the river down to Anse-a-Pitre.
The highest ridge crossed by the trail is 680 meters above sea level.
West of Banane the trail follows a narrow U-shaped valley that trends
about N. 60° W., parallel to the strike of the rocks. This valley, like so
many other narrow strike valleys in limestone terranes in other parts of
the Republic, has probably been widened and deepened by solution along
bedding planes. The ridge on the south side of the valley has a very
jagged crest.
REPUBLIC OF IIAITI
GBOLOGICA L StJR \"EY PL_.\ TE :X:X:XII

A. VlE''r OF THE CITilO:NNIERS v·..:\.LLEY LOOI(ING NORTHWARD FRO~:! A

I... OC'AT"'T1'Y A FE'W I<ILOMETERS NORTH OF TI-IE CREST
, OF TfIE
:\IOlJXTJ\.INS ALO:NG TfIE TRAIL FR0~1 JAC~1EL TO LEOGANE.
'I'bc r ock s are ba saltic 1<1vas.

R . .TAGGED LI)1ESTONE RIDGE ON THE KORTI-I SIDE OF THE ~IAPO-CX

Pf,AIN, GON.A VE ISL..\ND.
•
 •

GEOMORPHOLOGY. 403

Between Marigot and J acme! the surface features are more diversified.
The mo11ntain slopes are separated from the sea by a narrow lowland.
Small grass-covered conical hills composed of basalt border the Cayes
de J acme! Plain, especially on the northwest side. Back of these hills
are steep mo11ntain slopes, which at many localities rise in sheer cliffs.
A lowland extends northwestward from J acmel up the valley of Riviere
Gauche. It coincides with the area of a marine embayment that was
filled with coarse sediments during Pliocene time.

PLAINS.
,,
LEOGANE PLAIN.

The L eogane Plain is the only large plain within the area of the
Massif de la Selle. It is rectangular in outline and has a length from
east to west of about 12 kilometers and a maxim11m width of 10 kilo-
meters. It lies across the northwest ends of the mo11ntains on the north
slope of the massif. The floor of the plain consists of alluvium de-
posited by Riviere Momance and Riviere des Citronniers on a platform
that is genetically related to the submerged platform extending north-
westward to Gonave I.sland. The plain evidently owes its origin to
sedimentation on this platform, and it is being continually enlarged'
northwestward along the shallow outer margin of the platform.

DRAINAGE.

The interior mountains of the massif form a divide from which the
streams flow either into Port-au-Prince Bay and the Gonave Canal, to
the north and northwest, or into the Caribbean Sea, to the south. _\t
some places the stream courses are controlled by the structure. Riviere
Momance, the largest stream, rises in the central area of basalt, where i.t
receives many tributaries, flows almost due northward across the west-
ward prolongation of Montagne Noire, and then turns abruptly west-
ward, emerging on the Leogane Plain along the fault contact between
the basalt and limestone. Riviere Froide rises on the north slope of the
}fontagne Noire near Rendez-vous, flows northwestward approximately
parallel to the strike of the rocks and then turns northward, piercing
the westward prolongation of Morne Hopital in a narrow gorge. Riviere
Momance and Riviere Froide are not more than a kilometer apart where
their courses change direction, but they are separated by a narrow ridge
whose crest ·is about 30 meters above the bed of Riviere Momance and
65 meters above Riviere Froide.
The south slope is not so well watered as the north slope except near
Jacmel, where the mountains are much lower and the rain-bearing winds
from the northeast are less completely robbed of their moisture than in
other parts of the massif. Riviere Gauche, a tributary of Grande Riviere
de J acmel, the largest stream on the south slope, flows southeastward
 404 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

in the narrow basin of Pliocene rocks near Jacmel. Riviere Adieu-au-

Monde, a very small stream, is the only through-flowing stream between
Riviere de Fesle and the Dominican border, where Riviere Pedernales
reaches
,
the sea.
Etang Bossier is a small lake on the south slope of the mountains
about 5 kilometers northwest of Cayes de Jacmel. It has been described
as a crater lake, but there is no evidence to support such a conclusion.
It occupies a depression in the irregular topography along the contact
between limestone on the east and basalt on the west. In November,
1920, the surface of the lake was about 10 meters lower than the possible
outlet toward the Cayes de J acmel Plain.
•
SHORE AND SUBLITTORAL FEATURES .
NORTH COAST.

SHORE FEATURES.

Rapid alluviation has been the principal factor in determining the

shore features of the north coast from Port-au-Prince westward to
Grand-Goave. Long stretches of the shore are bordered by a fringe of
mangrove thickets. Barren mud flats lie back of the mangrove thickets
at several localities, especially near Grand-Goave. The alluvial fringe is
widest at the mouth of Riviere Froide and at the Leogane Plain, where
it extends far into the interior.
The alluviation has accompanied and followed emergence of the sho1·e
line. Evidence of emergence is afforded by marine sediments of Quater-
nary age. Such sediments were seen near Trou Jean Roger and at a •

point 0.5 kilometer east of Grand-Goave. At both places the marine

beds seem to be remnants of a narrow terrace that rose 30 to 40 meters
above sea level. The seaward face of the terrace is a sea cliff, the base of
which is only a few meters above tide and less than 100 meters back of
the shore line. At other localities imperfectly consolidated gravels,
which probably are of the same age as the marine beds, have been dis-
sected by the present streams. '
•

SUBLITTORAL FEATURES.
The sublittoral features of the north coast from Port-au-Prince to
•

Leogane are described on pages 397-398. Between Leogane and Grand-

Goave there is a narrow sublittoral platform.

SOUTH COAST.

SHORE FEATURES.

J acme! Bay is the largest indentation along the south coast of the
massif. At the head of the bay there is a small alluvial plain built by
Grande Riviere de J acmel and Riviere des Orangers. Prominent sea. cliffs
extend along both sides of the bay. On the west side of the bay the cliffs
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 405

that extend around Cap Jacmel are about 9 meters high. They truncate
coralliferous limestone of Quaternary age. Between Cap J acmel and the I

bead of the bay cliffs that have a maximum height of 70 meters truncate
promontories composed of older limestone. Cliffs that have a maximum
height of 12 meters extend along the east side of the bay from the town
to Cap Marechaux. These cliffs truncate a terrane of marine and non-
marine beds of Quaternary a.ge that extends eastward from J acmel to
Au Banc Poste, where a low ridge from the mo11ntains reaches the sea.
A small alluvial plain extends back from the coast at Cayes de J acmel.
Between Cayes de J acmel and Marigot a narrow beach fringes the shore.
The town of Marigot stands a.t the west end of an alluvial fill at the mouth
of Riviere de Fesle.
The shore features change eastward from the mouth of Riviere de Fesle.
As far eastward as Adieu-au-Monde there are sea cliffs sepa.rated by small
coves with bayhead beaches. Between Adieu-au-Monde and Saltrou the
sea cliffs are almost continuous. Saltrou stands on a small alluvial apron.
Between Saltrou and the Dominican border high ridges truncated by lofty
sea cliffs descend to the shore. Three kilometers northwest of Grand-
Gosier the cliffs are 200 meters high. Grand-Gosier stands about 10
meters above sea level. Along the shore a thin veneer of imperfectly con-
solidated subangular beach shingle covers the bedrock between the cliffs.
In the first cliff west of Grand-Gosier a thickness of about 10 meters of
this beach shingle is exposed.
A similar shore line from which the mountains rise abruptly continues
from Grand-Gosier southeastward to the plain at Anse-a-Pitre, on the
Dominican border. The international boundary straddles the plain, which
extends about 5 kilometers inland and which along the Haitian coast has
a width of about 4 kilometers. It is one of the most desolate regions in the
Republic; its only vegetation is cactus and spiny leguminous shrubs. It
is unlike the other small plains on the. south coast in that only its seaward
margin is covered with alluvium. The remainder is floored with pitted
breccia t.ed limestone, which at some places is concealed by a thin covering
of soil. The inner part of the plain has an altitude of 75 meters above
sea level and Riviere Pedernales is intrenched about 15 meters below its
surface. This plain apparently is an emerged and tilted wave-cut abrasion
platform. On the western or Haitian side of the frontier it is bo11nded by
a low ridge composed of the same bare, jagged brecciated limestone that
floors the plain. About 3 kilometers northwest of Anse-a-Pitre the low
ridge on the west extends to the shore and is truncated by sea cliffs. Small
patches of firmly cemented beach pebbles and fragments of the shells of
mollusks, especially Strombus gigas, are plastered against the cliffs up to
an altitude of 10 meters above sea level. These patches of beach pebbles
indicate the most recent emergence of the coast. The plajn probably was
. formed during several periods of emergence, as several emerged coastal
terraces are visible far to the southeast in the Dominican Republic.

,
 •

406 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The shore features of the south coast of the Massif de la Selle are not
so homogeneous as those of some of the other geographic divisions of the
Republic, but the evidence of recent emergence is clear. Areas of Quater-
nary marine rocks are extensive only in the region near J acmel, where
they reach an altitude of 65 meters above sea level. Farther east, where
mountains border the coast, the emergence apparently has not been so
great except near the Dominican border, although at almost every locality
where the shore was seen there is evidence o:f an emergence of about 10
meters. ..
SUJJLITTOR.A.L FEA TOB:ES.

The sublittoral platform that parallels the shore aro11nd the indentation
of J acmel Bay is very narrow, indicating that the bay is the submerged
part of the southeastward-pl11nging trough, which during Pliocene time
was a bay that extended far inland toward the northwest.
Between Jacmel and Marigot the sublittoral platform is narrow. East
of Marigot it is wider and attains a maximum width of 10 kilometers, as
limited by the 20-fathom line. Along this part of the coast the outline of
the platform is more irregular than it is farther west. It seems unreason-
able to assume that so wide a platform has been planed off by wave erosion
since the emergence of about 10 meters, but as an emerged wave-cut plat-
form is not exposed at the foot of the cliffs it is assumed that the water
on the platfor1n was about 10 meters deeper before the emergence.
The slope from the outer edge of the platform into deep water is very
abrupt. Within a distance of 1.5 kilometers from the outer edge of the
platform a depth of 1,095 fathoms (2,002 meters) is recorded. The maxi-
mum recorded depth near the shore, 2,245 fathoms ( 4,106 meters), is
only 15 kilometers from the outer edge of the platform.

MASSIF DE LA HOTTE.
NAME AND EXTENT.
The name Massif de la Hotte is here applied to the area that embraces
most of the long Southern Peninsula and is derived from the name of
the highest mo11ntains in the region, the Montagnes de la Hotte, which are
in its western part. The Massif de la Hotte is imperfectly sepa1·ated
from the Massif de la Selle by a narrow gap that extends from J acmel
to Grand-Goave, and there is no abrupt change in the surface features
of the two regions. The massif is about 185 kilometers long and has
an average width of 35 kilometers.

GENERAL FEATURES.
The Massif de la Hotte is the largest geographic province in the Re-
public to which a separate name has been applied. It contains a great
variety of surface features, and is divisible into prominent surface 11nits
that are here described as separate subdivisions.
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 407

The massif is divided into two mountainous parts by the gap that is
traversed by the road from Miragoane to Aquin, whose crest has an alti-
tude of 300 meters above sea level. East of the gap the crest of the penin-
sula has an average altitude of about 1,000 meters above sea level. West
of the gap mountains attain a maxim11m altitude of perhaps 2,000 meters
in the Montagnes de la Hotte.

LAND FEA'l'URES.
The Massif de la Hotte is here divided into an eastern and a western
part. The eastern part comprises two-thirds of the massif, including all
the narrow part of the peninsula, and extends westward to an arbitrary line
drawn from the eastern edge of the Cayes Plain northward to the valley of
Riviere des Baraderes. The western part embraces the wider western
third and contains the highest mountains.

EASTERN p ART.
The surface features of the eastern part of the massif are very diversi-
fied. Some areas having more or less definite bo11ndaries are characterized
b) distinctive features and are given separate names.
1

NORTH SLOPR.

A narrow coastal ridge that js divided into two parts by Petit-Goave

Bay extends from Grand-Goave westward to Miragoane, embracing Tapion
du Petit-Goave and Tapion de Miragoane. Both Tapions trend about
N. 70° W. Tapion du Petit-Goave has a maximum altitude of about 400
meters a.hove sea level and is imperfectly isolated from the mo11ntains to
the south by the gap that is traversed by the road from Port-au-Prince
to Miragoane, where the crest of the gap is about 180 meters above sea
• level. Tapion de Miragoane rises to an altitude of about 600 mete1·s above
sea level. It has a serrate crest and steep slopes. The south slope is
shorter and steeper than the north slope. It is separated from the moun-
tains to the
,
south by a deep, narrow trough, the western part of which
contains Etang de Miragoane. The eastern part of the trough drains into
Baie de Petit-Goave, but the lake drains northward. The floor of the
trough consists of basalt, which is in places covered with alluvi11m. The
trough apparently coincides with the crest of an anticline, and the steep
southward slope of Tapion de Miragoane and the similar northward slope
of the mountains on the south are interpreted as inward-facing escarp-
ments that have been eroded in the limestone overlying the basalt. The
mo11ntains south of the trough rise steeply to an altitude of about 700
meters above sea level and are deeply dissected by V-shaped ravines.
From Miragoane westward to Baie des Baraderes the coast is bordered
by an emerged terrace, back of which is an irregular mountain mass. From
408 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Miragoane to Anse-a-Veau these mountains apparently are composed of

limestone. They rise to a maximum altitude of about 800 meters above
sea level. From Anse-a-Veau to the valley of Riviere des Baraderes the
mountains are composed of limestone and basalt and other volcanic rocks.
Along the south coast of Baraderes Bay mountain ridges extend down to
the coast. The mountain crests that are composed of limestone rise in
sharp peaks and cliffs above the more gentle slopes that have been eroded
on volcanic rocks.
INTERIOR.

East of the gap traversed by the road from Miragoane to Aquin the
interior of the eastern part of the massif consists of mol1ntain ranges ·
rising to a maxim11m altitude of perhaps 1,500 meters above sea level.
South of Grand-Goave the highest peak has an altitude of 1,340 meters
above sea level. South of Petit-Goave and Miragoane the crest of the
mo11ntains lies in the central part of the peninsula, but farther west it is
close to the south coast.
North of the crest the road from Miragoane to Aquin fallows a narrow
depression about 15 kilometers long, called the Fond-des-Negres, the cen-
tral part of which has an altitude of about 260 meters above sea level.
The depression trends almost westward, parallel to the trend of the struc-
tural features, and in general it closely resembles the trough south of
Tapion de Miragoane. It probably represents the eroded crest of an anti-
cline and bas inward-facing escarpments of limestone. The basaltic rocks
in the floor of the depression are largely concealed by alluvium. Between
Fond-des-Negres and the Aquin Plain the road follows the lowest gap
(altitude 300 meters) in the crest of the Southern Peninsula. The Colline
Valley is a narrow depression in the mountains east of the gap. As seen
from a distance it resembles the Fond-des-Negres.

Asn.E VALLEY.
The Asile Valley is an interior lowland surrounded by rugged moun-
tains. It probably is partly outlined by faults. The valley trends west-
ward, parallel to the main structural f eatures. The valley is at least 12
kilometers long and 3 kilometers wide. Its western and central parts are
drained by Riviere des Pins, which flows eastward to l'Asile and is joined
by the westward-flowing Riviere Serpent, which drains the eastern part.
The two streams form the G1,ande Riviere des Njppes, which flows north·
ward through the mountains in a deep gorge. The floor of the valley slopes ·
from an altitude of 250 or 300 meters near the western end to an altitude
of about 125 meters above sea level at l'Asile. Poorly consolidated and
gently folded detrital rocks of Miocene age underlie the valley.
The lower eastern part of the valley is a rolling lowland that has a maxi-
m11m relief of 50 meters. The hills, which generally consist of rather hard
beds, are smooth and rounded but are tr11ncated by bluffs, 5 to 15 meters
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 409

high, a.long the streams. The higher western part is a plateau underlain
by coarse, poorly consolidated conglomerate and is deeply trenched by
stream channels along which bluff or talus slopes reach a height of 100
meters. This relief is the result of an increasingly greater depth of
erosion to the west. The western border of the plateau appears to abut
against the high ranges of the Montagnes de la Hotte.
The rugged mountains on the south side of the valley rise steeply to an
estimated altitude of 800 meters above sea level. The trail from l'Asile
to Cavaillon crosses their crest at an altitude of 500 meters above sea level.
The trail from Aquin to l' Asile follows a lower pass that has an altitude
of 300 merers above sea level. Riviere Serpent enters the valley through
a gorge on the east. The mountains on the north side of the valley are not
so rugged as those on the south side. The trail from l'Asile to Anse-a-
Veau crosses their crest at an altitude of 325 meters above sea level.

SOUTH SLOPE.
From J acmel westward to Bainet the mountain ridges on the south
slope of the massif trend southeastward toward the coast. The trail from
J acmel to Bainet crosses the crest of the first ridge at an altitude of 430
meters above sea level. ~forne Laporte, southeast of the trail, rises about
50 meters higher. Along the trail the crest of the ridge is flat. N 01·theast
of the crest there is a plateau that stands about 300 meters above sea level,
the edge of which slopes down steeply to the alluvial plain at Jacmel.
About 15 kilometers northwest of Morne Laporte the crest of the i~idge
attains an altitude of about 1,000 meters above sea level, but the trail
from Grand-Goave to Bainet crosses the crest at an altitude of 720
meters above sea level. Near the coast a dissected platea.u that has a
'

gentle seaward slope borders this ridge. The inner edge of this coastal
plateau has an altitude of about 100 meters above sea level, but isolated
hills rise 50 meters higher. The seaward edge of the plateau is a degraded
sea cliff, the foot of which has an altitude of 40 or 50 meters above sea
level. The plateau probably represents a plain that was being base-leveled
during the time when the sea cliff was cut. The base of the degraded sea
cliff is the inner edge of an emerged coastal terrace that slopes seaward
to a much fresher and more persistent sea cliff about 10 meters high,
which is one of the most conspicuous features along the coast between
J acmel and Cotes-de-Fer. The base of this cliff has an altitude of 20
meters above sea level and forms the inner edge of a lower emerged coastal
terrace. Both of these emerged terraces show clear1y in a profile view o:f
Cap Bainet, where they have a maximum width of 1 kilometer.
Between Mayette and Bainet a dissected plateau extends inland from
the lower terrace for a distance of about 5 kilometers. The inner edge of
the plateau has an estimated altitude of 75 to 100 meters above sea level
and slopes seaward to an altitude of about 50 meters. It is separated from
the mountains by an interior valley that strikes a little north of west.
 410 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The eastern part of the valley is drained by a gorge that cuts across the
plateau north of Cap Raymond and the western part by a similar but
smaller gorge about 5 kilometers east of Mayette.
\ Flat-topped hills near Cotes-de-Fer that have an altitude of 40 to 50
meters above sea level probably are isolated remnants of the upper emerged
coastal terrace. Their crests slope seaward, and they are covered with a
veneer of soft coralliferous limestone and imperfectly consolidated gravels.
Deeply incised dry stream channels drain southward between the hills.
Near Mayette the dissection is even greater.
Between Cotes-de-Fer and Flamands Bay the south slope of the mo11n-
tains is separated from the shore by a coastal p·l ain, the central part
of which has a maxim11m width of 8 kilometers and is called the Lho-
monde Plain. Near the shore this plain is about 8 meters above sea
level and apparently corresponds to the seaward part of the prominent
lower terrace east of Cotes-de-Fer. Dry stream channels are int~enched
in flood plains 5 meters below the surface of the plain. Toward the
interior the surface of the plain is more irregular and is broken by low
hills, but whether there is an emerged sea cliff at the rear of the plain is
not known.
Between Flamands Bay and the Aquin Plain low irregular hills com-
posed of limestone of Eocene age extend down to the shore. They have
a maxjm11m altitude of 300 meters above sea level. From this locality
westward to the Cayes Plain the surface features of the south slope of the
massif are entirely different. The crest of the peninsula approaches the
south slope and the rugged mountains extend almost or quite to the
shore line. At the eastern extremity of this region the alluvial Aquin
Plain separat.es the mountains from the shore. Small streams are in-
trenched several meters in the alluvial gravels and silt on the plain. South
of Vieux-Bourg d'Aquin a low hill rises above the surface of the plain.
From the Aquin Plain westward to the Cayes Plain the rugged moun-
tains south of the Asile Valley extend down to the shore line. Spurs
along the coast have an altitude of 150 to 200 meters above sea level. The
crests of the mountains and of the spurs along the coast generally are com-
posed. of limestone, but basaltic volcanic rocks, which underlie the lime-
stone, are exposed on the lower slopes of the mountains and in the valleys.
The slopes cut in limestone are steeper and more rugged than those cut
•

in the volcanic rocks and at many localities are scarred by cliffs. Riviere
de St.-Louis flows through a deep gap in the coastal range.

WESTERN PART.

NORTH SLOPB.

The north slope of the western part is mountainous, but most of the
peaks have an altitude of less than 800 meters above sea level. The moun-
tains generally trend a little north of west or north of east. They are
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 411

composed principally of limestone of Eocene age. The slopes are steep and
are in many places broken by cliffs, and most of the valleys are deep and
narrow, but this region is not so inaccessible as the Montagnes de la
Hotte. Near Corail and Pestel large areas of karst topography contain
sink holes of enormous size. The limestone in these areas yields on
weathering red clay, which is protected from surface erosion, as the drain-
age is i1nderground, and forms smooth, :flat uplands, gentle slopes and
level sink-hole fillings, thus modifying the relief that characterizes most
regions in the Republic where limestone is the surface rock.
Several small interior lowlands resemble on a reduced scale the Asile
Valley. The largest on the north slope is on the Grande Riviere de
Jeremie. This lowland is about 3 kilometers wide and at least 7 or 8
kilometers long, but its eastern boundary is not known. It is l1nderlain
by folded marl and firmly consolidated conglomerate of Miocene age.
The marl crops out in rolling ro11nded hills, but the conglomerate forms
distinct eastward-trending ridges. The river is intrenched about 10 meters
below the surface of the lowland in a :flood plain that has a maximum
width of 1 kilometer. A similar but smaller interior lowland is on the
Bras-a-Droit de la Grande Riviere de Jeremie below Chambellan. It is
less than 4 kilometers long an<l 2 kilometers wide. Another interior low-
land that may be the eastward prolongation of the one on the Grande
Riviere de Jeremie probably lies south of Les Rosea11x.

INTERIOR; MONTAGNES DE LA HOTTE.

The name Montagnes de la Hotte is here used to include several high

mo11ntain ranges in the interior of the western part of the massif and on
the south slope west of the Port-Salut Peninsula. The high range im-
mediately north of Tiburon Bay and the valley of Riviere de Tiburon is
called the Montagne de Tiburon, but most of the ranges are unnamed.
The Montagnes de la Hotte generally consist of at least three parallel
ranges trending almost westward. They are the highest ranges in the
massif. The central range is apparently the highest. Only the southern,
western, and northern margins of these ranges were examined. Mont la
1
Hotte, the highest peak, stands about 2,000 meters above sea level. Little
is known of the surface features of the central ranges. These mountains
must be very rugged, as no trails that can be used by pack animals cross
this part of the massif, and they are rarely crossed even on foot. The
ranges on the south slope rise abruptly to altitudes of about 1,000 meters
above sea level within a short distance from the coast.
The ranges on the south slope and the central ranges along the west
coast consist principally of basaltic volcanic rocks and overlying Eocene
limestone. Large areas in the interior ranges apparently consist of older
1On the Thomasset map the altitude of this peak is shown as 2,255 meters. The alti-
tudes shown on this map for other points are too great.
412 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

rocks. At many localities the crests of the ranges consist of limestone and
the lower slopes of basalt. Here as in other regions the limestone slopes
are very steep and rugged, and dip slopes terminate in abrupt escarp-
ments. The foothills that consist of basalt are generally less rugged.
The Camp Perrin Valley, in the eastern part of the Montagnes de la
Hotte, is an interior lowland similar to those on the north slope and
to the Asile Valley. It is perhaps 20 kilometers long and has a maximum
width of 3 kilometers. It is floored with Miocene rocks, like the other
interior lowlands.
•
SOUTH SLOPE.

CAYES PLAIN.

The Cayea Plain is the only large coast.al plain in the Southern Penin-
sula west of the Leogane Plain. It extends northwestward from Cayes
Bay for a distance of 20 kilometers and has a width of 15 to 20 kilometers.
The plain is covered with alluvium. At its northwest extremity the alti-
tude of the plain is about 100 meters above sea level, and the surface
slopes gently southeastward to the sea. In the northern part small iso-
lated hills consisting of limestone of Miocene age rise above the plain.
The slopes of the hills are steep, but their crests usually are ro11nded.
The gently sloping surface of the plain is trenched by several rivers, which
flow southeastward. Near tl1e mountains at the head of the plain the
trenching reaches a depth of 10 to 15 meters, but near the coast it is only
2 to 5 meters.
PonT-SALuT PENINSULA.

The Port-Salut Peninsula extends southeastward from the foot of the

Montagnes de la Hotte west of the Cayes Plain and Cayea Bay. The name
is derived from that of the largest town on the peninsula, Port-Salut.
The peninsula is about 20 kilometers long and 10 to 12 kilometers wide.
The surface rocks in the central part of the peninsula are thin-bedded
limestones of Eocene age. This limestone is fringed by younger corallifer-
ous limestone.
The interior of the peninsula is a strongly dissected plateau. Many
rounded hills of accordant height indicate that the surface of the plateau
stood about 300 meters above sea level. The relief is about 100 meters.
The valleys between the hills have smoothly curving sides. The ro11nded
hills and open valleys of the peninsula are strongly contrasted to the steep,
rugged slopes and deep V-shaped valleys in the Montagnes de la Hotte,
where part of the Eocene limestone is massive. The slope from the eastern
edge of the plateau facing the Cayes Plain is very abrupt and is deeply
furrowed by narrow ravines. This steep plateau face probably is an eroded
fault scarp.
Coralliferous limestone of Quaternary age extends around the coast
of the peninsula and covers several emerged coastal terraces, which slope

•
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. • 413

seaward and are backed by emerged sea cliffs. At Anse a J uif, on the
west coast, emerged terraces were seen at altitudes of 20, 40, and 50
meters above sea level. Near Port-Salut the lowest terrace stands at an
altitude of 10 meters above sea level and the next higher one at an altitude
of 20 meters. At some localities the coralliferous limestone extends up
to an altitude of about 100 meters above sea level, but the highest terraces
are not so well preserved as the lower ones.

DRAINAGE.
'
The crest of the peninsula is the main divide from which streams flow
into Gonave Gulf to the north and into the Caribbean Sea to the south.
Between J acmel and Aquin the south slope is poorly watered and bas few
through-flowing streams. Some of the streams are adjusted to the struc-
ture. Riviere des Pins flows eastward along the strike of the rocks and
Riviere Serpent westward. Riviere de Cavaillon, which is the largest
stream on the south slope of the massif, drains a long, narrow interior
valley that trends southeastward and finally escapes southward through a
series of narrow gorges across the coastal ranges. At the western end of
the peninsula Riviere Tiburon and other smaller streams flow westward in
courses that are approximately parallel to the structural trend. Grande
Riviere de Jeremie flows northeastward for a long ilistance in a strike
valley underlain partly by Eocene limestone and partly by the .Miocene
beds of the interior low land. The stream pierces the high ridges of Eocene
limestone on the north side of the lowland in narrow, steep-walled gaps.

SHORE FEATURES. •

The littoral and sublittoral features of the different parts of the Massif
de la Hotte are related to the surface features of the interior, but for
convenience they are described in order from Grand-Goave westward
· around the extremity of the peninsula and then eastward along the south
coast to J acmel.
NORTH COAST.

The steep northward slopes of Tapion du Petit-Goave and Tapion de

Miragoane are truncated along the shore line by bold sea cliffs. Petit-
Goave Bay may be interpreted as a submerged valley that has been pa1·tly
filled. The irregular reentrants on the east side of Miragoane Bay, which
•

are separated by cliffed promontories, indicate slight submergence.

A shore of emergence extends from Miragoane westward to Baraderes
Bay. The shore line is straight and is bordered by a nearly continuous sea
cliff, which is at most places less than 10 meters high. This sea cliff is
the seaward face of an emerged terrace covered with coralliferous lime-
stone of Quaternary age. The maximum altitude of the terrace near
Anse-A-Veau is 15 to 20 meters above sea level, and its width is 1 to 2
 •

414 GEO'LOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

kilometers. The altitude of the terrace gradually decreases westward and

more rapidly eastward. At Petit-Trou de Nippes, near Baraderes Bay,
it drops down to sea level. Along the west side of Miragoane Bay the
terrace is represented by the mud flats and mangrove thickets that lie in
front of abandoned sea cliffs. The few streams that cut across the terrace
are incised to sea level. 'rhe channel of the tidal stream at Anse-a-Veau
•
is very narrow.
Between Petit-Trou de Nippes and Corail the shore line is very irregu-
lar. Baraderes Bay and Cayemites Bay, two extensive bodies of water,
are partly inclosed by the Bee du Marsouin Peninsula and the island
Grande Cayemite. The shore line on the south sides of Baraderes Bay and
c ·ayemites Bay is bordered by short, high cliffs that truncate steep slopes
• of limestone of Eocene age. As wave cutting is not very effective in these
sheltered bays, it seems that the cliffs may be due to the 11ndermining and
solution of limestone along the underground streams that emerge as
•
springs on the shore. The exposed parts of the Bee du Marsouin Penin-
sula and Grande Cayemite are truncated by sea cliffs about 10 meters
high. An emerged terrace that has the same altitude as the terrace east
of Petit-Trou de Nippes borders the northeastern extremity of the pen-
insula and probably extends along the north coast of the peninsula and of
Grande Cayemite. The shore features in this region may be due to the
submergence of an area of karst topography followed by emergence of
the northern part similar to the emergence of the shore from Petit-Trou
de Nippes eastward to Miragoane.
Between Corail and Jeremie the coast is low and is bordered by a nar-
row fringe of alluvium. Discontinuous remnants of a narrow terrace
veneered with coralliferous limestone of Quaternary age extend from Les
Roseaux to Jeremie. At Les Roseaux the outer edge of the terrace is less
than 5 meters above sea level. At Jeremie the Quaternary limestone does
not form a well-defined terrace but extends as irregular patches up to alti-
tudes of at least 25 meters above sea level.
Similar remnants of recently emerged Quaternary limestone probably
extend westward from Jeremie, but the coast rapidly takes on the features
of the west coast, and cliffed promontories that are separated by bay head
beaches become prominent.
WEST COAST.

The west coast of the Southern Peninsula is extraordinarily rugged,

particularly from Les Irois to Tiburon. Spurs extending to the shore
line are truncated by bold cliffs that have a maximum height of 100
meters. Between the cliffed promontories are small bays with bay-head
•
beaches. Some of the bay-head beaches for example, the one south of
Anse-d'Hainault inclose small marshes. This rugged coast is interrupted
at Tiburon by a narrow alluvial plain bordered by a gravel beach that
obstructs the discharge of the small flow of Riviere Tiburon.
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. I
415

SOUTH COAST.
East of Anse du Milieu the shore abruptly takes on features indicating
emergence. A low hill at Pointe des Aigrettes, which has an altitude of
about 15 meters above sea level, is capped by limestone, probably of Qua-
ternary age, such as is common along the coast east of Les Anglais. A lo"\\"
emerged beach composed of sand and gravel is a conspicuous shore feature
between Anse du Milieu and La Cahouane. The altitude of the beach is •

3 to 4 meters above sea level, and it is backed by a low terrace composed

of beach gravel, which at some places slopes toward the foot of the moun-
tains. The width of the terrace is 1 to 2 kilometers. At its western end
a tidal inlet leads into an area of salt marshes and mangrove thickets.
The coast between La Cahouane and Les Anglais resembles the coast
•
north of Tiburon, as cliffed promontories that are not veneered with Qua-
ternary limestone are the most conspicuous shore features.
The coast between Les Anglais and Anse a J uif has a general north ...
westerly trend, diagonal to that of the structural trend, as is shown by
the many small segments that trend almost eastward, so that the shore
consists of many right-angled turns. These segments are the terminations
of mountain ranges that rise steeply to altitudes of 700 meters or more
above sea level. The ruggedness of the coast is generally modified by a
narrow fringe of low foothills or by distinct terraces veneered with Qua-
ternary limestone that probably extends up to an altitude of 100 meters
above sea level. The highest terraces can hardly be distinguished. On
the north side of Anse a Drick there is a distinct terrace that has an aver-
age width of 50 meters and an altitude of 20 meters above sea level. At
the landward side of the terrace there is a sea cliff about 10 meters high,
above which probably rises another terrace, although the slope is rather
steep. At the shore line the terraces are truncated by sea cliffs 10 to 30
meters high. Many small streams from the mo11ntains cut across the
terraced coast, and the remnants ·of the terraces are separated by small
alluvial plains. Sandy beaches and bars obstruct the mouths of the streams
at the seaward margin of these plains. At several localities an emerged
beach 2 or 3 meters above sea level, similar to the emerged beach west of
La Cahouane, is conspicuous.
The entire shore of the Port-Salut Peninsula is straighter and more
uniform than the shore to the west, and the features of a shore of emer-
gence are more continuous. The emerged coastal terraces in this region
are described on p. 413. The lowest terrace has a seaward sea cliff 2 to 8
meters high. The mouths of most of the streams that are intrenched in
the terraces are closed by bars, and the water discharges beneath the sur-
face. On the west side of the peninsula the bars apparently are built by
currents moving southward. Some of the streams flow a considerable
distance parallel to the beach inside the bar before finding an outlet.
The shore of the Cayes Plain is straight except for the small indenta-
tions at the mouths of the many small streams that enter the bay. The
 416 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

alluvi11m that covers the plain is usually truncated at the shore line by
cliffs 1 or 2 meters high. The plain is being extended seaward on the
shallow platform embracing Cayes Bay and Ile-a-Vache. This coast lies
between a shore line of emergence on the southwest and a shore line of
submergence on the northeast.
The features of the sho1·e line from the northern border of the Cayes
•
Plain eastward to Aquin indicate submergence. Its outline is very irregu-
lar and includes many deep bays with bayhead beaches. The bays arc
separated by cliffed promontories, along the sides of which there are bay-
side beaches and mangrove thickets between short, high sea cliffs.
From the east side of Aquin Bay eastward to J acmel the shore line is ·
relatively straight and the features indicate emergence. The coastal plain
that extends eastward to Cotes-de-Fer is bordered by low sea cliffs or by
beaches that lie in front of an eroded low sea cliff. Between Cotes-de-Fer
and J acmel stretches an almost continuous sea cliff that has a height of
about 15 meters. (See pp. 409-410.) Bainet Bay, a structural depression,
indents the coast.
SUBLITTORAL FEATURES.
NORTH COAST.

Between Grand-Goave and Miragoane the width of the sublittoral plat-

form, as limited by the 20-fathom line, is less than 1 kilometer, except at
Petit-Goave Bay and Miragoane Bay. Neither of these bays lies in a
plunging syncline, as do so many bays in the Republic, a fact shown
by the outline of the 20-fathom line. At Petit-Goave Bay the 20-fathom
line extends directly across the entrance, and at Miragoane Bay it is only
slightly indented. The features of the two bays support the conclusion that
the littoral and sublittoral features are due to slight submergence, although
the soundings are not extensive enough to substantiate the conclusion.
Between ~1:iragoane Bay and Baraderes Bay the sublittoral platform is
extremely narrow, as would be expected on a shore of emergence.
The sublittoral platform embraces the extensive bodies of water that
are called Baraderes Bay and Cayemites Bay. The 20-fathom line is in-
dented at the east end of both bays, but the platform on the outer sides of
Bee du Marsouin Peninsula and Grande Cayemite is very narrow. The
outer margin has the features of a shore of emergence, but apparently
the bays owe their outline to earlier submergence. Westward from the
west end of Cayemites Bay the sublittoral platform along the north coast
is very narrow, but it gradually widens.

WEST COAST.

An extensive triangular sublittoral platform extends westward from the

west coast between Cap Dame-Marie and Cap Tiburon. The apex of the
platform is 24 kilometers west of Cap des Irois, the western extremity on

•
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 417

the coast. Figure 25, A, a profile of this platform, shows that on this ex-
posed coast the maximum depth of effective wave erosion is only 15 fath-
oms. This wide abrasion platform indicates that the adjacent coast has
stood still for a long time or has very slowly subsided. The littoral and
sublittoral features of the Southern Peninsula are entirely different from
those of the Northwest Peninsula and indicate a correspondingly different
geologic history.
SOUTH COAST.

Between Cap Tiburon and the southeast end of the Port-Salut Peninsula
the 20-fathom line parallels the shore and embraces a narrow sublittoral
•

platform. A curious bilobed indentation of deeper water extends into the

platform on the south side of the Port-Salut Peninsula. Along the south
.
METRES BRASSES
0 --- 0
z.o ·~
r--..--...r--.-----....z...--------------~
10
40 zo
60 30
80 40
A. CAP DES IROIS 50
100
120---------------------------------------------------..L---'
..
METRES

40
60
80
B. BAIE DES CAYES
lvv

110-------------------------------------------'-~
FIGURE 25.-Subaqueous profiles off the west and south coasts of the Southern
Peninsula.
Horizontal scale 1 : 250,000; vertical scale exaggerated 50 times.

side of t.his peninsula the offshore slope from the edge of the platform i~
very steep. A depth of 1,900 fathoms ( 3,47 5 meters) is recorded 12
kilometers south of the southwest end of the peninsula. .
An extensive sublittoral platform extends from the southeast end oi
the Port-Salilt Peninsula and embraces Cayes Bay and Ile-a-Vache.
Figure 25, B, is a profile of this platform drawn southeastward from
l'Acul. The depth of water on the platform is less than 15 fathoms (27
meters) except in the channel north of Ile-a-Vache, where it is a little
more than 20 fathoms (36 meters). A ridge extends southeastward from
Les Cayes to Ile a Vache and along the north side of that island. Along
this ridge numerous reefs lie awash and small cays rise above the surface
of the water. The channel on the north side of this ridge probably is a
submerged stream channel extendjng out from Cavaillon Bay. The littoral
and sublittoral features of the coast from Les Cayes eastward to Aquin
27
418 ' GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

indicate submergence. The slope from the outer edge of the platform is
very steep. A depth of 2,130 fathoms ( 3,895 meters) is recorded 12 kilo-
meters southeast of the southeast end of Ile a Vache.
From Aquin Bay eastward to Cotes-de-Fer the sublittoral platforms
decrease in width. The outline of the 20-fathom line is more irregular
than the shore line. East of Cotes-de-Fer the platfor1n is narrow, and its
outer edge closely parallels the shore line. At Bainet Bay the 20-fathom
line is deeply indented parallel to the indentation of the shore line.

GONAVE ISLAND.
GENERAL RELATIONS.
Gonave Island is the largest outlying island embraced by the Republic
of Haiti. It has a length of 57 kilometers and a maxim11m width of 15
kilometers. The axis of the island extends from northwest to southeast,
almost paralleling the shore and the structural features of the mainland
from Cap St.-Marc southeastward to the Cul-de-Sac Plain. The average
width of the cha-n nel on the northeast side of the island, St.-Jtfarc Canal,
is 20 kilometers. The width of Gonave Canal, on the south side, increases
from 27 kilometers at the southeast end of the island to 44 kilometers nt
the northwest end.
LAND FEATURES.
Structurally the island is an asymmetric anticline, the crest of which
plunges both northwestward and southeastward. Some of the most strik-
ing surface features are due to the solution of limestone, which is the only
surface rock on the island. The island may be divided into two almost
equal parts, having different kinds of surface features. The southeast half
is more rugged and has a greater variety of surface features than the
northwest half.
SOUTHEAST HALP.

The southeast half of the island contains a ridge along the south coast,
an interior dissected plateau at an altitude of 300 to 500 meters above
sea level, and a dissected plateau along the north coast extending from
sea level to an altitude of 300 to 400 meters above sea level.

RIDGE ALONG SOUTH COAST.

'

A high ridge near the south coast, extending from the longitude of
Picmi to a locality northwest of Pointe a Raquette, is the most conspicuous
surface feature of the southeastern half of the island. This ridge coincides
with the crest of the Gonave Island anticline. The eastern part of the
ridge is narrower than the western part. Along its entire length the crest
is flat and several hundred meters wide. The central part of the ridge
is more eroded than the extremities. The highest knobs on the crest of the
 GEOMORPHOLOGY. 419

ridge are Morne Chien Content at the east end and Morne la Pierre at the
west end, both of which have an altitude of about 755 meters above sea
level and rise about 100 meters above the lowest part of the crest of the
ridge. The south slope of the ridge is steeper than the north slope, cor-
responding to the steeper south limb of the anticline, and is scarred by
cliffs. The south slope extends down to the shore line, but the north slope
is bounded by the dissected plateau described on page 420.
Southeast of Morne Chien Content the ridge is interrupted by a broad
saddle called Fond-I'Aurore, which extends from Picmi northeastward
across the island toward Trou al'Eau. Southeast of the saddle the ridge is
much lower but apparently is composed of the same rocks. The region that
includes the highest part of the ridge southeast of the saddle is called
Fond-Plaisir, and the highest knob in this region has an altitude of
about 460 meters above sea level.

MAPOUX PLAIN.

The Mapo11x Plain is a remarkable inclosed depression on the north

slope of the ridge northeast of Morne la Pierre. It is about 5 kilometers
long and about 1 kilometer wide, and it trends N. 70° ,V. It is completely
encircled by ridges of limestone. The main trails enter the plain at the
east and west ends, where the limestone wall is lowest. Plate XXXII, B,
shows part of the ridge along the north side of the plain. The crest of
this ridge is very jagged, and its slope is scarred by cliffs. The crest of
the ridge on the south side, although higher than the ridge on the north,
is more even, and its slope into the plain is more gentle and 11niform.
The features of the ridges encircling the plain indicate that the depres-
sion owes its origin to the enlargement of solution cha.nnels down the
dip along bedding planes and the subsequent deepening of the channels by
the solution of underlyjng beds. The smooth, relatively gentle northward
slope of the ridge on the south side of the plain corresponds to the north-
ward dip of the rocks. The jagged southward slope of the ridge on the
north side is due to the undermining of overhanging ledges of limestone.
The open-textured limestone in which the plain has been etched overlies
more impervious chalky limestone, which controls the :floor of the depres-
sion, although in the plain itself the chalky limestone is concealed by
residual clay and soil. Continued widening of the plain by undermining
of the ridge on the north side is indicated by the blocks of limestone that
have tumbled down from overhanging ledges and are strewn along the
foot of the ridge. If the open-textured Eocene limestone in which the
plain is etched has been exposed to weathering since its emergence at the
end of Eocene time it seems reasonable to believe that most of it would
have been removed and that the 11nderlying less pervious chalky limestone
would now be the surface rock in this part of the island. It is inferred that
the open-textured limestone was long protected by a cover of Miocene lime..
 .. •

420 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

stone that has been entirely removed. Depressions similar to the Mapoux
Plain are striking features of the limestone plateau of the island of
Jamaica.'
INTERIOR DISSECTED PLATEAU.

A strongly dissected plateau that has an altitude of 300 to 500 meters

above sea level extends along the north side and west end of the high
ridge that parallels the south coast. The area of this plateau approxi-
mately coincides with the outcrop of chalky limestone of Eocene age, which
tmderlies the open-textured limestone that forms the ridge along the
south coast. On the north side of the ridge the plateau slopes northward,
and if its surface were restored the slope would closely correspond to the
northward dip of the rocks. At the west end of the plateau the surface
slopes northwestward along the plunging crest and more steeply southward
along the steep south limb of the anticline. On the north side of the
coastal ridge the plateau is deeply dissected by ravines that extend back
to the coastal ridge. The interstream areas are wide and rolling.
The trail from Grande Ravine to Fond-Negre crosses the western part
of this plateau. Near its west end small isolated outliers of limestone rise
abruptly from the surface. Some of these outliers are strikingly similar
to ruined walls. They are remnants of a formerly more extensive cover
of Miocene limestone, most of which has been removed, principally by
solution. Similar isolated patches of limestone are characteristic features
2
of the limestone plateau of Jamaica and of the plain along the north
k!oast of Porto Rico, where they are called haystack or pepino hills.'

DISSECTED PLATEAU ALONG NORTH COAST.

A dissected plateau extends back from the north coast to an altitude of

300 to 400 meters above sea level. The surface of this plateau approxi-
mately coincides with the outcrop of Miocene limestone. The inland part
of the plateau slopes seaward at a rate that corresponds to the seaward
dip of the rocks, but near the coast the slope is more abrupt. The plateau
is dissected by ravines that head back in the higher interior plateau or in
the ridge along the south coast. On this plateau outcrops of bedrock are
much more common than on the interior plateau.
Fond-I'Aurore, the broad saddle extending across the island northeast
of Picmi, is part of this plateau. The crest of the saddle has an altitude
of about 340 meters above sea level. East of Fond-I'Aurore the plateau
surface is hardly recognizable on account of the steep seaward slope.
1 Hill, R. T., The geology and physical geography of Jamaica : Mus. Comp. Zool. Har-
vard College Bull., vol. 34, pp. 26-30, 1899.
2 Ilill, R. T., op. cit., pp. 25-26.

1 Berkey, C. P., Geological reconnaissance of Porto Rico: New York Acad. Sci. Ann.,

vol. 26, pp. 51-53, 1915.

•
 •

GEOMORPHOLOGY. 421

NORTHWEST HALP. •

The northwest half of the island comprises only the northwestward

extension of the plateau along the north coast of the southeast half. This
plateau widens in the northwest half and embraces the entire width of the
island except a narrow strip of mud flats along the coasts. Limestone of
· Miocene age is the surface rock in the entire northwest hali of the island,
as in the coastal plateau of the southeast half, and the surface features of
the two regions are similar. The drainage channels are poorly defined,
and the relief is largely the result of solution of the limestone.
The eastern part is low and has little relief, but the western part is
more rugged. In the eastern part of the region called Grande Vide there
are low, irregularly trending ridges that have a maximum altitude of about
300 meters above sea level. In the western part of Grande Vide the sur-
face of the plateau has an altitude of 310 meters above sea level. A low
rounded knob, the highest point in this part of the island, attains an alti-
tude of 320 meters above sea level. Between Grande Vide and the north-
west end of the island the plateau surface is lower, but along the coast at
the northwest end a low ridge rises above the plateau.

DRAINAGE.

There are no through-flowing streams on the entire island. The small

flows of water that seep out in the deep ravine northeast of Picmi and in
the ravine southwest of Anse-a-Galet rapidly disappear.
In the southeast half of the island the main divide is at most places the
crest of the high ridge along the south coast. Relatively long northward- •

draining ravines head in this ridge and extend across the interior plateau
and the coastal plateau to the sea. The shorter southward-draining ravines
'
have a much steeper gradient. East of Marne Chien Content one of the
southward-draining ravines has pierced .the crest of the ridge and captured
part of the drainage on the north slope. The deep ravine northwest of
Picmi heads in the saddle called Fond-I'Aurore, where the divide swings
far northward. ·
SHORE FEATURES. .

At the northwest end of the island high cliffs truncate the ridge along
the coast. Along the north and south coasts of the northwest half the lime-
stone plateau is bordered by mud flats, which at many localities embrace
mangrove thickets. The mud flats continue along the north coast of the
island as far as a locality between Etroit and Anse-a-Galets, where the
limestone plateau extends down to the shore. Near Anse-a-Galets there
is a similar mud flat.. The mud fiats apparently are the result of the
filling in of inlets behind offshore bars, and the lagoons on the north
coast, such as Grande Lagune and Cherissable Lagune, are isolated rem-
nants of inlets. Plate VI, C (p. 64) is a view of Cherissable Lagune
422 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

showing the mud flat on the landward side and the mangrove thicket on
the seaward side.
West of Picmi the steep slope of the coastal ridge is tr11ncated by sea
cliffs. Near Picmi there is a mud :flat similar to the fiats on the north and
south coasts farther west.
Along the south shore of the east end of the island promontories trun-
cated by sea cliffs are separated by shallow indentations that have bay-
head beaches. The peninsula at the southeast extremity of the island may
be an island tied to the main island. This interpretation would account
for Grande Baie and Baie du Pare and the inclosed body of water in
the isthmus that joins the peninsula to the main island. This part of the
island was seen only from a distance.

SUBLITTORAL FEATURES.
A narrow sublittoral platform encircles the island. The platform is
slightly wider along the south coast than along the north coast. At its
southeast end it widens and forms the apex of the extensive V-sbaped
platform enclosing the depression in the seaward prolongation of the
Cul-de-Sac Plain, described on pages 397-398.
An inspection of the chart would suggest recent emergence of the island,
for in other parts of the Republic such narrow and shallow sublittoral
platforms are associated with shore lines of emergence. The littoral
features, however, indicate that the shore line has stood still for a rela-
tively long time. The platform probably was .not very wide at any time.
As the island lies in the deep gulf between the Northwest and the South-
ern Peninsula it is protected from the waves of the open ocean, and the
effectiveness of wave attack is thus reduced. On the north coast west of
Anse-a-Galets and on the south coast west of La Mahoterie the platform
was probably once wider than it is now, its width having been reduced by
filling behind offshore bars, as outlined on page 421. The small islands on
the outer edge of the platform east of Etroit on the north coast probably
are offshore bars covered with mangrove thickets and represent an early
stage in the building of the mud flats and inclosed lagoons.
 p ABT IV. MINERAL RESOURCES.

By WILBUR S. BURBANK, JOHNS. BROWN, and WENDELL P. WooDRING •

•

METALS.
INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY BY METALS.
Extent of examinati<>ni. Only the mineral deposits that were examined
during the reconnaissance are here described. For lack of time or lack of
ready accessibility many reported mineral deposits could not be examined,
and some reports and rumors to which attention was given proved to be
without fo11ndation. Many of these reports were made by country people
or were based on their observations. To them any 11nusual or striking
mineral occurrence may be called a ''mine,'' and, 11nfortunately, the fre-
quency of such reports tends to discourage their careful consideration by
competent investigators.
No mining is now in progress in the country, and although there are
numerous prospects, none of them were being worked at the time of this
reconnaissance, owing either to lack of capital or to lack of commercial
quantities of ore. It is quite possible that the country may contain valuable
mineral deposits and that such deposits may be discovered by intelligent
•
exploration. Moreover, many of the known low-grade deposits that are
now valueless may become valuable through the general economic develop-
ment of the country, improvements in methods of ore extraction and
treatment, or enhancement in the value of metals, or a combination of
these factors.
Iron. No iron deposits of commercial value are known. Deposits of
magnetic iron ore near Limonade were examined, but the quantity of iron
in them is small. (See pp. 468-470.) Some iron is found in contact-meta-
morphic copper deposits in limestone in the Terre-Neuve district. (See
pp. 438, 447). Residual iron deposits are reported to occur at a n11mber of
places in the western part of the Southern Peninsula. Those at Anse
d'Hainault and in Section Plymouth were visited. (See pp. 479-480.)
These deposits are of low grade and have no commercial value. Residual
concretionary masses of iron and manganese minerals were noted on igne-
ous rocks at several places in the northern part of the Republic. The
deposits are very thin and are of low grade.
Copper. Copper deposits are found at several places, the most valuable
being the contact-metamorphic deposits and veins of the Terre-Neuve
district. (See pp. 425-459.) Although these deposits are not now being
423
424 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

mined, they have been considerably prospected and some ore has been
shipped from them to New York. Copper-bearing veins are found at many
other places in the northern part of the Republic, but few if any of them
contain sufficient copper to be profitably mined. (See pp. 459-468.) The
deposits at Grande-Riviere du Nord have received considerable attention
from prospectors. Traces of copper have been reported from the areas of
basaltic rock in the Southern Peninsula, some of them in the Commune of
Anse d'Hainault, but none of these areas was visited.
Manganese. During the reconnaissance deposits of manganese ore
were discovered in the Commune of Gros-Morne. (See p. 470.) These
deposits have not been prospected, nor have they ever before been reported.
The known ore is not of commercial grade in the present manganese mar-
ket. Manganese is also said to occur at several places in the Commune of
J acmel, but only one small deposit was examined during the reconnais-
sance. (Seep. 475.) Negligible a.m ounts of manganese and iron form
residual concretions on igneous rocks at several places in the northern
part of the Republic. (See pp. 477-478.)
Lead and zinc. No commercial deposits of lead and zinc are known,
although some zinc blende and some galena are found in the copper veins
at Terre-Neuve. Veins near Grande-Riviere du Nord are also reported to
contain some galena. (See pp. 453, 460.)
Silver. Silver is found in many of the copper veins of the Republic,
but usually in small quantities. Some small enriched copper veins in the
Terre-Neuve district contain a considerable proportion of silver. A small
amount of silver is found also in the veins at Grande-Riviere du Nord.
Gold. No deposits have been much exploited for gold, although the
quartz veins at some places in the northern part of the Republic are said
to contain native gold. (See p. 460.) Assays of ore taken from the
copper deposits at Terre-Neuve yielded small quantities of gold, and
traces of gold are found in most of the copper veins of the Republic. Gold
is reported to occur in the sands of some of the rivers, such as the Grande
Riviere du Nord, and in rivers in the vicinity of Limonade and near
Plaisance, in the north, and Riviere Gosseline, in the south. Such occur-
rences were not confirmed, although traces of gold may probably be fo11nd
in some of the northern streams.
Platinum. Platinum and iridosmium are reported to occur in some
quartz veins in the northern part of the country, but the report has appar-
ently not been confirmed, nor has an attempt been made to exploit the
deposits. Time was not available for visiting the localities or confirming
these reports. (See pp. 460, 467.)
Mercwry. Native mercury is reported to have been fo11nd in the vicin-
1
ity of Mole St.-Nicolas. The geology of the region around Mole St.-
Nicolas does not encourage a search for the source of the mercury, eve11
1Moreau de St. M~ry, vol. 1, p. 104. Ferguson, E. G. W., The mineral resources ot
Haiti, West Indies : Mining World, vol. 31, pp. 133-135, 1909.
•
 MINERAL RESOURCES. 425

if its occurrence was natural. Cinnabar is reported to have been fo11nd

at several places in the Republic, but detailed and accurate acco11nts are
not available.
Chrome. There is said to be a small deposit of sand containing chro-
mite in the central part of Ile-a-Vache, off the southern coast near Les
Cayes. This island was not visited. Analyses of chromite from this de-
1
posit have been publjshed in French technical journals.

MINERAL DEPOSITS OF THE TERRE-NEUVE DISTRICT.

By WILBUR s. BURBANK AND JOHN s. BROWN.

INTRODUCTION.

The mineral deposits and geology of the Terre-N euve district were
examined during a two weeks' reconnaissance in January, 1921. The con-
clusions recorded are based on this field work supplemented by a labora-
tory study of the minerals and rocks. Previously published accounts of
the geology are meager and were found to be inacc~rate in important
details.
LOCATION AND ACCESS.

The Terre-N euve district is in the central part of the Montagnes de

Terre-N euve, in the Communes of Terre-Neuve and Gros-Morne. Its
name is derived from its principal town, Terre-Neuve, which lies about
22 kilometers in a straight line northwest of Gona1ves. The loca.t ion of
the district with refer en re to other places and the main trails giving
access to it are shown in Figure 26.
The principal mineral deposits are in an area about 10 kilometers long
and 3 kilometers wide, which extends southeastward from Terre-Neuve.
The mineralized area lies in the drainage basins of Riviere Colombier,
which flows northwestward past Terre-Neuve, and of Riviere Bassin, which
flows southeastward past Meme and Bassin. In this report the mineralized
area drained by Riviere Colombier is called the Terre-Neuve Valley, and
the area drained by Riviere Bassin is called the Meme Valley.
The mountain summits in the Terre-Neuve district rise 700 to 1,000
meters above sea level and the relief is 300 to 500 meters. The average
trend of the mountain ranges and of the intervening valleys is about
N. 50° W. The mountain slopes are steep and rugged, particularly in tl1e
areas underlain by limestone, where cliffs are common. (See pp. 367-368.)
Most of the drainage of the mineralized area is carried by Riviere
Colombier and Riviere Bassin, which are small streams that probably reach
the sea only during great floods. Underground drainage is developed at
1 Berthler, M. P., Analyse de deux vari6~s de fer chrom6; sulvle d'une note sur les
alllages du chrome avec le fer et avec l'acier: Annales des Mines, 1st ser., vol. 6, pp. 573-
584, 1821. Boussingault, M., Sur la production, la constitution et les proprl6t6s des aclers
chrom~s: Annales de Chimie et de Physique, 5th s6r., vol. 15, pp. 91-126, 1878. Trans-
lated in Jour. Iron and Steel Inst., no. 2, pp. 807-830, 1886.

•
426 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

some places in the limestone areas that surro11nd the central part of the
district and in these areas sink holes are common. Although Riviere
. Bassin near the head of Meme Valley is dry during part of the year the1~e
is a small, probably perennial flow of water for a kilometer or two below
Meme. Moreover, some water for use in mining might be obtained either
from shallow wells or shafts in the upper part of the valley. Such wells
should be sunk near the beds of the deepest ravines.
Many of the crests of the ranges, particularly those southwest of Terre-
N euve, support hardly any vegetation except grass. The higher mountain

,
19•
·~...,~ Chemin carrossa..bte , ',
>< Chemin P,racti.ca,ble
a Cbeval
\
\\
/
fZJ Region representee sorRanche II.~ GON~·· '-
Kilo-metres '· ~ a,
& i i J 4 ~ ~ i ~ ~ l~2
\ ',,_, -/~
7 ' 7 M' i-2 ~~~
FIGURE 26.--Sketch map of the Terre-Neuve district showing the roads and
principal trails. (After Tippenhauer.)

slopes in the Terre-Neuve and Meme valleys are generally covered with a •

thick growth of small brush. The valleys appear to benefit by the seepage
of ground water and support more 111xuriant vegetation and large trees.
In the narrow valley of Riviere Colombier west of Terre-Neuve there is
a thick stand of large trees. Thick growths of smaller trees were noted
farther west along the same stream, near Source Marianne, and also in the
southeast part of the district at Mare-a-Colas and between Meme and
Bassin. (See Plate IV, A, p. 58, and p. 60.)
The seaward slopes and the eastern foothills of the Montagnes de
Terre-Neuve receive little rain and are covered by stunted xerophytic
vegetation.

•
 :MINERAI4 RESOURCES. 427

At present the Terre-Neuve district can be reached only by foot or on

horse-back. The principal trails are shown in Figure 26. Nearly all out-
side commerce and comm11nication is carried on by way of Gona1ves. Two
trails start from Gonaives, one of which takes the shortest route by way of
Morne Soleil to Darane, Dolan, and Terre-Neuve, traversing only a small
part of the mineralized area. The distance between Gonaives and Terre-
N euve along this trail is about 30 kilometers. The grades are steep, reach-
ing 8 or 10 per cent in crossing Morne Soleil and in ascending from Mare-
A-Colas to Darane. At one place the grade for several h11ndred meters is
15 per cent. The worst grades could be eliminated by realignment of the
trail, but grades of 8 or 10 per cent or more at some places seem 11navoid-
able, and for this reason the route can not easily be made practicable for
vehicles. It is, however, a fair trail for pack animals. The part nearer
Gonaives was in good condition in 1921, and the whole length was then
easily passable. This is the trail commonly used in traveling from
Gona1ves to Terre-Neuve.
The other trail from Gonaives to Terre-Neuve passes through Bassin
and Meme and traverses a larger part of the mineralized zone. This trail
branches from the road leading from Gona1ves to Gros-Morne at a locality
about 10 kilometers from Gona1ves. Although unimproved, it is passable
for vehicles and even for automobiles as far as Bassin. From Bassin to
Meme the trail is good and could be made passable for vehicles without
much difficulty. A railroad could easily be constructed as far as Bassin
and perhaps even to Meme. From Meme to Terre-Neuve the grades are
steep, as great or greater than those on the first trail, even though this
route has been laid out with some care. Considerable recent work on
this trail in 1921 has placed it in better condition than the other, but it is
naturally more difficult to maintain. It is at least 35 kilometers long,
somewhat longer than the trail first described. The trail first described is
used prefera.bly to reach Terre-Neuve; the other is used to reach localities
in the Meme Valley from Gona1ves.
A trail leads westward from Terre-Neuve along the course of Riviere
Colombier and reaches the sea at Port-A-Piment, a very small fishing
habitation, and farther west at Anse Rouge, a small village. This trail
is also used to reach the Sources Chaudes or Eaux Boynes. The distance
from Terre-Neuve to Port-a-Piment, the nearest outlet to the sea, is about
30 kilometers, and to the Sources Chaudes, a little more than 20 kilo-
meters. As this trail follows the river valley it has a fairly easy grade and
is naturally good. It co11ld be improved for vehicular traffic, and this
route perhaps could be utilized by a railway, although very sharp curves
would be unavoidable in the narrow canyon west of Terre-N euve. More-
over, a railroad would probably be endangered occasionally by the :floods
that sweep down the narrow valley. Although this is the best trail into the
Terre-Neuve valley, it is little used, because the region with which it
 428 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

comm11nicates is arid and very thinly settled and offers no facilities for
commerce or communication with other parts of the Republic.
From Terre-Neuve an entirely 11nimproved and exceedingly difficult
trail affords direct communication with Gros-Morne. This trail passes
northeastward over Morne Decouflay, down a deep valley in Sectio11
Moulin, and thence over a rolling lowland into Gros-Morne. Although
one can ride a horse across Morne Decou:flay, most travelers prefer to walk
at many places. The total distance from Terre-Neuve to Gros-Morne is
about 20 kilometers.
Many trails, some passable on horseback and some only on foot, afford
access to all the habitations in the district, but those described in the
preceding paragraphs are the only practicable routes by which one can
enter or leave the district. Several of the mining prospects in the Terre-
Neuve Valley stand high on the mountain slopes and can be reached only
by very poor trails, which at some places are passable only on foot.
GEOLOGY.
GENERAL FEATURES.
The oldest known rocks exposed in the Terre N euve district consist of
igneous rocks of different types, chiefly lavas, representing a long period
of volcanic activity in early or middle Mesozoic time. Thick limestone
formations of upper Eocene and Oligocene age unconformably overlie
these lavas. During Miocene time these rocks were very strongly de-
formed, and minor intrusions of quartz diorite, which cut through tl1e
•
basement volcanic rocks and into the lower part of the upper Eocene
limestone, probably accompanied this deformation. Doubtless some fold-.
ing or warping had occurred during Oligocene or earlier periods, but
the results of any earlier deformation, either in the volcanic rocks or in
the limestones, could not be differentiated from those of the later periods.
The folding and intrusion were accompanied by fracturing of the jn-
tr11sive porphyries and of the overlying volcanic rocks, and mineral-
bearing solutions found access to the fissures thus formed. Contact-
metamorphic ore bodies were formed in the limestone close to the in-
trusive porphyries.
Normal faults, some of which are of considerable magnitude, were
formed during a later period of tension. Some hot spring waters found
their way toward the surface along these later fault lines.
During and after Pliocene and Quaternary time the region was elevated ·
and eroded and some of the :fissure veins were probably enriched. The
erosion has continued until the present time and has cut deep, narrow
valleys in the limestones that border the region. From 500 to 1,000
meters of Tertia.r y limestones have been eroded away from the central
part of t.he region, thus exposing the underlying lavas and the intrusive
rocks with their accompanying mineral deposits. (See geologic map,
Pl. II, in pocket.)
 :MINERAL RESOURCES. 429

SEDIMENTARY ROCKS.

The sedimentary rocks in the Terre-Neuve district and the surround-

ing regions consist of limestones of upper Eocene and middle and upper
Oligocene age, which are described on pages 113, 147, 151. At some places
a thick conglomerate, composed largely of cobbles of the underlying vol-
canic rocks, lies at the base of the upper Eocene limestone. In the central
part of the district, where most of the ore deposits are found, this con-
glomerate is very thin; at many places it can be detected only by very
careful search, and at others it appears to be absent. At most places in
the central part of the district where the limestone has been preserved
from erosion pure massive upper Eocene limestone generally rests directly
on the old, eroded surface of the volcanic rocks. This pure ljmestone
was easily replaced by the mineral-bearing solutions that formed the
contact-metamorphic ore bodies.

IGNEOUS ROCKS.

GENERAL FEATURES AND AGE.

The igneous rocks in this region comprise an older volcanic series and
a younger intrusive group. The older volcanic rocks have a wider range
in mineralogic and chemical composition and are much more extensive
in distribution than the intrusives. The lavas range in composition from
basalts to dacites, but andesites predominate. The complete order of
eruption is not known, but some of the basaltic rocks are younger than
the andesites and dacites. (See pp. 280-281.) The overlying upper Eocene
limestone helps to obscure the structural relations of the different types
of volcanic rocks, and detailed work would be necessary to establish
accurately the relations of the rocks in this series. Lavas and associated
rocks of this volcanic series form the basement of the Tertiarv sedi-
~

mentary rocks over a large part of northern Haiti. Rocks of the same
mineral composition and texture as those of the Terre-Neuve region are
found in the basement volcanics from Terre-Neuve northeast,vard to
Le Borgne, on the north coast.
The younger intrusive rocks, which are of particular interest in tl1e
discussion of the ore deposits, are confined to a narrow northwestward-
trending line of intrusive masses, which are barely exposed by erosion.
They extend northwestward from Meme Valle)' for a distance of 10 or
11 kilometers, into the drainage basin of Riviere Colombier. In general
the rocks range in composition from quartz diorite to basic granodio1·ite
and jn texture from granitoid rocks to dense porphyritic rocks resembling
lavas. More diverse types, such as pegmatites and aplites, are fo11nd in
minor quantities.
The andesitic lavas. in the Terre-Neuve district and vicinity are older
than the upper Eocene limestone, and lavas of similar composition and
texture west of Grande-Riviere du Nord are known to be older than
430 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Upper Cretaceous and llnderlie rocks of supposed Lower or Middle Cre-

taceous age. These andesitic lavas of the volcanic basement are prob-
ably in general of the same age throughout the northern part of the
Republic, and hence the eruption of the andesites of the Terre-Neuve
district is tentatively assigned to Jurassic or Lower Cretaceous time.
The younger intrusive quartz dioritic rocks cut the upper Eocene lime-
stone and are tentatively assigned to late Miocene time because oi the
alinement of the intrusions with the tectonic trends produced during
folding of supposed late Miocene age. '

VOLCANIC ROCKS.

Pyroxene andesltea.

The pyroxene andesites constitute most of the lavas in the vicinity of

Morne Macat and in the valley of Riviere Lhor1nand south and weRt
of Morne Piton, and extend westward to Moulin and the base of Morne
Decouflay. In these regions the basal conglomerate of the upper Eocene
limestone, in places several hundred meters thick, is composed very
largely of cobbles of pyroxene andesite.
Andesites of this type outcrop elsewhere in the Terre-Neuve district,
although not usually in such predominating proportions as in the east
and northeast parts of the region shown on the map (Pl. II). Several
flows of glassy, much sheeted pyroxene andesites are exposed on the
east slope of Morne D11muraille, northeast of Meme village. The sheet-
ing and flow structure dip rather steeply to the southwest into the moun-
tain side and under the upper Eocene limestone, which caps the crest of
the mo11ntain.
The volcanic rocks at Dolan, south of Terre-Neuve village, consist in
part at least of pyroxene andesites.
The petrography of these rocks and their distribution elsewhere in the
northern part of the Republic is described in Part II. (See pp. 272-277.)

:Hornblende daclte1 and andesi tea.

In the Colombier Valley, in the vicinity of Terre-Neuve village, and

in the region extending northward to Morne Raboteau and Riviere Bras-
a-Droit, the rocks are principally reddish, much altered and weathered
lavas, which were for the most part hornblende-bearing andesites and
dacites. These rocks belong to the same series as the pyroxene andesites,
although they differ in mjneral composition. A description of the petrog-
raphy of these lavas is given on pages 278-279, and altered rocks of this
type are described on page 455.

Basaltic rock1.

Basalts are ab11ndant in the pre-Tertiary volcanic complex in some

parts of the Republic but are subordinate to andesitic rocks in the re- ·
 MINERAL RESOURCES. 431

gion around Terre-Neuve. Basaltic rocks are exposed northwest of

Terre-Neuve village in the valley of Riviere Bras-a-Droit, in Section
Moulin, and on the northeast slope of Morne Decouflay. All are of
similar petrographic character and resemble the basaltic lavas near
Ennery. The age of these basalts is not known, but they are probably
younger than the andesites. Some of the basaltic eruptions may be as
late as early Eocene in age. (See p. 286.)

Kode of occurrence.

Most of the older Mesozoic lavas consist of relatively truck flows with
a rather small amount of interbedded pyroclastic debris. No large beds
of volcanic debris were fo11nd, nor were any structures resembling cen-
tral vents or :fissures discovered. Some of the basaltic rocks are relatively
coarse-grained and probably are intrusive into the andesites, but definite
structural evidence of this was not found .
•

INTRUSIVE ROCKS.

Quartz dlorite and granodiorite.

'

Rock types which can be strictly termed quartz diorite or granodiorite

are not ab11ndant among the intrusives exposed in this district.
Small stocks of quartz diorite, probably not more than several hundred
meters in length, are intrusive into limestone and volcanic rocks in the
vicinjty of habitation Hilaire, southeast of Terre-Neuve village. In
Meme Valley basic granodiorite is exposed at the surface only in dikes
or intrusive masses of small size. Fine-grained porphyritic modifications
of the intrusive are much more ab11ndant.
Petrographic descriptions of the quartz diorite and granodiorite and
chemical analyses of the grandiorite are given on pages 301-306. The
qua1iz dioritic facies seems to be more extensive in distribution than the
granodiorite at the exposed surface of the intrusion.

Daclte porpltyrie1.

Fine-grained porphyries, which apparently were forrned by quick

chilling of the first part of the intrusive magma as it came in contact
with the colder overlying rocks, are the most widely distributed and
characteristic for10 of the intrusive in the Terre-Neuve district. These
porphyries constitute the bulk of the rocks shown on the geologic map
under the intrusive group.
The porphyries are generally light to dark gray or greenish gray, and
on weathered surfaces are stained yellowish or brownish. They may be
much jointed and separate into platy fragments or into small irregular
blocks, a feature characteristic of many of the larger exposures in this
region. As a result of the jointing the outcrops, especially on steep hill-
sides, crumble away into a talus of small fragments. This jointing is no
 •

432 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

doubt due to differential contraction that presumably took place whlle

the rock was cooling, after the magma had consolidated.
Much of the porphyry has been considerably altered, as the joints often
served as channels for solutions escaping from parts of the still molten
magma below. In places this alteration is so far advanced that the por-
phyritic texture is nearly obliterated and the rock is so much bleached
that it can hardly be recognized in the field as porphyry. These altera-
tions are described in more detail under the discussion of contact meta-
morphism. (See p. 439.)
The Miocene ( ?) intrusive rocks appear to be a series of stocklike
intrusions elongated or oriented along a line of arching. The apexes of
these stocks have been barely truncated by erosion. When the magma
reached the base of the upper Eocene limestone it was quickly chilled,
but it seems to have spread out laterally at some places along the contact
of this limestone with the underlying igneous rocks and to have formed
small bodies of undetermined shape and extent.

•
STRUCTURE •

FOLDS.

The Montagnes de Terre-Neuve are described on page 120 as a broad,

gentle anticlinal arch trending northwestward. The major structural
features in the central part of this district have been largely formed by
folding and only in a minor degree by attendant faulting. The crest of
the main anticlinal arch of the mountains coincides closely with the zone
of intrusion of the quartz diorite, which trends about N. 40° W.
Although the folding as a whole is rather open, along some localized
zones closely compressed folds are found, and at places they pass into
thrust faults. Where the folding is asymmetrical or where thrust fault-
ing has taken place the thrust seems to have come from the southwest.
The crest of the major arch of the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve is some-
what modified by a synclinal fold, the axis of which passes through the
Meme and Terre-Neuve valleys. (See Figs. 27 and 28.) At Morne
Miguinda this trough is asymmetrical and is broken along its western
limb into faults of uncertain character, probably of minor throw, which
have produced much brecciation and contortion of the beds.

FAULTS AND FISSURES.

Considerable faulting and fracturing of the volcanic and intrusive

rocks has occurred and it was probably in part genetically related to the
folding and in part to t ension after folding. The intrusive porphyries are
fractured as the result of cooling after consolidation of the magma.
The relations of the many fractures to the folding are complex, and
it would require considerable study to work out their details. It seems
quite certain, however, that most of the fissures in which the veins were
 ,
MINERAL RESOURCES. 433

formed are genetically related to the intrusion and folding. The larger,
more open veins whose trends correspond to the axial trends of the
folds may have been produced along shear zones by high-angle thrust '
faulting or by tension along the crests of the anticlinal folds. Relatively
large open fissures with a northwest strike were seen at Ra,·ine Jeanty.
The veins here contain abundant clayey gouge and give evidence of con-
.siderable movement subsequent to the mineralization. The origin of
these :fissures is not readily determinable, however. More tightly closed
fractures of little throw were examined at Rocher, just east of Terre-
N euve village, and may be of the conjugate type produced by compres-
sion. These latter veins in general strike northeastward and dip north-
westward and southeastward. They are narrow, generally only a few
centimeters in width.
Some normal faults probably are of later origin than most of the min-
eral deposits. Such faults were seen at Meme Valley. Farther east there is
considerable normal faulting. (See pp. 470-471, and Fig. 27, .A..A.'.) These
large normal faults were channels that permitted the escape of hot spring
waters (see pp. 470-475) but they do not exhibit mineralization of the
higher temperature type, as do the veins of the Terre-Neuve Valley.
The normal faulting probably was of very late Miocene or of Pliocene
age. The region to the east, between the Montagnes de Terre-Neuve
and the Massif du Nord, was downfaulted, bringing the Oligocene lime-
stones down to the level of the older volcanic rocks at either side of the
valley of Les Trois Rivieres.

RELATIONS OF STRUCTURAL FEATURES.

There seems to be a close relation between the arching of the Mon-

tagnes de Terre-Neuve and the intrusion of the quartz diorite, as the
intrusion closely coincides with the crest of the arch. At the time of
the intrusion fractures were produced in the country rock that were
probably genetically related either to the folding or to the forces of the
intrusive magma. There is little or no evidence as to whether the later
normal faulting was due to a collapse resulting from the withdrawal of
the magma from beneath the region or to other causes. So far as known
no extensive volcanic eruptions occurred in this region during Miocene
time. _...·
. 1

HISTORY OF MINING DEVELOPMENT.

The presence of iron and copper near Terre-Neuve was known prob-
ably as early as the seventeenth century. According to Moreau de
1
St. Mery, ruins, instruments, and uncovered iron deposits, indicating
mining and metallurgic operations, possibly by Spaniards, were men-
tioned as early as 1 728. After the beginning of the nineteenth century
1 Op. cit., vol. 2, pp. 81-84.
•

28
 434 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

little attention seems to have been paid to the exploitation of the mineral
deposits here ltntil 1898. At that time the attention of Miguel .Boom,
of the Depart1nent of Public Works, was drawn to the deposits by some
samples of iron and copper ores that were sent to him. These samples
were analyzed in New York, but the investigation came to an end owing
1
to his death.
Edmond Ro11main, of Port-au-Prince, who was connected with this
investigation, became personally interested in the region and collected
samples. They were assayed in New York, and some showed from 20 to
1
40 per cent of copper. He applied for a mining concession covering the
district. On the strength of Roumain's examination and samples a
syndicate called the '' Terre-Neuve Company'' was formed in New York
in 1899, with an authorized capitalization of $5,000,000. The company
succeeded in raising a small sum and employed engineers, who examined
the properties and reported 11nfavorably. This company was then
dissolved.
In 1900, L. Gentil Tippenhauer, formerly engineer in chief of the
Department of Public Works, made a topographic and geologic map of
the region by means of compass and paced traverses.• His map is remark-
ably accurate, considering the methods of surveying employed, and was
used as a base for the geologic map accompanying this report.
Between 1901 and 1905 a number of attempts were made to open up
and work the mineral deposits both by Edmond Ro11main and by outside
parties, but all attempts were unsuccessful.
In 1905 a Haitian corporation was established in Port-au-Prince called
the '' Compagnie Miniere de Terre-Neuve,'' with Edmond Roumain as
president. This company obtained control of the mining concession
covering the entire district. Considerable prospecting was done, but
after several years work was discontinued.
In 1910 a report was published in the Moniteur by F. Doret on the
condition of the mines at Terre-Neuve.' This report to the Secretary of
State for Public Works was based on an examination which Doret had
been commissioned to make in 1909 as a result of misunderstandings
about operations at Terre-Neuve. Exploitation had been discontinued
at this time. Doret reported that the company had stopped shipping in
order to improve roads, do development work, and consider plans for
milling and concentrating ore on the gro11nd.
In 1910 the ''Ha)ii Mines Company'' was incorporated in New
York with an authorized capitalization of $1,000,000.' This company
took over control of the Compagnie Miniere de Terre-Neuve, which held
1 Tippenhauer, L. G., Petermanns Mitt., Band 47, p. 121, 1901.
1 Idem.

•Idem, pp. 121-127, pl.

, 10, 1901. ,
•Report addressed ''A M. Le Secr~taire d'Etat dee Travaux Publics'': Le Monlteur,
Nos. 24 and 25, Mar. 23 and 26, pp. 153-154, Port-au-Prince, 1910.
1 Weed, W. H., The Mines Handbook, vol. 15, p. 1990, 1922.

"' .
 I

MINERAL RESOURCES. 435

the concession from the Haitian goverr1ment. Some work has been done
on the concession since that time, principally on the contact-metamorphic
deposits at Meme. Information obtained through the Department of
1
Public Works in October, 1922, shows that 436 tons of ore has been
exported by the Compagnie Miniere de Terre-Neuve. The work has
been intermittent and was :finally discontinued altogether before 1920.
Although this is not intended to be a complete outline of the rather
involved history of this district, it will serve to give some idea of the
interest that has been taken in it. It is roughly estimated from obser-
vations made during the present examinations that in work on both
contact-metamorphic and vein deposits up to 1920, about 450 meters
of t11nnels had been driven and about 100 meters of short shafts had
been s11nk. Several open cuts, n11merous strippings, small pits, and
short openings also had been started. Unfort11nately, much of this
prospecting has been done unsystematically because of lack of proper
technical advice.

GENERAL CHARACTER .AND EXTENT OF DEPOSITS.

The two principal types of mineral deposits found in the Terre-Neuve

district are the contact-metamorphic deposits in limestone and the :fis-
sure veins in the volcanic and intrusive rocks. The contact-metamorphic
deposits contain principally iron and copper together with small amo11nts
of silver and gold. The fissure veins contain copper, silver, and gold,
and small amounts of lead and zinc. These deposits are confined to a
zone trending northwestward and bordering the intrusions of quartz
· diorite and dacite porphyries. This zone has a length of about 10 kilo-
meters and a maximum width in the vicinity of Terre-Neuve village of
3 to 4 kilometers. (Pl. II, in pocket.) The close association of both the
contact-metamorphic bodies and the metalliferous veins with masses of
the intrusive porphyry clearly indicates that the mineralization was a
consequence of the intrusion.
That a correspondence exists between the distance from the center of
intrusive activity and the temperature of formation of the differP.nt
1
types of deposits is evident. '1 he relative temperatures at which the
deposits were formed is inferred from the mineralogic associations, par-
ticularly from the presence of certain characteristic minerals. The con-
tact-metamorphic deposits, which were doubtless for1ned at the highest
temperature, are found at Bresillac, Hilaire, and in Meme Valley, either
capping or bordering the masses of intrusive porphyry. They were pre-
s11mably the first deposits for1ned. The oxides and silicate minerals of
tl1ese deposits were fonned at high temperatures during the early stages
of metamorphism, whereas the metallic sulphides were formed predomi-
nantly at lower temperatures during the later stages of metamorphism.
The highest-temperature vein deposits are those near Jeanty Ravine and
1
Tons ot 2,000 pounds, avoirdupois, converted from French pounds .

•
436 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

are fo11nd principally in the intrusive porphyries. These veins contain

chalcopyrite and some specularite in a gangue of quartz and calcite.
These veins were presumably formed shortly after the intrusion of the
porphyries. They show no secondary enrichment. Veins at Rocher and
northeast of Terre-Neuve village, a kilometer or t\VO southwest of the
main line of exposed intrusive bodies, had a somewhat lower tempera-
ture of formation than those at J eanty. They contain sphalerite, galena,
bornite, some chalcopyrite, and secondary copper sulphides and carbonates
in a gangue of quartz and barite. These veins cut intrusive dikes of dacite
porphyry, but their relations in time to the formation of the contact-
metamorphic bodies and to the veins formed at higher temperature near
Jeanty is not known.
Veins at Dolan, about 3 kilometers southwest of the main int1·usive
line, show that the conditions which exjsted there during the periods of
vein enrichment were somewhat different from those which existed near
Terre-Neuve village. The)T are characterized by native copper, cuprite,
and chrysocolla. The primary character of these veins has been destroyed.
'
CONTACT-METAMORPHIC DEPOSITS.

GENERAL FEATURES.

Zones of contact metamorphism have been formed at many places along

the contacts of the intrusives with both the volcanic rocks and the overlying
Tertiary limestones. In the volcanic rocks these zones are small or of
negligible importance, but in the limestone metamorphic zones of con-
siderable width may be present. The contact type of metalliferous deposit •

carrying copper and iron is found in these metamorphic zones in the

limestone. These deposits were formed under relatively high temperature
and pressure by hot solutions that rose from the intrusive mass below
and deposited part of their mineral content under favorable conditions,
such as were found in some of the bodies of limestone. Structural f ea-
tures, such as joint planes in the intrusive rocks, bedding planes in the
limestone, contact surfaces, dikes, and fissures, may have controlled or
influenced the course of the mineral-bearing solutions and may thus have
been of importance in determining the zones of more intense metamor-
phism. That such factors have influenced the position of some of the ore
bodies in the Terre-Neuve district is evident at a number of places.
A characteristic feature of the contact-metamorphic zones is the partial
replacement of the limestone by silicates, metallic sulphides and oxides,
and quartz. The rock of complex mineral composition thus formed by
the replacement of limestone by material derived from an intrusive rock
1
bas been called tactite, and in the following discussion this term will be
frequently used to avoid cumbersome phrases.
1
Hess, F. L., Tactite, the product of contact metamorphism : Am. Jour. Sci., 4th ser.,
vol. 48, pp. 377-378, 1919.
 MINERAL RESOURCES. 437

Except for small veinlike bodies in marble that follow the walls of por-
phyry dikes at Meme, all the known tactite bodies in the Terre-Neuve
district lie at or very near to the contact of limestone and intrusive
dacite porphyries or quartz diorite. The width of the tactite bodies in
the Terre-Neuve district ranges from a fraction of a meter to 10 or 15
meters. Some of the exposures of the tactite are wider, owing to the atti-
tude of the body, and in some places the thickness may actually exceed
these figures. Some of the bodies are rudely tabular in shape but are
discontinuous; many are very irregular, possibly because they follow
irregular structural features in the co11ntry rock or were for1ned by selec-
tive replacement of certain portions of the limestone.

FEATURES OF THE METAMORPHISM.

MINERAL COMPOSITION OF THE TACTITE.

The tactite ranges from dense uniform-textured rocks to coarse irregu-

lar-textured rocks with large crystals of garnet, iron oxides, or calcite.
Rocks rich in garnet are yellowish or brownish ; those rich in epidote,
cblorite, or nontronite are green. The rough banding in some specimens
may be due to replacement along bedding planes or parallel fractures.
The most abundant silicates are garnets and epidote. The garnets are
reddish to yellowish brown and in composition are possibly mixtures of the
grossularite and andradite molecules. The refractive indices generally
range from 1.82 to 1.84. In one specimen having notable birefringence,
a=l.79, y=l.81. Although epidote is in general less abundant than
garnet, in some of the tactite it is more ab11ndant or present to the exclu-:
sion of garnet. Where the metamorphism has a:ffected igneous rocks near
the contact, epidote is invariably present and is deeply colored. Chlorite
is common in the tactite, though usually in minor amounts. Much of it
occurs in flakes which have the optical properties of penninite and are
arranged in radial or spherulitic growths. In some specimens chlorite is
an alteration product of epidote. Diopside was seen as small granules in
only one specimen of tactite. Hornblende was found only in rocks formed
by replacement or alteration of igneous rocks in the contact zone. Titanite
is commonly present and forms several per cent of some rocks. A mineral
that is probably nontronite is present in much of the tactite. N ontronite, ·
a hydrated silicate of ferric iron of variable composition, is a fibrous
or flaky mineral that has moderately strong birefringence ( 0.025 to 0.030),
parallel or nearly parallel extinction, and positive elongation. It is pleo-
croic; X=colorless or straw-yellow; Z=olive-green or brown-green. It
is optically negative, 2V small. Its indices are variable, but usually
y = 1.62 to 1.66. It usually accompanies quartz or calcite and forms
veinlets or flaky aggregates replacing earlier formed minerals. A small
amount of orthoclase (adularia) accompanies quartz at one locality.
Apatite is invariably present in small quantities and loca.l ly forms several
per cent of the rock.
 •

438 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Quartz is almost invariably present, though in variable quantities, and

in some parts of the tactite it is ab11ndant. It is commonly accompanied
by chlorite and contains inclusions of apatite and titanite. Calcite is an
•

important constituent of the tactite and may be the predominant mineral.

The iron oxides magnetite and hematite are the most abundant metal-
liferous minerals. Large bodies predominantly of magnetite and specu-
larite are found in parts of the tactite. Chalcopyrite is the principal
copper mineral. Bornite occurs in very~ small quantities and is secondary
after chalcopyrite. Pyrite is ab11ndant locally.
Scheelite, which is found in some contact-metamorphic deposits, is not
present in the Terre-N euve tactite. Its absence was confirmed by negative
results of assays for tungsten on the ore samples which were made by
Ledoux & Co., of New York. (See p. 447.) A large proportion of iron
oxides in contact-metamorphic bodies apparently is generally not favor-
1
able to the presence of scheelite.
The order of formation of the minerals generally is as follows: Specu-
larite, garnet, magnetite, epidote, pyrite, quartz with chlorite, apatite, or
nontronite, and :finally chalcopyrite and calcite. Titanite usually appears
to accompany quartz. Pyrite less commonly accompanies chalcopyrite
and calcite. This general rule is not invariably followed, and in places
the order may show repetition. One of the noteworthy features of the
mineral paragenesis is the widespread replacement and intergrowth of the
primary specularite and the later magnetite and the partial or local re-
placement of the magnetite in turn by later generations of hematite
crystals. A very late generation of hematite in microscopic crystals prob-
ably was deposited by descending surface waters. (See Pls. XXXIII, A
and B, and XXXIV, A.) The replacement of magnetite by later quartz,
calcite, and nontronite is very marked in parts of the tactite. Calcite has
in places completely replaced magnetite, either in its own crystal form
or that of specularite, leaving only outlines or ghosts of the original •

crystal form. This deposition of calcite, which accompanied or followed

the formation of chalcopyrite, was one of the important stages of the
metamorphism and l1as resulted in some places in the nearly complete de-
struction of evidence of some of the earlier stages. This overlapping oft.h e
stages or zones of metamorphism is also illustrated in the metamorphism
of igneous rocks near the contact, where complete replacement of early
actinolitic or :fibrous hornblende by later quartz and calcite has occurred.
These later replacements doubtlessly occurred with falling temperature
and with the accompanying or resulting changes in composition of the
solutions.
Oxidation and enrichment have played only a minor part in the for1na-
tion of the contact deposits. Along fractures and at the surface oxidation
1 Hess, F. L., and Larsen, E. S., Contact-metamorphic tungsten deposits ot the United
States: U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 725, p. 249, 1922.

•
nr.r1·nr..,1c 01~ 11.\r1· r
(if: <>J..<JG? C,\J_. ~ 1 · Jt\· 1~ Y l'L.t\.TE XXXIII

•
.. • ,.•t ' ,

... .. '
... ,
•
'• ' •

.4 . CfIALCOI)YR ITE ( WHITE). SPECL'L~.\.Rlrl' E rr;.\TES ( GI? .\ 1IRII WHITE) IN

GAi{:.\' Err (LIGII'£ (iRAY), A~D C .t\TJ< ' I 'fl~ (l> .\RI~ (;I? ..\Y ) .

R. SITE.\F OF RPEc1·r;.:\RITE BT..1ADES r; ~\nGEJ;Y RErT..1.\\ED BY :\I.t\. GXETITE

( G R.L\. Y).
T' 1)11e 1· antl 1<>\,·er left en(lS of bl~1cl<'s sho'v s 111 nll 11111ol1nt of hrr11~1tite of late 1· genert1-
ti<>n. G<1ngue is ga1·nct (g1·ay) :1nu C<tJ<·it e ( (lark grn~· ) . X llO.

OnE Fl~O:\I CoxTACT nfErrA:1IORPHIC DEPO. ITS, l~O('lIE GLI.'SE,

l\I E~f E \ T...\.I.., I..1 EY.
•
 MINFJRAL RESOURCES. 439

has resulted in partial destruction of the primary sulphides. Small

amo11nts of bornite, chalcocite, malachite, and azurite are found at several
places. Limonite and probably some of the later hema~ite were formed
by descending surface waters.
•

METAMORPHISM oF IGNEOUS RocKs.

At habitation Hilaire, near the Casseus prospect, the quartz diorite
intrudes the andesites, and contact metamorphism of both the intrusive
and the co11ntry rock has occurred. A garnet-epidote rock containing large
• plates of specularite and some magnetite was formed. The contact zone
is a few centimet ers to a fraction of a meter in width. The altered l'Ock
consists largely of epidote, garnet, quartz, and calcite. Epidote was formed
here earlier than the garnet. Quartz and calcite were formed during later
stages and in places have a fibrous structure, inherited from replacement
• of uralitic or actinolitic hornblende. A little pyrite was noted but no
chalcopyrite. The quartz diorite for a short distance from the contact is
bleached light yellow.
Metamorphism of igneous rocks was seen at several other localities,
but the changes are much the same. The zone of alteration and replace-
ment is characteristically much narrower than in limestone. At all locali-
ties this metamorphism was found only adjacent to bodies of limestone
and tactite. The metallic minerals are not developed to the extent found
in tactite bodies in the limestone, probably on acco11nt of the greater •

resistance of the igneous rocks to solution and replacement.

•

ALT•nRATION OF INTRUSIVE PoRPH YRIES.

Alteration of the intrusive rocks themselves, although in places very
intense, is not accompanied by an appreciable concentration of metallifer-
ous minerals. Alteration bas affected large bodies of intrusive porphyry
next to the contact-metamorphic bodies.
Near Bresillac Ravine tactite bodies cap a mass of much-altered fine-
grained porphyry, which is closely jointed. The solutions that caused the
metamorphism of the limestone must have traversed the underlying
porphyry. This is indicated both by the structural relations of the
porphyry and tactite and by the intense alteration of the porphyry. In
places the porphyry is bleached to a light-gray or grayish-white rock of
felsitic texture in which the original porphyritic texture is almost com-
pletely obliterated. The altered rock is hard and rather dense, chips off
with a nearly conchoidal fracture, and breaks into angular joint blocks.
A microscopic examination of this rock shows a more or less complete
albitization of the plagioclase and a destruction of the ferromagnesian
minerals, whose constituents have been largely removed, with the excep-
tion of titani11m, which remajns behind as titanite. The rock appears
to contain considerable quartz.
 440 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Altered porphyry at Meme Valley shows some mineralogic differences.

The rock is medi11m to dark gray or greenish gray and distinctly porphy-
ritic. Epidote a11d pyrite can commonly be see~ with the eye in much of
the more altered porphyry. Microscopic examination shows albitization
of the plagioclase and development of sericite. The primary uralitic horn-
blende has been partly destrO}"ed in the more altered rocks, and its de-
struction has been accompanied by the formation of calcite and chlorite
and the separation of titanite and iron oxides. Considerable secondary
orthoclase is found in some parts of the porphyry and replaces the feld-
spars, quartz, and groundmass, or occurs in veinlets accompanied by
quartz. It is significant that although the :fine-grained porphyry in Meme
Valley is much altered, dikes of basic granodiorite, which intrude the
porphyry and are part of the same intrusive series, are remarkably fresh.

ALTERATION OF LIMESTONE TO MARBLE.

Near the igneous contacts and especially near tactite bodies the lime-
stone is usually recrystallized to marble that is, to a rock consisting of
granular calcite. Near tactite bodies in Meme some of the marble contains
small veins of quartz and nontronite. The quartz replaces calcite and is
accompanied in some places by small cubes of pyrite, and some titanite
and apatite. Coarsely crystalline sheeted marble was seen at the head of
the valley of Riviere Bassin.
..
ORIGIN AND FEATURES OF THE MINER.ALIZING SOLUTIONS.

The mineralizing solutions were derived mainly from the quartz diorite
or granodiorite intrusives. The fine-grained and po1·phyritic texture of
the intrusive porphyry, which is in contact with the tactite bodies at a
number of localities, indicates that it cooled rather quickly on reaching
its present position. It seems certain that this quickly chjlled rock, which
constitutes the bulk of the intrusive rock exposed in the Terre-Neuve dis-
trict, was not the immediate source of the mineralizing solutions, but
that in all probability they came from masses of more slowly cooling
magma at greater depth. Slow cooling and crystallization at greater
depth perxnitted separation of the magmatic water and more volatile con-
stituents, and they escaped upward, carrying with them some of the
metallic content of the original magma. The upper part of the intrusive
porphyry, although still very hot, was undoubtedly for the greater part
solidified before the principal upward movements of the mineralizing
solutions occurred. The solidified porphyry during its cooling had become
considerably fractured and offered a ready channel for the solutions pass-
ing outward under pressure. The intrusive bodies at most of the localities
are relatively narrow and probably formed a fracture channel within
, which a large bulk of the escaping solutions were confined by 'the more
massive less-fractured walls of the older volcanic rocks. The actien or

•
•

MINERAL RESOURCES. 441

passage of the solutions was not, however, tot.ally confined to this zone, as
solutions undoubtedly permeated much of the surrounding less-fractured
volcanic rock and resulted in some alteration.
The conclusion that the same solutions caused both the principal altera-
tions of the porphyry and the metamorphism of the limestone seems un-
avoidable, both because of the overlying position of the altered limestone
with respect to the porphyry and because the porphyry is invariably more
intensely altered in the vicinity of the contact deposits.
The formation of the deposits began at relatively high temperatures, as
is indicated by the presence of such minerals as garnet, epidote, magnetite,
and specularite. Previous investigations seem to indicate that the tem-
1
perature of formation of such deposits is from 300° to 600° C. The
formation of the metallic sulphides followed as the temperature of the
solutions decreased.

DISTRIBUTION AND STRUCTURAL FEATURES.

Deposits of the contact-metamorphic type are known at three localities
in the Terre-Neuve district: at the northwest limit of the known intru-
sive zone at Bresillac Ravine, near habitation Hilaire, and at the southeast
in Meme Valley. Jeanty is along the line of the main intrusion, but no
bodies of tactite are fo11nd either because they have been eroded away or
because the conditions were not favorable for their fonnation. Other small
deposits may exist, as many points along the intrusive zone were not
explored.
The structural relations of the deposits to the upper Eocene limestone
and intrusive porphyries are shown in Figures 27 and 28. A distinc-
tion is made in some sections between the . dacite porphyries and the
coarser-grained quartz diorite or granodiorite. In Meme Valley dikes
of relatively fresh granodiorite can be seen at the surface cutting the
altered contact porphyries. In general, coarser-grained, less-altered in-
trusives cut the fine-grained altered porphyries. Large bodies of the
coarse-grained rocks must be present below the surface to provide a
source both for the intrusive dikes and for the metamorphosing solutions.
At none of the localities does the porphyry appear to have been intruded
much above the basal part of the limestone. The small size of the areal
exposures of porphyry and their wide separation, combined with evidence
showing the rapid cooling of the intruded rock, indicate that the intrusive
body is barely exposed at the present stage of erosion. The porphyry
magma on reaching the contact of the limestone and older lavas in some
places appears to have spread out laterally to a small extent, quickly
chilling, and forming bodies of undetermined shape, more probably of
irregular than of laccolithic or sheet-like form.
That pa.r t of the body of intrusive porphyry that lies directly above the
main conduit or channel through which the eruption took place was in
1
Lindg1·en, " ·a ldemar, Mine ral deposits, 2d ed., pp. 722-723, 1919.
 •

A A'
s.o •
N.E
PITON
Metres ELI
-1000 Te Te
Te To
500
., .,, ,,
.,"'.,,.,.,,.,"' .,,.,,
Tdq<?>
.?•
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--- --·- ----
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-----------
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----- --
-------~
-
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Kilometres
B'
c
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B 0
Metre& s.o N.E ~
1000 MORN£
M1GUINDA ~l:tj
~
~
c:J
td
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0 ....a::;~~~~~~~~z~;u~,'~d~r,e~[,a,,==-/ef.=e=~:..---------------------....--------------------------------------------------------------
o I ~
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Kilometres ~
~
1-4

•
~

•
rt v
v
.... ., ... ""' ~
•
: To; • • .,, an .,. . ..,,
v ... ..,

I
""' ., v
•
I '
• .... ... .... "' ...
Ca,lcaare Ca.J.caire Diorite Por-pJ:l.yre.s Diaba.,se, Roches Ce.1cajre
oli9ocene eocene qtia.rl2ifere dacft,iques probablemen~ volceniqu.es, metamorphiqu.e
e'L 9ranodiorite intrusives cre~e OU. principaleroent, et, qites
rniocenes(7) miocenesC?> eocene . en andesit,es; mete."lliferes
' inferieur
Jura,ssique ou.
Creta,ce inferieu:r
' FIGURE 27.-Generalized sections showing t he relations of the rocks in the Terre-Neuve district.
For lines of sections see Plate II (in pocket). The fault shown west of Morne Mlgulnda may be a normal fault.
 MINERAL RESOURCES. 443

a position to be intensely altered by the solutions which later rose from

the molten rock below, but, on the contrary, bodies of porphyry that
had moved out laterally from the center of intrusion would remain rela-
tively 11naltered. Contact metamorphism of the country rock adjacent to
such 11naltered bodies of porphyry is not to be expected. A significant
accompaniment of all the known contact-metamorphic bodies is the intense
alteration of the intrusive porphyry adjacent to them. The body of
porphyry extending southeastward along the Riviere Bassin below Meme
may be a body which has moved laterally from the center of intrusion near
the head of Meme Valley. This relation is merely suggested, however, and
has not been demonstrated by thorough field observations.
The upper Eocene limestone caps the andesitic lavas and is not engulfed
in them, as postulated in some earlier reports. Hence limestone containing
ore bodies will not be found below the horizon of the underlying volcanjc
rocks, except in downfaulted blocks of limestone or in detached blocks
engulfed in the intrusive magma. This fact is noteworthy and indicates
that few of the known tactite bodies in the Terre-Neuve district extend
to very great depths. The tactite bodies in Meme Valley doubtless are in
small blocks of limestone that were sharply infolded or down£aulted.
(See Fig. 28.)
The outcrops of the tactite bodies in this region are generally conspicu-
ous though minor features of the topography, as many of these bodies
are very hard and foTm well-defined ridges and flat cappings on the less
resistant porphyries. Bodies that contain magnetite and hematite and
that are stained with limonite and copper carbonates may form part of
the outcrop.
Detailed topographic and geologic mapping and a study of the geologic
structure are very important steps in the exploration and development of
mineral deposits of this type.

PRINCIPAL PROSPECTS.

The prospects at the head of Meme Valley known as the Roche Glisse
mine (No. 1 on map forming Pl. II) and the Des Hommes prospects
(No. 2 on map) are the largest workings in contact-metamorphic deposits.
The Roche Glisse mine includes the Germain tunnel, a little over 20
meters in length; the Roche Glisse tunnel, which has several branching
galleries having a total length of 50 to 60 meters; an open cut; and a small
shaft about 10 or 15 meters in depth. The tunnels penetrate the hillside
in a northwesterly direction for about 20 meters and are in marbleized
limestone and tactite throughout their length. The open cut, which is
on the hillside above the t11nnels, shows considerable magnetite and
specularite, and some pyrite and chalcopyrite. The tactite appears to be
roughly banded and to dip gently into the hillside, possibly parallel to
the original bedding of the limestone. Marbleized limestone continues
above on the hillside for some distance.
 •

s.o NE
l1etresC C'
1000
MoRNE
GUIMBI
~
~~ 0
8
-~ Te
-- ·~
~
•

/
/
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i •'I,;.;

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v
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v ..,, v " ..,,, .., v ~
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.
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v

~~
cm
P:t
M"' • x K IC " )f "' v v ... >--
H
¥MtfKY
>-3
Calcaire
, ... Gran.o diorite Porp~es
Roches volcai-Uqt1es, Ca,lceire H
•
eocene miocene<?> mio cenes (?) principa.J.ement en metaroorphique
a.ndesites; Jur~iqr1e e~ gites
ouCretaA:.e inferieur metalliferes
FIGURE 28. Section across Meme Valley showing the contact-metamorphic deposits.

For line of section see Plate II (in pocket).

 MINERAL RESOURCES. 445

The Des Hommes workings consist of four principal t11nnels, from 5

to 30 meters in length, a few shorter openings, and some surface strip-
pings. Several of these tunnels are in the same limestone body as the
Roche Glisse. Below, on the west side of the ravine (No. 2 on map), there
are a n11mber of short tunnels which cut across the contact of the marble-
ized limestone and andesitic rocks. Small, thin bodies of tactite are found
along the contact of the marble with the older andesite and along both
contacts of an intrusive porphyry dike that cuts the marble here. No
intrusive rock is exposed west of the ravine except the dike. This dike
is clearly not the agent of the metamorphism, but its contacts offered
convenient vertical channels along which the mineral-bearing solutions
• rose. East of the ravine the altered intrusive porphyry is exposed and
is capped at some places with bodies of magnetite and hematite that show
a few stains of copper.
St.ill farther down the ravine, at La Cascade, there is a body of tactite
containing a considerable proportion of pyrite and iron oxides, over which
the stream cascades for 8 or 9 meters (No. 3 on map).
The workings at habitation Hilaire consist of three principal prospects,
Casseus (No. 5 on map), Bosse or Damaconoute (No. 6), and Germinie
(No. 'I). The Casseus prospect consists of two short tunnels, the longest
about 14 meters in length. The shorter t11nnel exposes a contact between
quartz diorite and a dark-colored andesitic volcanic rock. There is only
slight mineralization at the contact. The larger tl1nnel was driven into
a contact zone containing garnet, specularite, calcite, and some pyrite and
chalcopyrite and penet1·ates the older volcanic rocks. The gro11nd to the
east is covered with float of the limestone that appears to be relatively
11naltered, though none of this limestone wa.s fo11nd in place. The t11nnel
penetrates part of the older volcanic rocks. The tactite zone here is close
to the erosional contact between the limestone and the underlying
andesite.
The small tunnel called Damaconoute was driven only about 10 mete1·s
into slightly metamorphosed quartz diorite. No ore body is exposed at
this prospect.
At Germinie a thin body of tactite overlies the quartz diorite. The
body is resistant and forms a semicircular capping to a small ridge. A
short tunnel in the tactite, several meters in length, shows only a very
little copper.
At Bresillac (No. 11 on map) the tactite body is a cap nearly 10 meters
thick, which dips gently northward over the intrusive porphyry. There is
a branching tunnel about 14 meters in length and a short opening driven
into the tactite along the northeast side of Ravine Lamour. A small shaft
5 or 10 meters deep was started above on the hillside, but it seems to have
encountered no particularly rich ore. Short tunnels near the bottom of
the ravine were driven into the barren intrusive porphyry.
 446 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI. •

At Jean Auguste (No. 12 on map) the relations are much the same as
at Bresillac: the tactite bodies are near the crest of a spur ridge above the
much altered porphyry that forms the main body of the ridge. The
largest ore body was worked by an open cut and appears to have been
exhausted. A shallow bench was cut into the hill along a front of 25
meters or more and from 6 to 10 meters in width. Most of the ore seems
to have been taken from the east end of the bench, where an irregular
excavation, ranging in depth from 3 to 8 meters, was made over an area of
•

about 60 to 80 square meters. There is a small shaft, about 4 or 5 meters

in depth, at the base of the excavation, evidently sunk for prospecting after
the ore body had been exhausted. According to. local reports more ore
was shipped from this working than from any other in Terre-Neuve
Va.lley. Some of the longer t11nnels, which were started below on the
hillside, were driven into the barren porphyry for 20 or 30 meters without
enco11ntering other ore bodies.

POSSIBILITIES OF FINDING NEW DEPOSITS.

As the limestone caps the andesitic volcanic rocks tactite will probably
not be found below the basal beds of the limestone. At practically all
localities where intrusive rocks are exposed erosion has already cut to this
level or slightly below it, and therefore tactite will probably not be found
at much greater depths. Blocks of limestone may have been engulfed in
the magma, but such engulfing of limestone is probably uncommon because
the first intrusive porphyry was quickly chilled and because the intrusive
bodies are small. Downfaulted blocks of limestone or sharply infolded
synclines would be the only other structural features that might carry
limestone to any great depth below the erosion surface at any of the
localities where the intrusives have been found. None of the bodies of
limestone or tactite examined showed much promise of extending beyond
moderate depths. The limestone body in contact with the volcanic rocks
and intrusive at the head of Riviere Bassin above Meme appears to be
an infolded syncline or downfaulted block and may possibly extend at the
upper end of the valley to a maxim11m depth of 30 to 40 meters. (See
Fig. 28, p. 444.)
Prospectors should keep in mind the fact that the intrusive contacts
•
between the quartz diorite or other related intrusive rocks and the lime-
stones are the most favorable places for contact metamorphic ore bodies.
At some places small bodies of intrusive rock of Miocene ( ?) age other
than those shown on the maps may be exposed, but the intrusive zone
probably does not extend along its prolongation to great distances in
either direction.
TENOR OF ORES.
Only a rough approximation of the value of the ores is possible in this
report because of the variations in tenor characteristic of contact deposits
and the lack of a sufficient number of analyses of ore from this district.
 MINERAL RESOURCES. 447

The few samples collected during the reconnaissance (see samples 1-3 in
table below) show somewhat lower tenor than samples whose assays have
been previously published.

Assays of ores from Terre-Neuve district.

[Samples 1-3 (collected during this reconnaissance) assayed by Ledoux & Co., New York; 1amples ,_g
assayed by 0. L. Constant, New York.]1

Sample Character and source of

Copper. Silver. Gold. Tungsten.
No. sample.

Per cent. Oz. per ton. Oz. per ton.

1 Chip sample for length of 14
meters, Roche Glisse, Meme .•••• .98 .so •err None•
2 Ohip sample for length of 7 meters,
Bresillac tunnel ••.•••••••••.•••• .98 .80 •03 None•
3 Chip sample from face in Roche
Glisse tunnel, Meme ••••.•••••••• 2.72 .80 None.
General sample, Casseus prospect .• 3.95 •••• •••• ••••

5 General sample, Germinie prospect. 14.85 1.8 ' ••••

6 General sample, Bosse prospect .••• 8.22 None. None. •• ••

•

7 General sample, Damaconoute pros-

pect • •• •• •••• ••• •••••••••••• ••••• 4:.13 •OS Trace• ••••
8 General sample, Pierre Louis pros-
pect • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 2.69 Trace. None. ••••
9 General sample, Jean .Auguste
prospect •••••••••••••.•••••••.••• 5.59 •••• • ••• •• • •

Samples 1 and 2 were taken in the tactite zone at two separate localities
and give a rough idea of the average tenor of much of the ta.c tite, although
some scattered bodi~s are richer. Sample 3 was taken from a face
picked to represent some of the richer bodies, but the assay is lower than
2
most of those published by Ferguson (samples 4-9 in the table). The
zone of tactite doubtless contains bodies of ore that will assay 5 to 10 per
cent of copper, but most of the richer bodies will probably not avera.ge
higher than 3 to 5 per cent. Ferguson states that one shipment of ore
from the Roche Glisse mine ran 14.8 per cent of copper and contained 3.34
011nces of silver and 0.18 ounces of gold per ton, but this ore must have
been exceptional and carefully sorted. Hand sorting of the better-grade
ore, running from 3 to 5 per cent, probably would not give ore for ship-
ment averaging higher than 6 to 8 per cent except under the most favor-
able circumstances. In order to reach the sporadic bodies of richer ore
much ore would have to be mined that would probably average not more
·than 1 per cent.
Magnetite and specular hematite are found in considerable amounts in
the tactite zone and at many of the prospects they greatly predominate
1 Assays of samples 4 to 9 published in Ferguson, E. G. W., The mineral resources of Haiti, West
Indies: The Mining World. Vol. XXXI, p. 185, July 10, 1909.
1 Op. cit.
448 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

over the sulphides. The bodies, however, are not large enough nor pure
enough to be worked independently for iron ore. Apatite is found in
the contact zone at some places where it forms a large percentage of the
rock, indicating that the ore is probably rather high in phosphorus. The
iron has considerable value as a :flux in the copper ore and thus assists in
obtaining favorable smelter ra.tes.
In a report on the conditions of the mines at Terre-Neuve in 1909,
1
Doret states that previous to his investigation about a thousand tons of
ore averaging 6 per cent of copper had been shipped from the mines near
Terre-Neuve. Most of this ore was probably mined from the contact
deposits and hand sorted on the ground.

COST OF I,ABOR AND TRANSPORTATION.

As none of the mines or prospects were being worked in 1920 and 1921,
when they were visited, the cost and the efficiency of the labor available
could not be determined at first hand. Local informants reported that
2
from 1 to 2 gourdes a day was the nonnal wage paid native laborers,
and that foremen probably received from 12 to 15 gourdes per week.
The cost of transportation of ore on burros or mules from Meme to
Gonaives by way of Bassin was about 20 gourdes per ton in 1912-13,
8
according to Lutgens. H e bases his estimate on a load of 200 pounds for
each animal, which is somewhat excessive for continued practice. Two
gourdes per trip was the price charged for each animal. A certain port
charge must be paid, besides the lighterage and freight charge to New
York. Exclusive of mining and treatment, the cost per ton of the ore
at New York would probably be $10 to $12 (U. S. currency) with the
present available means of transportation. In 1909 Doret' stated that
ore averaging 6 per cent of copper could not be profitably shipped to
the United States at the current freight rates.
The improvement of the transporta.t ion conditions between Meme and
Gona!ves should be an important part of any scheme for the development
of the properties.
CONCLUSIONS.

The apparent inability of the several promoters of the properties to

operate them successfully, although not encouraging in itself, does not
conclusively indicate that better results are not possible. Much of the
prospecting and development work has been wasteful. The tactite bodies,
with the exception of a few that lie along steep contacts of igneous rock and
•
1 Doret, F., Report addressed ''A ~I. Le Secr~ta ire d'Etat des Travaux Publics'': Le
Moniteur, Nos. 24 and 25, Mar. 23 and 26, pp. 153-154, Port-au-Prince, 1910.
2 A gourde at rate of exchange in 1921 was equivalent to 20 cents in United States

currency.
a Lutgens, R., Geographische und geologlsche Beobachtungen in Nordwest-Hatti: Geo-
graphischen ~sellschaft in Hamburg Mitt., Band 23, p. 56, 1919.
• Doret, F., op. cit.
nErr·n r. I C OF JIAI T I
(;1':0 f,()fi I l'.i\ L St.: Jt \ " J•: 'l PLATE XX.XI\..

•....
' ,
.,
t,a .... ,..,••.,
. .. I

'
1..
• • •
•
•

.4. ORE Ji" RO:\[ CONTACT , META:\fORPTTTC'

, DEPO~IT~, R OCITE
GI.JI E, ~1El1E 'YAI.JI ... I~Y .
:\lagnf' ti tfl' (gray) fl i1cl C'hnlcopyrite
(wl1ite) in cl<>~i ng r t·)·~ta ls of
g~1 rnet ( <1~1 rk g rnJ~) . The clark gnngue acco1111):1n3·ing- chal<'< >l>)· rite an<l
filling crack in gi1rnet nncl 111agnetite is ral<·it('. X 90 .

•• •
-
•

••
•
Cc

B. SECO~DARY COPI>ER ORE FR0:\1 E~ RI C IIED 'T EI~ ..\'I,

R OCifE ll.
B1·ecci:1 tecl s pbale1·ite ( ) partly re1)lacecl by bornite (B) and cha 1-
cocite (Cc) . Also some late1· covellite ( C'v) and chal corite along small
cracks. X 90.
 MINERAL RESOURCES. 449

limestone, are relatively flat lying and could have been efficiently worked
by open-cut methods of mining. This method was employed at a few
places and probably could have been more generally applied. A number of
11nnecessary tunnels were driven into the hillsides, some for long distances
through barren intrusive porphyry.
The contact deposits in Meme Valley are the most encouraging and
most favorably situated for development. None of the tactite bodies
examined northwest of Morne D11muraille in the Terre-Neuve Valley
seem to offer much encouragement for further development. The few
bodies that have not been extensively prospected are small and flat lying
and are probably thin cappings. Moreover, the transportation in this
part of the Terre-Neuve district is difficult. However, if at any time the
deposits at l\1eme could be profitably mined, probably some ore could be
taken from the deposits in Terre-Neuve Valley.
The probable low tenor of most of the tactite bodies and the unce1·tainty
as to their size or continuity except to relatively shallow depths are
factors which must be given considerable weight in judging any of the
deposits. Probably most of the tactite will rl1n between 1 and 3 per cent
in copper, possibly with small scattered bodies of richer ore. Much barren
rock would doubtless have to be removed during mining operations. The
developing and operating of such deposits is clearly not to be attempted
on a small scale. Because of the heavy gangue minerals, such as garnet
and the iron oxides, the ore as mined could not be efficiently concentrated
by water, and the transportation costs on the ore would be high. Possibly
some methods of flotation could be successfully applied for the concentra-
tion of this ore. However, it is questionable whether the size of the ore
bodies or the tenor of the ore exposed at the present stages of prospecting
would warrant the considerable initial outlay necessary to large-scale
operations. Although there has not been sufficient development to war-
rant an accurate estimate of the tonnage, the surface exposures and pros-
pect tunnels in Meme Valley at present expose probably not more than
50,000 to 100,000 tons of ore, running from 1 to 3 per cent copper. Pos-
sible ore in addition to this will doubtless be found only within the area
of limestone west of t11e Riviere Bassin above Meme and in the small
bodies of altered limestone near t.he bed of the ravine. (See Pl. II and
Fig. 28, p. 444.) The depth to which these partly altered limestone bodies
extend is unknown. Under favorable conditions, assuming an average
thickness of 10 meters for the tactite bodies, it is possible that a total of
several hundred thousand tons of tactite might be present in the south-
eastern part of the area on the hillside above Meme and in the small
bodies of limestone in the ra,rine of the Riviere Bassin. It is very probable,
however, that the tactite bodies, if present, would be discontinuous. Thor-
•
ough prospecting to determine the depth to which the limestone and
tactite bodies extend and if possible their attitudes, should be underta.k en
before any scheme for exploitation is seriously considered.
29
 •

450 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

VEIN DEPOSITS.

GENERAL FEATURES .AND DISTRIBUTION.

Quartz veins carrying sulphides are found both in the intrusive por-
phyries and in the surrounding volcanic rocks. These veins carry copper
and silver and some gold, but their richness depends largely on the amount
of secondary enrichment. Nearly all the veins are rather small, some of
them only a few centimeters wide, although in some places they are as
much as 20 to 40 centimeters wide.
The primary veins appear to be of two types, those carrying pyrite,
chalcopyri te, and specularite in a gangue or quartz and calcite, and those
carrying chalcopyrite, pyrite, sphalerite, and galena in a gangue of quartz
and some barite. Oxidation and leaching have largely destroyed the pri-
mary sulphide constituents of the veins of the second class to a depth of
at least several meters below the surface. Both types of veins carry some
silver and gold. The enriched veins carrying galena and sphalerite are
the richest in silver.
The veins carrying chalcopyrite and specularite appear t.o have been
forn;ied at relatively high temperatures and are known in only one locality,
at and near Ravine Jeanty. Here the veins are in altered porphyries and
aplitic rocks. These veins show lit tle or no evidence of chalcocitization,
though there is some secondary limonite and copper carbonates.
Veins of the second type are found principally at Rocher, a short dis-
tance southeast of T erre-N euve village. The co11ntry rock is altered
•
andesite and a large dike of dacite porphyry.
East of Terre-Neuve there are quartz veins similar to those at Rocher,
carrying bornite, chalcocite, and copper carbonates.
At Dolan, south of Terre-Neuve village, there are veins containing
native copper, cuprite, chrysocolla, malachite, and azurite. The primary
mineralization here js not kno""'11.
At other places small quartz stringers show stains of malachite.

VEINS NEAR ROCHER.

Character and distribution. The veins near Rocher are confined to a

small zone that extends southeastward fro1n Terre-Neuve village toward
the base of Morne Miguinda. Most of the larger veins are near habitation
Rocher, although some minor copper-stained fractures are found farther
east and southeast.
Most of the veins were formed by the filling of open spaces caused by
fractures, though some were formed by the r eplacement of wall rock close
to the fractures. The veins could not be traced far, and their small size
indica.tes that they may not be very persistent either in length or depth.
Only a small amo11nt of clayey gouge is found in them, and in general
there is little brecciation of the wall rock except at the intersections of
 MINERAL RESOURCES. 451

fractures. The strike of the veins is generally northeastward, ranging

from N. 35° E. to N. 70°-80° E., and the dip is rather steep both to the
northwest and southeast. However, some dips of only 30° to 45° were
noted. The width of the individual veins probably does not average more
than 2 to 4 centimeters, although some veins widen to 8 or 10 centimeters
for short distances, and some impregnated breccia zones may be even
wider. The country rocks are altered andesites and dacite porphyry.
Prospects. A considerable number of small shafts, pits, and other
openings have been started on these veins. The deepest shafts, however,
extended to a depth of only 12 or 15 meters, and the veins are still in
the zone of secondary sulphides .
•

The Darius N 0. I and No. 2 prospects (No. 13 on map, Pl. II) con-
sist of two shafts about 10 and 4 meters deep, respectively, s1mk on veins
that strike about N. 60° E. and dip from 60° to 70° E. Near the surface
at shaft No. 1 the wall rock is impregnated with copper carbonates for a
width of a meter or two. The sulphide ore occurs in small quartz stringers.
Shaft No. 2 exposes a brecciated zone, evidently at the junction of two
fractures. The mineralization along either fracture is slight but it is
somewhat more pronounced in the breccia zone. Between these two pros-
pects a shallow pit has been dug, exposing the vein, but here it is pinched
out and shows only a very slight mineralization. Just west of these frac-
tures a.n other vein strikes N. 70° to 80° E. and dips 30, N. This frac-
0

ture had considerable red clayey gouge, but the mineralization consists of
only a slight malachite stain in the wall rock. About 15 to 20 meters west
of shaft No. 1 a vein that trends N. 45° E. is exposed in a small prospect
pit, a meter or two deep·. The vein dips 45 ° southeast and contains 2 to
3 centimeters of nearly solid chalcocite filling.
Farther up the ravine, about half a kilometer east of these prospects,
there are several other prospect pits and one shaft about 12 meters deep
(No. 14 on map, Darius No. 4 and Raphael prospects). The veins here
are small quartz stringers, generally 2 t.o 3 centimeters wide but at places
widening to 10 centimeters or more. The quartz contains some sulphide
ore and the soft altered wall rock is impregnated with sulphide and
malachite. The country rock is dacite porphyry, which intrudes the older
andesites. The veins strike about N. 80° W., and dip 45° N.
The Ophat prospect (No. 15), which is near the crest of a small knoll
northeast of Rocher consists of a tunnel about 15 meters in length driven
into the hillside at the contact of the intrusive porphyry and altered
andesite. A small shaft was sunk to intersect the face of the tunnel, which
was caved near the face when examined. The fault zone in some places is
slightly mineralized for a width of 25 to 30 centimeters with oxidized
copper minerals and some sulphides in a quartz and barite gangue. Near
this prospect there was a small ore pile that contained specimens showing
•
remnants of primary sulphide ore.
452 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Tenor. During this investigation a few samples of sulphide ore and

of impregnated wall rock were taken. These samples were assayed with
the following results :

Results of assays of samples of ore from prospects near Rocher.

[Assays made by Ledoux & Co., of New York.]

Sample Character and source of

Copper. Silver. Gold.
No. sample

Per cent. Oz. per ton. Oz. per ton.

1 Picked sample of partly oxidized vein. Ophat
prospect, Rocher ............................ . 38.46 88.00 0.63
2 Picked sample of sulphide vein. Darius No. 4
prospect, Roeber ............................. . 34.26 55.80 0.09
3 Groove sample of brecciated wall rock partly
impregnated with sulphides. Width 1.5 meters.
Darius No. 2 prospect, Rocher ••.•••••....••..• 0.99 0.10 0.005
Groove sample of wall rock, impregnated with
malachite and sulphides. Width 0.34 meter.
Darius No. 4 prospect, Rocher •..•••.•..•..••.• 1.73 • •

o Undetermined.

Samples 1 and 2 were taken from veins that were about 4 centimeters
wide and that consisted of approximately ha.I f sulphide and half gangue.
These samples were selected from the more promising-looking veins, for
many of the veins were either so slightly mineralized or so much oxidized
as to be hardly worth sampling. Sample 1, which is the highest in silver
and gold, contained remn~nts of primary chalcopyrite, galena, and pyrite.
It consisted largely, however, of chalcocite and covellite, partly altered
to malachite, in a gangue of barite and quartz. (See Pl. XXXV, B.)
Sample No. 2 contained considerable sphalerite and some pyrite, both of
which were largely replaced by bornite, chalcocite, and covellite. From
these assays it appears that the sulphide ore is fairly high in silver but low
in gold.
The walls are at some places near the veins impregnated with malachite,
and at others with some secondary sulphides. Samples 3 and 4 were
taken from impregnated wall rock at favorable appearing places. Sample
3 was collected from a breccia zone and contained some sulphide in addi-
tion to malachite.
If these veins could be mined by stopes having an average width of one
meter (and the stopes could be no narrower because of the dip) it is
estimated that the copper would run from 2 to 3 per cent, silver from 3 to
5 oun·ces, and gold about 0.005 to 0.04 ounces per ton of rock mined
if we may assume that the average tenor of veins is the same as that of
the samples assayed, but this assumption is not warranted by the study
of conditions in the field. In fact, most of the veins merely show a
few stringers of quartz containing traces of sulphides and some malachite.
 MINERAL RESOURCES • 453
•

The content of malachite and chalcocite in the wall rocks indicated in

assays 3 and 4 would probably diminish rapidly with increase of depth.
Mineralogy. The recognized primary sulphide minerals in these veins
are chalcopyrite, pyrite, sphalerite, and galena. The gangue is generally
•

quartz, although at the Ophat prospect earlier barite accompanies the

quartz in a pyrite and galena-bearing vein. Primary chalcopyrite was
found in only one specimen, which contained it in very small amo11nt. If
the other specimens collected originally contained chalcopyrite it seems to
have been completely destroyed by secondary processes. Traces of a
1
mineral that in microchemical tests reAembles famatinite were seen in
polished sections of a specimen containing sphalerite and pyrite, taken
from a vein on the Darius No. 4 prospect. These traces are so small that
conclusive chemical tests of them were not possible. The mineral appears
white by reflected light in the polished sections and is in a late stage of
replacement by chalcocite. If the primary minerals were in part sulph-
arsenates or sulphantimonates, such as enargite and famatinite, most of
the arsenic and antimony has been removed from the upper few meters of
the veins. The conditions at the prospects favored the destruction of the
primary minerals, and samples were not readily obtainable from depths of
more than 5 or 6 meters or from sulphide veins more than 2 or 3 centi-
meters in width. 'l'he pyrite, galena, and chalcopyrite remaining in the
enriched portions of the veins are much decomposed. (See Pl. XXXV, A.)
In the upper part.s of the veins, to the depth exposed by the present pros-
pect workings, bornite, chalcocite, and covellite are the principal sulphides.
Bornite is rather ab11ndant in the less chalcocitized sulphide ore, and,
like the later chalcocite, it replaces sphalerite and pyrite. Both bornite
and chalcocite at many places form veinlets cutting the sphalerite and
pyrite. (See Pl. XXXIV, B.) The structural relations seen in polished
sections suggest that the bornite was formed under the same conditions as
the chalcocite and hence may have been deposited by descending meteoric
waters during the period of sulphide enrichment. If so bornite was the
first secondary copper sulphide to form and was followed by chalcocite and
covellite. Some of the chalcocite in polished sections is a deeper blue than
normal, its color being due in part to a fine intergrowth and in part,
probably, to solid solution of covellite. Later generations of covellite and
chalcocite, which are associated with copper carbonates, show varying
interrelations. Near the surface both sulphides are extensively replaced
by malachite and to a minor extent by azurite. (See Pl. XXXV, B.)
A few microscopic veinlets of secondary chalcopyrite were seen in the
bornite.
The form in which the silver occurs in the ore is not definitely known,
but some of the chalcocite appears to be highly argentiferous. In polished
1
Davy, W. M., and Farnham, C. M., Microscopic examination of the ore minerals, p.
83, 1920; Murdoch, J., Microscopical determinations ot the opaque minerals, p. 99, 1916.
 . -
454 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF 11AIT1.

sections of sulphide ore seen 11nder the microscope small blebs and vein-
lets of a creamy-white mineral, possibly native silver, cut secondary vein-
lets of chalcocite and bornite. In a thin section of partly oxidized ore
containing considerable malachite a . soft white mineral that had partly
replaced covellite and chalcocite could not be definitely identified by
microchemical reactions. The polished surface of the mineral was tar-
nished with a brownish iridescence by mercuric chloride, but owing to
• the presence of considerable malachite a.nd to the fineness of the texture
microchemical tests were not decisive. The mineral may be argentite
1
( Ag2 S) or dycrasite ( Ag6 Sb) . As this ore assayed 88 ounces of silver
to the ton (sample 1, p. 452) the mineral is probably a secondary silver
mineral deposited by descending surface waters in the upper part of the
chalcocite zone. Possibly much of the silver in these rich secondary ores
occurs in some unrecognized form in the chalcocite.
Enrichment. The exact physiographic conditions under which the
primary veins at Rocher were enriched can not be certainly inferred. The
erosion of the overlying igneous rocks and limestones was probably well
11nder way in late Pliocene and early Quaternary time. During this time
the enrichment of the primary veins that reached the surface probably
began, and this enrichment has in general probably kept pace with the
lowering of the surface and of the gro11nd-water level. It is generally
held that the secondary sulphide zone is formed below the zone of oxida-
2
tion and begins essentially at the gro11nd-water level. The level of the
present water table at Rocher is probably close to the level of the bottoms
of the adjacent ravines, although it possibly fluctuates considerably as a.
result of the marked differences in rainfall during the wet and dry seasons.
The highest ground at Rocher stands 490 to 500 meters above sea level,
and the adjacent bed of the Riviere Colombier is about 450 meters above
sea level. Many of the prospects are not more than 10 or 15 meters above
the bottom of the ravine. At present the chalcocite zone at Rocher extends
practically to the surface, although there is slight oxidation at least to the
depth of the present prospecting 10 to 15 meters. Thus it appears
that erosion and consequent downward migration of the water level have
gone along faster than the downward migration of the sulphide zone.
This difference is due probably to less leaching and downward enrichment
during a diminishing circulation of ground water, which is possibly a
consequence of less relief in recent times. There is no reason to believe
that the chalcocitization is going on or has taken place near the surface,
· as the sulphides are clearly subject to oxidation at their present position.
There is little means of judging how far the chalcocite zone extends
below the present ground-water level. Because of the very small size of the
1 See Davy, W. M., and Farnham, C. M., Microscopic examination of the ore minerals,
p. 67, 1910.
2 Emmons, W. H., The enrichment ot ore deposits : U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 625, p.

63, 1917.
REPUBLIC OF HAITI
GEOLOGICAL SUHVEY PLATE XXXV

• ,,.
~==--~~~=====--- =....:..;==-.;:;;..==--- ·----.!-.=:__ ~ ~ ~
.t . SECONDARY COPPER ORE F'RO)f F,NRICHED VEIN A'l~
ROCIIER.
Pyrite ( P). bo rni te (B), and chalcocite (Cc). Pyrite partly replnce<l
by both borni te <ln<l chalcocite. Dark gray are:1s are qt1artz. X 10.

R. SECOND.\RY COPPER ORE FRO)! PARTLY OXIDIZED VEIN

AT ROCHER.
Chnlcocite (grayish white) and covellite (light gr·ny) i1artly replacecl
by mnlnchite (clark gray) ....~t right s1nall remnant of pyrite (white).
x 120.
•
 MINERAL RESOURCES. 455

vei~s and the probable lack of vigorous meteoric circulation in recent

times, the chalcocite zone doubtless does not extend to very great depths.
Even if the zone extended 30 to 50 meters or more below the surface the
silver enrichment is probably rather superficial and will no doubt decrease
rapidly with increase of depth. In general secondary silver and gold are
precipitated nearer the surface than the secondary copper minerals, in
some places in the upper part of the chalcocite zone. Below the chalcocite
zone secondary silver rojnerals will probably not be found, as chalcocite
1
or chalcocite-depositing solutions are precipitants of both silver and gold.
Alteration of wall rocks. The wall rock near the veins has generally
been somewhat bleached and altered and is impregnated with secondary
sulphides and malachite.
In the dacite porphyry the formation of chlorite and to a minor extent
sericite have been the principal changes which probably occurred during
the formation of the primary veins. Some potash has been introduced,
and some carbon dioxide to form calcite. In the more altered rock the
phenocrysts of feldspar have been largely destroyed and replaced by calcite
and some kaolinite. The hornblende is altered to chlorite, calcite, magne-
tite, and titanite or rutile. The kaolinite may be the result of weathering,
as the specimens were necessarily taken within a few meters of the surface,
and moreover they were liable to localized alteration by meteoric waters
•

that descended along the vein.

In the more basic and more permeable hornblende andesites and basaltic
rocks the weatl1ering is more pronounced and more widespread. These
rocks are greatly decomposed and softened to a considerable depth. The
more altered rocks consist largely of calcite, ferric oxide, quartz, and a
mineral that resembles gibbsite. Andesitic rock taken from places near
•

the porphyry dike contact at Rocher shows considerable albitization of

plagioclase and the introduction of quartz and some calcite. Iron occurs
largely as hematite and limontite.
The kaolinite in the porphyry and the limonite and gibbsite ( ?) in
the andesitic and basaltic rocks were probably formed by weathering,
which is more pronounced along the :fissures through which the meteoric
waters descended.

VEINS NEAR RAVINE JEANTY.

Oharacte1· and distribution. The veins at Ravine Jeanty are quite dif-
•
ferent from those near Rocher. They are in rather wide :fissures or shear
zones containing a thick clayey gouge produced by considerable move-
ment along them. Much of the vein filling is separated from the wall
rock because of movements later than the mineralization, and in some
veins the filling is much brecciated. The veins differ much in width at
1 Emmons, W. H., op. cit., pp. 157, 257, 269.
•
456 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

different places; at some places they pinch out altogether; at others they
widen to half a meter or more.
The veins are in an intrusive complex of quartz diorite porpl1yries and
related aplitic rocks, which is intruded into the older volcanic rocks and
forms a narrow zone, about a kilometer in length, trending northwestward.
Prospects. There are reported to be 15 or 20 prospect workings and
pits near Jeanty, although only 7 of the larger tunnels and shafts were
examined.
The Jeanty workings (No. 8) consist principally of two small tunnels,
which expose three or four of the larger veins and some minor fractures.
The larger tunnel, east of the ravine, is 40 to 45 meters in length. This
tunnel cuts three principal veins, striking N. 70° W., N. 80° W., and
about N. 75° E., respectively. None of the veins shows a persistent miner-
alization. The vein nearest the face of the ti1nnel strikes approximately
N. 80° W., dips about 65° N., and ranges in width from 10 to 40 centi-
meters. The movement along this vein has brecciated the primary miner-
als and has formed a gray gouge. The faulting at this fracture appears to
be of the normal type. The gouge completely coats some pieces of the brec-
ciated primary vein material. 'rhe ore consists principally of chalcopyrite,
which is in part altered to limonite and malachite, and some specularite
in a gangue of calcite and quartz. This vein is the most promising one
seen, but the mineralization is not continuous.
The small tunnel at Jeanty was run along an east-west vein, which
widens in places to about 30 centimeters but is practically barren except
for some minor stains of malachite.
At Saintival (No. 9) the tunnel intersects a prominent fracture zone
that is exposed at the surface. A wide zone of shearing containing abun-
dant clayey gouge is exposed near the face of the tunnel, but jt shows
little or no mineralization.
Above the Jeanty workings, on the crest of t.h e ridge, a shaft and
several small pits were sunk on the northwest-southeast vein. This vein,
which follows the crest of the ridge, consists of quartz and a small amo11nt
of chalcopyri te.
Across the next ravine to the east a small tunnel (Yade, No. 10) was
run on a fracture striking N. 80° W., possibly a continuation of the
more prominent northwest vein on the ridge at Jeanty. Except for a few
small lenses showing a stain of malachite the fracture shows no miner-
alization.
Tenor. The ore in the fissures at Jeanty appears to be very erratically
distributed; some fractures a1·e entirely barren, and large sections· of the
mineralized veins are also barren. The mineralization appears in small
lenses or bunches, which are fractured and faulted. Much movement
along these veins occurred after the primary mjneralization, and the
results perhaps give a false idea of the size and persistency of the original
•
veins. •
 •

:MINERAL RESOURCES. 457

A sample was taken from the vein that strikes N. 80° W. in the larger
Jeanty tunnel, as this vein appears to have the richest mineralization.
The vein where sampled is 20 centimeters wide and the vein material is
in the gouge, entirely free from the walls. This sample, when assayed by
Ledoux & Co., of New YQrk, sh.owed copper 5.99 per cent, silver 0.10
ounce, and gold 0.005 ounce per ton of 2,000 pounds. The vein has not
been enriched and contains little silver and gold.
Reports mention a pocket on the principal northwest vein, near Ravine
Jeanty, which was 2.5 meters wide and assayed about 4 per cent of copper.
Other assays show somewhat higher results, the copper running from 8 to
1
10 per cent, silver 1 to 3 011nces, and gold up to 0.27 011nce.
Mineralogy. The metallic minerals fo11nd in the Jeanty veins are
chalcopyrite, specularite, and some pyrite. The gangue is quartz and cal-
cite. The texture of the vein material and the large plates of specularite
suggest that the veins were formed at least at moderately high tem-
peratures.
Some oxidation has occurred, especially in the brecciated veins, where
the chalcopyrite is partly altered to limonite and malachite. No evidences
of chalcocitization were found. The lack of sulphide enrichment is due
possibly to the probable greater depth of gro1Jnd-water level at this locality
than at Rocher during Quaternary time, and possibly in part to the
texture of the veins. Some slight enrichment may have occurred at
deeper levels.
Alteration of the country rock. The country rock of the veins consists
principally of altered quartz diorite porphyries and aplites. These rocks
as a whole were considerably metamorphosed during the period of intru-
sive activity. The principal alterations were widespread albitization of
the plagioclase and recrystallization of the primary hornblende. The
more altered rocks are seamed with veinlets of quartz and orthoclase and
of actinolitic hornblende. The albitized plagioclase has been replaced in
part by calcite and epidote. Sericite has been formed in some of the
rocks. Shreds of recrystallized uralitic hornblende and granules of titanite
are ab1rndant in all the altered porphyries. The alteration appears to have
been due to solutions that permeated the rocks during the period of intru-
sion rather than to the later vein-forming solutions.

VEINS AT DOLAN.

Character and distribution. The copper veins at Dolan contain metal-

lic copper, cuprite, and chrysocolla, minerals that are not generally found
at ot.h er places in this district. Although a large n11mber of mineral
occurrences are reported in the vicinity of Dolan, the more notable pros·
pects are on two spur ridges of volcanic rock that extend southwestward
into the va.l ley from the higher limestone slopes of the mountain.
1 Ferguson, E. G. W., The mineral resources of Haiti, West Indies: The Mining World,
vol. 31, p. 134, July 10, 1909. I

•
458 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Prospects. The Estime prospect (No. 16 on map), which is the only

one at Dolan that has any considerable showing of copper, consists at the
surface of strippings and trenchings to the depth of 1 or 2 meters for a
distance of about 40 meters along the hillside. The stripping exposes
an east-west shear zone, along which the rock is mineralized in places for
a width of about a meter. Cuprite is the principal mjneral, but pieces of
metallic copper as much as 20 centimeters in diameter have been fo11nd
along this vein. Chrysocolla, malachite, and azurite are also fo11nd. The
country rock here is pyroxene andesi te.
A branching ti1nnel about 22 meters in length has been driven below
the outcrop into the hillside, which slopes about 30°. It apparently pene-
trates the east~west vein underground, but here the vein is barren and
contains much clayey gouge. A similar north-south vein, dipping 40° to
45 ° W., shows a slight mineralization like that in the east-west vein. The
hanging wall of this vein has been locally impregnated and is separated
~from a breccia in the footwall by a seam of red clay gouge. The exposures
in the tunnel show that the mineralization is very erratic and furnisl1
little encoura.gement for further development.
A number of other small pits and tunnels have been driven on fractures
in and around Dolan, but none of them show more than a stain of
malachite.
Character and origin of the mineralization. The veins at Dolan are
apparently the result of oxidation of some primary sulphide veins by
descending cold solutions. The chrysocolla appears to have been the
first mineral deposited and to have been replaced first by cuprite and native
copper and finally by malachite and azurite. The chryscolla penetrated
tl1e adjacent wall rock more freely than the later cuprite, and, with some
of the quartz, it replaces the groundmass of the pyroxene andesite that
lies adjacent to the vein walls. The later malachite and azurite have
followed the chrysocolla in impregnating the wall rock.
The zone of primary mineralization at Dolan has been completely
destroyed, and the present outcrops are now well within the zone of
oxidation. The work done on the veins affords no indication that the
oxidized minerals overlie a zone of chalcocite enrichment. At slightly
deeper levels, however, this oxidized material probably overlies at least
a thin zone of chalcocite ore.
The cuprite and native copper found in these veins at Dolan may
1·epresent a horizon at or slightly above the ground-water level that pre-
vailed while the chalcocite was being formed in the veins at Rocher. The
outcrop of the vein at Dolan stands about 700 meters above sea level, or
about 200 meters higher than the outcrops at Rocher.
\
VEINS EAST OF TERRE-NEUVE VILLAGE.

East and northeast of Terre-Neuve village there are a number of frac-

tures in the andesitic country rock that are slightly mineralized with
•
 MINEBAL RESOURC'.ES. 4o9

copper sulphides and ca.rbonates. The fractures all strike about N. 60° -
70° W., and dip 60°-65° NE. Several of the prospects seem to lie along
the same fracture zone. At most of the prospects the mineralization is
rather scanty and consists of a little bornite and chalcocite and stains of
malachite in a gangue of quartz. At several of the pits malachite was the
only visible metallic mineral. The country rock is largely fine-grained
purplish or reddish andesite, alt.hough a few small stocks appear to be in-
trusive porphyry. In all there are five principal prospects Justin
(No. 17), Reserve (No. 18), Charlestin (No. 19), Edm11nd (No. 20),
and Caille Brulee (No. 21). These prospects are developed by small
shafts and tunnels, which seem to have enco11ntered only traces of ore
and which give little encouragement for further development.

GENERAL CONCLUSIONS AS TO VEINS.

Considerable work has been done in prospecting the veins in the

Terre-Neuve district, and there seems to be enough evidence to warrant
the conclusion that none of the veins are of present commercial value.
The enriched veins at Rocher, in which the tenor is rather high, are
thin, or they are mere seams, and they would not warrant the outlay
necessary to prospect or develop them. There is nothing to encourage the
belief that these small seams will coalesce below to form veins of com-
mercial value or that the enriched zones will extend to great depths.
The silver, which constitutes the principal valuable mineral in these
veins, would naturally be confined largely to the upper part of the chal-
cocite zone.
The larger and more persistent veins at Ravine Jeanty are only sporadi-
cally mineralized, and on the whole even the richer pockets contain only
a moderate percentage of copper and little silver and gold. These veins
are not enriched.

COPPER BEARING VEINS IN PRE-TERTIARY ROCKS.

By WILBOR S. BURBANK and JoHN S. BROWN.

GENERAL FEATURES AND ORIGIN.

Copper-bearing quartz and calcite veins carrying sulphides and iron

oxides are widespread in the pre-Tertiary basement rocks in the northern
part of the Republic. These veins are of late Mesozoic age and ar-e geneti-
cally related to the regional intrusion of quartz diorite of that age. The
veins are fo11nd in the intrusive rocks and in the old metamorphosed
volcanic rocks and associated schists. Most of them are small but some
attain widths of 40 centimeters or more. In the country rocks there are
shear zones which are in places silicified and cemented by quartz for a
width of several meters and which here and there contain sulphides.
Large barren quartz veins were seen at a few places in the quartz diorite.
 460 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The most common association of minerals appears to be specularite,

pyrite, cbalcopyrite, and quartz. Many of the quartz veins contain small
amo11nts of tita.nite and chlorite. The chalcopyrite in some veins accom-
panies later calcite. Both specularite and pyrite generally show good
crystal development in the quartz. Some of the quartz veins carry pyrite
1
and chalcopyrite but no specularite. It is reported that quartz and
calcite veins carrying highly argentiferous galena were fo11nd at Grande-
Riviere du Nord, although no galena was seen in any veins examined
•
during the reconnaissance .
Veinlets of primary calcite carrying pyrite or chalcopyrite occur in
the volcanic rocks, especially in cblorite schist. These veins usually ac-
company quartz veins, and the calcite invariably appears to be of later
origin than the quartz.
Many of the veins appear to have been brecciated and recemented before
the chalcopyrite was introduced, the conditions indicating that movements
were going on during the period of intrusive activity. Some shear zones
in the quartz diorite contain quartz and pyrite but most of them contain
Ii ttle or no chalcopyri te.
Most of the veins occur within a few kilometers of intrusive bodies of
quartz diorite or in the quartz diorite itself. The occurrence of primary
specularite in some of the veins and their field association with intensely
altered rocks indicate that they were formed at relatively high tempera-
tures. Some veins containing specularite exhibit comb structure and con-
tain cavities which indicate that they were formed by the :filling of open
spaces. Many of the veins, however, contain only pyrite and chalcopyrite
and a few of them are not near known outc~rops of quartz diorite. The
alteration of the country rock and the mineral ass~ciations of the veins
indicate that intrusive contacts are probably near, although possibly
concealed.
2
Thomasset reports that the quartz veins near Grande-Riviere du Nord
and Limonade contain considerable quantities of platinum and iridos-
mium in addition to sulphides and iron oxides, but later investigators
have not verified this r eport, and possibly the samples may have in some
way become conta.m inated. Unfortunately, time was not available dur-
ing the r eronnaissance to permit a careful invest.i gation of these reports.
1
Thomasset also reports that some of the quartz veins carry free gold,
but it probably occurs in quantities so small that its value is negligible.
None of the veins have been exploited for gold .
.
ENRICHMENT OF PRIMARY VEINS.

The lean primary veins have been somewhat enriched by downward

leaching and redeposition, but the enrichment appears to have appreciably
1
Thomasset, Henri, Notice sur les mines de cuivre de la Grande-Riviere du Nord: Le
Monlteur, No. 45, p. 409, Port-au-Prince, 4 juin, 1904. •
~Op. cit., pp. 408-409.
a Op. cit., p. 409.

'
 MINERAL RESOURCES. 461

affected the tenor of the veins only near Grande-Riviere du Nord. The
enrichment, which is due to descending surface water, is of the ordinary
type fo11nd in copper veins and has not only concentrated the copper but
also to some extent, the silver. The secondary minerals are borni te, chal-
cocite, covellite, malachite, and azurite. This enrichment encouraged
an attempt to exploit the veins near Grande-Riviere du Nord.
At other places there are small amounts of chalcocite but not enough to
enrich the primary vein appreciably. The limonite and copper carbonates
found near the surface were formed by the partial oxidation of the pyrite
and chalcopyrite.

TENOR OF VEINS AND GENERAL CONDITIONS.

The lean primary veins at every locality examined are too small or too
low in tenor to be exploitable. Their copper content is low, and they
contain only traces of gold or silver.
The enriched veins offer but little more encouragement to prospectors
than the primary veins. Attempts to exploit the most promising veins at
Grande-Riviere du Nord have been unsuccessful. The primary veins were
so very poor and have been so slightly enriched that they hold little prom-
ise of yielding ore in commercial quantities. Good evidence of considerable
silver enrichment, which seems to be lacking, would be necessary to war-
rant attempts to exploit any of these veins. The veins are very small and
probably do not extend to great depths. Veins containing considerable
galena as a primary mineral might contain more silver and show corres-
ponding greater enrichment.

GENER.AL DIS1filBUTION.

Veins of the types just described may be io11nd at many places in the
northern part of the Republic, where the surface formations are of pre-
Tertiary age. (See geologic map, Pl. I.) The veins, however, are more
abundant in the Mesozoic volcanic rocks •
that border intrusive contacts
of the quartz diorite. Areas of the intrusive rock itself appear to be less
favorable, except near their borders. No promising mineralized veins
have been fo11nd in the argillites and sandstones of supposed lower or
middle Cretaceous age. In general these rocks were probably too near the
surface t.o be strongly altered or mineralized at the time of the intrusion.
A large ba.r ren quartz vein wa.s seen in the argillites near the crest of
the first ridge north of Cerca-la-Source on the trail to Lamielle.
Copper veins occ-ur in many areas that could not be visited during the
reconnaissance, but most of the more promising ones were visited.
 462 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

COPPER VEINS NE.AR GRANDE-RIVIERE DU NORD.

LOO.ATION AND ACCESS.

The copper-bearing veins near tbe town of Grande-Riviere du Nord

have received considerable attention from prospectors. Figure 29, a map
of the region around Grande-Riviere, shows the general geologic features
and the approximate location of several of the more important prospects .

I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I •
\
I
,"'J
• I
•

,
, _.,,I

, I
Echel le 2zs,ooo
o t i x '
't if Kilometre!S
~"'..uteurs en metres
FroURE 29. Geologic sketch map of the vicinity of Grande-Riviere du Nord
showing the location of the larger copper prospects.

The town itself is accessible from Cap-Haitien both by railroad and im-
proved road. The railroad extends up the river valley as far as Bahon, a
total distance of 39 kilometers from Cap-Ha1tien. The prospects, not all
of which are shown on the map, are accessible from the river valley only
by horse trails, many of which are very poor. Copper ore has been taken
to Grande-Riviere du Nord on pack animals and shipped to Cap-Haitien
by railroad ..

•
 MINERAL RESOURCES.
I
463

The surface rocks in the mountains consist principally of metamor-

phosed volcanic rocks, which are intricately dissected. The low mountains
east and west of the town of Grande-Riviere rise 400 or 500 meters above
sea level. The lower ridges or spurs, which extend to the sides of the
river valley, stand at altitudes of less than 300 meters. The prospects at
Zepiny are at an altitude of 190 meters, about 120 meters above the town
of Grande-Riviere. The ridge to the north of the prospects at Zepiny
rises to an altitude of 250 to 260 meters.

GEOLOGY.

The rocks of immediate interest in the consideration of the copper

veins are altered volcanic rocks, which are probably of middle Mesozoic
age, and the intrusive quartz diorite, probably of late Cretaceous age.
The volcanic rocks are greenish to reddish much-altered lavas, consisting
principally of basalts and andesites. These rocks and the quartz diorite
are fully described under the heading '' Igneous rocks.''
The argillites overlie the older volcanic rocks but are probably intruded
by the quartz diorite. This igneous and metamorphic complex is over-
lain unconformably by limestones of late upper Cretaceous and Ter-
tiary age.
Areas in which the Tertiary limestones a.r e the surface rocks in this
locality are, naturally, \1nfavorable for the occurrence of copper veins,
and the areas of altered volcanic rocks appear to be the most favorable.
Veins may also be found in the quartz diorite near the borders of the
intrusion. No veins were seen in the argilli te in this region.

HISTORY OF DEVELOPMENT.

These veins, although probably known much earlier, first received

2
serious att.e ntion in 1901, when they were examined by Henri Thomasset.
He obtained a concession for the district on July 26, 1901, and began
prospecting on January 31, 1902. In his rather optimistic report in the
Moniteur he states that in February, 1904, the total length of pits and
galleries in hard rock was 290 meters (950 feet).
The work done since 1904 has apparently been intermittent and no
records of it are available. According to local reports, work at Cormiers
was stopped about 1915. At that time about 10 me·n were employed. Work
at Zepiny was apparently stopped somewhat earlier, in 1913 or 1914.
The inhabitants report that at times about 100 men were employed at
Zepiny. Although many of the workings were flooded with water when
visited and an estimate of the amount of work could not be made, it
appears that the larger part of the development must have been done prior
to 1904.
1 Op. cit., pp. 408-409. •
..

•
464 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

VEINS .A.T HABITATION ZEPINY.

Habitation Zepiny is about 5 or 6 kilometers by trail southeast of

Grande-Riviere. (See Fig. 29, No. 1.) The prospects are on both the
north and south sides of the eastward trending ravine up which the trail
leads from the main river valley. North of the ravine there are two
t11nnels, and an inclined shaft sunk in part along the intersection of two
fractures. One of the fractures strikes about N. 50° E. and dips 70° NW.,
and a later one strikes north and dips 75° E. The principal mineraliza-
tion is found along the earlier fracture and in the wall rock for a meter
or so from the west wall.
The country rock is a reddish or purplish altered volcanic rock consist-
ing near the vein largely of cemented breccia replaced here and there by
quartz and albite and by some chlorite and potash feldspar. The rock is
colored red by ferric oxide.
The richer ore in the veins is apparently of secondary origin, having
been formed by concentration from downward circulating meteoric waters.
It consists of bornite and chalcocite that are in part replaced by copper
carbonates in the oxidized zone. The sulphides forrn veins along joint
planes and impregnate the wall rock near the fissures. The brecciated
wall rock contains a few sulphide veinlets, 5 to 10 millimeters wide.
Polished sections show that the ore minerals are bornite, chalcocite,
and covellite. They cut the primary calcite and inclose primary quartz
and specularite. The specularite and especially the calcite were appar-
ently corroded during the secondary mineralization. Most of the speci-
mens were taken in the oxidized zone, within 5 or 6 meters of the surface,
and contain no primary sulphides, but a few showed traces of primacy
chalcopyrite, which, with calcite, had filled small spaces between the
quartz crystals.
The veins south of the ravine contain primary quartz and subordin.a te
amounts of calcite and supergene sulphides. They lie along a series o:f
fractures that strike N. 10°Ll5° E. One of the larger veins is in places
about 0.3 meter wide, and the later calcite stringers range in width :from
mere films up to 1 centimeter. The sulphides generally lie along strin-
gers of calcite and consist principally of chalcocite and covellite. The
veins south of the ravine contain less secondary sulphide than those north
of it. The quartz is largely barren. Several small shafts have been sunk on
these veins, and one on the larger vein is 12 to 15 meters deep.

VEINS IN SECTION CORMIERS.

Prospecting has been done on several veins west of the Grande Riviere
du Nord in Section Cormiers. About a kilometer west of the tow11
(No. 3) two branching tunnels have been driven for 20 to 25 meters into
a silicified zone in chlorite schist and altered volcanic rock. (For de-
scription o:f the chlorite schist see p. 309.) The metallic minerals are

' •
 •

MINERAL RESOURCES. 465

pyrite and chalcopyrite in quartz and some calcite. Only traces of secon-
dary sulphides were seen. The silicified breccia zone at this locality is at
some places 5 01· 6 meters wide, but the mineralization is very scanty. The
sulphides were developed more freely along clayey gouge in the fractures.
The lower tunnel was filled with water when the prospects were visited
and could not be explored. •

Farther southwest, at habitation La Selle, in the same rural section

(No. 2), there are veins of nearly solid chalcocite in altered amygdaloidal
basalt. (See p. 270.) Most of these veins are only a few millimeters
wide, but at some places they impregnate the country rock in a brecciated
zone so as to form small b11nches of moderately rich ore. One vein,
although it varies considerabJy, contains at one place a mass of solid
chalcoci te and malachite ore 5 or 6 centimeters wide.
Sections of the cbalcocite ore show that it contains primary quartz,
pyrite, and specularite and secondary bornite, chalcocite, covellite, mala-
chite, and azurite. The primary copper mineral in these veins is not
known, but float of quartz veins containing pyrite and chalcopyrite was
seen on the hillside. Thomasset reports that cuprite was noted in the
gossan of some of the veins.

GENERAL CONCLUSIONS AS TO COPPER-BEARING VEINS.

Assays of sulphide ore from Grande-Riviere du Nord are r eported to

contain at some places as much as 40 or 50 per cent of copper and 3 or 4
1
011nces of silver per tt>n, and traces of gold. An examination of the veins
shows clearly that the samples giving very high returns were picked
samples of copper minerals, most of them taken probably from the chalco-
cite veins. Although there are small bodies containing high-grade copper
ore and small amounts of silver they are too small and scattered to mine
profitably.
A sample from a vein of solid chalcocite and malachite ore at Cormiers,
about 3 centimeters wide, was assayed by Ledot1x & Co., of New York,
and gave the following results:

Assay of chakocite ore from Corm:iers, Grande-Riviere du Nord.

Copper ............................................ per cent .. 64.38
Silver ........... ounces per ton of 2,000 pounds avoirdupois .. 4.50
Gold ............ ounce per ton of 2,000 pounds avoirdupois .. 0.01

The content of silver is low for secondary sulphide ore, indicating a

lack of much silver in the primary ore.
The veins give little promise of great persistency, because they are
small and because the co11ntry rock is faulted and brecciated. The chalco-
citiza tion may at some places extend laterally into the country rock for a
1 Thomasset, Henri, op. cit., pp. 408, 409.
30

•
 •

466 GEOLOGY OF THE REPU:BLIC OF HAITI.

few centimeters or it may occur in small breccia zones, but it is generally

so slight that it forms only small bodies of moderately rich ore. In
following little seams of doubtful value much barren rock must be mined.

OTHER LOCALITIES •

•
SECTION LAS LOMAS.

About 6 kilometers northeast of St.-Michel de l'Atalaye, in Section

Las Lomas, there are evidences of old mining operations, 'vhich are said
to have been carried on by the Spaniards in search of gold. A stream near
by is called l'Eau d'Or. This place is about 2 kilometers north of the
plantation o.f the United West Indies Corporation, east of St.-Michel.
•
A stream gap in the low limestone mountains on the north side of the
Central Plain gives access to a small circular valley floored with volcanic
rocks. A low hill at the north end of this valley, about a kilometer north
of the gap, consists of metamorphosed volcanic rocks and chlorite schist.
A number of veins of quartz containing some calcite carrying small
amounts of pyrite and chalcopyrite crop out on this hill.
Besides the old workings, which have entirely caved in and have become
grown over with trees, there is a vertical shaft about 15 meters deep and
an inclined shaft about 30 meters long, which flattens out to two drifts
below. These shafts were sunk on the same vein, which strikes about
N. 60° W. and dips rather steeply to the northeast. According to the
reports they were driven by an engineer who had been working at one time
for the operators at Terre-Neuve.
The principal vein, which is at some places 30 to 50 centimeters wide,
consists of quartz and some calcite and carries small amounts of pyrite
and chalcopyrite. No secondary sulphides were seen and malachite and
azurite are the principal alteration products of the primary sulphides.
Veins of calcite and quartz carrying pyrite and chalcopyrite were seen in
the chlorite schist on the east slope of the hill. The co11ntry rock at these
prospects consists of altered amygdaloidal basaltic rocks, chlorite schist,
and epidosite. Farther south, along the valley floor, float of partly ser-
pentinized augite peridotite was found. Petrographic descriptions of these
. rocks are given on pages 287-288, and 309. The intense alteration of the
rocks and the formation of the veins of quartz and calcite were probably
the result of the regional metamorphism that attended the intrusions ot
quartz diorite. No outcrops of this rock were seen, but intrusive bodies
may be concealed beneath the surface or may crop out farther north.
The veins are evidently not exploitable for copper ore and appear to
contain no gold. Significantly large d11mps of barren quartz and altered
country rock lie near each shaft. Small piles of low-grade copper ore
were also seen. The futility of attempting to exploit these lean primary
veins is well illustrated by these workings.
 MINER.AL RESOURCES. 467

PLAISANCE .A.ND VICINITY.

Innumerable small quartz veins carrying sulphides and iron oxides cut
the pre-Tertiary volcanic and intrusive rocks near Plaisance and Ennery.
They fill small fissures and shear zones, and are generally not more than
a few centimeters wide, but at places they attain a width of 5 or 6 centi-
meters. The primary minerals are specularite, pyrite, and chalcopyrite.
nfany of the veins are stained with secondary copper carbonates and
limonite. Near intrusive contacts veins carrying only quartz and epidote
are found.
The country rock of the veins consists largely of much-metamorphosed
volcanic rocks, which were .partly converted into amphibolites during the
batholithic intrusion of quartz diorite. No veins were seen in the argil-
li tes of Cretaceous age.
None of the veins examined are large enough or rich enough to be of
any commercial interest, and so far as known no attempts have been made
to prospect them.
LIMON.ADE .AND VICINITY.

Some copper-bearing quartz veins are fo11nd in the mountains that

border the North Plain south of Limonade and in the low foothills a.n d
exposures of bedrock that crop out through the alluvial deposits of the
plain to the north and northeast. The mountains south of Limonade are
low spurs that apparently consist of metamorphic volcanjc rocks, which
extend northward into the plain from the main' mass of the Massif du
1
Nord to the south. According to Thomasset and to local reports quartz
veins containing copper sulphides, iron oxides, and some platinum and
iridosmium are found in these mountains. This locality was not visited
during the reconnaissance. Although the presence of copper-bearing
quartz veins would be expected in the altered volcanic rocks adjoining
the intrusive mass of quartz diorite to the south, the presence of platinum
and iridosmium in workable quantities is doubtful. The reports con-
cerning these deposits like those concerning deposits at Grande-Riviere
du Nord, have not been confirmed.
At Morne Beckly, a low hill of pre-Tertia.r y schists and metamorphosed
volcanic rocks about 6 kilometers east of Limonade, there are veins· of
quartz and chalcopyrite, which contain limonite and malachite as oxida-
tion products. Farther east, near Le Trou, float of similar vein :filling was
found. These veins did not contain much primary iron oxide. Veins of
quartz containing specularite and magnetite and in places epidote are
described on pp. 468-469. These veins apparently are distinct from the
•
copper veins. .
•
JEAN RABEL.

About 8 kilometers southwest of Jean Rabel some mineralization is

fo11nd in the quartz diorite and granodiorite porphyries of Cretaceous age.
1 Tbomasset, Henri, op. cit., p. 409.

•
•
•
468 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

At the locality visited a small pit has been dug and a t11nnel face started
for a meter or two on a mineralized fracture containing quartz, chalco-
pyrite, and molybdenite. Both the chalcopyrite and molybdenite impreg-
nate the brecciated quartz diorite porphyry to a slight extent near the
fracture. Except for stains of malachite and limonite there are no secon-
dary minerals and no signs of chalcocitization. These mineralized frac-
tures are of no economic value. This is the only place where molybdenite
was seen in the copper veins. The presence of this mineral probably indi-
cates that the vein was formed at a relatively high temperature.
Altogether possibly 8 or 10 square kilometers of intrusive porphyries
are exposed in this locality. Many of the porphyries are impregnated with
pyrite and considerably altered. (See p. 295.) The conditions at this place
do not seem to be particularly favorable for the discovery of valuable
mineral deposits. The porphyries are overlain unconformably by the
upper Eocene limestone, and boulders of the igneous rocks are abundant
in the basal conglomerate of this formation.

IRON DEPOSITS AT MORNE BECKLY.

•
By WIT.BUR S. BURBANK and JOHN S. BROWN •
.
GEOGRAPHY AND GEOLOGY.

Morne Beckly lies about 5 kilometers east of Limonade, on the main

road between Cap-Ha1tien and Ouanaminthe. It is a low, dome-shaped
swell, roughly 400 or 500 meters in diameter, standing about 35 or 40
meters above sea level, 10 meters higher than the surrounding plain. The
hill, which is an outcrop of bed rock that projects above the alluvial
deposits of the plain, consists largely of talcose, chloritic, and amphibo-
litic schists. The schistosity strikes about N. 30°-40° W. and dips
steeply. The schist is intruded by small dikes of quartz diorite porphyry
and felsite and by a number of small pegmatitic veins of quartz. Some of
the quartz pegmatites have a pinch-and-swell structure that is character-
istic of intrusion during deformation. Veins of quartz and epidote were
seen, some of them containing iron oxides. The schists appear to be
considerably deformed and are locally contorted and faulted.
The age of these schists is uncertain, but they show a degree of meta-
morphism greater than that noted at most other places in the Republic.
Undoubtedly some deformation took place during or somewhat before the
quartz diorite intrusion in Cretaceous time. The schists and intrusive
porphyries are more fully described on pages 296, 308-309.

CHABACTER AND OccurutENCE OF ORE.

The presence of magnetic iron ore on this hill has been known for some
time and is mentioned in a number of accounts published during the
colonial period. Some prospecting has been done, principally by Henri
 :MINERAi, RESOURCES. 469

1
Thomasset, who made numerous surface trenches across the hill, but no
ore was shipped. He gives four analyses showing only the amount of
metallic iron in the samples, which ranged from 61 to 65 per cent.
The iron is found in boulde1·s consisting of magnetite, hematite, and
quartz. These boulders may be as much as 30 centimeters in diameter
and are strewn apparently irregularly over the surface of the hill. The
ore is only a comparatively thin veneer in the residual soil on the ground,
and at no place on the hill or in the prospect trenches was there any indi-
cation of the primary ore body from which the boulders were concentrated.
Nearly all the ore contains some quartz, and in some blocks a con-
siderable proportion of quartz cements the iron oxides. Sections of the
ore show both magnetite and hematite in varying proportions. Some
secfions showed plates of specularite entirely replaced by magnetite and
in turn partly replaced by a second generation of hematite.

ORIGIN.

The mode of origin of the iron oxides is not clearly evident, but they
probably owe their formation to the igneous activity that accompanied
the intrusion of quartz diorite during Cretaceous time. Dikes of quartz
diorite porphyry and felsite cut the schists in the vicinity of the deposits.
The field relations indicate that the iron oxides were segregated in the
quartz veins that cut the schists. The association of the iron oxides with
quartz seems to be general. Although no large veins carrying iron were
found, many small quartz veins, 8 to 10 centimeters wide, carrying
ab11ndant specularite and magnetite were seen on Morne Beckly, and these
minerals occur as float at other places on the North Plain. One large
piece of a vein that was 10 to 12 centimeters wide contained 70 to 80
per cent of specularite and magnetite, the remainder of the vein being
milky quartz. Smaller veins contain, besides quartz and iron oxides, some
iron-rich epidote.
It seems quite certain that if the iron originated in quartz veins there
are no large ore bodies and that the iron fo11nd on the surface is a residual
concentration effected during a long period of erosion. The southern part
of the North Plain has apparently been eroded 11nder relatively stable
conditions for a long time, as is indicated by concretionary deposits of
iron and manganese found on its surface at other places. (See p. 477.)
The drainage on the plain is relatively i~active and does not quickly
remove the residual products of weathering.
The iron may have been formed by the contact-metamorphism of lime·
stone bodies in the schists, but most of t.h e evidence seems to be against
such a hypothesis. No limestone bodies were found in the metamorphic
complex on the North Plain, and no characteristic contact minerals are
associated with the magnetite and specularite.
1 Op. cit., p. 409.
 470 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

ECONOMIC VALUE.

The q11antity of iron ore visible on Morne Beckly is insufficient to give

the deposits any commercial value. The hill is only 400 to 500 meters in
diameter and the soil, which contains only a relatively small percentage
of iron ore, is thin. Whether or not commercial ore bodies are concealed
in the metamorphic complex here or elsewhere on the North Plain can be
determined only by extensive prospecting and magnetic surveying.
An analysis of a boulder consisting principally of magnetite and hema-
tite and a little quartz gave the following results:

Analysis of iron ore from M orne Beckly.

[By Ledoux & Co., New York.]
Per cent.
Fe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70.75
Si02 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.17
p . . .. . .. . ... . .. .. . . ... .. .. . . .. .. . .. . .. ... ... .. . .. .. .. . ... . .011
•
\

DEPOSITS OF MANGANESE.
By WILBUR S. BURBANK and JoHN S. BROWN.

MANGANESE DEPOSITS IN THE COMMUNE OF GROS-MORNE.

GEOGRAPHY AND GENERAL GEOLOGY.

The manganese deposits here described are about 20 kilometers by road

northeast of GonaYves, in the Commune of Gros-Morne, just west of the
GonaYves-Gros-Morne road. They lie 300 to 350 meters above sea level,
on a series of broken ridges that trend about N. 30° W. (See Pl. II, in
pocket, prospects Nos. 22 and 23.) The largest deposit seen is on one
of the most prominent of these ridges, called J\1orne l\1acat, which stands
200 to 300 meters west of the road and rises 140 to 150 meters above t.h e
level of the road. The road is easily passable for automobiles as far as the
deposits.
The geology of the region is shown on Plate II. The ridge of Morne
Macat is a fault scarp marking the contact between the downfaulted
upper Oligocene limestone that lies east of the ridge and the basal upper
Eocene and the Mesozoic volcanic rocks that form the main mass of the
ridge and the country rock for several kilometers to the west. The vol-
canic rocks are overlain by baElal upper Eocene conglomerate and ljme-
stone, which forrn the crest and part of the slope of the hill and dip 30°
to 50° E. The upper Oligocene limestone east of the fault is sharply up-
turned and dips about 65° E.
Along the fault plane between the sedimentary and the igneous rocks
considerable jasper, chalcedonic silica, and quartz were deposited, form-
ing lens-like veins from 3 to 5 meters wide. The manganese is concentrated
in these veins.
•
 :MINERAL RESOURCES. 471

CHAR.ACTER .AND EXTENT OF FAULTING.

• The fault is apparently normal. The fault plane is at most places

nearly vertical but at some places dips steeply eastward. The strike of
the plane at this locality is about N. 30°-40° W. The throw of the fault
corresponds approximately to the thickness of at least the basal part of
the Eocene limestone in this r egion, which is probably at least 500 meters,
possibly much more. Figure 30 gives sections across the mountain at
Morne Macat and shows the r elation of the deposi~ to the limestones
and the volcanic rocks.

HorizontaJe iL ZOO m. d1aJ.t.. ~~---- --~---~~---

---------------~

w: E.

------~-------- ~
~
, Metres
Ecbelle des 19Il~et de~ ha:r1teur&

FIGURE 30.-Sections showing the manganese deposits in the Comm11ne of

Gros-Marne.
A, outcrop 22; B, outcrop 23. For locations see Pl. II (in pocket).

A complete description of the northward and southward extensions of

this fault is given on pages 120-121. .

MINERALOGY.

The manganese minerals found in these deposits are oxides, generally

in intimate mixtures. Judged by their physical properties and by other
simple tests the more common minerals are probably manganite (Mn20 8 •
H 20), pyrolusite (Mn02), and wad, but they can not be accurately identi-
fied without chemical analysis. No silicates or carbonates of manganese
were found. The mineral aggregates vary from soft masses to hard
crystalline or amorphous looking lumps, some of which are in the form
of botryoidal and fibrous growths. The deposits may contain psilomelane
 •

472 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

and other minerals but no.ne were identified, either by their physical
character or by chemical tests. Most of the aggregates of manganese
minerals are either intimately intergrown or veined with siliceous mate-
rial that consists of quartz, chalcedony, and jasper.
Thin sections of the ore show that at many places the manganese and
silica must have been deposited nearly contemporaneously. In some of
the sections the manganese oxides are clearly earlier in origin than the
quartz and chalcedony; in others they are in part later. A section of richer
ore shows that manganese was deposited with earlier fine-grained quartz
and chalcedony. These minerals were followed and usually surrounded
by coarser radial or spherulitic growths of chalcedony, and finally by
granular and prismatic quartz. Later quartz and chalcedony veinlets
cut all the structures and carry some fibrous growths of manganese. The
later generations of chalcedony and quartz are clearer and less stained by
the iron and manganese oxides.
Sections of ferruginous and manganiferous jasper show that the origi-
nal jasper has been in part replaced by manganese oxides. Some of the
jasper is stained brilliant red, yellow, and dull brown from admixture
of iron oxides; some of it is green, but the exact cause of this color is
unknown; some of it is stained black by manganese oxides and is veined
with small stringers of manganese oxide, usually consisting of pyrolu-
si te. The greater part of this deposit, however, consists of f erruginous
jasper, which is reddish or yellowish brown in reflected light and nearly
opaque to transmitted light. It appears to have been partly recrystallized,
though it may have originally contained some spherulitic growths of
quartz that have a zonal staining. The later manganese oxides have
usually replaced the jasper between the quartz spherulites. Later veins
of quartz and chalcedony cut across both the jasper and the manganese
oxides and replace some of the former structures.
At many places the ferruginous jasper evidently replaces the limestone
wall rocks, as it contains fossils. At several places the limestone is silici-
fied and shows a fine crystalline intergrowth of quartz and chalcedony,
which preserves the bedding laminations. In some thin sections the lime-
stone has evidently been directly replaced by manganese oxides.
The andesites that form the west wall of the fault zone are less exten-
sively silicified than the limestone. In some andesite near the fault zone
the augite and the feldspars have been brecciated and replaced by calcite.
The alteration of the andesite is generally accompanied by a change of its
original greenish color to brown or light gray.
A study of thin sections of the ore shows that the manganese either ac-
companied silica introduced later into the jasper or was concentrated
during a secondary siljcification or crystallization from manganese origi-
nally disseminated through the jasper. The manganese oxides do not ap-
pear to have replaced earlier silicates or carbonates, and their intimate
association with the chalcedony and quartz shows that the oxides were
•

:MINERAL RESOURCES. 473

deposited with the silica that crystallized later. If the manganese was
originally deposited in some other form than as oxide some of the original
jasper or silica was taken into solution during the oxidation of the vein
and redeposited as quartz and chalcedony with the oxides. It seems more
•
probable, however, that the manganese was originally deposited as oxide
disseminated through the jasper, both probably having been in places de-
posited as colloidal gels, and that later redistribution and recrystallization
in the jasper caused the local concentration of the manganese oxides and
the formation of later gener·ations of chalcedony and quartz. The crystal-
lization of gelatinous silica to chalcedony and quartz could have been
1
caused by a rise in the temperature of the depositing solutions. Some
of the manganese oxides at the surface, however, were 11ndoubtedly rede-
posited by surface waters, for small seams of pyrolusite associated with
later calcite, soft masses of wad, and surface breccias formed by the
cementing of jasper fragments by iron and manganese oxides can be posi-
tively attributed to the action of surface water.
The mineralogy and the texture of these ores are very similar to those
1
of some of the '' bayate '' deposits of the Island of Cuba. They differ t-0
some extent, however, in their mode of occurrence, in that the Cuban
deposits are not associated with definite fault zones but are replacements
of limestones and tu:ffaceous sediments, usually along bedding planes.
The ores of the Haitian and Cuban deposits are probably also similar
chemically, although the Haitian ore analyzed (see p. 475) is more
siliceous than the better grade Cuban ore. Small amounts of barium and
3
copper were also fol1nd in the Cuban ores.

ORIGIN OF THE DEPOSITS.

These deposits were probably for1ned in one of three ways (1) by

deposition from cold descending meteoric waters, which leached their
mineral content from the overlying limestone or igneous rock; (2) by
deposition from ascending hot or cold meteoric waters which, after pene-
trating to considerable depths, escaped upward along the fault plane, de- I

riving their mineral content from the rocks along which they passed; or
(3) by deposition from ascending hot waters of magmatic origin, which
derived their mineral content largely from the magma.
The large amount of chalcedony, jasper, and quartz in these deposits
indicates that they were formed by hot spring waters that rose along the
1 For a discussion of the formation of certain jasperolds in the Tintle district, Utah,
and for further references to the deposition of gelatinous silica, see Lindgren, W., and
Loughlin, G. F., Geology and ore deposits of the Tintle mining district, Utah: U. S. Geol.
Survey Prof. Paper 107, pp. 154-159, 1919.
2 Burchard, E. F., l\i!anganese-ore deposits In Cuba : Am. Inst. Min. and Met. Eng.

Trans., vol. 63, pp. 51-104, 1920. Hewett, D. F., and Shannon, E. V., Orlentite, a new
hydrous silicate of manganese and calcium from Cuba: Am. Jour. Sci., 5th ser., vol. 1.
pp. 491-506, 1921.
•Burchard, E. F., op. cit., pp. 65 and 83.
•
 474 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ' HAITI.

fault plane, as descending cold meteoric waters would not carry so much
silica. There is little or no evidence to show whether the hot waters were
derived from deep seated meteoric circulation or from igneous intrusives,
and the period of their activity is not known. The structure competent
to provide artesian pressure for the upward circulation of meteoric water
along the fault has not existed during R.ecent time and probably did not
exist during Pleistocene time. Possibly, however, structure suitable to
give artesian pressure existed during Miocene time, before the greater
part of the Eocene and Oligocene limestones in the western part of the
Massif du Nord had been removed by erosion. If such a structure existed,
the area of intake probably lay northeast of the fault, toward the center of
the arch in the western part of the Massif du Nord. (See Pls. I and
• XXVII.) If there were suitable retaining beds in the basal part of the
limestone series, part of the water entering at the intake area might have
been confined to the contact between the volcanic rocks and the overlying
limestones. Upon reaching the fault the waters would escape upward,
and at lower temperature and pressure would probably deposit part of the
minerals they leached from the volcanic rocks and the basal beds of the
limestone.
It is, however, more probable that the deposits were formed by hot spring
waters associated with igneous activity of Miocene or later age and could
•
be correlated with the Miocene intrusion of quartz diorite in the Mon-
tagnes de Terre-Neuve. (See pp. 428, 433.)

CONCLUSIONS AS TO CHARACTER OF VEINS.

The bodies containing the manganese are probably discontinuous lens-

like veins formed at favorable places by hot spring waters that ascended
along the fault zone. Probably they replaced the limestone wall rock and
filled and widened open spaces, the proportion in which the two processes
combined varying from place to place or from time to time. At many
places along the fault there is no vein, although some hydrothermal
action is indicated by .the bleaching and alteration of the andesitic wall
rock. If the vein was not formed by surface oxidation but originated a~
suggested above the oxides of manganese probably continue below the
zone of oxidation. •

South of Morne Macat deposits of ferruginous jasper were seen on sev-

eral small ridges along the line of the fault for a distance of 2 or 3 kilo-
meters but no large quantities of manganese accompanied the jasper. The
longest continuous vein exposed is the vein on the east slope of Morne
Macat, which is 3 to 5 meters wide and at least 160 to 170 meters long. Of
this entire exposure only about 20 meters midway on the hill, where the
vein is 8 or 9 meters wide, has any appearance of containing sufficient
manganese to be of commercial interest. A chip sample taken across
the entire width of t.h is ore body was analyzed in the chemical laboratory
 MINERAL RESOURCES. 475 .

or the United States Geological Survey by J. G. Fairchild and the analy-

sis gave the following results :
,

Partial analysis of manganese ore from M or1ie M acat.

P er cent.
Mn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 .8
F~20a . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.!>~
p . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .02·s

In the course of the analysis the presence of what is probably barium

was found. A little copper was identified.
As the gangue of the manganase oxides is almost entirely siliceous,
probably 40 to 50 per cent of the ore analyzed is silica. Ore containing
so much silica is not commercially valuable. Although the silica content
of the ore might be reduced by sorting, much of the manganese oxide is
so intimately mixed with the siliceous gangue that even mechanical
concentration would be expensive. The l11mps or pure manganese oxides
are not usually large enough to be successfully hand sorted. A few small
veins and masses of pure manganese oxides, 8 to 10 centimeters in width,
were seen, but most of the manganese is mixed with the jasper. A large
quantity of float is fo11nd on the hillside below the jasper reef, out of
which lumps of high-grade manganese ore ca,n be picked, but the per-
centage of lumps of high-grade ore is low. There is not enough man-
ganese at this locality to warrant the exploitation of the deposit at the
present price of manganese, but there is enough to suggest that if the
price should a.g ain rise careful prospecting here as well as along the
entire length of this fault zone would be warranted.
No other bodies of manganese ore were found but others may exist
along the fault zone. Slight silicification of the limestone, forming
limonitic jasper, bearing some stains, probably of manganese, was seen
along the same fault line at Riviere Lhormand, about 5 kilometers west
oi Gros-Morne. (See pp. 120-121.)

MANGANESE DEPOSITS IN THE COMMUNE OF JACMEL NE.AR COTE.AUX.

Manganese deposits are reported to occur at several places in the

mountains north of J acmel, in the drainage area of the Grande Riviere
de Jacmel and its trib.utaries. One small deposit that was examined
during the reconnaissance is about 12 kilometers north of J acmel, ·near
the habitation called Coteaux. It is along a fault contact between the
basal upper Eocene limestone and the basaltic volcanic rocks of late
Cretaceous age. The structural conditions here are remarkably similar
to those at the l\ilorne Macat dep·osits, near Gros-Morne. The strike of
the fault is nearly parallel to the strike of the limestone, about
N. 60° W. The dip of the contact plane between the limestone and
the ha.salt could not be determined but was probably very steep. The
 •

'
476 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

limestone, which for1ns the south wall of the contact, is sharply upturned
and dips 80° to 90° southward. It is dark gray to black, thin bedded,
and contains n11rnerous small Foraminifera, which are replaced by chal-
cedony and opal near the fault zone. For several hundred meters south
of the fault the limestone is dark and thin bedded and the dip gradually
decreases until, about half a kilometer down the river, it is reversed.
The structure of the basalt flows that form the country rock north of
the fault can not be definitely determined, but as they were folded with
the Eocene limestone they probably also dip southward. About half a
kilometer north of the fault a band of metamorphic limestone 11nderlies
the basalt. (See Fig. 20, B, p. 322.)
Along the fault plane masses of ferruginous jasper and quartz similar
to those at Morne Macat have been deposited. Near the river this zone
of jasper is 9 or 10 meters wide but it appears to pinch out east of the val-
ley. Much float of ferruginous chert and some manganese oxides, mostly
pyrolusite, was seen in a ravine that joins the river just south of the
fault zone. This ravine follows the contact of the lime.stone and igneous
rock for some distance but no other large masses of manganiferous
jasper were found in place.
The ferruginous jasper contains hematite and limonite and entirely
replaces the limestone, for it incloses fossils. Both jasper and man-
ganese oxides have been brecciated and have been recemented by a
secondary silicification, the product consisting largely of granular and
prismatic quartz. Considerable calcite and some natrolite were deposited
along the fault plane. Much of the quartz was undoubtedly deposited
later than the mangan~e oxides.
These deposits afford no evidence as to the origin of the water that
produced them, but they, like those of Morne Macat, were probably formed
by hot spring waters that rose along the fault plane. As the major
structure in the center of the peninsula north of the fault is that of an
anticlinal arch (Fig. 20, B), suitable structure may have existed during
middle Tertiary time to permit the upward escape along the fault zone
of waters 11nder artesian pressure. No traces or other evidence of middle
Tertiary volcanic eruptions have been preserved in the Southern P enin-
sula, though there may have been some igneous activity, deep seated or
minor, during Miocene time. (See p. 320.) Hot spring waters issuing
from fissures in basaltic rocks at the Sources Chaudes, in the western
part of the peninsula, are possibly manifestations of late Tertiary igneoua
activity. (See pp. 564-566.)
The deposits near Coteaux are of no economic value wha.tever, as the
amount of manganese they contain is negligible. They indicate, however,
areas or zones along which prospecting for manganese might be attempted
should market conditions warrant the expense. The continuation of the
contact between limestone and basalt would be a favorable place for
prospecting. Faults or bedding planes that were competent to confine

•
 MINF.RAL RESOURCES. 477 •

rising therrnal waters appear to mark places favorable for the deposition
of manganese-bearing jaspers, but an easily replaceable wall rock, such
as limestone, is probably essential to the formation of large ore bodies.

RESIDUAL CONCENTRATIONS OF IRON AND MANGANESE.

By Wix.aux S. BURBANK and JOHN S. BROWN.

GENER.AT, FEATURES.

Residual deposits of iron and less commonly of manganese are fo11nd

in regions of humid climate where rather basic igneous rocks or impure
limestone have long been weathered. During the reconnaissance some
residual concretionary deposits of iron and manganese were seen in
regions of imperfect drainage. Although no commercially valuable de-
posits of this kind are known in the Republic, there are ni1merous deposits
of ferruginous clay that have attracted attention and are often reported
as ''iron ores.'' Red residual clayey soils are common at many places,
both on limestone and igneous rock, and are especially widespread in
areas of massive impure limestone, either around sink holes or covering
level co11ntry. Some of this residual clay makes an excellent agricultural
soil, and at a few places, as near Grande-Riviere du Nord, it is used
for making building bricks. Where the residual material is colored
bright red or yellow by admixture of iron oxide it is sometimes used as
a temporary paint on mud walls.
Chemical analyses of concretionary masses of iron and manganese and
of iron-rich soils that were collected during the reconnaissance show that
the particular deposits sampled do not contain commercial quantities of
either iron or manganese. Two ferruginous residual soils, one from basalt
and one from limestone, contained about 17 per cent of iron. Concre-
tionary deposits of iron and manganese analyzed contained 3 to 4 per cent
of manganese and 15 to 20 per cent of iron. These samples probably
represent some of the richer concentrations of these oxides, and the results
of the analyses indicate that the deposits are of no value. Small bodies
of iron ore of commercial grade may be fo11nd, but probably no valuable
large bodies.
IRON AND MANGANESE ON THE NORTH PLAIN.

The deposits on the North Plain that were examined are on the surface
of a flat, slightly dissected savanna that lies 4 or 5 kilometers northeast
of Acul Samedi. The plain, which here stands 60 to 80 meters above sea
level, is floored with gravel of Quaternary age. The narrow stream valleys
are entrenched in the plain deposits to a depth of 5 or 6 meters. The
sediments consist largely of gravel and sand derived from the quartz
diorite and include some beds of finer silty material. The deposits are
lenticular and crossbedded and vary greatly in composition. They are
nearly horizontal, parallel to the surface of the plain.
 •

• 478 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI •

Where the drainage has been inactive the relatively insoluble constitu-
ents of these sediments have been left at the surface and the soluble ones
have sunk into the porous gravels with the rain water. A typical section
down through the gravelly or sandy deposits shows at the surface nodular
concretions of iron and manganese oxides partly encrusting pebbles, quartz
grains, and other unweathered material, but here and there cementing the
sand into a hard mass. Below such a mass at many places there is a layer
of reddish to yellowish residual clay, very sticky when wet, containing
pebbles, sand, and quartz grains. This layer grades down to less weathered
or unweathered gravel.
'rhe iron and manganese oxides form rounded concretionary masses,
some of them 10 to 15 centimeters in diameter, most of which contain
considerable residual sand and fine gravel. Some of the concretions con-
tain a large proportion of yellowish clay, the included material depending
on the nature of the ground in which the concretions were formed. The
iron occurs largely as yellowish or brownish limonite. The manganese
minerals are brown or black and probably consist of wad and pyrolusite
mixed with iron oxides. The concretions form only a very thin veneer,
which rarely extends more than a few centimeters below the surface. They
are scattered over an area that is probably 6 to 8 kilometers wide, but
they contain little iron and occur in quantities so small that they are of
no economic value.

Analysis of iron and manganese oxide concretions collected northeast of •

Acul-Samedi .
•
[Ledoux & Oo., New York, analysts.]
Per cent.
Fe ................................... . .... . ............... 15.60
Mn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 .20
Si02 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60.17
p . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .026

The source of the iron and manganese is evidently the hornblende of

the quartz diorite. The residual soil on the quartz diorite bedrock is
described on pages 297-299.

....
IRON AND MANGANESE NEAR p AUL.
Iron and manganese oxide concretions appear to be rather widely dis-
tributed in the areas of igneous rocks in the Montagnes Noires and were
seen near Paul along the trail from St.-Michel de I'Atalaye to Dessalines.
About 3 kilometers northeast of Paul, just southwest of the first limestone
range that borders the Central Plain, is a large savanna, much of which
is 11nderla.i n by a coarse dacitic porphyry that contains much hornblende.
This rock is decomposed by weathering into several products, among them
oxides of iron and manganese, which are derived mainly from the ferro-
magnesian minerals of the rock, hornblende and mica. These oxides, like
 MINERAL RESOURCES • 4'19
•

those in the deposits near Acul Samedi, become concentrated in the

residual soil and form concretionary masses or encrust lumps of gravel,
clay, and unweathered material. The iron occurs as brown or yellow limo-
nite, and the manganese probably as wad and pyrolusite.
The oxides are mostly concentrated at the surface, where there are some
111mps measuring 10 to 15 centimeters in diameter. An analysis of one of
these lumps shows that they are similar to those found at Acul Samedi:

Analysis of iron and manganese oxide concretions collected near Paul.

[Ledoux & Co., New York, analysts.)
Per cent.
Fe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20.15
Mn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.40
Si02 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 .Q.4
p .. . ... .. . .. . ... .. .... .. .. .. . ... .. .. . .. . .. ... . . ... .. . . . ... .176

The deposits are richer in small, flat areas that have not been actively
eroded, for on steep slopes or along gullies the products of weathering are
washed away. The amount of manganese found more than one-half or
at most one meter below the surface is not sufficient to form more than
stains in the soil.
The area covered by such patches of residual oxides in the savanna
northwest of Paul includes, perhaps, several square kilometers. In the
large valley in which the village of Paul is situated float of similar
material was seen, but no deposits were found in place.
These deposits, like those on the North Plain, are of no economic value.

IRON IN THE SOUTHERN PENINSULA.

By J OHN S. BROWN.

Iron ores are reported to occur at several places in the Southern Penin-
sula, particularly near Anse d'Hainault and in section Plymouth, between
Jeremie and Baraderes. At both places there is some basis for the reports.

RESIDUAL DEPOSITS ON BASALTIC ROCKS NEAR ANSE D'HAINAULT.

About 2 kilometers south of Anse d'Hainault the trail to Tiburon

crosses a ridge of basalt that is perhaps a kilometer wide. The basalt has
at places weathered to a conspicuous bright red soil that evidently conJ
tains considerable iron. A good exposure was found on a sea cliff at the
north side of the ridge beside the trail. For 2 or 3 meters below the surface
the rock is completely oxidized to red soil. Below that depth traces of
the basaltic rock showing pronounced pillow structure are increasingly
prominent and the red color is spotted more and more with gray and
nearly disappears at a depth of 10 meters. Spheroidal masses of basalt
seen here weather in concentric layers that are alternately red and gray.
The sample taken for analysis is probably considerably richer in iron
 480 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

than the rock in most of the oxidized zone. An analysis by Ledoux & Co.,
New York, of the residual soil on basalt near Anse d'Hainault showed
that it contains 17 per cent of iron.
A concentrated deposit of particularly rich red clay containing some
hematite was found covering a few square meters on the south slopes of
the hill. It was probably concentrated by leaching and by the sorting
action of running water.
The area of less oxidized ferruginous soil includes possibly several
square kilometers but contains no ore of commercial quality.
Other exposures of basalt that break down into similar red hematite-
bearing earth were noted in sea cliffs between Chardonnieres and Les
Anglais and west of Les Anglais. More promising deposits may perhaps
be found in some of the areas of basaltic rocks.
, ,
'
RESIDUAL DEPOSITS ON LIMESTONE BETWEEN JEREMIE AND BABADERES.

The other type of deposit also is residual but is found in a.reas of mas-
sive upper Eocene limestone, particularly in the region between Jeremie
and Baraderes. The limestone breaks down first into a soil t.h at is colored
red by ferric oxide. An analysis by Ledo11x & Co., New York, of this
residual soil on limestone about 10 kilometers west of Baraderes showed
that it contains 16.80 per cent of iron.
Further action on this soil by percolating water produces here and
there lumpy concretions of hard brown limonite or hematite. Most of
the lumps are less than 2 centimeters in diameter but some are much
larger. A few lumps about 10 centimeters long were seen. Running water
frequently washes away the loose red soil and concentrates deposits of
little·limonite pebbles in the gullies. Such deposits are of no commercial
value. It is barely possible that material concentrated as cave breccia
in the numerous sink holes might be of better grade.

NONMETALS.
By JoHN S. BROWN and WENDELL P. WOODRING.

LIGNITE .
•

The Republic of Haiti contains probably the most extensive deposits

of lignite in the West Indies proper. The largest potential lignite :field
is in the northwestern part of the Central Plain near Ma1ssade, but there
are other deposits near Camp Perrin, in the arrondissement of Les Cayes.
Beds of impure lignite and carbonaceous clay in the Asile Valley are men-
tioned on page 229. Beds of black chert in upper Eocene limestone (see
p. 134) and pieces of carbonized wood in Miocene beds have led to reports
of deposits of lignite. The Miocene deposits are the only ones in the
Republic that were laid down under conditions favorable for the acc11mu-
lation of vegetable debris. Miocene rocks in regions not explored during

•
 •

MINER.AL RESOURCES. 481

•
the reconnaissance may possibly contain beds of lignite. It is not likely
that coal of higher rank than lignite will be found anywhere in the
Republic.
LIGNITE NEAR MAISSADE.

Several accounts of the deposits of lignite in the northwestern part of

2
the Central Plain have been published, but the report by Tippenhauer
is the only one that has been examined.
•
The beds of lignite are confined to the Ma.lssade tongue of the Tho-
monde formation. The area containing lignite probably coincides with the
area floored by Ma1ssade rocks, embracing about 100 square kilometers.
(See Pl. XXXVI.) This estimate is based on the assumption that the
beds of lignite extend across the trough of the Central Plain syncline,
where they are concealed by younger beds of the l\1aissade tongue. The
outcrop of the lignite-bearing beds on the northeast limb of the syncline
is also concealed by stream deposits.
The lithology and stratigraphic relations of the Ma1ssade tongue are
discussed on pages 168-173.
Most of the beds of lignite occur in the middle part of the Ma1ssade
tongue, interbedded with sandstone, siltstone, and clay containing a
mixture of marine and brackish-water mollusks or only brackish-water
mollusks. The lithology and fossils show that these beds were laid down in ..
a coastal swamp. The part of the Ma1ssade tongue containing lignite was
examined on Riviere Frio south of Ma1ssade, and on Riviere Fond Gras,
Riviere Fond Bleu, and Riviere Blanche northwest of Maissade. At all
these localities the beds dip at. angles of 45 ° to 70° northeastward, toward
the trough of the Central Plain syncline, which extends northwestward
approximately through Maissade. Farther to the northeast the beds flatten
rather abruptly and dip at angles of 2° to 6° toward the trough of the
syncline. The beds of lignite were not examined in this region, where
they dip gently.
Sections showing the thickness of the beds of lignite are given on pages
170-173. The section on page 173, measured on the right bank of Riviere
Frio about 100 meters al)ove the crossing of the road from Ma1ssade to
Hinche, shows two beds of lignite. The lower bed, containing many dirty
streaks, is 2.5 meters thick. The upper bed is 1.47 meters thick, but it
cont.ains two benches of lignite 14 and 17 centimeters thick, separated by
carbonaceous clay. Sample No. 2 of the table of analyses on page 482 was
obtained from a channel of uniform width across the entire thickness of
the upper bed. Sample No. 1 was obtained from the upper bench of lignite
in the upper bed. The section measured on Riviere Fond Gras a short
distance above its confluence with Riviere Canot (see p. 172) shows four
1Tippenhnuer, L. G., Beitriige zur Geologle Hartis; VI, Das Lignitlager von Marssade
und der Aufsteig zum Zentralplateau von GonaJves und von Norden aus : Petermanns
Mitt., Band 47, pp. 193-199, pls. 15 and 16 (map and sections), 1901.
31
•

•
 482 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

· beds of lignite having a thickness of 9, 67, 93, and 22 centimeters in

ascending order. The thick beds contain partings and benches of dirty
lignite or carbonaceous clay. A bea of lignite 17 centimeters thick was
measured in the section of beds in the lower part of the Ma!ssade tongue
as exposed on Riviere Fond Bleu. Five beds of lignite having a thickness
of. 5, 54, 75, 125, and 48 centimeters in ascending order are shown in
the section on page 171, measured on Riviere Blanche. All the beds
contain partings of impure lignite and clay.
Not enough field work was done to determine the number and con-
tinuity of the lignite beds. The section on Riviere Blanche, which includes
the greater part of the lignite-bearing series, shows five beds. The beds
probably are lenticular.
The lignite was examined only on weathered outcrops. Most of it is
dark brown and has a woody texture and dull luster, but some of it is black
and harder and has a shining luster. The black, shining lignite may occur
in lenses in the dull, dark-brown lignite or it may make up entire beds.
The surface of the dark-brown lignite shows a network of cracks due to
loss of moisture by evaporation. The black lignite shows fewer cracks.
The following table gives the results of analyses of two samples col-
lected on Rivi ere Frio :

Analyses of lignite from M a"issade. •

[Made at the Pittsburgh laboratory of the United States Bureau of Mines; H. M. Cooper, chemist.]

Proximate analysis.
Ultimate Heating
F orm of sample analyzed. analysis- value
Volatile. Fixed sulphur. (calories).
Moisture. Ash.
matter. carbon.

sample I:
As r eceived ........ , 31.55 29.91 28.79 9.75 8 .89 3,737
Air dried • • • • • • • • • • 21.50 34.30 33.02 11.18 4.46 4,285
Moisture free .... .'" •••• 43.70 42 .06 14.24 5.68 5,459
Moisture and ash fre~ • ••• 50.96 49.04 •••• 6.62 6,365
sample 2:
As received ........ . 26.18 27.55 20.69 25.58 4:.15 2,594
Air dried ........ ' . 16.08 31.32 23.52 29.08 4.72 2,949
}foisture free ..... ' •••• 37.32 28.03 34.65 5.62 3,514
Moisture and ash free ••• • 57.10 42.09 •••• 8.60 5,377

The samples were taken by cleaning off the weathered surface to a depth
of a few centimeters and cutting a channel about 10 centimeters wide
and deep across the bed. The material thus obtained was broken into
small pieces~ quartered, and placed in a can.
As these samples were collected from the outcrop they contain less
moisture than samples from underground workings. The loss of moisture
is shown by the numerous cracks in the lignite at the outcrop. Sample
No. 2, from a channel across the entire bed, includes dirty lignite and
 •

MINERAL RESOURCES. 483

carbonaceous clay, some of which could probably be excluded in mining.

The high percentage of ash and low heating value of this sample are due
to this incombustible material.
1
Tippenhauer records the following analysis, but the locality and
form of material analyzed are not given:
Per cent.
Moisture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.05
Volatile matter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41.30
Fixed carbon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 .65
Ash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 .00
Sulphur . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.19
Heating value in calories. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,829

This analysis r epresents a picked sample, as the heating value is

relatively high. The percentage of moisture is lower and the ratio of
fixed carbon to volatile matter is much lower than in the analyses on
page 482. .
The relative value of the Ma1ssade lignite is discussed on pages 485-487.

LIGNITE NEAR CAMP PERRIN.

It has long been known that lignite beds crop out near Camp Perrin,
2
in the arrondissement of Les Cayes. Eugene Nau published an official
3
report on this lignite in 1859-60, and Thomasset described it in 1898.
The lignite-bearing beds were examined on La Ravine du Sud and on
La Riviere. They are of Miocene age and were deposited in lakes, fresh-
water swamps, and deltas. Their lithology and structure are described
on pages 232-236.
The lignite beds are of unknown extent, but they undoubtedly underlie
several square kilometers and probably lie beneath all the dissected
lowland near Camp Perrin except a small part near the northern border.
They are concealed by alluvi11m except along some of the streams and
•
ravines.
In the section exposed on La Ravine du Sud (see p. 234) there are
at least three or four beds of lignite that are fairly free from partings
of impure lignite and clay, ranging from 50 centimeters to 1 meter in
thickness. The other beds contain so much incombustible material that
they are worthless. Other beds higher in the section might be found by
exploring the gravel-covered region to the south. The thickest well-
exposed bed is 90 centimeters in thickness. Another poorly exposed bed
seems to be nearly a meter thick. On La Riviere there are at least three

i Tippenbauer, L. G .. op. cit., p. 195, 1901.

2 Nau, Eugene, one ot several articles on the mineral deposits ot the Republic In Le
Moniteur, 1859-1860. Published also in La R~publique, 1859-1860. These reports were
not examined.
•
a Thomasset, Henri, Rapport sur les, glsements de charbon de l' Asile et du Camp-Perrin
(addres~ A Monsieur le Secr~talre d'Etat des Travaux Publics) : Le Moniteur, 53• Ann~e.
Np, ~{), pp. 358-359, Port-au-Prince, 8 juin, 1898.
484 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

beds, and possibly more. The thickest is 2 meters thick but contains
many partings of clay. In one bed 40 centimeters of pure lignite was
found. The beds appear to change abruptly in thickness and grade along
the strike.
The lignite is black and has a bright luster. It contains many joints,
and the joint faces are smooth and shining. Samples ta.ken from out-
cropping ledges, unlike samples of lignite taken from the Central Plain,
contain few cracks, and the mate1~ial breaks up along joint planes.- It
has the appearance of a coal of subbituminous rank. The analyses given
below show that this appearance is deceptive. The apparent high rank
is due primarily to the folding of the beds, as the jointing is the result
of crumpling.
The following table gives the results of analysis of two samples.
Sample 1 was collected from bed 33 o:f the section measured on La
Ravine du Sud (p. 234); sample 2 was collected from the best bed,
about 40 centimeters in thickness, exposed on La Riviere. The samples
were collected as described on page 482, except that two channels were
cut for sample 1, and three channels for sample 2. The channels were
spaced at intervals ap·p roximately equal to the thickness of the beds.
No effort was made to exclude partings of impure lignite or carbonaceous
clay, such as would have to be taken in mining.

Analyses of lignite from Cam.p Perrin.

[Made at the Pittsburgh laboratory of t he United States Bureau of Mines; H. M. Cooper, chemist.]

I
Proximate analysis.

Ultimate Heating
Form of material analyzed.
analysis value
Volatile. Fixed
Moisture. Ash. sulphur. ( calories).
matter. carbon.

Sample 1:
As received • • • • • • • • 23.51 22.90 16.53 37.00 0.73 2,270
Air dried • • • • • • • • • • 15.95 25.17 18.15 40. 73 .so 2,494
Moisture free •••••• • ••• 29.94 21.61 48.45 .95 2,968
Moisture and ash free • •• • 58.08 41.92• •••• 1.84 5,758
Sample 2:
As received •••••••• 22.08 21.87 12.98 43.07 1.42 1,905
Air dried •••••••••• 14.80 23 .92 14.18 47 .10 1.55 . 2,083
Moisture free • • • • • • •••• 28.07 16.66 55.27 1.82 2,445
Moisture and ash free . ' .. 62.75 37.25 ' ... 4.07 5,466

The analyses show a lower percentage of moisture than that _in the
Ma!ssade lignite. If the lignite in both regions were mined sample.s from
undergro1md workings would contain a higher percentage of mois.ture,
although the amo11nts of moisture in weathered samples are probably
comparable. The lignite from Camp Perrin has a much lower ratio of
fixed carbon to volatile matter than the Ma1ssade lignite, indicating that

•
 'MINERAL RESOURCES. 485

it probably iB an l1ndeveloped cannel coal. It contains a high percentage

of ash and has low heating value, which is due principally to the large
amount of incombustible material in the partings.
1
Thomasset recorded the following two analyses, which were made in
Paris:
Analyses of Camp Perrin lignite.

1 2

Moisture .................................... . ................................. . 27.74 24.10

Volatile matter ............................................................... . 27.06 31.90
Fixed carbon ................................................................. . 27.98 81.83
Ash ............................................................................ . 17.22 12.17
Heating value in calories (not dried) ........................................... . 3,466 4,200
Heating value in calories (dried) ....••...••.•................•...•............ lS,050 6,660

In the ratio of fixed ca.r hon to volatile ma tt€r these analyses are
different from those given on page 484. The samples may have come from
other beds of different composition. Their high heating value indicates
that they were picked samples, free from impurities. Thomasset states
that about 2 tons of this lignite was shipped to Port-au-Prince and
burned in the workshop of the street railway company, where it readily
produced steam.
RELATIVE HEATING VALUE .
•

The relative value of fuels is shown by their heating value. The only
industrial establishments in the Republic that use large quantities of
fuel are the electric light plants, ice factories, sugar mills, and railroads.
Wood is the only fuel now used except the small amounts of coal 1:1sed
in the railroad shops. Most of the wood used in Port-au-Prince is that
of the leguminous tree called bayahonde, which grows in the Cul-de-Sac
Plain. So far as known no tests have been made to determine the heating
value of bayahonde wood. The heating value of the lignite of Ma1ssade
and Camp Perrin as compared to wood is graphically shown in Figure 31.
In this graph the wood burned as fuel in the Republic is given an
arbitrary heating value of 3,000 calories for dry wood and 2,250 calories
2
for green wood. The heating value of some coals from the United States
is given in the same graph.
At the present time wood for fuel in Port-au-Prince costs 95 cents
per cubic meter delivered, weighing about 385 kilograms, or $2.47 per
1
metric ton. If it is assumed that this wood is green and has a heating
value of 2,250 calories the heating value of the wood as compared to the
heating value of the better grade of lignite of Ma1ssade (sample No. 1 of
1 Thomasset, Henri, op. cit., p. 359, 1898.
21 These figures are based on conversions of the heating value of several woods from

the United States given tn The use of wood for fuel: U. S. Dept. Agr. Bull. 753,
pp. 28-30, 1919.
a Based on the cost of wood pt1rchased by the electric company of Port-au-Prince. In-
formation supplied by the Engineer-in-Chief.
 486 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.
'

analysis on p. 482) is as 2,250 is to 3, 737; or, if wood costs $2.47 per

metric ton, consumers in Port-au-Prince could afford to pay $4.14 per
metric ton for this lignite.
The present price of semibituminous coal from the Unjted States,
such as the coa.l from the New River field of West Virginia ( m, in Fig. 31),
delivered 1n Port-au-Prince is not known. During the two months
preceding the strike of April, 1922, the average price of such coal
delivered at Hampton Roads, Va., was $4.62 per ton ( 2,000 pounds
avoirdupois weight), or $5.09 per metric ton. Freight, dockage charges,
and insurance probably would bring the price delivered at Port-au-Prince
to about $18 per metric ton.
llou1/le ltoC/1'/le
grosse demi-grasss
~
8000-~--
.~
•
'
"'6000-.~.------
&U ~>
".
......
~
~
.c
~
1..

•
~
a. b c d e f k m
'
FIGURE 31. Diagram showing the heating value of Ma.lssade and Camp Perrin
lignite as compared with other coals and wood.

If green wood is worth $2.47 per metric ton and American semi-
bituminous coal $18 per metric ton the lignite from Camp Perrin and
Ma1ssade has the following value :

Comparative value of wood, lignite, and coal.

West Virginia
Green wood at
semibi tuminous
$2.47 per
coal at $18 per
metric ton.
metric ton.

Camp Perrin lignite (No. 2) .•••.....••...........•....•...•..•• $2.09 $4.20

Green wood ................................................... . 2.47 4.97
Camp Perrin lignite (No. 1) ................................... . 2.49 5.01
Maissade lignite (No. 2) ....................................... . 2.85 5.72
Dry wood ••••••••••...••••....•••.•.•.••••••..•...••... · · · •..• • 3.29 6.62
Marssade lignite (No. 1) ....................................... . 4.10 8.24
West Virginia semibituminous coal .•.•.•.....•.•.......•...•.. 8.96 18.00

Although this table is based on some unknown factors it gives. an

idea of the relative value of the lignite. Coal at $18 per metric ton is too ·
expensive for ordinary industrial uses, as with coal at that price wood
is worth twice its present cost.
 lrINERAL RESOURCES. 487

The Camp Perrin lignite therefore can not compete with wood at the
present time. In composition this lignite resembles undeveloped cannel
coals of Tertiary age in Texas, but its heating value is lower. Picked
samples would show much higher heating values than those given on
page 484, but picked samples could not be mined. The beds are steeply
inclined and would have to be worked from steeply inclined or vertical
shafts. The abrupt change in dip and the faulting would increase the
difficulties. The rocks that overlie the lignite beds are soft and could
not be supported without extensive timbering. The..se conditions and the
distance to industrial centers prohibit the exploitation of these beds.
Under present conditions of transportation the lignite at Ma1ssade
can hardly be utilized. In composition and heating value the grade of
lignite r epresented by sample 1 in the table on page 482 closely resembles
the lignite of Eocene age in Montana and North Dakota. If a railroad
could be extended into the Central plain this lignite could compete with
wood under favorable conditions of production, even at the present time.
There are beds containing enough lignite of this grade to be mined.
Near the trough of the Central Plain syncline, where the beds dip
• gently, the lignite could be mined in open cuts by stripping the over-
burden. If the demand for fuel increases as the available supply of
wood becomes exhausted, these beds should be examined to determine the
available tonnage, methods of production, and methods of treatment.
Lignite as mined contains a high percentage of water, which lowers
its heating value. When exposed to the air it rapidly loses some of its
moisture and '' slacks,'' and is then an unsatisfactory fuel. If the lignite
is to be used at a distance from the deposits it would require some
treatment in order to obtain from it the maximum amount of heat.
In Germany ''brown coal '' of lower rank than the lignite of Maissade is
successfully briquetted without the use of a binder after being dried.
The lignite of North Dakota has not yet been treated on a commercial
scale, but the results of tests indicate that the most successful treatment
is to carbonize the lignite and briquet the carbonized residue with the
1
aid of a binder. An elaborate series of tests probably would be required
to determine the best method of treating the lignite of lfaissade. It is
possible that it would not '' slack'' too rapidly to be used in near-by
industrial centers. When brought from the mine small pieces ''slack''
less rapidly than large pieces. Samples taken from the weathered out-
crop on Riviere Frio in February, 1921, were cracked but had not crumbled
by Sep·t ember, 1922. Samples from underground workings would, how-
ever, contain more moisture and would ''slack'' more rapidly.
1 See Babcock, E. J., Economic methods of utilizing western lignites: U. S. Bur.
Mines Bull. 89, 1915 .

•
488 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

OIL.
POSSIBLE OIL RESOURCES OF THE CENTRAL PLAIN •
•

No wells have been drilled in the Republic of Haiti to ascertain the

possibility of obtaining oil in commercial quantities. The detrital Miocene
rocks are the most favorable beds, both as mother rocks and as reservoirs.
These rocks attain their maximum thickness in the Central Plain. An ac-
count of the possible oil resources of the Miocene rocks of the Central
1
Plain has already been published, and the following paragraphs are taken
from this account.

STRATIGRAPHY OF THE MIOCENE ROCKS.

The Miocene rocks of the Central Plain, or Artibonite group, consist-

ing in ascending order of the Madame Joie formation, Thomonde f orma-
tion and Ma1ssade tongue, and Las Cahobas formation, have an estimated
thickness of 1,400 meters. Their stratigraphy :IB fully discussed on pages
161-206, and their distribution is shown on Plate XXXVI.

STRUCTURE OF THE CENTRAL PLAIN.

Structurally the Central Plain is a large southeastward-plunging syn-

cline, modified by secondary anticlinal and synclinal folds, between the
Massif du Nord and the Montagnes Noires. The axis of the syncline
trends northwestward, parallel to the structural trend of the mountains.

NORTH WESTERN p ART.

Southwest limb of syncline.

The northwestern part of the plain is an asymmetrical syncline that

has steeper dips on the southwest limb than on the northeast limb. (See
Pl. XXXVI, section .A-A'.) The structure of the southwest limb is modi-
fied by secondary anticlinal and synclinal folds and by thrust faults.
'
FOND BLEU DOME.

The anticlinal fold on the southwest limb of the syncline, which appar-
ently plunges both northwestward and southeastward, is called the Fond
Bleu dome, from the nan1e of the stream flowing across its northwest end.
The crest of the dome is about 3.5 kilometers in an air line southwest of
the town of Ma1ssade, or about 4.8 kilometers west-southwest of Ma!ssade
by the trail to Madame Joie. The dome is asymmetrical and has steep
dips to the northeast, toward the main synclinal trough, except for a dis-
tance of 0.5 kilometer from the crest, where the dips are relatively gentle.
(See Pl. XXXVI, section C-C'.) Farther northeast for 0.6 kilometer the
dip is as high as 65 °. Northeast of this narrow belt of high dips the beds
1 Woodring, W. P., Stratigraphy, structure, and possible oil resources of the Miocene
rocks of the Central Plain, 19 pp., map, Rep. Haiti Geol. Survey, 1922.
 MINERAL RESOURCES. I 489

flatten in a short distance and dip at the rate of about 6 ° to the trough
of the main syncline, which lies about 3.7 kilometers northeast of the
crest of the dome. In the trough of the syncline the beds are probably
400 meters lower structurally than on the crest of the dome. On the
southwest limb the beds dip from 5° to 30° for 1.5 kilometers from the
crest and :flatten in the trough of a narrow, sharply folded syncline that
separates the dome from the mountain front. The southeastern part of
the dome was not examined, but apparently the area of closure is about
5 kilometers long and has a maximum width of 1.5 kilometers.
The lowest rocks exposed on the crest of the dome are sandstones and
siltstones in the lower part of the Thomonde formation. The conglomer-
ates and coarse sandstones in the middle part of the Thomonde formation
form a '' rim rock '' aro11nd the dome.
Between the syncline southwest of the dome and the mountain front
the lowest beds in the Thomonde formation are probably thrust north-
eastward over higher beds in the Thomonde formation. Farther north-
west the lower part of the Thomonde formation is thrust northeastward
over the Ma1ssade tongue. (See Pl. XXXVI, section B-B'.) More exten-
sive thrust faults may separate the older limestones from the detrital Mio-
cene rocks along the mountain front, but. the mountain front was not
examined.
Northeast limb of syncline.
••
PLUNGING ANTICLINE BE'l'WEEN MAISSADE AND PIGNON.

The southeastward extension of the Oligocene rocks along Riviere

Bouyaha and the strikes and dips recorded in the Miocene beds along the
trail between Ma1ssade and Pignon indicate that a southeastward-plunging
anticline extends into the plain on the northeast limb of the syncline.
This anticline parallels a southeastward-plunging secondary syncline to
the east, which accounts for the northwest."ra1·d extension of Oligoeene
beds beyond St.-Raphael.

SOUTHEASTERN p ART.
Southwest limb of syncline.

In the enlarged southeastern part of the plain the southwest limb of

the main svncline
., is much wider than the northeast limb and is charac-
terized by asymmetrica.l anticlines that emerge from the mountains and
plunge into the plain.
WEST SIDE.

On the west side of the plain a bulging compo11nd anticline strikes

off from the mountains. Three asymmetrical anticlines are superimposed
on this compound anticline and plunge southeastward into the plain.
All the anticlines have steep northeastward dips and more gentle south-
•
•

•
 •

490 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

westward dips. The crests of the anticlines are approximately parallel to

one another and to the trough of the main syncline.
Thomonde anticline. The northern anticline is the la.r gest of the
1
three folds. It was called the Thomonde anticline by J ones, as the town
of Thomonde stands near its crest. The crest of the anticline extends for
an unknown distance southeastward into the plain. The rate of plunge
of the crest is about 8° near the mountains, but it decreases southeast of
Thomonde. The fold is sharply asymmetrical near the mountains (see
Pl. XXXVI, section D-D'), but the northeastward dip decreases markedly
in a short distance out toward the plain, and the fold becomes virtually
symmetrical southeast of Thomonde (see Pl. XXXVI, sections E-E' and
• F-F'). The beds on the northeast limb dip from 5° to 20° for a distance
of 1.8 kilometers from the crest. Near the mountains the northeast limb
steepens abruptly farther from the crest for example, on the trail from
Thomonde to Hinche there is a belt about 0.5 kilometer wide where the
dip is from 70° to 80° or even 90°. Northeast of this belt of steep dips
the beds flatten rapidly toward the trough of the main syncline. South-
east of the trail from Thomonde to Hinche the northeast limb is not so
steeply tilted. North of Thomonde the st€epest dips are from 40° to 60°,
and northeast of Thomonde, on the trail to Thomassique, the maximum
dips are 30° to 40°. (See Pl. XXXVI, section E-E'.) Still farther to
the southeast the dip of the beds on the northeast limb is more gentle as
the fold plunges into the plain. (See Pl. XXXVI, section F-F'.) The
trough of the main syncline lies about 4.5 kilometers northeast of the
crest of the anticline. In the trough of the syncline the beds are about
800 meters lower structurally than on the crest of the anticline at Tho-
monde. The beds on the southwest limb dip southwestward at a rate of
5 ° to 12 ° to the trough of a shallow plunging syncline.
Successively older rocks arch over the crest of the anticline northwest-
ward toward the mountains. The conglomerates at the base of the Las
Cahobas formation form a conspicuous pine-covered '' rim rock '' around
the southeastern part of the anticline.
Ohamou.scadille anticline. The middle one of the three plunging anti-
clines on the west side of the plain is called the Chamouscadille anticline,
from the name of the rural section in which it is situated. The Chamous-
cadille anticline resembles the Thomonde anticline in many features, but
it plunges more steeply into the plain. The crest of this anticline is about
7 kilometers southwest of the crest of the Thomonde anticline and about
3 kilometers southwest of the trough of the shallow syncline between the
two anticlines. (See Pl. XXXVI, section E-E'.) Along the trail from
Las Cahobas to Thomonde the crest plunges southeastward at the rate of
about 6°. Near this trail the dip of the beds on the northeast limb is 10°.
1Jones, W. F., A geological reconnaissance in Haiti; a contribution to Antillean
geology: Jour. Geology, vol. 26, p. 736, 1918.
 MINERAL RESOURCES • 491
•

Toward the mountains the dip .of the beds on the northeast limb increases
markedly; along the trail from Thomonde southwestward across the
mountains to Mirebalais it is 55°. On the southwest limb the beds dip
from 5° to 10° for a distance of abot1t 2 kilometers to the trough of a
shallow plunging syncline similar to the syncline on the northeast side
of the anticline.
Conglomerates at the base of the Las Cahobas formation form a '' rim
rock '' around the southeastern part of the anticline, as on the Thomonde
anticline.
Ayaye anticline. The southernmost of the three anticlinal folds is
called the Ayaye anticline, from Riviere l' Ayaye, which flows .
across its
crest. This anticline is the shortest and least conspicuous of the three
plunging anticlines on the west side of the plain. I ts crest is about 3.8
kilometers southwest of the crest of the Chamouscadille anticline and
about 1.8 kilometers southwest of the intervening shallow syncline. The
trough of the syncline betwen the Ayaye anticline and the mountains on
the south side of the plain is about 3.5 kilometers southwest of the crest
of the anticline. The crest pl11nges southeastward at the rate of 8°
where Riviere l' Ayaye crosses it. This anticline is a.p parently not so
asymmetrical as the other two, but the dips on the limbs were not
measured.
SOUTH SIDE.

Belladere anticline. On the south side of the plain near the Domini-
can border an asymmetrical anticline emerges from the mo11ntains and
plunges northwestward into the plain. This fold is called the Belladere
anticline, as the town of Belladere is on its north limb. The Belladere
anticline may be the prolongation of the Chamouscadille anticline, but
it is not known whether the fold extends across the interior of the plain,
and the topographic base map is not so accurate for this part of the plain
as for the area farther west. The Belladere anticline resembles the pl11ng-
ing anticlines on the west side of the plain in many features, but it differs
from them in having steep dips on the southwest limb and more gentle
dips on the northeast limb. (See Pl. XXXVI, section G-G'.) The crest
of the fold is about 2.5 kilometers northeast of the trough of a narrow,
sharply folded syncline that widens as it plunges into the plain. On the
crest of the anticline the beds are not well exposed, but southwestward
from the crest the dip of the beds on the southwest limb increases to 55 °
in a distance of about 1 kilometer. The dip on the northeast limb was
•
measured only near Belladere, where the beds dip from 10° to 20° a.l most
due north.
A high '' rim rock,'' formed by the ba.sal beds of the Las Cahobas f orma-
tion, incloses the northwestern part of the anticline, as on the plunging
anticlines on the west side of the plain.
 492 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Northeast limb of syncline.

STRUCTURAL TERRACE NEAR THOMASSIQUE.

On the northeast limb of the syncline the beds dip southwestward

toward the trough. Along the trail from Thomonde to Thomassique they
rise from the trough of the syncline at a rate of dip that increases rather
uniformly to 15 ° or 20° near Thomassique. (See Pl. XXXVII, A.)
Northeast of Thomassique there is a belt about 4.5 kilometers wide where
the dip flattens to 7°. Farther northeast the beds are upturned against the
mountains in a belt about 3 kilometers wide, where the dip is as high as
20°. This structural terrace coincides with the wider part of the plain.

POSSIBLE SOURCE OF OIL.

• The Thomonde formation is the most promising possible source of

oil in the Central Plain. Beds in this formation, especially in its middle
and upper parts, contain the remains of a great variety of marine organ-
isms. The Ma!ssade tongue, which is a coastal-swamp facies of the middle
and upper parts of the Thomonde formation, contains an ab11ndance of
coastal-swamp vegetable debris. Seeps of oil at localities indicating that
the oil is contained in the Thomonde formation have been reported by
several people but were not seen during the reconnaissance. There are no
large seeps, residues, or mud volcanoes like those found in Trinidad,
Venezuela, and Columbia, where rocks of the same age contain oil.

RESERVOIRS.

The Thomonde formation also contains rocks suitable to form reservoirs

of oil. All parts of the formation include beds of sandstone and sandy
siltstone that are more porous than the interbedded compact clayey silt-
stone. 'rhe conglomerates and coarse sandstones in the lower part of the
• Las Cahobas formation, however, are perhaps more suitable for reservoirs
and ~bey overlie the possible source of oil.

STRUCTURE AS AFFECTING ACCUMULATION OF OIL.

•
If oil were present in any of the beds underlying the plain it would
collect in structural traps. The Thomonde, Chamouscadille, and Bella-
dere anticlines are the most favorable structural features. If the crests of
these folds extend across the plain they are probably arched into domes in
the interior of the plain. Such domes would be the most favorable locali-
ties to test the possibility of obtaining oil in commercial quantities. In
the interior of the southeastern part of the plain the beds that are possibly
petroliferous are covered by the Las Cahobas formation and the base of
the Thomonde for1nation is from 300 to 500 meters below the surface,
the depth depending principally on the structure. Pools will hardly be
fo11nd on any of the plunging anticlines inside the rim formed by the base
•

• •
 •

REP UB LI C OF HAITI
GBOLOGl CAL SU HV~Y

..4.. SOUTHWARD -DIPPI~G BEDS ON '!'HE NORTHEAST SIDE OF THE

C I~ Yl' R ...\.T-' PL.\IX N E AR 1'II0~1ASSIQ L'E.

R. ~rA TX EXTilA~('F) TO TllE rIT ...\DET.1T~F. OF CHRISTOPIIE.

'l' h <' (•iti1 tlell e is c·< > 11~t rt1 c te<l of 1·o t1 ghl~· s h n 1)rcl l)l<)tk s o f lim est on e ancl of brick s .
..
 MINER.AL RESOURCES. 493

of the Las Cahobas formation, for the possibly petroliferous beds 11ear
their outcrop would lose the oil through flushing by artesian circulation.
Although the entire Central Plain syncline plunges southeastward, it
is not likely that the deeper beds in the interior of the plain have been
flushed by ground water, because impervious beds crop out around the
edge of the plain and its southeastward prolongation, the San Juan Valley,
and because the floor of the syncline is far below sea level and apparently
has never been above sea level since the beds were laid down.

RELATIONS TO FIELDS NEAR BY.

The only oil wells on the island of Haiti are those near Azua, in the
Dominican Republic, where seeps have been known for a long time. The
1
so-called Azua :field has been described by Condit and Ross, and the
following summary is drawn from thei1· account. Six wells have been
drilled, and all except one a.re within a few hundred meters of the princi-
pal seep. According to reports, oil was found in all the wells at a depth
of less than 290 meters. The production of the wells is not definitely
known. All the wells were destroyed by salt water, which entered at a
greater depth and was not controlled. The oil, a heavy, viscous oil of 19°
to 21 ° Baume, apparently contained no gasoline.
The possibilities of the Azua field have not been adequately tested. The
rocks near the seeps are crumpled and faulted, and no attempt has been
made to reach the petroliferous beds at a favorable locality farther from
the outcrop. The oil obtained is probably not typical, as near the outcrop
it may be modified by fractionation or by chemical reactions with down-
ward-circulating ground wa te1·.
The rocks that crop out at the seeps in the Azua field are apparently
equivalent to the lower part of the Artibonite group of the Central Plain,
but the two areas of Miocene rocks are separated by a northeastward
extension of the Sierra de N eiba.

CONCLUSIONS AS TO POSSIBILITY OF FINDING OIL.

The lithology and structure of the Miocene rocks of the Central Plain
warrant a thorough search for oil. The interior of the southeastern part
of the plain should be examined for domes along the crests of the Tho-
monde, Chamouscadille, and Belladere anticlines. The base of the Las
Cahobas formation and the upper and middle parts of the Thomonde
formation, which contain the most promising reservoirs for oil, would be
within reach of the drill on such domes. Test wells should reach the
upper Oligocene limestone, if oil is not fo11nd in higher beds, in order to
test all the Miocene rocks. The region near Thomassique, where there is
1In Vaughan, T. W., Cooke, C. W., Condit, D. D., Ross, C. P., Woodring, W. P., and
Calkins, F. C., A geological reconnaissance of the Dominican Republic: Dominican Rep.
Geol. Survey Mem., vol. 1, pp. 223-225, 1921.
 494 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.
\

a structural terrace, should be tested if it is proved that the underlying

rocks are petroliferous elsewhere.
The northwestern part of the plain is not so promising as the southeast-
ern part. The lower part of the Thomonde formation is exposed on the
Fond Bleu dome, and the thicker coarse detrital rocks of the same age on
the plunging anticline between Ma1ssade and Pignon are p1~obably enti1·ely
delta and flood-plain deposits.

POSSIBLE OIL IN OTHER REGIONS.

The Artibonite Valley resembles the Central Plain in many features,

as structurally it is a northwestward-plunging syncline, modified by
secondary anticlinal and synclina.l folds. It also is floored with the Mio-
cene rocks of the Artibonite group. Figures 12 (p. 207) and 13 (p. 208)
show that a secondary anticline flanks the major synclinal trough on both
sides of the valley. Except in the upper part of the valley the Miocene
rocks consist principally of marl and limestone, which do not contain the
rich fauna of deposits of the same age in the Central Plain. The Mio- •

cene rocks of the Artibonite Valley are therefore not so promising, either
as a possible source of oil or as reservoirs.
Mjocene rocks probably floor the Cul-de-Sac Plain under the cover of
alluvium, but they are so completely concealed that their structure is
indeterminable from surface observations. Their lithology, as observed at
their outcrop along the borders of the plain, does not warrant any explora-
tion with the drill. ,
Reports of asphalt near Etang de ~firagoane have been repeated in sev-
eral accounts of the mineral resources of the Republic. Although no at-
tempt was made during this reconnaissance to find the deposits, the
geology of the region indicates that the reports are not authentic.

ROAD MATERIAL.
PRESENT ST.ATE OF ROAD BUILDING•

...~s compared with the area of the Republic, the length of improved
roads already built is very small, and most of them are not suited for
heavy traffic. Roads that will bear heavy traffic are needed in the plains
to facilitate agricultural development, and trunk lines connecting the
•
larger cities and towns are desirable .
Although an unlimited amount of good material for road making is
available, much of it is inconveniently situated, and a great deal of easily
accessible but inferior material is there.fore used.
Along the coru:;t much of the soft coralliferous limestone of Quater-
nary age is used. I t binds well but is too soft except for light traffic.
Much gravel from stream beds and older gravel beds is used, especially
in the Cul-de-Sac Plain. If properly graded and carefully laid it is
reasonably satisfactory, although it also is rather soft. The impure
 :MINERAL RESOURCES. 495

cherty limestone at Cap-Ha.ltien is used extensively on the streets of

that city with good results. In the mountainous regions hard rock is
generally available, but it is not much used because of the lack of
machinery for crushing it and preparing the roadbed. Some of the stony
residual soils of the mountain areas, when properly graded and dressed
with a little gravel, make good roads for light traffic.

TESTS OF SAMPLES OF ROAD MATERIAL.

•
The Bureau of Public Roads of the United States Department of
Agriculture t est ed six samples of material either used or available for
use in road making in the Republic. Four of these samples were rock
and were tested for use as courses in water-bound macadam. Two samples
of residual chert and gravel were tested for use in surfacing roads. The
cementing value of the rocks was not tested. The results of tests of the
1
four samples of rock are given in the following table :

Results of physical tests of some rocks available for road building.

•
Q,)
ti.o ... "O
!'i
•
...c:!S•
~
~ . •
tr.I
c.a
Ill
c.a
•

Sample ()!'
r;::- : : ~-eQ,) Q,) ~
~
Q,) ...
-at
.t= () Cl.I
Cl.I
s::
Q>
::::
... _
Q,) Q,)
Locality. Kind of rock. ·~ ;> Q,) ~ 0 () ~ c:.ie ~ "O ..c:
No. () CIS <:,) Ql ~ Q,) bO
~~
... tt-4 ,Q
... g-
~ ~

=
Q,)
Q,) 0 c:!S Q,)0 0 0
00. ll-4 ll-4 ~ 8

1 Near Limbe ..••.... Amphibolite •....•..... 3.01 0.60 5.8 6.9 18.7 22
2 Near Acul Samedi .. Quartz diorite ...... . .. 2.74 0.34 2.8 14.3 18.0 15
3 Cap-Haitien ••••••• Chert ('\Veathered) .. .. • 2.35 2.77 9.1 4.4 17.7 a

4 Cul-de-Sac Plain ..• Limestone (boulders) ... 2.64 0.67 4.4 9.1 14.7 7

"Variable.

The amphibolite (sample 1) consists mainly of hornblende and mag-

netite. It is a dense dark-gray rock of unusually high specific gravity.
It belongs to the early Me..sozoic volcanic series but has been meta-
morphosed by a near-by intrusion of quartz diorite. The sample was
collected in a road cut on the north slope of Plaisance Mo11ntain, about
4 kilometers south of Limbe. The hardness and toughness are high, and
probably the rock would bind fairly well. The percentage of wear is
rather high; nevertheless, this rock is considered the best road-building
rock test ed.
The quartz diorite (sample 2) contains about 88 per cent of the
1

essential minerals, plagioclase, quartz, and hornblende. The accessory

minerals magnetite and biotite constitute about 3 per cent and the
secondary minerals kaolin, chlorite, and limonite about 9 per cent of
the rock. This rock is typical of the quartz diorite that covers large
areas in the Massif du Nord, from Grande Riviere du Nord eastward
1
For description of the methods of testing, see J ackson, F. H., jr., Methods for the
determination of the physical properties of road-building IDJlterial : U. S. Dept. Agr.
Bull. 347, 1916.
496 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

to the Dominican border. The sample was collected from boulder s in the
bed of Riviere Marion near Acul Samedi. The hardness and toughness
are high and the percentage of wear low, but rocks of this type do not
bind well. The rock might be satisfactory in lower courses if used with
a good binding material.
Sample 3 comes from the impure cherty lime.stone, probably of Cre-
taceous age, that crops out in small areas in the Morne du Cap. The
sample was collected in a quarry near the Civil Prison at Cap-Ha1tien.
It is composed mainly or very fine angular fraginents of quartz embedded
in a cryptocrystalline siliceous matrix. A little secondary limonite and
sericite are present. Near the surface the rock is much shattered and
badly weathered. The percentage of wear is high, but the hardness is
also high and the binding power is probably good. Material that is not
too badly weathered should do fairly well for courses in macadam roads.
Sample 4 r epresents the harder Eocene and Oligocene limestone of the
Republic. It was obtained from large boulders in a gravel pit about 3
kilometers west of Pont Beudet, on the Cul-du-Sac Plain. In hardness
a.nd toughness the limestone is inferior to the other rocks tested, but in
its percentage of wear it compare.s favorably with them. Moreover, the
binding power of limestones generally is excellent, and the binding power
of this sample may be judged from that of sample B of the gravel,
which was taken from the same pit. (See below.) The Bureau of P ublic
Roads states that this rock'' is not sufficiently durable to be used in water-
bound macadam surface except where traffic will be light.'' However ,
the results of the physical test compare favorably with those of many
limestones that are successfully used in the United States.
Two samples of material were tested for use as surfacing material.
One is a finely divided and much-weathered residual chert from the
same quarry from which rock sample No. 3 was obtained. The other is
a gravel from the gravel pit at which r ock sample No. 4 was collected.
The results of the tests are as follows : •

Results of tests of samples of residual chert and gravel.

Loss by
Kind of washing Cement-
Sample. Locality. •
Principal constituents. (silt and 1ng
material.
clay) value.
(per cent).

A Cap-Haitien • • •• • • Crushed Angular fragments of weath- 26 .0 •

• rock. ered chert with consider-
able fine chert.
B Cul-de-Sac Plain • • Sand, clay, Rounded fragrnents of lime- 2.9 88
gravel. stone, quartz, basalt, and
chert. Quartz sand and
calcareous clay.

•Impossible to test.
 •

MINERAL RESOURCES. 497

Mechanical analyses of two samples of residual material.

' A B

Per cent. Per cent.

Gravel (IDaterial retained on i-inch screen).................................. 34 72
Sand (material passing i-inch screen)...................................... 66 28

Gravel (IDaterial retained on ll-inch screen)................................ 0 16

p~ing ll-inch screen but retained on 1-inch screen).... 11 29
1 i .... 10 14
i . ! .... 27 21
i 1 .... 52 20

Sand (1naterial retained on 10-mesh screen) • • . • . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . • . . . . 23 28

passing 10-mesh screen but retained on 20-mesh screen) • . . . 15 12
20 30 ...• 7 10
30 50 •••• 6 14
60 100 •••• 4 13
100 200 •• •• 6 8
200 •••• 41 15
..
Sample A represenra the finer material that is ab11ndant at the surface
of weathered exposures of the impure cberty limestone. The Bureau of
Public roads says that this material ''should prove satisfactory as binder
for broken rock in waterbound macadam road construction. Although
the cementing value test could not be made, experience has shown that
this type of material bas good binding properties.'' As a matter of fact,
it is used with good results as a top dressing on the streets of Cap-Ha.Ytien.
Sample B is typical of the finer material obtained at several gravel
pits in the Cul-de-Sac Plain and resembles many other gravel deposits
in the Rep·u blic that are composed predominantly of limestone pebbles.
The cementing value of this gravel is very good, and although rather soft
it gives good results under light traffic. Fairl)r good roads can be con-
structed entirely of this gravel by using the coarser material for the
lower layers or by crushing the large boulders and carefully grading
the gravel. The highway from Croix-des-Missions to Pont Beudet was
constructed entirely of this gravel, and although the traffic is rather
heavy the road bed has not deteriorated rapidly. The highway from
Port-au-Prince to Croix-des-Missions shows the results of using ungraded
gravel, as the roadbed deteriorated rapidly when large cobbles near the
surface became loose.

SUMMA.RY OF AVAILABLE MATERIAJ,.

The value of road material depends not only on its physical properties
but also on its accessibility and cost. The best rock in the Republic for
use in courses in water-bound macadam roads are the extruBive igneous
rocks, such as basalt, andesite, and dacite. The amphibolite tested
(sample 1) is a somewhat metamorphosed rock of this type. Probably
all the basalts, which comprise nearly all the igneous rocks of the Southern
32 . •

•
 498 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

Peninsula, would make good roads. Large areas of basaltic and andesitic
rocks crop out in the Massif du Nord from Grande-Riviere westward to
Port-de-Paix and in the Terre-N euve region. Small exposures of basaltic.
and andesitic rocks also occur near the road between Dessalines and
Gona!ves. Metamorphosed basaltic rocks also are known at accessible
locations on the North Plain near the head of Acul Bay and at the
southern border of the plain east of Le Trou. Other basaltic rocks crop
out at the foot of the mountains near Thoma.zeau and Maneville.
The coarsely crystalline intrusive igneous rocks, such as quartz diorite
and granodiorite, occur mainly in the l:Iassif du Nord, from Grande-
Riviere eastward to the Dominican border. These rocks are less desirable
as road material and probably need not be used to any great extent.
The hard Eocene and Oligocene limestones will make good roads where
traffic is not too heavy, ancl because of their very wide distribution they
probably will be used extensively. They occur in practically every
•

mountain range in the Republic.

Gravel is found in the plains and valleys where roads are especially
needed. It is the cheapest and most accessible road material available,
for machinery would be required to quarry and crush the igneous rocks
and limestone. An extensive program of highway construction is entirely
unwarranted at present, and highways constructed of gravel would be
satisfactory in the more thickly populated plains. The gravels are very
irregular in texture and composition, and careful grading is necessary
to assure good results. The best gravel, composed mainly of fra.g ments
of igneous rocks, is found in extensive areas only on the North Plain.
The soft coralliferous limestones of the coast and of the Miocene f orma-
tions are better than dirt but are inferior to any of the other rocks for
road material.
BUILDING STONE.

Many of the walls, aqueducts, and other structures built during and
since the colonial period consist of rubble masonry, made of rough field
stones laid in thick mortar. Bricks were used liberally wherever the
stones did not fit well, as in arches and at corners. Limestone boulders
generally were used because they were most common. Occasionally, es-
pecially at Port-au-Prince and Cap-Ha!tien, large coral heads from the
living reefs take the place of boulders. Many of the colonial structures
of this type were well built, and parts of them are still intact.
At Port-au-Prince considerable chalk from the hardened upper crust
of the Quaternary conglomerate is used in buildings and for foundations.
It is very easily quarried but too soft to shape well. The rough, irregular
lumps are laid in thick lime mortar. The life of this material appears to
be short, and failures of structures in which it has been used are rather
common.
 MINERAL RESOURCES. 499

Near the coast soft coralliferous limestones of Quaternary age have

•
been quarried at a few places. The best quarry seen was about a kilometer
north of Mole St.-Nicolas, near the road to Jean Rabel. The limestone is
fairly hard, and the thickness of the beds is from 20 to 50 centimeters.
Good dimension stone was obtained and used in the extensive fortifica-
tions around the harbor. The stone has lasted well, for the forts have not
•
been repaired for more than a hundred years .
The only place observed where the older hard limestones have been used
to any great extent is in the citadel at La Ferriere, which was const1~ucted
largely of Eocene limestone from the mountain on which it stands. The
stone is roughly shaped and is laid as coursed rubble. Bricks were used
freely, howevAr, particularly in facing t.he openings (Pl. XX XVII, B).
This structure has stood more than a century, and the main walls are in
reasonably good condition, indicating that .the stone is durable.
Som-e of the dense, uniformly colored Tertiary limestones take a high
polish and would be suitable for use in interior decoration.
A good building stone must fill several requirements. In the :first
place it must be strong enough to resist crushing. With the possible ex-
ception of the chalk at Port-au-Prince, all the rocks of the Republic have
a crushing strength much greater than is needed in ordinary structures.
The next desirable property is durability. The chalk mentioned above
and the very soft, poorly consolidated beds in the coralliferous limestones
are not very durable, but all the harder limestones of Eocene or Oligocene
age and most of the igneous rocks would last well. Climatic conditions
are favorable, as there is no frost. Moreover, there is little of the smoke
and injurious gases, such as cause deterioration of building stones in
m~nufacturing districts.
Color is important. The color of the stone in any building should be
fairly uniform, but the shade is largely a matter of taste and of prevailing
opinion. The coralliferous limestones weather to a monotonous drab or
gray. The Eocene and Oligocene limestones would be whiter and prob-
ably more attractive. Some of the igneous rocks, particularly the quartz
diorites, would be pleasing in appearance, although they are not highly
colored. Care must be taken in selecting them to get material free from
pyrite, which weathers and produces unsightly brown stains. The pink
quartz diorite in the mountains south of Jean Rabel, which is probably
the most attractively colored stone observed, unfortunately contains 1nuch
pyrite. Some of the gray quartz diorites near Grande-Riviere du Nord
also contain pyrite.
The cost of building stone depends principally on the difficulty of
quarrying. The limestones are fairly soft, and their bedding facilitates
quarrying. Most of the Eocene and Oligocene limestone is too thin-bedded
to furnish good dimension stone, but thicker beds can be found by care-
ful search. Igneous rocks generally can be worked easily only where joints
 •

500 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

occur at convenient intervals to assist in breaking out the stone. The

quartz diorites have such jointing at many places. The basalts, however,
are at many places too minutely jointed to yield large blocks. Moreover,
basalt is generally very tough and difficult to work.
Last of all, the location of quarries is determined largely by accessi-
bility either to the loca.l ity where the stone is to be used or to transporta-
tion facilities. The Quaternary limestone of Mole St.-Nicolas is well
located for transportation by water. Similar stone probably could be
obtained near the railway on the terraces of coralliferous limestone on
Cap-St.-Marc. The quartz diorites of the north could be obtained near
the railway between Grande-Riviere du Nord and Bahon, although they
are not so handsome there as farther east. At present there is little
demand for stone of this kind.
I

ROCK FOR CONCRETE.

Rock for concrete should be reasonably hard and should consist of

material so graded in size that the smaller pieces will fill the open spaces
between the larger ones. A rough surface probably increases the binding
power, and for this reason crushed stone has been preferred by many
engineers to rounded gravel, some even prescribing that gravel, if used
at all, should be crushed. Experience in the Republic of Haiti has sho\vn
that this is generally unnecessary and that the natural gravel makes ex-
cellent concrete. The gravel is composed mainly of pebbles of hard lime-
stone or of igneous rock, either of which are satisfactory. Crushed stone
from these same rocks would of course be equally satisfactory. However,
machinery for crushing bas not been available up to this time, and break-
ing by hand is so expensive that gravel has been used almost entirely.

LIME.

A great deal of lime is made in the Republic for domestic use. Most
of it is used for mortar or for whitewash. All the pure limestones are
burned to make lime, and occasionally coral heads from the living reefs
are used. Small quantities of lime are made by mjxing wood and stone
and burning in heaps in the open air. For larger quantities crude kilns
are made, preferably on chalky hillsides. A pit is dug like a well, and an
entrance is made at the base by a tunnel if necessary. The fuel is placed
below and the rock above. By neither method can the rock be burned
completely and evenly, and the product is inferior to that of carefully
operated commercial plants.
Much of the limestone of the Republic is remarkably pure, as is shown
by the two analyses in the fallowing table. Rock of this kind makes a
quick setting high-calcium lime.
 :MINERAL RESOURCES. 501

Analyses of limestone.

Alumina
Carbon (Al20s)
Sample Lime Magnesia Silica
dioxide and ferric Total.
No. (CaO). (MgO). (Si02).
(002). oxide
(Fe20a).

1 •••••• ••• • 55.60 0.45 48.45 0.14: 0.26 99.90

2 • • •• •• • • • • 55.12 0.56 48.18 0.50 0.20 99.66

Sample 1 was obtained from the middle Eocene Plaisance limestone at

t.he top of Mont Puilboreau between Ennery and Plaisance. Sample 2 •

was obtained from beach gravel about 3 kilometers southeast of Mont-

Rouis, where the shore touches the base of the Chaine des Mateux. It
is composed of pebbles of hard Eocene limestone and possibly in part of
Oligocene limestone. Of course not all the limestones of the country are
so pure as these samples, but rock of equal purity is plentiful.
The amount of lime consumed in the Republic is probably equal to
the output of a large modern factory. However, if such a plant were
erected it could scarcely compete successfully with the inferior but cheap
lime made by the present crude methods. If sugar refining, which re-
quires lime of high purity and uniformity, should continue to increase
a plant· to supply this trade might possibly be successful. A factory
located near Port-au-Prince doubtless could find satisfactory limestone on
Morne Hopital. Good limestone could also be obtained very near the rail-
road, about 3 kilometers southeast of Mont-Rouis, near the place where
sample 2 was collected. Many other reasonably accessible localities could
supply limestone of satisfactory quality.
•

MATERIAL FOR CEMENT.

The Republic of Haiti probably contains an abundance of raw materials
suitable for the manufacture of Portland cement, although present eco-
nomic conditions do not favor their utilization.
1
According to the United States Geological Survey, ''The ordinary
Portland cement mixture, when made from normal and natural raw
materials, contains about 75 per cent of lime carbonate ( CaC0 3 ) and 20
per cent of silica (Si02), alumina (Al20a), and iron oxide (Fe 2 0 3 ) to-
gether, the remaining 5 per cent including magnesium carbonate, alkalies,
sulphur, and other unavoidable but unnecessary constituents.'' The
2
United States Geological Survey states further that the amount of silica
present should be from two to three and one-half times the combined

Eckel, E. C., Burchard, E. F., and others, Portland cement materials and industry In
1
the United States: U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 522, p. 41, 1913.
2 Idem, p. 65.
 502 GROLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

amount of alumina and iron oxide. Magnesia should not exceed 3 or 4

per cent.
Occasionally a natural cement rock, an impure limestone of very nearly
the right composition, is fo11nd, but generally it is necessary to mix
different materials in proportions that will give a product of satisfactory
chemical composition. As a rule, the calcium carbonate is supplied by
limestone or marl, and the silica, alumina, and iron oxide by clay or shale.
Free silica in the form of sand is highly undesirable, and chert greatly
increases the difficulty of grinding. Grinding is much cheaper if all the
ingredients are soft.
Pure limestone that would supply calcium carbonate is widely dis-
tributed in the Republic. Two typical analyses are given on page 501.
Suitable clay or argillite is probably nearly as common. Analyses of two
samples a1·e given in the following table:

Analyses of materials that are possibly suitable for cem ent.

Iron Carbon
Sample Silica Alumina Lime Magnesia
oxide dioxide 'fotal.
No. (Si02). (Al20a). (CaO). ( MgO).
(F~Oa). (002) .

1 .... 25.42 8.32 1.93 30.83 2.27 23.75 6.38 98.40

2 •..• 51.30 16.88 4. 77 8.06 3.16 5.09 8.32 97.68

Sample 1 was obtained from a ravine near the bridge about 5 kilometers
northeast of St.-Marc, on the road to Gona!ves. It represents the marl
of Miocene age that underlies the surrounding valley and resembles other
Miocene marls found at many places in the Republic. Sample 2 was
obtained in a road cut about a kilometer south of the bridge over Les
Trois Rivieres near Plaisance, and represents beds of considerable thick-
ness in the argillite, presumably of lower Cretaceous age, that under lies
the Plaisance Valley and crops out elsewhere in the !1assi:f du Nord.
Microscopic examination indicates that the samples contain little if
any free silica (sand). The ratio of silica to alumina and iron in the two
samples is very nearly the same, approximately 2.5 to 1, and is \vithin
the limits prescribed on page 501. However, the first sample contains a
great deal of calcium carbonate and the second very little. In order to
obtain a mixture of the composition specified on page 501, pure limestone,
like that for which analyses are given on page 501, would have t-0 be added
to the marl (sample 1) in the proportion of about 80 parts by weight to
100 parts of marl. About 250 parts by weight of limestone would need to
be added to the argillite (sample 2) to produce a similar mixture. How-
ever, materials that are chemically well proportioned do not always pro-
duce a good cement, and the results can be determined only by trial.

•
 MINERAL RESOURCES. 503

Possibly some of the brick clays, like those at l' Arcahaie, would be
satisfactory for mixing with limestone to make cement.
In recent years the Republic of Haiti has imported about $100,000 worth
of cement annually, and the importations are increasing, but a plant to
furnish the don1estic supply would not be warranted by such a volume of
· business. The location of cement plants is generally determined more by
other factors, st1ch as labor, transportation, nearness to markets, and
fuel supply, than by the occurrence of suitable raw materials. There is
now no suitable fuel supply for cement manufacture in the Republic,
and unless oil should be found it probably will be impossible to establish
a profitable cement industry. ·

CLAY FOR BRICKS.

The Republic produces nearly all the common building brick that it
cons11mes. The largest brick factories are those near l'Arcahaie and near
Cap-Ha1tien, but there are smaller ones at other places. The plants near
l'Arcahaie make the bricks used at Port-au-Prince and also ship them by
boat to other parts of the co11ntry. So far as was learned, none of the
factories make tile or terra cotta, nor any special kinds of brick, such as
pressed brick, vitrified brick, or ornamental brick. The variety of products
manufactured might therefore be somewhat increased.
A few brick factories were visited, particularly for the purpose of de-
termining the kinds of raw materials used. These plants are described in
the following pages. Samples of clays collected were tested at the ceramic
station of the United States Bureau of Mines at Columbus, Ohio ( G. A.
Bole, superintendent), with the results given in the table on page, 504.
One of the plants near l'Arcahaie, known as the U sine l'Etoile, was
visited. It is said to be the largest of three plants at this locality, which
is near the shore, about 5 kilometers southeast of l' Arcahaie. When this
plant is running at full capacity it is said to produce from 15,000 to
20,000 bricks daily and to employ about 80 workmen. The bricks are
shipped by rail to Port-au-Prince and St.-Marc and by water to other
localities. They were selling in 1921 at $12 to $15 a thousand.
Alluvial clay is obtained from shallow pits about 200 meters from the •

shore. (See Pl. XXXVIII, A.) The clay is rather variegated in color,
the mixture of red and white resulting generally in a brownish tinge.
It consists mainly of reworked Miocene marl. Certain beds appear to con-
tain much fine calcareous sand. Gypsum in small flakes occurs through-
out the clay. Sand taken from the adjacent beach at low tide is mixed
with the clay in the proportion of 1 part sand to 4 parts clay. The sand
is very fine and seems to consist mostly of calcareous grains. •

After molding, the bricks are dried from 4 to 10 days in large sheds
(see Pl. XXXVIII, B) and are then burned in intermittent wood-fired
kilns, the only type of kiln in use in the Republic. There are five of these

•
 Results of tests of clays. c.n
0
~
Water Dry Fire shrinkage., Softening Color
of Working volume Drying Burning Color
No. Location. Source. tempera- in after Remarks.
plasticity quality.
r cent).
shrinkage
(per cent).
behavior. behavior.
Cone
No.
I tu re
Per lccone
cent.
No.). raw state. burning.

1 ... Brick factory Alluvial. 85.2 Good. 35 .5 Fair. Good at cones 07 ~.75 02 Light Buff. Good for com-
at l' Arcahai e. 07, 06, 05, 04. 06 8.48 brown. mon ware.
05 1.78 0
04 2.70 t!lj
0
t4
2... I Bric~ facto.r y jAlluvial clay •••• Good. 27.0 Good. , Good at cone 03 7.6 ••• • • ••••• Buff. Makes good 0
at 1 Arcaha1e. (No. 1) mixed 0
08. brick. ~
with 20 per
cent of beach
sand. I I I I I I I I I 0
~

47.6
~ttj
8 . •• !Brick factory Residual from · 32.5 Good. Fair. Cracked badly •••• •••• 2 Brown. Dark brow11 . Poor.
at Grande- basalt. at co11e 04.
Ri vi~re du
Nord. I I I I I I I I I I I I
pj
t!lj
4. · · I Grande-Rivi~re Residual. 28.7 20.5
du Nord. I Good. Good. Good at cones
5 and 10.
8
10
6.10
6.15
16 Red. Brownish red. Possibly good
for bt1ilding
1-d
~
brick. ti
.....
5 .•• IGrande-Rivi~re Residual. 34.5 Fair. 17.3 Good. Good at cones 7 13.2 14 Buff. Grayish Good for com- 0
du Nord. 7,8 and 10. 8 14.5 brown. mon ware.
0
~
6. ·. IBrick factory Miocene marl. 38.1 Good. • ••• Good at cone 03 21.8 • ••• Gray. Gray. No good.
at La Gorge Good .
on Rivi~re du
03 ; starts to 02 21.8 ~
~fOle.
crack at cone
02., cracks
>
.....
>-3
badly at cone .....
•
1.

7 ... I Rivi~re Guaya- Miocene clay. 25.4 Good. 20.7 Good. Good at cone 02 24.2 4 Buff. Grayish Good for com-
moue opposite 02J ; starts to 1 21.1 brown. mon ware.
Hinche. fuse at cones 2 2'1.8
1 and 2.
8 ... I Mont-Organis~. jResidual from 45.9 Fair. 36.3 Good. Showed fine 6 20.3 13 Red. Dark brown- ;No good.
quartz dio- cracks at 7 22.1 ish red at
rite. I cones 6, 7, 8 8 23.0 cones 6, 7, 8.
and 10. 10 24.7 Steel-gray
at cone 10.

•
 MINERAI.. RESOURCES. 505

kilns, with capacities ranging from 15,000 to 30,000 bricks each. When
properly burned, the bricks are buff, presumably owing to the large amount
of calcareous material in the clay. When insufficiently burned they are
reddish, and when overburned they become green and brittle.
Tests of the clay (sample 1, in table on p. 504) show that it has a low
fire shrinkage. It burned hard at a low temperature (cone 06). The addi-
tion of sand obtained on the beach near by makes the material dry better
but gives it a higher fire shrinkage (see sample 2), indicating that the
sand is highly calcareous and that its use could be discontinued. This is
the most satisfactory clay tested.
•

The brick factory of M. LaRoche, near Cap-Haitien, operates under its

former name of G. LeConte & Cie., which is stamped on all bricks. It is
on the North Plain about 3 kilometers south of Cap-Ha1tien, between the
Port-au-Prince road and Riviere Haut du Cap. It supplies all the bricks
used in the vicinity of Cap-Haitien and ships some by rail to Grande-
Riviere du Nord. In March, 1921, twelve men were employed, and the
weekly output was said to be about 5,000 bricks. The selling price was
reported to be $20 a thousand.
Alluvial clay of a dirty red color is obtained from shallow pits near the
plant. The clay is rather silty and is · poorly assorted, containing small
fragments of quartz and feldspar. Purer clay probably could be obtained
east of Riviere Haut du Cap, farther away from the Morne du Cap. No
sand is mixed with the clay.
The bricks are molded by hand, dried in covered sheds, and burned in
intermittent wood-fired kilns. One kiln has two compartments which
hold about 12,500 bricks each. One compartment is emptied and re-
charged while the other is burning. A larger kiln, holding 70,000 bricks,
was shut down when the plant was visited.
As the alluvi11m of the North Plain is derived mainly from igneous
rocks, the clay is not so calcareous as that at l'Arcahaie and also contains
more iron oxide. As a result the bricks are deep red. A sample of clay
obtained from the pits for test.i ng was lost.
At Grande-Riviere du Nord there is a sma.11 plant owned by M. Alexis
Paul, which is operated intermittently as orders are received. All work
is done by hand. The single kiln holds 5,000 bricks.
Residual clay from the decay of basaltic volcanic rocks is obtained on
the adjacent mountain slopes. The clay is deep red, and when wet is
extremely sticky. In a pit ne~r the plant it appeared to be about 2 meters
in depth, but the upper part contained so much residual gravel that it
was useless. The remainder also contained small fragments of quartz and
l.Inweathered feldspar. Three parts of this clay are mixed with one part
of sand obtained from the beds of small streams or from the Grande
Riviere du Nord. This sand is rich in quartz.
 506 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The burned bricks are deep red and resemble those produced by the
plant near Cap-Ha.ltien. Tests were made of three samples of clay ob-
tained at the factory and near by (Nos. 3, 4, and 5 in the table, p. 504) .
Sample 5 showed a rather high fire shrinkage. This shrinkage and the
unsatisfactory behavior of sample 4 is avoided at the plants by adding
siliceous sand. Sample 3 cracked badly at cone 04, but the other two
samples made fa.irly satisfactory bricks, althougl1 a high temperature was
necessary to burn them hard.
At La Gorge, about 3 kilometers south of Mole St.-Nicolas, a small plant
had just begun to produce bricks in February, 1921. This plaD:t was using
Miocene marl resembling that for which an analysis is given on page 502
and sand from the bed of the Riviere du Mole, in the proportion of 8
parts of marl to 3 parts of sand. The sand appeared to be composed o·f
about three-fourths calcareous particles and one-fourth fragments of
volcanic rock. All work was being done by hand. The single kiln held
about 5,000 bricks. When visited the plant had just finished its initial
burning. Many of t.he bricks were cracked, but some looked fair. T ests
•
(sample 6) show that the marl has a high fire shrinkage, and the test
bricks began to crack at cone 02. The addition of sand from the bed of
Riviere du Mole probably does not improve the material, as the sand is
almost as calcareous as the marl.
At Hinche, in the Central Plain, a temporary brickyard was making
bricks for a prison building in 1921. Loam obtained on a high-level
river terrace was mixed with sand from the bed of Riviere Guayamouc.
The loam deposit probably is of Quaternary age. The material is sandy
and is black from organic matter, but the bricks burned red. It is said
that silty clay taken from the hill leading up to the military camp made
unsatisfactory bricks, but the fault may ha.ve been in the handling of the
material rather than in the material itself. Tests of a sample of Miocene
clay obtained near Riviere Guayamouc, opposite Hjnche (sample 'I'), show
that it makes satisfactory bricks, although the fire shrinkage is high.
It burned hard at a fairly low temperature.
A sample of clay residual from quartz diorite, obtained at Mont-
Organise (sample 8), has a high fire shrinkage. A high temperature
(cone 6) was necessary to burn it hard, and the product has many cracks.
Each of the factories described uses a considerably different raw mate-
rial. The plant near Mole St.-Nicolas uses a consolidated marine marl,
presumably very high in calcium carbonate. The tests show that this
material is unsatisfactory. The plants at l' Arcahaie satisfactorily use
material of the same kind which has been reworked into alluvium and
probably reduced in calcareous matter. The plant at Grande-Riviere du
Nord uses a residual clay resulting from the decay of basaltic rocks, and
the plant at Cap-Ha1·tien uses material of the same kind which has been
assorted and redeposited as alluvium. One other type of clay that is com-
mon in the Republic, the residual red clay resulting from the weathering
nF.PUBLtC OF HAITI
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PLATE XXXVIII

.4. er...\ y PITS AT BRICIC FACTORY XEAR L'ARCAIIAlE.

R . Dl{YIXG ~ITED AXD I~IL:N .-\ T BRICI( I~ACTORY XEAR L'ARCAHAIE.

0. PITS FOR E,.APORATING SEA W~\'l,ER TO OBTAIN S:\.LT

NE.t\.R GRANDE-SALIXE.
 •

•
 •
MINERAL RESOURCES • 507

of limestone, probably could also be used to make bricks. In general the

alluvial clays are better assorted and occur in more extensive deposits
than the residual clays and consequently can be worked more cheaply.
Quartz sand suitable for addition to clay to reduce fire shrinkage and
increase the tensile strength is found in abundance only along the streams
flowing down into the North Plain. Calcareous sands have probably no
value for this purpose.
I

SAND.
Sand is used in the Republic of Haiti mainly in lime mort.a r and in
concrete. For these purposes sand should be graded that is, it should
consist of a mixture of grains of different sizes so that the smaller grains
will fill the spaces between the larger ones. Very fine sand is not desirable,
as it requires more cement or mortar and makes a weaker mixture. Sand
should be reasonably free from clay and organic impurities, and particu-
larly the surfaces of the grains should be clean, so that the mortar or
cement will adhere to them readily. Good sand is scarce in most pa.r ts
of the Republic, and as a result much dirty, inferior material is used.
Sand is scarce because so large a part of the surface rocks are composed
of pure limestone, which on weathering yields but little sand.
There are two principal kinds of sand in the Republic-calcareous sand
and siliceous sand. Calcareous sand occurs to some extent along stream
channels in limestone areas and is also found at some places in the Qua-
ternary gravels. For instance, considerable sand could be screened from
the gravel taken from the Cul-de-Sac Plain, of which a mechanical analy-
sis is given on page 497. The soft coralliferous limestones of Quaternary
age contain small bodies of calcareous sand at some places, and most of the
recent beach sands are composed chiefly of calcareous material. As a
rule all these deposits are small and irregular and contain a large amount
of clayey impurities. To obtain clean sand they should be screened and
perhaps also washed. An exception is the deposit of beach sand on the
north coast about 4 kilometers north of Mole St.-Nicolas. This sand is
composed of ground-up fragments of sea shells, reworked by the wind
into dunes. It is exceedingly clean and does not contain much material
more than 3 or 4 millimeters in diameter. The deposit, however, is not
very large.
Calcareous sand is inferior in strength and durability to siliceous sand,
but it can be used in mortar and concrete with fair results. It is of course
useless for many purposes, such as for abrasives, for molding sand, or for
glass making, for which purposes pure siliceous sands are required, and
it is of little value for road surfacing, as it is too soft.
Siliceous sand, composed mainly of quartz, is found in large quantities
only on the North Plain and along the streams in the adjacent part of
the Massif du Nord that is 11nderlain by igneous rocks. It is derived
mainly from the weathering of quartz diorite. Two samples of sand from

•
508 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

this area were tested by the Bureau of Public Roads of the United States
Department of Agriculture for use in making concrete, with results as
follows:

Mechanical analyses showing fineness of two samples of sand from the North Pwin.

Fineness. Sample 1. Sample 2.

Percentage of material passing i-inch screen, retained on 10-mesh........ 1 9

Percentage of material passing 10-mesh screen, retained on 20-mesh. . . 3 85
Percentage of material passing 20-mesh screen, retained on 30-mesh... 18 38
Percentage of material pas.sing 30-mesh screen, retained on 50-mesh. . . 52 15
Percentage of material passing 60-mesh screen, retained on 100-mesh... 21 2
Percentage of material passing 100-mesh screen, retained on 200-mesh... 3 0
Percentage of material passing 200-mesh screen.......................... 2 1

100 100
Loss by washing (silt and clay) in original ..•..•...•.•••..•. Per cent.... 1.5 0.5

When the sand was tested in concrete the results were as follows :

Tests of sand in concrete.

Sample 1. Sample 2.

Strength compared to standard Ottawa sand 0 at end of 7 days .. Per cent .. 64 84

Strength compared to standard Ottawa sand at end of 28 days ...... do ... . 76 91

• '' Standard Ottawa sand,'' used by engineers in the United States as a standard of comparison in
testing sands for concrete, is a ''natural sand from Ottawa, Ill., screened to pass a No. 20 si~ve and
retained on a No. SO sieve.'' See Am. Soc. Civil Eng. Proc., vol. 75, p. 682, 1912.

Sample 1 was obtained from a sand bar in the bed of the Grande
Riviere du Nord, at the southern edge of the North Plain, about 5 kilo-
meters north of the town of Grande-Riviere du Nord. Quartz is the most
abundant constituent, but there are considerable quantities of fragments
of feldspar and limestone and some organic matter.
Sample 2 came from sand bars in the bed of Riviere Marion, about 2
kilometers west of Acul Samedi. It consists chiefly of angular quartz
grains and minor amounts of feldspar, hornblende, and magnetite.
The Bureau of Public Roads states that these sands ''are not as well
graded as is considered necessary for first-class concrete work. Sample
No. 1 is much too fine in grading to give the requisite strength for any
type of Portland cement concrete construction and should not be used
for that purpose. Sample No. 2 is somewhat coarser and might be used
in concrete not requiring high strength, or if intended for first-class
concrete construction it might be used with an additional amo11nt of
cement.''
 •

:MINERAL RESOURCES. 509

Coarser, better-graded sand could probably be obtained by searching

the bed of Grande Riviere, or also from gravel pits at other places on the
North Plain. Coarser sand was noted particularly near Le Trou. The
deposits are extensive, and by proper screening, washing, and mixing
could supply large quantities of good building sand.
Black sand derived from the disintegration of dark basaltic rock occurs
in small amounts along some of the streams and more rarely on the beaches
of the Southern Peninsula. A sample was obtained on the beach near
the mouth of the Grande Riviere de Jeremie, where this sand is particu-
larly abundant. It consists principally of fragments of dark basalt, augite,
and magnetite, with a little calcareous sand. The magnetite constitutes
perhaps 10 per cent of the sand. The screen analysis of this sand is
as follows:

Mechanical analysis showing fineness of black sand from beach near Jeremie.
Percentage of material passing t- inch screen, retained on 20-mesh. . 6
Percentage of material passing 20-mesh screen, retained on 28-mesh. . 4
Percentage of material passing 28-mesh screen, retained on 35-mesh. . 9
Percentage of material passing 35-mesh screen, retained on 48-mesh. . 24
Percentage of material p~ing 48-mesh screen, retained on 100-mesh .. 55
Percentage of material passing 100-mesh screen, retained on 200-mesh.. 2

100

This sand has been used in concrete at Jeremie, but the results are
not known. It can not be very good for the purpose, as it is more poorly
graded and m11ch finer than either of the samples for which tests are given
on page 508. If coarser, better-graded sand of this kind could be obtained
it should be better than calcareous sand, although somewhat inferior to
the siliceous sand.
Deposits of sand suitable for special uses demanding high purity or
refractoriness, such as for glass making, molding, or the :filtration of
water supplies, probably do not exist in commercial quantities in the
Republic of Haiti.
SALT.

Almost all the salt used in the Republic is obtained by evaporating sea
water with the natural heat of the s11n. 'rhis salt is highly esteemed, is
cheap, and is consumed in large quantities.
Salt works are easily constructed at almost any place where there is
at least a narrow strip of low land near the shore. Large works near
Gona!ves, Baie de Henne, and Grande-Saline were hastily examined.
At all these places the salt water is evaporated in large square or rectangu-
lar pits, generally from 30 to 50 meters long and broad and 1 to 2 meters
deep. The earth excavated from the pits is thrown up aro11nd them as
an embankment to protect them from surface drainage or from tidal
 510 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

overflow. Many pits are constructed close together over a considerable

area .
At Gonaives, where the shore is low and fiat and the soil is rather im-
pervious, the sea water is admitted directly through open ditches, which
are closed while the water is evaporating. Near Baie de Henne, however,
where the pits are in a salty lagoon that is separated from the sea by an
emerged beach of calcareous sand or in places by reefs of cavernous,
coralliferous limestone, seepage from the sea is so effective that ditches
are 11nnecessary. However, as the salt is deposited it tends to seal out
the salt water, and after each harvest many stakes are driven into the
bottoms of the pits to permit the salt water to fill them again. As more
salt is deposited these holes are again sealed, and so on. A similar method
is used at Grande-Saline.
When evaporation is sufficiently advanced workmen enter the pits and
harvest the salt by hand, placing it in baskets. Usually it is dumped tem-
porarily beside the pits (see Pl. XXXVIII, 0), but if it must be stored
for some time it is placed under shelter. Harvests are most frequent in
the dry season, as at that time evaporation is most rapid. It is said that
at Gona1,res the salt is sometimes harvested at intervals of only 18 days.
As a rule, the interval is longer and may be as much as three or four
months.
The salt obtained in this way is coarsely crystalline, and some of it is
stained brown by impurities, but no further purification is attempted.

GUANO.
The Republic of Haiti contains numerous deposits of cave guano simi-
1
lar in many respects to those of other countries. In 1909 the Govern-
ment granted to Mr. 0. P. Tommins, of New York City, a concession for
the exploitation of these deposits in the arrondissements of Fort-Liberte,
Grande-Riviere du Nord, Valliere, and Cerca-la-Source, notably at Cerca-
la-Source.2 The State was to receive a royalty of one-third of the product,
and the valuation for purposes of taxation was placed at $1.50 per ton
at the custom house, Cap-Ha!tien.
The deposits occur in ordinary caves in the limestone of the mountain
•
sides. They seem to be most common in the limestone areas of the liassif
du Nord, though they doubtless occur in other parts of the Republic. The
caves in the Massif du Nord are well above the level of the present streams
and are now dry. The guano is formed chiefly of the excrement of bats,
which inhabit ce1"tain caves in great numbers. A considerable deposit has
accumulated even very recently in the abandoned workings of the old
mines at Las Lomas, where bats are especially numerous.
1 For general discussion and references see ''Nitrates'' and ''Phosphate rock'' by
Clarke, F. W., The data of geocl1emistry, 4th ed. : U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 695, pp. :l48-
253, 515-526, 1920.
2 Le Moniteur, No. 46, p. 314, 1909.
 MINER.AL RESOURCES. 511

Three caves containing deposits of guano were examined. One is about

6 kilometers southeast of Cerca-la-Source, near the Sources Chaudes de
Los Pozos. (See p. 562.) Its outlet with reference to the springs is shown
in Figure 35 (p. 563). There are two small openings on the hillside at
an elevation about 35 meters higher than the springs. One opening has
been enlarged to facilitate entrance. The openings lead downward for
about 20 meters into a large chamber from which there are several radiat-
ing passages. Although there were but few bats in the cave, the air was
warm and foul with the odor of ammonia. The floor of some of the
passages contained patches of fresh guano and elsewhere consisted of
clayey earth mixed with decomposed guano. In one of the radiating pas-
sages a hole 1.2 meters in depth penetrated entirely through the guano
and clayey eart.h to the rock beneath. A sample of the decomposed guano
mixed with clay was obtained from the floor of another part of the cave.
The two other caves examined were near St.-Michel de l'Atalaye and
are more fully described in connection with fossil bones found in the
cave earth which they contain (see p. 257). In the larger cave there were
very few bats and little indication of guano on the floor of the cave, which
was covered with red clayey earth mixed at places with loose fragments
of limestone. Two pits were dug in this cave, the deeper one less than 2
meters in depth. Neither pit approached the bottom of the cave earth,
which may be 10 meters in thickness. A sample of red earth was taken
from the deeper pit at a depth of about 1.5 meters.
The second cave near St.-Michel de l' Atalaye is smaller. There were
many bats in it, and the floor of the rear part of the cave was covered by
a deposit of fresh guano several centimeters in thickness. A pit dug ~at
one side of th~ cave reached the sloping bedrock at a depth of about 1.5
meters. The deposit probably is 5 or 10 meters thick in the middle of
the cave. Most of the guano is badly mixed with boulders that have been
washed in from the opening of the cave. No sample was taken.
Analyses of the two samples of cave earth by the Bureau of Soils of the
United States Department of Agriculture are given in the following table:
Fertilizing constituents in cave earth from the Republic of Haiti.

Phosphoric acid Phosphoric acid

Source and kind of material.
Nitrogen (N). (P205). as Cas(P0,)2.

Per cent. Per cent. Per cent.

Decomposed guano and clay from cave near
Cerca-la-Source ............................. . 0.365 13.07 28.4
Red earth from cave near St. .Michel-de-I'Atalaye 5.00 10.21 22.2

According to tl1e Bureau of Soils, '' The analyses of both of these

materials show that they would be of value for fertilizer, one of them
running especially high in nitrogen and the other in phosphoric acid.''
512 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The nitrogen in these deposits sems to be clearly derived from the

bat guano, and doubtless most of the phosphate is from the same source,
though a part of that in the sample from the cave near St.-Michel de
l'Atalaye might be derived from bones, which were found in ab11ndance
in one part of the cave (seep. 258) although not in the excavation from
which the sample was taken for analysis.
Although the guano in these caves would make good fertilizer, it is not
likely that it can be exploited commercially under present conditions be-
cause the caves are so inaccessible that charges for transportation would
be prohibitive, because all the deposits observed are so small that they
would not supply any large quantity for export and it is doubtful whether
very large deposits exist, and because the guano even in a single cave
differs so much in quality from place to place through mixture with earth
and stones tha.t a product of sufficient 11niformity for export would be
difficult to obtain. Nevertheless, if the use of fertilizer in the Republic
should become popular or necessary the deposits might be of considerable
value for domestic use.

.
 •

'

PART v. WATER RESOURCES.

By JOHN S. BROWN.

INTRODUCTION.
The need for the utilization of the water resources of the Republic is
urgent. Agriculture, the principal industry, is dependent in large measure
upon successful irrigation and flood control, and the principal cities are
sorely in need of better and more ab11ndant supplies of water. In addi-
tion, the development of water power is desirable to offset the lack of
fuel for the generation of power.
Only a very small part of the few months spent in the reconnaissance
could be devoted to a study of the water resources. The equipment avail-
able for the study was meager, and the maps at hand were wholly inade-
quate. The description of the water resources is therefore incomplete and
poorly balanced. Some unimportant features are described in detail;
other features of great importance are described briefly, for lack of
further information. All the information obtained that may possibly be
valuable has been given, and the suggestions offered are as practical as
they can be made in view of the information available.
Considered according to their mode of occurrence, water supplies
may be classified as surface water and ground water. The source of both
surface and gro11nd water is rainfall. As stated under the heading
''Climate'' (pp. 43-55) the mean annual precipitation ranges from
about 500 millimeters on the driest lowlands to perhaps 5,000 millimeters
on certain high mountain ranges. This precipitation is concentrated in
two rainy seasons, which are separated by two comparatively dry seasons.
The dates marking the limits of these seasons do not coincide in all parts
of the Republic, and both the date and the amount of precipitation at
any given locality varies somewhat erratically from year to year. A part
of the rainfall :fills the streams and lakes, forming surface water, some
is lost by evaporation, some is taken up by plants, and a part sinks into
the earth and becomes ground water, which ultimately reappears through
springs and wells or seeps into streams and into the sea.
A general description of the drainage of the Republic is given on pages
32-36, and a table showing the principal streams in the order of their
length is given on page 34. The streams include one large river, the
Artibonite, many smaller yet considerable rivers, and a very large n11m-
ber of little rivers and brooks. The larger streams flow throughout the
33 513
514 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

year but are very low in the dry season. In this season many of the
smaller streams are dry throughout all or a part of their courses. In the
wet season nearly all the streams are subject to sudden and violent floods,
for the steep and rugged slopes of the mountains that cover so large an
area facilitate rapid run-off. Nevertheless, the streams are the arteries
of the Republic. They supply all the water for drinking and domestic
use and for stock, and they also serve to irrigate a large part of the most
p1·oductive agricultural land. ,
, There are only two large lakes in the , Republic, Etang Saumatre and
Etang de Miragoane. The water of Etang Sa11matre is brackish , and
unfit for domestic use or for use in irrigation. The water of Etang de
~iiragoane is good, but the lake is so situated that it is of little use. The
other lakes are small and of slight value as sources of water-supply.
Where it is not polluted by waste and sewage, most of the surface water
is good for irrigation and for domestic use. The quality of water is
considered more fully on pages 542-550.
As the value of a general accol1nt of the water resources of the Republic
depends mainly upon its bearing on the possibility of irrigating the more
arable areas with either surface water or ground water, it seems best to
give all the data relating to each area in one place. Before the Revolution
the French colonists had constructed a highly developed irrigation sys-
tem, using surface water, and their engineering works form the basis of
virtually all the present jrrigation
.
systems. The statements here given
regarding colonial irrigation are based on the work of Moreau de
1
St. Mery. .

SURFACE AND GROUND WATER SUPPLY.

Although surface water is mentioned in the following descriptions, it
is generally treated much more briefly than grol1nd water, not, however,
because it is of less value but because adequate data regarding it are not
available.
Much more information has been obtained for the Cul-de-Sac Plain
than for any other area, and as a knowledge of the conditions on this
plain will assist in giving an understanding of the conditions on other
plains, most of which are similar, the Cul-de-Sac Plain will be described
first. •

• CUL-DE-SAC PLAIN .
IMPORTANCE. •

The Cul-de-Sac Plain has been one of the most valuable agricultural .
areas of the Republic, partly because of its proximity to the nation's
capital and metropolis, Port-au-Prince, but chiefly because the French
Moreau de St. M~ry, ~ E., Description topographique, physique, civile, politlque
1

et historique de la partie Fran~aise de l'isle Saint-Domingue, 2 vols., Philadelphia,

1797-98.
 WATER RESOURCES. 515

colonists achieved on the Cul-de-Sac Plain their greatest triumph in

irrigation, as a result of which it became the most productive area in
the colony except the North Plain.

SURFACE FEATURES.

The principal features of the Cul-de-Sac Plain are shown in Plat(l

XXXIX. The plain is roughly rectangular, though it is somewhat wider
at the east end than at the west end. Its length from east to west is about
30 kilometers and its average width is about 12 kilometers. High moun-
tains rise abruptly above it on the north and on the south; it is bounded
,
on the west by the sea and on the east by the large brackish lake, Etang
Saumatre. The plain slopes in general northward almost to the very
base of the Montagn~ du Trou d' Eau, but its northern half is very smooth
and nearly level. In the eastern part of the plain there is a low divide
which extends from south to north and, which turns part of the drainage
westward to the sea and part of it to Etang Sa11matre. Near the middle
of the northern side of the plain is a shallow depression occupied by a
small •fresh-water lake called Trou Caiman. This lake is said to overflow
westward down the Ravine Boucan Brou when :flooded. All the southern
half of the plain has a prono11nced northward slope and some minor
irregularities of surface. Low ridges and hills break its continuity in the
southeastern part.
The surface of the Cul-de-Sac Plain consists of alluvium washed down
from the surrounding mo11ntains. As the only large streams come from
the south, more alluvium has been deposited on that side, and this fact
acco11nts for the general northward slope of the plain.
The plain receives a mean annual precipitation of 800 to 1,000 milli-
meters, which would be sufficient to water many crops if it could be
depended on and were well distributed. Unfortunately the annual pre-
cipitation varies between wide limits, and its distribution also varies
considerably even in the wet seasons. Moreover, the high temperature
causes great evaporation. For these reasons irrigation is necessary to
insure crops, particular1y of sugar cane, which is one of the plan ts best
adapted to cultivation on the plain.

STREAMS AND SPRINGS.

The surface-water features of the Cul-de-Sac Plain are shown on Plate

XXXIX. The principal streams watering it are the Grande Riviere du
Cul-de-Sac (sometimes called the Riviere Gris) and the Riviere Blanche.
Both streams rise in the heights on the south, in the Massif de la Selle,
and enter the plain not far apart, near the middle of its southern border.
The Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac :flows northwest, turns gradually to
the west, and flows into the sea near the middle of the western coast of
the plain. The Riviere Blanche generally dries up not far from the
 '

GEO:LOGY OF 1'1tE REPUBLtC OF HAITI.

years. Improvements and extensions were made in 178 7-88. The area
.served was 4,959 carrea11x, but the water available was insufficient to
irrigate the entire area.
The Riviere Creuse was diverted for irrigation in 1738, and the usual
difficulties attending apportionment and distribution were settled about
1754. The area served was 3,620 carreaux.
The Sources Palmistes Claires and most of the other scattered springs
were appropriated and used by their owners and others in the vicinity.
The total area served was as follows :
Carreaux.
From the Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,988
From the Riviere Blanche. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,959
From the Riviere Creuse. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,620
All others (including Fond-Parisien). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,091

19,658

The supply of water for several of these systems is said to have been
inadequate, and the area effectively irrigated is estimated at 13,000
carrea11x, or about 169 square kilometers. The total area 11nder ditches
was about 255 square kilometers. The total area of the plain is about
360 square kilometers, a considerable part of which is not irrigable. The
figures given indicate that the French colonists developed practically
all the irrigable land in the plain and probably cultivated nearly half its
total area.
The irrigation system left by the French colonists has been in use ever
since the Revolution but has gradually deteriorated. It has suffered from
lack of maintenance and has been damaged by earthquakes, which caused
much loss of water by seepage and broken ditches. Some repairs have been
made in recent years, but no coordinated system of distribution has been
established. The area under effective irrigation at present is much smaller
than that irrigated by the colonists. The Haytian-American Sugar Co.
has developed large sugar plantations, on which it has practised irrigation
I
effectively, but the company has had much trouble in getting enough water
for its land because of conflict with the rights of other property-holders.
It has therefore been forced to resort to pumping from wells to supple-
ment its supply from the canals.

GROUND wATER.
GEOLOGIC FEATURES AFFECTING GROUND WATER.

The Cul-de-Sac Plain is an immense basin covered with stratified al-

luvium consisting of beds of coarse gravel, sand, and silt, and perhaps
even some clay. These beds are made of the sediment carried by streams,
chiefly by Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac and Riviere Blanche. The beds
are not folded but generally slope gently down toward the lower parts

•
 ,
•

WATER RESOURCES. 517

Sources Despuzeaux. The other springs of the plain are much smaller,
yielding not more than a few hundred liters per second.

Flow of Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac (at Bassin General) at ordinary stages.

[Cubic feet per second.] 0

1918 1919 1920 1'1921

Maximum • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 760+ 492 334 494

Minim11m • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 100± 60 37 42

"The cubic foot is equal to 28.S liters.

b First 9 months of 1921.

Flow of Riviere Blanche and Sources Despuzeaux, 1920 and 1921.

[Cubic feet per second.]

Riviere Blanche. Sources Despuzeaux.

1920 "1921 1920 "1921

Mean • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 61 60 Mean • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 24 19
Maximum • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 97 107 Maximum • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 26 22
Minimuni • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 42 44 Minimum • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 8 8

4 At ordinary stages.

IRRIGATION.

The French colonists utilized all the sources of ·water mentioned here
except the springs at Maneville and those that feed Trou Ca!man, which
lay too low for diversion upon the surrounding land. The statements con-
cerning the development of their irrigation systems are taken from Moreau
1
de St. Mery.
Irrigation was begun in 1730 by diverting water :from the Grande
Riviere du Cul-de-Sac through a cut in the bank in its lower course.
Other diversions followed rapidly and they :finally necessjtated a legal
acljudication of water rights and a concerted plan of distribution, which
culminated in the building of a diversion dam at the site of the present
Bas.sin General and the construction of an extensive system of canals.
Work on this project was begun in 1773 and completed in 1787. About
2
"I, 9 88 carreaux of land were served by this system.
The Riviere Blanche was first diverted in 1741 to form an irrigation
system, which was completed in 1745 and operated successfully for many
Op. cit., vol. 2, pp. 269-286.
1
i The exact area of the carreau at that time is difficult to determine but was probably
about 0.13 square kilometer.
 51S G'.mOtOGY OF ~ttn REPUBLtC OF 1IAtT!.

years. Improvements and extensions were made in 1787-88. The area

served was 4,959 carreal1x, but the water available was insufficient to
irrigate the entire area.
The Riviere Creuse was diverted for irrigation in 1738, and the usual
difficulties attending apportionment and distribution were settled about
1754. The area served was 3,620 carreaux.
The Sources Palmistes Claires and most of the other scattered springs
were appropriated and used by their owners and others in the vicinity.
The total area served was as follows :
Carreaux.
From the Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,988
From the Riviere Blanche. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,959
From the Riviere Creuse. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,620
All others (including Fond-Parisien). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,091

19,658

The supply of water for several of these systems is said to have been
inadequate, and the area effectively irrigated is estimated at 13,000
carrea11x, or about 169 square kilometers. The total area 11nder ditches
was about 255 square kilometers. The total area of the plain is about
360 square kilometers, a considerable part of which is not irrigable. The
figures given indicate that the French colonists developed practically
all the irrigable land in the plain and probably cultivated n early half its
total area.
The irrigation system left by the French colonists has been in use ever
since the Revolution but has gradually deteriorated. It has suffered from
lack of maintenance and has been damaged by earthquakes, which caused
much loss of water by seepage and broken ditches. Some repairs have been
made in recent years, but no coordinated system of distribution has been
established. The area under effective irrigation at present is much smaller
· than that irrigated by the colonists. The Haytian-American Sugar Co.
has developed large sugar plantations, on which it has practised irrigation
effectively, but the company has had much trouble in getting enough water
for its land because of conflict with the rights of other property-holders.
It has therefore been forced to resort to p11mping from wells to supple-
ment its supply from the canals.

GROUND wATE'.R.
GEOLOGIC FEATURES AFFECTING GROUND WATER.

The Cul-de-Sac Plain is an immense basin covered with stratified al-

luvium consisting of beds of coarse gravel, sand, and silt, and perhaps
even some clay. These beds are made of the sediment carried by streams,
chiefly by Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac and Riviere Blanche. The beds
are not folded but generally slope gently down toward the lower parts
 ,
'
WATER RESOURCES. 519

of the plain, where they are nearly horizontal. The coarser beds pre-
dominate at the borders of the plain, particularly the southern border,
and the finer beds are in the middle and on the north side. The beds
vary vertically as well as laterally, and coarser material alternates with
finer material even in the center of the plain. The total thickness of al-
luvium is not known, but may reach 100 meters. The surficial material
was deposited on land, probably to a depth of at least 30 meters; the deeper
strata may be marine (seep. 521), but this difference probably makes little
difference in the circulation of the gro11nd water. The alluvium overlies
a series of strongly folded Miocene beds containing soft conglomerate,
sandstone, limestone, and marl. These beds are probably 11nderlain by
hard, massive limestone.
The porous beds in the alluvi11m, particularly the beds of gravel and
sand, absorb water from rainfall, from seepage from streams, and from
flood water from the adjacent mountains. The flood water, percolating
downward, has filled all the porous beds of alluvium except those near the
surface, which are easily drained by seepage. The porous beds in the
Miocene rocks have probably also been filled with fresh water in the same
manner at many places, and they may even contain water absorbed in
certain areas on the flanks of the mo11ntains that border the plain where
they crop out. These beds, however, are probably not a source o:f much
of the ground water in the plain. The depth to water or to the water table
in the pla.in ranges from the surface to 30 or 50 meters, and is greatest on
the high land at the southern border.
The geologic features described indicate that conditions requisite for
flowing artesian water exist here. These conditions, as found in the
plain, are (1) outcropping beds of porous sand and gravel, chiefly on
the south side of the plain; ( 2) a dip that passes gently down toward the
north; (3) overlying relatively impervious beds of clayey silt. The
water contained in the porous beds beneath the lower part of the plain
is therefore under hydrostatic pressure from that contained in the same
beds or other connected beds at higher altitudes to the south. Flowing
wells may be obtained in the lower part of the plain, as was discovered,
probably more or less accidentally, by the Haytian-American Sugar Co.
when it began drilling for water about 1918. The wells of this company
are the only deep wells and include the only known flowing wells in the
Republic.
WELLS AND PUMPING PLANTS.

Wells of the Haytian-American Sugar Co. The locations of the wells

and pumping plants of the Haytian-American Sugar Co. for which data
are available are shown on Plate XXXIX, where they are designated by
n11mber. Most of the sit.es of these wells were examined by the writer
through the courtesy of the company, by whom also the logs of wells
were fun1ished. The logs thus furnished are here given as reported by
 520 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

the drillers and must be accepted with some reservations. It is difficult

to tell just what is meant by'' rock,'' and the term'' clay'' probably often
covers silt or clayey silt. "
Non-flowing well at Peyrard. At Peyrard a well (No. 1, Pl. XXXIX)
was dug to a depth of 15 meters, where water was fo11nd. In the bottom
of this well a hole was drilled to a depth of 35 meters below the surface
of the gro11nd. Water continued to stand at the original level. The log
of the well is given as follows :
•

Log of well at Peyrard.

Mater ial. Thickness. Depth.

Met ers. Meters.

Sandy clay •............................. .. . . .. . ....... .. . . ... . ... . ....... 21 21
Fine gravel and clay ................................................... · . 5 26
Clay and fine sand ...•.•....•......... . ..............................•. · · · 2 28
Fine sand •...................... . .. · · . · .. · · · · · . · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · 2 30
Fine sand and gravel. . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . I 1 31
Gravel and sand ........................... . .... . ........... . ..•... . .. · · .. 3 84
Clay and fine sand ...•......... . .. ... ............. .. .... .. .... ... · · · . . · · · · 1 35

•
This well is on relatively high ground at the south side of the plain,
and the water table lies deeper below the surface than in any other well
described. The well is said to give a good yield when pumped. The log
indicates that it is entirely in alluvium. The writer did not visit the well.
Flowing well near La M oriniere. Well No. 2 is typical of the flowing
wells in the lower part of the plain. It yields about 284 liters per minute
with the casing projecting one meter above the gro11nd. A view of the
well is shown in Plate XL, A. The depth of the well is unknown but
is at least 70 meters, and its log also is unknown. Near this well a well
was dug to a depth of 24 meters. The material penetrated is said to have
been fine sandy alluvi11m except for a thin bed of gravel about 4 meters
below the surface of the ground. The pit being excavated at the rear of
the well (Pl. XL, A) was about 7 meters deep at the time of the writer's
visit. At 2.5 meters below the surface there was a bed of coarse gravel, \ .

1 to 2 meters thick, which rests with marked erosional unconformity

(irregular surface) on 11nderlying sandy silt. The gravel consisted pre-
dominantly of pebbles of limestone, but contained some pebbles of chert
and of basalt. The pebbles averaged from 2 to 6 centimeters in diameter.
Flowing well at La M oriniere. Well No. 3 yields a larger flow than
• any other well in the plain, reported to be about 1,900 liters a minute.
A large earthen reservoir capable of storing the flow of the well for 36
hours has been built around it. The total depth of the well is 189 meters.
It is cased to a depth of 43 meters with '' 8-inch '' c~ing and below that

•
REPUBLIC OF HAITI
GE OLOG l CAL S Ul{,' l!JY PL.ATE XL

'
A . FLO''"IXG \VI~ LL :\'EAR I,A ~IORIXIERE IX TIIE
cur_J-DiiJ-S.\C PLAIN.
'l~b e yiel d of thi s w ell i s 11bo11t 284 liter s <l 111int1ic .
•

B. SALT SPRING E"M'ERGING FROM LI~fESTOINE OF SUPPOSED

UPPER EOCENE AGE O~ THE BEACII NE.\.R :.\IIRAGOA~E " .
The tide 1·t1ns in i1nd out un <ler· tl1e britlge at the 1·i g l1t .

0. OUTLET OF 1.'HE SOUJ{CES Pl! i\.NTES, AT TIIE ~ORTII\\"EST

CORNER OF TIIE CUL-DE-SAC PLAI~.
 •

•
 •

•
WATER RESOURCES. 521
•

to a depth of "15 meters with'' 6-inch ''casing. Drilling was completed in

October, 1920. The following log is given:

L og of well at La M oriniere.

Mater ial. Thickness. Depth.

Meters. Meters.
Not s'tat ed . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 43
Clay ... . ........ . .................. . ..... ...... . . ...... . .......... . ..... . 7 50
Sand •.•................................ . .............. . . ... .. ... . . .... . . 2 52
Pack ed sa nd and gravel . .. . ... . ............... . . . ................ . ...... . 5 57
Clay .. . ..... . ......... . ... ... . ... . . ... .. ... ... ... . . .. . . ................. . 4 61
Rock .......................... . ........................... ... .......... . 2 63
f3llil.cl ••••.•••••.•••••..••••. . ••••••••••.••••• . .••..•. • ••• •• •.•.•••••••••• 1 64
Olay •.............. . .... . ..... . ..... . ..... . . . .... . .......... ... ....... . .. 4 68
Rock . . ... . • . .. . ......... . .............. . .... .. .... . .. .. .. . ..... . .•..•... 4 72
I
Sand . . ........................................ . ..... . ...... . ... . . . ...... . 4 76
Rock .... .. .... . ...•....•.. . ...... .. .... . .... . ..... . ........... . ......... 1 77
Clay . .... . ... ... .. .. . . ................. . ........ . ... . ........••.......... 8 85
Rock ..... .. .......... .. ... . ....... . ... . ........... .. ..... . ....•......... 2 87
Clay ... . ... . ... . ... . ..... . ........................................ . ..... . 7 94
Clay and some gra vel .... . .... . ...... .. ..........•........ . ... . ..... . ..... 24 118
Soft r ock .................. . . . ... . . . ..... . ............ . .... . . . ..... .. .. . . 2 120
Hard r ock ... . . . ......... . .... . ..... . ................... . ...... .. . . .... . . 1 121
Rock •..•.................. .. · .... . · · · · · · · · · • · · · · • · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · I 8 129
Sandstone . . . . .. ... . .. . .. ... . . .............. . . . ......... . ....... . ..... .. . 8 137
Soft rock .......... .. ..... .... . .. .......... ... ........... . ... .. ......... . 11 148
Clay ........... . .... . ..... .... ......... .. .... . . . ... . .... .. .... . .. . . . .... . 13 161
Rock • . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . l 11 172
Sand .. . ............... . . . .. . . .. .. . .... . ...... . ..... . ........... . ... . . . . . 4 176
Alterna t ing clay and sand ..... . ............ . ... . ................ . ....... . 12 188
~()~lt. . . . . •. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 189

The numerous beds of rock, many of them soft, suggest that this well
probably penetrates the buried Miocene beds below the depth of 63 meters.
The flowing water comes from the bed of sandstone that lies at depths
between 129 and 13"/ meters and that was encountered at a depth of
131 meters.
Pumping plant at La M oriniere. The pumping plant at La Moriniere
(No. 4) is a few hundred meters east of well No. 3. Water is drawn from
6 wells, which are 15 meters apart and are said not to exceed 35 meters in
depth. The natural water level is said to be about 7 meters below the
surface of the ground. Water is raised by a steam-driven centrifugal pump
set down in a pit "I meters below the surfa.ce of the ground. The group of
wells is said to yield about 3,400 liters a minute or 56"/ liters a minute
per well. Some of the water is pumped into an elevated tank and used
for railroad supply. An analysis of this water is given on page 544.
Pumping plant at Dessources. The plant at Dessources (No. 5) is of
the same type as that at La Moriniere. Pumping is done by a steam-driven
centrifugal pump set "I met ers below the surface of the ground. The p11mp
draws from 6 wells that are 15 meters apart. Some of these wells are
•

•
 •

522 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

much deeper than those at La Moriniere, and originally yielded moderately

good flows (150 to 200 liters per minute), but the pump was installed to
increase the yield.
1
The logs of three wells at Dessources, at least two of which are at Plant
5, though one may belong to group 6, near by, are given below.

Log of well at Dessources.

~Iaterial. Thickness. Depth.

Meters. Meters.
Clay • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 8 8
Sand • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 4 12
Olay • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 7 19
Sandy clay . .. ................ . ........................................ . . 5 24
may with some gravel .......... .. .......... . ............ . ............... . 25 49
Clay and coarse gravel ................................... .. ............. . 6 65
Olay ...•...... ... ........•...... . .................... ... ......... .. .. ... . 3 58
I
Hard clay or soft stone .....•............................................. 2 60
Soft limestone ............ .. ...................... .. .................. . . . 2 62
White clay ....... . ...... ... ..... . ......................... .... ......... . 9 71
Clay and sa.nd ......... . ........ .. ..... . .... . ............................ . 36 107
Yell ow clay and sand .............. . ..... .. ........... . .... . ............. . 23 130
White clay ............ . ......... .. ........ .... ...... ... ......... ... .... . 4 134
Hard white clay .. ................ . ............... .. ...• ... ........... ... . 2 136
Hard clay and sand . . .. . .............................. . .... . ............ . 4 140
Soft sandstone ........ . ............. ... ................................. . 6 146
Blue clay ........ .. .........•............. ... ......... . · ... · · • · · · · · · ... . . 26 172

The above well is cased with'' 8-inch '' casing to a depth of 60 meters.
Water was found in the sand at 8 meters but did not rise above that level.
From the limestone at 59 meters water rose to the surface of the gro11nd
and the flow increased succes~ively at 85 meters and 133 meters.

Log of well at Dessources.

Material . Thickness. Depth.

Meters. Meters.
Clay • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 9 9
Sand t t t • f • • t • e • f t • f t f f • • • e • • • I • • f f f • •

Clay • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• • • t t t • e • f • • • f f • • • • • t • f • t • • •
'
• • • f t f f •
2
7
11
18
Sand and clay ...•...•.....•.•....••..•....................•..••....••.... 4 22
Olay • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 3 25
Coarse sandy gravel ...............•......... ..... ........................ 1 26
Clay ..•.................. .. ........•.....•......•......................•. 17 43
Sand and clay ...............• . ..•.......•.......... .. .................... 6 49
Shale ................ .. .•.......•........................................ 2 51
Sand •....... ..................................•. .. ............•.......... 2 53
Fine sand ............................................................... . 9 62
Olay and gravel .. ............... . .........•.................. . ........... 13 75
Soft limestone .................................••........................ 12 87
Olay • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• 69 166

•
 •

WATER RESOURCES. 5'23

An '' 8-inch '' casing extends to a depth of 72 meters in this well.

Below that depth the well is not cased. Water was first fo11nd at 9 meters
below the surface but it did not rise in the well. Flowing water was found
at 51 meters and the flow increased at 87 meters. The beds down to about
50 meters appear to correlate fairly well with those of the first well,
but the soft limestone (at 87 meters) appears to lie considerably deeper
than in the first well, yet it may nevertheless be the same bed if, as sus-
pected, it is one of the folded Miocene beds. The water-bearing horizons
also correlate rather closely, if the limestone in each well is the same.

Log of well at Des.sources.

Material. Thickness. D ep t h.

Meters. Meters.
••••••.•••.•••...•••••.•••••..•••.•.•••••.••••• . ••••••.•.• . •••• •. ••••
<:J1-ll~ 9 9
Sand and clay ...• .. .... . .•..•.....•............................••.•.. .. .• 1 10
Clay ................ . ..........•. . ........•• . ............... . .. .. .. . ... . . 36 46
Clay and fine sand .. . ............................................. . . . •.. . . 16 61
Clay ...•............................................ . ..... . ........... .. . 37 98
Soft r<>ck .. . .... . .. .. .. . . . ....•....•...•.•.........•............. . .... . . . 6 104
Clay ................ .. .......... . ........... . ..................... . ..... . 6 110
Hard packed sand . . . ... ... . . ........................•...........•........ 15 125
Clay ..•......• .. .... . ................... . ..... . .....•...•.. . ...... . ..... . 8 133
Clay and sand ............. . ........... . ...................... . . .. ....... . 7 140
Blue clay .......... .. ..... . ........... . ...................... .. . . .. .. .. . . 16 156

The above well is cased to a depth of 35 meters with '' 8-inch '' casing
and below that to a depth of 52 meters with '' 6-inch '' casing. Water
was first struck at 9 meters, but the principal supply comes from a depth
of about 61 meters. The absence of anything classified as limestone casts
some doubt upon the correlation of this well with the first two, although
the water horizons are at very nearly the same depths as the two upper
horizons in the other wells.
Officials of the company were not certain of the locations of the wells
whose logs are given, and probably the last one may belong to group 6.
As intimated above, it is suspected that the rocks in the first two wells
from the reported bed of limestone downward are of Miocene age.
Flowing wells at Dessources. A group of flowing wells at Dessources
(No. 6) is a short distance northeast of the pumping plant (No. 5). The
first well is 300 meters from the pumping plant and yields a flow of
perhaps 50 liters a minute. The second well is about 200 meters farther
northeast, and the third is just east of it. Both yield flows estimated at
about 200 liters a second. There is a pronounced northward slope to the
land here, which probably accounts for the stronger flows in that direc-
tion. The casings of all the wells protrude about 0.5 meter above the
ground and are 8 inches in diameter. The depths and logs of the wells
are unknown, unless perhaps the log given above is from this group.
524 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Pumpi,ng plant at Va.udreuil. A pumping plant was just being in-

stalled at Vaudreuil (No. 7) in April, 1921, and the p11mp was then not
yet in operation. Six wells had been drilled at intervals of 15 meters
in a north-.south line beginning very close to the bank of Grande Riviere
du Cul-de-Sac. All were '' 8-inch '' wells except one, which was only 3
inches in diameter. The six wells range from 30 to 60 meters in depth.
Most of them yielded slight flows, but yields of 400 to 500 liters a minute
per well were expected on pumping. The pump was t.o be connected also
with Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac, from which, it is said, 10,000,000
liters can be p11mped daily throughout 8 months of the year. An analysis
of a sample of the water from the most northerly well of the group is
given on p. 544. This well flowed about 10 liters a minute at an altitude
of 1 meter above the ground. A log of one of the wells is as follows :
Log of well at Vaudreuil.
- -- ------ - - -- - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Material. Thickness. Depth.

Meters. Meters.
Yellow clay and sa.nd ...•....•........ .. ................ ... ... . ..........• 4
Coarse white and gray sand ...... . ...................................... .
Sand and clay .......... .. ...... . ... .. ... .. .......... ... . ................ .
'3
5 9
12
Blue clay and fine sand .... .....•. ..........•...............•.....•....... 8 20
Blue clay and coarse sa.nd ......•.. . ................ . ...... . .............. 3 23
Blue clay and gray sand .•........ ... •.... ...... ... ... .................... 3 I 26
Blue clay and fine sa.nd ..•• . ..........•. .. ........... .. ....... . ....•... ..• 3 I 29
Sand and gravel . .... .•.... ...... . ................ . ..•...............•.... 2 31
Yellow clay and fine sand ...•...•.......•....•..........•......•.......... 6 37
Yellow clay and coarse sand .•.......•.. ..............•...........•....... 8 45
Yellow clay and fine yellow sand ...............................•.......... 5 50

There is nothing in this log to suggest Miocene beds.

Pumping plant at Drouillard. There is a pumping plant at Drouillard
(No. 8) which is said to comprise several wells 18 to 20 meters in depth,
most of which yield very little water. No logs are available.
Abandoned well at '' Hasco '' mill. On the gro11nds where the mill
of the Haytian-American Sugar Co. (''Rasco'') is situated, a well
(No. 9) was drilled, which yielded only a little water of very poor quality.
The log is as follows :
Log of well at '' H asco '' mill.

Material. Thickness. Depth.

Metera. M eter&.
Soil, clay, and sand .•..•...........•......•.................•............ 20 20
Sand ...•..........•....•............................ . .................... 8 23
Blue clay ............................ . .... . ... ... .................. ..... . 2 25
Fine sand and clay ..... . .......... .. ..... . ..•......... ... ................ 4 29
Blue sand .•••.•...•••.....•.•.. . . . .... . .............. . . . ................. 2 31
White clay and broken limestone .................... . .............•...... 10 41
 WATER RESOURCES. 525

The last 10 meters of the material is probably of Miocene age, as

},fiocene beds crop out across the railroad just to the east, and the alluvium
probably is not very thick at the mill site. The poor quality of water
probably was due to the proximity of the well to the sea (seep. 545).
Abandoned well at '' Hasco '' residences. A well (No. 10) was drilled
on the hill east of the ''Rasco'' mill, where several of the company's
officials reside. It is just beyond the edge of the plain, and Miocene beds
crop out at the surface and apparently persist to the bottom of the well.
Very little if any water was obtained, and the well was abandoned. The
lithology of the Miocene beds penetrated in this well closely resembles
that of. the lower beds in wells in the plain that are supposed to penetrate
Miocene beds. The log is as follows:

Log of well at'' Hasco'' resi,dence site.

~faterial. Thickness. Depth.

------------------------------~---

Meters. Meters.
Conglomerate (residual) •......... . . . ... .............. .... . ..... ... .... .. 2 2
I
MarI ........................ . ... . ........... . ..... . ..... .. ..... . .... . ... . 6 8
Yellow clay .... ... . ............... ........ ...... .. .. . .. .. . ............ .. . 19 27
Rock ............. ...... . .. ...... . . . ..... ..... · ... · . · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · 3 30
Open ground (probably soft material) .. .... . . . . ... . ..... . ... ...... . ... .. . 10 40
White and yellow clay ...•...........•... . .. . .. . .. .. .. . ....... ... ... . .. . .. 5 45
Blue clay and shale . ............... . ...... ... ... .... . .. .. .... ... ... .... . . 13 60
Limestone .............................. .. ... . ..... . . . ........ . . . . . . . ... . 3 63
Blue clay ............................. .......... . ...... ... . ......... .. . . . 3 66
Limestone and clay . ... . ..... . . .. ....... .. . ..... . . . .... . ............. . . . . .
I
3 69
Clay with shells .... .......... . .... .. . ........ .. ... ... .. . . ... . .. .. .... . ... I
Black clay ................. . .... . . . ... .... .. .. ..... ... ... .. . .. . .. .. . .... .
3
9
I 72
81
Blue clay ............. · · · . · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · I 5 86
Shell bed . .......... ....................... . . . . . ........ . ... . .. ....... · . . . 1 87
Blue shale ................. . .... .. . .. . .. ..... . ........... . .... ..... . .... . 2 89
Limestone with shells .. . . ... . .......... . . .. · · . . · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · 6 95
1
Limestone with corals ......... . ..... .. ... .. · · · · .. · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · I 3 98
Limestone with corals and shells .... ... ... ... ..... . .... ... ... . ...... . ... . 27 •
125
Blue shale ................ .. ... ...... . ............ .. . ................. . . . 10 135
Limestone .......................... . ..... .. ..... . .... . ..... .... ........ . 4 139
Blue shale ...... . .... ... ... . .... .... ...................... . ....... · · .. · · · · 2 141

- VALUE OF SPRINGS.

In considering gro11nd water in the plain, the springs mentioned under

sources available for irrigation (p. 515) should not be overlooked, as spring
water is in reality escaping ground water. The springs mentioned may
be separated into two classes, which should be distinguished. One class
comprises springs that issue from caverns in the limestone and that prob-
ably represent the outlets of llnderground streams that are similar in some
respects to surface streams. This class includes the springs north of Trou
Caiman and those at J.ianeville and may include certain others that were
not visited. These springs represent ground water that comes to the
plain from the mountains and are so situated that they probably neither
526 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

contribute to nor draw from the ground water of the plain, so that they
need not be further mentioned here. rrhe second class of springs includes
all those fed by water escaping from the alluvi11m of the plain either
overflowing the rim of impervious beds or rising under artesian pres-
sure. It includes the springs that feed the Riviere des Orangers and Riviere
La Savoye, and probably those that lie along the Ravine Boucan Brou and
the Sources Puantes. It may include those that feed the Riviere la Boule
and the Riviere Creuse, which unfortunately were not visited. These
springs are probably fed from the large body of gro11nd water that lies
beneath the plain, and if so, they should be considered in any description
of the occurrence and utilization of this ground water. Indee~, even with-
out the confirmatory evidence of flowing wells, the existence of artesian
water beneath the plain would be strongly suggested by the occurrence of
these springs.

CONCLUSIONS AS TO GROUND WA'rF.R IN THE CUL-DE-SAC PLAIN.

'

The record of the well at Peyrard indicates, as was to have been ex-
pected, that the water table on the southern side of the plain lies well below
the surface and that flowing wells can not be obtained there. This is
the intake area of the artesian system and only in the lower areas, where
the water is under pressure, can wells yield flows. The southern bo11ndary
of the area of artesian· flow probably runs from Croix-des-Missions due
westward to the sea, from Croix-des-Missions southeastward ,
to Croix-des-
Bouquets, and from Croix-des-Bouquets due eastward to Etang Saumatre. •

Flows might perhaps be obtained in a small area south of this line in the
area southeast. of Croix-des-Missions, near Source Cazeau. Flowing wells
will probably be found at some places over most of the area north of the
line, at least as far as the slope of the plain continues northward. The
records show that not all wells that may be drilled in this area will flow,
for non-flowing wells have been obtained very close to flowing wells, and
generally the shallower wells, those less than 50 meters deep, are non-
:flowing. These uncertainties are probably due in large part to rapid varia-
tions in the porosity of the alluvial beds. Coarse porous beds capable of
yielding a strong flow in one well may thin out abruptly and be absent in
a well near by, which accordingly yields no flow. Wells penetrating Mio-
cene beds are erratic, because those beds are folded and their attitude is
disturbed. The bed that yields a good flow in one well may easily dip
beneath the reach of a well of like depth only a short distance away, or it
may have been removed by erosion before the alluvium was laid. down
at the site of the second well.
It seems likely that wherever water is obtained in this lower part of the
plain its level will be not more than 5 or 10 meters below the surface of the
ground. Large yields can be obtained from nearly all non-flowing wells
by pumping, and the yield of flowing wells can be greatly increased by
•
pumping.
•

WATER RESOURCES. 527

The quantity of water that can be safely drawn from flowing wells
and pumping plants in the plain is strictly limited. It comes originally
from rainfall on the surface of the plain and on the bordering mo11ntain
watersheds. A very great part of it comes from the mountain slopes on
the south. The mountains north of the plain are semiarid and contain no
per1nanent streams. The altitude of the plain on the north side is low,
and flood water is probably prevented from penetrating the water-bearing
beds partly by the pressure transmitted to the 11nderlying water from the
south and partly by the non-porosity of the surficial silts. The same fac-
tors also prevent the absorption of any considerable part of the direct rain-
fall over the entire area of artesian flow. The supply must therefore be
•
obtained almost entirely from the southern mountain slopes and the
southern edge of the plain. Probably most of it comes from the flood run-
off from these mountains, and perhaps some is supplied by infiltration
from the Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac, the Riviere Blanche, and irriga-
tion ditches along the southern side of the plain. If plans for the conser-
vation of flood water of the rivers should be carried out the available
gro11nd water in the plain would be reduced.
Any heavy drain upon the ground water of the plain by either flowing
wells or pumping would probably affect the flow of the springs that
are fed by seepage from the ground water beneath the plain, such as the
Riviere des Orangers, Source Cazeau, and others. The lowering of the
water table would probably diminish their flow or even cause them to
disappear entirely. The springs that emerge from limestone and others
that are found at the borders of the plain, such as those at Ma.neville, and
probably the Sources Despuzea11x, would not be affected.
Emphasis should be laid upon the fact, so seldom realized, tha.t flowing
water can be wasted and dissipated quickly, whereas it is replaced very
slowly. Flowing wells should be capped at all times when the water is not
needed, just as the faucet of a water tank is closed when the water is not
in use. Overtaxing of the ground water in the plain would result in a low-
ering of the water table to a depth where pumping would be impossible
or very expensive, and in an invasion of ,
the gro11nd by salt water, either
from the sea, to the west, or from the Etang Sa11matre, to the east.
Nevertheless, there is a considerable opportunity for the development
of ground water, and it is believed that thorough and careful utilization
of all the available surface water dhd gro11nd water would permit the re-
clamation of virtually the entire irrigable area of the plain.

ARCAHAIE PLAIN.

The Arcahaie Plain is nearly continuous with the northwestern corner

of the Cul-de-Sac Plain. It is a long, narrow, and rather steeply inclined
coastal plain cut off abruptly by high mountains. Its length is about 28
kilometers and its maximum width is 5 or 6 kilometers. Near the base

I
528 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAI'rI.

of the mountains it is rough and strongly dissected. The mean annual

rainfall of the Arcahaie Plain is less than 800 millimeters and nearly all
crops grown on it require irrigation. The plain is watered by three or
four small perennial streams. The principal ones are Riviere de Boucassin
and Riviere de l' Arcahaie, in addition to which there are one or two small
brooks. Even the two large streams go nearly dry at times.
The French colonists utilized all the streams to their full capacity,
which was limited greatly by the small minimum flow. Their massive
masonry aqueduct, still in use at Bouca.Bsin, is a worthy memorial to their
practical skill. The plain is still cultivated intensively, and most of the
normal stream flow appears to be utilized, but it is not sufficient to irri-
gate all the arable land of the plain. Improvements could probably be
made in t.he djstribution system, but there is not much l1ope of storing
the flood water of the streams, for their mountain valleys are very steep
and narrow and are cut mostly in limestone.
Shallow wells are used to some extent on the plain, but not for irriga-
tion. The beds that immediately underlie the plain are alluvial. Those
that lie near the mountains are coarse, those that lie near the sea are fine
and some of them even clayey. The beds are lJndisturbed but have a
normal seaward dip conforming somewhat to the slope of the plain.
Beneath the alluvium lie folded Miocene beds, which dip seaward. These
conditions may make it possible to obtain flowing wells in the lower
part of the plain, perhaps in some of the area that stands less than 10
or 15 meters above sea level. Because of the very short slope of the plain,
however, strong flows are not to be expected. Moreover, deep wells near
the sea may yield salty water. Some water for irrigation could probably
be obtained either from flowing wells or by pumping. Wells should not
be more than 50 meters deep very close to the sea and probably not more
than 150 meters anywhere in the plain.

LEOGANE PLAIN.

The Leogane Plain is a large delta plain that is bordered on the north
by the sea, from which it extends back southeastward into a prominent
reentrant in the mo11ntain ranges. It is comparatively level except near
the base of the mountains, and its seaward slope is not great, although
considerably more than that of the wemern part of the Cul-de-Sac Plain.
The annual rainfall at Leogane averages about 1,150 millimeters, but
irrigation is desirable for many crops.
The principal stream is Grande Riviere de Leogane, also called Riviere
Momance, which is one of the larger rivers of the Republic. (Seep. 34.)
It flows diagonally across the plain and has been the chief agent in
transporting the alluvium of which the plain is formed. According to
measurements made by engineers of the Department of Public Works,
during 1920 and the first 9 months of 1921~ the minim11m flow was about
 WATER RESOURCES. 529

60 cubic feet per second, and the observed maximum was 800 cubic feet
per second. The peak flow during floods was not determined. Riviere des
Citronniers, farther west, is a small yet considerable perennial stream.
Numerous brooks and springs supply some water to the plain.
1
The French colonists, according to Moreau de St. Mery, utilized the
water of the Grande Riviere de Leogane to irrigate about 8,000 carreaux
(approximately 104 square kilometers) in the plain. Irrigation was begun
about 1727. A formal apportionment of water rights was made in 1737
and revised in 1787. Irrigation is still practiced on the principal agri-
cultural holdings, and a crude diversion and distribution
•
system is in use .
Not nearly all the available water is used, and much arable land is irri-
gated poorly or not at all.
Valuable springs rise in at least two localities in the lower part o.f
the plain. One locality is just north of the town of Leogane, where several
springs which issue from a small depression supply water for domestic
use in the f.Qwn. A great part of the flow is not utilized, at least not near
its source. Several kilometers northeast of Leogane but west of the Riviere
Momance some large springs issue from a marshy area and feed a stream
called Riviere Pere, which is said to yield several second-feet of water.
The ruins of old conduits indicate that this stream was utilized by the
French, but the water now goes to waste. The springs that here rise
from the plain show the presence of ground water that is probably under
slight artesian pressure.
A few shallow wells are used, but not for irrigation. A well at ·the
Gendarmerie barracks in Leogane, about 4 meters deep, contains water
about 2 meters below the surface of the ground. Ground water 11n-
doubtedly could be obtained from wells almost anywhere in the plain,
although in the higher parts it probably would lie considerably below the
surface of the ground. In the lower part of the plain it should rise nearly
to the surface, and some wells might even flow. Flowing wells would
probably be restricted to areas that stand less than 10 meters above sea
level, but good p11mping wells should be obtained over a much larger
area. The maximum depth of wells should not exceed 150 meters, and
wells drilled near the sea probably can not be carried so deep, as they are
likely to get brackish water. •

The surface and ground water available should be ample to irrigate

all the arable land.
CAYES PLAIN.
The Cayes Plain is smooth and has a very gentle slope near the sea
but is more broken and has a considerably steeper slope farther inland.
It is underlain mainly by alluvium, which was supplied by several small
parallel rivers that traverse it from northwest to southeast. The largest
stream, La Ravine du Sud, originates in the Montagnes de la Hotte north
1 Moreau de St. M~ry, op. cit., vol. 2, pp. 452-454.
34

•
530 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

of Camp Perrin and flows through the middle of the plain. Riviere de
"
l'Ilet, to the east, and Riviere de Torbeck and Riviere de l'Acul, farther
west, are rather large streams, and there are several smaller ones. None
of these streams is very la.rge, and in crossing the plain they go dry in
some dry seasons. La Ravine du Sud, in particular, is dry for long
stretches, possibly in part through the diversion of much of its water for
irrigation. The mean annual rainfall at Les Cayes exceeds 2,100 milli-
·m eters, which is very high, but irrigation is necessary over a large part
of the plain, particularly on the higher land.
1
The French colonists, according to Moreau de St. Mery, utilized only
a part of the available streams. The Riviere de l'Acul was diverted and
apportioned in 1761. A very difficult but successful diversion of La Ravine
du Sud was completed in 1770. The same canal, known as the Canal
•
d' Avezac, is now in use and the present intake is at the same place as the
old one, about 2 kilometers north of Camp Perrin. The total area of the
plain is probably a little more than 200 square kilometers, about one-half
of which is said to have been irrigated. A large area is still watered by
the same system.
Ground water is not much used on the plain, although shallow wells are
probably used at some places. The surface and 11nderground features
suggest that :flowing wells might be obtained over a considerable area near
the coast in the low part of tl1e plain. The plain is underlain to an un-
known depth by alluvial beds consisting of gravel, sand, and silt, and,
near the sea, with some beds of clay and peat. The beds are not folded
•
but have a gentle seaward dip. These condit.ions are virtually the same as
those under which flowing water is obtained on the Cul-de-Sac Plain.
Test wells should be at least 150 meters deep, except those drilled near
the sea, where there is danger of obtaining salt water. Wells of this depth
may penetrate buried Miocene or older rocks, but even the older rocks
may yield considerable quantities of ground water.

ARTIBONITE PLAIN.
SURFACE FEATURES.

The Artibonite Plain is the broad, level, triangular plain formed by the
flood plains and deltas of Rivieres Artibonite, l'Estere, and la Quinte. The
continuity of this plain between Dessalines and Gonaives is broken by
several small hills and a large isolated mo11ntain called Morne Gra.m mont.
The town of Petite-Riviere de l'Artibonite marks approximately the
southeastern limit of the plain. Much of the surface of the plain is very
smooth, and its fine silty soil is probably as fertile as any in the Republic.
Unfortunately, it is one of the most arid areas in the Republic, as the
rainfall averages only 524 millimeters yearly at Gona!ves and probably
not much more over the rest of the plain. Moreover, although the region
•

1 Moreau de St. M6ry, op. cit., vol. 2, pp. 669-681.

 WATER RESOURCES. 531

is very arid, it suffers every year from floods, a great part of the most
fertile land being in11ndated by the Artibonite and Estere during the wet
season. The sediment deposited during these floods has formed the fertile
1
soil of the plain, and the Artibonite is sometimes called the Nile of Haiti.
The Artibonite is by far the largest stream watering the plain, although
the Estere is among the considerable smaller rivers of the Republic. La
Quinte is very small and never reaches the sea except during floods .
•
•

IRRIGATION AND FLOOD CONTROL.

A little land about the borders of the plain is irrigated from small
streams that flow at altitudes which permit them to be easily diverted.
All the water of La Quinte is used in this way and some from the Petite
Riviere and the E stere and its tributaries. The Artibonite, however, has
never been successfully diverted, not even by the French colonists. Some
crops appear to be grown by planting immediately after the annual floods
recede, although no reliable information on this subject was obtained.
Flood control is the :first essential of any plan for reclaiming the Arti-
bonite Plain. The French colonists realized this and formulated many
2
plans for the control of floods and the irrigation of the plain. Above
Petite-Riviere de l'Artibonite levees afforded complete protection, and
from that point down to the '' Center Ferry,'' somewhat below the present
Pont Sonde, they gave 11ncertain protection. Everything below that lo-
cality was flooded yearly. From 1744 until the close of the colonial period
schemes were constantly under discussion for the complete control of the
river and the diversion of water for irrigation. Most of these plans con-
templated diverting water at a locality called Morne de la Tranquilite,
above Petite-Riviere de l'Artibonite, about halfway to Verrettes. Canals
were made at this locality several times, and the work was fairly well
advanced. But every effort, either at flood control or diversion of water
for irrigation, was finally n11llified by extraordinary floods, each one
worse than the one preceding. Other plans involving the use of steam
pumps to lift water for irrigation were tried, but never prospered very
long. Moreau de St. Mery concludes : •
• • •n faut dire, parce que c'est la verite et avec une douleur profonde,
qu'apres 45 annees de recherches, d'operations, de soins, de tentatives, l'arrosement
de la plaine de l'Artibonite par la riviere qui la traverse et l'egout de ces ea.ux,
n'e:xistent point encore, quoique leur possibilite soit appuyee de preuves mathe-
matiques, * * * et quoique , la neceS3ite de cette double operation ne fasse que
s'accroitre chaque j our t Etrange, mais trop commune f atalite de tout ce qui est
vra.iment utile I
1 Rouzier, S., Dlctionnaire g~ographique et admlnistratif universe! d'Haiti, vol. 1, pp. 52-
54, P a ris, 1891.
2 Moreau de St. M~ry, op. cit., vol. 2, pp. 128-156.

a Idem, p. 155.

•
532 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The successful execution of this project is still desirable, if practicable,

although it would 11ndoubtedly be expensive. Floods might be controlled
by storing the surplus flood water or by building levees along the river.
Storage is preferable if it is practicable, for it would conserve much water
that otherwise would be wasted and would impound water that could be
•

used to generate power. Some good dam sites can probably be found above
Petite-Riviere (see p. 594), but it is questionable whether they would
afford storage for the enormous volume of flood water. Flood control by
•
constructing levees can be accomplished only by leaving a very wide space
over which the river may expand. P erhaps a combination of the two
methods would afford the most practicable plan of flood control. Control
of the Artibonite must also include control of the Estere, whose floods, in
expanding over its flat delta, unite near the sea with those of the Arti-
bonite to form a continuous sheet of water.
The reclamation of the Artibonite Plain is the most difficult project
of the kind in the Republic, and perhaps should not be attempted at
present. When smaller undertakings of this kind have been installed and
successfully maintained, it may be wise to attempt the control and utili-
zation of the Artibonite.
GROUND WATER.

Shallow wells may be used occasionally, but no wells were observed in

use in the Artibonite Plain. In discussing ground water it is necessary
to distinguish between different parts of the plain. The main body of
land all that lying south of Riviere l'Estere is 11nderlain by alluvium
of rather finer texture than that of the beds commonly found on the al-
luvial plains of the Republic, and the surface has a much gentler seaward
slope. The total fall of the Artibonite from Petite-Riviere de l' Artibonite
to the sea is only about 24 meters in a distance of probably 50 kilometers
as the river :flows. Porous water-bearing beds of alluvium doubtless under-
lie the plain, and water could be obtained by wells, although they might
have to be sunk 15 to 30 meters. Water would doubtless rise within pump-
ing distance of the surface over most of the area, but because of the gentle
slope flowing wells should not be expected. Salt water probably underlies
the fresh water for a considerable distance back from the shore, being
nearest the surface, of course, at the shore. Wells drilled even 5 or 6
kilometers from the shore should not be carried to any greater depth than
that at which they can obtain fresh water.
Northeast of Morne Grammont there is a lowland that is partly isolated
from the rest of the plain by that mountain and by scattered hills of bed-
rock. The lowest part of this region appears to be a playa on which flood
water stands and evaporates. The alluvium here is probably very thin at
many places, and bedrock might be found near the surface. The alluvial
material is rather coarse near the borders of the mountains. It may contain
some water, but probably not water of good quality. In this area, along
 WATER RESOUROES. 533

the road to St.-Marc, about 12 kilometers southeast of Gona1ves, a well

was drilled in 1920 by the Artibonite Trading Co. It is said to have pene-
trated several alternating strata of clay and gravel to a depth of 40 meters.
Water, said to be of good quality, rose within 6 meters of the surface. No
use has been made of the well.
Still farther north, in the immediate vicinity of Gona.lves, the plain
is underlain by coarse alluvium and has a steeper but shorter seaward slope
than that on the delta of the Artibonite. Some fresh water certainly is
contained in these beds and could. be obtained by p11mping. Flowing wells
might be obtained even close to the sea, but they might be brackish. This
northern part of the plain, unlike the part farther south, probably does
not receive much if any ground water by seepage from the Artibonite or
the Estere, and it is supplied only by the flood r11n-ofi of the neighboring
mountains and the infiltration from La Quinte and smaller brooks. This
supply probably would not be sufficient to furnish a very large quantity of
water for irrigation.
ARTIBONITE VALLEY.

The narrow and steep-sided valley lowland along the Artibonite from
Petite-Riviere de l'Artibonite to Mirebalais is pa.r t of the Artibonite
Valley. In this area there is some fertile farm land in the very narrow
flood-plain of the river, much of which, however, is subject to overflow.
The rest of the valley is dissected by ravines and broken by ranges of hills,
so that the good agricultural land is divided into many small patches.
Some of this land is irrigated from tributaries of the Artibonite by divert-
ing water at places high enough to permit distribution by gravity, and
probably the best plan for further development is to extend this practice,
for :most of the land is probably too broken to justify the expensive works
necessary to irrigate it from the Artibonite. If dams were built in this
area with a view to the reclamation of the lower plain, small areas in
the valley might be conveniently served.
Structurally the valley is a deep syncline. It is l1nderlain at most places
by a considerable thickness of Miocene beds, consisting chiefly of limestone
and sandy marl. Drilled wells that penetrate these beds at some places
might yield flowing water but there is no information at hand by which
these places may be determined. Flowing wells, if obtainable, would be
restricted to very low areas, such as the flood plain of the Artibonite and
the bottom of the series of parallel tributary valleys to the southwest,
which are prominent features between La Chapelle and Verrettes. These
paraliel valleys are separated from the river flood plain by a prominent
ridge of Miocene limestone. Unfortunately the are~s where water is most
likely to be obtainable are precisely those that have least need of it, as
they are already well watered by near-by streams.
534 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

CENTRAL PLAIN.
Several large streams water the Central Plain, the principal ones being
the Artibonite, which crosses the southeastern end of the plain, and the
Guayamouc, which flows southeastward a]ong the length of the plain. The
Guaymouc is formed by the junction of the Canot and the Bouyaha, large
rivers of the northwestern part of the plain. The Rio Macasia, coming
from the Dominican Republic, enters the southeastern part of the plain
to join the Artibonite. Besides these streams there are many smaller
tributaries that flow down the surro11nding mountain sides. Altogether
these streams furnish a very large volume of water, some of which might
be used in irrigating land in the plain, but most of this water is available
only in the southeastern part of the plain, where the land is considerably
broken and where only small areas are favorably situated fo1· irrigation.
There is much level land in the northwestern part of the plain, but only
small streams are available to water it. They should be used, however, so
far as possible.
During the time of the French colony the Central Plain was Spanish
territory and was used mainly as grazing land. This plain was not irri-
gated to any great extent then and has not been irrigated much since. The
moist and fertile valley bottoms produce good crops without irrigation.
The average annual precipitation over the plain is probably about 1,100
millimeters, but the intensity of drought in the dry seasons causes the
country to appear more arid than the large amount of precipitation would
lead one to expect.
Structurally the plain is a deep southeastward-plunging syncline, the
rocks dipping downward from nearly every side toward the center of the
plain. (See pp. 488-492 and Pl. XXXVI, p. 488.) The rocks immediately
beneath the surface are of Miocene age and consist of conglomerate,
sandstone, limestone, and siltstone. At many places, especially in most of
the northwestern part of the plain, these rocks are covered with a thin
body of alluvium of Pliocene and Quaternary age, but they crop out around
the border of the plain and in the interior of the southeastern part. The
plain has a· generally uniform slope to the southeast. The geology and
surface features suggest favorable conditions for obtaining ground water.
The coarse porous Miocene beds should absorb water about the perimeter
of the plain, and this water, seeping downward along the beds into the
center of the plain, would be confined by overlying less porous beds of
siltstone, thus giving ideal conditions for a.r tesian water. Strong flowing
wells may perhaps be obtained in the southeastern part of the plain, espe-
cially from Malssade to Thomonde and along the southern border of the
plain. Wells drilled in the low valleys will yield stronger flows than
those drilled on interstream axeBE. A well drilled to test the full artesian
possibilities probably ·should be carried to a depth of at least 500 meters.
As some of the Miocene beds are of marine origin, they may possibly
contain salt water that was imprisoned in the rocks at the time they
 I

WATER RESOURCES. t
535

were deposited. The occurrence of salt water in a well in an area like the
Central Plain, however, which is entirely isolated from the present sea,
might be less serious than its occurrence in wells near the sea and directly
~ffected by it. Salt water in wells in the plain could possibly be success-
fully cased out, and fresh water might be fo11nd in beds below it.
Shallow wells dug in the alluvium at some places, particularly in low-
lands along the streams, would probably supply small quantities of water.
In the northwestern part of the plain, howeve~, the water table no doubt
lies rather deep. A dry shaft about 25 meters deep is said to have been
dug near the plantation of the United West Indies Corporation, which is
about 5 kilometers east of St.-Michel de l'Atalaye.
'

ARBRE PLAIN.
The Arbre Plain is the small, flat lowland south and west of the Sources
Chaudes, or Eaux Boynes, in the center of which stand the chapel and
settlement of l'Arbre. This region probably receives an annual rainfall of
less than 500 millimeters and is the most arid part of the Republic. All
the permanent streams that descend from the mountains disappear at
the border of the plain. Along the principal stream channels in the west-
ern part of the plain there are two or three playa lakes, which contain
water during most if not all of the year. The water of these lakes is
rather salty but is used for watering stock and to some extent for domestic
supplies. There are other playas on the plain, most of them nearly
always dry.
The French colonists apparently did not attempt irrigation here, but
a crude system is now in use. D·u ring the annual rainy seasons there are
usually one or two floods which spread large vol11mes of water over the
plain, especially in the temporary playa lakes. A system of open earth
ditches has been dug to distribute part of this flood water over the more
fertile and accessible land, especially near the temporary playas, wherever
the soil is not too alkaline. Irrigation appears to be practiced by sheet
flooding. Cotton is the principal crop, but petit-mil, vegetables, and
plantains are raised when water is abundant. Unfortunately the irregu-
larity of seasonal floods causes many disastrous failures of the crops. The
system of distribution could probably be improved, but there is no ade-
quate source of water for the irrigation of any large part of the plain.
Over much of the plain there is a thin cover of alluvium, beneath whicl1
lies a thick series of Miocene beds, consisting of limestone, sandstone, and
marl, which generally has a pronounced dip seaward. No wells are known
in the area, and no springs except the Sources Chaudes, which are near the
inland border of the plain. These springs, however, appear to afford some
slight indication of the presence of water under pressure beneath the
plain. (See pp. 558-562.) Fresh water could probably be obtained by deep
drilled wells, and in the low parts of the plain weak flows might possibly

•
 •

536 I
GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

be obtained. Drilling might be tried to obtain a supply for the adjacent

town of Anse Rouge. (See p. 591.) The water of deep wells in this area
may be salty, for it is not at all certain that the original sea water in
the deep beds has ever had a chance to drain away. vVell water, if obtain-
able would not be sufficient for very extensive irrigation, as the rain:fall
is scanty and the recharge is probably small.
Shallow wells might possibly supply water for domestic use at some
places, although no really favorable locations were noted. In the higher
parts of the plain, where the alluvium is coarse and porous, the water table
probably lies very deep, and in the lower areas the sur:ficial beds are com-
pact and probably not very porous.
'
TROIS RIVIERES VALLEY AND JEAN RABEL VALLEY.
The Trois Rivieres Valley and Jean Rabel Valley include all the valley
of Les Trois Rivieres from Gros-Morne to Port-de-Pall:, the immediate
· valley of Riviere de Jean Rabel, and a connecting lowland near the coast
extending from Port-de-Paix to Jean Rabel. The region as a whole gets
only scanty rainfall, and much of the lowland between Port-de-Paix and
Jean Rabel is semiarid. The surface of the region is broken. The valle;'s
are rather narrow and have steep sides, and the areas of level land are
small and discontinuous.
The two rivers mentioned are the only large streams. Riviere de
Moustique, about midway between them, is small and is usually dry dur-
ing part of the year, but it is subject to terrific floods. Les Trois Rivieres
is the second largest stream of the Republic. Riviere de Jean Rabel flows
throughout the year but is not included in the streams listed on p. 34.
The French colonists irrigated small patches of land along Les
Trois Rivieres, especially near Port-de-Paix, and a few small tracts near
the river between Gros-Morne and Port-de-Paix are irrigated at present.
No irrigation was practiced in colonial days on the lowland west of
Port-de-Paix and little if any at Jean Rabel, although very fertile fields
in that locality are irrigated now. The intervening lowland between Jean
Rabel and Port-de-Paix was not visited by any of our party, and the state-
ments here made regarding it are based either on inference or reports.
The region is very much like the Arbre Plain with regard to its surface
and underground features, but it receives somewhat more rain.
There is abundant water in Les Trois Rivieres to supply all the land in
its valley that is favorably situated for irrigation, and perhaps a good
deal of that in the lowland to the west. The Riviere de Jean Rabel prob-
ably could serve more land, particularly by storing flood water, for which
purpose good dam sites could probably be found.
The French colonists proposed a plan for diverting the headwaters of
1
Les Trois Rivieres into La Quinte in order to irrigate land near Gonaives.
1 Moreau de St. 1.f~ry, op. cit., vol. 2, pp. 95-96.
 •
WATER RESOURCES. 53'1

Apparently the plan was to dam up and divert the water at a place called
La Porte, between Gros-Morne and Pilate, where Les Trois Rivieres
passes through a steep-walled gorge that is said to be 64 meters in depth,
but a rather careful survey is said to have shown that the divide into
La Quinte basin was considerably higher than the gorge, and the plan
was abandoned. This plan may be worthy of further investigation.
There are some shallow wells in the area, but gro11nd water generally
is not much used. The region is 11nderlain by Miocene and older rocks
that generally dip seaward, and artesian conditions probably exist at some
places, but wells drilled at such places probably would not furnish large
supplies.
•

NORTH PLAIN.
SURFACE FEATURES.

The North Plain slopes very gently seaward, its altitude at the base of
the mountains that border it on the south being generally from 50 to 100
meters ab6ve sea level. Although its relief is small, it has a variety of
surface features, and large parts of it are considerably dissected. The
best agricultural land is aro11nd Limonade and Quartier Morin and west of
those places and is rather smooth, including only a few hills, which are
low. Large bodies of level land are found also in the northeastern part
of the plain. The annual rainfall over most of the plain probably averages
1,500 mj}}imeters and at some places is more. This is considerably greater
than the rainfall on most of the lowlands of the Republic and the differ-
ence is due to the position of the plain on the windward side of the most
northerly mountain ranges.

STREAMS.

The North Plain is crossed by several streams that originate in the

mountains to the south. The largest of these streams, named in order
from east to west, are the Riviere Massacre, Riviere Marion, Riviere du
Trou, Riviere Fosse, Grande Riviere du Nord, and Riviere Haut du Cap.
The Grande Riviere du Nord is the only one of these that is listed among
the large streams of the Republic (p. 34). In addition to the larger
streams there are some smaller ones, which originate in the mo11ntains •

and generally disappear on the plain. According to Moreau de St. Mery,

there are also a few streams, such as the Riviere des Mapoux, that origi...
nate in springy and marshy areas on the plain.

UTILIZATION OF WATER AND FLOOD CONTROL.

In colonial days and at present, agriculture on the plain seems to have

been carried on almost entirely without irrigation. In normal or wet
years the natural rainfall produces abundant crops, but dry years are
538 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI •

frequent and exceedingly disastrous. Irrigation probably would pay as

a means of crop insurance, especially for sugar cane. Sugar was the
principal crop of the French colonists, and they diverted water from nearly
all the larger streams for use in turning cane mills. The Grande Riviere
du Nord and the Fosse and Haut du Cap were utilized completely for this
purpose by the rich sugar-raising parishes of Limonade, Quartier Morin,
and Petite Anse. The largest diversion works were at the village of La
Tannerie, where the Grande Riviere du Nord debouches onto the plain.
So much water was diverted here and elsewhere that in 1786 the whole
1
bed of the lower Grande Riviere du Nord was dry.
All the streams of the plain fluctuate greatly in volume during the year
and are subject to sudden and violent floods. The colonists had great
difficulty in controlling floods, which often devastated some of the richest
plantations. Long lines of levees were used, particularly along the Grande
Riviere du Nord, but they were not always maintained in good condition
and were frequently broken. The stream courses in the western part or
the plain are unstable, as the river beds are rapidly aggraded and become
higher than the surrounding land, causing the streams to shift their
courses rapidly. Flood control is one of the serious problems in any plan
for improving the water supply on the North Plain.

GROUND WATF.R.
Alluvial beds that dip very gently seaward underlie most of the plain.
The alluvium consists of gravel, sand, and silty clay. At some places near
the inland edge of the plain there is a bedrock bench. At the eastern
end of the plain similar but more consolidated beds underlie the alluvium,
and these also dip seaward. The depth of the alluvium in the western
part of the plain probably does not exceed 100 or 150 meters, but in the
eastern part the alluvi11m and the older Quaternary beds may reach a con-
siderably greater thickness. As the rainfall is fairly heavy and the r11n-
off from the adjacent mountains is copious it is virtually certain that the
porous beds are saturated with fresh ground wa.t er at no great depth. The
conditions in general resemble those on most of the other alluvial plains
of the Republic, except that the beds which are likely to contain water
are probably not so thick, at least in the western end of the plain, and the
dip of the beds is more gentle. For these reasons ground water can prob-
ably be obtained in abundance, generally within pumping distance of the
surface, on most of the plain, especially the western part. In fact, several
shallow wells ( 5 to 6 meters deep) dug on the plantation of Mr. Kapham,
about 2 kilometers southwest of Limonade, yield an abundance of water
for stock and for cane mills. This place is well back toward the inland
edge of the plain; The chances for flowing water are poorer there than
in some other places.
s Moreau de St. M~ry, op. cit., vol. 1, p. 233.

•
•

WATER RESOURCES. 539

The presence of ground water that is probably 11nder some pressure is

attested by springy and marshy areas, such as give rise to the Riviere des
Mapo11x and the P etite Riviere du Quartier Morin, which originate far
out on the plain. Flowing wells may possibly be obtained near the shore
around the mouth of the Grande Riviere, but the flows will probably not
be large. The only well that affords any evidence on this subject is that
drilled at the Cap-Ha1tien Railroad station at the mouth of Riviere Haut
du Cap, which is more fully described elsewhere (p. 588). It is a small
well, 25 meters deep, but at :first yielded a slight flow. Better results might
be had from deeper wells of large diameter, but they would have to be
drilled farther from the sea, for the sea water affects somewhat the water of
the well just mentioned, and the water probably would be worse if the well
were drilled deeper.
In the eastern part of the plain, between Fort-Liberte and Ouana-
minthe, the rainfall is less, the relief is greater, and the depth to water
is probably greater, so that shallow wells would perhaps be less success-
ful. But the shore of the plain here is longer and the beds are better
sorted, so that the possibility of obtaining artesian wa.t er in areas not much
above sea level a pp ears better.

MOUNTAINS AND IDGHI,ANDS.

Most of the mo11ntain regions of the Republic of Haiti receive more
rain than the lowland plains and valleys. Where their surface features
and soil are favorable they are more likely than the plains to produce crops
without irrigation; indeed, irrigation would be quite impossible at most
places in the highlands on account of their rugged surface. Water is
needed mainly for domestic use and for stock and generally is obtained
from streams or springs. Some of the mountain regions r eceive but little
rain and are semi-arid; and large areas in the regions underlain by lime-
stone have subterranean drainage, so that the scarcity of water causes the
land to be almost uninhabited. Examples of these conditions can be found
in the region of Grands-Bois; in Section Plymouth, southeast of Jeremie;
on the Bombardopolis Plateau; and on Gonave and Tortue islands.
Not much of value can be recorded about the streams of the mountain
areas, and the geology is at most places so complicated that only a few
generalizations regarding gro11nd water can be based on the hasty obser-
vations made. The springs, which are common and at many places valu-
able, are described on pages 550-566.
Many of the mo11ntain ranges are composed of hard limestone, which is
generally, considerably folded and disturbed and overlies igneous rocks
that are exposed at many places, chiefly in the center of the ranges and
in valley bottoms. Water circulates freely in the limestone through joints
and along bedding planes, many of which have been greatly enlarged by
solution, which has at some places formed large caverns. A large part
540 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

of the rainfall on the limestone areas is absorbed and sinks rapidly down-
ward along these channels until its flow is checked, either by striking
some less pervious material, such as igneous rock, or by reaching a perma-
nent water table controlled by the sea or by a lake or large stream. At
some places beds of chalk or of clayey partings in the limestone act as
impervious beds. The water tends to move laterally down the slope of the
wa.ter table or along the surface of the impervious bed until it reaches an
outlet into a stream or into the sea, generally through springs.
In most limestone areas the surface is greatly dissected and the rocks are
porous so that th.e water table undoubtedly lies very deep. Moreover,
much of the gro11nd water is concentrated in subterranean streams along
solution channels. At many places in the highlands, therefore, wells 'vould
not reach water except at great depth, unless t.hey accidentally penetrated
channels of circulation. Some of these channels are indicated by sink-
hole valleys, especially where surface streams disappear into sunken
valleys or springs issue from them. Wells drilled in these s11nken areas
in regions where wa.t er is greatly needed might tap large supplies at no
great depth. A suggestion for exploration of this kind at the town of
Pestel is given on page 592. In regions where the cover of limestone is
thin water might be obtained by wells drilled to the impervious rocks
below and tapping the water that circulates along the contact of the lime-
stone with the impervious bed. Considerable supplies of water have been
1
obtained from such wells on the island of Barbados, where conditions,
however, are rather less complicated than those in most parts of the
Republic of Haiti. A part of the Bombardopolis Plateau might possibly
offer opportunity for work of this kind, as the porous limestone that lies
above the impervious beds appears to be rather thin at some places.
Water circulates much less freely in the igneous and metamorphic
rocks than in ljrnestone because these rocks are denser and the principal
open spaces in them are small joints, which are enlarged only very slowly,
if at all, by solution. Moreover, these joints generally become closed at
depths of a few hundred meters. The residual soil and the upper part
of these rocks, however, usually absorb considerable water, which seeps
down the hillsides and concentrates beneath the valleys. Shallow dug
wells in valleys or ravines, or even on fiat uplands in areas of igneous
rock, would generally yield plenty of water for domestic use and for
stock, and deeper drilled wells would be equally or even more successful,
although they probably would not yield so much water as is obtained from
many similar wells in the alluvial plains.
GONAVE ISLAND.
With the exception of small patches of alluvium, the only surface rock
on Gonave Island is limestone. 'l,he limestone is not strongly folded, as it
1 Harrison, J. B., and Jukes-Browne, A. J., Geology of Barbados, pp. 60-62, published
by Barbadian L egislature, 1890.
 •

W.ATER RESOURCES. 541

is so commonly elsewhere, but has a gentle anticlinal arching. Over most

of the island open textured and very porous limestone of Miocene age is the
surface rock. Beneath this limestone lies similar limestone of Eocene
age underlain by less porous chalky limestone, which forms a dissected
plateau in the southeastern part of the island. Near the outer edge of this
plateau the Miocene limestone rests directly on the chalky limestone.
(See Fig. 8, p. 138.)
As might be expected from the geology, most of the drainage is under-
ground and there are no through-flowing streams on the island. There are
some springs in the southeastern part of the island, most of which issue
at the contact of the porous 1'1iocene or Eocene limestone with the less
pervious chalky limestone. The largest is that in the ravine near Picmi.
Anot.h er is in a ravine southwest of Anse-a-Galets. The water of both
these springs disappears in the ravine beds a short
, distance from its source.
The spring at Grande Source, southwest of Etroit, was not examined but
is probably of the same type. There is said to be a spring at La Source,
on the coast in the nort.h western part of the island, but no dei:ails about
it are known.
In the western part of the interior plateau, where chalky limestone
crops out in ravines, water is obtained at several localities from shallow
wells dl1g in the beds of ravines. Such wells were seen at Grande-Ravine,
Fond Negre, and Citadelle. Water could probably be obtained in this way
along the ravines at any place where chalky limestone is exposed. Such
wells should be guarded carefully from pollution. Small hand pumps
would afford a very convenient means of raising water to the surface.
The northwestern part of the island is a plateau 11nderlain by the
porous Miocene limestone, and the only fresh water obtained in the in-
terior is that which collects in holes in the bare rock surfaces during
rains. This water is carefully stored for use in the dry seasons a.n d is
supplemented by brackish water carried for long distances from shallow
wells along the coast. The water table in this region probably stands
not far above sea level, and wells would have to be 150 to 300 meters
deep to reach water. The expense of such wells would not be justified by
any reason now apparent, as this region is thinly inhabited.
Wells are sometimes dug along the shore in the beach deposits or in
the narrow belt of alluvium that fringes the limestone at some localities.
It is said that water from some of these wells is brackish but is used
. for lack of better water. At some places along the shore there may be
salty springs which might perhaps be improved by t.apping them farther
from the sea as has been suggested for Baie de Henne. (See p. 590.)
TORTUE ISLAND.
Little information was obtained about water on Tortue Island. Most
of the island is underlain by porous Oligocene limestone in which 11nder-
gro11nd drainage is developed, and water is therefore scarce. Beneath

•
 •

542 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

the limestone lie metamorphic rocks, which are exposed in some of the
valleys, particularly near La Vallee and along the coast. Springs issue
along the contact of the limestone with the metamorphic rocks at the head
of the valley north of La Vallee and give rise to a short stream. The
largest spring seen is about 2 kilometers north-northwest of La Vallee
at an altitude of 170 meters above level, where a concrete basin to impo11nd
the water was constructed by the company that proposed to exploit the
forests of the island. Similar but smaller springs were seen farther east
along the south coast, between La Vallee and Pointe des Oiseaux.
1
Moreau de St. Mery, with his 11sual care, gives full descriptions of all
the known sources of fresh water on the island. On the south coast there
are spring-fed streams similar to those of La Vallee at Cayonne, about
2,000 meters west of Basse Terre and just west of Pointe des Oiseaux, as
well as two smaller ones between Pointe des Oiseaux and La Vallee. There
is said to be a stream on either side of Pointe Tete de Chien on the north
coast. Both streams flow for only short distances in deep gorges, and dis-
appear before reaching the sea. On the south coast at Pointe Masson, about
2,400 meters east of Basse Terre, a spring issues from a steep sea cliff. Its
outlet is covered at high tide but exposed at low tide, when fresh water is
obtainable.
Well water probably could be obtained by shallow wells at places in
the ravines where the metamorphic rocks are exposed. There is not much
hope of obtaining water easily in the interior of the island.
•

QUALITY OF WATER.
GENERAL FEATURES.
Most of the waters of the Republic are of good quality for domestic
use when not polluted by sewage or waste. They are also generally good
for irrigation and for many industrial uses. There are, however, notable
exceptions to this general rule, particularly for the water from a few
salt lakes and certain springs. As the rocks of a large part of the Republic
are calcareous the characteristic feature of most of its waters is hardness,
chiefly in the form of calcium bicarbonate. Twenty samples of water from
the Republic were recently analyzed ]n the United States Geological Sur-
vey. These samples probably represent most of the available types.
•

STREAMS, FRESH LAKES, AND COMMON SPRINGS.

•

The following analyses cover the waters of two large rivers, the largest
fresh-water lake, and five springs of the more common type. They repre-
sent by far the greater part of the water in use.
The total solids in all these waters are moderately high. The main
difference between the spring waters and the surface waters is that the
spring waters are generally a little more highly mineralized. Hardness
1 Op. cit., vol. 1, pp. 733-739.
 •

Analyses of waters from streams, fresh lakes, and common springs.

[0. S. Howard, analyst, except for Port-au-Prince supply.]
(Parts per million.]

,
Etang de Go naives
R. Oul-de-Sa" I R. Artibonite Cap-Haiti en Port-au-Prince.
Miragoane supply,
at at supply, Source
at home of
Maneville.
Bassin Pont Justinien Source Source
Pont de B. F.

~
General. Sonde. Reservoir. Turgeau. Plaisance.
Miragoane. Knighton.
ttj
p;
•

Total dissolved sclids .•••••..

- . ..•....••.•...•••..
Silica (Si02) ••••••••••••••.•...•.•.•••• • · • • • • · • •
180
84
218
87
253
34
225
22
271
44
278
15
282
21
370
119 ;
0
Iron (Fe) ....................................... . .11 .09 .19 .15 .13 .lS .08 .14
d
Calcium (Ca) ...•.•••.......•..•..•••••••••••..•• 23 53 51 58 39 80 92 38 p;
Magn.esium (Mg) ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••.... 7.2 7.2 11 2.9 19 6.4 3.7 21 c
t.:..t
Sodi1Jm and potassi11m (Na+K) ••....••••.•••.... 26 7.6 10 18 31 4 8.6 4 5.4 37 00
•
Carbonate radicle (OOa) •••••••••••••••••••.••••.. 9.6 11 .0 .0 12 .o .0 19
Bicarbonate radicle (HCOa) •. .....•.••••....••... 127 176 185 188 214 280 287 209
Sulphate radicle (SO,) ••••••••.......•••••........ 8.6 8.4 10 5.3 10 5.5 4.9 13
Chloride radicle (01) ••...•.•.•....••.•.•......... 4.0 5.0 24 19 22 6.5 6.2 34
Nitrate radicle (NOa) •••••....•..... - ...•......... .50 .38 .58 3.8 .66 Trace 9.0 Trace
Total hardness as Ca00s0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 162 173 157 175 226 246 181
Date of collection . .............................. . Apr. 12, 1921 Dec. 8, 1920 Apr. 10, 1921 I Mar. 30, 1921 I Feb. 21, 1921 Jan. 31, 1919 Jan. 31, 1919 Apr. 3, 1921

o Calculated.

Ot
•
~
Ci>.)
544 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

in the form of calcium bicarbonate is preponderant. The remaining

mineral content consists chiefly of silica and alkali chloride and sulphate,
all of which are rather low except in the Source Maneville, which, from
causes not determined, is somewhat divergent from the type. All the
waters are pleasant to the taste ~d suitable for domestic use or for irriga-
tion. They readily for1n incrustations of precipitated CaC0 3 in pipes
and conduits and in steam boilers, and so give some trouble in city
supplies and in certain industrial operations. The treatment of water
for the removal of hardness is considered on pages 575-576.

WELLS.
Four samples of water from comparatively deep wells, three of them
belonging to the Haytian-American Sugar Co. on the Cul-de-Sac Plain,
were analyzed and the results are given in the following table.

Analyses of w ell waters.

[Parts per million. C. S. Ho\vard, analyst.]

I Group of
drilled wells
Group of
Well of
Railroad Co.
drilled wells Drilled well
at La at Cap-
at Dessources. at Vaudreuil. Haitien.
Morini ere.
(Seep. 528.) (Seep. 524.)
(See p. 521.) (See p. 588.)

Total dissolved solids ................. 468 423 1027 875

Silica (Si02) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 67 69 10'2 41
Iron (Fe) •••••••••••••••••••••••••••• .07 .07 .13 .08
Calcium (Ca) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 62 56 14 22
Magnesium (Mg) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 27 82 26 31
Sodium and Potassium (Na+!{) ...... 60 41 325 279
Carbonate radicle ( COa) ...•.......... 6.0 14 58 26
Bicarbonate ra dicle (HCOa) .•...... . . 339 292 220 531
Sulphate radicle (SO,) ............... 39 • 54 123 13
Chloride rad icle (Cl) ................. 47 32 328 175
Nitrate radicle ( N03) ................ 1.5 1.3 Trace .57
Total hardness as CaCOa ( calculated) . 266 272 142 182
Date of collection . ................... Oct. 15, 1920 Oct. 13, 1920 Apr. 11, 19'21 Feb. 23, 1921

The first two analyses represent normal ground water of the Cul-de-
Sac Plain. They do not differ greatly from the waters of streams and
springs described above except that they are a little more highly miner-
alized. Bicarbonates of calcium and magnesi11m, producing hardness,
are the chief features of these waters, and probably would be the chief
features of most well waters, deep or shallow, in the Republic, except
those found in areas of igneous rock or at places near the shore line.
The last two waters are very different. The total solids are much
higher high enough to impart a slight taste to the water although both
waters are regarded as good for drinking. The predominant salts are
alkali chlorides and sulphates, and the water from the well at Cap-Ha1tien

\
 WATER RESOURCES. 545

appai·ently contains considerable alkali carbonate. Calcium is quite low

and magnesium is in excess of calcium, a relation very unusual in normal
ground waters and suggestive of sea water. Both these wells are near the
sea and the high salinity is probably due to a small amount of sea water.
In the well at Vaudreuil this sea water may be connate water that escapes
from buried marine beds in which it was included, rather than sea water
•
that has entered by infiltration, for the shore is a kilometer or more away,
but it might also come by diffusion from underlying salt water, which may
1
extend back a considerable distance beneath coasts. In the well at Cap-
Ha1tien the presence of marine salts is probably due to direct infiltration
or diffusion, as the well is on a sandy beach only a few meters from the
sea. Ground waters of this type, contaminated by sea water, are probably
not 11ncommon in a narrow zone along the whole coa-at.

SALT LAKES.
,.
The largest saline lake is Etang Sa.u matre, at the eastern border of the
Cul-de-Sac Plain. Besides this lake there are a few small salt lakes of
,. the
desert playa type. The only one for which analysis is available is Etang
,.
Bois-Neuf, between St.-Marc and Mont-Rouis. The salinity of Etang
Saumatre closely resembles that of sea water, and for purposes of com-
parison an average analysis of sea water is given. An analysis of water
from Lago de Enriquillo, Dominican Republic, which is of the same type,
is also given.
Analyses of water from salt lakes and comparison 'With sea water and with water
of Lago de Enriquillo, Dominican R epublic.
[Parts per million.]

, , Lago de
Etang Etang
Sea 'vater. c Enriquillo
Bois-Neuf. 0 Sa11matre." " Dom. Rep."
I
Total dissolved solids ...... 29,464 7,432 35,000 48,902
Silica ( Si02) • • • • e •••• I •••• 48 26 ••••• • •• ••••• •••
Iron (Fe) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • .07 .48 •••••••• ••••••••
Calcium (Ca) • • • • • • • • • • • • 446 94 419 1,649
Magnesium (Mg) • • • • • • • • • • 589 279 1,304 378
~
~
Sodium (Na) • • • • • • • • • • • • • 8,349 10,7CYl 15,973
Potassium (K) • • • • • • • • • • • • 80
~ 2,159 - 387 503
Carbonate radicle (COa) ... 40
J

46 - 72 .o
Bicarbonate radicle (HCOs). 98 161 •••••••• 512
Sulphate radicle (SO,) .... '
14,580 711 2,693 3,833
Ohloride radicle (Cl) ...... 4,582 3,660 19,352 25,547
Nitrate radicle (NOa) ...... Trace Trace • ••••••• • •••••••
Date of collection ...•..... Dec. 8, 1920 Apr. 3, 19'21 1873-1876 May 29, 1919

° C. S. Howard, analyst.
bCollected about 500 meters offshore near Maneville.
° From U. S. Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper 258, p. 82, 1910, after Dittmar.
4 A geological reconnaissance of the Dominican Republic, p. 191, Washington, 1921. Analyzed by

A. T. Geiger.

Brown, John S., A stt1dy of coastal ground water: U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply
l
Paper. (Awaiting publication.)
35

•
546 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

,
The water of Etang Bois-Neuf is of a type llnusual in the Republic.
Although nearly as concentrated as sea-water, it differs from it greatly,
especially in possessing much higher sulphate and much lower chloride.
Apparently its mineralization is due to concentration by evaporation. The
high sulphate may be due to the presence of gypsum in the surrounding
!1iocene rocks (see p. 512), but if so, the calci11m salt has in some way •

been converted into

,
an alkali sulphate.
The water of Etang Sa11matre has about one-fifth the concentration of
sea water, in striking contrast to that of Lago de Enriquillo, which is 40
per cent more concentrated than sea water. The resemblance of type is
better illustrated by the following comparison of mineral constituents in
terms of percentage of their Sl1m.
,
Comparative percentage composition of water of }Jtang Satlmatre, water of Lago
d e Enriquillo, and average sea water.
,
Etang Lago de Average
Saumatre. Enriquillo. ca sea water. D

Calci11m (Ca) •.................••...•................ 1.3 3.4 1.2

Magnesium (Mg) ................................... . 4.0 .8 3.7
Sodium and potassium (Na+K) ..................... . 80.6 34.2 31.8
Carbonate radicle ( COs) ............................. . 1.8 .5 .2
Sulphate radicle (SO,) ............................ . . . 10.1 8.0 7.7
Chloride radicle (Cl) ................•.......•........ 51.9 53.1 55.4

Total ............................................ . 99.7 100.0 100.0

•From A geological reconnaissance of the Dominican Republic, p. 191, Washington, 1921.

"From Clarke, F. W., Data of Geochemistry, U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 695, p. 123, 1920.

Both these waters closely resemble sea water, although they differ from
it in some details. The water of Lago de Enriquillo corresponds with
sea water more closely, in respect
.
to sodium and potassium, chloride and
sulphate, but that of Etang Saumatre corresponds much more closely with
sea water in respect to calcium and magnesium.
During early Quaternary time the sea occupied all the trough f1·om
Port-au-Prince Bay to N eiba Bay, separating the island of Haiti into two
·major parts and covering the region that is now occupied by both salt
lakes. The salt water of these lakes may be residual sea water, or it
may be derived from residual sea water that was held in the depres-
1
sions when the land emerged. Condit and Ross suggest this explanation
for the salinity of Lago de Enriquillo and cite evidence to show that the
shrinking of that lake in historical times by evaporation has been suffi-
cient to account for much of its concentration. Dilution rather tha.n con-
centration would have to be inferred to account for the composition of
1Condit, D. D., and Ross, C. P., in A geological reconnaissance of the Dominican
Republic, p. 191, Washington, 1921.

•
 WATER RESOURCES. 547
,
Etang Sa11matre. Dilution might have actually occurred either by :flooding
until the lake overflowed or by an increase in the size of the basin after its
emergence, as, for instance, by the building up of the alluvial barrier in the
Cul-de-Sac Plain, to the west. The concentration of Etang Saumatre
could hardly have been diminished by the precipitation of material, for
the ratio of mineral constituents could not have been preserved in that
process. Again, it must be observed that high salinity in both lakes could
probably be due to the leaching of salt beds in the rocks about their
borders. Such beds of salt crop out along the,
southern border of Lago de
Enriquillo a.nd may occur in the vicinity of Etang Saumatre. Finally, it is
well known that many interior lakes have a mineral content which closely
resembles that of sea water, although there is no possibility that they have
1
been recently connected with the sea. On the whole, it seems best not
to render a verdict regarding this interesting problem i1ntil better data on
the surface features and geologic history of the region are available.

MINERAL SPRINGS.
Several springs of the Republic yield water that is divergent from the
more common types either in mineral content or in origin. Those for
which analyses are available are considered under individual descriptions
o:f the springs.

GRAPHIC COMPARISONS OF ANALYSES.

The relative concentration and composition of the mineral constituents

in waters may be shown more effectively by charts than by mere compari-
sons of figures. A number of charts covering all the types of water previ-
ously described are given in Figures 32 and 33.
In constructing these charts the mineral constituents are separated
into bases and acid radicles. The principal bases are calcium (Ca), Mag-
nesium (Mg), sodium (Na), and potassi11m (K). Iron (Fe) and alu-
minum (Al) may occasionally act as bases, but are commonly regarded
as present in colloidal form. Moreover, the quantity is usually insignifi-
cant and they are ignored in the charts. The principal acid radicles are
carbonate (COs) and bicarbonate (HCOs), sulphate (S04) and chloride
(Cl) . Silica, which may sometimes act as an acid radicle, is generally
present in water in colloidal form. Its quantity, however, may be large,
and it is accordingly plotted separately, as an inert constituent.
The values plotted in Figures 32 and 33 are reacting values, which are
obtained by the fallowing formula:
. _ Pa.r ts per million x Valence
Reac t ing va1ue- · At om1c
. we1g. ht
Clarke, F. W., The data of geochemistry: U. S. GeoL Survey Bull. 695, pp. 152-
1

174, Washington, 1920.

 548 GEOLOGY OF TB E REPUBLIC OF HAITI •
•
•

/ Puit.s du Sources Chaud.es (12.14)

Eta,ng de chemm defer, de
Riviere M]ragoe:ne Ca:i:-Ha,itien Dame-11arie
idooof
.Arti.bonite (253) C875) ou. de J erern1e
au Pont, Sonde C515)
(2,18)

• Pui-tJs "HCLsco:'
La,Moriniere
(468)

tloyenne de~
Source;s ·
Plaisance
etTu:r e~u.,
Port-B>u.- · ce
C280)
150000

,
LEGENDE
- Silica txXXXXl ($i02)
Sodiu cN:::~:i$iu m ~ ~ Chlcr.;xre

Ca.,1ci11m 1771 ~ Carbonate et

(Ca,.) ~ ~ 1'icarbonate
CC~+HCO~

FIGURE 32. Graphic representation of analyses of some waters of the Republic.

•
 'WATER RESOURCES. 549

(35,000) (29,464)
Pet'Ite
Sources source
Puantes sa.,lee a,
(12,684) Mira..goMe
11111 1 Cl0,476 ) C2.0,928) C7.1=!!3Z)
·---·· ~x
--W
>! ,
6 5 di

"
'\.,,.' '
' ' '' -
" '['\..' '' -
~ I'\..
'
' ' ,_

"'' '-
•

~
•

"'
['\.,_ "'"'

~
['....
['\..

'~ '' - ~

'
-
~

~ I'\.. ~
"' "'"'
~ "
I'\..
"' - ,_

['....
"'' "" -

~ "" -
~ "
['\.
Q) "
"'
~ ~... ''
'

~
'' ..,

~ "' ~ '
"-
~ ''" cfJ
['\.

I'\..

~
' r-...
'\.. tr:
I'\..
['\.,_
"" l """
~ ' ' r~
• .
T

" "'
~
['\.,_
'\..
"
['\.

~ "'
I'\.
'-
I'\..

~ I'\. "' •

• ~

..' ..- "~

['\.
['-. '" -
"" I'..
I'\.

,
n..
"• - -

.. ~ , ,' ,
' ,, ", , /
,
... /,
'
' ,• :iii
' .. ,, •• ' '
, ," ;:::: ,'
' ""
',, 1I'' ' ,,' ,,, ,' "'
',
..
"" ''·
I' '
•• .. '
,, ""
'.. ~ ,, i' '· /
, "' ,, ,'
,•
,. '
~ ~
'/ ~
v ''...
~,
N
I."
ll
"' '

"

FrauRE 33. Graphic representation of analyses of some waters of the Republic.

Scale greatly r educed as compar ed to Figur e 32 ; f or r elative scale compare
r epresentation of the Sources Chaudes de los P ozos in both figures.
 550 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

In any
m1c we1g
stable chemical system the acid radicles must balance the bases, and their
reacting values should, therefore, be equal, and this fact is evident in most
of the charts. Slight discrepancies may be explained either by the presence
of small quantities of undetermined constjtuents or by minor errors in the
analytical results.
In the charts shown in Figures 32 and 33 the large areas in which the
•

acids are plott,ed against the bases are proportional in size to the quantity
of mineral matter the total dissolved solids. The scale in the two figures
is different, however, as is shown by comparing the sizes of the two areas
for the Sources Chaudes de Los Pozos. The height of the area shown for
silica is based upon the ratio of the reacting value of silica to the sum of
the reacting values of both acids and bases.
The charts bring out forcibly the features of the different types of
waters, described. The surface waters, represented by Riviere Artibonite
and Etang de Miragoane contain the lowest total solids, the common
springs, r epresented by the Port-au-Prince supply, slightly more, but the
character of all three is much the same, high calcium carbonate being the
principal feature. The wells at La Morinier e contain higher total solids,
relatively less calcium, and more magnesi11m, as well as more silica.
The type of water in the well of the railroad company at Cap-Ha.ltien
is 11nusual. Calci11m is very low, magnesium is higher than calci11m, and
sodium and potassium are very high , and are present largely as carbonate. ·
The similarity of the water of Etang
, Saumatre to sea water and the dis-
similarity between the water of Etang Bois-Neu:f and sea water are very
evident in the graphic comparison in Figure 33.
The r emaining charts cover unusual spring waters considered 11nder
the heading '' Springs '' (pp. 553-566). .

SPRINGS.
GENERAL FEATURES AND CLASSIFICATION.
Springs are found at many places in the Republic, both in the moun-
tains and on the plains, although they are uncommon in certain small
areas, as, for instance, in much of the Northwest Peninsula and on Gonave
Island. Springs may be classified as hot or cold, highly mineralized or
· not, and in many other ways. A recent and useful classification, proposed
1
by Bryan, is based on the source of the water and the structural feature
that brings it to the surface. The source of the water of most of the
springs of the Republic is rainfall that has entered the ground and thus
become gro11nd water. Examples of nearly all the structural types of
1 Stabler, H., The industrial application of water analyses: U. S. Geol. Survey Water ·
Supply Paper 274, p. 167, 1911.
'Bryan, Kirk, Classification of springs: Jour. Geol., vol. 27, pp. 522-561, 1919 .
•

•
 WATER RESOURCES. 551

springs could probably be found, but only the commonest and most useful
types are here described, and appropriate examples of each type are given.
A few of the more noted or llnusual springs are described in detail.

SPRINGS EMERGING FROM SOLUTION CHANNELS IN LIMESTONE.

One of the commonest and most useful types of springs includes those
that form the outlets of t1nderground streams that follow solution chan-
nels in limestone. Most of these springs issue at the base of mountains-
either in valleys or at the border of plains or on the sea shore. Some of
them give rise to large streams, such as the Riviere Salee, near Baraderes.
The openings from which some of them come are visible. A good example
is the Source Moreau, at the northern edge of the Cayes Plain, which
issues directly from a limestone cliff and gives rise to the Riviere de
Torbeck. The opening, however, is generally obscured by a mass of soil
and debris, through which the water must force its way. Source Diquini
(p. 571) of the Port-au-Prince supply and Source Cinq Carreaux
(p. 583) of the Cap-Ha!tien supply are springs of this kind; before they
were cleared out and utilized they issued from a mass of soil in ravines, but
the removal of this mass exposed the open channels in the rock from which
the water issues. One of the largest
, springs of this type is the big spring
at Maneville, on the edge of Etang Saumatre. Although its opening is
filled with soil it is no doubt the outlet of an 11nderground stream that
comes from the limestone mountains to the north. Sources Le Clerc and
Chaudeau (p. 571), of the Port-au-Prince water supply, and Source la
Pierre, which furnishes the water of Gona1ves, are other springs of this
type. In fact, nearly all the springs in limestone regions are of this type,
although many of them could also be classified as contact springs.

CONTACT SPRINGS.
Contact springs are of several different kinds, but all of them occur
along the contact of a porous rock with a less porous or impervious rock,
usually at places where the porous rock is on top. Water absorbed by
the porous rock passes downward until its movement is checked by the
impervious rock, and then moves laterally down the slope of the impervi-
ous rock until it finds an outlet on some hillside or in a ravine or valley.
Many such springs occur along the contact of porous limestone with
underlying impervious igneous rock, slate, or compact chalky limestone.
Such springs also belong in the class of springs that emerge from solution
channels in limestone, the solution channel having been localized along
the contact with the impervious rock. A very good example is Source
Cinq Carrea11x, of the Cap-Ha!tien water supply (p. 583), already men-
tioned. This spring issues at a contact between limestone and 11nderlying
metamorphic clayey chert. The springs on Gonave Island (p. 541), occur
at the contact of porous limestone with compact chalky limestone, and
552 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF H.~ITI.

the springs of La Vallee on Tortue Island occur at the contact of lime-

stone with impervious metamorphic rocks.
In regions 11nderlain by igneous rock small springs or seeps on hill-
sides are rather common. Most of them are fed by water that slowly seeps
from accumulations of residual soil and debris and that moves down the
hillside above or upon the surface of the denser, less pervious 11nweathered
rock beneath. Few such springs are large. An exceptionally large spring
of this type is Source Belair, of the Cap-Ha.ltien supply (p. 584).
Contact springs of another class occur in the beds of ravines or strean1
courses that are dry almost throughout the year. They are commonest in
semiarid regions. Most of these stream beds contain deposits of porous
gravel and sand. Water absorbed by these deposits at tjmes of flood con-
tinues to seep downstream after the surface water has disappeared. Here
and there the water may meet obstructions, such as outcropping ledges of
l1nderlying impervious rock or beds of impervious clay. These obstruc-
tions force the water to rise to the surface and suggest the name '' rock-
dam springs,'' which is frequently applied to springs of this type. A good
example is the spring at Terre-Neuve that supplies most of the water
used in the town. This water rises from gravel that lies upon impervious
igneous rock and sinks away again in the gravel farther downstream. The
water r eappears about 2 kilometers west of Terre-Neuve, where igneous
rock and limestone are exposed in the stream bed, and flows for a con-
siderable distance. Another example is Source Plaisance (p. 572), of the
Port-au-Prince supply, which rises at a place where the alluvial gravel
of the stream bed is interrupted by beds of impervious Miocene marl.
Another type of contact spring, somewhat more difficult to recognize,
probably occurs on the alluvial plains and valleys, about the perimeters
of artesian areas. We have seen (p. 519) how artesian water receives its
head by passing downward along a porous bed beneath a confining im-
pervious bed. When the porous bed is fully saturated the excess water
absorbed at the intake area must escape, and it frequently does so through
springs at outcrops of the impervious confining bed. The springs at the
north side of the town of Leogane are probably. an example of this type
of spring, and perhaps also some of the springs on the Cul-de-Sac Plain,
the Cayes Plain, and the North Plain. .

ARTESIAN SPRINGS.
The type of spring last described is difficult to distinguish from the
artesian spring that is due to artesian pressure and that emerges througl1
some break or weak spot in the confining bed above. Many such breaks are
produced by faulting, the water under pressure :finding its wa.y to the
surface along the fault plane. Springs of this class may perhaps be found
at some places in the Republic, especially on the Cul-de-Sac Plain. Earth·
quakes are frequent in the plain (see pp. 338-350), and they may pro-
 WATER RESOURCES. 553

duce lines of weakness that permit the escape of artesian water. Earth-
quakes also cause sudden large flows of water due to the sl11mping and
compression of water-bearing rocks. Such flows of water are generally
temporary, but some may continue as permanent springs. Several reports
indicate that flows of this kind in the plain have been produced by
earthquakes.

SPRINGS IN FRACTURES IN IMPERVIOUS ROCKS.

Another tJrpe of spring is that due to fractures or :fissures in relatively
impervious rocks. To this type probably belong a number of small springs
whose water circulates through joints, simple 01· complex, entering them
at high altitudes and issuing at lower. Of this type also are springs that
issue along fault zones that probably extend to considerable depth in the
earth. Some of the more noted warm springs of the Republic are doubtless
of this class. (See p. 565.)

UNUSUAL TYPES OF SPRINGS.

Many springs in the Republic that can be referred to the above types
so far as the attendant rock structure is concerned, have distinctive
features of other kinds, such as highly mineralized water, included gases
(particularly hydrogen sulphide), or a temperature markedly above the
general average of the atmosphere. The larger ones noted can be classified
as salty springs (contaminated by sea water), sulphur springs, and warm
•
sprmge.

SALTY SPRINGS CONTAMINATED BY SEA WATER.

Salty springs appear to be rather common, particularly on the lime-

stone coasts. Among the best examples of the type are two springs south-
west of Miragoane, where the coast is high and steep. The larger spring
is on the shore about a kilometer from the town. The spring (Pl. XL, B)
issues from la1~ge open solution channels in a low bluff of Eocene lime-
stone very close to the sea. The water level in the large basin-like pool
at the outlet rises and falls with the tides, which. enter beneath the bridge
to the north. The :flow of the spring is probably at least 100 liters per
second. The water is very salty, quite unfit for drinking. The smaller
spring, which is nearer the town, is much like the larger one, but its flow
is less and its water is more salty. Analyses of the water of these two
springs, compared to sea water, are given in the table on page 554.
Graphic comparisons of these waters with sea water are given in
Figure 33. The ratios of all the significant bases and radicles in the
spring waters to the total solids and to each other is virtually the same
as in sea water, so that the only notable difference is the degree of concen-
tration. Of co11rse a part of the calcium and most of the silica and bicar-
bonate in the spring waters are derived from normal meteoric ground
554 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

water, but nearly all the chloride, sulphate, carbonate, sodi11m and potas-
si11m, and magnesi11m is derived from sea water, probably in part by
diffusion, in part by the infiltration of sea water into open crevices at
high tide, and perhaps in part by displacement of fresh water by sea
water, particularly at high tide, because of the greater specific gravity
of the sea water. The sea water, probably affects only the water at and
near the outlet of the springs.
Other springs of this type are not uncommon. The Source Salee be-
tween Leogane and Port-au-Prince, the springs at Grand-Gosier, and
the Source Baie de Henne (p. 590) are examples.

Analyses of water of salty springs near M iragoane and of sea water.

[Parts per million .]

Larger salty Smaller salty Sea

spring.a. spring .a. water."

Total dissolved solids .......•...•.•.•....•.... 10,476 20,928 35,000

Silica ( Si02) ................................ . 77 79 • •••••••
Iron (Fe) ................................... . . 25 . 45 • • e 4 I e ••

Calcium (Ca) ...•...•.•.........•............ 178 183 419

Magnesium (Mg) •.•••....•.........•........ 387 675 1,304
Sodi11m and p ot assium (Na+ K) ..•....•...... 3,224 6,752 "11,094
Carbonate radicle (COs ) ........•..•.........• 34 48 72
Bicarbonate radicle ( H COs) .........•..... . .. 272 220 • •••••••
Sulphate r adicle ( 804) ..•....•............... 763 1,551 2,693
Chloride radicle (Cl) ................ . ....•... 5,559 11,376 19,352
Nitrate radicle (NOs) •.••••••..•.•...•....... Trace Trace • •••••••
Date of collection .••..••...•..•.........•.... Apr. 10, 1921 Apr. 10, 1921 1873-1876

a. C.S. H oward, analyst .

b From U. S. G'eol. Survey Water -Supply P ap er 258, p. 82, 1910, after Dittmar.
0
Sodium (Na) 10,707, and potassium (K) 387 part s.

SULPHUR SPRINGS (SOURCES PUANTES).

A number of springs in the Republic contain hydrogen sulphide (H2S)
in solution. Most of this gas escapes 'vhen the water reaches the surface
and pressure on it is released. The unpleasant odor of the gas suggested
the name sources puantes, which is frequently applied to these springs.
The most famous are the Sources Puantes at the northwestern corner of
the Cul-de-Sac Plain. (See Pl. XXXIX.) The odor of these springs is
very strong and can be det ected for some h11ndreds of meters. A view
of the springs is given in Plate XL, 0. .
The Sources Puantes are on a very narrow extension of the Cul-de-Sac
Plain, not more than 100 to 200 meters from the sea, at the base of low
foothills that border the higher mo11ntains north of the plain. The foot-
hills consist of Miocene rocks, but nea.r the springs they are surfaced with
gravel and conglomeratic debris. The plain is alluvial. It stands virtually
at sea level and becomes a mangrove swa.mp only about 50 meters from
the outlet of the springs.
 WATER RESOURCES. •555

The original outlet of the springs has apparently been disturbed a

little by the building of a railroad embankn1.ent and highway crossing.
The present flows issue from two small basins at the lower side of the
embankment. Some water also seems to seep out over a marshy area that
is at least 100 meters in diameter. Bubbles of gas rise almost continuously
both at the larger openings and at many places in the adjacent marsh.
Pres11mably most of it is hydrogen sulphide (H 2 S). The total flow of
the two springs at the railroad embankment amo11nts, probably, to at
least 30 liters per second. The water had a temperature of 32. 7° C. on
December 6, 1920, with the atmospheric temperature at 29° C. The
mean annual temperature at Port-au-Prince is 27° C. and is probably
nearly the same at the springs. The water is clear, but very salty and
rather nauseating to the taste.
The water probably rises along a fault that borders the north side of
the Cul-de-Sac Plain, as faulting doubtless had some share in the forma-
tion of the greatly depressed region of the plain and faults were dis-
covered on the south side of it. (See p. 335.) If there is no fault at this
locality the water may possibly escape because the alluvial sediments at the
margin of the plain are coarser and more porous here than they are to the
south and east. The water probably rises because of artesian pressure,
such as accounts for other springs and for flowing wells in the lower part ,
of the Cul-de-Sac Plain.
The high temperature of the water is believed to be due to the consider-
able depth from which it comes, for, as is well known, the temperature
of the earth increases with depth. An average figure for the rate of this
increase of temperature with depth near the surface of the earth probably
is about 1 ° C. for each 35 meters of depth. A :figure very commonly used
by English and American writers is 1° F. :for each 50 to 60 feet in depth,
1
equivalent to 1° C. :for each 27 to 33 meters. Some recent and very
careful measurements by C. E. Van Orstrand, in West Virginia, indicate
that the rate is somewhat less, particularly in very deep wells. An average
increment of 1 ° C. for each 43 meters in depth was obtained from
measurements in 6 wells ranging in depth from 2,000 feet to 7,310 feet
1
( 61 Oto 2,228 meters) . The rate of increase varies considerably in differ-
ent parts of the world and even in nearby localities, so that at best only
an approximation is possible. The figure used here of 1° C. for each 35
meters o:f depth is believed to be conservative, and the water of the Sources
Puantes would therefore need to circulate only about 5 x 35 meters or
175 meters, beneath the surface to attain a temperature of 5° above the
mean atmospheric temperature. Allowance must be made for the loss
of heat along its path to the surface, but probably not enough to increase
the depth 11nreasonably. The depth given is no greater than that of some
1 See Chamberlain and Salisbury, Textbook of geology, vol. 1, p. 569, 1905.
2 See Darton, N. H., Geothermal data of the United States: U. S. Geol. Survey Bull.

701, pp. 90-95, 1920. ,

556 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

of the artesian wells on the plain. The temperature of the water in these
wells is slightly higher than atmospheric temperature.
The salinity of the water ap·pears from the analysis to be due to sea
water, as is shown by a comparison of analyses in the table below and in
the charts in Figure 33.

Analysis of water of Sources Puantes compared to sea water.

[Parts per million.]

Water of Sources Puantes. 4 Sea water.b

Total dissolved solids .......••.•.....•... 12,684 35,000

Silica ( Si02) .......................... . 36 • • • • • • ••
Iron (Fe) .............................. . .08 • •••••••
Oalcium (Ca) ......................... . 397 419
Magnesi11m (Mg) ...••....•.•...•.....•. 299 1,304
Sodi11m and potassium (Na+K) .•....•.. 3,930 0 11,094

Carbonate radicle ( COs) ••.•...•.•.•...• .0 72

Bicarbonate radicle (HCOs) ....•.....••. 610 ••• •• •••
Sulphate radicle (SO,) ................. . 872 2,693
Ohloride radicle (Cl) ...•...•..•....•...• 6,627 19,352
Nitrate radicle (NOa) ...•.•..••.•...•... Trace ••••••••
Hydrogen sulphide (H2 S) ............... . 136 • •••••••
Date of collection ...•••.......•...••..... Dec. 6, 1920 1873·1876

ao. S. Howard, analyst.

b From U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 258, p. 82, 1910, after Dittmar.
0 Sodium (Na) 10,707 and potassium (K) 887 parts.

The close r esemblance to sea water is striking. The total solids, magne-
sium, sodium and potassium, sulphate, and chloride the significant
factors all bear a ratio of about one-third to the concentration of sea
water. Most of the calci11m and the bicarbonate may be derived from
normal meteoric ground water. The presence of sea water seems 11nques-
tionable; though the question bow it comes to be present is not easily
answered. It might enter by direct seepage into the upper strata near
the outlet of the springs, by infiltration along a fissure or fault zone open-
ing beneath the sea, or as connate water that was imprisoned in marine
beds beneath the plain at the time of their deposition and that is now
being gradually replaced by fresh meteoric gro1md water, which is seeping
seaward under pressure. The first two assumptions are not regarded as
very probable. Observations made elsewhere show that salt water seldom
invades uniformly textured alluvial or sedimentary rocks that are exposed
at the surface along beaches, especially when the escaping ground water
has a considerable head forcing it seaward, as at the Sources Puantes. 1
This head of fresh water also probably would prevent the salt water from
entering fissures in the sea bottom and would tend to form submarine
fresh water springs instead. The assumption that this is connate sea
1Brown, John S., A study of coastal ground water: U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply
Paper. (Awaiting publication.)
 •

WATER RESOURCES. 557

water, coming either from the yo11ng marine beds beneath the alluvium
of the plain or from the buried Miocene beds, therefore seems reasonable,
and accords also with the theory that the hydrogen sulphide is derived
from sea water that ascends from considerable depths.
The hydrogen sulphide is probably produced from the sulphate that
was originally in the sea water by chemical reactions due to the agency of
organic matter in the rocks traversed by the rising water, particularly
near the surface. The ground around the spring, especially the mangrove
swamp nearby, is full of organic matter, which doubtless occurs also in
considerable amo11nt in lower beds, as the shore line probably has been
near the same place for a long time. Clarke 1 says ''The sulphates of a
water, by accession of organic matter, can be partly or entirely reduced
to sulphides, and carbonic acid, acting upon the latter, may expel sul-
phureted hydrogen and produce carbonates.'' This is apparently the type
of change that has occurred here. The necessary carbonic acid is abun-
dantly present in all the normal meteoric ground water of the Republic,
such as must constitute the two-thirds of the water not derived from the
sea. Additional support is lent to this theory by the fact that the sulphate
in the spring water is slightly less than one-third that in normal sea
water, but the chloride and sodium and potassi11m are slightly greater
than one-third, indicating perhaps the reduction of a small amount of
sulphate.
The Sources Puantes are regarded by many people as having thera-
peutic value. A basin for bathing has been sunk in the mud of the marshy
area, flush with the surface oft.he ground. It is about 2 meters in length
and somewhat less in depth and width and appears to be walled with either
brick or stone. It has no roof, and does not appear to be much used. There
are no houses near the springs.
N early all the warrn springs of the Republic contain slight traces of
hydrogen sulphide, particularly those at Los Pozos. (See p. 564.) Moreau
2
de St.-Mery describes what apparently is a notable sulphur spring at
the foot of the mo11ntains southwest of Port-de-Paix near the bo11ndary
between Bas Moustique and Haut Moustique. The hydrogen sulphide in
some of these springs may be derived from other sources tl1an those sug. .
gested for the Sources Puantes.

WARM SPRINGS.

The Republic contains no boiling springs, but a few springs are dis-
tinctly warm and exhibit 11nusual features. Nearly all these springs are
known by the generic name of Sources Chaudes, and local geographical
names are added to distinguish them from one another.
1 Clarl{. F. W., The data ot geochemistry: U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 695, p. 204, 4th
edition, 1920.
2 Op. cit., vol. 1, p. 715.
558 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

SOURCES CHAUDES OR EAUX BOYNES.

Tl1e Sources Chaudes on the southern side of t.h e Northwest Peninsula,

also known as Eaux Boynes, are the most celebrated warm springs in the
Republic. They are about 12 kilometers west of Terre-Neuve and 30
kilometers northwest of Gona!ves. The springs have long enjoyed the
reputation of having great curative properties, particularly for skin
diseases and rheumat.i sm, and they have been frequented a great deal
1
by invalids. Moreau de St. Mery gives a lengthy description of the
springs and of their utilization by the colonists. They were discovered and
their curative properties were first tested by a negro named Capois in
1725. Their fame spread until they came to be frequented by invalids of
many classes, and they are credited with some remarkable cures. In 1772
the owner of the springs, M. de Rameur, made a gift of them to the Crown
in order that they might be used more fully for the public good. Under
governmental direction a public bath-house with sixteen masonry baths
and a sanitarium, open to the public at reasonable rates, were erected.
A military hospital, with separate baths for soldiers, was also maintained.
A passenger boat made regular bi-monthly trips between Cap-Haitien and
the landing at Port-a-Piment. Beautiful avenues of trees were planted
and the place must .have had a prosperous appearance, strongly in con·
trast with its present dilapidated condi ti on.
Only the ruins of 8 of the masonry baths now remain. There is a
small agricultural settlement at tl1e springs, but no attempt is made to
exploit them either by public or private enterprise, although many invalids
still frequent the place on their own initiative. The water from the
springs still makes the place a green and pleasant oasis in the surrounding
semiarid region and permits the irrigation of garden spots in a small area.
The ownership of the springs is still vested in the Government.
The Sources Chaudes are about 8 kilometers from the coast, at the
interior edge of the Arbre Plain. Behind them, to the north and east, is
a narrow belt of low foothills, which borders the steep southern escarp-
ment of the easternmost range of the Montagnes du Nord-ouest. This
range rises more than 1,000 meters above sea level. The altitude of the
2
springs is less than 100 meters above sea level. The relative position of
the springs and the surrounding surface features are shown in Figure 34.
Of the six distinct springs now visible, five are ranged along a remarkably
straight line trending about N. 55° W. across a low divide between two
shallow ravines. The distance between the springs at the extremities of
the line is about 235 meters. The sixth spring is offset considerably to the
south of the easternmost spring. The line of springs plainly occupies a
position at the break in the slope from the foothills to the plain. Geologi-
cally it also appears to occupy a well-defined contact. Only alluvium and
1 Idem. vol. 2, pp. 62-75. •
i Given as 70 meters by Tippenhauer.
•
 •

WATER RESOURCES. 559

residual soil are visible near the springs, but the plain is underlain by
Miocene rocks, which are exposed not far to the south, and the surface
features suggest that the whole plain is formed on the soft marly beds of

s
•

•
•

I
Ec-ae:r ,1 ·E
Metre~
0 100 200

Q,urbes ~oxiiaative~
a, banteurs d..e '2.:coetres

Altitudes ~pproxixnativee, d'apres TI.ppenhaner •

FIGURE 34.-Sketch map of the Sources Chaudes or Eaux Boynes.

Miocene age. On the other hand, the foothills are generally composed of
limestone, which is exposed on the hill about 200 meters northeast of
the springs. The limestone is hard, yellowish-white, a.n d unfossilifero11s,
 •

560 GEOLOGY OF THE .REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

and generally resembles a facies of the upper Eocene limestone. The ex-
posure is poor, however, and the bedding is indeterminable.
Only six springs can now be fo11nd, although it is said there were once
seven. Some of the springs, particularly Des Dames and La Fortuna,
appear to have been developed by excavating at seeps, and the lost spring
is probably one of this type, which has become covered with debris and
ceased to flow.
Source Grassier is 50 or 60 meters south of the east end of the main
line of springs. It is on a distinct knoll that rises from a Iittle ridge on
the bank of a ravine about 3 meters in depth. Black soil full of plant
humus forms the mound, which is covered by a thick tangle of trees,
chiefly bayahonde. The water does not flow from the crest of the knoll
but mainly from an outlet on its western side, away from the ravine.
A little water also issues on the side nearest the ravine. The temperature
in the little pool at the main outlet is 49° C. The flow probably does not
exceed 10 liters a minute. No use is made of the water.
Source Valliere is in the bed of a shallow ravine and issues from a
small basin in soft soil. It yields perhaps 20 liters a minute, and the
water has a temperature of 45° C. It is not used much, if any.
Source la Fontaine rises from a bowl-shaped basin about half a meter
in diameter in soft black soil. It is probably the largest of the springs,
flowing perhaps 40 or 50 liters a minute. The temperature of the water in
the outlet is 49° C. Bubbles of gas rise very slowly, at intervals of several
seconds, with the water. There is little if any odor, however, and only a
trace of H2S could be fo11nd, so that it is apparently some other gas.
The water flows through a canal for 50 or 60 meters to the ruins of eight
masonry baths. It also feeds a fountain at the baths and a trough for
watering stock. Virtually a.II the water for domestic use and drinking in
the village is carried from this fo11ntain. The water is clear, and although
it has a slightly peculiar taste is neither unpleasant nor harrnful, even
when taken warm.
Source la Fortuna and Source des Dames a.r e covered and issue through
short aqueducts. They are used for laundry work and probably to a small
extent for irrigation. No temperature reading could be obtained near the
outlet of Des Dames, and that given for La Fortuna ( 43 ° C), was taken
at a seep from a break in one side of the cover and is perhaps too low.
The flow of each spring is probably less than that of La Fontaine.
Source la Boue evidently receives its name from a large pool of dirty
water, several meters in diameter, into which it flows. Like some of the
other springs, it issues from a very small basin in black earth. It yields
only 15 to 20 lit.ers a minute and has a temperature of 48° C. Bubbles
of gas rise at intervals, as from La Fonta.ine. The spring is not used.
Of the seven springs listed by Moreau de St. Mery, only two, Valliere
and Des Dames, bea.r the same names today, and indeed it is not certain
 WATER RESOURCES. 561

that these names still apply to the springs that were originally so
designated.
The remarkable alignment of all but one of the springs and their posi-
tion along a break in the surface features and a geologic contact suggest
very strongly that they issue from a fault zone. The alignment, moreover,
is parallel to the trend of the regional structural features, which extend
northwestward. No positive evidence of faulting was obtained, however.
The most reasonable assumptions regarding the source of the water and
the manner in which it becomes heated appear to be: (1) that it is
meteoric water heated (a) by da<;cending to great depth, or (b) by coming
in contact with buried masses of hot igneous rock; (2) that it is juvenile
or magmatic water escaping from cooling masses of igneous magma.
It is an open question whether or not it is possible to distinguish meteoric
1 1
from magmatic waters. Clarke, following Gautier, says:
Vadose waters, or waters of infiltration, are characterized by fluctuations in
composition, concentration, and rate of flow, depending upon local and variable
conditions such as abundant rain or drought. They also contain as a rule car-
bonates of lime or magnesia, chlorides, and sulphates. Virgin or juvenile waters,
on the contrary, are fairly constant in all essential particulars and carry sodium
bicarbonate, alkali silicates, heavy metals, etc., as chief constituents, with chlorides
or sulphates only as accessories, and practically no carbonates of the alkaline
earths. The vadose waters, moreover, issue from faults having no relation to the
metallic veins of the surrounding territory a lack of relation which is con-
spicuous as regards juvenile springs.
The terms vadose and juvenile, used here, are equivalent to meteoric
and magmatic, respectively, as used by the writer. The distinction then,
between meteoric and magmatic water must be sought in chemical analy-
sis, which may or may not be conclusive. The following is an analysis of
water from La Fontaine.• This analysis is shown in Figure 32, page 548.

Analysis of water from the Sources Chaudes, or Eaux Boynes, collected at

Source La Fontaine, A ug1tSt, 1921.
[Parts per million. C. S. Howard, analyst.]
Total dissolved solids ..................................... . 403
Silica (Si02) ............................................ · · 35
Iron (Fe) ................................................ . .3
Calcium (Ca) .................................... . ....... . 51
Magnesium (Mg) .................................... . ... . 21
Sodium and potassium (N a+ K) .......................... . 56
Carbonate radicle ( COa) ................................. . .0
Bicarbonate radicle (HCOa) . . . . . . . . . . . . .................. . 277
Sulphate radicle (SO,) ................................... . 68
Chloride radicle (Cl) ..................................... . 36
Nitrate radicle (NOs) ..................................... . Trace.
Hydrogen sulphide (H2S) ................................. . Trace.
iCla1·ke, F. W., The data of geochemi stry : U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 695, p. 208, 1920.
1 Gnu tier, Armande , Compt. Rend., vol. 150, p. 436, 1910.

a Bottle containing sample collected by the writer was broken in shipment and sample
analyzed was collected by P~re J. J. Joliveau of 'l'erre-Neuve, In August, 1921.
36
 562 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUllLIC OF HAITI.

Most of the analytical criteria listed by Clarke favor the conclusion that
this water is meteoric. It contains predominantly carbonate of lime and
magnesia in bicarbonate form, characteristic of the meteoric waters of
the Republic, although the quantities of alkali chloride and sulphate arP
also relatively large. Silica is low, very little above the average for normal
meteoric waters. Whether the springs exhibit sea.sonal :fluctuations in
volume or concentration is not known, although Moreau de St. Mery
asserts that the current opinion was that they did not. Fluctuations in
water that admittedly must circulate deep within the earth probably would •

be small and not synchronous with the observed seasonal influences.

The water may be heated partly by a buried mass of hot intrusive
igneous rock. Small bodies of igneous rock, probably not later than
Miocene, are intruded into the upper Eocene rocks of Terre-Neuve, not
far away. If the water is heated solely by its descent into the interior
it must circulate rather deeply. The warmest springs have a temperature
of 49° C., about 22° higher than the mean annual temperature, which
probably is nearly the same as that of Gona1ves, 27.1° C. As the ass11med
increment of heat is 1 ° C. for each 35 meters of depth this water must
1

come from a depth of at least 880 meters, and an allowance of greater

depth must be made to compensate for its cooling on the way to the surface.
It is doubtful whether masses of hot intrusive rocks lie near the surface
of the earth, but it is not improbable that the increment of temperature
with depth at this locality may exceed the normal and thus the required
depth of circulation may be considerably lessened. On the other hand if
hot igneous masses really lie near enough to the surface to heat the water
it might quite as reasonably be supposed to be of magmatic orjgin. The
presence of escaping gas, probably 002, would seem to favor the view
that the water may be of this origin.
1
•
SOURCES CHAUDES DE LOS POZOS.

The Sources Chaudes de Los Pozos are on the estate of Charles Zamor,
in the Section Los Pozos, about 6 kilometers southeast of Cerca-la-Source.
The springs are not much used for any purpose, although they are com-
monly supposed to have therapeutic value, especially in the treatment of
skin diseases. At two of the five springs there are crude shelters for
bathers, but there is no settlement at the springs.
The springs are at the southern border of the valley of Riviere l'Ocean,
and at the foot of a rounded escarpment in upper Oligocene limestone.
Farther northwest, near Cerca-la-Source, this escarpment becomes high
and precipitous. The valley is underlain by argillite of Cretaceous ( ?)
age. Of the five springs in the group, four are arranged along a straight
line trending about N. 70° W., at the northeast side of the trail from •

•
1Seep. 555.
2The desc1·iptlons and sketch map arE:; based entirely upon information supplied by
W. P. Woodring.
 WATER RESOURCES. 563

Cerca-la-Source to Los Pozos. One is southwest of the trail. The relative

position of the springs and the chief surface features of the loca.l ity are
shown in Figure 35.

•
N

schisteu.se

Echelle •

0 25 50 100
Metres
Courbes a,pprox::U:nativ"es
8.,bauteurs delOmetres

FIGURE 35. Sketch map of the Sources Chaudes de Los Pozos.

1. Water seeps out along the trail and is conducted about 5 meters down the slope to a
wooden tub, hollowed out from a log. There is a crude shelter over the tub. The tem-
perature of the water was 36° C.
2. This is a small seep and ls not cleaned out. T emperature ss• C.
3. This ls the la rgest spring of the group; all the springs have a very small flow. It
has also the highest temperature (42° C). The water issues trom an opening between two
large limestone boulders that have f allen from the slope above. There is a strong odor of
hydrogen sulphide (H2S), and sulphur is precipitated on the surface of the water. Bright
green algae also grow in abunda nce. A crude shelter has been built for bathers.
4. A small spring, not cleaned out. Temperature 31.5° C.
5. This spring has been developed by digging a trench In the slope of the ridge. The
opening is walled with rough limestone blocks. Temperature 40° C.

There is probably a fault at the base of the limestone escarpment that

borders the long valley of Riviere !'Ocean, and certainly there seems to
be good reason to assume a fault at the springs, which are aligned parallel
 564 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

to the geologic contact and to the strike of the surrounding rocks. Pre-
sumably the water issues along the fault zone.
There seems to be less reason here than at Ea11x Boynes to invoke the
aid of heated igneous rock to account for the temperature of the water.
The warmest spring has a temperature of 42° C., and the mean annual
temperature of the air is probably about 25° C., a difference of 17° C.
If the average rate of increase of temperature is 1° C. :for each 35 meters
the water should rise from a depth of about 600 meters, to which a little
•

may be added to allow for some cooling on the way. This may not be
an unreasonable depth for water to penetrate along fault lines, especially
in regions that stand several hundred meters above sea level. The follow-
ing is an analysis of the water from spring 3, Figure 35 ..

No. 3, Figure 35.

[Parts per million. C. S. Howard! analyst.]

Total dissolved solids. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,214

Silica (Si02) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Iron (Fe) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
Calcium (Ca) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Magnesium (Mg) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Sodium and potassium (Na+ K) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
Carbonate radicle ( COs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
Bicarbonate radicle (HCOa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260
Sulphate radicle (804) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Chloride radicle (Cl) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 464
Nitrate radicle ( N Os) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Trace.
Hydrogen sulphide (H2S) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Odor.
Date of collection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mar. 14, 1921

A graphic representation of this analysis is given in Figures 32 and 33,

pages 548-549.
The outstanding feature of the water is the higher proportion of alkali
chloride compared to normal spring waters and the lower proportion of
calcium bicarbonate. There is little reason to attribute the salinity of this
spring to sea water, or even to connate water, and the relatively high
chloride is probably more explainable by supposing that the water circu-
lated through rocks containing an unusually large amount of chloride,
perhaps some of the beds in the argillites, or by supposing that it is of
magmatic origin. The hydrogen sulphide may easily be produced by
chemical reactions similar to those suggested on page 557.

WARM SPRINGS OF THE SOUTHERN PENINStrLA.

There are a number of warm springs in the interior of the Montagnes

de la Hotte, in the western part of the Sout11ern Peninsula. According
 -

WATER RESOURCES. 565

to statements made by Moreau de St. Mery and other writers there

1 •

are warm springs at four places, three on the Bras-a-Gauche, the eastern
fork of the Grande Riviere de Jeremie, and one along the Bras-a-Droit,
the western fork of the same stream. Two of these places are near the
headwaters of the Bras-a-Gauche, one on a tributary ravine about 600
meters west of that stream, and one in the bed of the Bras-a-Gauche about
600 meters downstream from this ravine. These springs are variously
known as the Source.s Chaudes or Ea11x Thermals de La Cahouane or de
Tiburon. According to Moreau de St. Mery their temperatures were
34 ° C. and 37 .5 ° C. About two leagues downstream from these springs
are the Sources Chaudes de Dame-1'1:arie or de Jeremie, described below.
Considerably farther west on the headwaters of the Bras-a-Droit, near
the bed of its deep, narrow valley, are the Sources Chaudes des Irois, or
de l'Anse d'Hainault. All the springs are supposed to have medicinal
virtues and are considerably frequented by persons who live near by. The
region is so rough and inaccessible, however, that it is very thinly in-
habited and is seldom visited by strangers.
SOURCES CHAUDES DE DAME-MARIE OR DE JEREMIE.
The springs called Sources Chaudes de Dame-Marie or de Jeremie are
on the Bras-a-Gauche (east fork) of the Grande Riviere de Jeremie,
about 15 kilometers by trail above its junction with the Bras-a-Droit.
The trail follows the river at places but not all the way. It is very rough
and rocky and difficult for horseback travel. At the springs there are
about half a dozen little thatch shelters occupied by the transient visitors,
but there are no permanent habitations.
The valley of the Bras-a-Gauche is deep and narrow, and is incised
directly across the mountain ranges. In the vicinity of the springs the
valley is narrow and V-shaped, but not so deep as it is farther north, the
mountains being probably not more than 500 or 600 meters higher than
the river. The aneroid barometer read 190 meters above sea level in the
valley, near the springs, but the atmospheric conditions were very un-
stable and the instrument had not been set for two days, so that this
reading is probably not very accurate.
There are two springs about 50 meters apart on the southwest bank of
the stream, which flows northwestward. The most southerly spring is
about 4 meters above the river bed and the other only about 1.5 meters
above it. The slopes above and behind the springs are very steep. The
outlet of the lower spring is best exposed. It issues from a small fracture
in basalt, an inch or two in width. The other also doubtless issues from
a fracture but its outlet is obscured by debris. The water bubbles up from
each spring with considerable force, but no gas bubbles were seen, and
there is only a faint suggestion of an odor. The temperature of the water
is probably 35° or 40° C., but no thermometer was available. One can
1 Op. cit., vol. 2, pp. 7n9-760.
566 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.
'
hold the hand in either spring indefinitely without discomfort. There are
no bathing facilities except a sort of earthen-walled and rock-floored
basin that has been scooped out at the lower spring. A quaggy area of
mud below the other spring is a favorite place for mud baths. The taste
of the water is not unpleasant.
Aside from other considerations the temperature of this water is not
high enough to necessitate the assumptjon that it is either of magmatic
origin or that it has been heated by buried intrusives. All its heat might
easily result from circulation along deep fractures, joints, or fault zones.
The analysis shows, however, that the water is decidedly different from
that of the other warm springs and in fact from that of all the other
waters of the Republic for which analyses are available.

Analysis of water from the Sources Chaudes de Dame-Marie or de Jeremie.

[Parts per million. 0. S. Howard, analyst.]
Total dissolved solids. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 515
Silica (Si 02) • . • . . • • • . • . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . • • . • . . . . . . • . • . . . . 68
Iron (Fe) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .07
Calcium (Ca) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Magnesium (Mg) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4
SodiuID. and potassium (:N"a-f-1{:) .................... ~ ....... 135 •

Carbonate radicle ( COa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0

Bicarbonate radicle (HC03) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Sulphate radicle (SQ,) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Chloride radicle (CI) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 121
:N"itrate radicle (NQ3) . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42
Date of collection. . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nov. 16, 1920
•

This analysis is represented graphically in Figure 32, p~ge 548. In

view of its probable circulation at considerable depth the water is not
highly mineralized. The alkali sulphate and chloride are relatively very
high, particularly the sulphate. Calcium and magnesium bicarbonates
are very low compared to those fo11nd in the normal waters of the Re-
public. Silica is unusually high. The last two features might be inter-
preted as favoring a magmatic origin for the water. The differences be-
tween this water and other mineral waters of the Republic may arise
chiefly from its circulation entirely through volcanic rocks, but the oc-
currence of many warm springs in this area, which is an area of volcanic
rocks, might strongly suggest that this water is of magmatic origin.

PUBLIC WATER SUPPLIES.

PORT-AU-PRINCE.
PURPOSE OF INVESTIGATION.

The water supply of Port-au-Prince has been for many years unsatis-
factory and inadequate for the needs of its growing population. Owing
to long-continued dry weather the shortage of water in 1919 and 1920

•
 WATER RESOURCES. 567

was distressing. The writer therefore spent about two weeks in October,
1920, in a study of the geology of the vicinity of Port-au-Prince with
special reference to its bearing on the present and possible future sources
of water supply. The results of this study were submitted to the Engi-
neer in Chief in the same month in the form of a preliminary report.
The substance of this preliminary report is given here, with such modifi-
cations as have been suggested by later developments and with the omis-
sion of certain material that is given elsewhere in this report.

SOURCES AND DIST:RIBUTING SYSTEM.

The water for Port-au-Prince is conveyed to it from springs in the

foothills of Morne Hopital, south of the city. The location of these and
other springs and their relation to the principal geologic features are
shown in Figure 36.
The springs used are Plaisance and Cerisier, Turgeau, Le Clerc, Chaud-
eau, and Diquini. Sources Chaudeau and Diquini have been added to the
supply in recent years, Diquini having been connected only in 1921. The
others were appropriated by the colonists soon after Port-au-Prince was
established and have served continuously since.
In utilizing a spring an excavation has been made at its visible outlet
to remove all soil and loose material so far as possible and a masonry
housing has been placed over the excavation. Open stone aqueducts were
used by the colonists to carry the water to the city, but these aqueducts
have probably all been replaced or repaired, and the newer lines to Chau-
deau and Le Clerc are constructed in great part of large cast iron pipe.
All the masonry conduits now in use are covered, although holes have been
broken in the covers at many places and some of them are poorly repaired.
None of the aqueducts is strong enough or tight enough to carry water
under pressure, and large manholes ( regords) are therefore introduced
in the line at intervals of about 100 or 200 meters. The manhole is a large
square chamber about 2 meters deep with an iron cover. It receives water
from the section above and discharges it by overflow into the section below,
thereby dissipating any pressure accumulated in the closed aqueduct
above. As a matter of fact, however, the aqueducts seldom run full except
at points where inverted siphons are used to carry the water across deep
•
ravines.
In the higher, more fashionable residence sections of the city the water
is distributed through private pipe lines of very small diameter, which
are tapped into the manholes. Ten or twenty such lines may be inserted in
one manhole and some of them are as much as a h11ndred meters long.
The pressure depends of course upon the height of the manhole above the
consumer's tap.
In the downtown business section the water is distributed through
cast iron mains of different sizes, most of them 4 to 6 inches in diameter.
 N ...... Ot
• • •
I m
• LEGENDE 00
• • •
/// ,,I l .Alluvion recente • • •
• • •
' ( ( I
I I . ·1 ...
. . . .0 .

Cong101oera;t, plei~ocetle .. Cl. 0~ .~. ..

_Jfr (( • • • •

:P.:\~t(-: .:.
• • •Y:JC.I

11iocene recale par

S , P 0 R (Tj 1
.... .._ r- -.. l\ 1 , ,,. •
con91omera.t pl.e1s'U)Ce,.._ne (<<<ua
\.:--,' '___- ~ -~!!:::=·_, I
- ...._ 1'.r
~
Cou.cbe~ miocene~ , .
a££leureep ~
•
Q
trj
0
t:-4
-- ........._
0
0
• •
Calca:ire eoceDe ~ >, '
~
0
~

~
t;q
t.:i:j

~d
' td
t:-4
H
c I

0
~

~
>
H •
~
H
•

ECHELLE
Kilometre!>
0 1 ~ 3 ~ 5
I

I-ianteur.5 en met?·e?
FIGURE 36. Sketch map showing the water supply of Port-au- Prince and its relation to the geology.
 WATER RESOURCES. 569

These mains, like the aqueducts, are in poor repair and are 11nable to
bear much pressure, so that no attempt is made to keep the system
tightly closed. Most of the people obtain water from public fountains,
some of which run continuously if there is any water in the pipes, and
excess water is allowed to waste.
Calcareous deposits in the water mains are a source of much annoyance
and expense. The small private pipe lines become stopped up in a few
years, and even many of the large city mains have been almost entirely
closed by such deposits.
The water service is not metered in any part of the city. Owing to
the defects in the water supply, fire protection in the city is very inade·
quate. There is no sewer system whatever.
Although the present water supply system is very imperfect and inade-
quate, owing to its inherent and inherited defects, the present Hydraulic
Service is doing much to improve it with the scant facilities and funds
available.
YIFJ,D OP SPRINGS.

No accurate data are available to show the quantity of water yielded

by the springs that supply Port-au-Prince. Two estimates, based ap-
parently on single measurements, are as follows:

Yield of springs supplying Port-au-Prince.

Source. Liters per second.

Plaisance and Cerisier . ............................................ . 4 30 "66

Turgeau •.......................................................... a17 1>37
Le Olerc ........................................ . ............... . . . • "25 "25
Ohaudeau ....................................................... . . . 0 30 "44
. . . ego ego
D lQUlDl •...••.......•.•..........•..•.... . .......•....• . ... ... ....

To'ta.l ................................... · .......... · · · ... · . · · · · 182 252

,
•From report of Thomas Price, engineer, to M. John Laroche, Secy. d'Etat, Dept. des Travaux
Publics, July 29, 1914.
bFrom Report of R. A. Conard, civil engineer, U. S. N., to Engineer in Chief, May 6, 1918.
0 Oral communication by Lieutenant Diehl, Dept. des Travaux Publics, 1920.

If the springs supply an average of 200 liters a second the daily total
is from 17 to 20 million liters. For an estimated population of 125,000
this is about 150 liters per capita a day, a very fair quantity compared
to many large cities in all countries except t.h e United States, where the
average is considerably higher. A great deal of the water is pract.i cally
wasted through leaky pipes, r11nning fountains, careless use by patrons
favorably situated at high altitudes, and especially because there is no
storage space to conserve the surplus night flow.
Another serious fault is that the flow of the springs :fluctuates greatly
from season to season as all the springs depend on rainfall for their
570 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

maintenance. The actual amount of such seasonal :fluctuations is not cer-

tainly known, but it can be judged from the records at Source Despuzea11x
(p. 517'), which indicate that the maxim11m flow is nearly three times as
great as the minimum. A series of dry years, such as is not uncommon,
causes great water shortage. This defect is unfort11nately inherent in
nearly any spring-£ed system in regions where the rainfall is unevenly
distributed, and its consequences are aggravated by habits of wastefulness
acquired during times of super-ab11ndance of water, which persist during
periods of shortage. ·

GEOLOGIC FEATURES AND THEffi RET,ATION TO WATER-SUPPLY.

As there was no suitable base map and as little time was available it
was impossible to map the geology near Port-au-Prince in detail. Most
of the work had to be done on foot, for the co11ntry is very rugged and
most of the uncultivated mo11ntain slopes are covered with thick brush.
There are four distinct series of sedimentary rocks in the region. Their
general distribution is shown in Figure 36. The Miocene beds are prob-
ably exposed at many more localities than are shown on the map.
Limestone of late Eocene age (see p. 130) forms the mass of Morne
Hopital and is the oldest rock in the region. It is hard and white. Some
parts of it are massive; other parts distinctly show bedding planes. It
is strongly folded, so that the beds dip steeply, generally northward, on
the north side of Morne Hopital. Some faults are known and joints are
very common. Many of the joints and bedding planes have been enlarged
by solution and form channels for the circulation of ground water. The
presence of sink holes on the broader part of the crest of Morne Hopi tal
indicates that solution bas been very active and has formed large under-
ground cavities. Because of its porosity the limestone absorbs water freely
and most of the drainage is subterranean, surface streams flowing only
during heavy rains. The water absorbed by this limestone gives rise to all
the springs near Port-au-Prince. The other rocks are important chiefly
for their influence in determining the location of springs, most of which
are in ravines among the foothills at the base of Morne Hopital.
In the rolling hills east of Port-au-Prince outcrops of soft Miocene
beds (see pp. 219-221) are found in road cuts and along ravines. These
beds 11nderlie this region continuously but are concealed at most places by
younger rocks. The Miocene series here comprise beds of coarse conglom-
erate, silty sandstone, limestone, and clayey marl. These beds, like the
beds of Eocene limestone, are sharply folded, the axes of the folds trend-
ing east-west or northwest-southeast. The beds of marl and silty sandstone
are relatively impervious, especially the marl. Consequently, where the
Miocene beds abut against the base of Morne Hopital they form a barrier
or dam to the ground water that is stored in the upper Eocene limestone
and that is seeking an outlet at the base of the mo11ntains. Sources
 WATER RESOURCES. 571

Plaisance, Cerisier, and Turgeau are apparently due to the escape of

water that overflows this impervious barrier.
South and west of Port-au-Prince, at the base of Morne Hopital, there
is a belt of foothills of gentler slope than the main mo11ntain mass. These
foothills are composed of rot1ghly stratified beds of coarse conglomerate
consisting chiefly of limestone pebbles, and are probably of Pleistocene
age. East of Port-au-Prince this conglomerate still covers the foothills
but is nearly everywhere underlain by Miocene beds, although at some
places it extends above them on the mo11ntain side. The conglomerate is
not folded, but it is considerably dissected. It is a porous rock and prob-
ably here and there absorbs a good deal of water from the upper Eocene
limestone.
In the lower part of Port-au-Prince and at other places near the shore
there is a belt of Recent alluvium, consisting of horizontal beds of gravel,
sand, and clay. These sediments are not consolidated and are but little
dissected. They 11nderlie the narrow coastal plains. The alluvium is less
pervious than the Pleistocene conglomerate, and ground water seeping
seaward into the conglomerate at some places is forced to rise above the
contact of the alluvium in springs, as in the group of springs including
Source Bon Ami and Source d'Argent.
Some springs, like Le Clerc, Chaudeau, and Diquini, do not appear to
be related to geologic contacts but occur at places where deep ravines in
the foothills tap underground streams in the upper Eocene limestone.

NOTES ON INDIVIDUAL SPRINGS.

Source Diquini issues in a deep, narrow ravine in upper Eocene lime-

ston.e at a locality where the gradient increases rapidly upstream. Water
originally rose through a few meters of alluvium in the bed of the ravine.
This alluvium has been cleared away to solid rock, from which the water
appears to come, and a concrete housing several meters long and wide has
been constructed over the outlet. The spring appears to be effectively
utilized.
Source Ghaudeau., like Diq11ini, is in a deep ravine and probably issues
from solution channels in the upper Eocene limestone, which crops out on
both sides of the ravine. One small isolated vent west of the main source
issues from bedding planes of the limestone. Most of the water, however,
is contained in alluvial gravels, a few meters in depth, in the bed of the
ravine. In developing the spring a concrete floor was laid over all this
gravel bed for about 100 meters. This floor was intended to protect the
water from pollution by floods or by careless local use. The water is col-
lected in a deep pit that penetrates the gravels at the lower end of this
concrete cover. The pit is covered by a concrete housing. The flow is
probably developed about as advantageously as possible, unless perhaps
the pit fails to reach bedrock and some water is lost by seepage. A little

•
572 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

water could be appropriated from the small outlet at the side, but it would
not increase the yield a great deal.
Source Barron was not visited. The Hydraulic Service is said to have
considered connecting it with Source Le Clerc, but decided that its small
yield would not justify the expense .
.Source Le Clerc is at the head of an especially narrow and steep-sided
ravine. Lin1estone is exposed in a small bluff high above the spring, but
the bottom and sides of the ravine are deeply covered by alluvial or
residual soil, from which the water seeps out. The spring has been de-
veloped by a shallow excavation in this alluvium and has the usual con-
·Crete housing. Considerable water may be lost at this spring by seepage
through the alluvium, and a good increase in flow probably could be
obtained by sinking the excavation deeper, to bedrock if possible. This
work however, would necessitate either lowering the aqueduct or building
a water-tight subsurface dam, set on bedrock across the ravine.
Source Turgeau is in a remarkable natural amphitheater, about 100
meters in diameter, walled on three sides by steep slopes of upper Eocene
limestone. On the other side it opens into a shallow ravine. The spring
appears to be on the contact betwen the limestone and the Miocene beds,
but the Miocene beds are obscured by a thin cover of Pleistocene con-
glomerate. Outcrops of Miocene rock are found both east and west of the
springs. The water probably comes through solution channels in the lime-
stone and rises over the dam formed by impervious Miocene beds. The
outlet is obscured by soil and debris, however, and the water seeps out
over a large area in the bottom of the basin-like depression. The spring
has been developed by digging a series of ramifying trenches, 1 or 2 meters
deep, in the soil. Water rises with some force in these trenches and col-
lects to form a large stream. As the water appears to rise 11nder some
pressure through the confining soil the writer suggested that a larger and
freer flow might be obtained by sinking some wells to considerable depth,
to bedrock if possible, in the area where the trenches were constructed.
This was tried but was found to be very difficult because of the water
itself and because of the large boulders encountered. A substitute plan
was then tried. It consisted of digging a long trench across the ravine
below the springs, and placing a subsurface dam there to impo11nd any
seepage that might have escaped through the conglomerate and soil. The
results of this experiment are not yet known.
Source Plaisance is in the bed of the Ravine Bois de Chene, which is
dry except during or immediately after rains. It is a considerable dis-
tance from the mo11ntain front, although outcrops of upper Eocene lime-
stone were seen not far away in the bed of the ravine. The water, however,
appears to be mainly seepage water in alluvial gravels or in Pleistocene
conglomerate in the stream bed. This seepage water is forced to rise t o
the surface by a dam of impervious Miocene beds that crop out in the
ravine. At a point just below the spring these beds strike N. 75° W. an d
 WATER RESOURCES. 573

dip 43° SW. They form a very effectual barrier to underground seepage.
The excavation made in utilizing Source Plaisance is very shallow and
extends only partly across the ravine bed. It would be better if it could
be made a little deeper and wider, but the natural dam appears to force
all the water to the surface and probably none is lost except the small
quantity that is visible for some distance below the spring and that is
left for the use of people who live nearby.
Source Oerisier is in a tributary ravine only a short distance from
Source Plaisance and owes its origin to the same geologic feature. Its
flow, however, is very small, and it becomes virtually dry in the dry season.
There is little hope of developing more water from it.
Source Carron supplies the town of Petionville. No especial attention
was paid to it. At the point where it is utilized it consists of underflow
in an enormous boulder fill in the bed of a ravine. The width of the
boulder :fill is 50 meters or more, and its depth is probably 10 or 15 meters.
The boulders at the surface are from 15 centimeters to half a meter in
diameter. The spring has been utilized by digging a deep pit in the
boulder fill and housing it with concrete.
Source Millet, which appears to have other names, is a large spring 2
or 3 kilometers south of Petionville, in the second large ravine east of
that town. It is the largest unappropriated source of water available to
supplement the Port-au-Prince supply. The spring is very near the trail
to Furey, which traverses the ridge just west of it. It is used only to a
small extent by inhabitanra near by.
The spring is in a large bouldery stream channel much like that de-
scribed at Source Carron. Most of the water is contained in the boulder
filling; only small flows a few liters a minute break out here and there
at the surface at places where the boulders have been scooped out either
naturally during :floods or intentionally by people seeking water. The
water is held up near the surface by beds of dense upper Eocene limestone,
which are tilted vertically across the ravine. The most favorable place to
develop the water is near the present area of largest flow, where the ravine
is reasonably narrow and has walls of solid rock. If possible, all the loose
material should be excavated in order to collect all the flow in the lowest
part of the bedrock floor beneath the boulders. It is not easy to estimate
the quantity of water available, but apparently there is a large flow be-
neath the surface. It would be difficult to construct an aqueduct, espe-
cially for the first kilometer, where the ravine is bouldery and steep-
sided. The altitude of the spring, however, would permit diversion of the
water into the Plaisance-Cerisier aqueduct at any desired locality.
Source Bon Ami, Source d'Argent, and near-by springs. There is a
group of small springs near Bizoton, the best known of which are Sources
Bon Ami and d' Argent. They are at the rear of the narrow alluvial plain
and are apparently supplied by ground water in the Pleistocene conglom-
erate, which is forced to rise over the impervious alluvium to reach the
 •

574 GEOLOGY OF TH E REP UBLIC OF HAITI.

sea. They are at altitudes probably between 25 and 40 meters above sea
level, and their water could not be carried by gravity to any but t he lower
parts of Port-au-Prince. They might perhaps be used to good advantage
in this way, for the water from all could be brought together easily and the
terrane is favorable for the construction of a conduit. A large part of the
water, however, is now l1sed in irrigating land near the springs.
Other springs. The inhabitants of the region know all the large springs
but persons unacquainted with the country have difficulty in discovering
some of them. Some small springs were doubtless not fo11nd by the
writer, but probably none that are conveniently situated.

WELL WATER.

Beca.usc of the high cost of machinery and fuel it is not considered

feasible to pump water for Port-au-Prince from wells, but flowing artesian
water, if obtainable at altitudes that would permit its distribution by
gravity, would be advantageous. There are few wells in the region and
none of any considerable depth, so that any opinions as to the occurrence
of ground water must be based mainly on the lithology and structure of .
the rocks.
The water table at most places in the upper Eocene limestone of Morne
Hopital must be far beneath the surface and wells sunk there would have
to be very deep. There is no impervious cover to confine the ground water
under pressure and flowing water is not to be expected.
The coarser and more porous beds of Miocene age probably contain water
that may be at some places under artesian pressure due to confining beds of
marl or silty sandstone, but the Miocene beds are complexly folded and
somewhat faulted, so that any such favorable localities could be predeter-
mined only from a very thorough knowledge of their structure, which
can not be observed at the surface because the beds are at most places
covered by younger rocks. Any attempt to reach artesian water in these
beds would be entirely 11nwarranted. The only well drilled in the Miocene
beds (No. 10, p. 525) penetrated no water-bearing beds and was dry.
The location of this well, however, is manifestly unfavorable.
The Pleistocene conglomerate is very porous and should contain water
at or a little above sea level in localities where it extends downward to
that depth. At many places the formation is only a thin cap overlying
Eocene or Miocene rocks and at such places it is probably dry. There is
little ii any possibility of obtaining flowing water from this conglomerate.
The alluvium should yield some water either from shallow or deep wells,
but deep wells s1tnk near the sea would probably be salty, and shallow wells
would almost certainly be badly contaminated by sewage in this t hickly
inhabited region, so that their water would not be fit for domestic use.
There are flowing wells on the Cul-de-Sac Plain, but, as stated on
pages 526-527, it appears that flows are not likely to be obtained nearer to

•
 I

WATER RESOURCES. 575

Port-au-Prince than the latitude of Croix-des-Missions and that the

head of all such :flowing wells in the plain will be insufficient to supply
water by gravity to any but the lower parts of Port-au-Prince.

QUALITY OF W.ATER .A.ND TREATMENT FOR HARDNESS.

The water used in Port-au-Prince has an agreeable taste and is gen-

erally considered good for domestic use. It is not polluted at the springs
that furnish the supply, but it is or may be polluted at 11nprotected breaks
in conduits and at poorly covered manholes or through carelessness of
workmen making repairs. Chemical analyses of water from Plaisance and
Turgeau springs were made by the United States Geological Survey
in 1919. (See p. 543.) Presumably these analyses represent fairly well
the mineral content of the entire supply, as all the springs are fed mainly
by water that has traversed the upper Eocene limestone. The chief feature
of the water is hardness in the form of calcil1m bicarbonate, which makes
up more than three-fourths of all the dissolved solids.
Calcium carbonate itself is only slightly soluble in water, but when
water containing it takes up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere or the
soil the combination is likely to form calcium bicarbonate [Ca(HC0 8 ) 2 ] ,
which is highly soluble. This reaction produces the considerable quantity
of calci11m bicarbonate found in most of the waters of the Republic.
Calcium bicarbonate is an unstable compo11nd, which readily breaks up
on a change of conditions, such as an increase of temperature, which
causes the water to lose its carbon dioxide and thereby its power to hold
in solution the carbonate, which is precipitated. The water of Port-au-
Prince probably loses its carbon dioxide partly because the temperature
of the air, especially during the day, is greater than that of the fresh spring
water and partly because it is so greatly aerated in passing through pipes
that are only partly full and in tumbling through numerous manholes,
in which it is violently agitated. The rest1lt is that calcium carbonate is
precipitated in aqueducts and water pipes so abundantly and rapidly as
to obstruct small pipes seriously in a few years.
Hardness in waters can be treated in several ways. Most of the bicar-
bonate can be removed by heating, which drives off the excess carbon
dioxide and causes the precipitation of calcium carbonate. Filtration to
remove the precipitate is necessary if the water is to be used within a
few hours. This method of treatment is too expensive for a city supply.
Bicarbonate and carbonate hardness can be entirely removed by what is
generally known as the zeolite process. By this process the water is forced
through a mass of specially prepared sodi11m-aluminum silicate and its
calcium and magnesi11m are exchanged :for sodi11rn. This process also is
not well adapted to the treatment of large city supplies.
The commonest method of softening water is that which is known
generally as the lime-soda process. The added lime reacts with the bicar. .
 •

576 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

•

bonate, converting it all to carbonate and causing most of it to be precipi-

tated. The soda converts other calci11m salts, such as sulphate, t o car-
bonate and promotes their precipitation. This precipitate, however, re-
quires many hours, sometimes even days, to settle, and :filtration of some
kind is usually resorted to instead of complete settling. The process may
be either intermittent or continuous. The continuous plants are much
more compact but are more difficult to operate successfully. Several
such plants in the United States treat successfully from one to five million
liters of water a day for industrial use.
No cheap process of softening the water of Port-au-Prince appears to be
available. At least two sep·a rate plants would be required, one for the com-
bined water of Turgeau and Plaisance springs, the other for the wat er of
Diquini, Chaudeau, and Le Clerc. Large reservoirs would be needed for
treating the water and removing the bulk of the precipitate, and :filtration
through sand would be necessary to remove traces of precipitate that
otherwise would be carried over and deposited in the mains as now. The
filter beds would require frequent renewal. Such a plant might cost
$50,000 to $100,000, and its operation would cost several thousand dollars
a year.
As has already been stated (p. 575), the present distributing system is
much to blame for the formation of the precipitate; if it could be repaired
so that the water would be kept under pressure in air-tight mains not
nearly so much precipitate would be formed.
Although the softening of the entire supply of Port-au-Prince does not
seem practicable, the softening not only of the water of that city but of
most other waters of the Republic on a small scale for use in steam boilers,
laundries, and other industrial plants would probably be economical.
Many firms make a special business of installing effective plants for such
treatment of water. For small steam boilers the use of suitable boiler com-
pounds or the simple addition of a little sodium carbonate to the feed
water would be helpful. This treatment does not prevent precipitation
in boilers, but the precipitated material can usually be blown out before
it forms scale.
SURFACE WATER.
1
Tippenhauer has suggested that an adequate surface supply for Port-
au-Prince could be obtained by constructing a tunnel to direct the Gr ande
Riviere de Leogane into Riviere Froide at the locality where the two
streams are separated by a narrow ridge near Croix Imbert. P robably
this scheme is feasible, but it would be very expensive and would involve
an entire reconstruction of the present distributing system. Surface water
supplies have many advantages, however, and a survey of the project with
an estimate of cost might be justified. Measurements - of the flow of the
1Tippenhauer, L. Gentil, Beitrage zur Geologie Haitis: Petermanns Mitt., Band 47,
p. 177. 1901.
 WATER RESOURCES • 577
•

Froide and the Grande Riviere de Leogane, particularly of their minimum

flow, should be made over a n11mber of years. River water undoubtedly
would be much softer than the present spring supply and would deposit
less scale.in pipes. The Grande Riviere de Leogane should furnish water
of as good or better quality than that of the Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac
(p. 543), as most of its drainage basin is on basalt. Surface water would
require sanitary purification either by :filtration or chlorination. Filtra-
tion would be preferable and would have the advantage of removing some
of the hardness.

CONCLUSIONS .AS TO PORT-AU-PRINCE SUPPLY.

Two courses are open for the improvement of the water supply of
Port-au-Prince. One is to discard the present system and to substitute
surface water from Riviere Froide or Grande Riviere de Leogane. Such
a supply would have several advantages, chief among which are (1) an
abundant supply of water capable of expansion to meet the city's growing
needs, such as providing for :fire p rotection, sewerage, and irrigation of
1

municipal parks; (2) softer water, which would deposit not nearly so
much scale in pipes. Unfortunately, the cost of installation would be great
and the city probably cannot afford it for a long time.
The other course, therefore, and the one that is much more likely to
be followed, is to continue with the present system, improving it piecemeal
as funds and other · circumstances permit. Such new springs as can be
appropriated should be added to the system and efforts to increase the
flow of those now used should be made if they hold any promise of success.
A spring-fed supply will always be subject to seasonal sh~rtages. It should
be remembered, however, that a shortage of water may be more apparent
than real. If all leaks in the system were stopped, if waste were dis-
1
couraged by metering the water to private consumers, and if storage for
the surplus night flow could be provided the city should have ab11ndant
water compared to what it has had. A spring-fed gravity system has
certain advantages. The intake works are inexpensive and the conduits
are easy to maintain. The present system also has the advantage of being
already in operation. For these r easons it is likely to remain for some time .
•

CAP-HAITIEN.
PURPOSE OF INVESTIGATION.

The water supply of Cap-Ha1tien, like that of Port-au-Prince, is inade-

quate, especially in dry seasons. Late in February, 1921, several days
were spent in a study of the geology in the vicinity of the city with refer-
ence to its water supply, and in April, 1921, a preliminary report was
1The initiation of some equitable plan for making the cha rges proportional to the
quantity of water used is recommended in the Rapport de l'Ing~nieur en Chef, 1920-
1921, Port-au-Prince.
37
 578 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

submitted to the Engineer in Chief setting forth possible ways in which

the supply might be supplemented. The present report does not differ
materially from the preliminary report. Some statements have been
modified by late information and others have been altered to conform with
1
the plan of the full report. In April, 1919, Conard submitted to the
Engineer in Chief a brief report on the water supply of Cap-Ha1tien,
from which some statements have been taken in regard to the distribution
system and the quantity of water used.

PRINCIPAL FEATURES OF PRESENT SUPPLY.

Cap-Ha1tien stands on a very narrow alluvial plain that lies between

tl1e sea and a high, irregularly shaped mountain called the Morne du Cai) .
. The public water supply is obtained from many small springs on the lower
slopes of this mountajn. The location of the springs, aqueducts, and
reservoirs with reference to the city is shown in Figure 37. Almost all the
springs now in use except Source Belair were developed carefully and
utilized by the French colonists. The openings of the springs were cleaned
out, generally to bedrock, and covered with massive housings of stone
masonry. The water was conducted in large covered conduits to two
masonry reservoirs that stand a considerable distance apa1·t at the foot of
the mountain west of the city. This part of the system is unchanged
except for minor repairs. From the reservoirs water is distributed by a
system of iron water mains installed in the later days of the Republic.
A. considerable number of private taps serve those who are well to do, but
most of the patrons depend on public fountains.
The two reservoirs, known respectively as the Reservoir J ustinien and
the Reservoir Belair, are sunk flush with the surface of the ground and
covered with masonry jn six long parallel arches supported by columns.
Their capacity as measured by the Hydraulic Service is a little more than
800,000 liters each.
The reservoirs are said to be capable of storing the full 24-hour flow of
their respective feeders in normal times, but this statement appears to be
a little dubious, for the flow of the springs supplying J ustinien must be
much greater, probably several times as large, as that of the springs sup-
plying Belair. The statement would indicate a normal daily consumptio11
of about 1,600,000 liters, which, for a population of 20,000, would be
. about 80 liters per capita a day, or only a little more than half the per
capita consumption at Port-au-Prince, which is inadequately supplied.
For other reasons the disparity is evidently not so great as the figures
would indicate. The aqueduct and pipe lines at the cape appear to be in
much better condition, so that the leakage is smaller than at Port-au..
Prince, and the reservoirs aid greatly in conserving surplus water that
1Conard, R. A., Report fr·om Dept. Eng. of North and Northwest to Engineer in Chief
on Water Supply of Cap HaYtien, April 2, 1919. Manuscript on file in office of Engineer
in Chief, Port-au-Prince.
 ~
I

0
I
:>
)
I
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•
Source-.. .
Ti'P en:ne.-
kl
~
~
~
~
s
0 ~
~ ~
00
0
111 ; , ~
LEGENDE ~
00
•

Ce.lcajre eocene I I I I I I I I I

Calcejre argileux.
avec cou.cbes de silex c. '>>>> 'l
u > > > ,,

\ Rocbes volcaniques •<<<< 4

_,,
\
I
• I
EcHP~r.1.E Non - a.etei..,1nme
Metre~
-
0 200 &t-00 600 800 1000 " Aqueducs et (1 <:j
Hauteurs enmetxe~ " \. tuyaux principa..ux
en
-..?
FroURE 37.-Sketch map showing the water supply of Cap-Ha1tien and its relation to the geology. t.o
580 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

otherwise would be wasted. Besides, the practice of tapping off the water
to private consumers at open manholes is probably not followed. The
aqueducts are shorter so that maintenance is easier, and they are so large
that there is no danger of their running full lmder pressure. Most of the
iron mains are capable of bearing the pressure from the reservoirs, whose
altitude above the town is not great.
The demands on the public supply are greatly lessened, moreover, by
the use of shallow dug wells, on which nearly half the population depend.
1
Conard estimated there were 1,000 such wells in 1919. This fact is
deplorable, for there are no sewers in the town and ordinary earth privies
are used everywhere, so that the shallow water must be extremely unsani-
tary for drinking, for which it is undoubtedly used by many of the people.
The greatest defect in the water supply at Cap-Ha1tien, as at Port-au-
2
Prince, is the wide fluctuation in the flow of springs. Conard estimated
the mi_nimum yield of the springs at less than 400,000 liters a day, or
about one-fourth of t.he normal yield in wet seasons. In the winter of
1919-1920 many of the smaller springs were absolutely dry and the flow
of the others was greatly diminished. To offset the deficiency a pump was
placed in a shallow well near the water front in the heart of the city (],ig.
37), and for several months about 265,000 liters of water is said to have
been t11us pumped daily into the downtown mains.
The quality of Cap-Haitien water is indicated by an analysis of a sample
from the Reservoir Justinien, given on page 543. The water is compara-
tively low in total solids, of which calcium and magnesium bicarbonates,
or common hardness, is the principal feature. It is chemically satisfactory,
except that the minerals it contains tend to form incrustations in pipes
or boiler tubes here, as at Port-au-Prince. (For a discussion of possible
treatment for hardness see pp. 575-576.)

GEOLOGIC FEATURES AND THEIR RELATION TO WATER SUPPLY.

ROCK FORMATIONS.

Groups distinguished. For the purposes of this description four groups

of rocks are distinguished in the vicinity of Cap-Ha1tien, all of which are
shown in Figure 37. The formations exposed in the Morne du Cap are
volcanic rocks, probably of Cretaceous age; an impure clayey limestone
that includes many beds of pure chert, also probably of Cretaceous age;
and a pure white limestone, of upper Eocene age. In addition, Recent
alluvium underlies the narrow plain on which the city stands and extends
southward onto the North Plain, where it covers a large area (Pl. I).
Igneous rocks. The igneous rocks may b-e divided into at least two
series. One series co11sists of a dark basaltic rock, which is probably the
oldest rock in the region. The other series comprises porphyritic rocks
1 Idem. 2 Idem.
 WATER RESOURCES. 581

of varying texture, which appear to be at least in part intrusive into the

other volcanic rocks and into the impure Cretaceous limestone. In their
bearing on water supply, however, they may be treated as a 11nit, and no
attempt is made to distinguish them in Figure 37. Both rocks usually
are brown or reddish on exposed surfaces. Unweathered specimens of the
porphyry are dense and black except for clear crystals of quartz or light
colored crystals of feldspar. Near the surface the igneous rocks have dis-
integrated, leaving a deep mantle of soil on the hillsides. Beneath this
mantle they are jointed, so that they break out in irregular blocks. Vol-
canic rocks are widely exposed aro11nd the base of the Morne du Cap,
west of Cap-Ha1tien, beneath the younger limestones. The southern half
of the quarry worked for road metal at the gateway south of the city is in
igneous rock. Good exposures were seen also in the ravine below Sources
Tipenne.
I mrure limestone and chert probably of Cretaceous age. The impure
limestone, which is probably of Cretaceous age, overlies the igneous rocks
in small patches west of the city and crops out extensively north of it at
the base of the low spur of the Morne du Cap that is generally known as
the Morne de la Vigie. It consists of beds of brown or yellowish impure
clayey limestone, beds of black or bluish hard, splintery chert, and a
few beds of dark sandstone and conglomerate containing fragments of
igneous rock, probably the older volcanic rock. The cherty beds are the
most distinctive feature of the formation. They are well exposed along
the trail, on the beach north of Carenage, and on the hill just west of the
Gendarmerie barracks. The beds of impure limestone are well exposed at
Source Georges and near Sources Tipenne and Source Cinq Carrea11x.
•
Cherty beds are exposed also at the north end of the road-metal quarry
south of the city near the city gate, where they are faulted into contact
with porphyry. These rocks are minutely jointed and break up into very
small angular blocks. On weathering they yield a rather clayey soil full
of fragments of chert.
Upper Eocene limestone. The upper Eocene limestone is a massive
pure white limestone, gray and iron-stained on some weathered surfaces.
It covers the higher part of the Morne du Cap and crops out in small
patches on the lower slopes and foothills. The limestone is very soluble
and loose blocks of it are honeycombed by pits due to solution. It contains
l1nderground caverns and solution channels which reduce it at places to a
confused mass of huge, loose blocks. The upper Eocene limestone overlies
the older, impure limestone and the volcanic rocks, and at the contact be-
tween them there is a basal conglomerate composed of pebbles of the
older rocks. This conglomerate was seen around Source d'Aubry. Col-
lections of fossil Foraminifera made at several places show that this lime-
stone is of upper Eocene age.
Recent alluvium. Most of the narrow plain on which Cap-Ha1tien is
built consists of Recent alluvium washed do\vn from the adjacent moun-
 582 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

tains. It varies in texture from coarse gravel or boulders down to fine

sand or sandy clay. Its maximum thickness along the water front is
probably not more than 200 feet and may be even less. It is very thin or
even absent on the western part of the plain, where t.he bedrock, con-
sisting of impure limestone and chert, crops out. Such outcrops may be
seen north and west of the Place d' Armes along the city streets and in
the Ravine de la Belle Hotesse.
This alluvial plain at Cap-Ha1tien is a narrow projection of the large
alluvial area of the North Plain (Pl. I), which in the region south and
east of the Morne du Cap attains a width of 10 or 12 kilometers. The
alluvi1un on the North Plain is finer textured than that in the city of
Cap-Ha1tien. Good brick clay is found at the Laroche brick factory, 2 or
. 3 kilometers south of the city. Probably the alluvi11m is thicker on the
larger plain. Presumably all the alluvium rests upon bedrock like that
which forms the Marne du Cap, probably chiefly igneous rock. Evidence
of this fact is found in outcrops of igneous rock in low hills on the North
Plain, such as Fort Vilton, Morne Beckly, and Morne Pelle.
I

CIRCULATION OF GROUND WATER.

Rain falling on the upper Eocene limestone sinks down quickly along
open cavities and solution channels. At the base of this limestone its
downward flow is checked and it moves laterally along the contact of the
limestone with the underlying rock, which is less pervious. At some places
it emerges along the contact as springs, such as Cinq Carreaux and
d' Aubry. Where they are not too much weathered the impure limestone
and the chert rock are rather pervious, containing fractures th1·ough which
water sinks do'\vn to the underlying igneous rocks or at places near the ·
shore to a water table controlled by sea level. The igneous rocks are the
least pervious of all, but they absorb some water, though slowly, along
cracks and joint planes. The residual soil and the weathered material
above the igneous rocks absorb considerable water, which moves laterally
along the surface of the unweathered rock beneath and issues as springs at
places where outcrops of the bedrock or surface irregularities bring it
to the surface. Source Belair and many smaller springs in the rock-floored
parts of ravines originate in this way.
The alluvium 11nder the city and in the North Plain doubtless contains
a permanent body of ground water. Near the shore the water table stands
approximately at sea level, but it rises gradually inland as the altitude
increases. This water moves slowly seaward above the 11nderlying bedrock.

NOTES ON PRESENT SOURCES OF SUPPLY.

The Reservoir Justinien is fed by springs, which rise in several ravines

that converge in the northwest part of the city. The largest feedern are
Sources Cinq Carreaux, d' Aubry, and Jean.
 WATER RESOURCES. 583

Source Cinq Catrreaux is at the head of a steep ravine filled with great
blocks of Eocene limestone, which rests upon the impure limestone and
chert. The sp1~ing issues at the contact. It is protected by a massive
masonry housing. Inside the spring house a trench floored with masonr}~
extends across the ravine, and back of the trench is a stone wall. Behind
the wall is an infiltration space filled with rubble, which probably rest~
on bedrock. Several openings in the stone wall admit water into the col-
lecting trench. This is the typical French colonial method of developing
springs and is very effective. Further excavation would not increase the
flow of water, which at the time the spring was examined (Feb. 19, 1921)
may have been 400 liters a minute .•~few weeks before that time it was
. much less. This is the largest spring utilized in the water system.
Source d'Aubry is only a short distance from Cinq Carreaux, in a
small ravine, where the geological conditions are almost the same. The
spring emerges at the contact of upper Eocene limestone with the impure
limestone and chert formation, and igneous rocks crop out near by. Water
issues from a cavern, about 30 centimeters in diameter, in the limestone.
The method of development is similar to that at Cinq Carreaux and can
not be much improved. The flow of the spring was not more than about
one-third that of Cinq Carrea11x, and in dry weather it shrinks greatly.
Source Jean is in the bed of a deep ravine. A subsurface flow in gravel
and alluvium appears to be brought to the surface by an outcrop of hard
volcanic rock in the bed of the ravine. The bedrock surface appears to
have been cleaned off carefully and the spring effectively utilized. The
yield was perhaps one-third to one-half as great as that of Cinq Caxrea11x.
Sources Tipenne and Source Georges. There are four springs, known
as the Sources Tipenne, in the ravine back of the Reservoir Justinien and
a fifth, called the Source Georges, in a tributary ravine. Each of these
springs is at a place whe1·e a seepage of ground water in gravel of the
ravine bed rises to the surface over ledges of bedrock. All have been
developed by cleaning off the bedrock and digging a collecting trer1ch
across the ravine and placing behind it a masonry wall with a rubble fill
at the rear. The springs are covered by heavy masonry housings and feed
into a covered masonry aqueduct about a meter in h eight. Apparently all
the available flow is obtained. The combined yield was not more than
100 or 200 liters a minute, and at times the springs are nearly dry.
Sources Du Buisson and nearby S'J>1-ings. The name Du Buisson ap-
pears to apply to two springs north of the city. The largest is that in the
ravine of the same name. It issues irom soil and gravel that overlie
volcanic rock. Some water appears to be lost by seepage here because the
trenching is not deep enough, but the deepening of the excavation and the
necessary lowering of the aqueduct would not be warranted, ior the ob-
served yield of the spring was only 40 or 50 liters a minute and the
amo11nt lost probably is even less.
 584 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

The other spring consists merel)· of an excavation in soil on the hill-

side and yields little water, except in wet seasons. Several of the springs
of this type are connected with the aqueduct, but they are not shown in
Figure 37. They are practically nothing more than shallow wells or
trenches in the smooth soil-covered hillside, and they were all dry when
. examined in February, 1921.
Sowce Bois de Chene is a small spring, probably resembling Source
du Buisson. It was not examined.
Source Belair is the principal feeder for the Belair reservoir. It is
at the foot of a steep and slightly concave slope between two ravines in
an area of volcanic rocks. The bedrock is covered by a deep mass of soil
and talus, and the water appears to come from slow seepage in this rubble
over the less pervious surface of the 11nweathered rock below. The spring
has been developed by cutting away the hillside and digging a trench about
2 meters deep and 30 meters long parallel to the face of the hill. The
trench walls are supported by masonry, and water passes through the wall
on the lower side into a covered springhouse and is carried by iron pipe,
10 inches in diameter, to the reservoir. As the trench does not extend down
to solid bedrock considerable water is no doubt lost by seepage, which
might be saved by deepening the trench to solid rock. This would necessi-
tate lowering the intake. If the depth to rock should be too great to permit
convenient lowering of the conduit the water level might be raised to t he
intake by building a concrete retaining wall on the bedrock along the front
of the trench with wings extending up the side of the hill at either end,
if necessary. As the Belair spring is the principal feeder for the Belair
reservoir and the main dependence of a considerable part of the town,
this improvement probably would be justified.
Source Mansuy consists of a seep rising over igneous bedrock in a steep-
sided ravine. When examined in February, 1921, it was virtually dry.
There seems to be no chance to increase its yield.
Additional springs available. The French colonists seem not to have
overlooked any available springs on the slopes of the Morne du Cap that
are adjacent to the city. The surfa.ce features and the geology do not sug-
gest any localities favorable for the easy development of an additional
supply of water that would flow to the city by gravity. There are, however,
a few springs west of Belair in an adjacent drainage basin that could be
connected to the Belair pipe line. The names of these springs were not
obtained, and they are indicated by numbers on Figure 37. All these
springs except No. 3 may be reached by a trail leading nearly westward
from a locality between Fort Belair and Belair spring.
Spring No. 1 is on a rolling soil-covered slope a little more than 100
meters south of Belair spring. It was yielding probably 100 liters a
minute when examined, not. including the flow of two small seeps a little
higher up the slope. Perhaps a little more could be obtained by t renching.
Unfortunately, this spring lies about 10 or 15 meters lower than the
•
 WATER RESOURCES. 585

divide south of Belair spring and could not be connected to the Belair
pipe line. It might be carried in a separate pipe line around to the south
of the hill on which the old fort stands, but it is doubtful whether the
quantity of water obtainable would warrant the expense.
Spring No. 2, the name of which was reported to be Limbere, is about
500 meters west of Source Belair and, according to the aneroid barometer,
at least 10 meters higher. If this altitude is correct, the spring could be
connected to the Belair pipe line, but a careful survey would be necessary
to confirm the altitude. The spring issues on a steep hillside from a small
body of upper Eocene limestone that appears to overlie some of the im-
pure limestone and chert. The observed flow was probably from 40 to 80
liters a minute and might be increased a little by opening up the outlet.
Spring No. 3 is really a series of springs or seeps in the bed of a deep
ravine, which give rise to a small brook that flows for a considerable dis-
tance through the principal valley south of Source Belair. The most
favorable locality for its utilization is near the head of seepage a little
above the crossing of a prominent trail that leads westward up this valley,
where the altitude is about 140 meters above sea level. The water should
be developed by putting down a water-tight dam across the ravine to
bedrock, which crops out at many places. It would probably be advisable
also to put in a fill of loose stones above the dam to the head of seepage.
The yield of the spring would probably b~ from 100 to 200 liters a
minute.
Spring No. 4 is on the slope directly above Spring No. 2, about 100
meters higher. The spring issues from a deep soil fill on a fiat bench,
but the water probably comes originally from the contact of upper Eocene •

limestone and volcanic rock in the ravine above only a few meters distant.
A survey by the Hydraulic Service is said to have shown that it would re-
quire 800 meters of pipe line to connect this spring directly with Belair.
This measurement appears to be considerably greater than t.he direct dis-
tance between the springs, but the difference may be due to difficulties in
the terrane. The better plan, if springs 2 and 3 were being developed,
would be to r11n a pipe line directly down the hill to No. 2. The yield
obtainable probably would be 100 liters a minute or more. In developing
this spring the soil should be deeply trenched, to bedrock if possible.

WELL wATE:R.
WELLS IN THE CITY.

The well that served as a source of an emergency supply in 1921 is in the

heart of the city, near the water front. (See Fig. 27.) It formerly supplied
water for a soap factory, which has been abandoned. It appears to have
been made by driving a 4-inch pipe down into the alluvial sand and gravel
and washing out or boring out the dirt inside. It is 5 meters deep and the
water in it stood about 1.4 meters below the surface of the ground, which
•

586 GEOLOGY OF THE REt>UBLtC OF irAtTt.

is here only about 1.5 meters above sea level. About 263,000 }.i ters of
water daily, measured in a large steel tank, is said to have been p11mped
from this well for 3 or 4 months by a small steam pump. The drawdown
was considerable, and the pumping is said to have caused a nearby dug
well to go completely dry. No saltiness from the sea was noted, however,
although the well is only about 45 meters from the shore. Sanitary exami-
nation is said to have shown the presence of colon bacilli in this water,
and its use is dangerous in view of the very unsanitary condition of the
ground in the city.
Wells designed to supplement the present supply of water should be
dug or drilled as near the city as possible, to avoid the expense of pump-
ing a long distance. Geologically the most favorable location would be on
the alluvial plain near the heart of the city, for most of the ground water
from the mo11ntains passes 11nder this plain on its way seaward. Wells
anywhere in the thickly inhabited area are out of the question, however,
· for the water would be too much contaminated. A great deal of sewage ancl
fecal matter is thrown on the gro11nd all over the city and even beyond
its limits, and in addition many earthen privies are in use. There is no
impervious cover to prevent filtration downward, an:d percolating water
undoubtedly carries polluting material into the ground water beneath
the city. Even deep wells carefully cased probably would yield contami-
nated water if they were pumped heavily.
Two localities for wells near the city might be considered. One is along
the valley of the Ravine de la Belle Hotesse, in the northern part of the
city. To avoid pollution, wells would have to be placed almost on the
mountain sides. There is one fairly clean spot north of the ravine between
the Civil Prison and the Gendarmerie barracks below the Source Bois
de Chene. This spot js far to one side of the valley and is not favorably
situated to yield a large volume of water. Any well in this area will strike
bedrock (impure limestone and chert) within a few meters of the surface,
and probably would have to be drilled. The individual yield of drilled
wells is not likely to be very large and will decrease rather than increase
with increase in depth beyond 100 or 200 meters, because the water-
bearing fractures become smaller with increase of depth. Wells in
this locality would therefore have the several disadvantages of hard rock
drilling, deep well pumping, inadequate supply, and possibly also 11nsani-
tary water.
The other possible location is in the small alluvial valley southwest of
the city, in the locality generally known as La Fossette, near the military
encampment. In the vicinity of the military enca.m pment and t o the
west the ground is fairly clean, although the city, immediately to the
east, is not. There is a considerable alluvial fill here. The depth to the
permanent water level probably is not more than 8 to 15 meters. It is
said that water was found at a depth of 5 meters in the northeast corner
•
 ••
'
WATER RESOURCES. 587

of the military encampment. Wells sunk into the alluvium probably would
yield more water than deep wells drawing from the underlying bedrock.
They probably would not need to be more than 30 meters deep, at least
no deeper than the bedrock. Two or three wells about 6 inches in dia.meter,
spaced at intervals of 20 to 40 meters and placed anywhere in or near
the southern border of the military encampment, should be sufficient.
The water could be pumped readily into Belair reservoir. The drainage
basin tributary to the valley is very small and probably would not yield
enough water to constitute more than an adj11nct to the present supply.
As such it is worthy of consideration if no other improvemenh3 are
attempted.
POSSIBLE YIELD OF WELLS NEAR THE CITY.

Rough measurements on three different maps, none of which are very

accurate, indicate that the area drained by the several ravines crossing
the little alluvial plain of Cap-Ha1tien is about 5 square kilometers.
About half of this area lies above and tributary to the springs that now
supply the city.
The mean annual rainfall at Cap-Ha1tien for 12 years has been about
1,584 millimeters (see p. 50). On the areas of upper Eocene limestone
a large quantity of water is absorbed in caverns in the rocks, but the
limestone areas are very small, constituting only the higher s11mmits and
a few outlying patches. The other rock formations are less porous, and
the clayey soils by which they generally are covered favor a greater run-
off, perhaps as much as 50 per cent. Everywhere considerable water is
lost by evaporation or dissipated by plant growth.
The proportion of the rainfall that becomes ground water therefore
probably does not exceed one-fourth to one-half. Not nearly all of this
could be obtained, even by an elaborate system of wells. Possibly as much
as one-fifth of the total rainfall might be developed effectively. This
would be 317 millimeters per annum. Allowing the full area of 5 square
kilometers it would amount to 1,585,000 cubic meters of water, or a
supply of 4,340,000 liters daily. This includes polluted water from the
surface of the city. The small valley at La Fossette has a drainage area
of not much more than one square kilometer and, according to the above
calculations, might yield about 900,000 liters daily.
The present yield of the springs must be deducted from any estimate of
the quantity of water available for wells, for it represents developed
ground water. The total flow appropriated probably averages about
1,200,000 liters daily. Only a small fraction of this amount is to be
deducted from the estimate of water available in La Fossette.

WELLS ON THE NORTH PLAIN.

An 11nlimited supply of well wat~r could be obtained on the North

Plain at a distance of 4 or 5 kilometers from the city. This region
588 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

receives the drainage from a large area of mo11ntain and plain to the
south and there is undoubtedly a great body of fresh gro11nd water beneath
it. Flowing water under very low pressure might perhaps be obtained
(see pp. 538-539), but the flows are not likely to be large and pumping
would certainly be necessary to bring the water to the city.
That part of the North Plain nearest the city is not a suitable place
for wells because, with the exception of a narrow sand bar between the
river and the sea, it is a salt marsh and is flooded at high tide. Deep
wells for a large pumping plant would have to be drilled south of the
marshes, at a safe d.istance from salt water. Any place 100 or 200 meters
from the salt marshes would be satisfactory, for the salt water covers
this area only a part of the time and the quantity of fresh ground water
seeping seaward is great enough to prevent an ingress of salt water unless
the wells were pumped very rapidly, much more rapidly than will ever
be necessary to supply abundant water for Cap-Ha1tien. Probably the
best location for wells is south of the salt marshes and east of Rivi ere
Haut du Cap. If it is highly l1ndesirable to cross the river, however, a
fairly good location could be found farther west, between the road and
tl1e river, in the vicinity of the Laroche estate. Unfort11nately, both of
these locations are 3 or 4 kilometers from tl1e city gate, but they appear
to be the best ava.ilable.
It should be easy to drill wells on the plain, for the alluvium is soft.
The maximum depth to which it would be necessary to drill is probably
150 meters, and bedrock may be reached at less depth. To obtain large
yields the wells should be at least 6 inches in diameter, and the casings
should be perforated at all good water-bearing horizons. Yields from
500 to 2,000 liters a minute might reasonably be expected, according to
the pumping equipment and the amount of drawdown. It is possible that
one large well with a deep-well pump would supply all the water needed,
but there might be danger, with the great drawdown that would result, of
drawing in salt water from the neighboring marshes. It would be better
to have a number of wells spaced several meters apart and pumped from a
single suction main. At present, probably one or two suc·h wells would fur-
nish all the water needed to supplement the flow of the springs in periods
of deficiency. Such a plant could be expanded indefinitely and could even
be made the sole source of supply.
Well water from the North Plain should be satisfactory; at least it
is not polluted. The plain is thinly settled, especially in the locality sug-
gested for the p11mping station, and there are in the alluvium beds suffi-
ciently impervious to prevent any local pollution from extending to the
deeper beds.
The only known well that may show the possible value of deep wells on
the plain is at the rai]road station at Cap-Ha1tien (Fig. 37). This well ·
is on the narrow bar that separates the tidal river mouth from the sea,
and is at an altitude of less than a meter above sea level. It is only about.
 WATER RESOURCES. 589

60 meters from the bay and 5 meters from the river. The well is 3 inches
in diameter and 26 meters deep. It was made by driving a pipe into the
ground with a drop-hammer and removing the dirt inside later. Accord-
ing to Mr. Holland, who made the well in 1911, water was struck at 10
meters and rose to the surface. For a time the well flowed slightly. The
material penetrated was loam, sand, and gravel, successively. This well •

is the sole supply of the railroad station. Its water is satisfactorily used
in locomotive boilers. It is pumped at a maximum rate of about 10,000
liters in 12 hours and the average daily consumption is about 40,000 liters.
An analysis of this water is given on page 544 and is illustrated graphi-
cally in Figure 32 (p. 548). The total solids are rather high, and the large
proportion of alkali chloride as well as the preponderance of magnesium
over calcium strongly suggests that it is contaminated by sea water, which
is not surprising. Evidently the water contains also a large quantity of
sodium carbonate, which must have resulted from the interaction of sea-
water with bicarbonate-bearing ground water. Water from places farther
inland would contain less total solids and a good deal more calcium bicar-
bonate, but should be good for a city supply. The record of this well is
encouraging in that it indicates the presence of a large supply of ground
water with a little artesian head in the area around the mouth of Riviere
Haut du Cap. A large pumping plant at this locality is out of the question,
because the water obtained would certainly become badly contaminated
by sea water.
SURFACE WATER.

No surface water with gravity head can be obtained nearer to Cap-

1
Ha1tien than the mountains south of the North Plain. Conard recom ..
mended bringing water from the headwaters of Riviere Haut du Cap,
21 kilometers south of the city. The water probably would require filtra-
tion for sanitary purification. It would constitute an ideal supply, but the
installation would be very expensive. A pumping plant would be prefer-
able as a measure of temporary relief, but surface water is worthy of care-
ful consideration for a future enlarged supply.

CONCLUSIONS AS TO CAP-HAITIEN SUPPLY.

As indicated above, there are four possible ways in which the water
supply of Cap-Ha1tien can be improved:
First, certain springs could be added to the present supply, and the
flow of Belair might be increased a little, thus adding to the present sup-
ply by 20 to 25 per cent. This would not remedy the principal defect of
the system, however, which is the great seasonal variation in flow. Never-
theless it is a desirable improvement if nothing better can be attempted,
for sp1·ing water under gravity head is always cheap water.
1 Op. cit.
•
590 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Second, the spring flow could be assisted in periods of deficiency by

a small pl1mping plant near the city, preferably one near La Fossette,
which is also desirable if nothing else can be done, and could easily be
installed to augment the supply obtained from springs.
Third, a large pumping plant in the North Plain could be made to
supplement the spring flow or to replace it entirely. The water would prob-
ably be of excellent quality, and the only reason for hesitating to adopt
this plan is the expense of installation and maintenance.
Fourth, a surface water supply could be brought from some river, prob-
ably the Haut du Cap, in the mountains sputh of the North Plain. This
also is an excellent plan, the chief obj ection being the expense of in-
stallation.
Whatever plan may be adopted, it will be desirable to use all or at
least some of the springs to supply the higher outlying parts of the city.

NOTES ON WATER SUPPLY OF SOME OTHER TOWNS AND VILLAGES .

•

Port-de-Paix. All the drinking water used in Port-de-Paix is carried

on burros from Les Trois Rivieres, which is at a considerable distance
from the city. Some water of poor quality, used for certain domestic
purposes, is obtained from shallow wells in the alluvium that underlies
the city. In the hills south of Port-de-Paix there is an old colonial reser-
voir in which water from small mountain streams was impounded and
thence led to the city in a masonry conduit. The Gendarmerie post uses
a small reservoir located south of the Champs de ~fars to store water from a
small stream. It is brought to the \)arracks in an old colonial conduit,
but because of pollution is not used for drinking.
The possibility of utilizing any part of the old colonial gravity system
was not investigated. It is not likely that valuable artesian flows can be
obtained near the city, and the best source for a city supply would proo-
ably be Les Trois R.i vieres. The water would require purification.
Mole St.-Nicolas. Most of the water used for domestic supply at 1Iole
St.-Nicolas is carried on burros from Riviere du Mole, which disappears
in stream gravels about 3 kilometers from the sea south of the town.
Frequently the water is collected carelessly at the lowest point of flow,
where it is badly polluted by the washing of clothes and by refuse. Water
from shallow wells in the small alluvial plain at the city is used to some
extent, but it is said to be often brackish, and it is doubtless l1nsanitary.
The town should have an aqueduct to bring water from the locality called
La Gorge, on Riviere du Mole. Purification would be desirable, but even
without it the water would be greatly preferable to that now in use.
Baie de Henne. The only water available for domestic us~ at Baie de
Henne comes from a brackish spring that issues from the limestone sea
cliff at the southeastern edge of the village. The cliff consists of Qua-

•
 \VATER RESOURCES. 591

ternary coralliferous limestone and is about 5 meters high. The spring

emerges through a solution channel about 0.5 meter in diameter, and tl1e
flow probably is as much as 2,000 liters a minute. The outlet of the
spring is completely covered at high tide but is exposed at low tide, the
tidal range being probably about a meter or more. Water is obtained at
low tide, when the outlet is exposed. It has a distinctly brackish taste,
but is used without any ill effect by persons and by animals accustomed
to its use. It is saici that persons not accustomed to the water occasionally
suffer slight illness from its use.
An analysis of a very small sample of this water showed that its chloride
content is 1,048 parts per million. This high salinity is due to the ad-
mixture of a small quantity of sea water with the fresh water near the
outlet of the spring. A t11nnel driven horizontally into the cliff for 10
or 15 meters along the channel of the stream, to get water a little farther
from the shore might obtain fresher water.
A small amount of water for irrigation and for domestic use could be
obtained from shallow dug wells in the alluvium of the little plain jn
the rear of Baie de Henne. Pumping probably would not pay, however,
. unless windmills could be used for power.
A nse Rouge. There are no streams or springs near Anse Rouge, and
the region is too dry even to permit the storage of rainwater. The village
depends entirely on water carried by boat from Gona1ves or La Pierre.
A deep drilling here would be wa1·ranted, for there is some chance of
obt.aining flowing water, or at least water that would rise within easy
pumping distance of the surface. The statements made regarding the~
Arbre Plain (see p. 535) apply to this place. Fifty or more meters of
coralliferous limestone would be penetrated first. Artesian water, if
obtained, probably would come from t.he underlying Miocene sandy marls.
A thorough test might involve drilling to a depth of 300 meters. The
water might possibly be made salty by original sea water included in the
Miocene beds.
Gonaives. The water for Gona1ves comes from a large spring in La
Pierre ravine, about a kilometer north of the village of the same name,
which is on the coast about 10 kilometers west of Gonaives. The spring is
at an altitude of about 110 meters above sea level, at a place where massive
brecciated limestone full of solution cavities overlies dense, sheeted cba.l ky
limestone. The water emerges at the contact of these rocks in the ravine.
The spring has built up below its outlet an enormous deposit of travertine,
which constitutes a sort of bench or platform about 100 meters long. The
travertine contains abundant imprints of leaves and pieces of preserved
wood. The outer edge of the platform is a sheer cliff, about 25 meters
high, that drops off to the bed of the ravine, which continues below. A
considerable flow of water issues also at the base of this cliff and flows to
the sea at La Pierre.
592 •
GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI •

The spring above the platform has been developed by digging out the
dirt in the ravine and placing around the pit a masonry wall bearing a
sheet-iron roof. The water is carried to Gona1ves in a large cast-iron pipe
laid on top of the ground. The flow is probably as much as 1,000 liters a
minute.
The yield of the spring appears to be inadequate to supply the needs of
Gona1ves, although the insufficiency seems to be due in part to clogging
of the pipes by calcareous deposits. An analysis of the water (seep. 543)
shows that its chief characteristic is bicarbonate hardness. A temporary
deficiency in the supply might be remedied by pumping from the spring
below the cliff into the mains above.
St.-Marc. Water is brought to St.-}Iarc from springs in the hills east
of the city, but neither the source nor the distributing system was
examined. Flowing artesian water might perhaps be obtained in or near
the city, which stands on a synclinal fold of Miocene rocks. Test wells
would have to be 200 or 300 meters deep, and the water obtained might be
made salty by connate sea water in the Miocene beds.
Leogane. As stated on p. 529, artesian flows of low head might be ob-
tained at some places near Leogane and on the lower part of the Leogane
Plain. F lowing wells would furnish purer water and probably a larger
supply than that now available, which is obtained in part from canals
from Riviere Momance and in part from springs in the northern part of
the town. No study of the water supply was attempted.
Pestel. The only drinking water at Pestel is that caught in rain
barrels from roofs. In dry seasons the water shortage is often great. On
the beach just north of the town there is a brackish spring, which supplies
water for some domestic uses but is too salty for drinking. The town is at
the end of a deep valley in which there are several sink holes in limestone,
which probably represent the course of an 11nderground stream, perhaps
the same one that emerges as a brackish spring on the beach. A well
drilled in this valley some distance from the sea probably would yield
•

good wa.ter. The best locality for obtaining water easily would be in one
of the two or three sink holes in the southern part of town, for the depth to
water there is least and the chances of tapping the underground channel
and getting an abundant supply are best. A well in such a location should
be guarded very carefully, however, to keep it clean. A well drilled be-
tween the sink holes in the heart of town, about opposite the Gendarmerie
barracks, should be equally satisfactory and much safer from contamina-
tion. It would probably not need to be more than 30 meters deep.
If wells were used to supply water the cemetery in one of the big sinks
south of the town should be abandoned. If burials at this place were dis-
continued the cemetery should not be a source of danger.
J eremie. No examination of the water supply at Jeremie was at-
tempted. The water is obtained from a spring in limestone and is said
t o be satisfactory. Artesian water can not be obtained at the city and a

•
 WATER RESOURCES. 593

surface supply probably could be had only from Grande Riviere. Springs
are doubtless preferable if they can supply enough water.
Les Cayes. The water supply of Les Cayes was not examined but it
was very unsatisfactory in 1921. Plans \Vere under consideration in 1922
for the development of a better supply, probably either from a small
spring-fed lake on the plain about 5 kilometers north by east from the
city, or from the Source Moreau, a large spring that issues from a lime-
stone cavern at the northern edge of the plain near Camp Perrin. Either
of these sources doubtless would be a great improvement. As a temporary
measure it is reported that a shallow well bas been dug on the plain near
the city. The water pumped from this well seems to be good, and it has
considerably increased the supply.
As suggested on page 530 there is reason to expect that flowing wells
can be obtained at Les Cayes and farther west along the coast of the plain.
Art.esian water might afford a satisfactory city supply at less cost than
surface water or spring water.
Jacmel. Jacmel is in a basin underlain by Pliocene rocks, from
which :flowing water might be obtained in a small area near the city. Such
water, however, might be salty. Test wells should be sunk to a depth of
200 or 250 meters. The present supply of the city is derived from springs.
Saltrou. Saltrou stands on a small alluvial plain at the rear of which
there are high hills of limestone. Along the shore there are deposits of
beach sand and shingle that are higher in altitude than the town. Some
good water is carried to the town from a small stream several kilometers
to the north, in the hills, but most of the water used is obtained from shal-
low wells in the alluvium in the town. This water is brackish and prob-
ably also unsanitary. Wells dug in the alluvium north of the town and
farther from the sea would furnish better water.
GTand-Gosier. The village of Grand-Gosier stands on a rocky limestone
coast. The only source of water is a shallow hole on the beach less than
5 ~eters from the sea. The water is very salty. Along the coast northwest
of the village, near the mouth of a ravine, there are several springs that
yield a large :flow of salty water. This ground wat.er could be tapped by
digging shallow wells in the ravine farther inland, at least 60 meters from
the coast, where it probably would be fresh.

NOTES ON WATER POWER AND DAM SITES.

Considerable water power could be developed in the Republic, but ac-

curate maps and reliable :figures showing stream-flow are needed as a basis
for any operations. Stream gaging on the larger streams should be 11nder-
taken at the earliest opportunity.
Northeastern pwrt. The mountains of the northeastern part of the
Republic, from Grande-Riviere du Nord to the Dominican border, are
composed of igneous rocks that would hold water at almost any site where
38
I

•
 594 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI. •

a dam could be placed on bedrock, and such sites are common. Several
streams in the area would supply power.
Plaisance Valley. Most of Plaisance Valley is underlain by impervious
argillite, and a dam built at nearly any locality where the surface features
are favorable should hold water. The principal stream, Les Trois Rivieres,
•
is rather large .
West of Pilate, at the place called Laporte, Les Trois Rivieres passes
through a gorge more than 60 meters deep, which might be a desirable
site for a dam. This gorge, however, is cut in Eocene limestone, which
might not hold water, though it might become tight enough through
silting to afford a good power dam. (See notes on Grande Riviere du
Cul-du-Sac below.)
Riviere Artibonite and tributaries. Power could be developed on
some of the larger tributaries of the Artibonite. Riviere Frio and Riviere
Samana at some places flow in cascades over limestone cliffs, but not
much storage could be obtained on account of leakage through the porous
limestone. A low dam on the Bouyaha in the little body of Oligocene
beds and alluvium about 3 kilometers north of St.-Rafael probably would
hold water and afford some power. On some small streams near Saut
d'Eau there are very high cascades.
On the Artibonite itself low power dams would probably be successful
in the limestone gorge northe~t of Mirebalais, but storage would not be
practicable on account of leakage. Some cascades are reported in this
stretch of the river and rapids occur at several places. Below Mirebalais
several sites for low power dams probably could be fo11nd at places where
the valley has a fill of fine alluvium that would prevent leakage.
Riviere Coupe-a-l'Inde. The Coupe-a-l'Inde, a few kilometers east of
Dessalines, passes through a gorge in limestone where rapids and low
cascades are common. Some power could be generated here, but storage
of water may not be possible.
Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac. The Grande Riviere du Cul-de-Sac
emerges from a deep, narrow gorge at the edge of the mountains about 600
meters upstream from Bassin General. The sides of the gorge consist of
massive limestone that rises in a sheer wall about 25 meters above the
stream, and the slope of the sides of the valley above this wall is very steep.
At the lower end of the gorge the limestone is massive, but both the over..
lying and underlying beds are thin-bedded. In the narrowest part of the
gorge the limestone dips northward at an angle of 25°. Upstream from
the narrowest part of the gorge the underlying thin-bedded limestone
crops out and the gorge is wider and not so steep-walled. About 350
meters upstream from the mouth of the gorge the stream flows across the
crest of a broken anticlinal a1·ch. Upstream from the crest of this arch
the beds dip southward that is, upstream.
The gorge is a favorable site for the construction of a dam t o develop
power if the minim11m flow of the stream is great enough to warrant its
 WATER RESOURCES. 595

construction. Leakage would prevent the storage of water. If the dam

were constructed in vertical stages, silting might effectively prevent leak..
age and the level of the stream could probably eventually be raised to
the desired altitude. Most of the water that would escape downward along
solution channels along the northward-dipping bedding planes in the
lower part of the gorge, above the level of effective silting, would probably
again collect in the stream above the present diversion dam at Bassin
General.
Grande Riviere de Leogane. South of the Leogane Plain the Grande
Riviere de Leogane :flows westward along the contact between limestone on
the north and basaltic volcanic rocks on the south. This contact is ap-
parently a fault. A favorable site for the construction of a diversion dam
is available at the southern edge of the plain, but such a dam would extend
across the probable fault, and as it is not known whether the fault is dead
slight movements along the fault plane would injure or even destroy the
dam. A small amount of water could also be stored, as it seems that the
alluvial fill along the stream is thick enough to prevent leakage through
the fault zone or through the limestone on the north side of the valley.
Farther upstream, southeastward, the river flows entirely in limestone,
and a storage dam there would be impracticable. Still farther southeast
the valley iB in the large area of basalt in the central western part of the
Massif de la Selle. If the valley is wide enough in the area of basalt
a storage dam might be built there and a diversion dam in the lower part
of the valley.
Grande Riviere de Jeremie. About 10 kilometers from Jeremie, on
the road to Moron, the Grande Riviere de Jeremie passes through a nar-
row gap in a low range of hills. The place looks favorable for a dam site
with large storage capacity. The hills, however, are composed, at least
in part, of beds of sand and gravel of Miocene age, which dip nortl1ward,
and the dam might leak. The place should be more carefully examined.
Farther south, aro11nd the Sources Chaudes, good dam sites in basalt
could be found. There are also high cascades in some of the small streams.
This region, however, is very inaccessible.
'
 •
•

BIBLIOGRAPHY.

By WENDELIJ P. WOODRING.

The following list gives the titles of publications dealing with the
geography and geology of the Republic, all of which have been examined.
Publications that deal exclusivel)· with the Dominican Republic are not
1
listed, as they have recently been listed elsewhere. The following two
publications, issued since the publication of the Dominican bibliography,
should be added to that list :
JACKSON, ROBERT TRACY, Fossil Echini of the W est Indies: Carnegie Inst. Wash-
ington Pub. 306, pp. 1-103, 18 pls., 6 t ext figs., 1922.
Contains descriptions and figures of the following Tertiary Echlnl from the
Dominican Republic: Cida1~is sp. a, Cidaris melitensis Wright, Echinopedina cuben-
si8 Cotteau, Clypeaster concav1ts Cotteau, ClypeMter catlidatus Jackson, n. sp.,
Cl'];peaster dalli (Twitchell), BriBsopsis antilla ~·uni Cotteau.

VAUGHAN, THOMAS WAYLAND, Stratigraphic significance of the spectes of West

Indian fossil Echini: Carnegie Inst. Washington Pub. 306, pp. 105-122, 1922.
Contains discussion of stratigraphic significance of Tertiary Echini from the
Dominican Republic.

All the bulletins of the Observatoire Meteorologique du Seminaire-

College St.-Martial of Port-au-Prince contain, in addition to t.he special
articles here listed, meteorologic data assembled under the direct.ion of
J. Scherer, Directeur de l'Observatoire. This observatory was established
in 1881. Ackermann published m et eorologic records obtained at Port-au-
Prince in Le Moniteur (Port-au-Prince) from 1863 to 1867. Since 1888
the bulletins of the observatory have been published partly in the Annales
du Bureau Central Meteorologique de France and partly in the Annales
de l'Observatoire Centrale de Vienne. Monthly bulletins were published
at Port-au-Prince from March, 1905, to December, 1908; semiannual
bulletins from the last half of 1909 to 1916; and annual bulletins from
1917 to the present time. (See Cabon, 1918, p. 95.)

[ACKERMANN, A.,] R egenverhaltnisse von Port-au-Prince (Haiti) : Petennanns

Mitt., 1868, X, pp. 382-383, 1868.
Records monthly precipitation and number of i·ainy days at Port-au-Prince during
years 1863-1867.

1Woodring, W. P., A geological reconnaissance of the Dominican Republic, Chapter II,

Bibliography: Dominican Rep. Geol. Survey Mem., vol. 1, pp. 18-25, 1921.
596
•

•
BIBLIOGRAPHY. 597 -
AaAMENNONE, G., II terremoto di Haiti (Antille) nella matina del 29 dicembre,
1897: Soc. seismol. ital. Boll., vol. 4, pp. 177-191, 1898.
Describes earthquake of December 29, 1897, which was most severe in the
northern part of the Dominican Republic.

BALTENWECK, R., Station de Furey: Observatoire Meteorologique du Seminaire-

College St.-Martial Bull. semest., July-Dec., 1909, pp. 53-54, 1910.
Describes geographic featu1·es of Furey and regions near by.
,
- - - Etude sur le marees de la rade de Port-au-Prince: Observatoire Meteor-
ologique du Seminaire-College St.-Martial Bull. semest., Jan.-June, 1911, pp.
61-75, 1911.
Contains records of tides in Port-au-Prince harbor.

BERRY, EDWARD W., Tertiary fossil plants from the Republic of Haiti: U. S. Nat.
Mus. Proc., vol. 62, art. 14, 10 pp., 1 pl., 2 t ext figs., 1922.
Describes and figures following Miocene plants collected during the recon-
naissance: Ohara woodringi Berry, n. sp.; Gymnogramme w oodringi Berry, n. sp.;
Pisonia conditi Berry ; Simaruba haitensiB Berry, n. sp. ; M espiZodaphne hispam-
olana Berry, n. sp. ; Mimusops praeparvifolia Berry, n. sp. ; Ohrysophyllum caho-
basensis Ber1·y, n. sp.; Bumelia cuneatafolia Berry, n. sp.; Guettarda cookei Berry.

BERTHIER, M. P., Analyse de deux varietes de fer chrome; suivie d'une note sur
les alliages du chrome avec le fer et avec l'acier: Annales des mines, vol. 6,
pp. 573-584, 1821.
"
Contains analysis of sample of chrome-iron sand from beach on Ile-A-Vache.

BoussINGAULT, , Sur la production, la constitution et les proprietes des aciers

chromes: Annales chimie et physique, 5th ser., vol 15, pp. 91-126, 1878.
(Translated in Iron and Steel Inst. Journ., 1886, No. 2: pp. 807-830.)
Contains analysis of chrome iron ore from "Ile-l-Vache (p. 95).

CABON, A., Contribution a l'etude de la geographie d'Ha.lti; notes historiques sur

la determination de la position geographique d'Ha1ti: Observatoire Meteor-
ologique du Seminaire-College St.-Martial Bull. semest., J an.-June, 1916, pp.
51-67, 1916.
Review of the determinations of latitude and longitude from the time of Columbus
to the work of the Hydrographic Office of the United States Navy in 1906-1913.

- - - Contribution a l'etude de la geographie d 'Ha1ti; notes bibliographiques

sur Ia geographie d'Halti: Observatoire Meteorologique du Seminaire-College
St.-Martial Bull. semest., July-Dec., 1916, pp. 149-174, 1917; Idem, Bull. ann.,
1917, pp. 93-128, 1918. I

Valuable annotated bibliography of publications dealing with the geogi·aphy and

geology of the island. Many of the ti ties listed on pages 605-607 are taken from this
bibliography.
,
CAZE, M. le Chanoine, Etude sur la Paroisse de Ganthier, situee dans la Plaine
du Cul-de...Sac: Observatoire Meteorologique dl.\ Seminaire-College St.-
Martial Bull. semest., July-Dec., 1910, pp, 136-148, 1911.
Contains d escription of geographic features of the parish of Gantier.
CocxEREJ,L, T. D. A., A fossil cichlid fish from the R epublic of Hait.i : U. S. Nat.
Mus. Proc., vol. 63, art. 7, 2 pp., 1 pl., 1923.
Describes and figures a Miocene fish, OichlaBoma woodri1igi Cockerell, n. sp.,
collected during the reconnaissance near Las Cahobas.
DE MoYA, C. N., Mapa de la Isla de Santo Domingo y Ha1ti: Rand McNally &
Co., 1906. Scale, 1 : 400,000.
 598 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

DEscouRTILZ, M. E., Voyage d'un naturaliste, 3 vols., vol. 1, 365 pp., 14 pls.; vol .•
2, 470 pp., 16 pls.; vol. 3, 476 pp. 12 pls. Paris, 1809.
Volume 2 contains desc1·iptions of geographic features of parts of the Republic.

DUPUGET, ' Extrait d'un memoire du citoyen Dupuget, intitule: Coup-d'oeil

rapide sur la physique generale et la mineralogie des Antilles: Jour. des
•

Mines, deuxieme trimestre, No. 18, Ventose, An IV, pp. 43-60 [vol. 3, 1796].
Based on observations made during 1784-1786. Interesting account of '' Itin~raire
mineralogique de Saint-Domingue'' (pp. 47-57). Recognizes huge thickness of
coralliferous limestone recently deposited by sea at M(}le St.-Nicolas and St.-Marc.
Mentions iron deposits of Morne '' Bekeli.'' (See pp. 468-470 of this report.)

EsQUEMEI.ING,JOHN, The buccaneers of America, 508 pp., 8 pls., and other figures,
London, 1893. (Reprinted with additions from edition of 1684.)
l\iost interesting but unreliable account of the period when the buccaneer colony
or Tortue Island was at the helgbt of its power. Original edition published at
Amsterdam in 1678 (Exquemelin, Alex. Olivier, De Americaenische Zee-Roovers).
A French translation was published in 1688 (Oexmelin, Histoire des adventuriers quf
se soot signalez dans les lodes). Several English translations were published, each
ot which seems to surpass the preceding in adding exploits of famous English buc-
caneers. Contains description of Tortue Island (chapter 2), and of part of adjoin-
ing mainland (chapter 3).

FALCONER, J. D., The evolution of the Antilles: Scottish Geog. Mag., vol. 18,
pp. 369-376, 1 pl., 1902.
Geographic relations and geologic history of the island of Haiti briefly described.

FERausoN, E. G. W., The mineral resources of Haiti, West Indies: Min. World,
vol. 31, pp. 133-135, 1909.
Optimistic account of the mineral resources of the Republic of Haiti.

FoRBIN, CHARLES, Contribution a la geographie d'Ha1ti: Note sur Bas-de-Sault,

Habitation Forbin, Commune de St.-Michel; Note sur St.-Francisque; Note
sur Marmelade: Observatoire Meteorologique du Seminaire-College St.-Mar-
tial Bull. ann., 1921, pp. 70-71, 1922.
Brief notes on the geography and geology of the region near Habitation Forbin.
about 6 kilometers northwest of St.-Michel de l'Atalaye, and near Marmelade.
• Records on page 70 the finding of some ammonites on the surface of the ground
at Bas-de-Sault. According to the description the country rock is the argillite
described on pages 86-90 of this report and considered lower Cretaceous.
,..
FoRTUNAT, DANTES, Ile d'Hai'.ti [map]: Paris, 1888. Scale, 1: 400,000.

FRAZER, PERSIFOR, Archean characters of the nucleal ranges of the Antilles:

British Assoc. Adv. Sci. Rept., Fifty-eighth meeting, 1888, pp. 654-655, 1889.
Discusses age of rocks in axial ranges of the larger West Indian islands. Article
based on examination of rocks from the Sierra Maestra of Cuba.

GENTIL, ROBERT, and HENRI CHAUVEr, Grande geographie de l'ile d'Ha1ti, 384 pp.,
Paris, 1896.
Probably the best of the Haitian geographies.

GUPPY, R. J. L., The geological connections of the Caribbean region: Canadian

Inst. Trans., vol. 8, pp. 373-391, 1909.
Contains discussion of geographic and tectonic relations of the island of Haiti.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY. 599

HILL,ROBERT T ., Fundamental geographic relation of the three Americas: Nat.

Geog. Mag., vol. 7, pp. 175-181, map, 1896.
•
Discusses geographic relations of the island of Haiti.

- - Cuba and Porto Rico, with other islands of the West Indies, 408 pp.,
79 pls., 2 maps, New York, 1898.
Contains description of Republic of Haiti (pp. 263-295).

- - The geology and physical geography of Jamaica: Harvard Coll. Mus.

Comp. Zool. Bull., vol. 34, 256 pp., 41 pls., 40 figs., 1899.
Contains (pp. 168-198) an attempt to correlate the Jamaican rocks with those
of the island of Haiti, as given by Tippenhauer in 1893.

JONES, WILLIAM F., A geological reconnaissance in Haiti; a contribution to An-

tillean geology: Jour. Geology, vol. 26, pp. 728-752, pl. 5 (map and sections),
10 text figs., 1918.
Observations in di1ferent parts of the Republic; more information about the Ccn·
tral Plain than any other region.

KoFFMAHN, 0 ., Begleitworte zur Karte der Insel Haiti: Petermanns Mitt. Band
20, pp. 321-323, 1874. (See also Petermann, A.)
[LABAT, J.B.,] Voyage du Pere Labat au Isles de l'Amerique, vol. 5, 504 pp., 2 maps,
La Haye, 1724.
First edition published in 1721. Contains descriptions of the geographic features
of the parts of the Republic settled by French colonists after the French and
English buccaneers had driven out the Spanish.

LfuoENS, RunoLF, Land, Leute, Reisen in der Republik Haiti: Gesell. Erkunde
Berlin Zeitschr., 1914, pp. 771-780.
Brief account of a trip in the Northwest Peninsula; general observations con-
cerning products, routes of travel, and population.

- - - Geographische und geologische Beobachtungen in N ordwest-Ha!ti: Geog.

Gesell. in Hamburg Mitt., Band 32, pp. 41-90, 1 map, 3 pis., 10 figs., 1919.
Description of geographic and geologic features of western part of Northwest
Peninsula. The trip was made with Tippenhauer, and the conclusions concerning
the geology clearly are Tippenhaucr's.

MAURY, CARLOTTA J., On the correlation of Porto Rican Tertiary formations with
other Antillean and mainland horizons: Am. Jour. Sci., 4th ser., vol. 48, pp.
209-215, 1919.
Contains attempt to correlate some of the Porto Rican Tertiary formations with
those of the Central Plain as given by Jones, 1918.

MILT.ER, GERRITS., jr., Remains of mammals from caves in the Republic of Haiti:
. Smithsonian Misc. Coll., vol. 74, No. 3, 8 pp., 1922.
Describes remains of rodents and ground sloths, including two new genera ot
rodents, collected during the reconnaissance from caves near St.-Michel de l'Atalaye.

MoREAU DE JoNNES, ALEXANDRE, Histoire physique des Antilles franQaises, savoir,

La Martinique et les iles de la Guadeloupe, vol. 1, 560 pp., Paris, 1822.
Contains some information on the geology and geography of the Republic, based
principally on l\foreau de St. M~ry. (See pp. 125-126 ; table, p. 155.) List of earth-
quakes, 1530 to 1821 (pp. 110-115) and of hurricanes in the West Indies, 1495 to
1821 (pp. 386-393).
 600 •
GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.
•

•
MoREAU DE SAINT-MERY, M. L. E., A topographical and political description of
the Spanish part of Saint Domingo, translated from the French by William
Cobbett, 2 vols.; vol. 1, 314 pp.; vol. 2, 318 pp.; Philadelphia, 1796.
The French edition, published at Philadelphia in the same year, was not seen.
Contains description of geographic features of the Central Plain, which during the
colonial period belonged to the Spanish colony.
- - - Description topographique, physique, civile, politique et historique de la
partie francaise de !'isle Saint-Domingue, 2 vols.: ,,.ol. 1, 788 pp., 2 map;
vol. 2, 856 pp.; Philadelphia, 1797-1798.
An exhaustive treatise describing the colony parish by parish before the revolu-
tion. Aside from historical interest, it contains a great deal of valuable geographic
information.
[MurJAER, L.,] Erdbeben in Haiti: Zeitschr. allg. Erdkunde, Neue Folge, Band 8,
pp. 509-511, 1860.
Describes effects near Les Cayes of earthquake of April 8, 1860, and discusses
aftershocks and additional shocks between April 8 and May 5.
PETERMANN, A., Karte der Insel Haiti: Petermanns Mitt., Band 20, pl. 17, 1874.
Scale, 1: 1,100,000. (See also KoFFMAHN, 0.)
PIACENTENI, R., De Thomazeau aux Grands-Bois: Obse!Vatoire Meteorologique
du Seminaire-College St.-Martial Bull. semest., Jan.-June, 1913, pp. 63-67, 1913.
Interesting account of trip from Thomazeau to Cornillon. Contains descriptions
ot geographic and geologic features.
PILBBRY, HENRY A., A new Haitian Oligocene [Miocene] horizon: Acad. Nat. Sci.
Philadelphia Proc., vol. 62, pp. 487-489, 2 figs., 1910.
Describes and figures three Miocene mollusks from the Central Plain, namely,
Potamides roumai1ii Pilsbry, n. sp.; Potamides caobasen8is Pilsbry, n. sp. ; .Arca
websten Pilsbry, n. sp. (not figured).
- - Revision of W. M. Gabb's Tertiary Mollusca of Santo Domingo: Acad.
Nat. Sci. Philadelphia Proc., vol. 73, pp. 305-435, pls. 16-47, 48 text figs., 1922.
Figures Arca chiriquietiBi8 websteri Pilsbry (pl. 41, fig. 4), and 0Btrea bolus
Pilsb1·y and Johnson (pl. 43, figs. 2, 3), previously described from Miocene beds in
the Central Plain.

- - Miocene Cirripedia from the Republic of Haiti: U. S. Nat. Mus. Proc.

(Awaiting publication.)
Describes and figures Miocene barnacles collected during the reconnaissance,
including Balanu8 concavu8 esepatus n. subsp., and Balanus polyporuB n. sp.

PILSBRY, HENRY A., and BROWN, AMos P., Oligocene [Miocene] fossils from the
neighborhood of Cartagena, Colombia, with notes on Haitian species: Acad.
Nat. Sci. Philadelphia Proc., vol. 69, pp. 32-41, pls. 5, 6, 1917.
Describes and figures two species collected from Miocene beds in the Central
Plain, namely, Turritella calostemma Pilsbry and Brown, n. sp. ; Ostrea cahoba-
8enaiB Pilsb1·y and Brown, n. sp.

PILSBRY, H. A., and JOHNSON, C. W., l~ew Mollusca of the Santo Domingan Oligo-
cene [Miocene] : Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia Proc., vol. 69, pp. 150-202, 1917.
Describes Ostrea bol'IU Pilsbry and Brown, n. sp., collected from Miocene beds in
the Central Plain.

PoEY Y AoumRE, ANDRES, Catalogue chronologique des tremblements .de terre

ressentis clans les lndes Occidentals de 1530 a 1858; suivi d'une bibliographie
seismique concernant lea travaux relatifs au tremblements de terre des
Antilles, 76 pp., Versailles, 1858. (Extrait de l'annuaire de Ia Societe Meteoro-
logique de France, vol. 5, p. 75, seance du 12 mai. 1857.)
 BIBLIOGRAPHY. 601

RATHBUN, MARY J., Fossil crabs from the Republic of Haiti: U. S. Nat. Mus.
Proc., vol. 63, art. 9, 6 pp., 2 pls., 1923.
Describes and figures middle Eocene, Miocene, and Quaternary crabs collected
during the reconnaissance, including a new species, Portuooa (Portunus) haitensis.
,
RECLus, ELISEE, The earth and its inhabitants, edited by A. H. Keane, 19 vols.,
New York, 1886-1895.
Description of island of Haiti in North America, vol. 2, pp. 396-422, 1891.

RITrER, KARL, N aturhistorische Reise nach der westindlichen Insel Hayti, 206 pp.,
6 maps, 3 pls., Stuttgart, 1836.
Account of travels In the Republic of Haiti in 1820. Contains geographic infor-
mation.

ROTH, H. LINO, Bibliography and cartography of Hispaniola: Royal Geog. Soc. •

Supp. Papers, vol. 2, pp. 41-97, 1889.

Valuable annotated bibliography.

Rouz1ER, S., Dictionnaire geographique et administratif universe! d'Haiti, vol. 1,

393 pp., 12 maps, 3 pls., 1892; vol. 2, 402 pp., 3 maps, 6 pls. 16 figs.; Paris, 1893.
A very useful geographic. dictionary, which we have followed more or less closely
in the spelling of place names. The third volume was never issued, so that there
are no articles farther in the alphabetical list than Haiti. Three-quarters of the
second volume ls devoted to the article Haiti.

ScHEREB, J., Earthquakes in Hayti, April 12 to October 10, 1911: Seismol. Soc.
America Bull., vol. 1, p. 171, 1911.
List of shocks for period given in title.

- - Great earthquakes in the Island of Haiti: Seismol. Soc. America Bull.,

vol. 2, pp. 161-180, map, 1912.
Translation of article published in the Bulletin de l'Observatoire Met~orologlq11e
du ~minaire-Coll~ge St. Martial, July-Dec. 1911, pp. 153-162, 1912. (See below.)

- - - Notes on remarkable earthquake sounds in Haiti: Seismol. Soc. America

Bull., .vol. 2, pp. 230-232, 1912.
Desc1·lption of peculiar sounds often accompanying earthquakes in the Republic;
called the '' gouffre '' or the '' bruit du goutrre.'' Many of the bulletins of the •

Observatoire Meteorologique du Seminaire-Coll~ge St.-Martial contain information

concerning the gouffre.

Le cyclone du 12 aout 1915 dans la Republique d'Ha!ti: Observutoire

Meteorologique du Seminaire-College St.-Martial Bull. semest., July-Dec.,
1915, pp. 154-172, 1915.
Describes the effects of one of the most disastrous hurricanes in the history ot
the Republic.

- - - L'ile d'Haiti et le tremblement de terre de Porto Rico (du 11 octobre, I

1918) : Observatoire Meteorologique du Seminaire-College St.-Martial Bull.
ann., 1918, p. 93, 1919. •

Describes effects of this earthquake in the island of Haiti.

[ ] Les · grands tremblements de terre dans l'ile d'Ha1ti: Observatoire

Meteorologique du Seminaire-College St.-Martial Bull., semest. July-Dec.,
1911, pp. 153-162, 1912.
Interesting account of disastrous earthquakes from early colonial period to 1911.
 •

602 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

SCHERER, J., Les tremblements de terre de l'ile d'Ha1ti dans leur rapports avec le
relief du sol et les f osses maritimes qui l'entourent: Observatoire Meteor-
ologique du Seminaire-College St.-Martial Bull. semest., July-Dec., 1912,
pp. 132-139, 1913.
Correlates the seismic phenomena with the geographic and geologic features.
[ ] Catalogue chronologique des tremblements de terre ressentis dans l'ile
d'Ha!ti de 1551 a 1900: Observatoire Meteorologique du Seminaire-College
St.-Martial Bull. semest., July-Dec., 1913, pp. 147-151, 1914.
Complete catalogue of earthquakes recorded in the island during period given
in title.

[ ] Tremblements de terre observes en Haiti de l'annee 1901-1910: Observa-

toire Meteorologique du Serninaire-College St.-Martial Bull. ann. 1920, pp.
100-104, 1921.
Continuation of catalogue published in 1914.

ScHOMBUBOK, Sir R. H., Mapa de la Isla de Santo Domingo, Paris, 1858. Scale,
1: 400,000.
SIEVERS, WILHELM, Slid- und Mittelamerika, 3d ed., 567 pp., 9 maps, 26 pls., 54
•
text figs., Leipzig and Vienna, 1914.
Brief description of the island of Haiti, pp. 475-480.

SPRINGER, FRANK, A new Tertiary crinoid in the West Indies: U. S. Nat. Mus.
Proc. (Awaiting publication.)
Describes Miocene crinoid stems, BalanoorinuB haiten8i8 n. sp., collected during
the reconnaissance.

STUART, R., Ha.lti or Hispaniola: Royal Geog. Soc. J our., vol. 48, pp. 234-274, 1878.
Describes geographic features of the Island.

SUESS, EnuARD, La face de la terre (French translation by Emmanuel de Margerie

of Das Antlitz der Ertle), 3 vols. and index, 3695 pp., 5 pls., 10 maps, 551 figs.,
1905-1918.
Discusses tectonic features of the West Indies in vol. 1, pp. 113-124, 362-369 ;
vol. 3, pp. 1285-1292, 1628.

TABER, STEPHEN, The great fault troughs of the Antilles: J our. Geology, vol. 30,
pp. 89-114, pl. 1 (map), 1 text fig., 1922.
Con taine brief descriptions of the disastrous earthquakes in the Island of Haiti
and discusses their probable origin.

- - - The seismic belt in the Greater Antilles: Seismological Soc. America Bt1ll.,
vol. 12, pp. 199-219, pl. 7, 1922.
Includes description of disastrous earthquakes in the Republic and discµssion of
their origin.

THOMASSET, HENRI, Rapport sur les gisements de ,charbon de I' Asile et du Ca.mp-
Perrin (adresse a Monsieur le Secretaire d'Etat des Travaux Publics) : Le
Moniteur, 53 e annee, No. 46, pp. 358-359, 8 juin, 1898.
Describes and gives analyses of lignite in the Astle Valley and at Camp Perrin.

- - - Sur les mines de cuivres de la Grande-Riviere du Nord: Le Moniteur,

59 e annee, No. 45, pp. 408-409, 1904.
Describes mineral deposits near Grande-Riviere du Nord.

•
- - Carte physique et politique de l'ile d'Ha1ti: Port-au-Prince, 1908. Scale,
1: 400,000.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY. 603

TIPPENHAUER, L. GENTIL, Die Insel Haiti, 693 pp., 21 pis., 23 figs., Leipzig, 1893.
A monograph of the island. Contains a great deal of information concerning
the geographic features of the Republic. Discussion of geology (pp. 80-121) based
principally on Gabb's report on geology of Dominican Republic, supplemented by
Tippenhauer's explorations in Republic of Haiti. Contains catalogue of earthquakes
· from 1551 to 1890 (pp. 170-175) and an extensive bibliography of all subjects (pp.
672-693).

- - - Geologische Studien in Haiti; I, Aus der siidwestlichen Halbinsel: Peter-

mans Mitt., Band 45, pp. 25-29, pl. 3 (map), 1899.
Description of geographic and geologic features of region from MiragoAne to
Aquin, westward to St.-Louis du Sud, and between Aquin and Anse-A-Veau.

Beitrage zur Geologie Ha1tis; II, Aus der nordwestlichen Halbinsel:

Petermanns Mitt., Band 45, pp. 153-155, pl. 10 (map), 1899.
Description of geographic and geologic features of. region between Gonaives and
Gros-Morne, Gros-Morne and Le Borgne, Le Borgne and Port Margot, Port Margot
and Plaisance, Plaisance and Gros-Morne.

- - - Beitrage zur Geologie Ha1tis; III, Geologische Studien zwischen Port-au-

Prince, Jacmel, Bainet, und Grand-Goave: Petermanns Mitt., Band 45, pp.
201-204, pl. 13 (map), 2 text figs., 1899.
Description of geographi~ and geologic features of region given In title.

- - - Beitrage zur Geologie Ha!tis; IV, Die Erzfundstatten von Terre-Neuve und
Gonaives: Petermanns Mitt., Band 47, pp. 121-127, pl. 10 (map), 2 text
figs., 1901.
Description of geographic features, geology, and mineral deposits of Terre-Neuve
district.

- - - Beitrage zur Geologie Haitis; V, Das La Selle-Gebirge, die Cul-de-Sac-

Ebene, und das Salzeengebiet: Petermanns Mitt., Band 47, pp. 169-178, pis.
13, 14 (maps), 1901.
Description of geographic and geologic features of the Cul-de-Sac Plain, and of
the mountains south of the west end of the plain. Contains list of earthquakes
from 1890 to 1898 (p. 171).

- - - Beitrage zur Geologie Ha!tis; VI, Das Lignitlager von Malssade und der
Aufsteig zum Zentralplateau von Gonalves und von Norden aus: Petermanna
Mitt., Band 47, pp. 193-199, pis. 15, 16 (map and sections), 3 text figs., 1901.
Description of geographic and geologic features of northwestern part of the
Central Plain; of region between Gonaives and St.-Michel de l' Atalaye; Gonaiv€s and
Section Paul ; St.-Michel de 1'Atalaye and Marmalade; St.-Raphael, Dondon and
Grande-Rivi~re du Nord; Grande Riviere du Nord and Pignon. Describes lignite
near Maissade.

- - - N euer Beitrag zur Topographie, Bevolkerungskunde und Geologie Haitis:

Petermanns Mitt., Band 55, pp. 49-57, pl. 5 (map), 1909.
Description of geographic and geologic features of central part of the Central
Plain, of the mountains along the northeast border of the plain from Cerca-CarbajaJ
to Los Pozos, of the mountains along the southwest side of the plain from Morne
Bois Rouge to M.orne Michel (Morne a. Tonnerre), of the Artibonite Valley around
Mirebalals, and of the mountains south and southwest of the valley from Section
Boucassin to :Morne Terre-Rouge.

ThuAN y LuARD, ALFREDO, and WITT, OTTO N., Die Diatomaceen der Polycystinen-
kreide von Jeremje in Hayti, Westindien, 24 pp., 7 pls., Berlin, 1888.
Lists 98 species and varieties of f ossll diatoms collected in 1873 near J ~r~mfe.
Most of the species anc1 varieties, 37 of which are new, are described and figured.
Age of beds not given, but it probably is Quaternary.
604 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

VAUGHAN, T. WAYLAND, Geologic history of Central America, and the West Indies
during Cenozoic time: Geol. Soc. America Bull., vol. 29, pp. 615-630, 1918.
Contains discussion of geographic and tectonic relations of the island of Haiti.

- - - The biologic character and geologic correlation of the sedimentary forma-

tions of Panama in their relation to the geologic history of C entral America
and the West Indies: U.S. Nat. Mus. Bull. 103, pp. 547-612, 1919.
Contains discussion of geographic and tectonic relations of the island of Haiti.

- - - Correlation of the Tertiary formations of Central America and the West

Indies: Bernice P. Bishop Museum Special Pub. 7, pp. 819-844, 1921.
Contains discussion of correlation of some of the Tertiary rocks of the Republic.

VAUGHAN, T. WAYLAND, CooxE, C. WYTHE, CoNDIT, D. D., Ross, C. P., WOODRING,

W. P., and CALKINS, F. C., A geological reconnaissance of the Dominican
Republic: Dominican R ep. Geol. Survey Mem., vol. 1, 268 pp., 23 pls.,
Washington, 1921.
Plaisance limestone named on page 58. Two specimens of basalt from crest and
north slope of Plaisance Mountain described on page 87.

- - - Un reconocimiento geol6gico de la Republica Dominicana: Republics.

Dominicana Servicio Geol6gico M ero., vol. 1, 302 pp., 23 pls., Washington,
1922.
Spanish edition of preceding report.

WETMORE, .ALEx.ANnER, Remains of birds from caves in the Republic of Haiti:

Smithsonian Misc. Coll., vol. 74, No. 4, 4 pp., 2 text figs., 1922.
Describes and figures remains of birds, including a huge barn owl, Tyto ostologa
n. sp., collected during the reconnaissance from caves near St.-Michel de l'Atalaye.

WOODRING, WENDELL P., Middle Eocene Foraminifera of the genus Dictyoconus

from the R epublic of Haiti: Washington Acad. Sci. J our., vol. 12, pp. 244-
247, 1922.
Brief notice of discovery of middle Eocene Forminifera remarkably similar to
species from the middle Eocene of Egypt.

- - - Stratigraphy, structure, and possible oil resources of the Miocene rocks

of the Central Plain: Rep. Haiti Geol. Survey, 19 pp., map, 1922.
Preliminary acount of geologic features of the Central Plain.

- - Tectonic features of the Republic of Haiti and their bearing on the geo-
logic history of the West Indies (abstract): Washington Acad. Sci. Jour.
(Awaiting publication.)
Abstract of a paper describing tectonic features of the Republic and their bearing
on interpretation of the great submerged troughs of the West Indies.

- - - An outline of the results of a geological reconnaissance of the Republic

of Haiti: Washington Acad. Sci. Jour., vol. 13, pp. 117-129, 1923.
Brief s11mmary of results ot the reconnaissance.

- - Tertiary mollusks of the genus Orthaulax from the Republic of Haiti,

Porto Rico, and Cuba: U.S. Nat. Mus. Proc., vol. 64, art. 1, 12 pp., 2 pls., 1923.
Contains descriptions and figures of unusual specimens of 01-tliaulaa: aguadillensis
Maury collected during the reconnaissance from Miocene beds in the Central Plain.

ANONYMOUS, Copper and iron in Haiti: Min. World, vol. 28, p. 324, 1908.
An optimistic account of the mineral deposits of the Terre-Neuve district.
 BIBLIOGR.APHY. 605

ANoNYMous, West Indies Pilot, vol. 1, B ermuda Islands, the Bahama Islands, and
the Greater Antilles: U.S. Navy Hydrographic Office Pub. 128, 576 pp., map,
4 text figs., (2d ed.), 1917.
Describes coast and harbors of the Republic (pp. 374-388, 437-479).

The publications in the following list, the tjtles and notes on which are
taken from earlier bibliographies or other sources, as noted l1nder each
title, have not been examined. There are many publications describing
the colony and the Republic, but in both the following and preceding lists
only those are given that are known to contain more than incidental geo-
graphic information.
In addition to the publications listed, volume 1 of the Memoires de la
Societe Royale des Sciences et Arts du Cap-Frangais, published at Cap-
1
Frangais in 1788, contains seven articles on the Eaux de Boynes; five
2
articles on the mineral springs of Mirebalais, Banica, Bas Moustion,
Grande-Anse,' and the Montagne Noire (parish of Grande-Riviere du
Nord) ; two articles on the salines of Aquin and the Artibonite; " and an
article giving the analysis of a copper-bearing rock from Fort Dauphin.
I (See Cabon, 1916, pp. 164-165.) Most of these articles are mentioned by
Moreau de St.-Mery. This society was founded in 1784 under the name
Cercle des Philadelphes and was incorporated in 1789 as the Societe
Royale des Sciences et Arts du Cap-Frangais. (See Moreau de St.-Mery,
vol. 1, pp. 348-352.)
•

ARoomN, BEAUBRUN, Geographie de l'ile d'Ha!ti, precedee du precis et de Ia date

des evenements les plus remarquables de son histoire, 184 pp., Port-au-Prince,
1832.
A later edition in 1856. Description of general geography of the island. From
Cabon's bibliographic notes, 1918, p. 124, and Roth's bibliography, p. 45.
,
BERNARD, BIEN-AIME JEAN, Etabli~ement thermal de Cerca la Source, Paris, 1895.
Report of an official examination of the Sources Chaudes de los Pozos. From
Cabon's bibliographic notes, 1918, p. 100.

CHARLEVOIX, PIERRE FRANQOIS XAVIER DE, Histoire de !'Isle Espagnole ou de Saint-

Domingue, 2 vols., Paris, 1730-1731.
Contains detailed descriptions of the Plaine du Nord (Plaine du Cap) and other
regions of the early colony. From Cabon's bibliographic notes, 1916, pp. 159-162.

DE GENTON, Essai de mineralogie de !'isle de Saint-Domingue dans la partie

franc;oise: Jour. de Physique, vol. 31, pp. 173-177, 1787.
From Roth's bibliography, p. 58. The title of the periodical probably is '' Obser-
vations sur la physique, sur l'histoire naturelle et sur Jes arts, contenant l'abr~g~
de l'histoire et des m~moires des Acad~mies ~trang~res de Berlin,'' etc., later con-
tinued under the title '' J ot1rnal de physique, de chimie et d'histoire naturelle.''
•

DoRSINVIIJ.E, Luc, Silhouette de la Gonave: Bull. de }'agriculture et de l'indus-

trie, 1911.
Contains description of geographic features and water resources. From Cabon's
bibliographic notes, 1918, p. 105.
•

1 See pp. 558-562 of this repo1·t. 3 See pp. 564-566 of this report.
2 See pp. 562-564 of this report. 'See pp. 509-510 of this report.
606 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIC OF HAITI.

Doavo-SoULASTRE, Voyage par terre de Santa Domingo, capitale de la partie

Espagnole de Saint Domingue, au Cap FranQais, capitale de la partie Fran-
Qaise de la meme isle, 407 pp., Paris, 1809.
Contains description of an earthquake at the Cap. From Cabon's bibliographic
notes, 1918, p. 201, and Roth's blbliograpby, p. 54.

Du TERTRE, JEAN BAPTISTE, Histoire gen erale d es Ant-Isles habitees par les Fran-
cois, 4 vols., Paris, 1667-1671.
Probably the ea rliest description of Tortue Island (vol. 2, pp. 30-31). From
Cabon 's bibliographic notes, 1916, pp. 155-156, and Roth's bibliography, p. 56.

FoBTUNAT, DANTES, Nouvelle geographie de l'ile d 'Ha.lti contenant des notions

bjstoriques et topographiques sur les autres Antilles, Port-au-Prince, 1888.
From Cabon's bibliographic notes, 1918, p. 124.

HEPBURN, R. S. E ., Rapport de M. R. S. E. H eoburn,

, geologue, au general de
division Francois J ean Joseph, Secretaire d 'Etat au Departement de l'ln-
terieur et de I'Agriculture: Le Moniteur, 16 e Annee, no. 13, 2 mars, 1861.
Describes lignite deposits near I'Asile, Las Gounmas, Anse-a.-Vea u, Bani ca, and
Hinche. From Cabon's bibliographic notes, 1918, pp. 98-99.

HrLLION, Mgr., Une excursion aux Sources Chaudes de la Grande-Riviere de

J eremie : Bull. Religieux, 1904, no. 8.
From Cabon's bibliographic notes, 1918, p. 100.

LE R uz1c, I., Toumee pastorale; de Torbeck a J eremie, d e Corail aux Cayes, Les
Cayes, 1904.
Contains description of geogr a phic f eatures of r egions given in title. From
Cabon's bibliogra phic notes, 1918, p. 105.

[MADIOU, T.,] Notions geographiques et historiques a }'usage des ecoles primaires

et d es ecoles rurales de la R epublique d'Ha1ti, 62 pp .. Port-au-Prince, 1875.
A late1" edition in 1887. From Cabon's bibliographic notes, 1918, p. 124.

NAu, EuaENE [Several articles on the ore d eposits and lignite deposits of the
R epublic, publish ed in Le Moniteur and La R epublique, 1&59 and 1860].
F1·om Cabon's bibliographic notes, 1918, p. 98.

- - - N ates sur les Sources Puantes du Cul-de-Sac: La Republique, 2 e Annee,

no. 2.
Description of the Sources Puantes at northwest corner of the Cul-de-Sac Plain.
From Cabon's bibliographic notes, 1918, p. 100.

[Description of Anse-a-Galets and n ear-by parts of Ganave Island] : Le

Republique, 2 e Annee, nos. 6, 7. ·
From Cabon's bibliographic notes, 1918, p. 105.

N1coLSON, , Essai sur l'histoire naturelle de l'Ile de St.-Domingue, 1776.

Contains description of geographic features. From Cabon's bibliographic note$,
1916, pp. 162-163.

RAMSAY, DIANA, Abrege de la geographie d'Ha.lti a !'usage de la jeunesse Haitienne,

49 pp., Port-au-Prince, 1&57.
From Tippenhauer's bibliography, 1893, p. 679.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY. 607
•

RouMAIN, EDMOND, La question des mines en Ha!ti: Chambre de Commerce

francaise Bull., no. 4, [date?].
Discusses mineral resources o! the Republic. From Cabon's bibliographic notes
1918, p. 99.

RoY, Louis, Les mines de cuivre et de fer de Terre-N euve: Bull. Officiel de
!'Instruction Publique, 6 e Annee, nos. 9, 10, [date?].
(From Cabon's bibliographic notes, 1918, p. 99.)

THEBAUD, and JEAN Loms, Geographie de l'ile d'Haiti, contenant des notices his-
toriques, statistiques, geognostiques, etc., J acmel, 1886.
From Tippenhauer's bibliography, 1893, p. 680.

TREMBLY, , Essa.is hydrauliques pour la Plaine de l'Artibonite, ou Memoires

pour indiques les moyens 1°, d'arroser cette plaine; 2°, de la preserver
d'inondation; et 3°, d'empecher qu'une grande etendue de terres ne soit sub-
mergee par lea rivieres de !'Ester, du Cabeuil et de la Coupe a l'Inde.
From Moreau de St.-Mfil"y, vol. 2, p. 141, 1798.

WAINRIGHT, J. C., JEANNOT, A., a.n d TIPPENHAUEB, L. Q), Rapport de Ia

Commission chargee d'etudier le trace d'une ville a la Gonave, Les Cayes,
1890 [also published in Le Moniteur].
Contains description of geographic and geologic features of Anse-A.-Galets and
near-by parts of Gonave Island. From Cabon's bibliographic notes, 1918, p. 105.

• •

•
 •

APPENDIX I. SOME NEW EOCENE FORAMINIFERA OF THE

GENUS DICTYOCONUS.

By WENDELL P. WOODRING.

The only Foraminifera described in this appendix are the new middle
and upper Eocene species of Dictyoconus which are :figured on Plates
IX and XIII as characteristic fossils.

Genus DICTYOCONUS Blanckenhorn.

Blanckenhorn, 1900, Deutsche geol. Gesell. Zeitschr., Band 52, pp. 419, 434.
Type (by monotypy) : Patellina egyptiensis Chapman. Middle Eocene, Egypt.

DICTYOCONUS CODON Woodring, n. sp.

Plate IX, Figures 1, 2, 5, 6 (p. 104).
Test large, conical, height less than half the diameter at base, sides
and base undulated, sides slightly concave, apex broadly rounded, basal
angle subacute; on 'vorn specimens a fine network of concentric annuli
divided into narrow rectangles is visible at the surface, except on the
base; base punctate; in thin section the test is seen to be composed of an
outer layer of small tubular chambers open toward the interior, divided
by one or two short thin partitions, the interior composed of irregular
labyrinthic chambers, imperfectly arranged in concentric annuli convex
toward the base.
Dimensions: Diameter at base 8 millimeters, height 2.5 millimeters
(type) ; diameter at base 7.5 millimeters, height 3 millimeters; diameter
at base 4. 7 millimeters, height 2 millimeters.
Type: U. S. Nat. Mus. Cat. No. 350586.
Type locality: Road from Plaisance to Ennery, at north foot of Mont
Puilboreau, about 5 kilometers from Plaisance; altitude 515 meters above
sea level (U. S. Geol. Survey station 9857). Other localities: Stations
9888, 9441, 9859, 9860, 9442, and 9734. (For detailed descriptions see
pp. 105-106.)
The low conical outline and undulate base are characteristic features
of this species. None of the sections show the initial spiral stage. D. codon
1
closely resembles D. egyptiensis (Chapman) , a middle Eocene Egyptian
1Chapman, F., On a Patellina limestone and another foraminlferal limestone fron1
Egypt: Geol. Mag., new ser., dee. 4, vol. 7, pp. 3-17, pl. 2, 1900. ~iore !ully described
by C. Schlumberger and Henri Douvill~, Sur deux Foraminif~res Eoc~nes: Soc. g~ol.
France Bull., 4th s~r., vol. 5, pp. 291-304, pl. 9, 7 text figs., 1905.
608
 APPENDIX I. 609

species, but is larger and lower, and has an undulate base. It is confined
to the Plaisance limestone. Dr. C. .i\.. Matley, Government geologist of
Jamaica, has recently collected the Rame or a very similar species from
the '' Yellow limestone '' of Jamaica.

DICTYOCONUS PUILBOREAUENSIS Woodring, n. sp.

Plate IX, Figures 3-5, 7, 8 (p. 104).

Test medi11m sized, conical, height between half and two-thirds of

diameter at base, sides slightly convex, apex broadly rounded, ba.sal angle
obtuse; surface covered with thin vitreous coat, generally worn, revealing
narrow concentric annuli divided into narrow rectangles; base punctate; in
thin section outer layers of ·chamhers are seen to be small, tubular, open
toward the interior, divided by one or two partitions; the interior is com-
posed of irregular labyrinthic chambers arranged in concentric annuli
parallel to the base. .
Dimensions: Diameter at base 3.8 millimeters, height 2 millimeters,
(type) ; diameter at base 3 millimeters, height 2 millimeters; diameter •

at base 2.7 millimeters, height 2.5 millimeters.

Type: U.S. Nat. Mus. Cat. No. 350587.
Type locality: Road from Plaisance to Ennery, at north foot of Mo11nt
Puilboreau, about 5 kilometers from Plaisance; altitude 515 meters above
sea level (U. S. Geol. Survey station 9857). Other localities : Stations
9771, 9888, 9889, 9858, 9441, 9859, 9860, 9442, 9861, 9991, 9871, 9734,
9873 (identification doubtful), 9792, 9753, and 9754. (For detailed
description see pp. 105-106.)
One section shows the initial spiral stage (Pl. IX, Fig. 8).
This species was collected in the same beds of the Plaisance limestone
as D. codon, but it is more abundant and was obtained at more localities.
There is a possibility that the two ''species'' are megalospheric and mi-
crospheric forms of the same species. D. puilboreauensis is smaller than
•
D. condon and higher and has a convex base, but the chambers are very
similar. It is smaller and more evenly conical than D. egyptiensis (Chap-
man) and has shorter outer chambers. Dr. Matley's collections show a
very similar Dictyoconus in the '' Yellow limestone '' of Jamaica.

DICTYOCONUS PUILBOREAUENSIS NANNOIDES Woodring, n. subsp.

Plate XIII, Figures B, C (p. 140).

Test small, conical, height two-thirds or more of diameter at base,

sides slightly convex, base decidedly convex, apex broadly rounded, basal
angle obtuse; the chambers resemble those of D. puilboreauensis puil-
boreauensis, but the partitions between the outer chambers are slightly
longer.
39

•
 610 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI•
•

Dimensions: Diameter at base 2 milljmeters, height .1.5 millimeters,

(type); diameter at base 2.5 millimeters, height 1.8 millimeters; diameter
at base 1.5 millimeters; height 1. 7 millimeters. ·
Type: U. S. Nat. Mus. Cat. No. 350588.
Type locality: Cliff about a kilometer south of Dolan, near trail from
Terre-Neuve to Gona1ves (U. S. Geol. Survey station 9821). Other lo-
calities: Stations 9864, 9925, 9989, 9804, 9869, 9868, 9827, 9735, 9848,
9851, 9865, 9814, 9824, 9816, 9826, 9842, 9796, 9843, 9795, 9964, 9742,
9890, 9883, 9886, 9887, 9789, 9919, 9456, 9914, 9790, and 9517. (For
detailed descriptions see pp. 140-145.)
This subspecies, which seems to be characteristic of the upper Eocene
(Priabonian) limestones, is smaller than D. puilboreauensis puilboreau-
ensis, and the diameter at the base and the height are more nearly equal;
it also has slightly longer outer chambers. It resembles D. americana
1
(Cushman), an upper Eocene species from the island of St. Bartholomew,
but its base is more convex and does not flare out at the peripheral angle;
It also has wider and shorter outer chambers.
:sCushman, J. A.., Fossil Foraminifera from the West Indies: Carnegie Inst. Washing-
ton Pub. 291, p. 43, text fig. 3, 1919•

• •
 •
•

APPENDIX II. SOME NEW MIDDLE EOCENE AND LOWER

MIOCENE MOLLUSKS.

By WENDELL P. WOODRING and WENDELL C. MANSFIELD.

The only Tertiary mollusks described in this appendix are the new
species figured on Plates X and XVI as characteristic fossils.
•

Genus POTA.!!IDES Brongniart.

Brongniart, 1810, Annales du Museum d'Histoire N aturelle, Paris, vol. 15, p. 368.1
Type (by monotypy): Potamides lamarkii Brongniart. Oligocene, Pa.ris Basin.

POTAlIIDES TIPPENHAUERI Woodring and Mansfield, n. sp.

Plate XVI, Figures 3, 4 (p. 192).
Shell medi11m sized; later whorls bear a shelf-like spiral cord at the
suture and t'\\'O narrower spiral threads below the shelf; narrow arcuate
axial ribs nodulate the two spiral threads but merely undulate the shelf-
like spiral, and on the body whorl the axials become weaker; on the early
whorls the shelf-like spiral is about as strong as the other two spirals and
is nodulated like them; base of the body sculptured with prominent nar-
row spiral threads; aperture of all the specimens imperfect, anterior beak
short, curved backward, columella slightly swollen at the edge of the very
shallow siphonal canal.
Dimen.sions: Length 30 + millimeters, width 14 millimeters (type).
Type: U. S. Nat. Mus. Cat. No. 350581.
Type locality: First long bluff on right bank of Riviere Blanche be-
low gorge, bed 43 of section on page 170 (U.S. Geol. Survey station 9725).
Other localities: Stations 9711, 9726, 9727, 9728, 9731, 9732, and 9733.
(For detailed descriptions see pp. 191-193.)
This is one of the most cl1aracteristic mollusks of the Ma1ssade tongue
of the Thomonde formation, particularly on Riviere Blanche. In general
2
features it resembles P. roumaini Pilsbry, a Ma!ssade species (see Pl.
XVI, Figs. l, 2), but adult shells retain the axial sculpture found only
on young shells of P. roumaini. The name is given for Mr. L. Gentil Tip-
penhauer of Port-au-Prince.
1 The genus is defined on page 367, but there it is given the vernacular name Potamtde.
2 Pilsbry, H. A., Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia Proc., 1910, p. 487, text fig. 1910; idem,

1921, p. 374, 1922.

611
 612 GEOLOGY OF THE REPUBLIO OF HAITI.

Genus CHAMA Linne.

Linne, 1758, Systema N aturae, 10th ed., p. 691.
Type (by subsequent designation, Gray, 1847): Chama lazarus Linne. Recent,
Indian Ocean.

CHAMA ENGONIA Woodring and Mansfield, n. sp.

Plate X, Figures 2, 3 (p. 106).

•
Shell medium sized, inequivalve, the left valve larger, rhomboidal;
umbones strongly prosogyrate; the shell substance is· almost entirely
dissolved from all the specimens, and there is no trace of sculpture; some
of the specimens show an obscure attachment area on the left valve;
hinge inaccessible.
Dimensions: Length 37 millimeters, height 52 millimeters, diameter
(both valves) 34 millimeters (type) ; length 43 millimeters, height 57
millimeters, diameter (both valves) 33 millimeters (largest specimen).
Type: U. S. Nat. Mus. Cat. No. 350573.
Type locality: Road from Ennery to St.-~Iichel de l'Atalaye, west
slope of Crete Salee, about a kilometer from crest (U. S. Geol. Survey
station 9792). Other localities : Stations 9950 and 9952. (For deta.i led
descriptions 8ee p. 106.)
If this species is a Chama it has an unusual outline. The apparent
absence of sculpture may be due to the almost complete r emoval of shell
substance. On some specimens there is a trace of an elongate left posterior
lamella at the hinge margin. In its angular outline Chama engo1iia re-
sembles 0. brimonti d' Archiac and Haime,1 an Indian Eocene species de-
scribed from casts, but it is less quadrate and more inequivalve.

Genus PSEUDOMILTHA Fischer.

Fischer, 1887, Mant1el de Conchyliologie, p. 1144.
Type (by monotypy): Lucina gigantea Deshayes. Eocene, Paris Basin.

PsEUDOMILTHA I-IAITENSIS Woodring and Mansfield, n. sp .

•

Plate X, Figure 1 (p. 106).

Shell large, rounded elliptical, compressed; umbo low; lunule ap-

parently very narrow; sculpture consisting of exaggerated incrementals;
ligament internal, long and narrow ; hinge inaccessible.
Dimensions : L ength 115 millimeters, height 100 millimeters, diameter
(both valves) 34 millimeters (type) ; length 128 millimeters., height 105
millimeters, diameter (both valves) 32 millimeters (largest specimen) ;
length 45 millimeters, height 35 millimeters, diameter (both valves) 16
millimeters (small specimen) . .
d'Archlac, Le Vicomte, and Haime, Jules, D~scrlptlon des anlmaux fosslles du groupe
1
Nummulltique de l'Inde, p. 267, pl. 23, fig. 9, Paris. 1853.

•
 APPENDIX II. 613

Type: U. S. Nat. Mus. Cat. No. 350572.

Type locality : Road from Ennery to St.-Micbel de l' Atalaye, west slope
of Crete Salee about a kilometer from crest (U. S. Geol. Survey station
9792). Other localities: Stations ~950, 9952, 9861, 9889, and 9894. (For
detailed descriptions see pp. 105-106.)
This lucinoid is provisionally placed in the genus Pseudomiltha. It
has the exterior features of the genotype, although most of the speci-
mens are more elongate and there is no trace of radial sculpture. So1ne
of the specimens, particularly small ones, are more rounded than the type.
The specimens are more or less completely covered with a calcareous
crust. On several specimens the posterior hinge margin is broken away,
revealing the cast of the long, narrow ligament. Other specimens show,
where the shell is broken away, obscure radial markings and irregular
attachment areas of the mantle impressed on the internal cast. N11merous.
specimens from stations 9792, 9950, 9952, and 9861 show considerable
di:fference in outline. Some are rol1nded and almost equilateral; others
like the type are more elongate and more inequilateral.
No simjlar American species has been described, but the same or a very
similar species has been collected from the '' Yellow limestone '' of
Jamaica. Dr. C. A. Matley, Government geologist of Jamaica, recently
brought to Washington specimens from the parishes of St. J aines and
Trelawney. Most of the Jamaican specimens are internal casts and •

clearly show the long, narrow anterior muscle scar, but the hinge is
obscure.
• The type of Pseudomiltha haitensis and other inequilateral specimens
1
closely resemble ''Lucina postalensis Oppenheim, a species from the
JJ

middle Eocene beds of Monte Postale, northern Italy; less inequilateral ·

2
specimens resemble ''Lucina pseudogigantea Oppenheim, described
JJ

from the same locality. Most of the Haitian specimens are less rounded
and seem to lack the obscure radial sculpture.
1 Oppenheim, Paul, Die Eocaenfauna des Monte Postale bei Bolca Im Veronesischen:
Palaeontographica, Band 43, p. 155, pl. 12, fig, 4, 1896.
2 Idem, p. 154, pl. 12, fig. 3 .

•
•

•
 •

'

•
 • •
INDEX .
A PAGE PAGE
Abrlcots (les}, rainfall. . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Arcahaie (I') Continued.
Acknowledgments ................ 26-27 clay pi ts near, view (Pl .
.A.cul (l'), Miocene sedimentary rocks 224 XXXVIII, A) . • . . . • . . . . . . . 506
Ag1·icul tu re . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 9-76 rainfall .•.................. 49, 50
crops for domestic consumption. 74-75 Arcahale Plain, artesian possibilities 528
crops for export .............. 70-74 surface features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 393
future crops ...... .......... 76 water resources .......•... 527-528
methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 Argllllte, Cerca-la-Source .••...... 89-90
Amphibollte, occurrence ........ 308-309 Dondon . ........... .. .... .. 88
test for road material . . . . . . . . . 495 Massif du Nord. • . • • • . . . . . . . . 86
Analyses and assays, acknowledg- Montagnes Noires • . . . . . . . . . . 92
ments for . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Plaisance, analysis . . . . • . . • . . 502
basalt ................... 316, 325 Plaisance Valley ............ 86-88
cave earth .................. 511 Troia Rivl~res valley, view (Pl.
cement material . . . . . . . . . . . . . 502 VIII, A) • • • • • • • • • • • • . . • • . 88
copper ore ................ 447, 452 Artibonlte group .......•...... 161-206
granodiori te . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304 mollusks, view (Pl. XVI). • . • . . 192
iron ore ............. 470, 4 78, 479 Artibonite Plain, artesian possibili-
kaolinite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298 ties ..•..........••..... 532-533
lignite ............... 482, 483, 484 general features .•..•• 385, 530-531
limestone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . 501 geomorphology .•..•....... 385-389
manganese ore ....... 475, 478, 479 ground water .......•..... 532-533
nephelite basalt . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316 irrigation and fiood control .. 531-532
pyroxene andesite . . . . . . . . . . . . 276 lo catlon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . 32
quartz diorite ............. 292, 304 salt bush in, view (Pl. VI, B).. 64
silver ore ................... 452 shore features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388
waters .............. 543- 549, 554, sublittoral features . . . . . . . . . . 389
556, 561, 564, 566 water resources ........... 530-533
Andesite, alteration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280 :xerophytic vegetation in (Pl.
analcite and analcite-olivine .. 283- 284 IV, B) . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . 58
augite-hypersthene-hornblende . 277 Artibonite Valley, artesian possiblll-
hornblende ............... 278, 330 ties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 533
hornblende-augite .......... 277-278 drainage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388
hornblende-mica or daclte. . . . . . 278 geomorphology .•.......... 385-389
hypersthene .......... 277, 329- 330 land features ...•.......... 385-388
northern region ... 272-280, 283-284 Miocene deposits .......... 206-210
pyroxene ( augite-hypersthene) 27 4-277 Miocene fossils .•.......... 214-218
chemical analysis and norm 276 possible oil resources. . . . . . . . . 494
micrograph (Pl. XXII, B}. 304 stream terraces ...•....... 384-387
•
rela tion s of types. . . . . . . . . . . . . 279 tectonic features ...... 207-210, 334
southern region ....... 327, 329-330 terrace In, view (Pl. XXX). . . . 386
Terre-Neuve district . . . . . . . . . 430 water resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . 633
Anse-!-Veau, earthquakes ... 342-343, 346 Aslle Valley, faults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
rainfall .................... 49, 50 igneous rocks ............. 321, 323
Anse d' Hainault, residual· iron de- Iign.ite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
posits near .............. 479-480 Miocene deposits .......... 228-231
Anse Rouge, public water supply. • . 591 Miocene fossils, nonmarlne. . . . 231
pillow lava near, view (Pl. VIII,
Anticline of Miocene marl and lime-
B) 88
••• •••• •. . . •. . •. . • •. . . •
stone, view (Pl. XXVI, A) . . 336
structure .......•..•...... 229-230
Apllte . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306
surface features ........... 408-409
Aquln, Igneous rocks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Aux Cayea. See Cayes, les.
Aquln arrondissement, Cretaceous
Ayaye anticline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 491
deposits .................. 92-93
Arbre Plain, artesian possibilities. 535-536
B
Miocene rocks and fossils .... 160-161
surface features ........... 375-376 Bahon, rainfall ................. 49, 50
water resources .........•. 535-536 Bate de Henne, water supply ..... 590-591
Arcahaie (l'), brick factory near, Bainet, rainfall ................. 49, 50
view (Pl. XXXVIII, B). . . . . 506 Barad~res, Miocene rocks near . . . . . 225
615
•
-
'

•
 •

616 INDEX.

•
PAGE PAGE
Basalt, albitized or spilitic. . . . . . . . 326 Bridges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . 82
alteration and metamorphism .. 271- Brown, J. S., on iron in Southern
272, 285 Peninsula ............... 479-480
central r egion ....... . ..... 312-319 on water resources ......... 513-607
Chatne des Mateux. . . . . . . . . . . 319 Brown, J. S., and Burbank, W. S., on
distribution .............. 268- 272, copper-bearing veins in pre-
280-286, 312-314 Tertiary rocks ........... 459-468 '
Ennery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
284 on iron deposits at Morne
hailynite-nephelite . . . . . . . . . . . 317 Beckly ................. 468-4 70
hypersthene, central region .. 312, 314 on manganese deposits ...... 470-477
melilite-nephelite . . . . . . . . . . . . 318 on mineral deposits of Terre-
nephellte, age, origin, rela- Neu ve district ........... 425-459
tions ................... 318-319 on residual concentration of
chemical analysis and iron and manganese ...... 477-479
norm ............... 316-317 B1·own, J. S., and Woodring, W. P.,
distribution and st1~uctural on geography ............. 28-83
relations ........... 314-315 on nonmetals ............. 480-512
petrography .......... 315-318 on sedimentary rocks ........ 84-259
Saut d'Eau ............ 314-315 Brown, J. S., Burbank, W. S., and
Thomazeau . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315 Woodring, W. P ., on geology. 84-422
northern region . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271 on geomorphology ......... 354-422
olivine ................... 284-285 on mineral r esources ....... 423-512
olivine-free ................ 270-271 Building stone ................ 498-500
petrography .............. 270-272, Burbank, W. S., on igneous rocks. 260-380
281-285, 312-314 Burbank, W. S., and Brown, J. S., on
photomlcrographs (Pl. XXIII) . 316 copper-bearing veins in pre-
pillow ............. 96- 97, 321, 323 Tertiary rocks .......... 459-468
Southern Peninsula, chemical on iron deposits at Morne
analysis and norm. . . . . . . . . 325 Beckly . . ............... 468-4 70
relations to sediments, sec- on manganese deposits ...... 470-477
tion (Fig. 20) . . . . . . . . . . 322 on mineral deposits of Ter1·e-
southern region, distribution, al- N euve district ........... 425-459
t eration, origin ..... 320-329, 330 on residual concentration of Iron
Terre-Neuve district ....... 430-431 and manganese .......... 477-479
types and relations. . . . . . . . . . . 286 Burbank, W. S., Brown, J. S., and
Bassin Bleu, rainfall ............. 49, 50 Woodring, W. P., on geology .84-422
Bassler, R. S., acknowledgments. . . . 25 on geomorphology ......... 354-422
Bathymetric map of Port-au-Prince on mineral r esources ....... 423- 512
Bay (Pl. XXXI) . . . . . . . . . . . 398
Bayahonde thicket, view (Pl. V, A) . 62 c
Bayeux, rainfall ...•.•.......... 49, 50 Cacao • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 74
•
Bellad~re an ticllne . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 491 Calcareous argillite, I..ie Trois Ri-
Berry, E. W., acknowledgments. . . . . 25 vi~res, view (Pl. VIII, A) • • • 88
report on fossil plants cited. . . . 25 Camp Perrin, fault ............. 335-336
Bibliography : . .......... 25-26, 596-607 lignite near, areas and char-
Bombardopolis, rainfall . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 acter .......... 232-236, 483-487 •
Bombardopolls Plateau, emerged chemical composition .. 484, 485
~oastal terraces ......... 371-375 hea t~ng value . . . . . . . . . . . 486
Eocene sedimentary rocks ... 112- 113 map (Fig. 16) . . . . . . . • • . . 232
surface features ........... 369-375 Miocene deposits .......... 232-236
Borgne, rainfall ................ 49, 50 Miocene fossils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 structure near ............ 235-236
Borgne arrondissement, Eocene sedi- Cap-Haitien, alluvium, recent .... 581-582
mentary rocks . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 Cretaceous deposits ..... 90- 91, 581
Oligocene sedimentary rocks. . . 151 earthquakes ................. 340
Bras-A-Droit, Miocene sedimentary Eocene limestone . . . . . . . . . . . . 581
rocks ........ . .......... 226-227 faults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Brick making, material used ..... 506-507 ground water . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 582
Brick plant, l' Arcahaie ......... 503-505 igneous r ocks ............. 580-581
Cap-Haitien . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 505 population ................. 66, 67
Grande-Rlvi~re du Nord ..... 505-506 rainfall ............. 44, 49, 50, 51
Hinche . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 506 temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
La Gorge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 506 curve showing (Fig. 2) . . . . 41

•
 •

INDEX. 617

PAGE PA.GB
Cap-Hartlen Continued. Chatne des Mateux, drainage. . . . . . . 394
water supply ............. 577-590 Eocene deposits ........... 126-128
geologic features ot . .... 580- 582 faults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 334
improvement of ....... 585-590 forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
map (Fig. 37) . • . . . • • . . . . 579 geomorphology ............ 391-395
sources ............... 578-585 location and extent ......... 32, 391
surface water available. . . 589 Miocene ( ?) basaltic rocks. . . . 319
well at railroad station. 588-589 Miocene deposits .......... 210- 214
analysis of water. . . . . 544 Miocene fossils ............ 214- 218
wells in city ........... 585-587 Oligocene deposits, middle. . . . . 148
wells on North Plain .... 587-589 upper ................. . 153
section across (Fig. 5) ....... . 128
Cap St.-Nicolas, coastal terraces at,
shore features .............. . 394
view (Pl. XXVIII, O) . . . . . . 372
sublittoral features ......... . 395
Caves, near Cerca-la-Source ...... 511-512 tectonic features .. 127, 213-224, 334
near St. -Michel de l' A talaye .. 25 7-25 9 Chama engonia Woodring and Mans-
Cayes (les), earthquakes . . . . . . . . . . 346 field (Pl. X, Figs. 2, 3) . . . . . . . . 612
population .................. 66, 67 Chamouscadille anticline ........ 490-491
temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Chapelle (la), Miocene beds near,
curve showing (Fig. 2) • • . 41 section (Fig. 12) . . . . . . . . . . . 207
rainfall ............. 48, 49, 50, 51 Miocene marl near, view (Pl.
water supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 593 XIV, A) . . . . • • . • . . • . • • • • • • 168
Cayes arrondissement, Lower Cre- view near (Pl. XXX, B)....... 386
taceous sedimentary rocks. . . 93 Cbardonni~res, rainfall .......... 49, 50
Cayes Plain, artesian possibilities. . 530 Chert, Cretaceous, Mo1·ne du Cap ... 90-91
Miocene deposits . . . . . . . . . . . . 237 residual, analyses and tests for
Miocene fossils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237 road material ........... 495-497
surface features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412 Christophe's Citadelle. See Citadelle.
water resources ............ 529-530 Chrome deposit . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . 425
Cement material .............. 501-503 Citadelle of Christophe, Cretaceous
analyses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 02 limestone near .......•.... 93-94
material used in constructing. . 499
Cent1·a1 Plain, artesian possibilities. 534 view (Pl. XXXVII, B) . . • . . • • . 492
beds in, near Thomassique, view
Citronniers Valley, view (Pl.
(PI. XXXVII, A) • • . • . . . . . . 492
XXXII, A) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 402
crests (accordant) of strike
Clay (brick), Arcahaie, view of pits
ridges on south side of, view (Pl. XXXVIII, A) . . . . . . . . • 506
(Pl. XXIX, A) . . • . . . . . . • • • 380 . occurrence and use ......... 503-507
drainage ................. 381-382 tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 504
geologic sketch map (Pl. Cliff's, limestone, origin . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
XXXVI) . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . 488
Climate, data concerning, source. . . . 86
geomorphology ............ 377- 382 features of ................ . 36-56
location and extent .. 31-32, 377-378 Coastal terraces, views (Pl. XXVIII) 372
Miocene deposits .......... 165-206 Cockerell, T. D. A., acknowledg-
Iithologic change in, dia-
ments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
gram (Fig. 10) . . • . • . • . . 167 report on fossil fish cited. . . . . . 26
naming of •................. 377 Coffee, cultivation .•............. 71-73
oil resourc~s, possible ....... 488-494 exports .................... 73, 78
Oligocene deposits on borders .152-153 Collins, W. D., acknowledgments .. 25, 27
Pliocene deposits, nonmarine. . . 241 Commerce ...................... 76-81
stream ter1·aces in .......... 380-381 Conard, R. A., acknowledgments.... 26
view (Pl. XXIX, B) . . . . . . 380 Conglomerate, Cretaceous, Morne du
surface features ........... 378- 381 Cap ...................... 90-91
tectonic features ...... 334, 488-492 Eocene ....•......... 115, 122- 123
water resources ........... 534-535 Pleistocene, view (Pl. XVII, B) 246
Cerca-la-Source, argillite .......... 89-90 Constant, C. L., assay. . . . . . . . . . . . . 447
cave near, containing deposits Cooper, H. N., analyses ........ 482, 484
of guano ............... 511-512 Copper-bearing veins, Cormiers sec-
Cretaceous deposits .......... 89-90 tion ......•............ 464 465
fault scarp near ........... 334, 361 distribution .......... 423-424, 461
view (Pl. XXV, A). . . . . . . 334 enrichment ............... 460-461
Oeroidium praecomJ thicket of, view general features and origin .. 459-460
• (Pl. V, B) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Grande-Rlvi~re du Nord ..... 462-466
 618 INDEX. •

PAGE PAGE
Copper-bearing veins Continued. Cul-de-Sac Plain Continued.
J ean Rabel ................ 467-468 sublittora.l features ..•.•... 397-398
Las Lomas section . . . . . . . . . . . . 466 surface features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 515
Limonade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467 tectonic features . . . . . . . . . . . • 335
occurrence ................ 423-424 southern edge ......... 219-221
Plaisance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467 water resources ........... 514-527
pre-Tertiary .............. 459-468 well, view (Pl. XL, A). . . . • • . • 520
tenor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461 wells and pumping plants ... 519-525
Zepiny . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 464 Cul-de-Sac trough, section across
Copper ore, assays ........ 447, 452, 465 (Fig. 21) . . . . • . . . . . . . . • . . • 335
views (Pl. XXXV, A, B) ••.• 448, 454
Copper prospects near Grande-Ri- D
vi~re du Nord·, location of,
map (Fig. 29) . . . . . . . • . . . . . 462 Daclte, character and distribu-
Cormiers section, copper-bearing tion ....•............... 272-280
veins .................. 464--465 horn bl en de . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 430
Corn, cultivation ............... 74, 75 hornblende-augite . . . . . . . • • . . . 279
method ot drying, view showing hornblende-mica . . . . . . . • . . . . • 279
petrography ............•. 274-279
(Pl. VII, B)............... 74
pyroxene (augite-hyper-
Correlation table, Tertiary depos-
sthene) .............•.. 278-279
its ..•.................. 100-101
structural relations ......•• 272-27 4
Coteaux, fault ................. 475- 476
Daclte porphyry, Lamielle . . . . . . . • 294
manganese deposits ........ 475 477
Montagnes de Terre-Neuve.... 805
Cotton, cultivation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 Montagnes Noires ..•..•... 299-301
exports, 1791 . . . • . . . . • . . . . . . . 78 photomicrograph (Pl. XXI, B). 300
Cretaceous depcsits (Lower), distri- Terre-Neuve district ....•.. 431-432
bution and character ........ 86-93 view (Pl. XX, A) . . . . . . . . . . . • 296
Massif du Nord .............. 86- 91 Daly, R. A., analyses .......... 276, 292 .
Mon tagnea Noires . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
304, 316, 325
Cretaceous depcsits (Upper), distri- Dam sites, PQseible ...........•. 593-595
bution and character ....... 93-98 Delporte, M. C., aid by. . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Massif de la Hotte ........... 96-97
Dessot1rces, pumping plant ...... 521-522
• Massif de la Selle ..........•. 95-96
wells . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 523
Massit du Nord .............. 93-95
analysis of water. . . . . . . . 544
Montagnes de Terre-Neuve.... 95
logs .................. 522-523
Cretaceous events .....•........ 350-351
Cretaceous fossils ................ 97- 98 Diabase, olivine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285
Cretaceous ( ?) limestone, view (Pl. Diabase porphyries ............ 326-327
VIII, B) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 Dictyoconus codon Woodring (Pl.
Cretaceous system ............... 85-98 IX, Figs. 1, 2, 5, 6) ...... 608-609
Croix-des-Bouquets, rainfall . . • . . . . 50 Dictyoconus puilboreauen8i8 Wood-
Crops grown .................... 69-76 ring (Pl. IX, Figs. 3-5, 7, 8) . 609
Cul-de-Sac Plain, artesian area, Dictyoconus puilboreauenaiB nan-
boundaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 526 noides Woodring (Pl. XIII,
artesian conditions . . . . . . . . . . 519 Figs. B, 0) .•.....•.•.... 60~610
bayahonde thicket in, view (Pl. Dike rocks, northern r egion ...... 295-296
V, A) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
62 Terre-Neuve ............... 305- 306
faults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
335 Distances between towns. . . . . . . . . . 82
general features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 395 Dominican Republic, bibliography,
geomorphology •........... 395-398 additions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 696
ground water .•........... 518- 527 Dondon, argillite ........... 88, 189- 190
irrigation ................ 517-518 Cretaceous dePosits . . . . . . . . . . 88
location and extent ....•.... 32, 395 F,ocenc deposits ........... 111- 112
map (Pl. XXXIX) . . . . . . . . . . . 516 rainfall ..................•. 49, 50
Miocene deposits .......... 219- 223 Drainage, Artibonite Valley . • . . . . . 388
section (Fig. 15) . • . . . . . . • 219 Central Plain ............. 381- 382
Miocene fossils ....•....... 221- 223 Chatne des Mateux. . . • . . . . . . . 394
shore features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 397 general and peculiar features .. 32-36
spring, view (Pl. XL, 0) . . . . . . 520 Gonave Island ............. 35, 421
springs ................... 516-517 Massif de Ia Hotte . . . . . . . . . . 413
analysis of water. . . . . . • . . 556 Massif de la Selle .......... 403-404
value of .......•...... 525-526 Massif du Nord ............ 363-364
•

•
 INDEX. 619

PAGE PAGE
Drainage Continued. Eocene (upper) Continued.
Montagnes du Trou d'Eau. . . . . 391 Montagnes de Terre-
Mon tagnes Nolres . . . . • . . . . . . • 384 Neuve .............. 113- 122
relation to structure ..••..... 35-36 Montagnes du Trou d'Eau. 128
Tortue Island . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Montagnes Noires ..... 123-126
Drouillard, pumping plant. . . . . . . . . 524 Morne du Cap ......... 110-111
Northwest Peninsula ... 112-122
E Rivi~re d'Ennery valley .122-123
Earthquakes .................. 338-349 stratigraphic relations . . . 108
Anse-l-Veau •......... 342-343, 346 structure ............. 109-110
Cap-Hartien . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340 thickness . . . • . . . . . . . • . . . 109
damage by, precautions ..... 348-350 fossils ................... 139- 145
disastrous, 1551-1908 ...... 339-343 limestones, views (Pls. XI,
frequency in di1ferent regions. 346-348 XII) .................. 108, 122
graph showing (Fig. 22).. 343 volcanic detrital material, Bom-
J ~r~mle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . • 346 bardopolis Plateau . . . • . . . . . 112
Les Cayea . . • . . . . • . . . . . . . . . • 346 Morne Couyau . . . . . . . . . . 127
Massif du Nord . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345 Essexite, near Poteau ..••....•. 282-283
MOle St.-Nicolas ........•• 340, 341 Etang
, Bois-Neut, water, analysis.. . 545
Northwest Peninsula ....... 344-345 Etang de MiragoA.ne, igneous rocks. . 321
origin ...•...... 340--341, 342, 343, , water, analysis . . • . . • . . . • . . . . 543
344, 345, 346-348 Etang SaumA.tre, origin ........ 546-547
Port-au-Prince .... 341-342, 345-346 water, analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 545
Port-de-Paix .....•........ 340, 341 Evans, F. G., jr., cooperation ...... 24, 26
records available .......... 338-339 Exports .................. 70-74, 77- 79
i·ecords for 1909-1922 ..... 343-346
Eaux Boynes. See Sources Chaudes F
(Eaux Boynes). Fairchild, J. G., analysis. . . . . . . . . . 475
Emerged coastal terraces, views (Pl. Faults, Astle Valley. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
XXVIII) . . • • . . . • . . • . . • . . . 372 Camp Perrin .............. 335-336
Eocene deposits ................ 99- 145 Cap-Haitien . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . 91
Eocene events ................... 351 Cerca-la-Source ........... 334, 361
Eocene (middle), fossils, views (Pls. Chatne des Mateux. . . . . . . . . . . 334
IX, X) ...•..........•. 104, 106 Coteaux .................. 475-476
Plaisance limestone ......... 99- 107 Cul-de-Sac Plain . . . . . . . . . . . . 335
areal distribution ....... 99- 100 Gros-Morne ........... 120-121, 471
fossils ........... 103, 105-107 J ~re mi e .................. 136, 33 5
lithology ........•.... 102-103 La Tannerie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 95
stratigraphic relations . . . 102 Mont Puilboreau . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 Morne Grammont . . . . . . . . . . . . 336
thickness . . . . . . . . . . • . . . • 103 Plaisance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Eocene (upper), basal beds, Massif Terre-Neuve district ....... 432-433
de la Selle . . . . • • . . . • . . . . . . 129 Trots Rivi~~s valley. . . . . . . . . . 336
basal conglomerate, Borgne ar- views (Pls. XVIII, A; XXV,
rondissement . . . . . . . . . . . . • 112 XXVI, B) •.....•.. 280, 334, 336
Cavalllon . . . . . . . . •• . . . . . . 133 Ferguson, H. G., acknowledgments. . 27
Dondon ................. 111 Field work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Montagnes de Terre- Folds, Cretaceous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332
Neuve ..•..•.•...... 113- 115 Eocene ........•........•. 332-333
Morne du Cap. .......... 110 Miocene and Pliocene ...... 333-336
view (Pl. XII, B). . . • . • . . 108 Terre-Neuve district . . . . . . . . . . 432
deposl ts .................. 108- 145 See al8o Tectonics.
areal dlstribu tlon • . . . . . . . 108 Fond Bleu dome ............... 488-489
• Bombardopolis Plateau .112-113 Fond Verrettes, rainfall .......... 49, 50
Borgne arrondissement . . . 112 Foraminifera, Eocene, genus Dicty-
Chatne des M.ateaux .... 126-128 oconua, descriptions ot spe-
Dondon ............... 111-112 cies .................... 608-610
Gonave I~and •......... 138 views showing (Pls. IX,
lithology ............. 108- 109 XIII) ................. 104, 140
Massif de la Hotte .... .. 132-137 Forests, areal extent and charac-
Massif de la Selle ...... 129- 132 ter ....................... 57-61
Massif du Nord ........ 110-112 Chatne des Mateux. . . . . . . . . . . 60
Montagnes de Jean Rabel.. 113 Gonave Island . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
620 INDEX.

PAGE PAGE
Forests Continued. Geology .........•... .•...••... 84-422
Massif de la Hotte. . . . . . . . . . . . 61 Geomorphology ............ .... 354-422
Massif de la Selle. . . . . . . . . . . . 61 Gold, summary statement . . . . . . . . . 424
Massif du Nord .............. 59, 60 Gonaives, fault near, view (Pl.
Montagnes Noires. . . . . . . . . . . . 60 XVIII, A) . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . 280
Northwest Peninsula . . . . . . . . . 60 population ..... ............ 66, 6 7
Tortue Island . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 rainfall ............. 45, 49, 50, 51
trees composing, kinds ........ 57-59 subaqueous profile n ear (Fig. •
vegetation associated with. . . . 59 24) ············ ·········· 877
Fort-Libert~, rainfall . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Fort Nationale, Port-au-Prince, Pleis- curves showing (Fig. 2) . . . 41
tocene conglomerat e near, view thicket of Ceroidiurn praeco~
(Pl. XVII, B) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246 near, view (Pl. V, B)...... . 62
Fossils, Cretaceous ............. . 97-98 water supply .......•...... 591-592
Eocene ................... 139-145 analysis of water . . . . . . . . 543
Plaisance limestone. 103, 105-107 Gonaives Plain, fault sca1·p on east
Miocene, Arbre Plain . . . . . . . . . 161 side of, view (Pl. XXV,
Artibonlte group ...... 205-206 B) .. . . .. . .. .. . . .. . . .. . . . 33 4
Astle valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231 Gonave Island, drainage ......... 35, 421
Camp Perrin . . . . . . . . . . . . 236 Eocene deposits . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Cayes Plain . . . . . . . . . . . . 237 f ea tu res . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Central Plain ......... 163- 164, forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
173- 197, 20{}-206 geomorphology ............ 418--422
Chatne des Mateux . ..... 214-218 balophytic vegetation, view,
Cul-de-Sac Plain ...... 221-223 (Pl. VI, 0)..... . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Gonave I sland ......... 238-239 land features ............. 418- 421
J ~r~mie, commune of ... 227-228 limestone ridge on, view (Pl.
Las Cahobas formation .. 200-205 XXXII, B) . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . 402
Madame Joie formation .163-164 Miocene deposits .......... 237-239
:hifaissade tongue ....... 191-197 Miocene fossils ............ 238-230
Port-Salut . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288 section across (Fig. 8)........ 138
Southern Peninsula .. . . 225-226 shore features ......... . .. 421-422
Thomonde formation .... 173-190 sublittoral features .. . . . . . . . . . 422
Oligocene, middle .......... 149-150 tectonic features . . . . . . . . . . . . 336
upper ........•....... 154-157 water resources ........... 540-541
Pliocene ................•. 241-243 Grand-Goave, Miocene sedimentary
Quaternary, marine •....... 247-254 rocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
nonmarine ............ 256-257 Grand-G osier, water supp1y. . . . . . . . 5 n•.1 uv
views ...... 104, 106, 140, 176, 192 Grande Riviere de J~r~mie, Miocene
Fruit grown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 deposits ................ 226-227
Furey, humidity . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . 56 possible water power available
rainfall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 from .................... . 595
compared with that at Port-
52
Grande Rivi~re de Uogane, possible
au-Prince ...........•.
39
water power available from .. 595
temperature • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Grande Riviere du Ct1l-de-Sac, flow
at ordinary stages ........ . 517
G
limestone on, view (Pl. XII, B) 122
Gantier, rainfall ................ 49, 50 thrust fault on, view (Pl. XXVI,
\

t empe1·ature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
B) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336
curves showing (Fig. 2).. 41
water of, analysis. . . . . . . . . . . . 543
Gayler, Commander E. R., plans ap-
water power available from .. 594- 595
proved by . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Gelger, A. T., analysis. . . . . . . . . . . . 545 Grande-Riviere du Nord, copper ore,
Geographic features of West Indies, assay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465
map showing (Fig. 1) . . . . . . . 29 coppe1· prospects near, location
Geographic provinces, general fea- of, map showing (Fig. 29) . . . 462
tures .................... 31-32 copper veins near .......... 4.62-466
map (Pl. XXVII) . . . . . . . . . . . . 354 rainfall ................ 49, 50, 51
Geography .....•................ 28-83 Grande-Saline, pits for evaporating
economic ................... 65-83 sea water near, view (Pl.
physical ...... . ............. 28- 65 ( XXXVIII, O) . . • . • . . . . • . • 506
Geologic history, summary ...... 350-353 xeropbytic vegetation near (Pl.
Geologic map. Bee Map (geologic). IV, B) . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . • • f>S

\
 •

INDEX. 621
PAGE PAGE
Granodlorite .................. 303-305 Igneous rocks Con tinned.
Mem6 valley, chemical analysis Southern Peninsula . . . . . . . . . . 323
and norm ................. 304 southern region ... 264-265, 320-330
photomicrograph (Pl. XXII, A) 304 general features . . . . . . . . • 320
Terre-Neuve district . . . . . . . . . 431 petrography and chemical
view (Pl. XX, B) . . . . . . . . . . . . 296 composition ......... 323-327
Gravel, analyses and tests for road Ter1·e-Neuve district ....... 429-432
material ................ 496-497 Imports, articles and value, 1917-22 ... 80
Gros-Morne, fault ......... 120-121, 471 Indigo, cultivation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Gros-Morne commune, manganese de- expor~, 1791 ........ ....... 78
posits .................. 470-475 Iron deposits, analyses. 470, 478, 479. 480
manganese ore, analysis of. . . . . 475 Anse d'Hainault ........... 4 79-480
location and geologic con- J~r~mie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 480
ditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 470 Morne Beckly ............. 468-4 70
mineralogy ............ 4 71-473 North Plain .............. 4 77 -4 78
origin ................ 4 73-4 7 4 Southern Peninsula ........ 479-480
sections (Fig. 30) . . . . . . . . 471 summary statement . . . . . . . . . . 423
Grover, N. C.• acknowledgments. . . . 27 Itinerary, map showing (Pl. Ill). . 24
Guano deposits in caves ......... 510-512
analyses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 511 :r
Jackson, R. T., acknowledgments. . . 25
H
Jacmel, population .............. 66, 67
Hall ............. .............. 55 Oligocene deposits . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Haiti, geographic relations........ 28 rainfall ............. 47, 49, 50, 51
Halophytic vegetation . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 water supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 593
view (Pl. VI, 0) . . . • . . . . . . . . . 64 Jacmel an·ondissement, Cretaceous
Harrison, J. B., analysis. . . . . . . . . . 316 deposits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
11
Rasco '' mill, well ............ 524-525 Jamaica, ''Yellow limestone'' of. . . 105
Henderson, J. B., acknowledg- Jean Rabel, copper-bearing veins. 467-468
ments ................. 236, 256 Jean Rabel Valley, artesian possibili-
Hewett, D. F., acknowledgments. . . . 27 ties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 537
Highways ....................... 81-82 Miocene sedimentary rocks .. 158-159
Hinche, rainfall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 surface features ............. 376
Hinche formation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241 water resources ............ 536-537
Honey . ...... ............ ... ... 74 J ~r~mie. earthquakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346
Howard, C. S., analyses ... 543, C544, 545, fault .................... 136, 335
554, 556, 561, 564, 566 iron deposits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 480
H umldlty ....................... 55-56 population ................. 66, 67
Furey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 rainfall ............. 48, 49, 50, C51
Port-au-Prince .............. 55-56 water supply .............. 592-593
Hurricanes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 J~r~mie commune, Miocene depos-
its ...............•..... 226-227
I Miocene fossils ............ 227-228
structure ................. 226-227
Igneous activity, summary. . . . . . . . 26·1
Jones, W. F., acknowledgments. . . . 27
Igneous rocks ................. 260-330
analyses ............ 276, 292, 298, K
304, 316, 325
Aquin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323 Kaolinite, Morne Madeline, chemical
Asile valley .............. 321, 323 analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298
central region .... 263-264, 312-319
distribution .. 260-265, 287, 320- 323 L •
,
Etang de MiragoA.ne . . . . . . . . . . 321 La Chapelle. See Chapelle (la).
Massif de la Selle .......... 320-321 Lago de Enriquillo, analysis of
northern region ........... 265-312 water . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 545
age of e1·uptlons ........ 266-267 I..akes, fresh, quality of water .... 542- 544
classifica tlon . . . . . . . . . . . . 307 location and general features. . 35
distribution .. 265-266, 286- 287 salt, quality of water ..... ; .. 545-547
extrusive and intrusive, re· See also entries und.er Etang
lations ............. 310-312 and. Lago.
order of eruptions ...... 267-268 Lamielle, dacite porphyry. . . . . . . . . . 294
outline ................... 262-265 La Morlni~re. See Morini~re (la).
Sources Chaudes de J ~r~mle. . . 323 La Pierre. See Pierre (la).
 622 INDEX.

PAGE PAGll
La Ravine du Sud. See Ravine du Limestone Continued.
Sud (la). schistose, Lower Cretaceous,
Larsen, E. S., jr., acknowledg- Aquin arrondissement . • . . • • 93
ments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Lower Cretaceous, Jacmel
Las Cahobas formation, character arrondissement . • . . . • • . 92
and distribution ...•..... 197-205 Paleozoic ( ?) , Tortue Is-
crest of strike ridges for med by, land . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
view (Pl. XXIX, A) . . . . . . . . 380 test for road material ....•. 495, 496
fossils ............•...... 20-0-205 views ( Pls. VIII, XI, XII,
section ................... 198-199 XVII) ......... 88, 108, 122, 246
view (Pl. XIV, B) . . . . . . . . . . . 168 Limestone areas, water resources. 539-540
Las Cahobas to Maneville, section Limonade, copper-bearing veins near 467
(Fig. 19) . . . . . . . . • . • . . . . . • 313 rainfall ..•........•..•..... 49, 50
Las Lomas, copper veins. . . . . . . . . . 466 Live stock ..... ... .............. 75-76
La Tannerie. S ee Tannerie (la). Lower Cretaceous. See Cretaceous
Lava (pillow), view (Pl. VII I, B) . . 88 deposits (Lower).
Lavas and sediments in Southern
Peninsula, relations, section M
(Fig. 20) . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322
Lead and zinc, summary statement.. 424 Mcllhenny, J. A., plans approved
Ledoux & Co., analyses and assays. . 25, by . . •. ••••••. . . .•. ••••••• 23
447, 452, 470, 478, 479 McNair, E. L., acknowledgments.... 26
Uogane, rainfall ................ 49, 50 Madame Joie formation ......... 162-164
water supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 592 fossils ...................• 163-164
Uogane Plain, artesian possibill- section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
ties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 529 Marssade, lignite .............. 481-483
surface features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 403 Marssade tongue ............... 168-173
water resources ........... 528-529 fossils .................... 191-197
Les Abricots. See Abricots (les). lignite ................... 170-173
Les Cayes. See Cayes (les). mollusks of, views (Pl. XVI)... 192
IJes Perches. See Perches (les). relations to Thomonde forma-
Les Roseaux. See Roseaux (les). tion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Les Troia Rivi~res. See Trois Rivi· diagram showing (Fig. 11). 169
~res valley. sections .................. 170-173
I~ Trou. See Trou (le). Maneville, nephelfte basalt from,
Lignite, areal distribution and char- chemical analysis . . . . . . . . . . 316
acter of deposits ......... 480-487 nephelf te basalt from, photo-
Asile valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229 micrograph (Pl. XXIII, B) • . 316
Camp Perrin ..... 232-236, 483-485 section from Las Cahobas to
analyses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 484 (Fig. 19) . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . • . 313
sketch map of area (Fig. Manganese deposits, character and
16) •. •••••. ••••. . •••• 232 extent .............•.... 470-480
heating value .............. 485-487 Coteaux .................. 475-477
graph showing (Fig. 31). . 486 Gros-Mo me commune ...... 470-475
Malssade ......... 170-173, 481-483 analysis, partial . • . . . . . . . 475
analyses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 482 sections (Fig. 30) . . . • • • . 471
Ravine du Sud, section of beds North Plain, analysis ....... 477-478
(Fig. 17) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233 Paul .. ............. ...... 4 78-4 79
treatment to prevent slacking.. 487 analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 479
Lime ......................... 500-501 summary statement . . . . . . . . . . 424
Limestone, Cretaceous (Lower), Mansfield, W. C., acknowledgments. 25
Cayes arrondlssement . . . . . . 93 Mansfield, W. C., and Woodring, W.
Cretaceous (Lower) ( ?) , Ti- P., on new middle Eocene and
buron arrondlssemen t . . . . . . 93 lower Miocene mollusks ... 611-613
•
Cretaceous (Upper), Citadelle of Manufactu1·es . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Christophe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 94 Map (bathymetric), Port-au-Prince
Massif de la Hotte ........ 96-97 Bay (Pl. XXXI) . . . . . . . . . . 398
Massif de la Selle ........ 95- 96 Map (geologic), Cap Haitien water
Eocene, types ............. 108- 109 supply (Fig. 37) . . . . . . . . . • • 579
metamorphosed, Lower Creta- Central Plain (Pl. XXXVI) . . . 488
ceous, Petlt-Goave . . . . . . . . . 92 general (Pl. I) •.......... In pocket
Mont Puilboreau, analysis. . . . . 501 Grande-Rivi~re du Nord (Fig.
Mont-Rouis, analysis .... :. . • • 501 29) •. •. •.. . ••. ••••••. •.• • 462
•
 •

INDEX. 623

PAGE PAG1' •

Map (geologic) Continued. Massif du Nord Continued.

Port-au-Prince water supply general features ........... 359-360
(Fig. 36) . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . 568 geomorphology ............ 359-366
Terre-Neuve region (Pl. II). In pocket highland in eastern part. . . . . . 360
Map (outline), geographic provinces igneous and sedimentary rocks
(Pl. XX VII) . . . . . . . . . . . • . . 354 in, relations, se~tion showing
showing itinerary (PI. I II) . . . . 24 (Fig. 18) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 311
Terre-Neuve district (Fig. 26). 426 land features, central part .. 361-362
West Indies, showing trend of eastern part .•.....•.. 360-361
geographic features (Fig. 1). 29 western part .......... 362-363
Map (topographic) , Cul-de-Sac Plain location and extent ......... 31, 359
(Pl. XXXIX) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 516 Oligocene sedimentary rocks.146-147
Eaux Boynes (Fig. 34)........ 559 shore features ............. 364- 365 •

Sources Chau des (Fig. 34) . . . . . 559 sublittoral features .......• 365-366
Sources Chaudes de los Pozos tectonic features .•........ 332, 333
(Fig. 35 ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 563 Ma teux, rainfall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Mapou Plain, limestone ridge on, Matthes, F. E., acknowledgments. . . 27
view (Pl. XXXII, B ) . . . . . . . 402 lieinzer, 0. E., acknowledgments.. . 27
surface featu1·es and origin .. 419-420 Mem~ Valley, contact metamorphic
Mapou tree, view (Pl. IV, A.) • • • . . • 58 deposits, section (Fig. 28).. 444
Marble, Lower Cretaceous, Les Trois granodiorite, chemical analysis
Rivi~res valley . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 and norm ................. 304
Marl, near St.-Marc, analysis. . . . . . 502 photomicrograph (PI. XXII,
Marl beds, view (Pl. XIV O) . . . . . . . 168 A) • . • • . . . •• • • •. . . . • • 804:
Massif de la Hotte, Cretaceous de- view (Pl. XX, B) . . . . . . . . 296
posits .................... 96- 97 mapou tree in, view (Pl. IV, A) 58
drainage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413 ore from , view (Pl. XXXIV, A) 448
Eocene deposits .. .........• 132- 137 Mercury, summary statement ..•. 424 425
torests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 Mesozoic, early, events. . . . . . . . . . . • 350
general features ........... 406-407 Metadiabase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288
geomorphology ............ 406 418 Metamorphic rocks, of igneous origin,
land features, eastern part, in- northern r egion ......... 306-309
t erior .................. 408 409 Miller, G. S., jr., acknowledgments. . 25
eastern part, north slope. 407-408 report on extinct Quaternary
eastern part, south slope. 409-410 mammals cited . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
western part, north slope. 410-411 Mineral resources .............. 423-512
location and extent ........ 31, 406 metals ................... 423 480
section across (Fig. 7)........ 137 summary ............. 423-425
shore features ............. 413-416 nonmetals ................ 480-512
structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 Mineral springs, quality of water. . . 547
sublittoral features ........ 416 418 Miocene deposits .............. 157- 239
Massif de la Selle, basalt from, pho- Arbre Plain ............... 160- 161
tomicrograph (Pl. XXIII, A). 316 areal distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Cretaceous deposits .......... 95-96 Artibonlte valley •......... 206-210
drainage ................. 403-404 sections (Figs. 12, 13) .. 207, 208
Eocene deposits .......•... 129-132 Asile valley .............. 228-231
forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 sections . . . . . . • . . . . • . . . . 230
geomorphology ............ 398-406 Barad~res . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . 225
•
Igneous rocks ............. 320- 321 Bras-a-Drott .............. 226-227
land features ............. 399-404 Camp Perrin .............. 232-236
location and extent .... . 32, 398-399 section (Fig. 17)......... 233
mountains, interior ........ 400-402 Cayes Plain ...........••.... 237
north slope ........... 399-400 Central Plain .........••.. 161-206
south slope ........... 402-403 Ji tho logy of, change in, dia-
shore and sublittoral features. 404-406 gram showing (Fig. 10). 167
structure ................. 130-131 Chatne des Mateux.......... 210-214
Massif du Nord, argillite. . . . . . . . . . 86 Cul-de-Sac Plain ........... 219- 223
Cretaceous deposits (Lower) .. 86- 91 section (Fig. 15) . . . . . . . . . 219
Cretaceous deposits (Upper) ... 93- 95 Gonave Island ............. 237- 239
drainage .................. 363- 364 Grand-Goave . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
earthquakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345 Grande Rivl~re de J~r~mie ... 226-227
Eocene deposits ........... 110-112 Jean Rabel valley .......... 158, 159
forests .................... 59, 60 J~r~mie commune .......... 226-227
 624 INDEX.

PA.GI I PA.Gm
Miocene deposits Continued. Montagnes de Terre-Neuve, dacite
La Chapelle, lowland and ridge porphyry . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . 305
formed by view (Pl. XXX, Eocene deposits ..•..•.••.. 113- 122
B) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386 Oligocene deposits . . . . . . . . . . • 147
l' Acul . . . . . . . . • . . . . . • . . . . . • . 224 Cretaceous ( ?) limestone . . . . . 95
Les Roseaux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227 quartz dlorite (later) •..... 301-306
lithology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 structure .......•......... 120-122
MOle St.-Nicolas . • . . . . . . . . . . . 160 surface features .•... .... .. 367-368
Morne-A.-Ba tea u . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223 Montagnes du Nord-ouest, surface
Morne des Gu~pes .......... 210-212 features ................ 368-369
Petionville ................ 220- 221 Montagnes du Trou d'Eau, drainage. 391
Port-au-Prince ............ 220- 221 Eocene deposits . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Port-Salut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228 geomorphology ............ 389-391
St.-Marc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212 location and extent. . . . . . . . . . . 389
Oligocene · (middle) deposits.... 148
St.-Marc valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Oligocene (upper) deposits .. 153-154
Savanette, anticline formed by,
section across (Fig. 19) . . . • . . . 313
view (Pl. XXVI, A).. . . . . . . 336
surface features ..... .•.... 389-390
Southern Peninsula, north Montagnes Noires, argillite. . . . . • . . 92
coast ................... 223-226 Cretaceous deposits . . . . . . . . . . 92
stratigraphic relations ..... 157- 158 dacite porphyry ........... 229-301
structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 .photomicrograph (Pl. XXI, B). 300
Tapion du Petit-Goave ...... 224- 225 view (Pl. XX, A) . . . . • • • . • 296
thickness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 drainage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384
Trois Rivi~res valley ........ 159-160 Eocene deposits ........... 123-126
Miocene events ................ 352- 353 forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Miocene fossils, Arbre Plain. . . . . . . . 161 general features . . . . . . . . . . . . • 383
Artibonite valley .......... 214-218 geomorphology ............ 382-384
Asile valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231 location and extent ..... 32, 382-383
Camp Perrin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236 Oligocene deposits . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Cay es Plain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 37 surface features ........... 383-384
Central Plain ............. 163-164. section across (Fig. 19) . . . . . . . 313
173-197, 200-206 tectonic features . . . . . . . . . . . . 334
Chatne des ~fateux .......... 214-218 l\1oreau de St.-Mery, cited on flood
Cul-de-Sac Plain ........... 221-223 control of Rivi~re Artib<>nlte. 531
Morini~re (la), flowing well near .. 520-521
Gonave Island ............. 238- 239
log . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 521
J er6mie commune .......... 227-228
view (Pl. XL, A) • • • • • • . . 520
Port-Salut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
pumping plant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 521
Southern Peninsula ........ 225-226
analysis of water at. . . . . . 544
Miragoft.ne, rainfall .............. 49, 50 Morne-A-Bateau, Miocene ( ?) de-
salty springs near, analyses of posits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
water . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 554 Morne Beckly, iron deposits ...... 468-470
view (Pl. XL, B) . . . . . . . . 520 iron ore, analysis . . . . . • . . . . . . 470
Mlrebalais, rainfall ....... 46, 49, 50, 51 character and occurrence.468 469
MOle St.-Nicolas, earthquakes ... 340, 341 economic value . . . . . . . . . . 470
Miocene deposits . . . • . . . . . . . . . 160 geography and geology. . . . 468
rainfall ............. 45, 49, 50, 51 origin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 469
•
water supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 590 Morne Bi~nac, Eocene limestone .. 115- 116
MOie St.-Nlcolas Bay, coastal ter- Morne Blanc, Eocene limestone. . . . . 117
races, view (Pl. XXVIII, B). 372 Morne Bouvard, Eocene limestone.. . 120
Mollusks, description of species ... 611-613 Morne Couyau, Eocene limestone. . . 127
views (Pls. X, XV, XVI) . . . • . . 106, Morne Deux Mamelles, thn1st tault
176, 192 near, view (Pl. XVIII, A) . . 280
Mont Puilboreau, fault. . . . . . . . . . . . 103 1\.-forne du Cap, Cretaceous dePQsits. 90, 91
Montagnes de la Hotte, surface fea- Eocene deposits ......... .. 110-111
tures •........•..•...... 411-412 geomorphology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363
Bee also Massit de la Hotte. Morne Dumuraille, pyroxene andcsite,
Montagnes de Jean Rabel, Eocene chemical analysis and norm.276-277
deposits • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113 pyroxene andesi te, photomicro-
Oligocene dePosits . . . . . . . . . . . 147 graph (Pl. XXII, B) . . . . . . . . 304
Montagnes de Plymouth, rainfall, Morne Grammont, Eocene limestone. 124
annual • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • • 50 fault . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336
 •

INDEX. 625

PAGE PAGE
Morne Grand-Gille, Cretaceous lime- Northwest P eninsula Continued.
stone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 shore f eatures ............. 376-377
Morne H Opital, Eocene limestone . . . 130 sublittoral f eatures . . . . . . . . . . 377
structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130 tectonic features ........... 333- 334
•
Morne la Pierre, E ocene limestone. . 116,
117- 118 0
Morne Macat, Eocene conglomerate O·ffice work ...................... 24- 2:>
and limestone ........... 114, 115 Oil (possible) ................. 488-4 94
Morne Madame J oie, foothills at, Artibonlte Valley . . . . . . . . . . . . 494
s ection ( Fig . 9) . . . . . . . . . . . . 162 Central Plain ............. 488-494
Morne Madeline, kaolinite, chemical Oligocene deposits ............. 145- 157
analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298 Oligocene events ............... 351- 352 •

quartz diorite, chemical analysis Oligocene (lower), deposits. . . . . . . . 145 •

a nd norm ............... 292- 293 Oligocene (middle) , deposits ..... 146-150

phot omicrog raph (Pl. XXI, dePQsits, Chatne des Ma t eux. . . 148
A) .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300 Jacmel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
view (Pl. XIX, B) . . . . . . . . 290 Les Trois Rivi~res valley.. 147
Morne Michel , E ocene limestone. . . . 126 Massif du Nord ........ 146- 147
Morne Mlguinda , Eocene limestone.119- 120 Montagnes de Jean Rabel.. 147
Morne Solell, Eocene limestone ... 116-117 Montagnes de T erre-Neuve. 147
Mornes de St.-1\Iarc, surface f ea- Montagnes du Trou d'Eau. . 148
tures ................... 392- 393 l\iontagnes Noires . . . . . . . . 148
Mornes des Gu~pes, Miocene depos- Northwest Peninsula . . . . . 147
it s ..................... 210- 212 fossils ................... 149, 150
section across (Fig. 14) . . . . . . . 211 Oligocene (upper), basal conglomer-
structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211 ate, Thomazeau . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Moron, ra infall .......... 48, 49, 50, 51 deposits .................. 151- 157
Moulin, conglomer a t e n ear, view (Pl. Borgne arrondlssement . . . 151
XI, B ) . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . 108 Central Plain, borders .. 152- 153
Mountains and high lands, water r e- Chatne des Mateux. . . . . . . . 153
sources .... . ..... . ...... 539- 540 Tortue Island . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Trois Rivi~res valley ... 151-152
N Montagnes du Trou d'Eau
Nonmetals .................... 480- 512 153-154
'' Nords '' ( long, st eady rains) . . . . . . 54 fossils ................•.. 154- 157
North Plain, artesian possibilities. . 539 Ore, assays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 447
dissected and undlssected views (Pls. XXXIII-XXXV) ... 438,
pa rts ...... . ............ 356- 357 448, 454
fiood control .............. 537- 538 p
general f eatures . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356 Paleozoic events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 350
geomorphology ............ 356-359 Paleozoic ( ?) metamorphic rocks ... 84- 85
ground water .............. 538-539 Parsons, Commander A. L., acknowl-
iron and manganese concentra- edgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
tions ................... 4 77-4 78 arrangements made by.... . . . . 24
land features ............. 356- 358 Paul, iron and manganese r esidual
loca t ion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 concentration n ear ....... 478-479
low hills of bedrock. . . . . . . . . . . 357 Pegmatite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306
rock platform at landward Perches (les), quartz dlorite n ear,
edge .................... 357-358 photomicrograph (Pl. XXI,
shore f eatures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358 A) • • . . • • • • . • . . • • • . . • . . . . . 300
streams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 7 quartz diorlte near, view (Pl.
sublittoral f eatures ........ 358-359 XIX, B) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290
surface t ea tu r es . . . . . . . . . . . . . 537 Perldo ti te . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288
wa ter r esources ......... : . 537- 539 Pestel, water supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . 592
Northwest P eninsula, earthquakes. 344- 345 P~tlonville, Miocene deposits near. 220- 221
E ocene deposits ........... 112-122 rainfall .................... 49, 50
f or ests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . 39
general features ........... 366-377 curves showing (Fig. 2 ) . . 41
geographic subdivisions . . . . . . . 367 Petit-Goave, Cretaceous deposits near 92
geomorphology ............ 366- 377 rainfall .................... 49, 50
location and larger f eatures. . . . 31 P eyrard, w ell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 520
Oligocene deposits . . . . . . . . . . . 147 Pie de Pignon, Oligocene limestone. 146
Quaternary deposits ........ 371-375 Pierre (la) spring. . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . 118

•
626 INDEX.

PAGE PAGE
Pilate, rainfall ...... . .......•.. 49, 50 Port-Margot, rainfall .•.....•....• 50
•

Pillow lava, view (Pl. VIII, B). . . . 88 Port-Salut, Miocene deposits ....••. 228
Pilsbry, H. A., acknowledgments. . . . 25 Miocene tossils ..•.....••...• 228
r eport on fossil Cirripedia, cited 26 Port-Salut peninsula, surface fea-
Plaisance, argillite, analysis. . . . . . . 502 tures ............•...•. 412-413
copper-bearing veins . . . . . . . . . 467 Potamid es tippenhaueri Woodring
faults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 and Mansfield (Pl. XVI, Figs.
fault zone at, section (Fig. 4).. 87 3. 4) . . . . . • . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . 611
Plaisance limestone. See Eocene Poteau, essexite near ....•....•• 282-283
(middle). Poultry . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Plaisance Valley, argillite ......... 86-88 Precipitation, records of ..•..•.... 43-55
Cretaceous deposits •......... 86-88 Profiles, subaqueous •....•. 365, 377, 417
water power, possible. . . . . . . . . 594 Pseudomilt1ia haiten8i8 Woodring
Platinum, summary statement. . . . . 424 and Mansfield (Pl. X, Fig.
Pleistocene conglomerate, view (Pl. 1) .. ............•...... 612-613
XVII, B) . . • . • . . . . . . . . • . . . 246 Pumping plants, Cul-de·Sac Plain. 519-525
Pliocene deposit ............... 239-243 Pusey, Lewis B., acknowledgments. • 27
marine ................... 239- 240
nonmarine .•.............. 240- 241
Q
Pliocene even ts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353
Pliocene fossils •........•....•. 241- 242 Quar1·ies, Gonaives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Pliocene ( r) fossils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243 MOle St.-Nicolas . . . . . . . . . . . • . 499
Pointe la Pierre, subaqueous profile Quartz dlorite, Virgin Islands, chem-
off (Fig. 24) . . . . . . . . . . • . . . 377 ical analysis . . . . . . . . . . • . . . 292
Population .•.................... 65-69 Quartz diorlte (earlier) ........ 289-299
density . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
age ...... · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · 299
geographic control ........... 68, 69 alteration and metamorphism.296-297
principal cities ............. 66, 67 dike rocks and veins .....•.. 295-296
urban and rural, comparison. . . 67 distribution and structural rela-
Port-au-Prince, earthquakes ..... 341-342, tions ................ ... 289-290
345-346 Morne Madeline, chemical analy-
humidity ..•..•............. 55-56 sis and norm ............ 292-293
Pleistocene conglomerate at, o phi tic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294
view (Pl. XVII, B) . . . . . . . . . 246 petrography and chemical com-
population ................. 66, 67 position .......... ...... 290-295
rainfall ......... 47, 49, 50, 51, 52 photomicrograph (Pl. XXI, A) . 300
compared with that at test for road material ....... 495-496
F'tlrcy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 variety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293
Miocene deposits . . ........ 220-221 view (Pl. XIX, A, B). . . . . . . . . 290
t emperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 volumetric mineral composition . 292 •
curves showing (Fig. 2)... 41 weathering ....•.......... 297-299
water supply .............. 566- 577 Quartz diorite (later), comPosition.302-303
analyses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 543 dist1·ibution and structural rela-
c onclusions . . . . . . • . . • • . . 577 tions .................. . 301-302
geologic f ea tu res and rela- 1.{ontagnes de Terre-Neuve ... 301-306
tion .•.............. 570-571 petrography and chemical com-
map showing (Fig. 36) . . . . 568 position ........•....... 302-305
quality and treatment for
r e la tlon s of types . . . . . . . . . . . . 306
hardness ............ 575-576
Terre-Neuve district . . . . . . . . . . 431
sources and distributing
Quartz diorlte porphyries, earlier. 294-295
system .•........... 567-569
springs .....•........• 571-574 Quaternary events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353
yield ................. 569-570 Quaternary limestone, view (Pl.
surface water available .. 576- 577 XVII, A) • • • • . . . . . . . • . . • . . 246
well water available .... 574-575 Quaternary mammals and birds, ex-
Port-au-Prince Bay, bathymet1·ic tinct ................•.. 257-260
map (Pl. XXXI) . . • . . • . • . . • 398 Quaternary deposits ............ 243-257
Port-de-Paix, earthquakes ....... 340, 341 marine ............•...... 243-254
population ..•........•..... 66, 67 fossils ................ 24 7-254
rainfall ............. 44, 49, 50, 51 lithology and local de·
temperatu re . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . 37 tails •..•........... 244-247
curves showing (F'ig. 2) . . . 41 section at Port-de-Paix. . . . 246
water supply . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 590 stratigraphic relations . . • • 244

•
•

INDEX. 627

PAGE PAGE
Quaternary deposits Continued. Road material ................. 494-498
marine Continued. tes ts of samples ............ 495-497
st1·uctu r e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247 Roch e-a-ravet, view (Pl. XVII,
t h ickness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247 A) .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 46
nonmarine ................ 255- 257 Roche Glls~, Mem~ Valley, ore from,
f ossils . ............... 256- 257 view (Pl. XXXIV, A.) • • • . • • 448
Rocher, copper ore from, view (Pis.
R XXXIV, B; XXXV, A., B) .448, 454
Railroads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 Rock for concrete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500
Rainfall, ail stations, a nnual. . . . . . 50 Roseaux (les), Miocene sedimentary
all stations, mon t hly. . . . . . . . . . 49 r ocks near ................ 227
Cap-Hait ien ...........•. 44, 49, 51 Rudistid mollusks, Upper Cretaceous 94
curves showing (Fig. 3 ) . . . . . . . 51
Fu.rcy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 s
geographic control .......... 53, 54 St.-Lot1ls du Sud, igneous rocks. . . . . 323
Gonaives ............... 45, 49, 51 rain fall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
J a cmel ................. 47, 49, 51 St.-Marc, emerged coastal terraces. . 394
J~r~mie ............. . .. 48, 49, 51 Miocene deposits . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Les Cayes .............. 48, 49, 51 population ................. 66, 67
Mirebala is .............. 46, 49, 51 rainfall ................ 45, 49, 50
M6le St.-Nicolas ......... 45, 49, 51 water supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 592
Moron .................. 48, 49, 51 St.-Marc valley, Miocene deposits. . . 212
Port-au-Prince .......... 47, 49, 51 structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
comparison with Furey. . . 52 St.-Mlchel de l' Atalaye, guano de·
Port-de-Paix ............. 44, 49, 51 posits in caves near ...... 511- 512
relation to altitude ....... 50, 52, 53 rainfall ............. 46, 49, 50, 51
St.-Marc ................... 45, 49 Salt bush, view (Pl. VI, B). .. ..... 64
St.-~Iichel de l'Atalaye .... 46, 49, 51
Salt works , Go naives, Bale de Henne,
seasonal distribution . . . . . . . . . 50 and Grande-Saline •...... "509-510
tables showing •..•.......... . 44- 52 view (Pl. XXXVIII, 0).. . . . . . . 506
Tbomazeau ................. 46, 49 Sal trou, limestone beds near, view
time and duration ...•........ 54, 55 (Pl. XII) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Rainstorms, types ............... . 54 water supply . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . 593
Rat hburn, M. J., acknowledgments .. 25 Sand, f or mortar and concrete ... 507- 509
r eport on fos sil crabs cited .... 26 mechanical analyses ....... 508, 509
Ravine du Sud (la), lignite-bearing tes t for use in concrete. . . . . . . . 508
beds on, section (Fig. 17) ... 233 Saut d'Eau, nephelite basalts, near.314-315
Reef caps, Quaternary, relation to volcanic bedded d~bris near,
tectonic features ......... . 337 view (Pl. XVIII, A) • . . • . . • • 280
Rivi~re Artibonite, origin of present Savane-A-Roche, gravel-covered ter-
course ............. 381-382, 388 race near, view (Pl. XXX,
water of, analysis. . . . . . . . . . . . 543 A) • . . . . • • • • . • • • • • • • • • • . . • 386
Rivl ~re Artibonite and tributaries, Savane la Cidra, dacite porphyry
water power available. . . . . . 594 from, photomicrograph (Pl.
Rivi~re Blanche, flow. . . . . . . . . . . . . 517 XXI, B) • . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . 300
Rivi~re Coupe-A.-l'lnde, possible dacite porphyry from, velw (Pl.
water power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 594 xx, A.) •••••••••••••••••• 296
Rlvi~re Delean, Miocene beds on, view (Pl. VI, A) . • . . • • . . • . • . . 64
section (Fig. 12) . . . . . . . . . . 207 Savane Madame Michaud, bedded
Rivi~ re d'Ennery, Eocene deposits.122- 123 volcanic d~bris near, view (Pl.
Eocene limestone near, view XVIII, B) • • . . . • . . . • • . . . . . 280
showing (Pl. XII, A.) • • • • • • • 122 Savanette, anticline at, view (Pl.
Rivi~re Fer-a-Cheval, anticline on, XXVI, A.) • • • • • • • . • • • • • • • • 336
view (Pl. XXVI, A) • • . • • • . • 336 Savannas, vegetation . . . . . . . . • . • . . 63
Rivi~re Gauche, Pliocene deposits, Scherer, J ., acknowledgments. • . . . . 26
marine ................. 239- 240 cited ...................... 54, 55
R evi~re Gosseline, basalt from near, publications on Haitian earth·
photomicrograph (Pl. XXIII, quakes ...•............. 338-339
A) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316 Schist, chloritic . . . . . • . • . • • . . . . . . 309
section on (Fig. 6) . • • . . • . • • . • 129 hornblende ................ 308-309
Rlvi~re Bonde, Thomonde forma· quartz-mica, garnetiferous, Pale-
tion on, view (Pl. XIV, .A) • • 168 ozoic ( ? ) , near Le Trou .•... 84- 85
Road building, present state .... 494-495 talc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309

•
 •

628 INDEX.

PAGY PAGE
Sedimentary rocks .............. 84-259 Southern Peninsula Continued.
Shannon, E. V., acknowledgments... 25 iron deposits .............. 479-480
analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298 Miocene deposits, north coast. 223-226
Shore vegetation ................ 64-65 Miocene fossils, north coast .. 225-226
Silver, summary stateme::it . . . . . . . . 424 sections across (Fig. 20) . . . . . . 322
Smith, Glenn S., triangulation. . . . . . 24 subaqueous profiles off (Fig. 25) 417
Solution breccla, defined. . . . . . . . . . . 109 tectonic features .......... 335-336
Source (or Sources) : Springer, Frank, acknowledgments. . 25
Barron . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 572 report on fossil crinoids cited. . 26
Belair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 584 Springs ....................... 550-566
Bois de Ch~ne . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 584 artesian . ........ ......... 552-553
Bon Ami .................. 573-57 4 Cap Haitien water supply ....... 578,
Carron . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 573 582-585
Cerisier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 573 classification .............. 550-551
Chaudeau ................ 571-572 contact ................... 551-552
Chaudes (Eaux Boynes) .... 558-562 from solution channels in lime-
• analysis of water. . . . . . . . . 561 stone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 551
geographic and geologic from fractures in impervious
features ............ 558-560 rocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 553
Individual springs ..... 560-561 Mirago!ne, analyses of water. . 554
map (Fig. 34) . . . . . . . . . . . 559 Port-au-Prince water supply. 569-570,
origin ................ 561-562 571-574
Chaudes de Dame-Marie (or de salty, contaminated by sea-
J~r~mie) ............... 565-566 water .................. 55 3-554
analysis of water. . . . . . . . . 566 sulphur (sources puantes) ... 554-557
geographic and geologic Cul-de-Sac Plain, analysis
features ................ 565 of water . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 556
igneous rocks ........... 323 . origin ............ 555- 557
origin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 566 unusual .................. 553- 566
Chaudes de Los Pozos ....... 562-564 wa1·m (sou1·ces chaudes) ..... 557-566
analysis of water . . . . . . . . 564 water of, quality .......... 542- 544
geographic and geologic See also Sour·ce.
features ............ 562-564 Stanton, T. ,V,, acknowledgments. . 25
map (Fig. 35) . . . . . . . . . • . 563 Steiger, George, acknowledgments . . 25
orig in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 564 Stream terraces in Central Plain,
Cinq Carreux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 583 view (Pl. XXIX, B) . . . . . . . . 380
d, Argent ................. 573-57 4 Streams, principal, features ....... 33-34
d' Aubry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 583 water ot, quality ........... 542- 544
Despuzeaux, :flow . . . . . . . . . . . . 517 Structure. Bee T ectonics.
Diquini . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 571 Subaqueous profiles, sections (Figs.
Du Buisson and nearby 23, 24, 25) ......... 365, 377' 417
springs ........... ..... . 583-584 Submerged troughs, West Indies,
George . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 583 origin .................. 337-338
Jean ....................... 583 Suga.r, cultivation ................ 70- 71
Le Clerc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 572 exports, 1791 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Maneville, analysis of water. . . . 543 Sugar mill, view (Pl. VII, A.)... . . . 74
Mansuy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 584 Surface features, summary account .. 30-32
Millet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 573
Plaisance •................ 572-573 T
analysis of water. . . . . . . . . 543
Puantes, view (Pl. XL, C) . . . . . 520 Taber, Stephen, acknowledgments. . . 28
See also Springs, sulphur. Tannerie (la), fault.............. 95
Tipenne . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 583 Upper Cretaceous limestone near 94
Turgeau . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 572 Tapion du Petit-Goave, Miocene de-
analysis of water. . . . . . . . . 543 posits .................. 224-225
Southern Peninsula, basalt, chem- Pliocene deposits . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
ical analysis and norm. . . . . . 325 Tectonic history ............... 332-337
Cretaceous deP-Osits .......... 92-93 Tectonic trends, map showing (Pl.
emerged coastal terraces, north XXIV) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332
coast .................. 413-414 Tectonics ..................... 331-338
south coast ........... 409-410, general features ........... 331--332
412-413, 415- 516 See also names of regions and
igneous rocks, western part. . . . 323 localities.

•
 INDEX. 629

PAGE PAGE
Telegraph systems .....•......... 83 Terre-Neuve district Continued.
Telephone systems .............. . 83 glassy pyroxene andesite from,
Temperature, Bayeux ............ . 37 photomicrograph (Pl. XXII,
Cap-Hartlen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 B) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304
curves showing (Fig. 2) ...... 41, 51 granodiorite from . . . . . . . . . . . . 431
daily va1·lation .............. 40, 42 photomicrograph (Pl. XXII,
Fu.rcy ..................... . 39 A) •..•.••.•.•.•.••.• 8 04
Gan tier ................... . 38 igneous rocks ............. 429-432
Gonaives .................. . 38 general features and age. 429- 430
IAes Cayes ................. . 39 labor and transPortation, cost of 448
•
maximum .................. . 42 location and access ......... 425-428
mean annual ...•............ 40
mineral deposits ........... 425-459
minim um .................. . 42
general character and ex-
P~tionville ................. . 39
tent ............... 435-436
Port-au-Prince ............. . 38
Port-de-Paix ................ . 37 map (Fig. 26) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 426
tables showing .............. 36-39 mining development, history
Terraces, Artibonite Valley ...... 384- 387 of ..................... 433- 435
Artibonite Valley, view (Pl. rocks in, rela tlons of, sections .
XXX, A) . . . . . . • • • . . • • • • • • 386 (Fig. 27) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 442
Bombardopolis Plateau ..... 371- 375 sedimentary deposits . . . . . . . . . 429
Cap St.-Nicolas, view (Pl. structure ................. 432-433
XXVIII. C) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372 vein deposits .............. 450-459
Cen tr~tl Pl 11 in ..... ........ 380-381 character and distribution
view (Pl. XXIX, B) . . . . . . 380 450 451, 455-456, 457, 458-459
~1f>l(\ Ht. -Nicolas Bay, view (Pl. conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . 459
• XXVIII, B) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372 Dolan ......•......... 457-458
St.-~1arc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 394 enrichment ........... 454-455
Southern P eninsula (north general features and dis-
coast) ................. 413-414 tribution . . . . • . . . . . . . . 450
Southern P eninsula (south mineralogy ........•.. 453-454,
coast) . 409-410, 412-413, 415-416 457' 458, 459
Thomassique . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 492 prospects ... 451, 456, 458, 459
Tortue I sland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355 Ravine Jeanty ......... 455- 457.
view (PI. XXVIII, A) .•.•. 372 Rocher ............... 450-455
Terre-Neuve district, andesite. . . . . . 430 tenor. 452-453, 456-457, 458, 459
ba sa 1tic rocks ............. 430-4 31 Terre-N euve .......... 458-459
contact-metamorphic deposits.436-440 wall rock, alteration of. 455, 457
conclusions ........... 448- 449 Tertiary deposits ............... 98-243
distribution and structural co1·relation table ........... 100-101 •

features ............ 441-443 Thomassique, beds in Central Plain

general f eatures ....... 436-437 near, view (Pl. XXXVII, A). 492
igneous rocks, metamor- Thomazeau, nephelite basal ts near. . 315
phism .............. 439-440 rainfall ............•.... 46, 49, 50
limestone altered to marble 440 Tbomonde anticline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 490
mineralizing solutions, ori- Thomonde formation, fossils ..... 173- 190
gin and features ..... 440-441 Maissade tongue .......... 165-197
new deposits, possibility of relations, diagram showing
finding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 446 (Fig. 11) . . . . • . . . . . • . . 169
ores of, assays ........... 447 mollusks of, views (Pl. XV) . . . 176
prospects ..... 443, 445-446 overlap of, diagram showing
tenor ............. 4 46-448 (Fig. 10) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
tactlte mineral composi- section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
tion ............... 437-439 view (Pl. XIV, A) . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
copper ore, assays ..... 447, 452, 465 Tiburon, rainfall ............ 49, 50, 51
daclte . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 430 Tiburon ar1·ondissement, Cretaceous
daci te porphyry ........... 431-432 deposits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
dtorite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431 Tippenhauer, L. G., acknowledg-
faults and fissures .......... 432-433 ments •.................. 24, 26
folds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 432 Tobacco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
geologic map (Pl. II) ...... In pocket 'l'ortue Island, drainage. . . . . . . . . . . 35
geology ................... 428-432 emerged coastal terraces. . . . . . 355
general features ......... 428 view (Pl. XXVIII, A) . . . . . 372

•
630 • INDEX •

PAGE PAGE
Tortue Island--Contlnued. Volcanic d~bris (bedded), view (PI.
forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 XVIII, B) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280
geographic relations . . . . . . . . . . 354 Volcanic rocks. See Igneous rocks,
geomorphology ............ 354-356 Andesite, Dacite, Basalt.
Oligocene deposits . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Paleozoic ( ? ) deposits. . . . . . . . • 85 w
shore features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355 Washington, H. S., acknowledgments 25
subllttoral features ........ 355-356 analyses .... 276, 292, 304, 316, 325
upland forms .............. 354-355 Water, analyses ..... 543, 544, 545, 540,
water resources ........... 541-542 548, 549, 554, 556, 561, 564, 566
Trade (foreign), principal coun- analyses, graphic comparis-
tries ...................... 80-81 ons .................... 547-550
value, 1788, 1791, 1889-91, 1903, quality ................... 542-550
1913, 1917-20 ......•...... 77 lakes, fresh ........... 542-544
Trails ......................... . 82 salt .............. 545- 54 7
Transportation .................. 81-83 springs, common ....... 542- 544
Trois Rivi~res Valley, arglllite, view mineral . . . . . . . . . . . . . 547
(PL VIII, A) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 streams .............. 542- 544
artesian possiblll ties . . . . . . . . . 537 wells ................. 544-545
Cretaceous deposits . . . . . . . . . . 88 Water power, possible sources .... 593-595
faults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336 Water resources ............... 513-607
Miocene deposits .......... 159- 160 surface and ground water sup-
Oligocene (middle) deposits. . . 147 ply .................... 514-550
Oligocene (upper) deposits .. 151- 152 See also names of regions and
surface features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 7 localities.
tectonic features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 6 Water supplies (public) ........ 566-593
water resources ............ 536-537 Anse Rouge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 591
Trou (le) , rainfall ............... : 50 Baie de Henne ............ 590-591
Tutr, calcareous, Upper Cretaceous, Cap-Haitlen ............... 577-590
Massif de la Selle .......... 95-96 Gonarves ................. 591-592
Grand-Gosier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 593
Jacmel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 593
u J ~r~mle .................. 592-593
United States Bureau of Mines, ac- L~ogane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 592
knowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Les Cayes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 593
United States Bureau of Public MOie St.-Nicolas . . . . . . . . . . . . . 590
Roads, acknowledgments . . . . 25 Pestel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 592
United States Department of Agri- Port-au-Prince ............ 566-577
cnlture, acknowledgments . . . 25 Port-de-Pnix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 590
St.-~:larc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 592
United States Geological Survey, co- Sal trou . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 93
operation by ....... 23, 24, 25, 27
Well water, quality ............. 544-545
Upper Cretaceous. See Cretaceous Wells, Cap-Haitien, analysis of water 544
deposits (Upper). Cul-de-Sac Plain ........... 519-525
Dessources, analysis of water. • 544
v '' Hasco '' mill and residences,
logs .................... 524-525
Vaudreuil, pumping plant. . . . . . . . . 524 La Morinl~re . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 520
well at, analysis of water. . . . . . 544 analysis of water. . . . . . . . . 544
log . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 524 log .................. · · 521
Vaughan, T. W., acknowledgments. 25, 26 view (Pl. XL, A) ........ . 520
work done by................ 23 Peyrard, log ............... · 520
Vegetables grown for domestic con- Vaudreuil, analysis of water .. . 544
sumption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 log ................ · · · · · 524
Vegetation, features .............. 57-65 Wells, R. C., analysis ............ . 292
halophytic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 West Indian geographic features,
savannas . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 course of ................. 28
shore line .................. 64- 6:> map showing (Fig. 1) . . . . . . . . . 29
types . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 submerged troughs, origin ... 337-338
xerophytic • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Wetmore, Alexander, acknowledg-
Ville Bonheur. See Saut d'Eau. ments ................. · . . 2 v~
Virgin Islands, quartz diorlte, chem- report on Quaternary birds
ical analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292 I cited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
 •

INDEX. 631

PAGE PAGE
Winds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C>6 Woodring, W. P., and Brown, J. S.,
Woodring, W. P., bibliography by. 596-607 on geography ...•.......... 28-83
Introduction by .............. 23-27 on nonmetals .•........••.. 480-512
on earthquakes ............ 338-350 on sedimentary rocks ........ 84-259
on Eocene Foraminifera of genus Woodring, W. P., and Mansfield, W.
C., on new middle Eocene and
Dictyoconus •..•......... 608-61 O
lower Miocene mollusks ... 611-613
on geology of Central Plain, cited 26
Woodring, W. P., Brown, J. S., and
on middle Eocene Foraminlfera, Burbank, W. S., on geology. 84-422
cited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 on geomorphology .......... 354-422
on OrthaulafD, cited . . . . . . . . . . 26
on results of reconnaissance,
x
Xeropbytic vegetation . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
cited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
26
view (Pl. IV, B) . . . . . . . . • . . . . 58
on tectonic fea tu1·es, cl ted. . . . . 26
on tectonics .............. 331- 338 z
summary of geologic history. 350-353 Zepiny, copper-bearing veins. . . . • . . 464

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