TOPOGRA PH Y. The surface of Nova Scotia is undulating. and traversed by broken ranges of bilk. whose direction is in general that of the long axis of the province. The direction of these uplifts-, together with their rock-formation. iden tifies the region :us a part of the Appalachian system. The highlands of the province may roughly be grouped into three sections: first, those running along the Atlantie coast. consti tuting the backbone of the peninsula, and form ing a wide plateau narrowing to the northeast, where they represent the projection of Cape Canso; second, the Col-quid llills. which form the isthmian projection into the Bay of Fundy, :old run thence sontheost, until, in the eastern end of the peninsula, they mist the first named range: third, a very narrow and detached range rap rock on the coast of the Bay of Fundy, separated from the main plateau by Saint Nary's Bay and the valley of the Annapolis River.
The great plateau of the peninsula seems to have !wen originally a vast upheaval of Dern. Ide) age, probably as high as 10.000 feet. This has been 410111'1rd by the action of wind and water to its present condition ref a peneplain not more than 61)1) to 1000 feet high. Some residual
hills of hard rock have been left, and in ninny places the igneous granite core of the former mountain has been laid bare. The remain ing rocks covering the core on either side belong chiefly to the Cambrian system, especial ly along the eastern coast. There are some out ereppings of the Algonkian group, and along the northern and western edge of the plateau there are remnants of highly fnssiliferons De vonian and Upper Silurian strata. The triassie lowlands to the north and west of the plateau around the Basin of Minas were probably formed by submarine denudation. They arc underlaid by very thick strata of Carboniferous rock. The Cobequid plateau, which rises from the midst of these lowlands, has lately been shown to be of late Devonian origin.
The greater portion of the province drains to the southward, through numerous short rivers. Small lakes are also numerous, Lake Rossignol in the south being the largest on the peninsula. The large body of water in Cape Breton island. called Bras d'Or Lake, is more properly nut inland sea.